Matariki Calendar Design

Overview

This is Lesson 1 of 10 in the unit “Designing Matariki Calendars”. Students will learn the cultural significance of maramataka and establish respectful protocols, then preview how design principles, visual arts processes, and digital skills will be developed across the unit. The lesson also introduces NCEA pathways for this unit and explains how learning will be assessed using the Cookie Chart Method.

Learning intentions

• Students will understand the unit structure, key milestones, and what success looks like across the 10 lessons.
• Students will identify what maramataka is and explain why respectful engagement is required when working with Māori knowledge systems.
• Students will unpack the “core evidence” expected for NCEA Visual Arts internal achievement standards.
• Students will begin using the Cookie Chart Method to track progress towards success criteria.

Success criteria

• I can describe the purpose of the unit and the next steps for the next lessons.
• I can name at least 3 visual design principles and link them to calendar layout choices.
• I can explain the basics of maramataka respectfully and identify which information requires tikanga and careful handling.
• I can use the Cookie Chart Method to show where I am at for key criteria in this unit.

Curriculum links

• AS91912 — Use practice-based visual inquiry to explore an Aotearoa New Zealand Māori context and another cultural context (identify visual/cultural elements; record information; examine details; reflect).
• AS91913 — Produce a significant resolved artwork appropriate to established art making conventions (use relevant media/techniques; manage processes; communicate an idea).
• AS91914 — Explore Visual Arts processes and conventions to inform own art making (experiment with processes/materials/techniques; connect experiments to intention).
• AS91915 — Create a sustained body of related artworks in response to an art making proposition (develop and select related works; edit/order a coherent series).

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–7 min · Welcome and unit map. Teacher shares the unit overview on the board (10 lessons, outcomes, and assessment moments) and explains how work will be built in steps. Students listen, then record a “what I think this unit will involve” note in their workbook.

2. 7–15 min · Cultural protocols and respectful engagement. Teacher co-creates a class tikanga checklist for art-making and inquiry (e.g., asking permission when needed, crediting sources, avoiding misrepresentation, discussing appropriate use of mātauranga). Students complete a short scenario sort: “What is respectful practice?” “What would be unsafe or inappropriate?”

3. 15–25 min · Maramataka in context (brief, careful inquiry). Teacher provides a short, student-friendly explanation of maramataka and Matariki, focusing on values and respectful handling rather than “collect-and-decorate”. Students use a guided graphic organiser to capture: (a) what maramataka is, (b) what kinds of visual information might appear in a calendar, (c) one question they need to ask/confirm properly.

4. 25–35 min · Design principles for calendar layouts. Teacher introduces 4–5 core design principles for layout (e.g., balance, contrast, hierarchy, rhythm, colour). Students work in pairs to apply them to a “mini calendar thumbnail”: they draw a quick 3-month layout grid and annotate where hierarchy and rhythm happen (headings, dates, seasonal cues).

5. 35–45 min · NCEA overview: what evidence looks like. Teacher gives a clear “where each standard shows up in this unit” explanation (practice-based inquiry, processes and conventions, resolved artwork, sustained series). Students highlight in their notes the key verbs: explore/investigate/reflect, experiment and connect, produce a significant resolved artwork, create a connected series.

6. 45–55 min · Cookie Chart Method setup. Teacher models the Cookie Chart Method: criteria become “bites/cookies”, and progress is tracked using student-friendly descriptors (not grades-only). Students create their first Cookie Chart for this unit with 6–8 cookies total and write: “What I will do next to move one cookie forward.”

7. 55–60 min · Exit ticket and tidy. Teacher prompts a quick exit ticket: “One protocol I will follow; one design principle I will use; one inquiry thing I still need to learn.” Students submit and prepare materials for the next lesson.

Resources

• Workbook or art journal for each student
• Guided graphic organiser (maramataka notes) and design-principle annotation sheet
• Cookie Chart template (print or digital)
• Scenario cards for tikanga/safety scenarios
• A3/A4 paper for mini calendar thumbnails, pencil, eraser
• Colouring pencils or markers (limited palette to support design focus)
• Teacher slides/handout: unit map and assessment overview (no hyperlinks)

Assessment

• Formative checks: observation during scenario sort and pair annotation of mini calendar thumbnails.
• Formative checks: teacher circulates during maramataka graphic organiser to ensure accurate, respectful framing.
• Exit ticket: checked for understanding of protocols, one design principle, and an inquiry question.
• Cookie Chart: reviewed at end of lesson to confirm students understand the next learning step.

Differentiation

• UDL supports: provide sentence starters for the scenario explanations and maramataka organiser (e.g., “Respectful practice looks like…” “I will confirm…” “This principle helps because…”).
• Scaffolding: offer a partially completed Cookie Chart and mini layout template with pre-drawn grids for students who need structure.
• Options for expression: students may annotate using words, symbols, or colour coding for design principles.
• Extension (for students who finish early): add a second annotated thumbnail exploring an alternate colour scheme or stronger hierarchy, and write a short “why” statement linked to intention.
• EAL support: display key verbs visually (explore, investigate, reflect, experiment, select, resolve) and allow oral recording of exit ticket responses if needed.

Curriculum Refresh alignment note (teacher guidance)

Keep the maramataka discussion focused on respectful protocols and careful inquiry, not “generic decoration”. Throughout the unit, students will build practice-based visual inquiry evidence, experiment with conventions to inform their design intentions, and produce a significant resolved artwork and a related series, tracked transparently through the Cookie Chart Method.