Social SciencesFreePrintable

Rural Māori Migration to Wainuiomata

A free social sciences worksheet ready for your classroom. Open in Kuraplan to grab the print-ready PDF, customize it for your students, or generate a fresh version in seconds.

Download now

Name:Date:

Rural Māori Migration to Wainuiomata

Read the short account and examine the timeline. Use evidence in your answers. People’s reasons and experiences differed; there was no single Māori story.

A changing community

After the Second World War, many Māori moved from rural areas to towns and cities. This wider movement was part of major social and economic change in Aotearoa New Zealand. Some people sought paid work, education, housing or services that were easier to reach in urban areas. Others moved because whānau had already settled there or because opportunities in their home areas were limited. These reasons could overlap. Wainuiomata, in the Hutt Valley near Wellington, grew rapidly in the post-war decades. New housing and work in the wider Wellington region attracted people, including Māori families. Moving could bring new opportunities and connections, but it could also mean distance from whenua, familiar communities and important relationships. Māori communities adapted, maintained connections and built new networks in urban places. Individual experiences varied.

After 1945 Post-war change gathers pace

1950s–1960s Urban Māori populations grow

1970s onwards Urban Māori communities continue to shape city life

Investigate the evidence

For questions about causes, an example of a supported answer is acceptable if it uses the account. For questions asking you to form an enquiry or judgement, answers may vary; sample answers are provided.

1.Which statement best defines migration?

Moving from one place to another to live
Visiting another place for a day
Changing jobs without moving house
Building a new home in the same place

2.Name two reasons Māori might have moved from a rural area to Wainuiomata, based on the account.

3.Choose one reason from the account and explain whether it is a ‘push’ factor (encouraging someone to leave) or a ‘pull’ factor (attracting someone to a new place).

4.True or false: The account says every Māori family had the same reason for moving to Wainuiomata.

TrueFalse

5.According to the account, where is Wainuiomata located?

6.Use the timeline: which broad period comes first, urban Māori population growth in the 1950s–1960s or the post-war change beginning after 1945?

7.Give one possible benefit and one possible challenge of moving to an urban place such as Wainuiomata, using details from the account.

8.The account gives general reasons for migration. What is one important detail it cannot tell us about a particular person or family?

9.Write one useful question you would investigate to learn more about Māori migration to Wainuiomata. Explain what kind of evidence could help answer it.

10.Write a short conclusion explaining why rural Māori migrated to Wainuiomata and one way migration affected people or communities. Use at least two details from the account.