Awa Poster Planner
Mahere Papaaho · Plan Before You Design — Know Your Message Before You Pick Up a Pen
Ngā Whāinga Akoranga · Learning Intentions
- Plan a persuasive poster BEFORE you design it — strong posters start with clear thinking, not pretty fonts
- Choose your audience deliberately, then shape your message and call-to-action for that specific person
- Select and arrange your three strongest pieces of evidence so they tell a connected story
- Use kupu Māori in headings and labels — not as decoration, but as part of the argument
Paearu Angitu · Success Criteria
- I can name my audience specifically — not "everyone" but "parents at school assembly"
- I have one clear message stated in one sentence — not a topic, a claim
- I have three pieces of evidence — data, quote, and observation — each with an explanation
- My call-to-action is specific and realistic — not "save the awa" but "sign the petition at this link"
- I have planned where kupu Māori will appear and what role they play in my poster
Hononga Marautanga · Curriculum Alignment
Curriculum alignment for this handout has not yet been verified against the live curriculum statements. A generated placeholder that stood here was removed on 2026-08-29 because it matched no real statement.
Āpitihanga 1 · Step 1 — Who Is Your Poster For?
Name a specific audience. Your message and call-to-action will change depending on who you're talking to. A poster for parents at assembly is different from one for council members — even if it's about the same awa.
My audience is:
Where will they see this poster? (school corridor / assembly hall / community notice board)
What do they already know about the awa?
What do I want them to FEEL? (concerned / motivated / proud / informed)
Āpitihanga 2 · Step 2 — What Is Your Message?
A message is not a topic. "Our awa" is a topic. "Our awa needs us to act now before the kōura disappear completely" is a message. Write your message as ONE sentence — a claim your evidence will support.
My one-sentence message:
My specific call-to-action (what can my audience actually do?):
Āpitihanga 3 · Step 3 — Your Three Key Points
Choose three pieces of evidence from your Evidence Gallery. Mix types: data + quote + observation is stronger than three data points. For each, write what it is AND what it means.
Āpitihanga 4 · Step 4 — Kupu Māori in Your Poster
Te reo Māori belongs in headings, labels, and the call-to-action — not as small decoration in the corner. Use the reference kupu below, or add your own from the interview.
Kupu I will use and where:
Heading:
Labels / captions:
Call-to-action:
Āpitihanga 5 · Step 5 — Sketch Your Layout
Plan where things will go BEFORE you start. The most important thing (message + CTA) should be the first thing a viewer's eye lands on. This is a starting template — rearrange to suit your design.
My design notes (colours, fonts, special features):
Tauira Mahere · Exemplar Poster Plan
Exemplar — Hēmi's Plan for the Mangakōtukutuku Stream Poster
Audience: Parents and whānau at school assembly — they pass the awa daily but don't know about the pH data. They care about the school and the community.
Message: The Mangakōtukutuku Stream has 3× more litter near the stormwater drain than upstream, and the water is getting more acidic every year — but we can reverse this if our community acts now.
Call-to-action: Sign our petition to the local council for a litter trap at the drain — form at the school office, closes Friday.
Key points:
1. pH 7.1 upstream vs 6.2 downstream — the drain is the cause, not just the effect (data)
2. "The awa used to sing. Now it just whispers." — "Whaea Aroha" (fictional interviewee in this example) (quote)
3. Photo of 22 litter items at site 2 — visible, concrete, audience can relate (observation)
Kupu planned: Heading "Tiakina Tō Awa" / labels "pH awa / awaawa" / CTA "Tautoko mai — sign to support"
Ārowhai Angitu · Poster Plan Success Check
Complete this BEFORE you start making your poster. If any box is empty, fix your plan first.
One thing about my plan I'm still unsure about:
Feedback from my kaiako or peer on this plan:
Aronga Mātauranga Māori
In te ao Māori, careful, grounded preparation is valued: a rangatira does not stand to speak without knowing what they will say and why. The marae is not built without a plan — the carvings, the wharenui, the paepae are all placed with purpose. Your poster is a form of that deliberate creation. Every element should be there because it serves your message, your audience, and your awa.
The principle of kaitiakitanga applies here too: you are a guardian of the evidence you have gathered. The kaumātua who shared their knowledge, the pH reading that took careful measurement, the photo that captures the awa as it actually is — these are taonga. Your poster is the vessel that carries them to your audience. Plan well, so the taonga are held well.
Ngā Rauemi Tautoko · Support Materials
Resources already provided:
- This planner — complete it BEFORE starting your poster design
- Poster Rubric (awa-poster-rubric.html) — read the rubric before planning so you know what Exceeding looks like
- Evidence Gallery (awa-evidence-gallery.html) — your curated evidence to choose from for the three key points
- Poster Exemplar (awa-exemplar-poster.html) — see what a completed Exceeding poster looks like
Aronga Rerekē · Differentiated Pathways
Tīmata · Entry Level
Complete Steps 1–3 (audience, message, three key points). Use the layout sketch template as-is. Choose one kupu Māori for your heading. Check three boxes on the success check.
Paerewa · On Level
Complete all five steps and the success check. Have your plan reviewed by a peer before starting your poster. Use the exemplar plan to check that your plan has the same level of specificity.
Tūāpae · Extension
Complete all steps. Then write a short paragraph: "Why did I choose this audience, and how did that choice shape every other decision in this plan?" This is the thinking that distinguishes a deliberately designed poster from one that just looks nice. Your plan should be able to justify every element to a critic.
📋 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.