My Pepeha

Tamariki are able to introduce themselves in te reo Māori

Students will need a copy of our My Pepeha worksheet.

(If tamariki are completing the worksheet at home and have misplaced the print-out or don't have a printer, they could answer the questions in an exercise book.)

Being proud of our whānau, history and culture is validating and can deepen our sense of belonging, confidence and connectedness. Learning our pepeha is one way to begin talking about ourselves, our whānau and history.

Introduce this activity with a kōrero around who we are.

Some of the things that make us who we are, is our history, culture and whakapapa. These are also things that as we learn about, give us a real sense of meaning and connection.

Explain a pepeha is an introduction of ourselves in te reo Māori and incorporates our ancestry and history. Iterate that our pepeha is important across all our cultures and we can add in as much detail as is important to us.

Our pepeha is a chance to connect to whānau, and the places we love. And, learn some te reo Māori along the way.

Print and give each student a copy of our My Pepeha worksheet. Ask tamariki to complete what they can now and take their pepeha home to finish with whānau. It can be such a rich and exciting kōrero for everyone!

Create a follow up time for tamarik to read their pepeha to a friend, the class or share with you.

Keen to learn your Pepeha for Waitangi Day?

Here's Aaron from Sparklers to talk you through it:

We love:

Pepeha which create a printable peheha, and they look stunning!

All of the mahi from our friends at Reo Māori and the Māori Language Commission

Connect further with whānau and whakapapa with a Whānau Poster

Or discover the connections, meanings and history of tamariki names with What's in a Name?

Sharing My Pepeha with whānau will be really beneficial.To make this easy, simply copy and paste the following 'blurb' into an email or your home-learning programme as an introduction.

A pepeha is an introduction of ourselves in te reo Māori and incorporates our ancestry and history. Some of the things that make us who we are, is our history, culture and whakapapa. Children who know and understand their pepeha gives them a real sense of meaning and connection to you, your wider family and their place of belonging.

We would appreciate your involvement in helping your child learn their pepeha and Sparklers at Home has the same activity, My Pepeha, we've been using which makes things really simple. Talking about your family history and places of significance will be so valuable for your child. It will be so good to hear this back in the classroom too.