Hei Tama Tu Tama

Today for Maori we learnt a new game called Hei Tama Tu Tama.

Hei Tama Tū Tama

Hei Tama Tū Tama, like many early games, was designed to encourage mental dexterity. Even though the winning was important, it was the way in which competitors won that was the focus. The cheeky cajoling, the smile and grimace to put your opponent off were all part of the game. The pedagogy is ako, in which games are always supportive.

This game is played using the upper body, arms, and hands, ensuring a balanced position.

Here is a video of the class playing the game.

If you would like to try the game at home here are the instructions.

Positions:

• Hands on hips.
• Both forearms raised, fists clenched, and elbows to the side.
• Right forearm raised with clenched fist, left hand on hip.
• Left forearm raised with clenched fist, right hand on hip.

Rules:

• The defender begins the game by calling "Hei tama tū tama" and places their hands in one of the four positions described above.
• The challenger replies with "Hei tama tū tama" and does a different action.
• When one player catches the other doing the same action, that player calls "Hei tama tū tama rā!" and scores a point.
• The winner of the point then re-starts the set, saying "Tahi. Hei tama tū tama", and play continues until a player is caught out again.
• Each time a player scores a point, they re-start the set by saying the number of points they now have followed by "Hei tama tū tama."
• The game continues until one player reaches ten points – this completes the set.