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Butts Up or Wall Ball is a North American elementary school children's playground game originating in the 1950s or earlier.[citation needed]. It is slightly similar to the game Screen Ball, and began in the 1940s or 1950s as a penalty phase of various city street games.[citation needed] Butts Up is played with a ball (such as a tennis ball, handball, or racquetball) on a paved surface against a wall, with a variable number of participants—usually more than three and often likely to exceed ten. Butts Up tends to be played during recess, before or after school. [citation needed]. Popular in New England is another frequent variation of wall ball that usually differs a lot from the more widely known 'Butts Up'.
| Players | 3 or more |
|---|---|
| Setup time | None |
| Playing time | No limit |
| Chance | None |
| Age range | Preadolescence (9)and up |
| Skills | Running, catching, throwing |
Players determine the variations of the game prior to start of play. Some of the rules of the game very loosely resemble the rules of baseball and racquetball.
Names
editThere are many alternate names for butts up, including "Butt Ball,"[1] "Fireball,"[2] and “Chunkus.”[3]
Basic game
editPlayers line up facing a wall, one of them throwing a tennis ball or similar-sized ball against it. If the thrower fails to catch the ball on its return,[2] they must run and attempt to touch the wall - if another player can grab the ball and "hit them in the butt" with it before they reach the wall, the runner is out of the game until the next round. The game continues until two or three players remain.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b Tucker, Elizabeth (2008). Children's Folklore: A Handbook. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-313-34189-2.
- ^ a b Bishop, Ronald (9 April 2009). When Play Was Play: Why Pick-up Games Matter. SUNY Press. ISBN 978-1-4384-2604-4.
- ^ "We Need To Talk About "Chunkus" | Defector". defector.com. 2023-09-15. Retrieved 2023-09-15.
- Bailey, Guy. The Ultimate Playground & Recess Game Book (Educators Press 2001) ISBN 0-9669727-2-4
Further reading
edit- "Letters". New York Magazine. January 9, 2006.