Kiwi teachers bring Te Ao Māori magic to children's books

Two New Zealand educators have authored children’s books grounded in Aotearoa and Te Ao Māori principles.

Jessie Eyre says her journey began after friend and co-author Hira Nathan wrote Whakawhetai, a bilingual gratitude journal, which inspired the creation of a kids’ version, Piki Te Ora.

Eyre says she hopes that this book will introduce hauora principles to children and families who have not practised them before.

“Te Ao Māori principles are really beautiful and they're so connected to your whenua and your people.

“We want families to be involved with the kids, so there are lots of questions about the people around you, like asking your family about where your name came from, or prompts to cook a meal with your whanau.”

Belmont Intermediate School student Sienna Bakalich says she would have liked to study the book in primary school and enjoyed the interactive aspect.

“I like how interactive it is with the drawing, colouring and writing. It would have helped me practise my Te Reo with the translations. It would have been perfect in year 6.

Falstaff Dowling-Mitchell published his novel White Lies, Māori Legends and Fairytales in 2019.

It is now taught in over 300 Aotearoa NZ schools, and has been turned into a short film called Small Waves.

The film received national and international acclaim, winning Best International Short Film in Austin, Texas.

Dowling-Mitchell says he began writing the novel while living overseas, and continued writing when he returned home to Aotearoa.

“That's when I started at the school I'm at now, which is 85% Māori students.

“It became important to me to write a book that had Māori kids that the children I was working with could look up to.”

Dowling-Mitchell says his interactions with students were helpful when writing the novel, particularly the dialogue.

“I think if I wasn't a teacher and wasn't hanging around students of that age day in and day out, it would have been a lot less authentic.”

Dowling-Mitchell says he hopes the book will encourage independent and critical thinking in students.

“Be yourself, question the world, question the past. Don't settle for what people are telling you if you don't agree with it. Back yourself and embrace your culture.”

Dowling-Mitchell is currently working on a sequel to White Lies, Māori Legends and Fairytales.

Listen: Author Jessie Eyre on the origins of Piki Te Ora