This week our Year 1 and 2 students visited Auckland Museum to learn about Māori traditions and culture, in particular the festival of Matariki.

As part of the visit, the children attended a Polynesian music and dance workshop and learned about how music and dance in Polynesian culture tell stories, and often include movements symbolising elements of nature and the weather. They had the opportunity to play Polynesian drums and learned about the origin of the ukulele (which means ‘dancing flea’). There was a demonstration of nose flute playing which the students found fascinating and they finished the session by making their own leis and trying their hand at a Polynesian dance.