Fire on the Mountain
A musical scramble game where children circle and race to pair up before someone is left out.
How to play
All players join hands in a large circle and walk or run around a central anchor player while chanting 'Fire on the mountain, run, run, run!'.
The anchor calls a number (e.g. 'Groups of three!').
Players immediately break the circle and scramble to form groups of exactly that number, holding onto each other.
Anyone left without a complete group squats in the middle for that round.
Play continues with different numbers called; players in the middle re-join when called.
For a simpler version with even numbers, the anchor simply shouts 'Fire!' and everyone finds a partner, the unpaired person goes to the middle.
Keep it fair
The anchor counts groups aloud to 10, any incomplete group found after the count of 10 must sit; this removes all disputes about 'I was already in a group'.
