THE annual Palarong Pambansa, one of the biggest events spearheaded by the Department of Education (DepEd) is now being held in Davao City from April 28 to May 4. This annual convening of sports athletes serves as a complementary avenue for young students to develop their fullest potentials not just in academics but also in the field of sports. It aims to inculcate among the young student athletes the values of sportsmanship, camaraderie, and discipline.
The sports competitions include 20 sports disciplines such as Archery, Arnis, Aquatics, Athletics, Badminton, Baseball, Boxing, Chess, Football, Futsal, Gymnastics, Sepak Takraw, Softball, Table Tennis, Taekwondo, Tennis, Volleyball and Demonstration Sports such as Billiards, Wushu, Wrestling, Aerobic Gymnastics, Dancesport, and Pencak Silat. There are also special events for learners with disabilities.
This year, the DepEd introduced the Larong Pinoy as one of the new highlights during the 62nd Palarong Pambansa. Larong Pinoy seeks to strengthen and revive the traditional Pinoy games by introducing kadang-kadang, patintero, hilahang-lubid, and karera ng sako. It is deemed as a unique way to foster camaraderie and friendship among DepEd Executive Committee members, DepEd sports officials, local government unit (LGU) representatives, and sports icons.
Briones, who graced the opening of Larong Pinoy, expressed her hope that indigenous games would be equally appreciated and recognized as popular sports like basketball.
At the same time, this move to bring back the traditional games among our children and youth is a powerful tool that can aid in the growing dependence of our young ones in the internet, TV, and video games. How fun and exciting it is to play with your kids the games that we used to play before such as Patintero, Taguan, Piko, Maro-maro, Tumbang Preso, Pitik-bulag, and Luksung Babi.
Through these native games, children will not just be able to develop their physical skills but also hone their social and emotional skills as well. They can nurture friendships with other children and enjoy their idle time productively.