Tirohanga Whānui Te Hono Atu - Overview

• Kaitiakitanga – Guardianship and protection. It is a way of caring for the environment, based on the Māori world view. A kaitiaki is a guardian such as an atua (see below) or a person or group that cares for an area such as a lake or forest. 
• Manaakitanga – Hospitality, generosity, support, respect and care for others. Nurturing people so that they feel valued and looked after. Encouraging a feeling of belonging in this community/place/ planet. 
• Mauri – The essential vital quality and wellbeing of an individual, a group, a place or an ecosystem. Understanding the mauri or wellbeing of a place helps us to see why kaitiakitanga is important. When mauri is weakened by neglect, overuse or pollution, many other life systems are affected, eg, cars and roads and their effect on wildlife and nature. By practising kaitiakitanga we can help to protect and nurture the mauri of a community and place. 
• Whanaungatanga – Making connections. It is about relationship, kinship, sense of family connection – a relationship through shared experiences and working together which provides people with a sense of belonging. It develops as a result of kinship rights and obligations, which also serve to strengthen each member of the kin group. 
• Natural environment – includes water, land, air and all things living and growing.
• Te taiao (the environment) – Air is viewed as a taonga (precious resource) derived from Ranginui (the sky father). Māori legend tells that following the separation of Ranginui and Papatūānuku (the Earth mother) their child Tāwhirimātea fled with Ranginui to his new home in the sky. From there Tawhirimātea controls the wind and elements. Carbon emissions degrade and lessen the mauri (life-force) of this taonga. It also affects the mauri of other taonga, for example plants and animals, as all living things need air and all things share the same air. It’s important to Māori to exercise kaitiakitanga – to be caretakers to protect and maintain the mauri of a place or a precious resource such as clean air.

Atua – elemental identities that tell the story of our environment.

Papatūānuku – the Earth, the mother of all the elements. 

Ranginui – the sky – the father of all the elements.

Tānemahuta – the male atua of the forest, birds and insects.

Haumiatiketike – the male atua of uncultivated wild food and ferns.

Rongomātāne – the male atua of kumara and cultivated foods and the atua of peace.

Hinepūtehue – the female atua of gourds and their music and peace.

Tangaroa – the male atua of oceans, rivers and lakes.

Hinemoana – the female atua of oceans, rivers and lakes.

Hinepūkohurangi – the female atua of mist.

Tāwhirimātea – the male atua of the wind.

Tūmatauenga – the male god of humans, of battle, determination, resilience and leadership.

Children often respond to stories and persona to inspire them to take action for the environment. 
To access the creation stories and understanding of atua talk to your local mana whenua.

Active travel – is an approach to travel and transport that focuses on physical activity (walking and wheeling) as opposed to motorised and carbon-dependent means. 

Citizenship muscles – These are muscles that are built by using the skills we need to make positive changes in our communities. See: The Story of Stuff project.

Concept mapping – This strategy shows what ākonga know about a topic. It will also prompt them to start identifying the relationships and connections. Concept mapping could be used pre and post learning or as an assessment tool. For a related activity, see Lesson 2: Ka whai hononga te katoa (Everything is connected).

Primary source – A primary source is direct or first-hand evidence about an event, object, or person. They include historical and legal documents, eyewitness accounts, results of experiments, statistical data, pieces of creative writing, audio and video recordings, speeches, and art objects. 

Secondary source – A secondary source is one that was created later by someone who did not experience first-hand or participate in the events or conditions you’re researching. For the purposes of a historical research project, secondary sources are generally scholarly books and articles.

Benefits of active travel:

• Mental health – being outdoors, connecting with others. 
• Fitness – physical exercise. 
• Independence – developing responsibility away from parent and siblings.
• Fun – meeting friends, enjoying the outdoors.
• Resilience– being active whatever the weather. 
• Escape – from annoying siblings. 
• Contributing to less carbon in the atmosphere that is causing global warming. 
• Contributing to less pollution in the air. 
• Contributing to a less congested school gate at drop off and pick up times.

Pukapuka (picture books):

• In the Beginning – Peter Gossage (Scholastic NZ Ltd - 2001) 
• Ngā Atua – Robyn Kahukiwa (Mauri Tū 2012) 
• Children of Earth and Sky – Retold by Pita Graham (Māori Nature Traditions Series - 1995) 
• Counting the Stars – Four Māori Myths, Gavin Bishop (Random House 2009) 
• Illustrated Māori Myths and Legends, Queenie Rikihana Hyland (Penguin Group (NZ) 2010) 
• Ron Bacon 1995 series of Māori myths

Links to pūrakau (stories) about atua (Māori gods):

• Rangi and Papa pūrākau – Wikipediaopen_in_newopen_in_newopen_in_new
• Story of Tāwhirimātea – Te Kete Ipurangiopen_in_newopen_in_newopen_in_new
• Māori Creation Traditions – Te Ara – Encyclopaedia NZopen_in_newopen_in_newopen_in_new
• Tales from the Mythologies of Creation, Maui and Aoraki – YouTubeopen_in_newopen_in_newopen_in_new, 6 min 45 secs, CC, may have ads.
• A Māori Creation Story in Sand – Ranginui and Papatūānuku – YouTubeopen_in_newopen_in_newopen_in_new, 5 min 17 secs, CC, may have ads.
• See New Zealand Association of Environmental Educationopen_in_new for more resources and inspiration.