Best for
Use when you want geometry terms to connect to real structures and repeated visual patterns rather than isolated textbook images.
Mathematics + visual design • Years 6-10 • Geometry support
Marae Shapes & Geometry
This handout helps ākonga notice geometry in meaningful structures. It uses marae architecture and tukutuku patterns to explore shape, angle, symmetry, and repeated design without flattening cultural forms into decoration only.
Free geometry inquiry, premium differentiated pattern pack
This version already works. Te Wānanga becomes useful when you want entry, on-level, and stretch geometry prompts or local tauira examples added.
- Generate simpler shape hunts or richer symmetry tasks.
- Add a local design focus if your kura has approved examples.
- Save a geometry-and-pattern sequence in My Kete.
Kaiako planning snapshot
- Use length: 30-40 minutes.
- Grouping: Pair observation then individual design.
- Prep: Decide whether students need a shape bank on the board.
- Teaching move: Push students to name the geometric feature, not only point at it.
Resources already provided
- Shape-identification prompts
- Pattern and symmetry questions
- Kupu Māori glossary
- Design grid and reflection space
- Teacher-only curriculum companion
The strongest answers explain why a pattern counts as symmetrical or repeated, not just that it “looks cool”.
Ngā Whāinga Akoranga / Learning Intentions
- We are learning to identify shapes and geometric features in meaningful contexts.
- We are learning to describe symmetry and repeated patterns clearly.
- We are learning to use geometry vocabulary when we design or explain.
Paearu Angitu / Success Criteria
- I can identify multiple shapes or features in the examples shown.
- I can explain where symmetry or pattern is visible.
- I can create a simple design and describe the maths in it.
1. Shape hunt
| Shape or feature | Where might you notice it? | How do you know? |
|---|---|---|
| Triangle / tapatoru | ________________________ | ________________________ |
| Rectangle / tapawhā roa | ________________________ | ________________________ |
| Line of symmetry | ________________________ | ________________________ |
| Repeated pattern | ________________________ | ________________________ |
2. Pattern and symmetry
Pātiki or poutama style idea
What makes a pattern feel repeated or structured rather than random?
Symmetry check
Where could you place a line of symmetry? If there is none, explain why.
3. Kupu Māori geometry bank
Tapatoru
Triangle
Tapawhā
Four-sided shape
Rārangi
Line
Āhua
Shape or form
Tukutuku
Lattice or patterned panel
Whakarite
Arrange or align
4. Design your own pattern
Create a simple geometric design. You can repeat one unit or use symmetry across the middle.
5. Explain the maths in your design
Hononga Marautanga · Curriculum Alignment
Mathematics — Pāngarau
Level 3–4: Apply number operations, statistical analysis, and mathematical reasoning to solve real-world problems; represent data using appropriate tools; interpret and communicate mathematical findings clearly.
Social Sciences — Tikanga ā-Iwi
Level 3–4: Understand how mathematical data and statistics are used to describe and analyse social, economic, and environmental patterns; recognise how data can reveal or obscure inequality.
Aronga Mātauranga Māori
Mathematics has always been part of mātauranga Māori — in the navigation of Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa, in the architectural precision of wharenui, in the sophisticated storage and accounting systems of rua kūmara, and in the patterns of kōwhaiwhai and tukutuku that encode mathematical relationships in visual form. When Māori students engage with mathematics, they are not encountering something foreign: they are meeting a domain of knowledge that their tīpuna practised with extraordinary sophistication. Framing mathematical learning through whakapapa — connecting concepts to real Māori contexts — is not "cultural add-on" but recognition of where much mathematical knowledge lives in this land.
Tuhia ōu whakaaro · Write Your Thoughts
Reflect on what you have learned today. What was the most important idea? What question do you still have?
Ngā Rauemi Tautoko · Support Materials
This handout is designed to be used alongside the broader unit resources available at Te Kete Ako handouts library. Related resources from the same unit are linked in the unit planner. All resources are provided — no additional preparation is required to use this handout in your classroom.
📋 Teacher Planning Snapshot
Ngā Whāinga Ako — Learning Intentions
Students will engage with this resource to deepen understanding of Te Ao Māori — exploring whakapapa, tikanga, and cultural identity as living systems that shape who we are in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Ngā Paearu Angitū — Success Criteria
- ✅ Students can explain key concepts from this resource using their own words.
- ✅ Students can connect tikanga Māori and whakapapa to real-world examples in Aotearoa.
Differentiation & Inclusion
Scaffold support: Provide sentence starters, visual glossaries, or graphic organisers to give entry-level access for students who need additional support. Offer extension tasks that deepen cultural inquiry — for example, exploring local hapū histories or interviewing a kaumātua.
ELL / ESOL: Pre-teach key kupu Māori (whakapapa, tikanga, mana, mauri) with bilingual glossaries where available. Allow students to respond in their home language as a bridge to English expression.
Inclusion: Use accessible formats — clear headings, adequate whitespace, chunked tasks. Neurodiverse learners benefit from structured choice in how they demonstrate understanding (oral, visual, written). Acknowledge that students may hold personal connections to the cultural content.
Mātauranga Māori lens: This unit centres Te Ao Māori as a living knowledge system. Whakapapa is not merely genealogy but a relational framework linking people, place, and time. Tikanga grounds behaviour in kaupapa Māori principles. Approach content with aroha and manaakitanga.
Prior knowledge: No specialist prior knowledge required for entry-level engagement. Best used after relevant lesson sequences, or as a standalone introduction to cultural identity.
Curriculum alignment
- Identity, Culture, and Organisation: Understand how cultural identity shapes participation in society — whakapapa, tikanga, and mana as foundations of Māori identity in Aotearoa New Zealand.