Inhabited by indigenous multicultural ethnic groups, West Papua province is rich in natural resources, nature, cultural heritage, and traditions. To preserve and respect the legacy of the ancients, the local people hold and implement the traditional customs into their daily life.
The parents pass the cultural habits to the children. It can be seen from some local games that the children play. Say, Patah Kaleng, Tok Asya, Inkaropianik, and many others. Those local games help the children to know more about their local culture and make their life more colorful and enjoyable.
One of the games that children love to play is Kayu Malele. This game is fun and you can use this game to teach the children to count. What kind of local game is that? How to play it? This article will describe the game from West Papua and fun facts it.
What is Kayu Malele?
Have you played Kayu Malele? This local game is originally from Samofa, Biak Numfor Regency, Papua. This game is also widely known in West Papua and many areas in Indonesia. This game involves the wood that consists of long and short sticks.
Consisting of three to five players, they need to find a large field to avoid the accident and the damage around them. It is also dangerous enough to play if the players don’t know how to play it.
How to Play it?
If the children want to play Kayu Malele, they need to pay attention to the rules. The purpose is to avoid the damage and the accidents that may happen when playing the game. Besides that, the players need to prepare long and short sticks and play the game on a big empty field. Here are some following steps of playing this local game from West Papua.
- Divide the players into two teams where each team consists of three to five people. Later, they will determine which team will have the first turn to play.
- Make a hole in the ground. Put the small stick (about 20cm long) on the surface of the dug ground. The first player will hold a 50cm long stick by using both hands.
- Swing the long stick until it hits the short wooden stick. The other players from the same team must catch the stick before it falls to the ground. If the players can’t catch on to it, another team will take a turn to play. On the other hand, if the players can catch on to the wooden stick, the team can go on to the next level.
- Put the 20cm long wooden stick diagonally on or in the hole of the ground. Use another 50cm long wooden stick to lift or throw away the short stick faraway. If the players can’t grab the stick the pitcher must count the distance between the initial position of the stick to where it falls.
- Count the distance by using the long stick. Each step will score five to ten points depending on the deal. The players can count the steps repeatedly until they reach one thousand to five thousand scores. The winner of the game is the team who can score high first.
Fun Facts about Kayu Malele
Kayu Malele is not only a traditional game, but this game gives many benefits to the children. Here are fun facts you need to figure out from the game from West Papua.
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A popular game in other provinces in Indonesia
This traditional game is not only played by Papuan children, but many children from other provinces like Lampung, Yogyakarta, and Central Java play this game, too. It also has different names. In Yogyakarta, the children call this game Bentik, while in Central Java they call it Patil Lele. Children in Lampung named this game Patok Lele.
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A fun method to teach math
Don’t be surprised. This game also becomes a medium for teachers to teach math. The math teacher loves to use this game to teach the concept of measurement to the children. By using this game, the children can learn math in a fun and interesting way.
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A way to train the concentration and agility
When the children play Kayu Malele, they need to stay focused. They need to concentrate to hit the stick. Besides that, this game also trains the children’s agility and develops psychomotor skills.
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Simple tools used
Another fun fact about this game is the players don’t need to spend money to buy the equipment. All the tools are from nature. They can find some twigs to make short and long sticks.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Kayu Malele is one of the local games from West Papua. This game is well-known not only among Papuan children but also among other children in Indonesia. As online games start taking control, exposure and preservation toward the local ones are essential. Introduce the local games to the children so they will appreciate the cultural traditions and habits.
