How to Make New Zealand POI
Create the Polynesian Ball on a Cord that Dancers Use to Perform
Apr 24, 2009
The benefits of practicing with POI balls have been listed in the article How the POI Originated in the Maori Culture. Making POI can be fun and they are easy to fashion. Teaching students this enjoyable craft will spare them the expense of buying the artifacts until such time as they have decided that this artistic form of movement is for them.
How to Make POI
The POI is made of two parts
- the balls to give weight
- and the cords from which the balls are suspended
Teachers and participants will need to make decisions about which method they would like to use to make both the cords and the balls, before deciding on the kinds of materials to gather for the project. The materials teachers and students need to gather depend on the method chosen to create the dancers artifact. The weights constructed in the form of a ball can be made from bean baggies, soft balls, tennis balls or even soft foam stuffing.
What ever the form for the balls chosen, they will eventually be wrapped in soft cloth so that they can be attached to the cord. The more attractive the cloths the more appealing the activity may seem to younger students. In the clip Maori Poi @ Te Papa, POIs are used to accentuate graceful dancing.
Lessons From the Home of POI
According to an article written by Daisy Hemana, on the Home of POI website, the New Zealand POI were traditionally made from Flax. But nowadays there are a variety of options from which a good strong cord can be chosen. It is important that the cord is both flexible and strong.
On the Home of POI website you will be able to click through to two different sets of instructions about how to make simple POI.
Both descriptions are very basic but young artists are free to decorate and adorn the balls in any way they like. An important point to remember is that Maori Kapa Haka intended for performance are meant to be fairly light. Sometimes the dance artists or artisans fill the bags with seeds or rice to make them heavier.
Learning about the Qualities of POI
Well practiced dancers might use a heavier POI but beginners would be advised to use lighter ones. Be aware that if the POI is heavy, it may accidentally hit and bruise the participant. The heavier you make it, the slower they will spin and the less likely it is that the Poi will be affected by any wind.
How to Use POI
On the Home of POI website there are articles about how to use the POI. It seems that a whole international community has grown up around the art and that it has developed into a form of fire twirling. On the home page of the website you will see three distinct sections on the information portal.
The sections are designed to provide
- information about the communities that have grown up around the artform. It gives readers a way to connect with others who want to become involved with or better the artistic form so that they can “connect with other spinners and twirlers around the world.”
- a library of free lessons and articles.
- and a shop where you can buy the POI if you would like to purchase rather than make your own.
The Poi originated naturally in the New Zealand culture as a way of enhancing dance and rhythm. As it developed, other benefits such as wrist strength, flexibility and improving co-ordination were soon recognised. These days the idea of mastering simple Poi moves is not only valued by educators as a way of improving student self-esteem like all performance arts teachers develop, adapt and refine processes to suite local culture and the needs of their school.
Resource: Home of POI website
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