Play Snaps

Have you seen the movie "PS I Love You" with Hilary Swank and liked the game Snaps that her character plays? Or maybe you played the game of Snaps at camp and forgot how to play it. Learning to play Snaps is very simple and will provide hours of laughs for you and your friends or family.

Steps

Choosing a Word to Snap

#Know the basic rules of Snaps. The game of Snaps is a fairly simply concept that requires nothing other than at least two people, the ability to snap your fingers, and some creative thinking.

1. • The basic idea of Snaps is to spell out individual letters of a word using either a statement or a snap of your fingers.
   • There are at least two players in Snaps. The snapper is the person who chooses a word and then snaps out the answer. The receiver is the person who listens to the snapper and guesses the word.
   • For consonants, you’ll say a sentence or statement in which the first word starts with the same letter that you are trying to spell out. For example, if you choose “George Washington,” your first letter is a “G.” You’ll clue the receiver into the name by starting with a sentence like “Get ready.” This lets the receiver know that the first name of the person or the clue is “G.”
   • For vowels, you snap your fingers- hence the name of the game. Each vowel corresponds to a specific number of snaps. "A" is one snap, "E" is two snaps, "I" is three snaps, "O" is four snaps, and "U" is five snaps. Thus, for the second letter of “George Washington,” you would give two clear snaps for an “E.”
   • There is no cue for a space in between words.
2. Choose the name of a person that you want the receiver to guess. Since the idea of Snaps is to guess the name of someone, choose one that everyone can easily guess, such as a politician or celebrity.
   • For example, you can use “Hillary Clinton” or “Britney Spears.”
   • Try to avoid difficult names or names that start with difficult letters. For example, the name Xavier would be difficult to use because of the “x.” There are no words with which you could put together a cue sentence.
3. Decide if you want to give the receiver the exact name or the clue to the name. You don’t necessarily have to give your receiver the person’s exact name. To make it a bit more difficult, you can snap your receiver a clue to the person’s name.
   • For example, if you want the receiver to guess “George Washington” you could snap out the clue “first President.” For “Marlon Brando” you could use “the Godfather.”
4. Figure out good consonant statements and a clear clue to the name, if necessary. Once you know the name that you want to play, figure out how to spell it properly first and then look at the consonants. If you’ve decided to use a clue instead of the direct name, you’ll need to devise a clear clue for the receiver.
   • For example, for the name “George Washington,” you’ll need to have brief statements to clue your reader into each consonant in the name or in the clue. You could use “Read the newspaper” for “R.” If you decide to use “first President” as your clue, you could use “Party on” as your statement for the letter “P.”

Snapping Your Word to a Receiver

1. Clue your receiver about the word to be snapped. Before you start spelling out your letter with statements and snaps, clue your receiver about the nature of the word with a simple sentence.
   • If you’re using the direct name of a person, say "Snaps IS the name of the game." This lets your receiver know that you’re spelling out the name of a person.
   • If you’re giving the receiver a clue about the person, such as “Rocky” for Sylvester Stallone or “the Godfather” for Marlon Brando, say "Snaps ISN'T the name of the game." This clues your receiver that you’re spelling out a clue to the name.
2. Give the first letter to the receiver. After you’ve clued in your receiver that you’re giving her a name or a clue, give her the first letter of the word with either a statement or snaps.
   • Most names will begin with a consonant, so you will likely begin with a statement. Thus, for “Sylvester Stallone,” you could start with the statement “Super duper” to let your receiver know the first letter is a “s.”
3. Give the second letter. When the receiver has figured out the first letter, move on to the second letter of your name or clue. Only do this once they’re ready to go and you’ve either figured out a next statement or vowel, depending on the second letter.
   • Second letters are often vowels, so your next clue will probably be a series of snaps. For “Al Pacino” you will want to snap clearly once to indicate to your receiver that “a” is the next letter.
   • Remember to snap clearly so that your receiver can hear each individual snap.
4. Follow the same pattern for the rest of the letters. Use the same pattern of snaps and statements until you’ve finished spelling out either the name or the clue.
   • If there are any parts that the receiver didn’t get, go back and give the statements or snap series again.
5. Guess the person’s name or clue. Have your receiver guess the person once you’ve finished spelling out the name or clue. If he doesn’t get it, you can either help him or play another round of snaps to solve the name.
   • If you decided to use a clue to a person’s name, have your receiver guess the clue first and then the name.

Guessing a Snapper’s Word

1. Pay attention to the snapper’s first line. Make sure to pay close attention to what the snapper says before he begins using snaps or statements. This will help you know if he is using a name or a clue about a name.
   • If the snapper is using the direct name of a person, he will say "Snaps IS the name of the game."
   • If the snapper says "Snaps ISN'T the name of the game," then you know that he is spelling out a clue about a person.
2. Listen closely to the first statement or series of snaps. The snapper will either give you a clue or snap for the first letter of the name or clue. Make sure to pay close attention to this so you get the game off to a good start.
   • For example, if the snapper chose “Benjamin Netanyahu” as the name, he would first say a statement like “Be prepared” to let you know that the first letter of the name or clue is “B.”
   • If he chose the name Iggy Pop, on the other hand, he would first snap three times to let you know that the first letter is “I.”
3. Follow this pattern until the snapper finishes the name or the clue. Listen to the snapper’s statements and snaps until he says that he is finished so that you can successfully solve the name or clue.
   • If it makes it easier to remember each letter, write them down on a piece of paper.
4. Guess the name or the clue to the name. Once the snapper has finished spelling out the name or the clue, guess what it is. If you can’t get it, either ask the snapper to clarify something or play another round of snaps to solve the name.
   • If the snapper decided to use a clue to a person’s name, guess the clue first and then the name.

Tips

• Try not to use very long words.
• Don't go too fast so that a person has some time to process your statement or clue.
• Make sure to snap clearly: the speed of a piano metronome is a good pace to use for snaps.
• Remember not to use words with odd letters, such as "X" when you're first beginning to play, as those are difficult to make a statement for.
• As an alternative style of play, to say a consonant, say a phrase that starts with a word starting with said consonant, and ends with listen or listening. For a y you could say "you have to listen." or for a d, "don't stop listening."

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Sources and Citations

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