All Articles
Autumn 2022: Book reviews
Reviews of eight brilliant new books for kaiako and ākonga.
Kua tuku iho – handing down our past
Until recently, the historical misdeeds towards Māori have been swept under the carpet, with the hope that they would be forgotten. The Aotearoa Histories curriculum is one step towards changing this. What do kura Māori think about this change and the importance of teaching our past?
Te Whare Tapa Whā – the four sides of wellbeing
Education professionals will know the popular hauora model Te Whare Tapa Whā, but what does it mean in practice? Ako finds out.
Let tamariki get stuck in
One of the most powerful forces in tamariki wellbeing is their own voice. Read about how these schools let tamariki lead the way.
Joy, Colour, Wonder, Fun, Life: Wellbeing and the Arts
Making art helps us slow down, process our feelings, and gives us permission to care for ourselves. Ako talks to schools who use art practice to support hauora and bring in joy, colour and wonder.
Unhurried moments of care
Ako talks to early childhood educators about how they use attachment theory to create secure relationships with tamariki, and the barriers they have to overcome.
Is Everyone Okay?: Hauora for educators
High workloads and insufficient resourcing in a rapidly changing society leads to staff burnout. But these education leaders have found authentic ways to support and value staff hauora.
“Not another new bloody model of wellbeing”
At a recent conference I attended, I heard a speaker at a workshop enthused at a number of models of health and wellbeing. She ran through a myriad of some very impressive line ups mostly from America and Europe.
Global citizenship education – He raraunga o te ao: A Māori perspective
Global Citizenship education (GCED) is UNESCO’s response to the impact of poverty, global warming, inequality and human rights violations which threaten peace and sustainability worldwide.
Nurtured minds are our friends!
Sam Hayden of Northcross Intermediate writes about "Add Value", the programme he created to support student hauora.
Winter 2021: Book Reviews
Reviews of nine fantastic books for children and adults that will support your hauora.
Be open-minded about mindfulness
Mindfulness means paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment and non-judgmentally. Try this mindfulness practice!
Hauora is for everyone
It is great to be able to share this issue of Ako with you. Hauora seems to be the catch phrase of the last couple of years.
Conor Twyford talks to Ako about climate activism
Conor Twyford, the new Community Organiser at NZEI Te Riu Roa, talks about the work she’s doing and how she’s supporting members to get active on climate change. “If we’re going to tackle the big issues like climate change,” Twyford says, “we need to do it in community, we need to do it together.”
Making Transitions
As Taranaki makes a “Just Transition” from fossil fuels to a carbon-neutral economy, educators, whānau and tamariki must transition as well.
Gumboots and Gloves: Coming together in the face of climate threat
For many communities in Aotearoa the impacts of climate change are already being felt. Ako talks to educators about floods, droughts and hurricanes, and how they get through.
Planting the seed of environmental citizenship
Early childhood centres are educating and empowering tamariki on how to make their world a better place. The work is changing mindsets and behaviour far beyond centre walls.
Te Maramataka: A way to live and know
As mātauranga Māori is more widely recognised, schools and kura are using Te Maramataka to connect with the environment and themselves.
How to effect change
Once you identify that you want to take climate action, how do you get everyone on board? Ako asks educators who have succeeded how they created change.
How do we support tamariki as citizens growing up in a chaotic climate?
As a political scientist interested in children’s futures and serving on the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), an international science body that produces regular reports on the state of the world’s climate, I worry a lot about our changing climate and the implications for children and future generations.
E kore au e ngaro / I shall not be lost
Where I come from, the kererū is revered. A food for royalty and women. Our kaumātua describe how the sky would get dark as clouds of kererū flew overhead, sounding like a loud helicopter as they flapped their wings through our echoing valleys. This memory from long before I was born was a sign of abundance.
Looking to the opportunity ahead
I’m not sure if it’s the increase in grassroots movements, or the current government’s desire to highlight climate change, but in the education sector there’s a real thirst to be lifting our game.