Year 09/10 5AOT – Aotearoa: Māori Culture, Geography, History and Language

Available for study in: Year 9 or Year 10. 

Main areas of study:

Te Ao Māori: The Māori World: Historical and contemporary issues.
What’s all the fuss about colonisation, the New Zealand Wars, the Treaty of Waitangi, Bastion Point, and the disparity between ethnic groups in Aotearoa?

Mātai Matawhenua: Geography of Aotearoa New Zealand
Is it Lake Wakatipu or Lake Whakatipu and why do we have such a strong connection with place names, nature, and landforms? What’s the connection between Māori and other indigenous cultures around the Pacific Islands?

Tikanga Māori: Customary practices or behaviours
What’s the process and protocol at a pōwhiri, tangi, or hui? How do I perform a haka or waiata? How do I swing a taiaha or weave a basket like an expert? Most importantly- how do I make sure that I don’t burn the kumara during a hāngi?

Te Reo Māori: Language
How do I introduce myself in te reo Māori? How do I pronounce words such as Taupō correctly? How can I use te reo Māori in everyday conversations and emails?

Te Tiriti o Waitangi: The Treaty of Waitangi
Why did we need a treaty? What’s the problem? Why have people got such strong opinions on the treaty?

In this course you will learn

• Essential skills: literacy (writing process) and competencies- collaboration.
• Holistic development: self (confidence) and social (connectedness).
• Values: respect (Te whakuate) and inclusion (kotahitanga).
• Students will be assessed using a range of tasks which could include:
• Visual presentations.
• Reflective films.
• Report writing.
• Analysing material (statistical, visual or written).
• Academic writing/essay.
• Speeches.

Methods of assessment:  
Students will be assessed using a range of tasks which could include:

• Visual presentations.
• Reflective films.
• Report writing.
• Analysing material (statistical, visual or written).
• Academic writing/essay.
• Speeches.

This course leads to:  
This course provides a strong foundation to study either Social Sciences and/or Māori courses in the junior school.