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Te Pepeha o Te Whai Hiringa
Our school pepeha weaves together the whakapapa of our name and our kete. Here the connections are bought together in words by our school Kaumatua Hawira Hape and our Te Reo advisor Jeremy Tātere McLeod.
Ko Maramatanga te Maunga
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Māramatanga means enlightenment through aspirations that enrich our learning. We liken Māramatanga to our maunga for a variety of reasons. The first being that light is the first thing that you see when the sun comes across the ocean and meets the mountain summit. Māramatanga is also a lofty and aspirational goal just like the pinnacle of the maunga. Star bright moonbeams and sunlight that cascade from the firmaments of heaven onto craggy ridges and stolid peaks. Mountain ranges that transform a sunrise or a sunset to stand as beacons of protection and illuminate the students pursuit of knowledge. Aspirations rooted as a firm foundation - like the base of a mountain - stable and resolute - before spiralling toward their pinnacle. Enlightenment is the mountain. I think!
Ko Manaakitanga te Moana
Manaakitanga means generous. Generous in words, thoughts and deeds one to another. As the mutual efforts of each child and staff members are extended, they collectively reflect an ocean of boundless generosity to all. Just like the vast oceans, generosity knows no bounds. An ocean that touches the shorelines of all the cultures that make up our kura. Generosity is the ocean. I care!
Ko Whanaungatanga te Waka
Whanaungatanga is Kinship that has been forged in the trials of an arduous travel and borne out in the rewards of achievement. A vehicle that enables the journey of connections that are immoveable, unshakeable and enduring. Kinship is the canoe. Kinship is the waka (canoe) that binds altogether. I belong!
Te Whai Hiringa
Te Whai Hiringa means the 'pursuit of excellence'. Hiringa has various meanings, including excellence, vitality, perseverance, inspiration, energy, determination and generally represents the auspicious goal of ultimate enlightenment. The word Hiringa is one that comes from the ancient schools of learning known to our ancestors as whare wananga. In these schools, pupils were trained in the sacred arts of incantations, tribal genealogy and traditions. Pupils were taught by the tribes tohunga, or high priests. The word Hiringa is mentioned in those ancient incantations. The incantations ultimately connected the student with the celestial realms. The word Hiringa is mentioned in this incantation of
Ngati Kahungunu derived from the sacred school of learning at Wairarapa.
"Whakarongo mai e tama,
Kotahi tonu te hiringa i kake ai.
Tāne ki Tikitiki-o-rangi; ko te hiringa i te mahara."
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