Lesson 4

Philippine Indigenous Sports and Games:

Arnis and Mga Laro ng Lahi

Philippine Indigenous Sports and Games

ARNIS
Arnis is the Philippines indigenous martial art, most popularly known as stick-fighting.
Rattan sticks are used for practice, but the martial art is a complete system of armed and
unarmed combat. Arnis is popular throughout the world as Kali or Eskrima, or Filipino Martial Art
(FMA).
However , the exact origin of the art is not known. There are accounts that the art
originated from this island or elsewhere. However, there are no reliable written documents to
support such a claim. Another version states that arnis was brought to the Philippines by the ten
Bornean datus – a theory that was also debunked. Regardless of its origin, it can be said that
arnis as practiced in the Philippines is prolific, and that only in the Philippines has stick-fighting
been fully developed into a complex system.
For martial arts choreography in movies, when the fight choreographer wants to portray
“realistic” fight scenes with or without weapons, they employ FMA. This is especially true in
knife-fighting scenes.
Basically, arnis has three popular modes: solo baston (single stick), double baston
(two sticks), and espada y daga (Spanish term for sword and dagger). In addition, other fighting
modes exist such as mano mano (empty hand), daga (single dagger), and daga y daga (two
daggers). Other groups practice the longer staffs such as the bangkaw or tapado, as well as
the spear.
Arnis is characterized by three aspects: the basic self-defense, the cultural or forms,
and the competitive or the sports. Arnis, as a self- defense system, is easy to learn. As the
guiding tenet in all martial arts is efficiency in simplicity, techniques are designed to achieve
ease in execution so as to become more effective. For arnis, the self-defense techniques flow
fluidly from one move to the next in a logical and deadly grace. The cultural aspect or the forms
aspect is used in exhibitions and choreography. This side of arnis is more flashy and
movements are more flowery, but most are not practical in an actual fight, the third aspect of
arnis is the sports aspect. Usually, this side of arnis refers to the sparring form. Within the last
two decades, forms competitions have also crept in the competitive format of arnis.
For full- contact arnis, the sport is played using padded canes or sticks. Target areas are
the head, arms, legs, and the body. Considered as foul areas are the ones on the face mask,
groin area, and up the neck. Strikes at the back of the head, nape, and spine or back are not
allowed. A player can win by virtue of points such as disarming the opponent, fouling the
opponent, disqualification, or forfeiture.
Anyo, or forms competitions, is also played. Anyo is a prearranged set of movements
displaying arnis techniques as defensive or offensive techniques. The performance of the anyo
is given exactly between one to two minutes, no more, no less. Deductions are given for going
under or over the time allotted.
MGA LARO NG LAHI
Laro ng lahi is a collective term that refers to traditional or indigenous games of the
Philippines. These local games have existed as part of the Filipino culture. Laro ng lahi can be
categorized as single or individual games, dual games, and group games. Some of the games
are patintero, palo sebo, sipa, pityaw (syato), luksong tinik, luksong lubid, luksong baka, and
piko, among others.
● Patintero involves two opposing teams, with one team preventing the other from coming
through.
● Palo sebo involves climbing a bamboo pole.
● Sipa is a game played with a lead washer fitted with straw rope for aerodynamics – the
washer is held up in the air as long as possible using kicks, elbows, and knees.
● Pityaw (syato) involves a short stick and a longer stick, being hit together in different
stages – the score which is the measure of the stick from its position to the goal.
● Luksong tinik and luksong lubid involves leaping over hands and fingers or ropes.
● Luksong baka involves leap- frogging over someone who is in varying positions, from
prone fetal position to a standing bent over position, with the object of the game as going
over that person.
● Piko involves a series of skips and hops over lines drawn on the ground.
Variations of laro ng lahi offer counterparts to modern sports training and exercise. For
example, piko can be a form of plyometrics with similar benefits that can be derived from ladder
drills.
Lesson 5
Life Skills: Aquatics, Mountaineering, Self- Defense,
and Recreation

Life Skills and Activities

Life skills and activities pertain to those topics covered in Lesson 4. These topics are
grouped together due to a common set of skills and activities a man needs in the primitive
setting, but these skills are still relevant today. There is a skill needed to maneuver water and
land. A skill needed to hunt and gather food, as well as defend one’s territory from attacks.
There is also the skill needed for arts and crafts for various purposes, for recreational activities
to pass time and for enjoyment, as well as to provide alternative activities for the injured,
physically challenged, and aged. Translated to modern times, these activities can be grouped
into aquatics or water sports, mountaineering that may include trekking, orienteering,
birdwatching, martial arts or self-defense, and community recreation.

Aquatics - Swimming
Various water sports or aquatics include water polo, synchronized swimming, diving,
snorkeling, surfing, sailing, and any sport that can be played in a pool or other bodies of water.
Among these sports, swimming is one of the most adopted sports by schools.
Swimming is both a form of sport and recreation. It is a universal activity for all countries
having local swimmers.
The types of swimming strokes are the following: butterfly, breaststroke, freestyle,
crawl, sidestroke, backstroke, and the dog paddle. For butterfly, the arms move together,
cupping the water downward and outward, moving above the water to complete the arm
movement. The legs are bent and straightened, kicking two times for every arm stroke. For
breaststroke, the arms pull the water and are brought to the chest, before going back to
position. The legs perform frog kicks.For the crawl, arm strokes are performed with flutter kicks,
while the face turns alternately from one side to the other. For the side stroke, the body is
oriented sideways and is propelled by scissors kick and underwater stroke. For the freestyle,
flutter kick is used with arm strokes as that of a windmill. The swimmer times their breaths with
each arm pull. For the backstroke, the swimmer floats in a supine position, and the arm strokes
are performed in a windmill fashion, while performing flutter kicks. For the dog paddle, the legs
perform an underwater- modified flutter kick, while the arms reach forward and paddle in a
circular manner.

Mountaineering
Enjoying nature through treks and hiking up mountains involve more preparation than
just deciding to go for these activities. A group needs to meet up for a pre- climb to discuss all
details of the climb such as the location, terrain, supplies, and roles of all members joining the
climb. While the climb itself is the main activity, a lot of tasks are performed before and after the
climb. The group is supposed to meet up after the climb for assessment and reporting.
Mountaineering, aside from being a moderate to vigorous physical activity, involves the
formation of other values such as being able to work with others, being responsible in tasks
delegated to one’s person, being able to appreciate and take care of nature, and being able to
practice discipline when involved in an activity that needs utmost care.

Martial Arts or Self- Defense

There has always been a need for fighting skills. Whether as a form of defense or attack,
martial arts have existed since the dawn of man. All living things have been equipped with a
method of defense, and man has been given his greatest weapon – his intellect. With this, man
has designed various ways of defense and attack through the use of his hands and feet, to
develop implements of warfare that have become more elaborate with time. With the current
technology, one nation can wage war with another even without actual face to face combat, as
ICBMs can wipe out whole areas or regions with just a flick of a switch. However, there has
always been the need ono- on- one or one versus several combatants. For personal defense or
for military use, the practice of martial arts has always been essential. The origin of a lot of
sports come from military skills required of a soldier – running, throwing projectile weapons, and
jumping over obstacles.
Currently, there are several martial arts that have developed in popularity throughout the
world: boxing, muay thai, karate, tae kwon do, wushu or kung fu, judo, and arnis. Under
Republic Act 9850, arnis is the national martial art and sport of the Philippines. As such,
whenever possible, arnis must be included in a Philippine school program, or part of the PE
offerings.

Community Recreation
Community recreation involves a lot of light games that people with physical disabilities
can participate in. Several board games are taught. Other activities such as gardening, nature
walks, low impact activities such as tai chi and yoga, and various arts and crafts may also be
included. These are activities that prevent idleness and boredom, and offer productive use of
time.
Lesson 6
Team Sports: Basketball and Volleyball

Team Sports
The two most popular team sports taught in schools are basketball and volleyball. Team
sports differ in individual and dual sports. Usually, team sports are played within a specific
duration of time. Most individual sports compare records or best performances, while the dual
sports usually end in sets.

Basketball
In basketball, there are two opposing teams playing on a court. Only five players at a
time per team are allowed inside the playing area. The objective of the game is to shoot the ball
in a hoop or ring, and the ball is handled throughout the court by dribbling or passing. At the end
of the game, the team with more points wins. Basic skills needed in basketball are dribbling,
passing, and shooting.

● Variants of dribbling include the low control, the crossover, between- the- legs, behind-
the- back, the reverse dribble, and speed dribble.
● Variants of passing include the chest pass, the bounce pass, and the behind- the- back
pass.
● Variants of shooting techniques include the set shot, the lay- up, the underhand shot,
the jump shot, the hook shot, and the dunk shot.

Other skill sets in basketball involve blocking (the ball is attempted to be blocked, but
only when the ball is at the upward arc), rebounding (retrieving a ball that bounces off after a
failed shot), zone defense (guarding anyone that comes in a specific area), man to man
defense (guarding a specific player one-on-one), cutting (moving quickly to gain a better
position while not holding the ball), and screening (a move to stop an opponent guarding a
teammate).

Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport that has existed for centuries. It is played with six players at a
time per team. The objective is to get the ball to the other side of the court. The ball can be hit
three times, excluding the contact made from blocking. An individual player cannot touch the
ball two consecutive times in a row. The exchange continues until the ball goes out of bounds,
or is not returned properly by one side. The exchange may also stop if a team commits a fault.
Skills needed in playing volleyball are service, passing, setting, attacking, blocking, and
the dig. Service is the start of the rally and is executed behind the endline. The ball has to go
over the net and land on the opponent's court. Passing, also known as reception, is an
important skill prior to setting. Setting is preparing the ball for the attack and is the second
contact to the ball. Attacking is ideally performed when the ball is at the apex during a hitter’s
jump. Blocking is stopping the opponent’s attack with highly extended arms. A dig is diving and
preventing the opponent’s attack from touching the floor.