If you saw the Google Doodle from Nov. 1st, you were treated to a remarkable art piece detailing a traditional indigenous North American sport called Stickball. I was so happy to see Stickball being given the recognition it deserves. Stickball, like other indigenous sports, give us a unique and valuable window into the culture of the people. Playing and celebrating the sport in your PE class can create an enriching experience for your students.
Some historians consider Stickball to be North America’s oldest original sport. The game is meant to represent the traits and spirit of a warrior: speed, strength, endurance, and bravery. The Cherokee have a story that the game was initially played between the land animals and birds. The land animals (especially the bear) were overconfident because they thought their strength and size compared to the small birds. However, the birds had overpowering speed and tactics, which garnered victory.
The Choctaw called this game Ishtaboli, the Little Brother of War. The game was also played by the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Seminole, and Yuchi people. This game was used to settle disputes that could have led to war if left unchecked. This game has been described as more violent than lacrosse. A significant difference is that each player carries two sticks instead of one. The sticks are called Kabocca, and they both look like mini-lacrosse sticks. There are two poles on either side of the field. The goal the players are trying to hit with the ball. Depending on the tribe, the sticks ranged from two and a half feet up to three feet in length. It was common to see slightly different shapes for the basket, whether oval, egg-shaped, or similar to a modern lacrosse hoop.
The ball they use, Towa, is about the size of a golf ball and is hard to catch. With the ball inside the pouch of the stick, a score happens either by throwing or touching the pole. Modern Stickball has a fish ornament on top of a 25-foot pole. I wonder if the fish had symbolism in the Cherokee story. A food source that both land animals and birds crave? If the fish is hit with the ball, that is worth 3 points. If the pole is hit anywhere else, 1 point. If a ball goes out of bounds, the referee throws another one immediately back into the game to keep the action going.
One stick is used for catching the ball; the other is for carrying and throwing. Sticks were commonly made of hickory because of their hardness, strength, and availability in the eastern woodlands of North America. Sticks would be handmade, which meant better quality and craftsmanship would give an advantage to the player. The ball is never to be touched by the hands. The ball has a spiritual essence that can only be channeled by the sticks, which represent the Earth. The tradition of the game was meant to guide morality.
Before the game begins, burning or smudging tobacco is a spiritual cleansing that reminds the players of the life cycle and that they are also connected to their opponents with that cycle. Then the players line up, with the leader standing slightly ahead of everyone else. He does a warrior call, and all his teammates respond with the same call back (similar to a haka war cry). During the game, a steady drumbeat was often played in the background. At the end of the game, everyone brings his sticks to the middle to symbolize unity.
If you are interested in playing a version of this sport in your PE class, please download the lesson plan from the website. In fact, there are lots of other excellent lessons in the free resources portion of the webpage. Have fun playing Stickball!
Free Stickball lesson plan
Free Montessori PE Resource Section
Bibliography:
“Celebrating Indigenous North American Stickball.” (Nov. 1st, 2022). Google Doodles. https://www.google.com/doodles/celebrating-indigenous-north-american-stickball. Retrieved Nov. 1st, 2022.
Culin, Stewart. "Games of the North American Indians." In Twenty-fourth Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, 1902-1903, pp. 1-840. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1907.
D'urso, William. "They Remember, The Little Brother of War. The World Series of Choctaw Stickball." SBNation Longform. 2019 Vox Media. Retrieved Aril 2019. https://www.sbnation.com/2015/9/2/9224451/they-remember-the-little-brother-of-war
Fogelson, Raymond. "The Cherokee Ball Game: A Study in Southeastern Ethnology." Ph.D. dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 1962.