Matariki Marae
Today we visited our Marae, and had a discussion about the heke (or the horizontal beams 'ribs'). We learnt about the first waka called Tainui that visited this part of Auckland, each beam had beautiful paintings and designs that told a story each signifying different guardians. Some of these were familiar to our children, and their knowledge was extended through a story told by Whaea Sue about all the guardians. We listened to the story about Papatuanuku, (Earth) and Ranginui (sky) and how they were separated. We visited Tane in the ngahere (bush), and collected some Kawakawa leaves together to make some special cream for Whaea Sue's daughter. The children listened intently as we chatted about how we needed to only take what we need and leave some for others. This emphasizes one of our kaupapa around respect, nature, and the responsibilities they carry as guardians in their own environment. What a great opportunity this was for our children to learn about how nature can be healing. Our children are participating in this program , where they are learning about Maori Cultural traditions and stories through song and dance and connecting this to their learning at Uxbridge.
Waiho i te toipoto, kaua i te toiroa
Let us keep close together, not wide apart
.JPG)
Let us keep close together, not wide apart
