Collected and Edited by David Frydenlund (last revised in 2013)

Observation and Memory

Kim's Game

Collect on a tray a number of articles-knives, spoons, pencil, pen, stones, book and so on, not more than about fifteen, and cover the whole over with a cloth. Have the Patrol sit where they can all see the tray, and uncover it for one minute. Then each of them must make a list on a piece of paper of all the articles lie can remember. The number correct is the Scouts score. Average this number for the Patrol score. High score wins. Variation, the Patrol collaborates on one list. Variation, the Patrol is given a list with the items plus at least twice as many more, and they choose from the list what was actually there. Wrong selections are deducted from correct choices and high score wins. The game changes if very limited time is allowed for preparing the list of sighted articles.

SLOPPY CAMP (A version of Kim's game)

Campsite set up with 20+ items wrong. Patrol has 5 minutes to observe(silently). Then 5 minutes to list all they saw. Set up a tent and simple fireplace and scatter mistakes on site: a carelessly dropped ax; a glass jar next to the fireplace; poorly set tent pegs and badly tied guylines; etc. Include, as well, some personal items like sleeping bags, patrol scarves, shirts with identification on them, name tags, etc. Give patrols five minutes to study the site. They are not to talk, but they can touch what they see as long as they leave an item exactly as they found it. Patrols then huddle to prepare a list of all the things they found wrong in the camp. Best list wins. As patrols hand in their lists, add to the contest by giving each a card of questions asking, for example, How many boys were camping? What troops or patrols do they belong to? etc.

A MEMORY GAME

In order to play this game successfully, it is necessary that the list of words and sentences given below be memorized by one of the players, who acts as leader. This leader, turning to his next neighbor, remarks: "One old owl." The latter turns to his neighbor, and gives the same formula. So it passes around the circle till it comes to the leader again, who repeats it, and adds the formula: "Two tantalizing, tame toads." again it goes around, and again, and each time the leader adds a new formula, until the whole is repeated, up to ten. It is safe to say, however, that no society will ever get that far. Those who forget part of the formula are dropped from the circle. Here is the whole:

One old owl.
Two tantalizing, tame toads.
Three tremulous, tremendous, terrible tadpoles.
Four fat, fussy, frivolous, fantastic fellows.
Five flaming, flapping, flamingoes fishing for frogs.
Six silver-tongued, saturnine senators standing strenuously shouting: " So-so."
Seven serene seraphs soaring swiftly sunward, singing: " Say, sisters."
Eight elderly, energetic, effusive, erudite, enterprising editors eagerly eating elderberries.
Nine nice, neat, notable, neighborly, nautical, nodding nabobs nearing northern Normandy.
Ten tall, tattered, tearful, turbulent tramps, talking tumultuously through tin trumpets.

This can be made into a Camporee Game in a couple of ways but it can never be made totally fair in scoring for different sized Patrols. In the easiest to score, the "leader" is given the formula on paper and starts each round. A Scout who recites the entire formula for that round correctly scores one point. A Scout who makes a mistake scores zero. Scoring stops in the first round where no Scout scores a point. The number of points is divided by the number of Scouts minus one (the Leader who never had to remember anything). High score wins. A slightly faster variation has Scouts who fail in one (or possibly two consecutive) round drop out and Scouts drop out until none but the leader are left.