In Aotearoa New Zealand, our ancestors all came from another place. Our society is a rich blend of origins, cultures, languages, traditions, religions and foods from all over the world. Early Māori sailed thousands of miles to reach Aotearoa New Zealand. Their routes were preserved in memory or recorded in song. Upon arrival they weaved place names and overland route descriptions into oral histories. These have been passed from generation to generation. Iwi mapping was therefore an oral tradition. The pepeha, for example, is an important form of introduction. It links individuals to their tribal roots and significant landmarks. The forerunner to the Global Positioning System (GPS)!
Join us as we explore the diverse heritage of a classroom, their stories and how they came to Aotearoa New Zealand. Meet with their parents and understand some of the challenges they faced in making this country their home. Your guides will be other students who have been using digital maps to create a record of their origins and the places that support their identity.
Curated resource collection
You can search this collection by using the search bar below.
Tupapa→
/Our ancestors journeyed from Polynesia to Turanganui-a-Kiwa (Gisborne) more than 700 years ago. Tupapa: Our Stand. Our Story is a project to tell our rich, interwoven stories that have been passed down about the first people to navigate to and inhabit this place.
Barney Whiterats by Glenn Colquhoun→
/Barney Whiterats was a famous swagman who spent nearly forty years travelling the roads of Southland and Canterbury. At the time – from the 1870s right through until the 1930s – there were a lot of swagmen in New Zealand. They walked from place to place, looking for work and a meal, and maybe a bed for the night.
This aspect of our history brings to mind the homeless people in our society today, and the different way other people treat them.
Tuia Mātauranga - Encounters 250 topic in Science Learning Hub→
/The topic page about Tuia Encounters 250 and Tuia Mātauranga in the Science Learning Hub website. Includes some resources for Tui Kōreroreo: Ngā Pātai.
Roadside Stories by Ministry for Culture and Heritage→
/Roadside Stories is a series of audio guides that follow major road trips in New Zealand. The stories cover the places you’ll pass along the way – their people, their history, their cultural and natural significance.
Matakohe kauri - Roadside Stories by Ministry for Culture and Heritage→
/Northland was once covered in magnificent kauri forests - but almost all were logged after Europeans arrived in New Zealand. Felling the giant trees was dangerous work, and dams were built so the logs could be floated down rivers. Today a museum at Matakohe showcases the history of kauri forests and their exploitation.
Hapuakorari - the lost lake→
/PDF downloadable and printable resource about Hapuakorari.
Hapuakorari - the lost lake→
/Heading southwest from Pukaha (Mt Bruce) there is a place of significance in a small lake that Maori know as Hapuakorari. It has been located near the headwaters of the Ruamahanga River in the Tararua Mountains for time immemorial. Few people have probably even heard of it but for those that have it is hard not to become fascinated. This is in no small part due to the many stories that have been attributed to the lake and the name Hapuakorari. Hapuakorari was said to have been a place of unparalleled beauty, a sacred place shrouded in mysticism. For a start a legendary bird, the Hokio, lived by the lake in the company of the Kotuku (white heron), Huia, Kereru, and Kaka. Living between beautiful Beech and huge Rimu trees were a variety of rare plants, all surrounding a pebbled beach on the water edge. Within the crystal clear waters massive two headed eels swam.
Arapawa The Path of Smoke, by Joy Hippolite→
/An example of a research report prepared for the Waitangi Tribunal that may be of interest to teachers and others in that specific area - in this case, Arapawa (Arapaoa) Island in the Marlborough Sounds.
Goldmining in the Coromandel→
/An online gallery related to goldmining in the Thames area, which involved negotiation with Māori who signed Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The albums include maps and plans, correspondence, company files, and warders notes.
Settlers, Squatters, and Surveyors: Shaping the Canterbury Settlement, 1848-1851→
/An online gallery about the Pākehā settlement of Canterbury with digital images and added description. The gallery includes digitised images of maps, correspondence, survey notes, minutes, and diary entries. Of use to Ngāi Tahu and those studying the colonisation in Canterbury; Kemp’s Deed of 1848.
Provenance of Power – Constitutional Documents→
/A curated online exhibition that features twelve of the most important, historic, and significant constitutional milestones from our holdings. It includes Te Kara (the United Tribes Flag), He Whakaputanga, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, 1839 Letters Patent, the Charter of 1840, the 1852 Constitution Act, the Kohimarama Conference, the Māori Representation Act 1867, the 1893 Women’s Suffrage Petition, and others. Each document is described and available to download. Includes te reo Māori in the documents themselves, but not as part of the learning resource.
The Lost Voyage of 499→
/China's lost tomb ship is a mystery tale of a shipwreck that reaches across a century to reveal the connection between Hokianga iwi and the descendants of 499 Chinese gold miners.
Wreck of the SS. Ventnor→
/Newspaper article from 1902 about the wreck of the SS Ventnor, which was carrying the bodies of 499 Chinese gold miners for reburial in China.
Biography of Charles Sew Hoy→
/Biography of the life of Charles Sew Hoy, Chinese New Zealander who arrived in 1868 and whose remains were being carried to China on the SS Ventnor when it sank.
Ventnor Project→
/A project documenting the history and memorialisation of the SS Ventnor, which sank in 1902 with the loss of 13 people and the remains of around 500 Chinese men whose bodies were being returned from New Zealand to China for burial. In 2007 members of the early settler Chinese community were told the history of the Ventnor sinking from the Hokianga point of view. They were told that for some time after the sinking in 1902, remains had washed ashore and locals had carefully gathered them up. Some sets of remains were collected by Te Roroa and Te Rarawa, who buried them in their own ancestral burial grounds. A meeting with iwi representatives confirmed this was the case, and that knowledge of the remains and responsibility for care had been passed down from generation to generation to this present day.
The Voyage Out, by John Wilson→
/From the Scottish port of Greenock to Dunedin in New Zealand’s South Island is close to 20,000 kilometres – as far as you could travel to start a new life. By sailing ship, the journey took months. Voyagers endured boredom, terror, and misery, and with only the vast, unpredictable ocean to look at. Many of those who stepped on board owned few possessions, but they had what it took: plenty of courage and hope.
George and Mary Cooper: Hope and Sorrow→
/A 'community contribution' by a descendant of the Cooper family, describing the voyage of his ancestors to Aotearoa in 1850. Part of "The Voyage Out" story also referenced here.
New Zealand History topic in National Library Services to Schools→
/The Māori were the first settlers of Aotearoa, followed by the Europeans. Discover the history of New Zealand’s landscape, its people, events, places, identity, and cultures from sites like Te Ara, Te Papa, DigitalNZ, and NZ History. SCIS no. 1808403.
He Tohu Colonial Life in New Zealand topic in National Library Services to Schools→
/Colonial New Zealand covers the years 1769-1914. The resources include European discovery of New Zealand, contact with Māori, New Zealand wars, Pākehā colonisation, social life, economy, politics and major events of the time. SCIS no: 1838439.