SPARKLERS / Identity and culture

Kei Te Pēhea Koe?

This fun game will get your greetings in te reo down pat!
Connections with the NZ Curriculum and Mental Health Education Guide (learn more)

Learning outcomes

Tamariki can say how they are doing in te reo Māori.

He aha ai? – Why we love it

This is a series of activities which extend tamariki knowledge of greetings in te reo. The reasons we love Kei Te Pēhea Koe? is because it creates a culture where you and your tamariki care enough to ask how each other are - another way to check in and talk about how we're feeling = winning!

Hei mahi - What to do

This is similar to musical chairs, but when the music stops, tamariki find a partner and greet each other using te reo – kia ora, tēnā koe, mōrena, harirū (shake hands).

Extend this to stopping the music and tamariki taking turns asking, “Kei te pēhea koe?” and using one of the following replies (write these up on the board if needed):

  • Kei te pai au (I am good)
  • Kei te koa au (I am happy)
  • Kei te hiamoe au (I am sleepy)

Continue adding more emotional adjectives as replies. We love the examples used by Te Kete Ipurangi here.

Extend this further by adding this welcoming guideto the entrance of your classroom and welcoming students in the way they choose - a kia ora (and a fist-bump), awhi (and a hug), paki rima (a high five) or harirū (a handshake).

This is a vdeo example we love on how this can be done.

What next?

Add your welcoming guide to the entrance of your classroom and greet tamariki as they enter each morning.

Extend checking in with each other by using an Emotional Rollercoaster

Ngā mihi nui

Warmest thanks to Haeata Community Campus for suggesting this activity. We so appreciate your mahi and all it brings to Sparklers. Many times, ngā mihi.

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