Dunedin Rudolf Steiner School

MATARIKI
Children and staff are enjoying singing one of our Matariki waiata which celebrates the stars. You may find it coming home with your child, even with some actions to accompany the stars.

Waitī, Waitā,
Waipuna a rangi,
Tupu-ā-nuku, Tupu-ā-rangi,
Ururangi e,

Koinei ngā tamariki o Matariki
Ngā whetū e pīataata i te rangi e.

And of course there are two other stars (whetū) in the cluster
Pōhutukawa and Hiwa-i-te-rangi

E mihi ana mātou ki a koutou katoa,
Over the past term, our tamariki have been building an impressive repertoire of waiata during our Kapa Haka sessions. It has been wonderful to see their confidence, enthusiasm, and expanding understanding of Te Ao Māori.
In Class Kea and Class Miro, our focus has been on strengthening the tuakana-teina relationship. This provides opportunities for our older tamariki in Kea to guide and support their younger peers through shared learning experiences and cultural leadership. Together, they have also begun participating in a range of kēmu Māori, including Tākaro and Wharewhare.
These kēmu create meaningful opportunities for tamariki to use and hear te reo Māori in a natural and engaging way. Across all our akomanga, we continue to encourage the use of te reo and place a strong emphasis on developing clear and confident whakahua (pronunciation).
In Class Kiokio, a new favourite kēmu is Hari i te Whare (“Harry in the House”), which we enjoy alongside learning new waiata. This game supports our learning of pepeha, helping tamariki become familiar with concepts such as their waka, iwi, maunga, and other important connections to identity and belonging through actions and movement.
Class Kākāpō has been busy practising their collection of waiata, while also learning a new waiata each week. Our newest waiata is a karakia, providing another way to deepen our understanding and use of te reo Māori beyond singing alone. We are fortunate to have many talented and confident tamariki in this class who have embraced to perform solos and lead their Kapa Haka rōpū. Ka mau te wehi!
We are looking forward to sharing some of our waiata with you during our upcoming Matariki celebrations and celebrating this special time together as a school community.
Mānawatia a Matariki, Korina Ellison
“Ka ara mai a Matariki, ka ara mai a Puaka, ka mānawatia a Puaka, ka mānawatia a Matariki.”

Special Character Thoughts: The Spiral Walk
It is that time of the year again, where we get to celebrate the turning point in the year; the shortest day and the longest nights require us to search for the light from within. The spiral walk is a celebration of reverence and quiet, which we do every year around the time of the solstice.
The children come into a darkened room, with a spiral of evergreens on the floor. The first child, walking slowly and carefully as their way is only lit by their own candle, makes their way into the centre of the spiral to light the candle there. All children will then, one after the other, receive a red apple with a candle in the middle, and make their way into the middle of the spiral, light their candle from the middle candle and place it along the spiral. Slowly but surely, the room gets brighter and brighter. Accompanied by a mixture of quiet and singing, the children experience how everyone contributes to the brightness of the room, a symbol for how we all contribute to the light that will take us through winter.
This celebration is carefully prepared and full of symbolism; the green that makes the spiral is usually chosen to be evergreen, a type of tree that symbolises life. The apples symbolise the seed, that lies inside in the dark, waiting patiently for the light to return so they can grow.
The physical form of the spiral represents the celestial marking of the seasons; from the beginning of the path being the summer solstice and the spiral inward, through the labyrinth of autumn to the point where the days get shorter. We pause at the centre of the spiral, at the symbol of winter solstice, when we are at the darkest time of the year. As we walk back out of the spiral, we make our way through spring towards the summer solstice – the seasonal rhythm is complete.
While none of this is explained to the children at the time, the picture is powerful and creates the best kind of learning – through doing and experiencing.