‘Professor Mbe’: The Fourth Tekoon Game, Where A Wise Tortoise Teaches A Cheetah To Race
Every cheetah needs a teacher. In ‘Professor Mbe’, the fourth game in Tekoon, a wise old tortoise calls the words and you type them fast enough to carry a thirsty cheetah cub to the water hole before sunset.
Who Is ‘Professor Mbe’?
Mbe is the Igbo word for tortoise. In many Igbo folktales, Mbe is the small, slow animal that outwits everyone who is bigger, faster and louder. You can read about the people behind these stories on the Igbo people page, and about the animal on the tortoise page.
I made him a professor because he cannot run any more, but he knows every inch of the road. That is the idea of the game. The cheetah has the speed, the tortoise has the knowledge, and you are the one who joins them together with your fingers.
The Story: Race To The Water Hole
The dry season is here. The water hole is far away, and the sun will not wait. ‘Professor Mbe’ sits on his warm rock and calls out the words. You type them clean, and the cub runs. Reach the water before sunset and the whole animal kingdom drinks.
How To Play ‘Professor Mbe’
- Open Tekoon at nkuzify.com/tekoon and tap ‘Professor Mbe’.
- Choose your level: Easy, Medium, Hard or Dictation.
- Type each word Mbe gives you. Correct letters turn green, and a wrong key turns red.
- Keep typing for one minute and try to reach the water hole, 600 metres away.
The Four Levels
- Easy: short words of five letters or fewer.
- Medium: longer words of six letters or more.
- Hard: three words at a time, with no pause between them.
- Dictation: you hear the word and then type it from memory, which trains listening and spelling. It needs a device that can speak aloud.
What Happens When You Type Well, And When You Do Not
The cheetah moves at the speed of your typing. Its pace is shown as Resting, Walk, Trot, Run and Sprint. String correct letters together and you build a combo, up to times five. At the top the cub bursts into Sprint mode.
A wrong key breaks the stride and the combo. Stop typing and the cheetah slows, the screen dims, and Mbe tells you the cub is tiring. Nothing scary happens. You learn the lesson a good typist must learn: accuracy first, and speed will follow.
The Journey Changes As You Run
Over the minute the sky moves from day to dusk to night, with stars coming out. Landmarks such as Baobab Hill slide past behind the cub. A small keyboard guide with a pair of paws shows the next key, so a beginner always knows where to look.
Why It Suits Children
- The consequence is visible, not harsh. A mistake makes the cheetah slow down, and a child feels that straight away without being told off.
- It teaches clean typing. A combo only grows when the keys are right.
- Dictation builds spelling. Listening and typing together is how many of us learned words in class.
- Sessions are short. One minute is easy to fit in before dinner.
- It has a story. A child is not practising, they are saving a thirsty cub.
Teens And Adults, Try Hard Mode
Do not leave this one to the children. Hard mode throws three words at a time, and keeping a combo of five through all of them is a real test. See how far you get, then dare a friend to beat your distance.
Please Share It With The Younger Ones
Hand your phone or tablet to a younger brother, sister, cousin or pupil and let them meet ‘Professor Mbe’. Ten minutes a day is enough. It works on any phone, tablet, laptop or PC, and it is free.
More from Tekoon: the first post about the app and ‘Tẹ́kùn’s Adventure’, a 50-level typing journey.
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