FIRST NATIONS OF THE PLAINS

CHILDREN'S TOYS AND GAMES

First Nations children played a lot of outdoor games like tag, ball games, shooting games, and hide and seek. Girls and boys played different games, so they did not often play together, Many of their games and activities were a means to practice what they would be doing as adults.

Girls played with dolls and small cradleboards and set up toy tipis. They enjoyed string games. For string games they used a long thin strip of rawhide or animal sinew which was tied together at the ends. Usually one player at a time played, but some designs required more players to help to form patterns. Designs or shapes of animals, a tipi, bird's nest, a fish, etc. were made. This activity was also called web weaving.

Boys played with toys that were similar to adult tools and weapons. They played games using the bow and arrow to develop hunting skills and enjoyed foot races, arm wrestling and leg wrestling.

Boys and girls did play some games together..

RING AND PIN GAME - This toy was a great way to practice eye-hand coordination. One ring or a number of rings were tied to a long cord. Hide or bones were used for the rings. The rings were tossed into the air and speared by a pin attached to the other end of the cord. The pin was carved from a long bone, antler or twig.

MOCCASIN GAME - This was a guessing game. A small object (like a ball of buffalo hair or a small pebble) and four moccasins were used to play. The object was hidden in one of the moccasins. Others had to guess which moccasin it was in. Sticks were used for keeping score. The person with the most correct guesses was the winner. Variations of the game were played by different tribes.

SLINGSHOTS - Games using the slingshot focused on aim and distance. Two leather thongs or straps were fastened to a piece of rawhide to make a slingshot. A small stone was placed in the sling. The thrower would first whirl the rawhide above his head, then let go of one of the straps. This would send the stone flying. It was fun to see who could make the longest throw or whose stone would skip the most times across the water.

BALL GAMES

balls were made of stuffed rawhide

KEEP AWAY - A ball was tossed from player to player. Someone tried to get the ball while it was still in the air.

TOSSING THE BALL - a ball was volleyed back and forth between players or around a circle of players. When a player missed the ball, he or she would be out and another could replace them.

SPINNERS AND TOYS THAT MADE SOUNDS

BUZZERS – First Nations children made a buzzer with a circular piece of wood, bone or antler with two holes in the centre. String (animal sinew) was threaded through the holes to form a closed loop. A loop was held in each hand and the string was twisted by flipping the buzzer until it was wound up. Once the string was twisted, pulling on both ends at the same time created a buzzing sound.

BULLROARERS were similar to buzzers. A leather thong or strap had a stick tied to it on one end and a small flat piece of wood was tied on the other end of the thong. By holding on to the stick and quickly spinning the bullroarer through the air in circles, a whirring or roaring sound was made.

WHISTLES were made from wood. A small piece of a willow branch made a good whistle. Part of the bark was removed and a notch was cut into the wood.

TOPS were made out of bone, stone, clay or horns. To make a top out of wood, the bark was removed and one end was sharpened. Playing with tops was fun in the winter because tops spun well on ice. There were games played with tops - knocking each other’s top over; getting the top through a goal; making it go through obstacle courses, etc. Some tops were just a piece of wood or bone with a peg through the centre. Some tops were painted or decorated.

"TAG" GAMES

Tag was a popular children's game. To decide who would be "it", some twigs were collected. Whoever chose the longest twig was "it"

HOLDING THE PAIL - The children formed a circle holding hands. “It” went into the centre of the circle. “It” tried to break through the circle and run away. When this happened, everyone chased this player. The one who tagged the runner became “it” and the game started again.

This tag game was played during the winter. It was similar to "Fox and Goose". A track in the shape of a wheel was stamped out in the snow. The player who was “it” stood in the centre. Everyone else stood along the outside of the circle where spokes intersected the circle. As long as a person was "on base", no one could go around that person to escape “it”. No one could run off the track. As soon as someone was tagged, that player became “it”.

GAMES WITH BOWS AND ARROWS

Small versions of the bow and arrow were given at an early age. Games with bows and arrows helped boys to develop hunting skills. They tried to shoot arrows through a rolling hoop or shoot arrows at targets.

"UP THERE" was a bow and arrow game usually played by four boys. Each boy chose a different direction. One boy was selected to shoot first. The first boy would shoot his arrow in a certain direction and the other boys would then take their turns each trying to get closest to the original arrow. The boy closest to that arrow would then shoot his arrow in a different direction from the place of the last shot. The game would continue on in this way. The winner was the boy in whose direction the group had gone the farthest. This game sometimes took all day.

WINTER ACTIVITIES

Sliding, snowshoeing and tobogganing were winter activities. Toboggans were made using buffalo ribs or a big piece of bark. A strip of rawhide also worked for sliding down hills.

"MARBLES" (Sliding Game) In winter, children made a sliding game out of a mound of snow, a snowbank or an icy slope. A path or run from the top to the bottom was patted smooth to form a sloped sliding surface. At the bottom of the slope, twelve holes were made in the snow. A number was assigned to each hole. Marbles were rolled down the path and points were scored when a marble landed in one of the holes. Marbles were made from tips of horns, wood or small pebbles.

"SNOW SNAKES" (Gliding Game) Snow Snakes was played with long wooden sticks or bison ribs. A long track was created in the snow (or on a frozen lake or river). The purpose was to slide or throw the stick as far as possible. The snow snake would have to be thrown hard enough for good distance but not so hard as to send it flying off the track.

Winter was a good time for storytelling. Legends and stories were usually told by elders. The stories were not only entertaining but also a method to teach the listeners.

BACK

SOURCES

Aboriginal Leisure in Saskatchewan - Focusing on Toys, Games and Pastimes
http://olc.spsd.sk.ca/de/saskatchewan100/researchpapers/Gabrial%20Dumont%20-%20SICC%20Papers/FNLeisure.pdf
(Western Development Museum and the Saskatchewan Indian Cultural Centre, 2003)

Royal Saskatchewan Museum Teacher's Guide: Time Well Spent
http://www.royalsaskmuseum.ca/education/pdf/Time_Well_Spent.pdf
(First Nations Program Teacher's Guide © Royal Saskatchewan Museum 2008)

Native Games at http://www.manataka.org/page185.html
(Manataka™ American Indian Council)

PLAINS FIRST NATIONS

jgiannet@hotmail.com
April 2012