Questions / instructions:
This activity is about a marae.

1. Can you explain to me what a marae is?

Tell the student that a marae is
"a special meeting place"
if a similar answer is not given.

2. Have you ever visited a marae?

We are going to watch a video which shows people being formally welcomed onto a marae. There are two groups of people — the visitors, or manuhiri, and the people who belong on the marae, the tangata whenua. Here are cards with these names on.

Place name cards in front of student.

3. Who were those people, and what were they doing?

Tell the student that they are
visitors coming onto the marae,
if a similar answer is not given.

Play video: woman singing karanga.
Download the videoclip 0.7meg (requires QuickTime plug-in)

4. What was that woman doing?

Tell the student that the woman
was welcoming the visitors onto
the marae, if a similar answer is
not given.

Now we'll see where the people are being seated.

Play video: manuhiri being seated
Download the videoclip 0.9meg (requires QuickTime plug-in)

5. What do you notice about where the groups of people are sitting?

Why is it being done this way?

6. What do you think will happen next?

Play video: welcome by tangata whenua
Download the videoclip 1.8meg (requires QuickTime plug-in)

8. What do you think will happen after the man has finished speaking?

Play video: waiata
Download the videoclip 1.7meg (requires QuickTime plug-in)

Now that the visitors have been welcomed by a speech, a song or waiata is being sung.

9. What do you think will happen next?

Play video: manuhiri reply and waiata
Download the videoclip 2.1meg (requires QuickTime plug-in)

10. Who was speaking?

One of the visitors has made a speech to reply to the welcome, and the visitors have sung a waiata or song. Let's see what happens next.

Play video: koha
Download the videoclip 1.6meg (requires QuickTime plug-in)

11. Can you explain what was happening?

Prompt: What do you think was in the flax bag?.

Why was that done?

12. We are now coming to the end of the of the welcoming ceremony — do you know what will happen now?

Play video: hongi
Download the videoclip 1.6meg (requires QuickTime plug-in)

14. We have seen that there is a set way for welcoming visitors onto a marae.
Why do you think it is usually done like this?

Commentary:
This task investigated students' knowledge and understanding of key features in a traditional ceremony for welcoming visitors onto a marae. While the kawa observed on individual marae around New Zealand tend to include local customs, those used in this task are substantially common to all. In part the results could suggest a relationship between the percentage of students who have actually had the experience of visiting a marae and the percentage of students who showed knowledge and understanding of the sequence and meaning of each part of the welcoming ceremony. When young children go onto a marae they are not always expected to participate in the various formalities of the powhiri. This needs to be taken into account when considering the results for year 4 students.