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Matariki is the Maori name for the group of stars also known as the Pleiades star cluster or The Seven Sisters; and what is referred to as the traditional Maori New Year.
The sky was used by Maori for many reasons throughout history. Reading from the vast volumes of stars was a way of preserving history, knowledge, culture and maintaining ancient practices. The time of Matariki was a celebration in all customs and beliefs, so arts in its many forms were very important to this period. With the coming together of family and friends it was a time to share with each other skills, achievements and history through story telling song and dance, carving and weaving ancient ceremonies and passing on of knowledge and history.
Matariki is a special time of year to celebrate being Maori, its customs and art forms and to show how unique the Maori culture is.
The Maori New Year is marked by the rise of Matariki and the sighting of the next new moon. The pre-dawn rise of Matariki can be seen in the last few days of May every year and the New Year is marked at the sighting of the next new moon which occurs during June. This next occurs on 5 June 2008.
Today Matariki means celebrating the unique place in which we live and giving respect to the land we live on. Ancient Maori kite-flying traditions have a highly symbolic connection to Matariki ; the two were historically inseparable. Kites were seen as connectors between the heavens and earth.
Level 1
The students listen to stories about kites and look at images of different types of customary Maori kites. They talk about the range...