Hekko 4 EnglishChapter 9 CBSE Notes 2025-26

‘Hekko’ is a special traditional game from Nagaland, especially from the Mokokchung district. The term itself means “Challenging the Tiger” (‘hek’ meaning challenge, ‘ko’ meaning tiger). There is an old folk story about humans (“Aami”) and tigers (“Aakho”) debating about who is superior. This disagreement led to the creation of the Hekko game, where the challenge is acted out in a playful and spirited way.

Hekko is played between two teams, each named after the figures in the legend: Aami (the humans) and Aakho (the tigers). Each team consists of 11 players. Before the match starts, a toss decides which team will be Aami and which will be Aakho. This game is important for the community because it helps the villagers recognize the strongest and fastest among them.

The game begins with a large circle drawn on the ground. The Aami team joins hands to form a human chain inside the circle, while the Aakho team starts outside. At first, 2 members of the Aakho team enter the circle and attempt to push the Aami players out. If an Aami member gets pushed out, he is out for the rest of the game. The Aami team, meanwhile, tries to trap and catch the Aakho members. If they succeed, a caught Aakho can only be released after saying “Joko,” which means surrender.

• The objective for the Aakho team is to push as many Aami members out as possible.
• The Aami team’s goal is to catch the Aakho players and make them surrender.
• Every time a team successfully gets a member of the opposing team out, they score points.

Players continue entering and exiting the circle, following the rule that each time an Aakho is caught and surrenders, another teammate can join the play. The game ends when all Aakho are caught, all Aami are pushed out, or when the time limit is reached. The team with the higher score at the end wins. Outstanding players are honoured: the fastest in Aami is named “Khozuba” and the strongest in Aakho is named “Khotiba.”

Here are some key words from this chapter:

• declared
• superiority
• disagreement
• surrender

Understanding the game and story better will be helpful for revision:

1. What does ‘Hekko’ mean?
2. What are the two teams in the game called?
3. How many players are there in each team?
4. What do the players in the Aami team do inside the circle?
5. Why must the Aakho team member say “Joko” when caught?

This chapter also asks you to reflect and express your own ideas about the game:

1. Would you prefer to be in the Aami or the Aakho team? Why?
2. If you could add a new rule to Hekko, what would it be and what good would it do?

The chapter also covers some pairs of confusing words. These word pairs sound similar but have different spellings and meanings. Practise by filling in the blanks and choosing the right word for each sentence. Some of the pairs given are: their/there, two/too, through/threw, caught/cot, right/write.

Teachers can use these exercises to help students notice the difference in spelling and meaning, even though the words sound alike.

Students are asked to name animals shown in pictures (Tiger, Horse, Elephant, Dove, Goat, Monkey) and match each animal with the sound it makes (e.g., tiger – roars, horse – neighs, etc.). This helps in building vocabulary and observation skills.

Events from stories are used to highlight the past simple tense. Adding -ed to verbs is a general rule for forming the past tense (e.g., played, jumped). Some verbs don’t follow this rule and are called irregular verbs (e.g., came, saw).

Example exercise: Fill in blanks with -ed forms, such as “visited,” “enjoyed,” “decided,” etc. This helps reinforce grammar concepts using daily activities and stories.

The lesson also introduces other traditional Indian games through riddles and descriptions. For example, games involving seven stacked stones, striking sticks, or flicking marbles are mentioned. These questions prompt students to guess the game described and promote general knowledge about Indian culture.

Students are encouraged to talk about games they see in pictures, share their experiences with traditional Indian games, and discuss the benefits—physical and mental—of playing such games. Writing exercises guide students to invent a new game, including its name, rules, number of players, and fouls, encouraging creativity and clarity of thought.

To extend learning beyond games, the chapter briefly introduces Nagaland’s rich culture, mentioning the famous Hornbill Festival. Students are prompted to research and explore the traditions and celebrations that make Nagaland unique.

At the end, there are answers to exercises that focus on observation (spotting errors in a scene or differences between pictures), and fun riddles (answers: teeth, candle, coconut). These are a good recap and reinforce attentive reading and analytical skills.

Class 4 English Chapter 9 Notes – Hekko: Nagaland's Challenging Game (NCERT Book, HTML5 Content)

These CBSE Class 4 English Chapter 9 revision notes cover all key elements of the “Hekko” game story and activity exercises from the NCERT book. With clear summaries and structured points, students can confidently understand the meaning of Hekko, how to play, and the vocabulary involved for exam preparation.

Use these notes to revise important grammar and activity questions quickly for Class 4 English Chapter 9. Focusing on story facts, grammar, and Indian traditions, these revision points help children recall essential details and answer questions easily in class tests.