LATEST STORIES
Hatupatu and the Birdwoman
This is a Whānau narrative of our rōhe In summary it goes….. Hatupatu was a brave explorer of the Te Arawa people and while hunting with his brothers for birds he was chased by Kurangaituku – The bird woman, who had birds at pets. Hatupatu came upon a rock and chanted an incantation ‘Matati Matata’, the rock opened and he hid inside. After a while he checked to see if Kurangaituku was still there and he started back towards Rotorua, soon though, Kurangaituku again chased Hatupatu. As they came into Whakarewarewa, Hatupatu jumped over a hot pool and Kurangaituku fell in and died. Hatupatu’s rock is on State Highway one, and you are able to visit when you pass by.
This re-newed interest follows our current project topic 'Habitats', where we were making forests one day and discussed the birds that inhabit our native forests. We have re-inacted the story in the playground with the tamariki playing the roles of Hatupatu and Kurangaituku, and retelling the story themselves, we have completed art projects and used messy play to create and discuss safety around our local mudpools.
Using a whānau narrative of our rōhe is helping our tamariki link with their physical environment and ensuring these narratives are kept alive.