Hukanui Marae trip!

This Wednesday was the day that children were waiting for. Our children were so excited for this day, we were counting down about a week ago!

We have done a lot of preparation prior to the trip, learning about the parts of Marae, what is involved during the pōwhiri, and read some books about Marae.

I think one of the most exciting parts of the trip was going on the bus!

Waiting to get on the bus! 

                                                        Arrived at Hukanui Marae

                           
                                    One child said "Look! It is same as the photo! He is smiling!"

                               Doing a Yoga pose helps when waiting for a while to keep calm.

                                         Having morning tea together.

Our children had a fantastic time there at the marae. The kapahaka performance was amazing to watch, and this always gets the children so excited. They talk about how they want to be in Kapahaka when they get older.
We learnt about the history of the Hukanui Marae.
This marae is the oldest marae in the Waikato region.
The meeting house is called "whare nui".
The two panels at the front in whare nui signify god.
The current Maori King is Kingi Tūheitia.
The Hukanui Marae has the Kōhanga Reo attached to it.  Thank you for the wonderful singing, the children from the Kōhanga Reo!

On Friday, we talked about some of the patterns we saw at the marae. These are called kowhaiwhai.

Some of them have Koru patterns, crescent shapes, and oval shapes. The pictures of kowhaiwhai had 3 different colours. We talked about how these mean something culturally.
Red means blood.
White means promise for future.
Black means earth.

The children had a go at creating their own kowhaiwhai.

We will take more photos once their kowhaiwhai is completed.

What a fantastic week we have had! I am so proud of how everyone respected the marae and people at the marae. Well done everyone!