Interview: “Don’t step on a crack, you’ll break your mother’s back. So that’s the saying we used to… Uh… sling around on the playground. If you’re on a sidewalk or blacktop, you’re not supposed to step on the cracks. I think painted lines counted as well, in parking lots and stuff. I guess its a superstition but like, nobody actually believes it.
Its a little bit of a game. More than anything it was just to annoy people. If there’s a lull in conversation and somebody steps on a crack you’d be like: Oh, better call your mom, see if she’s okay.”

Context: The informant is 21 years old from Los Angeles. He remembers playing the game in grade school.

Analysis: This falls into a group of superstitions which are prevalent around schools. Like many school superstitions, it survives and spreads likely because the consequences are so severe. Even a child who is pretty sure that the consequences are not real, might still be hesitant to step on a crack, and might still warn his friends about it, just in case.