What Animal Am I?

This game is from 'Games for Children' by Cecily M Rutley, about 1932

'This is a splendid game for a party, and the more of you there are to play the greater fun it will be.

'You must get ready beforehand a number of fairly large sheets of paper or thin cardboard, on each of which the name of some animal, bird, fish or insect is clearly printed in large letters. If some of you are clever at drawing, and can draw or paint sketches of the different animals, instead of merely printing their names, it will be all the better. If you cannot do this yourselves, perhaps you can get an older brother or sister or grown-up to do this for you. Or you could cut pictures of animals out of old papers, magazines, and Christmas cards, and stick them on to the sheets. You can either have only animals such as the horse, elephant, camel and so on, or you can have names or sketches of any animal, bird, fish or insect.

'When you are ready to play the game, a name or drawing must be pinned with a safety-pin on to each player's back, but no player must see the name or drawing on the sheet that is pinned on his - or her - back.

'When every player has a name or drawing, the signal to start is given, and the players begin to walk about, asking questions of one another, and trying to find out the name of the creatures they are wearing. For instance, one player goes up to another and says "Have I four legs?" The other looks at his - or her - back, and if he sees the name "Elephant", or the picture of an elephant, he answers "Yes!" The player then goes to another player, and asks another question, and directly he has guessed his animal correctly, his sheet is taken off, and another is pinned on to his back. All the players ask questions in a similar way, and have a new name or picture pinned on each time they have guessed the last correctly. One player should look after the sheets, take them off, and pin them on the others' backs as they guess.

'You can go on playing until you are tired. Be sure you have plenty of sheets for pinning on to backs. If you like there can be a prize for the player who guesses the most animals on his back.'