📚 Unit Plans → 🌍 Unit 11: Kaitiaki o te Awa — Water Guardianship (Phase 2) → 📖 Awa Poster Exemplar
Years 7–9 Te Reo Māori / Learning Languages
🧺 Te Kete Ako

Awa Poster Exemplar

Tauira Papaaho · Study the Model — Then Exceed It With Your Own Evidence

SubjectEnglish / The Arts
Year LevelYear 7–9
DurationStudy session — 20 min
CurriculumEnglish · The Arts · Level 3–4

Ngā Whāinga Akoranga · Learning Intentions

  • Understand the five components of an effective awa advocacy poster: heading, evidence, quote, call-to-action, kupu Māori
  • Analyse why each component serves a specific purpose — not decoration but function
  • Identify common poster mistakes and know how to avoid them
  • Use the exemplar as a mentor text — study it, critique it, then surpass it

Paearu Angitu · Success Criteria

  • I can name the five components of a strong advocacy poster and explain what each one does
  • I can explain why a specific number is stronger than a general claim ("pH 6.2" vs "the water is dirty")
  • I can explain why kupu Māori in headings is stronger than kupu Māori as decoration
  • I have planned how to use my own evidence to replace the sample content in this exemplar

Hononga Marautanga · Curriculum Alignment

English — Creating Texts

Level 3–4: produce texts that are crafted for a specific audience and purpose; select relevant information and present it in ways that will have impact; understand the features of effective visual texts.

The Arts — Visual Communication

Level 3: communicate ideas visually with clarity and intention; understand how layout, contrast, and placement guide the reader's eye and shape meaning.

Tauira Papaaho · Annotated Exemplar Poster

Study this model. The annotations (green boxes) explain what each component is doing and why it works. This is NOT a template to copy — it is a mentor text to learn from and then exceed.

Tiakina Tō Awa — Stop Litter, Protect Our Stream
Heading uses kupu Māori as the call to action, not just decoration. "Tiakina" means "protect/guard" — it IS the message.
Photo: Stormwater drain with algae — shows the problem at its source
Photo is specific (named location), shows cause and effect. Not a pretty nature shot — evidence of the problem.
  • pH 6.2 measured at drain outlet — acidic (healthy is 6.5–8.5)
  • 22 litter items in one section — 18 were plastic from Main Street shops
  • Planting harakeke on the bank filters runoff before it enters the water
Three specific, numbered points. Data is located ("at drain outlet") not vague. The solution is named alongside the problem.
"When I was a girl, we drank from this awa. Now I wouldn't let my mokopuna near it."
— Whaea Aroha, kaumātua
Quote is from a named person with a connection to the awa. It adds time and loss — what data alone cannot show.
Sign our petition at the school office. Planting day: Friday 3pm.
CTA is specific — WHERE (school office), WHAT (petition + planting), WHEN (Friday). Not "save the river" but "do this specific thing."
Kupu Māori used:   awa kaitiakitanga tiaki mauri harakeke
Kupu appear in headings and labels — functional, not just decorative border text.

Ngā Hapa Noa · Common Mistakes to Avoid

Too many words. Your poster is not an essay. If someone can't read your key message in 3 seconds, it won't work. Maximum 3 key points, each under 15 words.
No data. Saying "the awa is polluted" is an opinion. "pH 6.2 at the stormwater outlet" is evidence. Always include a specific number.
Kupu Māori as decoration. Writing "kaitiakitanga" in the corner in small text doesn't count. Use te reo in your heading or your call-to-action — where it does work, not where it gets ignored.
No call-to-action. If you don't tell people exactly what to DO, you've made an information poster, not an advocacy poster. Be specific: sign the petition, join the planting, write to the council.
Forgetting the source. Always say where your evidence came from — "our visit on [date]", "Whaea Aroha, kaumātua." Evidence without attribution is just a claim.

Huri Ki Āu Ake Taunakitanga · Swap With Your Own Evidence

Now plan how to replace the exemplar's evidence with YOUR real data and quotes from the awa visit. This is where the exemplar becomes yours.

My heading (include at least one kupu Māori):

My main data point (number + location + what it means):

My quote (exact words + who said it):

My call-to-action (specific + realistic — what can someone actually do?):

My photo (what it shows + why I chose it):

Aronga Mātauranga Māori

In te ao Māori, an exemplar is not a ceiling — it is a starting point for building on the work of those who came before. The concept of tūāhurihia (turning to face something) means looking carefully at what already exists before you create your own. The strongest student posters will not copy this exemplar — they will understand WHY it works and then make something that works better, because it uses their real evidence from their real awa.

The whakataukī "Ehara tāku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini" — my strength is not as an individual but as a collective — applies here: the poster is not just YOUR knowledge but the shared knowledge of your class, your kaumātua, and the awa itself. When your poster includes Whaea Aroha's voice alongside your pH data, you are doing what kaitiaki have always done: bringing together different forms of knowing to make the whole stronger than any one part.

Ngā Rauemi Tautoko · Support Materials

Resources already provided:

  • This annotated exemplar — study it before you start your own poster, not after
  • Poster Planner (awa-poster-planner.html) — use the swap section above to plan your layout
  • Poster Rubric (awa-poster-rubric.html) — check the criteria before you finalise
  • Evidence Gallery (awa-evidence-gallery.html) — your curated evidence to draw from
  • Success Criteria (awa-success-criteria.html) — what a strong poster achieves

Aronga Rerekē · Differentiated Pathways

Tīmata · Entry Level

Identify the 5 components in the exemplar (heading, data, quote, CTA, kupu Māori). Complete the swap section with 1 data point, 1 quote, and 1 kupu Māori heading. Use the poster planner template.

Paerewa · On Level

Complete all five swap boxes with your real evidence. Check your plan against the "common mistakes" list. Use the Poster Rubric to self-assess your plan before you start making the poster.

Tūāpae · Extension

After analysing the exemplar, write a 3-sentence critique: what could the exemplar do better? Then design a poster that addresses those gaps using your own evidence. Pair with a classmate and use the Poster Rubric to assess each other's plans before creating the final poster.

📋 Teacher Planning Snapshot

Ngā Whāinga Ako — Learning Intentions

Students will explore awa (river/water) as taonga, developing understanding of kaitiakitanga through water guardianship — connecting indigenous environmental knowledge with scientific and civic action.

Ngā Paearu Angitū — Success Criteria

  • ✅ Students can explain the significance of awa in te ao Māori and their local community.
  • ✅ Students can identify actions that reflect kaitiaki responsibilities for local waterways.

Differentiation & Inclusion

Scaffold support: Provide sentence starters and graphic organisers for inquiry tasks. Offer entry-level observation activities and extension challenges involving community advocacy or environmental data analysis.

ELL / ESOL: Pre-teach key te reo Māori terms (awa, kaitiaki, wāhi tapu, tūrangawaewae). Allow visual and diagrammatic responses. Bilingual glossaries strongly recommended.

Inclusion: Connect to students' own waterways and places of belonging. Neurodiverse learners benefit from structured field investigation templates and clear step-by-step inquiry protocols.