Statues, also known as Red Light, Green Light in North America, and Grandma's/Grandmother's Footsteps or Fairy Footsteps in the United Kingdom is a popular children's game, often played in different countries. There are variations of play throughout different regions of the world.

General rules

Variations

Red Light, Green Light

Red Light, Green Light is a variation of Statues played throughout North America. The title of the game refers to the colors of a traffic light. There are different levels of stringency in regard to how much movement the Caller may observe to send a player back to the start. Some allow general movement as long as the players are not moving their feet from the ground, while others restrict any large bodily movements, such as swaying of the arms or even smiling. Blinking and breathing are generally permitted. In the Dutch version, instead of "green light!" the Caller sings in a slow voice "Annemaria", followed by a quick and loud "Koekoek!" ("Cuckoo!") when they turn around (like "red light!"). "Koekoek!" is also the Dutch equivalent of a Peekaboo game played with babies, where the parents hide their face with their hands, then reveal themselves whilst saying "Peek-a-boo!" (also known in Dutch as "Kiekeboe!"). The Flemish version of the game is called "1, 2, 3 Piano", in which the Caller shouts "één, twee, drie, piano!" (translating to one, two, three, piano in English) before turning around to the other players. Only during the time this sentence is being shouted, the participants are allowed to move.

Winnie the Pooh

Winnie the Pooh is a variation of Statues where the person playing "Pooh" (the Curator) usually leans against a wall and has to shout "1, 2, 3, Winnie the Pooh, stop!" (so it is long enough for the players to reach some distance and because of the rhyme it provides in Bulgarian, where this version comes from) before turning to face the players. Whenever a player tags Pooh they have to run so it doesn't catch them. If they manage to go back to the wall where Pooh was leaning before it catches them, they become Pooh and the game starts over. In this variation the role of Pooh is more desirable.

Team building exercise

Another variation of the game was altered as a team building exercise. It follows the Red Light, Green Light rules with exception that if anybody moves after the red light the whole team must return to the starting line. Also, the object of the game is for the players to "steal" an "object" positioned near the "it" person and return with it to the other side of the field. Once the "object" is moved it has to stay hidden from "it", who has several chances to guess who has it at the moment. If guessed successfully then the whole team must return to the starting line.

Other names

In popular culture