Twelve free sheets for inclusive traditional games, four from each partner country, with history, step-by-step rules and adaptations so nobody is left out.
They are finished: 12 sheets for inclusive traditional games, four from each project country. Each sheet explains where the game comes from, how to play it step by step and how to adapt it so that nobody is left on the sidelines. They are free and designed to be taken out to the playground tomorrow.
During the first months of I-PLAY we asked a very specific question in Spain, Türkiye and Poland: which of our games deserve to stay alive and can be played today with any group? The answer is 12 game sheets, written in English using a common template and now finalised.
These are not museum pieces. They are written so that someone who has never seen the game can lead it without a rehearsal, using whatever equipment they have to hand.
How we chose each game
We couldn't include everything. Each country proposed its games in a shared list, and every proposal was described using the same fields before any decision was made.
Category. It has to be a traditional game or sport, with its origin and cultural context identified.
Age range. The list works with young people aged 13 to 30.
Inclusion focus. Each game is classified according to who it primarily targets: gender equality, migrants or refugees, people with disabilities, or a mixed approach.
Physical intensity. The level of effort (HEPA, health-enhancing physical activity) is recorded, so that active and calmer games can be combined in the same session.
Materials. What is needed to play, and what it can be replaced with.
Each game is first listed as "proposed" and only moves to "confirmed" once its sheet is complete. Three shared targets define the result: a minimum of 12 games, at least 40% focused on groups at risk of exclusion, and contributions from all three partners.
The result is deliberately balanced: four games per country, 12 in total. No tradition carries more weight than another in the library.
What you will find in each sheet
All the sheets follow the same structure, so if you can read one, you can read all twelve. That is intentional: people who train others need a predictable format.
Each sheet has ten sections:
Basic information. Name in the local language and in English, country or cultural origin, age range and the organisation that documented it.
Short description. Where the game comes from, who played it and what it meant to its community. This ensures the game does not reach the playground cut off from its history.
Materials and equipment. What you need and, almost always, which recycled or everyday materials you can use instead.
Set-up and space. Minimum and maximum number of players, indoors or outdoors, set-up time and length of a game.
How to play. Step-by-step instructions, free of jargon and in the order they happen.
Inclusion focus. Which group the game primarily targets and the level of physical effort it requires.
Inclusive adaptations. First the barriers identified, then three concrete blocks: changes to rules and equipment for people with disabilities, language and cultural adaptations for migrants or refugees, and measures to ensure equal participation between girls and boys.
Learning outcomes. Which skills the game develops, both social and emotional (cooperation, communication, conflict resolution, cultural awareness, confidence) and physical and cognitive (fine and gross motor skills, strategic thinking, concentration, coordination and balance).
Safety and risks. Physical risks, the supervision required and the precautions to take.
Evaluation questions. Four questions to answer after the session, including one on which adaptations you made and whether they worked.
The adaptations section is the heart of the work. It appears in all 12 sheets, not just a selection of them.
A game from each country
The 12 games come from three very different traditions, and you can tell when you play them.
Spain — the Basque Country and northern Spain. The four Spanish sheets are lokotxak, the snail race, the frog game (la rana) and the fishing game: games with rural and festive roots, linked to work on the farmstead and to village fairs, taverns and squares.
Lokotxak (corncob gathering). A traditional Basque sport of speed and agility: wooden corncobs are laid out in a straight line with a basket at one end, and each participant runs to the nearest one, drops it in the basket and returns to the line until all have been collected; its origins lie in the maize harvest on Basque farmsteads.
Türkiye — festive and community culture. The four Turkish sheets are mendil kapmaca, kaleli yakan top, aşık çıkarma and dokuz kiremit: Anatolian street and village games played at festivals, celebrations and tournaments. Dokuz kiremit, for example, is still alive in school playgrounds.
Mendil Kapmaca (steal the handkerchief). Two teams line up facing each other, with one person in the middle holding a handkerchief: when their number is called, one player from each team runs to grab it and get back to their safe zone without being tagged by their opponent.
Poland — street games. The four Polish sheets are palant, hopscotch, marbles and skipping rope: playground, street and meadow games with minimal equipment and rules passed down from generation to generation, learnt from older siblings, cousins and neighbours.
Palant. A Polish bat-and-ball game, played for generations in school playgrounds, meadows and courtyards and considered one of the historical precursors of baseball and rounders: the ball is struck, the batter runs to a turning point and back to the starting line before the opposing team retrieves the ball.
From sheet to playground in four steps
If you are a teacher, a youth leader or run an association, this is what you can do with an hour's preparation.
Choose a game to suit your group, not your taste. Look at the number of players, the space and the equipment before the name.
Read the adaptations section before the session. Decide from the outset which version you will use, so that nobody has to ask for an exception in front of the others.
Tell the story in two minutes and play. First where the game comes from, then a practice round, and then the real game.
Note what worked and what you changed. That is what the evaluation questions at the end of the sheet are for: your notes help us improve the version the next school or centre will use.
And there is an optional fifth step: get trained. From 7 to 11 September 2026, trainers from the three countries meet in Biga (Çanakkale, Türkiye) to learn how to use traditional games in youth work. The training programme and project materials will be published in open access.
Browse the 12 sheets and tell us how it went
A documented game no longer depends on someone remembering it. Twelve documented games, adaptations included, are a heritage that any playground in Europe can use without permission or budget.
The sheets are being published in the Games Library at i-play.abarka.org. Browse them, try them with your group and write to tell us how it went: every adaptation you send us helps us improve the sheet.