Ko wai ahau? (Who are we)

Ko Ōtāhuhu te kura kohungahunga

I nga tamariki pūāwai of Tamaki

Tēnā koe ki te maunga o Ōtāhuhu

Kia ora ke te awa o Tāmaki

He mihi tēnei ki ngā mana whenua

O tēnei rohe

Tainui

We celebrate Te Reo Māori everyday at Ōtāhuhu kindergarten and shine a light on it during Te wiki o Te Reo Māori week.

This year we looked into ‘Turangawaewae’ sense of belonging, identity and whanau.  We looked at the foundation around the ‘Marae’ its meaning and its use to hold whanau during tangi, hui, wharenui and more.  Korero Māori, waiata, kani kani, & karakia, was encouraged, implemented and empowered daily as well as re-visiting our myths and legends- ‘kuia and the Pungawerewere ‘ ‘Old lady and the spider’ and our Maui series pukapuka and more.

Koru and kowhaiwhai patterns were guiding our tamariki to look at shapes, and identify symbols that are only significant to Māori tikanga.  We cleaned up our garden beds and planted veges and sunflowers as a tribute to Papatuanuku to sustain our well-being and care for our tinana inside and out, and to awhi our Enviroschool Kaupapa.