Booby Trap

 

Booby Trap - Work carefully so you don't sent the pieces flying

Pull back on the spring loaded bar, hold it open while you place all the pieces on the board side by side, slowly lower the bar to meet the pegs and the Booby Trap is set and ready to go. Will you be the first one to set it off?

The game board is a wooden shallow box. The pieces are plastic and each piece has a stem coming up from the middle that is just right for a pincer grasp. This game comes in wood and plastic versions and we had the wood version when we were kids. I did not like the plastic version at all. The board seemed too flimsy and the pieces seemed too light and they slid against each other. Pulling out one often brought out others unintentionally. If you're going to buy it and you have a choice, I would buy the wooden one.

Object:
Have the most pieces at the end of the game.

Set up:
Place all the pieces side by side on the trap game board and carefully lower the bar to meet the pegs.

Play:
Players take turns. Remove any one piece. If you were able to do so without the bar moving, remove another piece. Keep going, one piece at a time, removing as many pieces as you can without the bar moving. Once the bar moves, your turn is over and the next person plays. Play until all the pieces have been removed and the bar snaps shut, or when someone removes a strategic piece and the trap is sprung, throwing pieces in every direction.

Try this:

• Tug ever so lightly on a piece before removing it. If it is loose, it is less likely to set off the trap.  If it is tight, try a different piece.
• Practice before playing a game to get a sense of how tight/loose pieces will react when you pull them out. 
• Assign points to the pieces - 3 to a large piece, 2 to a medium piece, 1 to a small piece. Add points instead of counting pieces to determine the winner.
• Play alone, taking the pieces off one at a time until the trap is sprung. Play again and try to take out one more.
• Hold several pieces in the hand when setting up the board, bringing them one at a time to the fingertips and rotating for placement without dropping any.
• Work on manual dexterity, pincer grasp, thumb opposition, eye-hand coordination, grading tension, spatial relations, figure ground, tactile perception, socialization skills, process skills, play and leisure exploration and participation

In the box: Wood Booby Trap game board, 21 large wooden pieces, 21 medium wooden pieces, 21 small wooden pieces
Ages 9+, 2-4 players
 
For more information, click on the image below.