šŸ“š Unit Plans ā†’ šŸŒ Year 8 Critical Thinking: Te Whakaaro Māramatanga ā†’ šŸ“– Lesson 1: Introduction to Critical Thinking
Years 7ā€“10 Tikanga-ā-Iwi / Social Sciences

Lesson 1: He aha te Whakaaro Māramatanga?

What is Critical Thinking?

Year 8 Critical Thinking Unit | 45 minutes

Students explore critical thinking through Māori and Pākehā perspectives

šŸ“ Materials Needed

šŸ‘Øā€šŸ« Teacher Preparation Notes

Key Concept: Critical thinking involves analyzing arguments, questioning assumptions, and making reasoned judgments.

Cultural Connection: Traditional Māori decision-making used careful consideration of multiple perspectives (whakatōhea - gathering to discuss).

Vocabulary:

Lesson Structure

šŸš€ Starter Activity 10 minutes

Quick Think-Pair-Share:

Question: "When did you last change your mind about something important? What made you change it?"

Teacher Script:

"Today we're going to explore how we think about thinking itself. In te ao Māori, our ancestors spent hours in hui (gatherings) carefully considering all sides of important decisions. Let's see what critical thinking means to you."

Instructions:

  1. Think individually (2 minutes)
  2. Share with partner (3 minutes)
  3. Volunteer pairs share with class (5 minutes)

šŸ“œ Main Activity: WhakataukÄ« Analysis 20 minutes

Māori Proverb Investigation

Focus Proverb: "He kōrero, he kōrero; he kai, he kai"

Translation: "Words are words; food is food" (Words have consequences - choose them carefully)

Student Task (Groups of 3-4):

  1. Read the proverb and translation
  2. Discuss: What does this teach about thinking before speaking?
  3. Find a modern example where words had serious consequences
  4. Connect to critical thinking: How does this proverb show good reasoning?

Extension Proverbs:

Teacher Facilitation Tips:

šŸ’» Digital Activity: Google Jamboard 10 minutes

Good vs. Poor Reasoning Examples

Instructions:

  1. Open Google Jamboard (teacher shares link)
  2. Two columns: "Good Reasoning" and "Poor Reasoning"
  3. Students add sticky notes with examples from their lives
  4. Examples: Social media posts, family decisions, school choices, news stories

Prompting Questions:

šŸ“ Wrap-up & Definition 5 minutes

Class Discussion:

"Based on our activities today, how would you define critical thinking? Use both English and te reo Māori if you can."

Expected Student Responses:

Teacher Summary:

"Critical thinking is the skill of analyzing arguments, questioning assumptions, and making reasoned judgments. In te ao Māori, this connects to whakatōhea - carefully gathering different perspectives before making important decisions."

šŸ“Š Assessment: Exit Ticket

Students complete before leaving:

  1. Define critical thinking in your own words (English or te reo Māori)
  2. Give one example of good critical thinking from today's lesson
  3. Name one situation where you could use better critical thinking

Assessment Rubric:

šŸ“„ STUDENT WORKSHEET - PRINT THIS SECTION

Lesson 1: Introduction to Critical Thinking

Name: _________________ Date: _________________

Part 1: Whakataukī Analysis

Proverb: "He kōrero, he kōrero; he kai, he kai"

Translation: "Words are words; food is food"

1. What do you think this proverb means?

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

2. How does this connect to thinking carefully?

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

3. Give a modern example where words had consequences:

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

Part 2: Critical Thinking Definition

4. In your own words, what is critical thinking?

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

5. Te Reo Māori terms I learned today:

Part 3: Exit Ticket

6. One example of good critical thinking from today:

_________________________________________________

7. One situation where I could use better critical thinking:

_________________________________________________

8. One question I still have about critical thinking:

_________________________________________________

šŸ  Homework/Extension

šŸŽÆ Differentiation Strategies

šŸ“± Digital Tools Used

šŸ“‹ Teacher Planning Snapshot

Ngā Whāinga Ako ā€” Learning Intentions

Students will engage with this resource to develop te whakaaro māramatanga ā€” critical and analytical thinking skills ā€” examining claims, evaluating evidence, identifying bias, and constructing reasoned arguments. This unit frames critical thinking through both Western analytical traditions and the kōrero-based reasoning of Te Ao Māori.

Ngā Paearu AngitÅ« ā€” Success Criteria

Differentiation & Inclusion

Scaffold support: Provide argument frames (claim ā†’ evidence ā†’ reasoning ā†’ counter-argument) for entry-level access. Use structured controversy activities where students argue assigned positions. Offer extension tasks requiring students to analyse a real media article or policy document using the lesson's critical framework.

ELL / ESOL: Pre-teach argumentative language structures ("I argue thatā€¦", "The evidence suggestsā€¦", "However, one might counterā€¦"). Allow oral argument as a first step before written production. Sentence frames and argument maps lower the language barrier while maintaining cognitive demand.

Inclusion: Structured debate and discussion formats benefit all learners ā€” particularly neurodiverse students who thrive with explicit rules and clear roles. Affirm that disagreement done respectfully is a high-value academic and civic skill. Allow quiet processing time before group discussion. Offer written alternatives for students who find oral argument challenging.

Mātauranga Māori lens: Te whakaaro māramatanga ā€” enlightened thinking ā€” reflects a long tradition of reasoned debate in Te Ao Māori. The whare (meeting house) is a place of kōrero, where multiple perspectives are heard before decisions are made. Tikanga requires that arguments be made with integrity and respect (mana). Māori oratory (whaikōrero) is a sophisticated critical tradition ā€” whakataukÄ« encode compressed wisdom that often challenges surface-level thinking.

Prior knowledge: Best used within a sequence building critical thinking skills progressively. No specialist knowledge required for entry-level engagement with structured tasks.

Curriculum alignment