National active games

"ARANDAGH"

Place and equipment: a playground or sports hall. You need one club, a gymnastics stick for each player, coloured pencils and watercolours.

Preparation: on opposite sides of the playground, circles 25 cm in diameter are drawn, one per player, 1–2 steps apart. No circle is drawn for one player. On the opposite side, in the middle of the playground or hall, 3 m from the wall, a circle 25 cm in diameter is drawn. A line along the middle of the playground or hall is drawn for throwing the sticks.

How to play: all the players line up side by side. Each player marks his stick with a colour, agreeing beforehand so that no two players choose the same colour; each must recognise his own stick. On the teacher's instruction one player stands in the middle of the hall with his back to the circles and throws the sticks backwards over his head with both hands as hard as he can. The leader then walks backwards towards the sticks without looking. Whenever he steps on or over a stick, its owner picks it up, keeps his turn and stands in line 2–3 steps in front of the line in the middle of the playground.

The last player takes the club from the teacher and stands it upright in the large circle 8–10 m away in the middle of the playground. He also puts his own stick next to the club, comes back and stands in line with the other players. Then each player in turn tries to knock the club out of the circle. As soon as it is knocked out, all the players run to pick up their sticks and try to come back and take one of the circles. The player who placed the club also runs forward, picks up his stick and tries to take a circle. The player left without a circle puts the club back in the circle, and the game goes on.

Rules:

1. The club may be hit only from the middle of the playground.
2. If the club falls but stays in the circle, the other players must knock it out.
3. If the club is knocked out of the circle with one blow, the round does not count and starts again.
4. Players who have not had time to throw their sticks must run forward and take one of the circles.
5. The player who threw the sticks over his head must go to the end of the playground or hall and number the sticks.
6. Players running for their sticks must not push one another.

"AL MANDA" ("I'VE GOT THE HAND")

Place and equipment: the sea or a river. No equipment is needed.

Preparation: all the players wade in up to the waist and form a circle, standing 30–50 cm apart. A leader is chosen, who also takes part in the game.

How to play: the leader announces the start and begins to splash the water with his fingers, and all the players splash too.
Anyone who splashes water up gets surrounded by the others at once. All together they shout "One, two, three, I've got the hand!", lift that player up and swim off in different directions. Then they come to the surface, show themselves, call "I'm here!", dive again and change places. The penalised player tries to catch one of the players under the water. The one who is caught becomes the leader. The game lasts 20–30 minutes.

Rules:

1. Players may not splash the water deliberately gently.
2. A player who has been caught may not struggle free of the leader's hands.
3. The game is played when the air temperature is 27°C and the water temperature 25°C.
4. The losing player must not hold anyone under the water for more than 3 seconds.
5. Players who deliberately break the rules are sent out of the game.

"YA SANDADIR, YA ONDA" ("EITHER YOU'VE GOT IT, OR HE HAS")

Place and equipment: a playground, sports hall or corridor. You need a pencil, an eraser and other small objects.

Preparation: all the players stand in a big circle with their hands behind their backs. On the teacher's instruction one player goes to the middle. The teacher shows the players the object he is going to hide so that they remember it. Then the player in the middle steps out of the circle.

How to play: the teacher walks behind the players in the circle, pretending to hide the object in a player's hand, and keeps walking round. The player standing in the middle must watch all the teacher's movements carefully. Then the teacher enters the circle and says to him: "Search!"
The leader walks around inside the circle, goes up to one, two or three players and says: "Either you've got it, or he has."
Once the hidden object is found, that player comes into the middle and does what the others ask (sings, dances and so on).
If the object is not found, the leader stays in the middle and the teacher calls the player who hid the object. He gives it to the teacher and goes back to his place. Then the leader does what the players ask. The game lasts 20–30 minutes.

Rules:

1. Players must not whisper to the leader who has the object.
2. The object may not be hidden with the same player twice.
3. The object may not be shown to the leader until the teacher says "Give it up".
4. The player who received the object from the teacher stands still and silent, waiting for the command.

"UZANGI" ("STIRRUP")

Place and equipment: a playground, sports hall or corridor. You need a tennis ball and chalk.

Preparation: a 3–5 m square is drawn at each end of the playground, hall or corridor, 15–20 m apart. All the players are divided into two equal teams, which stand in their squares facing each other. Each team chooses a captain, and they draw lots to decide who starts.

How to play: the teacher stands on a raised spot level with the middle of the playground and announces the start. The captain throws the ball first, and the players of the team in the opposite square try to catch it by any means and hit one of the opposing players.
As soon as the teacher sees the ball hit a player, he signals "Stop", and that player is out. Then the game resumes. The team with more players left wins.

Rules:
1. Players may not leave their square.
2. A player may not put even one foot outside the square.
3. The ball may not be thrown deliberately hard.
4. A player who is hit must raise his hand to show the teacher that the ball touched him.
5. During the game it is forbidden to push players or take the ball from them by force.
6. Players who deliberately break the rules are sent out of the game.

"ATLARDA KIMIN ATI" ("WHOSE HORSE IS IT?")

Place and equipment: a playground, sports hall or corridor. No equipment is needed.

Preparation: the players are divided into two equal teams that stand in lines facing each other on opposite sides of the playground or hall. Each team chooses a captain.

How to play: the teacher calls the two captains to the middle and gives each a task on material covered in class (literature, botany and so on). Then lots are drawn. The captain of one side asks a question of one of the other side's players. If that player cannot answer, he is out; the game goes on like this for 10–15 minutes. In the end the team with more players left wins.

Variant II

How to play: the teacher calls the captains to the middle and asks them to think of the best horses in the village or district. Lots are drawn; the captain of one side turns to one of the other side's players, describes a horse's height, colour, legs, mane and tail and asks its name. The player must recognise the horse.

Rules:

1. The same player may not be asked twice.
2. Players may not whisper the answer to one another.
3. Questions must be put to the teams' players in turn.

"PULA-PULA"

Place and equipment: a soft, sandy playground and 5 small balls or pebbles 2–3 cm in diameter.

Preparation: a hole 10–15 cm wide and deep is dug in the middle of the playground. A throwing line is drawn 3–4 m in front of the hole. The players are divided into two equal teams that line up facing each other on the throwing line. Each team chooses a captain, and lots are drawn to decide who starts.

How to play: the teacher signals the start. The captain takes the balls from the teacher, holds them in his palm, stands on the throwing line and throws them into the hole, trying to get as many as possible in. All the team's players do the same in turn. Then it is the other team's turn. If none of the balls thrown by a player of the first team lands in the hole, the other team continues the game. The teacher records the number of balls each team gets into the hole and announces the result at the end. The team that gets the most balls (pebbles) into the hole wins.

Rules:

1. Players may not step on or over the line when throwing.
2. The same player may not throw into the hole a second time.
3. Balls that land in the hole and bounce out do not count.

"DIRADOYMA"

Diradoyma is another ancient sporting game. The children split into two groups, draw a circle and cast lots. The group that wins the draw enters the circle (the maraya). Each child puts a belt under his foot. Those outside the circle try to take the belts, while those inside kick at them and do not let them take the belts. If someone inside kicks one of the players outside, the groups swap: those inside go out and those outside come in. If a player outside grabs someone inside with his hand and pulls him out of the circle, he hands him over to a teammate to hold and tries to take the unguarded belt. Then the players inside must guard both their own belts and their captured teammate's belt. Conversely, if those inside cleverly catch one of the outsiders and pull him into the circle, the groups change places. If one of the outsiders gets hold of a belt, they strike the children inside with it and try to pull out and take the belts from under their feet. The group that captures all the belts wins. The outsiders strike those inside with the belt until someone inside, keeping one foot inside the line, kicks one of the outsiders with the other foot.

"ANZALI"

The player who loses the draw bends over, and the others (6 players) line up three or four metres away. Each in turn leaps over the bent player's back, and every time the players chant the following words and do what they say:

On one: "Anzali, hey Anzali."
On two: "Khan Akbari."
On three: "The rooster crowed: cock-a-doodle-doo!"
On four: "They bump with their hips."
On five: "They mount the throne."

(At this point the player sits on the back of the one who is "lying" and asks:
"Shall I stay on, or get off?")
The bent player answers: "Stay on!" or "Get off!", and the game goes on.
On six: "No hand, no top, no head may touch."
On seven: "They leap with one hand."
On eight: "They put down a hat."
On nine, everyone climbs on the bent player's back, and whoever falls has his ears pulled. Anyone who fails to do what the words say during the game must take the place of the one who is "lying".

"KHANDAYA DUSHMA" ("DON'T FALL INTO THE DITCH")

Place and equipment: a playground, sports hall or corridor. You need a blindfold and chalk.

Preparation: a line 3 to 10 m long is drawn in the middle of the playground. The players are divided into two equal teams that line up facing each other. Each team chooses a captain, and lots are drawn to decide who starts.