Overview

Two 40-minute lessons designed for Year 2 students exploring the Māori creation story — Papatūānuku (Earth Mother), Ranginui (Sky Father), and their children/atua. The lessons sit within the theme of New Zealand’s unique flora, fauna, and habitats, fostering a holistic understanding of te taiao (the living environment). Drama activities help internalise connection, responsibility, and respect towards our environment, aligned with the New Zealand Curriculum Refresh.

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Curriculum Links

Learning Area: The Arts – Drama

Achievement Objective:

• Explore role and character through dramatic play and storytelling.
• Use imagination to create and share ideas.

Key Competencies (NZC p12-13):

• Using language, symbols, and texts – engaging with storytelling and role play
• Relating to others – cooperating in dramatic performance
• Participating and contributing – collaborating to create a class skit

Values

• Manaakitanga (respect and care for others and environment)
• Kaitiakitanga (guardianship and conservation of the environment)

Vision & Principles

• Te Tiriti o Waitangi – acknowledging Māori perspectives
• Acknowledging tangata Tiriti roles as guardians of the environment through understanding atua and creation stories

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Learning Objectives

• Students will retell the Māori creation story using role play and dramatic elements.
• Students will recognise the importance of Papatūānuku and Ranginui and their children (atua) as part of the living environment.
• Students will demonstrate understanding of their role as tangata Tiriti to care for te taiao.
• Students will use drama to explore character, sequence, and storytelling.
• Students will work collaboratively to present a class skit.

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Lesson 1: The Māori Creation Story Retelling

Duration: 40 minutes

Group: Whole class (22 students)

Resources Needed:

• Large picture cards/visuals of Papatūānuku, Ranginui, and key atua
• Simple story map visuals
• Quiet space for storytelling and group work
• (Optional) natural materials (leaves, stones) for setting atmosphere

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Lesson Structure

1. Introduction & Context (5 min)

• Briefly introduce the concept of te taiao, emphasizing the whānau of Papatūānuku and Ranginui and their children/atua.
• Connect this to the responsibility of tangata Tiriti to care for the environment (kaitiakitanga).
• Use visuals to support understanding.

2. Story Recounting (10 min)

• Teacher narrates the creation story focusing on Papatūānuku and Ranginui, including some of their children (atua). Use expressive language and voice, encouraging students to listen with interest.
• Emphasise the relationships among atua and the environment, encouraging students to feel respect and care.

3. Interactive Story Retelling (15 min)

• Distribute simple role cards or assign students to be Papatūānuku, Ranginui, and their children/atua.
• Guide students to act out simple key parts of the story using expressive gestures, voice, and movement (e.g., Papatūānuku lying down as Earth, Ranginui above as the sky).
• Use prompts to help students sequence the story actions.

4. Reflection & Discussion (5 min)

• Gather students and talk about what they learned about Papatūānuku and Ranginui.
• What do the atua represent? Why is it important to care for our environment?
• Connect to their role as tangata Tiriti.

5. Wrap-up (5 min)

• Introduce that next lesson they will put the story into a short class skit with parts to play.

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Lesson 2: Class Skit – Guardians of the Environment

Duration: 40 minutes

Group: Whole class (22 students)

Resources Needed:

• Name tags or simple costumes for each character/atua
• Story map or script scaffold
• Space for practice and performance

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Lesson Structure

1. Warm-Up & Review (5 min)

• Recap creation story briefly, invite a few students to share what they remember.
• Quick warm-up drama games (e.g., “mirror” to practice expressing emotions).

2. Assign Roles & Rehearsal (15 min)

• Assign student groups to be Papatūānuku, Ranginui, and various children/atua (e.g., Tāne Mahuta - forest, Tangaroa - sea).
• Present a simple script or sequence:
  • Introduction by Papatūānuku & Ranginui
  • Each atua introduces themselves with a simple line about what they guard or represent in te taiao
  • The children ask “How can we care for the environment?” with simple responses
• Rehearse short skit with support for voice, expression, gestures.

3. Class Performance (10 min)

• Perform skit for the class or a small invited audience (another class or teachers).
• Encourage expressive voices, body language, and teamwork.

4. Group Reflection (5 min)

• Discuss what they liked about being the atua.
• How does acting it out make them feel about caring for our world?
• Highlight the role of tangata Tiriti as guardians.

5. Closing and Connection to Topic (5 min)

• Show how this story connects to NZ’s unique plants, animals, and habitats.
• Explain the term/topic for the term exploring these ideas further.

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Assessment & Feedback

• Observe students’ engagement, participation, and ability to retell the story through drama.
• Use simple checklists: Can students identify main characters? Do they understand the connection to environment care?
• Encourage peer feedback on skit performance focusing on teamwork and expression.
• Reflect verbally on students’ understanding of their role as tangata Tiriti.

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Differentiation

• Provide sentence-stem prompts for students needing language support (e.g., “I am Tāne Mahuta. I guard the…”).
• Use visual supports extensively for sequencing and comprehension.
• Allow choice for quieter students to narrate or manage props.

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Teacher Notes

• Ground teachings in a tikanga Māori framework — respect, connection, and guardianship.
• Use lots of positive reinforcement for cultural elements and care for nature.
• Support oral language development through modelling expressive retelling and role-taking.

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This approach aligns with the New Zealand Curriculum Refresh by embedding te ao Māori perspectives, developing key competencies such as using language, symbols, and texts, relating to others, and participating and contributing through drama and storytelling about te taiao and Māori creation narratives .