Ready. Set. Jump!

Let’s take a trip back to the 1950s. It’s a time before texting and TikTok, before video games and Netflix. The television is a recent invention, and many families don’t own one.

So what, you may wonder, do kids do ?

To find the answer, step outside. Walking through the streets, you’ll pass kids thwacking a handball against a wall, shrieking joyfully in the spray of a fire hydrant, and shooting marbles on the sidewalk. And soon you’ll hear it: TICK-tat, TICK-tat, TICK-tat.

That is the sound of two jump ropes flicking against the pavement. Two kids hold the ends of the ropes, turning them in giant circles. But it’s the girl in the middle who draws your attention. She is skipping over the twirling ropes so quickly that her feet are a blur. Other kids chant rhymes to keep her on the beat: “Banana, banana, banana split. What did you get in arithmetic?”

This jump rope game is called double Dutch. One day, it will become an international sport. But for now, it’s simply an after-school obsession.

The girl in the middle jumps faster and faster, until—Eeeeeek ! Her foot catches on a rope, and she gets tangled. Everyone whoops and laughs. As the jumper steps aside, all eyes turn to you. Time to decide: Do you dare jump in the ropes?

Let’s take a trip back to the 1950s. It’s a time before texting and TikTok. It’s before video games and Netflix. The television is a new invention. Many families don’t own one.

So what do kids do ?

To find the answer, step outside. Walking through the streets, you’ll pass kids thwacking a handball against a wall. Some are shouting joyfully in the spray of a fire hydrant. Others are shooting marbles on the sidewalk. And soon you’ll hear it: TICK-tat, TICK-tat, TICK-tat.

That’s the sound of two jump ropes hitting the ground. Two kids hold the ends of the ropes and turn them in giant circles. But it’s the girl in the middle you watch. She is skipping over the twirling ropes so quickly that her feet are a blur. Other kids say rhymes to keep her on the beat: “Banana, banana, banana split. What did you get in arithmetic?”

This jump rope game is called double Dutch. One day, it will become a sport played all over the world. But for now, it’s simply an after-school craze.

The girl in the middle jumps faster and faster, until—Eeeeeek ! Her foot catches on a rope, and she gets tangled. Everyone whoops and laughs. As the jumper steps aside, all eyes turn to you. Time to decide: Do you dare jump in the ropes?

Jump rope games have been around for hundreds—maybe even thousands—of years. But it wasn’t until the 1940s that double Dutch as we know it today began to take off.

The game was a favorite in New York City and other big cities, where there weren’t many open spaces for kids to play. You could squeeze in a double Dutch game almost anywhere—a narrow alleyway, a sidewalk. And you didn’t need special equipment. You could use clotheslines or old telephone wires as ropes.

Over the years, double Dutch became a tradition passed down from kid to kid on playgrounds and street corners. Adrienne “Nikki” Adams Howell, who played in New York City in the 1960s and 1970s, doesn’t even remember when she started.

“I just learned by watching other kids,” she says.

Double Dutch was especially popular among Black girls, who transformed it from a simple game into something amazing. They recited clever rhymes to the beat of the ropes and performed dazzling tricks. Leapfrogs! Cartwheels! Flips! The best jumpers could do it all without getting caught in the ropes.

And if you did get caught? Well, that was just part of the fun.

Jump rope games have been around for hundreds of years. But it wasn’t until the 1940s that double Dutch began to take off.

The game was a favorite in New York City and other big cities. In those places, there weren’t many open spaces for kids to play. You could squeeze in a double Dutch game almost anywhere. And you didn’t need special gear. You could use clotheslines or old telephone wires as ropes.

Over the years, double Dutch was passed down from kid to kid on playgrounds and street corners. Adrienne “Nikki” Adams Howell played in New York City in the 1960s and 1970s. She doesn’t even remember when she started.

“I just learned by watching other kids,” she says.

Double Dutch was especially popular among Black girls. They changed it from a simple game into something amazing. They recited clever rhymes to the beat of the ropes and performed dazzling tricks. Leapfrogs! Cartwheels! Flips! The best jumpers could do it all without getting caught in the ropes.

And what if you did get caught? Well, that was just part of the fun.

In 1973, a New York City police detective named David Walker came across girls playing double Dutch in his neighborhood. He was amazed by their strength, speed, and coordination. This should be a sport, he thought.

At the time, girls often weren’t allowed to play organized sports like baseball, basketball, and football. Walker wanted to help create an athletic competition in which girls could shine.

Along with another detective, Ulysses Williams, Walker started a double Dutch league. The two officers came up with rules for scoring. Then they reached out to schools across the country, encouraging students to form teams.

Nikki Adams Howell was in seventh grade when her school first held double Dutch tryouts, in 1977. She was chosen for a team with three other girls: Robin Oakes Watterson, Delores Brown Finlayson, and De’Shone Adams Goodson. They would soon become known as the Fantastic Four.

The girls practiced four to six hours a day. They pounded the gym floor with lightning-fast steps and dreamed up acrobatic tricks. Although they had never met before tryouts, they jumped well together almost right away.

In 1973, a New York City police detective named David Walker came across girls playing double Dutch in his neighborhood. He was amazed by their strength, speed, and coordination. This should be a sport, he thought.

At the time, girls often weren’t allowed to play organized sports like baseball, basketball, and football. Walker wanted to help create an athletic competition in which girls could shine.

Along with another detective, Ulysses Williams, Walker started a double Dutch league. The two officers came up with rules for scoring. Then they reached out to schools across the country, encouraging students to form teams.

Nikki Adams Howell was in seventh grade when her school first held double Dutch tryouts, in 1977. She was chosen for a team with three other girls: Robin Oakes Watterson, Delores Brown Finlayson, and De’Shone Adams Goodson. They would soon become known as the Fantastic Four.

The girls practiced four to six hours a day. They pounded the gym floor with lightning-fast steps and dreamed up acrobatic tricks. Although they had never met before tryouts, they jumped well together almost right away.

By 1980, the double Dutch league had grown to include 50,000 players. That June, the league held a championship in New York City. Around 120 jumpers competed, including the Fantastic Four.

When it was their turn, the girls took their place onstage and launched into a jaw-dropping routine. As the ropes whipped around and around, they danced, flipped, and leapfrogged over each other. At one point, all four girls were jumping together in the ropes while turning them at the same time. It was a trick that had never been done before.

“The audience lost their minds,” Watterson recalls. No one was surprised when the Fantastic Four won first place.

The team’s win made them famous across America. In the following months, they appeared on TV shows and in newspapers and magazines. They jumped rope in commercials for McDonald’s. They performed with popular hip-hop artists, at a time when hip-hop music and culture were still new.

“We are deeply honored that the Fantastic Four is part of that history,” Goodson says.

By 1980, the double Dutch league had grown to include 50,000 players. That June, the league held a championship in New York City. Around 120 jumpers competed, including the Fantastic Four.

When it was their turn, the girls took their place onstage. Then they started their jaw-dropping routine. As the ropes whipped around and around, they danced, flipped, and leapfrogged over each other. At one point, all four girls were jumping together in the ropes—and turning them at the same time. It was a trick that had never been done before.

“The audience lost their minds,” Watterson recalls. No one was surprised when the Fantastic Four won first place.

The team’s win made them famous across America. In the following months, they were on TV shows and in newspaper and magazines. They jumped rope in commercials for McDonald’s. They performed with popular hip-hop artists.

As a playground game, double Dutch isn’t as popular today as it once was. But competitive double Dutch is still going strong. It has spread beyond the U.S. too. At the Double Dutch Holiday Classic, a competition held in New York each December, teams arrive from as far away as Japan, Kenya, and Brazil. According to the National Double Dutch League, nearly 100,000 jumpers now compete in double Dutch events.

The Fantastic Four are working to make sure that number continues to grow. Now in their 50s, the former champions help run competitions and also mentor new jumpers.

What’s next for double Dutch?

Some say it should become an Olympic sport. So perhaps if you start practicing now, one day you could be jumping for gold.

On the playground, double Dutch isn’t as popular today as it used to be. But double Dutch competitions are still going strong. It has spread beyond the U.S. too. The Double Dutch Holiday Classic is a contest held in New York each December. Teams arrive from as far away as Japan, Kenya, and Brazil. The National Double Dutch League reports that nearly 100,000 jumpers now compete in double Dutch events.

The Fantastic Four are working to make sure that number continues to grow. Now in their 50s, the former champions help run competitions. They also mentor new jumpers.

What’s next for double Dutch?

Some say it should become an Olympic sport. So perhaps if you start practicing now, one day you could be jumping for gold.

Today, millions of people around the world skateboard. But 60 years ago, skateboarding was something new—something that young people were pioneering.

No one knows exactly when the first skateboards were created. But it’s believed that they came from scooters, which date back to the early 1900s. Kids often built their own: They attached roller skate wheels to the bottom of a wooden plank and mounted a wooden box with a handlebar on top.

At some point, kids had the idea of breaking off the box and riding just the board. By the late 1950s, kids in California could be seen speeding downhill on the boards, wheels rattling against the pavement. Soon, companies took notice and began making and selling skateboards.

The new devices were particularly popular with surfers, who loved to “sidewalk surf ” when waves were flat. But these early skateboards were clunky and difficult to maneuver—and it was easy to fall off.

Today, millions of people around the world skateboard. But 60 years ago, skateboarding was something new. It was something that young people were pioneering.

No one knows exactly when the first skateboards were created. But it’s believed that they came from scooters. In the early 1900s, kids often built their own scooters. They attached roller skate wheels to the bottom of a wooden plank. Then they put a wooden box with a handlebar on top.

At some point, kids had the idea of breaking off the box and riding just the board. By the late 1950s, kids in California could be seen speeding downhill on the boards. Soon, companies took notice. They began making and selling skateboards.

These new items were popular with surfers. They rode skateboards when waves were flat. But these early skateboards were clunky and difficult to maneuver—and it was easy to fall off.

In the early 1970s, better wheels and designs made skateboards easier and safer to ride. The new boards helped turn skateboarding into the daring, stunt-filled sport we know today.

Skaters practiced for hours inside empty pools and paved ditches. It wasn’t long before skate parks began to pop up around the country. There, you could see skaters speed up ramps and soar into the sky. By the 1980s, skaters in cities used stairs, handrails, and curbs to perform tricks, slides, and flips.

For many kids, skateboarding was more than a hobby or something fun to do after school. It was a way of expressing themselves. It was all about creativity—and freedom.

In the early 1970s, better wheels and designs made skateboards easier and safer to ride. Skateboarding started to become the daring, stunt-filled sport we know today.

Skaters practiced for hours inside empty pools and other places. It wasn’t long before skate parks began to pop up around the country. There, you could see skaters speed up ramps. They’d soar into the sky. By the 1980s, skaters in cities used stairs, handrails, and curbs to perform tricks, slides, and flips.

For many kids, skateboarding was more than a hobby. It was a way of expressing themselves. It was all about creativity—
and freedom.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the best skaters weren’t just dazzling crowds at skate parks and along city streets. They also faced off in competitions and appeared in magazines and movies.

Then in 1995, the TV network ESPN broadcast the X Games—a sporting event that showcased skateboarding alongside other “extreme” sports, like mountain biking. The event helped turn skateboarding into a mainstream sport.

All over the world, more and more kids began picking up skateboards—in real life and in popular video games like Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater. The sport has become so popular that it was added to the Olympic Games in 2021.

Skateboarding has come a long way from the sidewalks and empty pools of the 1960s. But for skaters like 13-year-old Sky Brown, who won a bronze medal at the Olympics last year, skateboarding is in many ways not so different than it was in its early years.

“At the end of the day, I just want to have fun,” she says.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the best skaters weren’t just dazzling crowds at skate parks and along city streets. They also faced off in competitions. They appeared in magazines and movies.

Then in 1995, the TV network ESPN broadcast the X Games. This sporting event showed skateboarding alongside other “extreme” sports, like mountain biking. The event helped turn skateboarding into a mainstream sport.

All over the world, more and more kids began picking up skateboards. The sport has become so popular that it was added to the Olympic Games in 2021.

Skateboarding has come a long way from the sidewalks and empty pools of the 1960s. But some things don’t change. Thirteen-year-old skater Sky Brown won a bronze medal at the Olympics last year.

“At the end of the day, I just want to have fun,” she says.