Building confident, culturally-connected readers through Te Ao Māori perspectives and engaging texts. This unit prioritizes reading comprehension, critical thinking, and cultural understanding over writing tasks.
Primary Focus: Reading comprehension, text analysis, and critical thinking
Secondary Focus: Oral discussion, cultural connections, vocabulary development
Minimal Writing: Only essential note-taking and short reflective responses
Text: Personal identity poems by Māori rangatahi
Reading Focus: Making personal connections, identifying themes
Activity: Gallery walk discussion, no writing required
Text: Short traditional Māori stories (modern retellings)
Reading Focus: Story structure, cultural values, symbolism
Activity: Storytelling circles, visual story mapping
Text: Mystery short story set in New Zealand
Reading Focus: Inference, evidence gathering, prediction
Activity: Partner discussions, evidence boards
Text: Collection of Māori proverbs with explanations
Reading Focus: Metaphorical language, cultural concepts
Activity: Proverb matching game, meaning discussions
Text: Non-fiction about sacred places in Aotearoa
Reading Focus: Main ideas, supporting details, bias
Activity: Virtual tours, oral presentations
Text: Contemporary articles by young Māori writers
Reading Focus: Author's purpose, audience, perspective
Activity: Author research, video responses
Text: Poetry collection with social themes
Reading Focus: Implicit meaning, tone, mood
Activity: Poetry cafés, interpretation discussions
Text: News articles about youth issues in NZ
Reading Focus: Fact vs opinion, reliability, bias
Activity: Source comparison, debate preparation
Text: Primary sources from New Zealand history
Reading Focus: Historical context, perspective shifts
Activity: Timeline creation, role-play discussions
Text: Challenging non-fiction about environmental issues
Reading Focus: Complex sentence structures, technical vocabulary
Activity: Peer teaching, concept mapping
Text: Student-chosen texts for sharing
Reading Focus: Personal response, recommendation skills
Activity: Book talk presentations, reading recommendations
Text: Reading journey reflection prompts
Reading Focus: Metacognition, reading strategies
Activity: Reading portfolio review, goal setting