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Week One: In the Beginning (1800-1870)
Cool Kiwi Fact #1: Did you know that the Māori name for New Zealand is Aotearoa? Loosely translated this means ‘land of the long white cloud.’
Day 1: Arriving in New Zealand…
Day 1: Arriving in New Zealand…
Activity 1: The First Settlers
It is widely believed that the first people to arrive in New Zealand came from Polynesia. Most historians believe that they landed in New Zealand over 700 years ago. Although they were originally from many different countries, these settlers learned to live together and, eventually, formed their own distinct culture known as ‘Māori.’ Māori have their own language, traditions, and culture.
Follow this link to read a short story about a famous man in Māori mythology – Maui. On your blog, post three facts that you learned about this interesting man. What other stories have you heard about Maui?
Activity 2: Setting Sail
The first settlers to come to New Zealand must have been really brave! They had to leave their original homes and sail thousands of miles across the ocean on a special boat called a ‘waka’ to reach New Zealand.
Imagine that you were on board one of the wakas. On your blog, write a short letter to a friend telling them about your voyage to New Zealand. In the letter be sure to tell them how you feel about moving to a new country. If it was me, I would have felt really nervous…
Bonus Activity: Waka Ama
To this day, the people of New Zealand still use waka. Instead of using their waka to transport them from one place to another, they sometimes use waka in special events and in sporting competitions such as Waka Ama. Both boys and girls compete in Waka Ama boat races.
Watch this short video of a Waka Ama race. On your blog tell us whether you would like to be in a Waka Ama race one day. Why or why not?
BONUS POINTS: 10
Day 2: It’s All in a Day’s Work
Day 2: It’s All in a Day’s Work
Activity 1: A House or a Home?
In the 1800s, most Māori lived in villages called pa. Each village had many buildings – kauta where people cooked, pataka where they stored goods and wharepuni where the Māori slept. A traditional wharepuni had a thatched roof and walls made of timber, fern, rushes and bark. Look at the picture below of a traditional wharepuni. Does it look like your house?
On your blog, compare the wharepuni to your own home. What are two similarities and two differences between a wharepuni and your house?
Activity 2: The Rules of Engagement
During the early years in New Zealand, men and women would often marry at a young age. Women were expected to have babies and remain in the home caring for their children. Few, if any, left home in search of work. Men, on the other hand, were expected to work outside of the home.
These days, we don’t have the same strict expectations about work. Girls and boys can choose their own path in life. In fact, I was lucky enough to go to university and to follow my dream of becoming a teacher!
What is your dream job? Draw a picture of yourself doing your dream job and post it on your blog. You could be a doctor, an actor or even a zookeeper! I have drawn myself taking a picture of a beautiful castle in Poland because I would love to become a travel blogger and photographer one day.
Bonus Activity: Special Meals
Back in the 1800s, most Māori ate a simple diet. They ate foods that they could catch in the water (eg. fish) or grow on the land (eg. kumara). They did not have access to a supermarket to buy food for their meals! Speaking of meals, what is your favourite meal? Mine is wood-fired pizza. Yum!
On your blog, post a picture of your favourite meal. Be sure to tell us what it is and why it is your favourite. You could also include the recipe if you have it so that we can all try it!
BONUS POINTS: 8
Day 3: It’s All in the Family
Day 3: It’s All in the Family
Activity 1: The More, the Merrier?
In the 1800s, most families were pretty big. In fact, many parents had an average of seven to nine children. Imagine that you were a child in the 1800s and you had nine siblings.
On your blog, please tell us how you would feel. Would you enjoy being a member of such a large family? Why or why not?
Activity 2: Acknowledging Ancestry
All of us are members of a family. Some of us have large families and some of us have very small families. When I have the opportunity to talk about my family and my ancestry I sometimes choose to use a pepeha. It is a very special way of identifying who I am and where I come from. There are many different versions of pepeha but most provide people with information about who you are and where you come from (i.e. your whakapapa). Use the template provided below to prepare your own unique pepeha. If you need help please watch this short movie clip on preparing a pepeha.
SAMPLE PEPEHA
Ko ________________________ te maunga The mountain that I affiliate* to is…
Ko ________________________ te awa The river that I affiliate to is….
Ko ________________________ te waka The waka that I affiliate to is…
Ko ________________________ tōku tīpuna My founding ancestor is…
Ko ________________________ tōku iwi My tribe is…
Ko ________________________ tōku hapu My sub-tribe is…
Ko ________________________ tōku marae My marae is…
Ko ________________________ ahau I am from…
Ko________ rāua ko ___________ōku mātua My parents are … and …
Ko ________________________ tōku ingoa. My name is …
*affiliate means to associate with, or be close to.
MY PEPEHA
Ko Gatineau te maunga.
Ko Mississippi te awa.
Ko James Telford Stirling tōku tīpuna.
Ko Williamson-Stirling tōku iwi.
Ko Williamson tōku hapū.
Ko Almonte tōku marae.
Ko Almonte, Canada ahau.
Ko Leslie rāua, ko Ron oku mātua.
Ko Rachel tōku ingoa.
When you have completed your pepeha, post it on your blog. You could even post a video of you reading out your pepeha.
Bonus Activity: Fun Family Facts
Everyone’s family is unique. What makes your family special? Choose three people close to you and ask them what their two favourite things to do in summer are.
On your blog, write two fun facts about each person. For example, my Nana plays the bagpipes!
BONUS POINTS: 6
Day 4: Hitting a High Note…
Day 4: Hitting a High Note…
Activity 1: The Waiata - A Song in Your Heart
In the past, Māori would often use song as a way of sharing information or communicating emotions. A waiata is the name given to a traditional Māori song. One of my all-time favourite waiata is Kia Paimarie. What about you?
Use Google to research traditional Māori Waiata. Listen to a number of Waiata and read the lyrics. On your blog tell us which one of the waiata you found you like the most. Why do you like it?
Activity 2: Playing Games
Hundreds of years ago, young Māori children were taught to play a number of games, including Poi Rakau, Ki O Rahi, Koruru Taonga and Poi Toa. Read about each of these four games on the Rangatahi tu Rangatira website. Have you played any of them before? Isn’t it cool how the games have been passed down for generations?
Choose one game, and on your blog, tell us the (i) name of the game, (ii) the goal or purpose of the game, and (iii) two rules.
You could try playing some of the games with a friend.
Bonus Activity: Musical Festivals – Matatini
In New Zealand, a huge festival is held every two years, called Te Matatini. This performing arts festival celebrates the tikanga (culture or customs) of Māori. Kapa Haka groups from around New Zealand are invited to attend the festival and each group gives a 25-minute performance. The performances are judged and the best teams win prizes.
The gold medal winning team from this year (2017) was Te Kapa Haka o Whāngārā Mai Tawhiti.
Watch these three clips from previous Te Matatini festivals.
On your blog, rank the performances from your favourite (#1) to least favourite (#3) and tell us why you gave them the ranking that you did.
BONUS POINTS: 6
Day 5: The Dawn of a New Era…
Day 5: The Dawn of a New Era…
From the 1840s onwards, many European settlers came to live in New Zealand. It was a difficult period in New Zealand’s history. As the settlers began to outnumber the Māori, a great war erupted between the two groups as they fought for access to land to build homes and establish communities.
Activity 1: Translating Phrases
Unlike the Māori, many of the European settlers didn’t speak Te Reo Māori. Instead, they spoke English. As you can imagine, it was very difficult for the two groups to communicate because they did not have a dictionary or a translator. These days we are able to use the Internet to translate words and phrases from one language to another.
Use Google Translate to translate the following five phrases from English to Te Reo Māori or from Te Reo Māori to English. Post the translations on your blog. Be sure to include the phrase in both the English and Māori to earn full points.
Phrases:
Nau mai ki Aotearoa.
____ is my name.
What is your name?
He pai taku ki te takaro i te whutupaoro.
Where do you come from?
Activity 2: The Treaty of Waitangi
On 6 February 1840, a very special document was signed by the Māori chiefs and the British settlers in New Zealand. It was called the Treaty of Waitangi (Te Tiriti o Waitangi) and it outlined how the two groups would live together and work together in New Zealand. It was the first document of its kind to be signed in the entire world. The Treaty was signed in a place called Waitangi in northern New Zealand.
Follow this Waitangi village link to read about the village of Waitangi.
On your blog, tell us three fun things that you can do as a visitor in Waitangi. Which one would you like to do the most?
Bonus Activity: #EarnTheFern
After the Treaty of Waitangi was signed, New Zealand became a British colony. Many other countries in the world are also British colonies including Canada, South Africa, Australia, India and Malaysia. As a group they were, and still are, called the ‘Commonwealth’ countries. Years ago, a man named Melville Marks Robinson was asked to organize a sporting competition for people living in the Commonwealth countries. It is called the Commonwealth Games. The first ever event took place in Hamilton, Canada in 1930.
Athletes from New Zealand have competed in the Commonwealth Games for years. In the most recent Commonwealth Games event in Glasgow, Scotland New Zealand athletes won a total of 45 medals. The next Commonwealth Games will be held in 2018 in the Gold Coast, Australia. Hundreds of athletes are competing for the chance to represent NZ at the games (to 'Earn the Fern').
One of New Zealand’s gold-medal-winning Commonwealth athletes was a man named Bill Kini. Bill won a gold medal at the 1966 Commonwealth Games for being the best heavyweight boxer. He was a man of many talents! He played rugby in Ōtāhuhu in the 1960s and later moved to Whangarei.
Imagine that you could interview Bill. What would you ask him about his time at the 1966 Commonwealth Games. What would you want to know? I’d like to know how he had time to train for two sports at once.
On your blog, write four questions that you would ask Bill Kini.
BONUS POINTS: 8
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