Poi

The enchanting dance of the poi. Have you given this traditional Māori practise a go? In New Zealand, school children are often lucky enough to be taught how to make poi (ball on string) and it is used in kapa haka (kapa haka is the term for Māori performing arts, kapa means to form a line and haka means to dance). Poi is a dance of great skill where each performer cleverly twirls the poi in perfect unison with the others. Poi dancers are usually women who skilfully strike the ball on a hand or other part of the body creating a percussive rhythm.

Try making your own poi at home. To get started, you will need:

• Wool (two colours, if you’re feeling fancy)

• Sticky tape

• Plastic bag

• Old newspaper or dacron

Check out some of the great tutorials online. We’re big fans of this one: awakeri.school.freeservers.com/poi.htm