Seven students in Years 5-8 have participated in a Pasifika cultural identity group this term. We have had two Pasifika kaimahi from Mana Ake facilitating this group, which has focused on connecting students with their culture and promoting positive self identity. Read about the students' experiences below...

Every Monday I go to Pasifika group with Sina and Moana. I liked learning about the dawn raids. I learnt that Islanders had to change their name because the teachers would know they were Islanders and the other kids might make fun of the names they were given by their parents. It made me feel sad that it had happened because the police would knock on their doors and they would even go to their schools and disturb their learning time. My grandpa told me stories about the dawn raids. He said that he had to change his name to David and the police would come to the door at night. My grandpa said they would have many hiding spots and exits and signs to get away from the police. If I was in the dawn raids I would have been terrified. I'm lucky not to have been born when that happened. Sina and Moana had fun activities for us, like the hand tap game and the concentration game. I learnt some Fijian, but I'm still a bit rusty. I loved spending time with Sina and Moana and the other kids that went to the group. Everyone had funny jokes and cool ideas. 

By Sela

Every Monday I go to Pasifika group. I've enjoyed learning about the dawn raids because I didn't know about it before. I liked playing our games. My favorite was the hand tap game. I enjoyed it because it was fun and confusing. I enjoyed hanging out with Sina and Moana because they were fun to hang out with because they know about my culture. We talked about food and about how Pacific Island people came to New Zealand for a better life. I learned different languages like Tongan and Samoan. Sina and Moana were fun because they liked laughing and smiling and they made me feel happy. 

By Eliki

Every Monday I go to Pasifika group with Sina and Moana. I loved learning about my culture, especially the dawn raids. Last night I watched the news and the Prime Minister apologised about the dawn raids. I learnt that Islanders were only allowed to stay in New Zealand if they had papers for it. In the night, immigration would come and ask you for your papers that allow you to stay in New Zealand. If you didn't have them you would have to hide. If I was in the dawn raids, I would feel terrified for my life because no one should ever have to go through that life. My grandfather Tolou was in the dawn raids and he said it was terrifying. I feel very lucky that I never had to go through that. Sometimes in the group, we would draw Samoan patterns to represent who we are. One week, we learnt some Samoan language. This week we did Personality Bingo to see what other people like and don't like. Mana Ake was an inspiration to keep our culture going and to be proud of who we are. Don't let anyone put you down, everyone should be themselves and stay that way. 

By Toni

I liked going to the group. I felt connected when I was with other Pasifika people. I especially liked when I could introduce myself in my own language - Samoan.

By Hayley

We learnt how to say, 'Hello, my name is . . .' in Tongan, Fijian and Samoan. I enjoyed playing games and doing patterns in writing.

By Nunia 

I enjoyed the company of the group. We always had a good time and laughed and joked. I learnt how to draw different Pasifika patterns with turtles, waves, spears and lines. 

By Nia

I enjoyed playing a game about emotions. I also enjoyed playing a game where we had to guess who had a written each joke. Sina and Moana were fun to be with and I enjoyed spending time with them because they know lots about my culture - Papua New Guinean, Tongan and Fijian. 

By Mahe