Te Ao Māori

Te ao Māori at Ōtūmoetai Intermediate covers lessons through classes and year levels, by way of pepehā, heritage, history, whānau, protocols and kawa under our mātāpono (values) of manaakitanga (care), kaitiakitanga (guardianship), wairuatanga (spirituality, whanaungatanga (relationships), kotahitanga (unity) and mana/rangatiratanga (leadership).

From the very first day of school this year, our tauira (students) were instrumental in providing the necessary pōwhiri, tikanga and kawa, for our school to welcome our new Year 7 students. From then, they have been a huge assistance to myself, and have been representatives of our school, and community.

Within our school, our students learn and recite the school karakia across the school every morning, and lead our karakia at assemblies as a positive start to our day. We have weekly te reo classes, which consist of learning about ourselves through pepehā and whakapapa (genealogy), our school through connections to waka, iwi, hapū, and whenua, as well as the learning names of school surroundings, whakatauāki, school karakia, waiata, and school haka. Mihi in te reo have become second nature to many students and some have extended that to be able to have conversations using what has been learnt within the classroom

Te Kāhui Tui ā Kinomoerua, is the whaikōrero group that met once a week and learnt basic whaikōrero (oratory) skills. Some continue to extend their knowledge, while others gain confidence and understanding in the basic skills they have acquired so far. They continue to learn, to fill their kete for the future.

Manukura

Our Manukura were  a part of National Young Leaders Day, and were inspired by speakers to have self-belief and resilience in order to be great leaders. With this as inspiration, (May) the students organised, participated in, and judged, the school ‘Haka challenge’ (July)as a part of our Matariki celebrations. Manukura then followed this by attending the 160th Te Ranga Commemorations. A humble, emotional, early morning ceremony, to remember what took place at Te Ranga, and its effects on us as a hapū, iwi, and school. Together with other Tauranga schools, we welcomed our guests with a mass haka pohiri, shared kai together, listened and remembered the history , and performed the haka “ Taumataiahui,” realigning our connections to Te Ranga.  Connecting through these kaupapa, we are learning to be leaders within our Maori world along with the mainstream world.  Te kāhui Manukura have been a huge assistance to myself, and have been representatives of our school, and community in many kaupapa throughout the year.

Kapa Haka

Kapa haka branched out to many areas this year. From learning haka with a focus on Pukehinahina(Gate Pā) and Te Ranga (Taumataiahui) in the first months of school, to making steady progress and learning a bracket to perform at the Showcase. We also had our Poutama kapa haka growing alongside us and gaining confidence in their learning and waiata.  Unfortunately, due to Matua Takiri being unwell, our kapa haka did not perform at Te Ra Rehia this year, but we did play a major role standing with Ōtūmoetai Primary School as haukainga in the pohiri.

Kapa haka also performed at Te Waka Pererua, the regional kapa haka competition in Term 4.  Our kapa performed admirably, presenting their stories, through their songs, and haka, producing  a different level of performance, to that which we are used to. The kapa has begun to feel a strong bond to each other, and a greater understanding to what we sing and haka about. Acknowledgements to the kapa for their perseverance, patience, and adaptability in learning waiata, haka, new tunes and actions, learning to sing, perform, and remember all of these things while holding a smile. Phew!

This is a small glance into Te Ao Maori at Ōtūmoetai Intermediate, continuing to grow through class, and school-wide te ao Māori programmes. We can only get stronger with the input of all, working together to achieve success, ‘Kia oke ngātahi tātou. Ka ekea te taumata o angitū.’