I spy

I spy is a guessing game where the Spy or It says "I spy with my little eye..." and players have to guess the object the Spy saw.

About Parenting recommends the game for "doctor's offices, restaurants and other places where you sometimes have to wait with kids", but discourages its use in moving cars. The way players choose who will be the Spy/It can range from the noncompetitive alternating of turns to a game of skill/chance such as rock, paper, scissors. The Spy silently selects an object that is visible to all the players and does not reveal their choice. They then say, "I spy with my little eye something beginning with ...", naming the letter the chosen object starts with (e.g. "I spy with my little eye something beginning with C" if the chosen object is a car). An alternative version is substituting the initial letter for an adjective such as the colour of the object (e.g. "I spy with my little eye something blue"), while another is to say "I Spy with my little eye something that sounds like". Some sites such as About Parenting describe the letter version has the variant to the colour-based game. This site has the form "I spy something, and it's blue" as the traditional version, deeming "I spy with my little eye..." as an alternative. Having clues based on an object's shape is another alternative, while quick thinkers can deliberately choose objects that can only be seen for a limited amount of time. Howcast notes that looking at an object when announcing its colour is a "dead giveaway" so this should be avoided. Another variation that encourages language development involves the Spy giving various descriptive clues, such as describing a watch as "something that made of metal and glass that makes a quiet noise".

The Spy cannot change the object once it has been chosen, and must be mindful that when traveling from place to place through the course of the game, certain objects might only be momentarily seen which renders them invalid (an example being a particular street sign). Before the game is played, it should be decided if the objects will be all outside or all inside the car. Other players then have to guess the chosen object. Traditionally they take turns in asking questions, which can either be a guess in the form of "Is it ___?" or an attempt to narrow down the search such as "Is it on your left?". The Spy then replies "yes" or "no" to each question, while an alternative is to say ‘Hot’ if they are close or ‘Cold’ if they are not close. The Spy can offer extra clues if the guessers are stumped. Once a guesser has correctly identified the object, they become the Spy for the next round and the game starts again. If younger children are playing who are not so good at guessing, the role of Spy can be passed around in a set order.

The game relies on trust as the Spy is the only person who knows whether the guessers are correct or not.

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Wikipedia