Richard | Maori Language Moment 2021

Photo of Richard | Maori Language Moment 2021

I work in a high school in Christchurch - Papanui High School.

At the time of the Māori Language Moment, I talked to a group (33) of high school students in the school's study centre about the historic significance, the relevance and the importance of the Māori Language Moment. I told them that I had signed up to be a part of this historic occasion this year, like last year, and would love them to join me in learning and singing a waiata. I then taught them the unknown 2nd verse of a Waiata that we already sing in our school as our (un)official school song - 'Te Wero'. We then all sang the whole waiata together.

Unfortunately, as I was playing guitar and singing, I did not manage to catch a video of this but there were 35 people involved all told.

It was really heart-warming to me that several of the ākonga thanked me afterwards for involving them in 'my' Māori Language Moment.

Meanwhile, in our Adult ESOL department, the teachers were doing teaching exercises involving Te Reo. The class pictured here were learning a few words each from the list of 50 Māori words all Kiwis should know, then talking with each other and teaching each other the words they had learned.