Matariki Returnes

Matariki Returns by Moira Wairama and Rupert Alchin.

Connected 3, 2003

WALT - Locate and use information in the text to extend ideas about our general solar system and the effects this has on our word - to even our cultures and celebrations.

Success Criteria -

I can locate and use information in the text to extend ideas about our general solar system and the effects this has on our word - to even our cultures and celebrations.

I know the purpose of Matariki and can relate it to other special holidays.

Answer the following questions in red:

What is Matariki in a physical sense?

Matariki is the 7 stars that appears on Maori new Year.

What is the special sight you may witness towards the end of May?

The seven stars of Matariki sink below the horizon and disappears from New Zealand’s night sky.

What are people looking out for to know that the new year is beginning?

Seeing Matariki at dawn and the new moon at night.

Tell me three things you know about Matariki?

1. They are sisters.

2. 10 years ago some New Zealanders knew very little about matariki.

3. Matariki is made up of several hundred stars, but seven only seven can be seen with the naked eye.

What are the tales about the stars and the representation of them for the year to come?

If the stars of Matariki are faint, hazy, and hard to see separately, then a cold lean season will follow. If the stars are bright enough to see clearly the season will be warm, and crops will flourish.

Maori used to ‘preserve birds hinu’. What does the word ‘preserved’ mean?

It means that something in its original or existing state.

Can you give me an example of how people often preserve various items to date?

They will kill some native rats and serve it with some fish.

Matariki is the time for what? (refer to the text)

Learning about nature and for planning activities that will nurture and protect our environment.

Tell me about a Matariki legend?

Matariki is sometimes called the seven stars, and Orion is one of the most easily recognised constellations in New Zealand's night sky.

Wednesday:

How has Matariki risen again?

For a long time, Matariki faded in people’s minds, but the festival has risen again.

If something is ‘faint’ can you describe what it might look like?

You would not be able to see it properly because it is kinda blurry and hazy.

Why did New Zealanders initially not know much about Matariki?

Because Matariki was not existing but the only time they show is when they celebrate Maori new Year.

What are some activities people might do it celebrate Matariki?

Competitions like see who can eat the most. Singing Maori’s songs.

Some Iwi celebrate Matariki differently, find some examples of how they celebrations differ?

They celebrate different by doing diffrent stuff to what you do on a maori new year.

Name three other days of the year that are celebrated:

Easter

Christmas

Maori New Year

Think about Christmas and how it is a public holiday, do you think Matariki should also be a public holiday? Yes/no? What is your reasoning for this?

Yes it should be a public holiday because it is really important because the 7 sisters have done heaps of thing for us.

Thursday/ Friday:

Refer to the part in the text ‘Matariki Returns’:

That every time Matariki only returns on Maori New Year.

What is a constellation?

a group of stars forming a recognizable pattern that is traditionally named after its apparent form or identified with a mythological figure.

What is a cluster of stars?

A group of stars formed at roughly at the same time.

How are our seasons caused?

Summer: When the sun is close to New Zealand.

Winter: The Sun is far from New Zealand.

Spring: Sun is kinda close to New Zealand.

Autumn: The sun is far from new Zealand.

What do various cultures use patterns in the sky for?

Sky Watching

Constellation.

What are some objects that relate to objects and patterns in the sky?

Shapes

Creatures.

How do you think Matariki should be celebrated?

It should be celebrated with fun and joy.