Crossword puzzles are an engaging way to develop and use content vocabulary. This activity includes two different puzzles – the clues for both are in English, the answers for the first are in te reo Māori and the answers for the second are in English.
In this activity, students use information from a range of resources to solve crossword puzzles featuring animals of Aotearoa.
By the end of this activity, students should be able to:
- use literacy skills to locate information across a range of texts
- use content vocabulary in te reo Māori and English.
Download the Word file (see link below).
Related content
The following resources provide brief introductions of Māori knowledge about a selected sample of animal species indigenous to Aotearoa:
- Māori knowledge of animals
- Kurī
- Kiore
- Ngā manu a Tānemahuta (featuring pīwakawaka, tūī, kererū, rūrū, kōtare, tītī and toroa)
- Ngā ika a Tangaroa (featuring makō and tohorā)
- Ngārara – te aitanga a Punga
- Te aitanga pepeke
Activity ideas
These activities are also literacy based and use the Māori knowledge of animals resources listed above:
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.
