Maori Culture and Technology
Due to the wet weather we have had lately the children
have been indoors a lot and as a result I have noticed that the Poi has become
a popular activity.
The teachers at our centre have encouraged this by
playing music for the children to dance too while using their poi. We have also been teching them simple Maori
actions they can do with the Poi and showing them videos of Maori Kapahaka
groups preforming the Poi.
I have enjoyed this activity as I come from a Kapahaka
Background myself and I am loving passing on skills that I have to the
children.
I have been looking at this activity as a way I can incorporate
more Maori culture into the Centre however with my growing awareness of technology
and how it is everywhere I now realise that technology also plays an important
part. Smorti (1999) states that
technology is something that helps people and the Poi was originally made to
help Men (Maori Warriors) make their wrists supple so that they would be able
to use the Taiaha and Patu in war with more ease.
Smorti (1999) also states that technology development
is highly influenced by the culture and society at the time. In the case of the Poi it was developed as
stated above to help Maori at the time however in todays society it is mainly
used for dance. But I feel that the
original objective that the poi was made for over a thousand years ago (to make
wrist supple) is still applicable today although the children may not grow up
to be warriors they will still gain the skill of moving their wrists in
different ways. This new skill can be applied in many different ways such as
the child’s writing and drawing skills.
I have grown up in a world of digital technology and I
have always assumed that technology had to be something digital. However now my
perception has changed and I now know that children learn from all different
kinds of technology such as the Poi. It is just as important for children to
learn about non digital technology as it is for them to learn about digital
technology. Te Whariki (1996) states
that children should be exposed to a wide range of technology and I feel that
now that I have a better understanding of what technology is I am better
capable of provide the children at my Centre with a wide range of
technology.
I also feel that as a teacher I need to not just
expose children to a wide range of technology but explain to them about each
technology. I feel this is important
because like me the children I care for are growing up in a very digital world
and as a teacher I feel I need to educate the children so that they grow up
knowing that technology is more than a computer of a Television.
Balance is the word that comes to mind when I think
about the different technology. We have computers and I Pads at our Centre that
the children love however I now need to find a way to encourage children’s
interest in other non digital technologies.
The Poi has worked well and now I look around my Centre and I think do
we have enough non-digital technology and if so how can I utilize it and spark
the children interest so they become just as excited about these technologies
as they do with the Ipad. Something for
me to think about and work on.
Kia ora Glenis, this was a very encouraging read as you were able to focus the use of technology to help develop the physical development of the child as well. Im encouraged how you were able to incorporate maori culture into the children's learning. If you were wanting to expand on this, I have some ideas that might help. At my centre we did a similar thing, but we done it on cook island dancing and culture. we used ICT as an avenue to teach some kids about their culture. however we didnt stop here, we went into african dancing and music for some other children and also indian as well. We furthered this by using different styles of music on the cd player such as jazz, reggae, and all sorts of music for the children to listen to, to help them have a taste of all sorts of music. Even playing music from todays artists, where the children can express themselves through dance and movement to the music. I used dvds, youtube, cd player, and musical instruments for children to use and learn. Hopefully this helps. really enjoyed the read(:
ReplyDeletesorry i also forgot to mention costumes as well
DeleteGlenis
ReplyDeleteThis is such an interesting reading, Glenis! Firstly, I had no idea about the origin and primary use of of pois! This is so surprising and it makes so much sense at the same time! I love reading about different cultures! Reading about Maori culture is so pertinent for us teachers and the pois are present (or should be!) at every early childhood centres. I am sure very few educators know its story and first purpose.
Non-digital technology is still a concept that I am slowing grasping myself. I could easily link to powered devices but never I wouldn’t have thought of pois as technology! However, as Smorti suggested, technology is about helping people to solve problems and meeting needs! Of course, the warriors needed to work their muscles! Creatively, they developed their own technology to meet their necessity! Very creative!
This post was very useful to extend my comprehension about non-digital technology. Well done and thanks for that!
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI thought it was great to teach the children about what New Zealand is about but most importantly your culture. We did the same thing at a kindy I went to but the children weren't very interested unless a teacher joined in as well. I didn't know that was what the poi was made for, it was quite interesting for me but obviously it was developing muscles at the same time. I do strongly agree that this activity does help children with their motor skills. Your reflection has helped me understand some non digital things we have at my centre that I can also write about.Thanks Glenis and something for you to think about, maybe next time you can incorporate some other cultures and their dances or costumes at your kindy and it can be a learning process for yourself and the children.
Glenis
ReplyDeleteWow. I did not know that about poi’s. It just goes to show that there is a lot more going on than you think with even the simple things in life. Your blog is a really good example of non-digital technology and you have explained it really well. I think it’s awesome that something as simple as poi has so many potential values, through movement skill to cultural history it has a lot of benefits. Incorporating the use of music and songs such as ‘e rere taku poi’ will help with the language skills as well. I think tavita’s idea of carrying through with different kinds of dance and cultures is a great opportunity to expand on this and find other technologies used for similar things. I’m really interested in checking if my centre has poi’s now so I can check them out with the children.