Bodydoodles

Bodydoodles - Do I really get to draw tatoos on you?

I was torn about whether to buy Bodydoodles. I thought about it, then I thought about it some more, then some more. Since I got it brand new but second hand, the price was cheap. But I wondered how appropriate it would be in a therapy setting to encourage kids to write on themselves, something they may have been reprimanded for in the past. Curiosity, the fact that the markers will wash off any skin type, and the fact that I work with a very high functioning individual that has always doodled on her hands and arms helped me make my decision. I am now the proud owner of Bodydoodles.

The goal is to draw "tattoos" on someone else's body while players guess what you are drawing. Kind of like Pictionary with a very personal twist. You have to admit it's a unique way to get a writing tool into the hands of kids.
 
The markers are what are unique about this game. Drawings on your skin are easily removed with a wash cloth, soap and water. I tried it on myself to make sure it was so before using it with another person. Yes, they did easily wash off my skin, although the box says different people might get different results and you may need to take a shower to get it all off. I didn't. There are four marker colors - pink, green, blue and black. My skin is just a little darker, since it is the end of the summer and I have been swimming a lot, and the pink marker does not show up very well on my skin. However, the other three show up fine. You can buy additional markers from the company once these are used up. 

UPDATE: A shadow of the blue tends to linger after it is washed. I made small marks on myself and left it on for about 8 hours and the blue is the only one that left a faint shadow after washing. It disappeared as I washed my hands several times during the course of the day.

There are two sets of cards - one set to tell you what part of the body to draw on and one set to tell you what to draw. Here are a few examples from each set:

• Body part cards - Right shin, left upper arm, left knee, right elbow
• Doodle cards - These cards come in three levels of difficulty and the more difficult the drawing, the more points you will earn (from 1 to 3).
• 1 point - Hair, firefighter, ballerina, campfire
• 2 points - Aliens, doing a cartwheel, squirrel, spider web
• 3 points - Windy, snowstorm, shouting, directing traffic

Object:
Earn the most points for correctly identifying the tattoos that are being drawn. Determine what that point value will be before starting a game.

Setup:
Shuffle each set of cards and place the two stacks, face-down, in the reach of all players. Set the markers nearby.

Play:
The first player chooses one card from each pile and keeps the doodle card secret. They choose a player to draw on and use the location from the body card and any color marker(s). All players guess as tattoos are drawn. The first person to guess correctly AND the person drawing each get the point value on the card. The body card is put at the bottom of the draw pile and the doodle card is discarded. Play until one player has reached that magic number of points that you set before starting the game. Declare that person the winner.

Try this:

• Go through the cards ahead of time and take out everything you don't want, or better yet, pick out just what you do want. For instance, you may not have access to or want to draw on certain body parts and you may want to play with only the easy or only the difficult cards.
• Let the person who will be drawing choose their own card of what to draw. Some people are better at drawing than others so why put people on the spot.
• Play with just two people. Draw on each others arms (and/or elsewhere) and guess what is being drawn on your body. Don't bother to keep score.
• Make your drawings in different orientations so the person is not always looking at it upright.
• Draw your own body tattoo. Make it as big and colorful as you want, then wash it off.
• Work on body awareness, use of a writing tool, creativity, manual dexterity, fine motor precision, socialization skills, process skills, play and leisure exploration and participation

In the box: 4 washable tattoo markers, 30 body cards, 150 doodle cards 

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.