Baby Seals playing at the waterfall

The tamariki took some very short videos of the baby seals playing and swimming around in the pool at the bottom of the waterfall. Take a look at some of their creations. We haven't edited them.

Through the eyes of a Tekoteko.

Here are some more wonderful pieces of creative writing. Looking at the world through the eyes of a tekoteko placed on top of the whare at Mangamaungu Marae.

Ngā Atua, (Through the Eyes of a Tekoteko) Nā Avarua

As the warm wind blows onto my face I smell the ocean for the first time and see the mountains with snow. I have become a tekoteko. Now I look after Hohepa and everyone on the Maungamaungu Marae.

These past years I have seen many things and people, I have seen Ngati Kuri come and Kai Tahu as well. The many years have passed along with what I have seen? I have seen tamariki, Koro, Whaea and Matua but the thing that I love seeing are the Atua. Tangaroa, Papatuanuku, Ranginui, Tanemahuta, Ruamoko and Tawirimatea. They are all wonderful and amazing sons of the sky and the ground also known as Papatuanuku and Ranginui. There have been wars with the smoke rising from the ground making it hard to breathe. At that time, I couldn't see anything I could hear yelling and crying but when the Pakeha came, everyone went somewhere else and they haven't been seen since that war.

What can I see?

Some more creative writing through the eyes of a tekoteko...

The War of the Tekoteko. Na Ricci

I was staring at the seal and the whales. But one dark night I heard a screech out in the sea there was this yellow light, I tried to wake up the soldiers. But it did not work then finally one of my soldiers started to wake up. Then he woke the rest the soldiers. They got ready for the war so the soldier’s went to the beach to fight. One of the other soldiers killed ten of my warriors.

I said to myself I am going to die but I then I saw 20 of my soldiers had killed all of the enemy. Then I was knew I did not die.  Every year the enemy’s tried to take over but they would always lose the war.

But one dark night there was a problem early in the morning it was 1 o'clock in the morning, there was a boat and there were a lot of people on the boat. So my soldier’s woke up and went to go and attack but somehow all of my soldier’s was dead.Then the enemy slept in me inside the whare moe.

I felt sad that my people had been killed  and angry that the enemy were sleeping in my whare.

More reflections through the eyes of a tekoteko.

He Tekoteko Ahau   Na Zion.

I was standing on the big red shiny steel roof and I was there for about 126 years straight without moving at all. There were a lot of funerals over that time down there at the marae. There were about 100 sad funerals down there and also a lot of people played.

Details about me (tekoteko)

I had big, shiny, paua eyes and they were as big as mini pizzas. I was as tall as 2 metres and I was looking at everyone doing their jobs and working hard. I saw some people coming and they were trying to attack the marae and they were coming with big harpoons and all of that stuff. They were arriving there soon and then finally they got to where I was standing and they kept coming at the people of mine.  Then they went for me and I felt frightened. They killed me using a harpoon, it knocked me off the house and broke me into pieces. I fell backwards and fell off the roof, so they had to make another one like me. After that they all wanted the original tekoteko fixed and they started arguing and arguing.

So they recovered me, fixed me up  and then I was all good again. But then they went to come again and the people of my marae had a trap set for them.  So the people came and they all died except for one person and he was the chief of everyone in his iwi.

He was a nasty person and he didn’t like the people of my marae and then he killed heaps of people. He killed 56 people and then he got killed at the end of the battle.

The people of my marae were happy again and and lived happily ever after.

I AM A TEKOTEKO Na James

I am the tekoteko on a marae in Kaikoura on a hill. I could see a war coming I wanted to warn the people on the marae but I couldn't talk. 130 years after these kids were on this land I was scared they were going burn the marae but now they sleep in it.

So I look at the sparkling sea and the kids build their massive tree houses. They were on the rope swings. I hear  a good song being played on the piano and the kids roasted marshmallows  on a long sick , it looked yummy. There were also heaps of paua that the kids found.  They played spotlight in the dark it was so good seeing the kids having fun.  When they went to beach I was sad because I was lonely. It made me remember about a time 125 years ago when there was a big bush fire the fames were really big I thought I was going to die but something happened. I was saved the flames didn’t reach me.   

Tamariki Playing.Na Mikaere

I am a tekoteko staring at the snowy mountains and I see big trees and lots of people.  Some of the people are climbing on the trees and lots of kids are playing games like touch and football.  Some people are eating some hotdogs and hamburgers while some kids were jumping on the little trampoline. It looks like it’s fun. I wish I could be down there playing too.

Tekoteko on Hohepa. Na Ashton.

I see some kids building a treehouse and I hear the

piano playing. When it was dark I saw the kids

roasting marshmallows over the fire they looked

yummy. I saw them leave in vans.

             

Through the eyes of the tekoteko.

Perched on top of Hohepa whare at Mangamaungu Marae there is a tekoteko. The tamariki were asked to create a piece of writing looking through the eyes of the tekoteko. Here are some of their ideas.

The Attack of Te Rauparaha.  

Na Jacinda

For many years I have looked over the same ocean and village. People have come and gone but I haven't. I still remember the people raising me up and feeling so proud of themselves. Over all these years on a roof I still remember the beautiful singing of the manu in the forest and the combined smell of the sea and forest.  The tall trees with their long, green leaves leaned over me sheltering and protecting me from the sun and rain. I look into the dark, blue, misty night. I see a light on the ocean.

“He aha tena?” I think to myself. I look a little closer and realise what it is.

“Kia tupato. E haere mai a Te Rauparaha!” I kept screaming.

“Kia tupato, kia tupato, e haere mai a Te Rauparaha!”

But nobody heard me, I kept screaming out but when they finally found out it was too late...

I am the Tekoteko. Na Ezekiel

I was standing up on the red roof, my big shining paua eyes were glittering in the shining yellow sun.

Over the years  I saw heaps of people come and go. When I was by myself I would look at the beautiful blue sea. I got put up there around  130 years ago, I am really really old.

I have seen some wars here, I have seen some kids come to stay on this marae they stayed for 3 days.  I saw their treehouses and when they got welcomed  onto the marae I was so happy to see them to come on to the marae.

I was watching over them wherever they went. I saw when they went to the beach to find some stuff to put on their mobiles. I saw when they went to bed. I looked at the stars and the big blue sky with the moon there were heaps of stars when they when to bed.

I will close my eyes and dream to see what they will do tomorrow.  When I do that I will think about when I got put up on top of Hohepa whare.  I think about how they live in there houses and I wish that I lived like them but I don’t.

When I think about them,  I think about when I got put up on the roof and when I look at the roof I think about all of the different people I have seen over the 130 years.  But I am still on top of Mangamaunu marae.

Mangamaungu Marae. Na Waisea

I am a red tekoteko with green paua shell eyes.  I see some enemies coming towards Mangamaungu. It is an army  of people firing flames towards us. I say in my head “Stop!”  The marae has been alive for 130 years and I have seen everything since I was built. Today I see a white man in a tuxedo coming onto the marae he is in a coffin and it is a blue one.  I think it is Slender man but I can’t see his face because it is so dark. It is night time and because the marae doesn’t have any electricity I can’t see properly. It is not Slender man the person I saw had been whaling and he had drowned in the dark mysterious ocean he is dead now. I am still at the top of Mangamaungu marae and I will be there forever protecting the people of this marae.

Reflecting on our stay at the marae.

Our noho marae was wonderful, snow covered mountains behind us and sparkling ocean below us. The whare moe was 130 years old oozing history. The tamariki played in the trees,  built tree houses using lots of problem solving, walked through the native bush, watched seal pups swimming in the waterfall, made rongoa (traditional healing balm), fossicked on the beach, visited the original whaling station in Kaikoura, felt real whale blubber,  threw a replica harpoon, helped in the kitchen,  visited the local school and had a game of touch, played spotlight and toasted marshmallows.  We had visitors, Maaka our kapahaka tutor came up, Darren the local historian spoke to us sharing history of the area and  Taua Phylis spent time with us chatting with the tamariki. We lived together as a whānau, sharing the beautiful marae and looking after each other. The tamariki had to self manage, be respectful, problem solve, communicate and have fun. There are many photos and lots more creating will be done this week I'm sure, but here are are few. A huge mihi to all the adults that helped make this noho so special.

Mangamaunu noho marae

Titiro ki ngā tamariki. He harikoa koutou.