Hide The Thimble Game.

Rain has been keeping us indoors a lot lately. It reminded me of this fun game that Laura and Mary Ingalls would play when stuck in their cabin due to the long winter. We have enjoyed this game while stuck indoors many times. It makes a great game to play with grandparents too.

Hide The Thimble Game (with our variations):

Need:

Thimble

2 or more players

1. First player hides the thimble while the others close their eyes and count to 30-50 (depending on child’s age and need for hiding time).

2. All players (but the hider) start searching for the thimble.

3. The hider counts to 50 and if no one finds it in that time, the hider gets to start over and hide it again.

Our variations:

We have played this with longer hiding and seeking time for younger hiders/seekers.

We have played the “hot” and “cold” version to help guide finders to the thimble.

We have also put limits on hiding spaces, such as “only in the living room.”

We discovered this game from the book The World of Little House by Carolyn Strom Collins and Christina Wyss Ericksson. This book is a visual companion to the Little House Series. Each chapter focuses on a book and features diagrams of the houses, crafts, recipes and history. We enjoy the deeper information and illustration it provides.

5 thoughts on “Hide The Thimble Game.”

My mother taught me this game and I play it with my grandchildren. The primary difference in the version I learned is that the thimble has to be in “plain sight,” thus not truly hidden–so is on top of or next to things. We use a single room for the game and change rooms for the next time we play. This way new “hiding” places are discovered. It can be part of a lamp, placed strategically on a plant or decorative item, worn on one’s finger, etc. And if needed, help is given by way of hot or cold clues.

Pail and Pie says:

September 21, 2015 at 12:19 am

That sounds really cool. Love the finial on the lamp. My boys wouldn’t figure that one out!

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