“Ko te Manu e kai
ana I te miro
Nönä te Ngahere,
Ko te Manu e kai ana
i te mätauranga,
Nönä te ao”.
“The bird that eats
of the forest will learn from the forest,
The bird that eats of
knowledge will learn the ways of the world.
Tënä
koutou kätoa e ngä mätua rätou ko te whänau whänui, ko ngä kaiawhina o ngä
tamariki i te whänau o Kereru mai te ruma 25.
Ko Pureora te maunga,
Ko Waimiha te awa,
Ko Te Whetu ao o Hinau
te whare ripeka,
Ko Te Miringa te
kakara töku marae,
Ko Ngäti Maniapoto töku
hapü,
Ko Rereahu töku iwi,
I te taha o töku mämä,
Ko Tongariro te
maunga,
Ko Taupo-nui-ä-tia te
moana,
Ko Ngäti Tüwharetoa te
iwi,
Ko Te Heuheu te
tangata,
Ko Kauriki töku marae,
Ko Ngäti Hinemihi töku
hapü
Ko Jack Mita Taupopoki
Pai töku päpä,
Ko Bessie Teuranga Pai
töku mämä,
Ko Cynthia Belk taku
ingoa,
Ko Cyril Belk töku hoa
tane, nö Ngä Puhi nui tonu ia,
Ko Sheryl-lee rätou ko
Byron, ko Logan, ko Kara a mäua tamariki.
Nö reira e ngä rau
rangatira mä, tënä koutou, tënä koutou, tënä tätou kätoa.
Warm greetings to you
all our parents, caregivers and whänau of our tamariki in Room 25. My name is Cynthia Belk and we hail from the
ancestral links above. My husband Cyril hails
from the sacred mountains of Motatau and the river Taumarere in the
ancestral lands of Ngä Puhi nui tonu. Together with our tamariki Sheryl-lee,
Byron, Logan and Kara we carry our ancestral links with them into the
future.
My career as a teacher
in Te Whänau Äwhina began at Clendon Park back in 2007 as a beginning teacher
and has continued to grow and thrive with immense opportunities for all our
tamariki and teachers within the unit each year.
It has been an immense
privilege to be a member of Te Whänau Äwhina as one of the most top -leading
Mäori bi-lingual units in the country and dually delighted to teach, learn,
model and grow together with you and your tamariki.
Our classroom has been
named after the New Zealand native bird Kereru.
It is with deep consideration that we as the occupants in this room take
on the nature and skills of the Kereru to assist us all in our learning under
the guidance and help from you the parents and whänau alongside Tane Mähuta the
great god of the forest. Together with
our teachers, Principal and board of Trustees we will be able to achieve the
dreams and aspirations for your tamariki into the future generations.
We have a busy year
ahead of us so we will need all your help and support to make sure the dreams
and aspirations of our tamariki are met for them. Please feel free to come in and visit us at any
time and if you would like to help us in class with buddy Pänui/Reading in Te
Reo Mäori, Pängarau/Mathematics or Tuhituhi/Writing nau mai haere mai.
Our class will be taught
in Te Reo Mäori for up to 75% of the day to ensure our students are learning Te
Reo me öna tïkanga as a second language confidently in all the core subjects
Pänui/Reading, Tuhituhi/Writing, Pängarau/Mathematics and Te reo a waha/Oral
Language and other curricular areas that include Te reo Mäori, Mahi a Te Rehia/Arts,
Pütaiao/Science, Tikanga a Iwi/Social Sciences, Hauora/Physical Education and
Hängarau/Technology. If you have any
concerns about your child’s learning please do not hesitate to come and talk to
us as our doors are always open.
My goal as a Mäori
bi-lingual teacher is to ensure that all the tamariki in our class are able to
learn in an environment that is encompassing of all things that pertain to Te
Ao Mäori and that these skills can be transferred into learning Mäori and English
with confidence to achieve National Standards in all curriculum areas.
Nö reira ngä mihi nui
ki a koutou kätoa,
Naku iti noa,
Cynthia Belk.
