Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori - Māori Language Week begins tomorrow (14-21 Mahuru/September) and this year's theme is Ake Ake Ake - A Forever Language, chosen to represent the hope, resilience, adaptability, and endurance of te reo while reflecting the commitment New Zealanders have to embracing and learning te reo Māori long into the future.

This year also marks a whole decade since ‘Mahuru Māori’ began as a social experiment, as a way to broadcast te reo Māori and normalise it in everyday dealings. Since then, thousands of people have taken up the challenge to learn and speak more te reo Māori throughout the month of Mahuru, and beyond.

Together if we learn and gain the confidence to speak te reo Māori in our everyday lives; whether you are fluent, just learning, or anywhere in between, if we recognise that every time we do, we are revitalising te reo Māori and breathing life back into our native tongue.

Let us take this opportunity of Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori and Mahuru Māori to come together as a community in celebrating our unique culture and honouring Te reo Māori me ōna tikanga. 

What’s happening at Raphael House?

Te reo Māori grows with our people, our culture and our environment and at our kura- school, our tamariki will be taking part in a number of exciting activities, with prizes and fun to be had throughout Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori, a huge thank you to our wonderful and hard-working kaiako!

We encourage you to engage in kōrero-conversation with your tamariki at home with the going-on’s during the school day and week. You can start with a simple greeting or farewell each day, half an hour or half a day; anything that makes you speak more te reo Māori.

Outside of this, we have a number of activities planned, as follows below.

Storytelling in Te Reo Māori:

Next week after school starting Monday 16 September, there will be storytelling in te reo Māori, in the Heidi Werth room or at the park, weather dependent. All whānau welcome, please come along!

Biscuits and fruit to be shared at our school gate to encourage and engage te reo Māori kōrero amongst our whānau:

On the morning of Thursday 19 September some of our whānau will be welcoming our tamariki as they arrive for their school day with greetings in te reo Māori and our intention is to engage with kōrero and sharing of kai.

My Reo Journey:

Each week in the Bush Telegraph we will be featuring people from within our community as they share about their reo Māori learning journey. 

If you would like to volunteer for either of the above, please reach out to Haley and Adibah at haley.terire@gmail.com and adibah.saad8@gmail.com

This week, we share the journey of Jacqui D’Ath, who is a parent at our kura-school and has her youngest tamariki, Scarlett in Class 7, as well as having had her two older tamariki who also attended Raphael House.

Events or activities during Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori and in Mahuru:

If you’re looking for events or activities during te wiki o te Reo Māori and in Mahuru, there are a variety of exciting local kaupapa or events throughout Te Whanganui a Tara – Wellington:

https://wellington.govt.nz/news-and-events/events-and-festivals/maori-language-week

https://www.tereofest.nz/events/ 

National Library has some fantastic tours, talks, performances, waiata and stories in and about te reo Māori, catering to all ages:

https://natlib.govt.nz/events/mahuru-maori-2024

If you wanted to set yourself a challenge?

Check out some ideas here:

https://www.mahurumaori.com/challenge-finder/

https://www.reomaori.co.nz/

We welcome you all to join us this Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori - Māori Language Week to uplift, honour and celebrate te reo Māori now and into the future!

Kia māhorahora te reo – let’s make it seen, let’s make it heard.