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Recipe for Fun!
Rock, paper, scissors is a fun and easy hand game that anyone can learn and enjoy. It’s a great way to improve critical thinking and communication skills to help make minor decisions when kids and their friends can’t agree, or even just an entertaining way to pass the time.
Hand Signals:
Rock: Make a closed fist.
Paper: Lay fingers out flat and close together.
Scissors: Make a peace sign with your index and middle finger.
Hand Rules:
Rock beats scissors and loses to paper: Rock is strong enough to break scissors, but paper wraps itself around the rock to shut it down.
Paper beats rock but loses to scissors: Paper wraps itself around the rock to lock it down, but it can’t fight back against the sharp scissors which can cut it.
Scissors beat paper but loses to rock: Scissors can cut through paper, but they can’t stand up to a rock slamming down on them.
STEP 1: Both players should stand opposite each other. Explain what their nondominant hand is and instruct them to put it out flat out in front with their palm facing up (imagine making a platform for your other hand). Then show your child how to put their dominant hand on top.
- Rock, paper, scissors is normally only played with two people, but you can play with up to 3 people if you’d like.
- If more than 2 players, play can be done in a “round-robin” to see who will be the last one standing after multiple rounds.
STEP 2: Count “rock, paper, scissors” by tapping the hands together (like “1, 2, 3”). The players should count it out at the same time and on the call of “scissors”, the players should both put out their hand in either the rock, paper or scissor form. (Or the count can be “1-2-3” and the players can show their form as the 4th count, i.e. “1-2-3-show your hand as rock, paper or scissors”!)
STEP 3: Determine the winner. After both players have shown/played an object, check back at the Hand Rules to see who has won the round: Rock breaks Scissors, Scissors cuts Paper, Paper covers Rock.
- The player who picks the stronger of the two objects is the winner.
- If both players throw the same object, it’s a tie. In this situation, simply play again. Continue doing this until there is a clear winner.
- Rock, paper, scissors is often played as “best of 3” or “best of 5” since it’s such a quick and easy game to play.