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New Zealand's Indigenous language
Kia ora. As a celebration of Aotearoa, New Zealand's Indigenous language, te wiki o te reo maori holds great significance.
September 2022 marked the 50th anniversary of the Maori language petition, which asked for active recognition of te reo maori in Aotearoa, and for the language to be taught in schools.
This special week is an opportunity for the concentrated celebration and promotion of te reo Māori, helping to secure its future as a living, dynamic, and rich language.
At BestStart Epsom, we respect Māori beliefs and keep working to build and develop our knowledge of te reo Māori, Tikanga Māori and Māori world views so that we are better able to support our tamariki to understand their own mana atuatanga.
This week we celebrated Māori Language Week; we engaged our tamariki in many activities to promote the use of Te Reo in everyday living. Children enjoyed the Māori story of the month:' How Maui found the secret of fire'. Now, most of the children know this Maori legend by heart and retell the whole story while using a few te reo maori words as well. We made sure that we were using new te reo maori words in the conversation each day. We did lots of readings, and sing songs, and our tamariki enjoyed the music with poi. the most!
Along with language, we also facilitate maori protocols such as tuakana–teina relationships and ensure that mokopuna have opportunities to manaaki and take responsibility for others.
This special week is an opportunity for the concentrated celebration and promotion of te reo Māori, helping to secure its future as a living, dynamic, and rich language.
Arohanui