Children's Games in Ancient China
During ancient times, children didn't have much to enjoy themselves. However, they came up with interesting games to play in their childhood.
Kicking stone balls
During the Qing Dynasty, kicking a stone ball around was a popular game in the northern part of
China, and it was often played in winter to keep warm.
Playing hide and-seek
Hide-and-seek is a traditional game for children, popular around the nation. There are two ways to play: covering a child's eyes while other kids run around to tease (戏弄) him or, more commonly, others hide and one child must try to find them.
Flying kites
Kites have quite a long history. The earliest kites were made of wood, instead of paper. The three most famous kites are the Beijing kite, Tianjin kite and Weifang kite. Each has its own feature. For example, the bird-shaped kite with long wings is a special kind of the Beijing kite.
Watching shadow plays (皮影戏)
The closest thing to watching a film during ancient times was going to see a shadow play. The artists control puppets (木偶) behind the screen and tell stories to the music.
