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Mrs. Pagel's Running Classes
Twin Tag
November 14, 1999
Kate Pagel, Oneida Nation School, Oneida, Wisconsin
Photos by Carin Buckman
Editor's Note: The photos show my class playing 'addition tag' a variation of Twin Tag. The following is from Mrs. Pagel's curriculum guide which she designed for the Oneida Nation Elementary School in Oneida, Wisconsin. We had a ball playing Twin Tag and it was apparent that the kids could run much further and longer when playing a running game, than when just going outside for a class distance run. I hope that you get a chance to play this game someday. 
Triplets
History: This game comes from the Northwest Coastal Tribes. The males of the tribe generally played this, as it was a very rough game.
Cultural Significance: For the Oneida this game takes on particular significance. Their "Creation Story" evolves around the antics of twin brothers born from Sky Woman. There is the Good Twin, and the Bad Twin.
Teaching Cues: This game is used to develop the concept of twins, cooperation, camaraderie, safety and fair play.
Equipment: None
1) Discuss with the students the concepts of the Oneida Good and Bad Twins. Discuss how together they helped develop the Earth, as we now know it; the animals, plants, weather, good and bad aspects.
2) Discuss the historical way in which this game was played; using rawhide to tie two braves' legs and ankles together.
3) Discuss the safety considerations and why today we hold hands instead.
Directions:
1) Select a partner
2) Elect which pair of twins will be "IT" first.
3) On the "Go" signal, the pairs of players try to away while "IT" attempts to tag one of the partners.
4) Students must keep hands, or they become it if they break their handhold.
Variations: 1) Play a form of addition tag. Start with twins being it, and all other players solo. When It catches another student, they must become triplets until the fourth student has been tagged. At this point the quadruplets become two sets of twins who are both considered "IT"
Lots of Decision Making
Safety Considerations:
1) Watch for crack the whip type behavior.
2) Watch for 'clothes-lining' of students.
Fast Kids
Teachable Moments:
1) Cooperation wins the game. Twins must work as a team and not pull against one another.
2) Fitness factors such as heart rate, stamina, strength, can be discussed.
3) Integration of math into the physical education setting: stop class now and then and ask how many pairs there are, or give students simple subtraction addition problems to solve with their pairs. (Gives students a break to catch breath while still keeping their minds active.)
4) Integration of History/Social Studies/Geography into the PE setting:
Geography: Locate and Discuss these areas on a map: NW coastal area, NE coastal area, Oneida Nation of New York State, Oneida Nation of Wisconsin
Social Studies: Discuss the migration of the Oneida Indians to Wisconsin from New York; discuss the history of the reservations and the displacement of the Native People, Debate the idea of Sovereign Rights
History: Discuss the Iroquois Federation and its links to the US Constitution
Kids Keep Moving
Thank you to Mrs. Pagel for sharing your knowledge of Native American History and for describing this game for all the way cool running boys and girls of the world. 
Cooperation
Email "Way" Cool Running at carol@coolrunning.com .
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