Void Deck Games Singapore Kids Played Before Phones

The games, and the rules nobody wrote down

Block catching was catching with the whole block as the map. Stairs counted, lift lobbies counted, the bicycle rack was usually base, and the unspoken rule was that you did not go past the block you lived in. Country erasers was two players, two flag erasers, one bench, taking turns flicking yours until it landed on top of the other. Everyone had a shoebox of them and everyone had a favourite that flipped better. Five stones took a cloth bag of seeds and about ten seconds to learn, which is why it survived into every primary school recess. If you want the on-screen version of the same era, we rounded up the online games we played as kids and which ones still work.

Where the old playgrounds still are

The sand-based playgrounds that these afternoons happened around have mostly gone, but not all of them. The Toa Payoh dragon playground at Lorong 6, built in 1979 and designed by former HDB interior designer Khor Ean Ghee, is being kept through the estate's redevelopment, with a heritage marker planned for the site. It is the one people still make the trip for, and it is a two-minute walk from Braddell MRT. Plenty of the photos of everyday HDB life from this era were not taken by photographers at all, they were sent in by residents to community archives like Heritage SG Memories, which is worth a scroll if your own family album is thin.

FAQs

What is block catching?

A version of catching played across a whole HDB block instead of a field, using the staircases, lift lobbies and void deck. One person is the catcher and the rest scatter through the block.

What is the eraser game called?

Most people call it country erasers or flag erasers. Two players take turns flicking their eraser at the other one, and you win the eraser if yours lands on top of it.

Is the Toa Payoh dragon playground still there?

Yes. The 1979 dragon playground at Lorong 6 Toa Payoh is being retained through the estate's redevelopment and a heritage marker is planned for the site.