Years 1-3
A struggle for land and sovereignty
Teaching Resource
Mana was central to all political and economic relationships in traditional Māori society and has continued to shape internal and external interactions. This resource shows how three texts from the School Journal series can be used to support learning in the context of tino rangatiratanga me te kāwanatanga through the various ways that Māori tried to resist colonialism, retain land, and assert mana motuhake.
About this resource
The texts have been chosen because of their links to the Aotearoa New Zealand’s histories curriculum at years 7–8 and not for their reading year level. Depending on your students, you might read some of them aloud. There is also additional teacher support material that provides suggestions for literacy strategies to help all students access each text. See Literacy Online: Instructional Series
These texts provide a springboard for students to explore:
- contests of authority and control in Aotearoa New Zealand, with a focus on the New Zealand Wars and events that followed
- strategies that Māori used to resist British and settler-government troop hostilities
- examples of pan-tribalism in response to rapidly escalating immigration, aggressive land acquisition, and Crown hostility.
Each text provides a stand-alone learning opportunity, but they can be used together to explore the topic more deeply.
Over years 7–8, students will have many opportunities to learn in this topic, deepen their understandings, and grow their critical thinking about the past.
