Whānau Harakeke: A Beautiful Start to Te Reo Learning Through Play!
Emma Downie — February 27, 2025
What a wonderful week of learning through play it's been in Whānau Harakeke! We've embarked on a fantastic journey into the beautiful world of Te Reo Māori, and the tamariki have embraced it with enthusiasm and joy.
Our learning through play session was a brilliant introduction to Te Reo, with children learning how to welcome and greet each other in this beautiful language. We also explored the numbers to 10, laying a solid foundation for further learning.
The tamariki then actively implemented the concepts of form and connection, making links between the spoken words and their written forms during various activities and play. It was wonderful to see them making those important connections!
We've continued to develop this learning within our classroom setting, reinforcing our Te Reo knowledge through fun activities like playing Snakes and Ladders using Te Reo numbers. Our daily Paepae sessions have also been instrumental in developing our pronunciation and confidence in speaking Te Reo.
Adding to our fun, we've also been learning "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes" using Te Reo! If you'd like to sing this song at home with your tamariki, you can follow this link.
It's been a truly rewarding week, and we're excited to see our tamariki continue their Te Reo journey. We are so proud of their efforts and enthusiasm!
Ngā mihi nui,
The Whānau Harakeke Team
