Hand game



Hand games are games played using only the hands of the players. Hand games exist in a variety of cultures internationally, and are of interest to academic studies in ethnomusicology and music education. Hand games are used to teach music literacy skills and socio-emotional learning in elementary music classrooms internationally.

Examples of hand games

 * Chopsticks (sticks)
 * Clapping games
 * Mercy
 * Morra (finger counting)
 * Odds and evens
 * Pat-a-cake and variations:
 * Mary Mack
 * Red hands (or hand-slap game)
 * Rock paper scissors
 * Thumb war (or thumb wrestling)
 * "Where are your keys?" (language acquisition game)

Less strictly, the following may be considered hand games:
 * Bloody knuckles
 * Fingers (drinking game)
 * Jacks
 * Knife game
 * Spellbinder
 * Stick gambling
 * String games, such as cat's cradle