Rockin Robin

Instructions (see video)

I hosted a Hand-Clapping Meet Up to create a sample video of this game. I have also attempted some instructions below: 

  • We prefer to use the Michael Jackson’s version of “Rockin Robin”

  • Beginning with just two people, 

    • The partners face each other and clap each other’s palms 

    • They extend their right hand to their partner’s right hand and clap one another’s palms in the middle (like the opening sequence in Miss Mary Mack)

    • Then each participant claps their own hands in front of their chest

    • Next they extend their left hand to their partner’s left hand and clap each other in the middle (like the opening sequence in Miss Mary Mack)

    • The partners then clap both of each other’s palms together high in the air, and then clap both of them together low 

  • THEN, the pairs become a group of four with each person facing/standing across from their original partner (as if standing in a square)

    • In a square, the two people on the left-side of the square will clap each other’s palms while the two on the right-side do the same with each other

    • Next, partners will turn and clap the palms of the person on the other side of them / clap the palms of the person standing opposite of the first person they clapped 

    • Now, the group must decide who will clap high first and which will clap low first. After some practice, the group of four is facing inward.

    • One pair claps high at the same time the other claps low / beneath them. Then the pairs swap (those who were high are now low and vice versa)

  • THEN, each sequence you add two more people which will require the group to determine how to incorporate six people. What combination of hand claps will work for the entire group while keeping the rhythm?

  • THEN, the group adds eight and so forth.

Modifications:

The modifications reveal themselves as the group deliberates, attempts, fails, addresses, and pivots repeatedly until a pattern works.  

Praxis (why + theory):

Adding to the theory outlined in Down By the Bank, ethnomusicologist Kyra Gaunt, explains how “[i]n learning these games, [Black children] inhabit or embody the formulas of black musical identification of stylistic expressions at a time when learning is intuitive rather than systematic, oral rather than written, and disciplined through competitive and cooperative play among peers, rather than as a set of rules defined by those outside of play” (Games 62). It is the body-to-body struggle of these games that teach us how our bodies instinctively store the knowledge we need to exist collectively, and that rules can be modified and amended to better serve the needs and desires of the group. 

This rhythm game typically requires a few practice rounds during which the group must identify new rhythmic patterns and troubleshoot the errors that occurred in each round. The strategizing and troubleshooting must be a collaborative endeavor because what one participant proposes as a solution may not be accessible or effective for one or more members of the group. (These practices and discussions foster conflict resolution, constructive dialogue, and collective identity.)

In this way, with each practice round, the strategy crystalizes. A rhythm develops as the intended sequence becomes the desired pattern. 

This is a proficient bonding game for large groups. We used to play Rockin Robin’ at our NCNW Bonding Workshops which sometimes would involve 100+ college students. We circled up into groups with individuals we did not know very well, and played the music on a loud speaker instead of singing the lyrics acapella.