Kaupapa

‘He kakano i ruia mai i Rangiātea’

Tēnei te mihi mahana ki te whānau. Nau mai haramai ki tō tātau nei Puna Reo.

Te Puna Reo o Puhi Kaiti is a new kind of Te Reo Maori immersion learning environment where Te Reo is the only language spoken around children. The Puna Reo employs qualified and registered Early Childhood teachers (or teachers in training toward a recognised qualification) and is supported by our pakeke who participate in all aspects of life at the Puna Reo.

We believe this innovative education initiative, the first of its kind in the Gisborne region, will prove a valuable model for Maori success in education and cultural development as children receive high quality education in their own language, immersed in an environment that supports their cultural identity and sets high expectations for all of the learners, teachers and families involved.

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Our distinctives:

• We are passionate about Te Reo Māori me ōnā Tikanga. We want our tamariki to grow up confident and competent in their identity as tamariki Māori.
• A whanau environment where each child is nurtured and cared for. Kia ū pai te oranga nui o te mokopuna, ā tinana, ā hinengaro, ā wairua, ā whatumanawa.
• A programme that is fun, flexible, stimulating and responsive to children’s interests. Ka hāngai ki ngā mea e kaingākaunui ana ki tēnā, ki tēnā o wā tātau tamariki/mokopuna.
• Tamariki have a perception of themselves as explorers – competent, confident learners who ask questions and make discoveries.
• Children learning through play. It is through play that children develop their imaginations, creativity and a wide range of social skills and knowledge.
• Ko tā te pakeke mahi kia tukua nga tamariki kia tuhura, kia hopara i o ratau ake ao kia puawai ai o ratau mahi auahatanga! Mā te mahi, mā te tākaro, ma te mahi hopara ka ako ai te mokopuna.

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Io Matua

I

Te Kore

I

Te Pō

I

Te Ao Mārama

I

Ranginui=Papatūānuku

I

Te Ira Atua

I

Te Ira Tangata

 

“He kākāno i ruia mai i Rangiātea

E kore e ngaro”

 

Nō ngā Rangi Tūhāhā te wairua o te mokopuna. I tōnā whakairatanga ka hono te wairua me te tinana o te tangata. I tērā wā tonu ka tau tōna mauri, tōna tapu, tōna wehi, tōna iho matua, tōna mana, tōna ihi, tōna whatumanawa, tōna hinengaro, tōna auahatanga, tōna ngākau, tōna pūmanawa.

Tino motuhake ēnei ahuatanga katoa. Ko tēnei hoki te kākāno i ruia mai i Rangiātea. E kore ia e ngaro. Mā te whānau, mā te hapū, mā te iwi te kākāno nei e poipoi, e tiaki kia tipu ora ai, kia tipu pakari ai.

“Te piko o te māhuri

Tērā te tupu o te rakau”

 

Kia tangihia te rere o aku kōrero ki ngā mate huhua o te wā, ngā mate e whakataumaha nei i a tātau katoa. Ko ngā mate kua mene ki te pō.

Haere, haere atu ra ki ō tātau mātua, tūpuna, okioki ai.

Ki a tātau te hunga ora, nga kanohi ora o kui ma, o koro ma, tēnā rā tātau katoa.

Ka huri taku mihi ki te maunga tupuna e tu pātata nei hai korowai i a mātau. Tēnā koe e te rangatira a Titirangi. He mihi hoki ki nga awa e rere mai nei arā ko Turanganui, ko Waipaoa, ko Waimata. He mihi kau ana ki te te whare tupuna a Te Poho o Rawiri – tu mai ra e te whare rangatira. Huri noa ki nga uri o te whānau o Ngati Oneone tena ra kotou nga ahikā o te whenua nei. A, tae noa atu ki ngā whānau, ngā hapū, ngā iwi katoa o Te Tairāwhiti tēnā rā tātau katoa!

Tēnā kōtou te whānau kua whiria nei ko ‘Te Puna Reo o Puhi Kaiti’ hai kaenga āhuru, hai kaenga ako mō tō pīpī kia tupu ake ai ia i roto i Te Reo me ona tikanga o ō tātau kuia, koroua. Ko tō mātau nei tino kaupapa ko te orangatanga o Te Reo me ōnā tikanga o Ngati Porou/ o Te Tairāwhiti .

Nō reira e te whānau, nau mai piki mai i waenganui i a tātau arā te whānau o Te Puna Reo o Puhi Kaiti.

 

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Introducing Te Puna Reo o Puhi Kaiti

 

“Te orangatanga o to tatau reo rangatira me ona tikanga kia tu mana ai wa tatau mokopuna”

 

Te Puna Reo o Puhi Kaiti is nestled at the base of our ancestral hill Maunga Titirangi and neighbours our whare tupuna Te Poho o Rawiri Marae. Located at 4 Cambridge Terrace, Kaiti, Turanganui a Kiwa (Gisborne).

We are committed to the regeneration of Māori knowledge, skills, values and culture through normalising the use of the Māori language.

The Puna Reo is a Te Reo Māori immersion learning environment where Te Reo Māori is the only language spoken around tamariki.

Whānau who wish to enrol their tamaiti/mokopuna into Te Puna Reo must be committed to the regeneration of Te Reo Māori. To achieve this, Te Reo Māori must be spoken to tamariki in the home and community. Te Reo Māori must be seen by tamariki as a living, vibrant language that is commonly used in every day communication in natural settings. This is the only strategy that will ensure the survival of Te Reo Māori for future generations. If whānau are speaking Māori at home and in the community, then the message to their child/ren is that Te Reo Māori has the same mana and status as the English language.

One whānau member in the child’s household must be committed to speaking only Te Reo Māori to the mokopuna enrolled. Acknowledging that whānau and individuals have different levels of ability in Te Reo, all whānau involved with Te Puna Reo should demonstrate an ongoing commitment to developing their competency in Te Reo. To support this, we will facilitate a Te Reo Māori class (1x a week) specifically for Te Puna Reo whānau. Whānau can choose to attend this class or make their own arrangements for developing their own competency in Te Reo.

In short, whānau must be committed to speaking Te Reo Māori to their tamariki/mokopuna outside of Te Puna Reo. Teaching Te Reo Māori is a whānau responsibility, not just the responsibility for the kaiako to do. We are all responsible for the survival of our language and culture.

Te Puna Reo has a holistic view of how a mokopuna develops which encompasses the cultural, the whānau, the spiritual, the emotional, the intellectual, and the physical well-being of the child. We aim to support and promote the mokopuna’s confidence, creativity and identity. Through our mokopuna centred teaching methods we will instil and promote the child’s love for learning. Our Māori learning environment will respect and cherish the mana, the wairua and the mauri of each mokopuna; valuing their unique attributes so that s/he may grow up strong and proud in her own mana ahua ake (identity) as a caring, confident and competent Māori child.

 

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The natural environment (Te Taiao)

Through whakapapa we have an intricate interconnected relationship with the natural world around us. Each domain is guarded by an atua Māori – the sky, the land, the forests, the natural elements, the flora and fauna. As ira tangata – human life – we have been given the responsibility to help care and protect the natural world of Ranginui and Papatuanuku.

Through our te ao Māori kaupapa, tamariki will learn about the special relationships we have with nga atua Māori and to the natural environment. Mokopuna will be encouraged to develop an awareness of ecological and sustainable ways to care for and respect te ao turoa (natural world).

The play resources provided have been carefully selected. We endeavour to use predominantly natural and recyclable items that help develop creative, enquiring minds and a caring wairua .

Much of what we need to learn to be caring and responsible human beings can be learnt from nature. Hai oranga mo o tatau tinana, wairua hoki. Kore rawa e taea te whakawehe te tängata i te ao turoa e pokaitia ana matau.

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The Importance of Whānau – Te Puna Reo o Puhi Kaiti Incorporated

Whānau have an integral role in the governance and management of Te Puna Reo. Our Puna is operated and owned by the whānau of Te Puna Reo o Puhi Kaiti Incorporated. Members of the Te Puna Reo are whānau who have tamariki enrolled in the centre and/or are kaimahi. For us, whānaungatanga means a partnership in education. We believe whānau are central to the learning and teaching of their tamariki.

At Te Puna Reo we value the concept of whānau where every person has an important role and contribution to make within our Puna whānau regardless of qualifications and skills. We therefore encourage each whānau member to help make our Puna a quality, fun, dynamic, creative learning environment for all our mokopuna by sharing their unique talents and skills in whatever way they can contribute.

Trained and qualified Early Childhood Education teachers are employed to manage the operations of the Puna Reo but whānau have the responsibility to oversee the mahi and ensure the staff are delivering the kind of education whānau want them to.

The whānau governance group are responsible for making key decisions for the Puna Reo and for monitoring and supporting the teachers. Whānau members are required to contribute at least one hour per week to help with one or more sub-committees to oversee areas such as: employment, collecting natural resources, maintaining the māra, fundraising etc.