Trier

By M. H. Martin

In Trinidad, children play a game called Trier. It is a little bit like jacks, but trickier!

You need at least 2 players, and 5 dried beans (like pinto beans) or small stones for each player.

The object of the game is to catch the beans without dropping them.

The youngest player goes first.

Put 5 beans in the palm of your hand. Gently toss the beans into the air, turn your hand over, and try to catch the beans on the back of your hand. (Do not pick up any beans that have fallen to the ground until after your turn is over.) Next, toss the beans that you were able to catch back into the air and catch them in your palm. You must always catch the beans with the same hand you used to toss them—you may not play with both hands.

If you dropped any beans in the second toss (from the back of your hand into your palm), your score for that round is zero. If you managed to catch all the beans on the second toss, your score for that round is that number of beans.

The player with the highest score after 3 rounds is the winner!