This game is actually two games in one! This game simulates some of the elements of hunting wild game. Enormous animals like bison! Early human hunters were known for channeling their prey through narrow passages, making the targets easier to hit. Once a bison is hit with a spear or arrow(s), the hunters must get much closer to finish off the prey. This was a risky proposition for the hunters. Even though the animal is hurt, it could easily gore and kill a hunter if they are not careful and do not work together. This game replicates that method by having lots of “bison” running through a narrow space with hunters on the periphery. Once a bison player is “hit,” the next phase of the game happens with a cat-and-mouse style tag game.

Buffalo and other large games were vital for the existence of early humans. Besides the large quantities of meat they provided, hides could be used for clothing, shelter, and the bones and connective tissue for various tools. Of course, it was risky, but going for a big game had a high-risk to high-reward ratio. When your students study early humans, one of the vignettes almost always seems to feature early humans hunting a large animal like a bison. This game will help those pictures come alive as students take turns as hunters and bison.

Materials: 

·      Several soccer balls that can be rolled on the ground

·      A few flag belts that can be used as a target to be pulled off

Minimum Amount of Students Needed: This game could be played with as little as three to four students but is much more fun with numbers closer to twenty.

Age: Lower elementary (and possibly upper elementary)