Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori (Māori language week) in New Zealand was celebrated from September 14th to the 21st.

 Due to this time being during derived grade exam week when seniors were not at school, we decided to celebrate Māori language week during week 10 of term 3, September 23rd to the 27th.

Māori language week is a time for all New Zealanders to celebrate and encourage the use of Te Reo Māori in the classroom, home and community. It gives all Kiwis an opportunity to learn some basic Māori words and phrases, and allows us to recognise and celebrate Māori culture. It aims to inspire New Zealanders to speak the Māori language proudly.

One large celebration we had as a school was an inter-house waiata competition.

Each house group was required to pick a waiata that they would sing in front of the whole school. There could be any other performance aspects (e.g. guitar, or actions) added into the waiata, as the only rule was that everyone had to be singing and the waiata had to be in Te Reo.

The waiata competition was a way to get the school involved in learning some Māori kupu and embracing the Māori language and culture while doing so. The house groups were required to work together as one to choose their waiata and to practise.

An honourable mention goes out to the winners of the 2024 waiata competition. The Mawhera house actually worked together to write their own lyrics and translate it into Te Reo. The meaning of their song was about their house group Mawhera, and about how they are strong and they are one.

It was also so great to see every house group within the school participating and celebrating Māori language week together! There were some fantastic waiata performed by all house groups.

During Māori language week, there were also daily slideshows sent out which consisted of a new word or phrase each day for the school to learn and hopefully implement into their vocabulary. They were words/phrases that I believed everyone should know the Te Reo translation of. The four words/phrases for the week were:

• Kia pai tō rā! - Have a good day!

• Āe - Yes

• Kāo - No

• Kei te pēhea koe? + Kei te pai ahau! - How are you? + I am feeling good!

Have a go at saying these! :)

We have also introduced a new karakia into our weekly Monday morning prayers. This karakia is called a karakia timatanga which means an opening prayer. This karakia is a way to start the day by thanking the Lord and is a way to incorporate more Māori language into our school.

I would like to give a massive thank you to my Māori Culture Committee and Mrs Singer for all of their support and dedication they have put in throughout the year. None of these events and celebrations would have been possible without your help! Ngā mihi nui!

Pyper Murphy, Pūmanawa 2024.