Change the Game — So Everyone Can Play

The child becomes a “game inventor” whose job is to change a favourite game so that a player who does things differently can join in properly — not just watch.

  1. Pick a simple game you both know: catch, tag, hide-and-seek, skittles, a board game.
  2. Introduce a player — a soft toy, a doll, or a real person described kindly: “Bear wants to play, but Bear’s legs don’t run.” Other ideas: someone who can’t see well, can’t hear the “go!”, uses a wheelchair, is much smaller, or gets worried by loud noise.
  3. Ask: “What is tricky about our game for Bear? How could we change the game so Bear can really play?” Collect every idea — everyone sits to throw, tag by rolling a ball, use a flag instead of a shout, a bell inside the ball.
  4. Choose one idea and play the changed game for real, everybody following the new rule.
  5. Afterwards ask: “Was it still fun? Was it fair? What is Bear really good at that we could put in the game?”
  6. Name what happened: “We didn’t leave Bear out, and we didn’t just let Bear win. We changed the game.”

Variation: Reverse it — ask what the child finds hard (reaching the high shelf, reading the rules) and invent changes that help them. Everyone needs a different kind of help with something.

Requirements

  • Space: Whatever the chosen game needs — a room, hallway or garden
  • Surface: Any safe surface for the chosen game
  • Materials: A familiar game and its usual equipment, a soft toy or doll, optional scarf, bell or ball
  • Participants: 1 adult + 1 child; best with 2–4 children
  • Supervision: Moderate — adult guides the problem-solving and keeps the tone respectful

Rationale & Objective

Five-year-olds notice differences in ability and are forming rules about who “can” play. Diamond and Hong (2010) found that preschoolers were much more willing to include a peer with a physical disability when the activity needed few motor skills, and that prompts about fairness increased inclusion — the authors recommend adapting activities rather than expecting the child to fit the activity. This game teaches exactly that habit of mind: the barrier is in the rules, and rules can be changed. Favazza and Odom (1997) showed that kindergarteners’ acceptance of people with disabilities grows through stories, guided discussion and structured play together, not through exposure alone. The exercise deliberately avoids “pretend to be disabled” simulations, which tend to produce pity rather than respect, and instead keeps the focus on the player’s strengths and on fair access — consistent with the DEC/NAEYC definition of inclusion as access, participation and supports, and with Vivian Paley’s classroom rule “you can’t say you can’t play”. It targets the examples understands that not everyone can do the same things and includes peers who are different from them in play.

Progress Indicators

  • Early: says the player “can’t play” or should just watch; suggests letting them win; needs the adult to supply ideas
  • Developing: offers one workable change with prompting; follows the new rule for a few turns before sliding back to the old one
  • Proficient: suggests several changes, plays the adapted game fairly, and can say what the other player is good at
  • Advanced: adapts games unprompted for a younger sibling, a grandparent or a classmate; asks the person what would help instead of guessing; objects when someone is left out

Safety Notes

  • Check that the adapted game is still physically safe — no blindfolded running, clear floor space for seated or rolling games
  • Avoid making the child “try out” a disability with blindfolds or tied limbs as the main activity; it can teach fear or pity rather than respect
  • Use respectful, plain words (“uses a wheelchair”, “can’t hear”) and never mimic or joke about a way of moving or speaking
  • If the child has a disability themselves, let them be the expert on what helps, and never make them the example without their agreement
  • Do not reveal private information about a real child’s condition

Hints

  • Playfulness: give the child an inventor’s badge and a notebook for “new rules”; announce each adapted game with a grand new name
  • Sustain interest: bring a different player each time — a tiny toy, a very tall one, a grandparent with a sore knee — and a different game
  • Common mistake: making the game so easy that the new player wins automatically. Children spot charity; aim for a game that is truly fun for everyone
  • Limited space: adapt a board or card game at the table — bigger pieces, teams of two, colours instead of numbers, extra thinking time
  • Cross-domain: generating many solutions (creative thinking and problem-solving); explaining a new rule clearly (language); throwing, rolling and seated ball skills (motor)
  • Progression: adult suggests the change → child chooses between two ideas → child invents the change → child asks the player what would help → child adapts a game on the spot with real playmates

Sources

  • Diamond, K.E. & Hong, S.-Y. (2010), “Young children’s decisions to include peers with physical disabilities in play,” Journal of Early Intervention, 32(3)
  • Favazza, P.C. & Odom, S.L. (1997), “Promoting positive attitudes of kindergarten-age children toward people with disabilities,” Exceptional Children, 63
  • DEC/NAEYC (2009), Early Childhood Inclusion — joint position statement (access, participation, supports)
  • Paley, V.G. (1992), You Can’t Say You Can’t Play, Harvard University Press
  • Derman-Sparks, L. & Edwards, J.O., Anti-Bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves, NAEYC — learning about different abilities and fairness
  • CASEL framework — Social Awareness (recognizing strengths in others, respect for others)