Lesson Overview
This lesson reveals the hidden mathematics within traditional Māori art and games. Students will discover that geometric principles and probability are not just abstract concepts in a textbook, but are integral parts of cultural expression and entertainment.
Enrichment Suggestion (LF_LiteracyNumeracy): Add a challenge question: "If a tukutuku panel has 100 squares, and 25 are red, 35 are black, and 40 are white, what is the ratio of red to black to white? What percentage of the panel is red?"
Learning Activities
1. Do Now: The Maths in Patterns (10 mins)
Show students images of different patterns (e.g., a tiled floor, a patterned shirt, a spiderweb). In pairs, they identify any mathematical ideas they can see (e.g., shapes, repetition, angles).
2. The Mathematics of Toi Māori (20 mins)
Hand out the Geometric Patterns in Māori Art handout. Students read through it and try the design challenge in the critical thinking section.
3. Probability in Traditional Games (15 mins)
Introduce a simple Māori game like "ruru", which involves tossing sticks and counting how they land. Discuss the probability of different outcomes. How could you represent this mathematically?
4. Exit Ticket (5 mins)
Students name one geometric principle they saw in Māori art and one place they might see probability in a traditional game.
📋 Teacher Planning Snapshot
Ngā Whāinga Ako — Learning Intentions
Students examine economic systems through a justice lens — exploring how wealth, resources, and power are distributed, and how Māori economic frameworks (Ōhanga Māori, tino rangatiratanga) offer alternative models of collective wellbeing.
Ngā Paearu Angitū — Success Criteria
- ✅ Can analyse an economic system to identify who benefits and who is disadvantaged
- ✅ Explains how Ōhanga Māori and tino rangatiratanga challenge mainstream economic assumptions
- ✅ Proposes justice-centred economic alternatives grounded in manaakitanga and whanaungatanga
Differentiation & Inclusion
Scaffold support: Provide graphic organisers as an entry point for comparing economic systems; use real local examples (Raglan, Waikato) to ground abstract concepts. Extension tasks include researching iwi economic models or analysing a current policy through a rangatiratanga lens.
ELL / ESOL: Pre-teach economic vocabulary alongside Māori equivalents (e.g. Ōhanga Māori/Māori economy, manaakitanga/hospitality-as-value); use visual case studies to reduce text load.
Inclusion: Offer discussion, written, and creative response options; neurodiverse learners benefit from structured debate formats and clear role assignments in group tasks.
Mātauranga Māori lens: Ōhanga Māori as a living economic system — not historical. Manaakitanga and whanaungatanga as economic principles. Tino rangatiratanga as the right of self-determination including economic sovereignty.
Prior knowledge: Basic understanding of supply/demand; awareness of historical land confiscations and Treaty settlements.