Māori knowledge of animals – provocative questions
Aotearoa New Zealand is home to animal species that are uniquely adapted to life on our islands and exist here and nowhere else. We also have animal species that were intentionally or accidentally introduced. It is an understatement to say that managing this mix of endemic and introduced animal species is complicated!
This activity uses an inquiry approach to explore how we manage and/or interact with animal species, from glow-worms to the extinct kurī. It is cross-curricular as it explores science concepts like conservation and animal behaviours as well as mātauranga Māori, New Zealand histories and animal ethics.
Extensive trapping to protect takahē
The Department of Conservation uses a network of 2,500 traps to protect takahē from stoats.
In this activity, ākonga use provocative questions to explore issues or events – past or present – pertaining to animals of Aotearoa.
By the end of this activity, ākonga should be able to:
identify an issue or event of personal or local interest
use literacy skills to locate information about the issue or event
communicate their findings.
Download the Word file (see link below).
Related content
The articles Māori knowledge of animals and Māori concepts for animal ethics – introduction bring together resources about animals in Aotearoa, underpinned by te ao Māori perspectives.
The following Hub resources will help with research into some of the provocative questions:
Takahē – a context for learning (resource curation)
Ecological island sanctuaries: Orokonui Ecosanctuary and Zealandia Te Māra a Tāne
Rabbits – biological pest control, 1080 and alternative forms of pest control
The influence of labels and biases on animals and how we view them.
Provocative questions can raise ethical issues. The article Managing classroom discussions has suggestions on how to facilitate these in a positive, safe atmosphere.
Useful link
Use the Kiwi Conservation Club activity Why was I introduced to Aotearoa? to match introduced animals to the reasoning behind their introduction.
Acknowledgement
This content has been developed in collaboration with Professor Georgina Tuari Stewart (Ngāti Kura, Ngāpuhi-nui-tonu, Pare Hauraki), Auckland University of Technology, and Dr Sally Birdsall, University of Auckland, with funding and support from the Ministry for Primary Industries – Manatū Ahu Matua and the Australian and New Zealand Council for the Care of Animals in Research and Teaching (ANZCCART).
Animals of Aotearoa and animal ethics
Animals of Aotearoa: Kaupapa Māori Summaries and Exploring the Three Rs of Animal Ethics with Māori Ideas were developed with funding from the Australian and New Zealand Council for the Care of Animals in Research and Teaching (ANZCCART) and the Ministry for Primary Industries. The silhouette design was created for this project and is the copyright of Professor Georgina Tuari Stewart and Dr Sally Birdsall.
