The beginning... A Journey of Tikanga Māori

 In an attempt to fill the void of creativity and challenges... I've leapt at the opportunity to sign up for a Level Two Tikanga Māori course through Te Mahi Ako. I'm not sure what void I was thinking of for the holidays... These holidays signify some significant transitions for me:

• The leap back into a classroom 5 days each week - I haven't actually been teaching 5 days in a classroom since prior to my neurosurgery early in 2022! I came back three days... then four days... before beginning my Across Kāhui Lead position, which saw me released two days each week for alternative work.
• Setting up a new classroom. - My new space has never actually been a classroom. It was the staffroom, then a library, then a play therapy space. The resources have been cleared. The shelves were removed... and a wall is waiting to be painted. It's not the first time in teaching that I've had to wait until the new year to set up a space. Fourteen years ago, I was waiting for the walls to be lined with a post-quake refit. It's been a minute since then, but I'm excited to be designing my own learning experiences for the learners in my space.
• Moving house. - I guess there's never a great time... It's always going to be carnage, chaos and mayhem... but it's an exciting prospect to be able to set down roots in our own home again, after a few years of renting.

So Tikanga Māori!

I've been wanting to lift my game in the area of both Tikanga and Te Reo for a while now, but I have never set aside the time to do it. I'm really excited to be leaping onto this journey, as well as bringing my class of 2026 along with me. In this time of the nation pushing back against our government, seemingly attempting to undermine Te Tiriti o Waitangi, there is no better time to solidify a foundation of Tikanga and Te Reo in our classrooms.