Ko tōku whānau tēnei : a whakapapa based approach to building community in mainstream ECE

Abstract

Within te ao Māori whanaungatanga is seen as a quintessential value, requiring the establishment and maintenance of a pattern of right relationship between people, place, space and time (Williams, 2005). Early childhood education in Aotearoa emphasises children’s sense of belonging in their community. This is evidenced by the strands of the early childhood curriculum, Te Whāriki (Ministry of Education, 1996). The strand Whanau tangata / Family and community calls for this to be an integral part of curriculum. Through the strand of Ngā hōnonga / Relationships, teachers support children’s learning through ensuring responsive and reciprocal relationships with people, places, and things. This presentation (workshop) offers an approach to supporting tamariki to build their sense of community and belonging based on the concept of whanaungatanga. It supports all levels of fluency te reo Māori. It acknowledges whakapapa of the child and whānau and assists in building knowledge of Māori ways of being in the world.