Literary Contributions Project

The ethnic group I have chosen is Pacific Islanders, predominantly Maori (New Zealand) and Samoan. Over the years, I have had numerous students from these areas and our school has about a 1% Pacific Islander population at present. The community service portion of this project comes about because I would run it through our city-wide afterschool program called Half-Time (elementary) and Prime-Time (middle). At the elementary school I would use, Prime Time runs from 2:30 pm until 6 pm. The first hour and a half are for snack time and tutoring. Afterwards, the kids can attend any number of workshop type activities from music to dance to games to painting to sports to arts and crafts. It is during this time that the project would be held. Students would sign up for an 8-week, 1-day per week session that lasts anywhere from 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Week 1: Where are the Pacific Islands?

Begin with maps, find where we live, look for the Pacific Ocean. Find New Zealand, Australia, Samoa, etc. Draw a picture of your family, label your relatives. If you know these words in another language, put them also. Read KoToku Whanau (Meet My Family) by Manu te Awa. This is a board book in Maori that introduces family relationships. Practice learning family members in Maori; add the names to drawings. Students prepare and act out a small family situation using the proper words.

Week 2: Native plants and animals

Quick discussion of native plants and animals of California. Predict what might be in the Pacific Islands. Several books to read to students this week: Hippa Comes to Beauty Point by Nigel Forteath about sea horses; Sina & Tinilau by Vilsoni Hereniko about a Polynesian legend, which is illustrated with many of the shells, sea animals, plant life and birds of the area; and The Bush Alphabet by Will Douglas, pictures of life in the bush of Australia. Introduce tapa cloths, show examples. Hand out brown grocery sacks to use as tapa cloths. Students begin to draw animals and plants from the stories on their bag. Use water-resistant markers or crayons. They must leave room for other things that we will add throughout the program.

Week 3: Myths & Legends

Have students tell some myths and legends they already know from own country or learned in school. Discuss the purpose of myths and legends. 2 books this week: The Legend of the Kea by Philip Temple and Chris Gaskin, about birds in the jungle; and Hinemoa & Tutanekai: A Te Arawa Legend retold by Hepora Young, about young lovers around a mystical lake. Parents or a cultural group will visit this week to share foods, song and dance of the Pacific Island nations. Traditional songs and dances usually come from the myths or legends of an area.

Week 4: Proving yourself

In this week's book, the hero, a young boy named Timo, wants to show his father and older brothers that he can do the same things they can. Unfortunately, he finds himself in a bind when things go wrong. Timo and the Kingfish by Mokena Potae Reedy was a 2001 Finalist in the New Zealand Post Children's Book Awards. Students will have time to continue working on their tapa cloths. We will also sing the songs we learned last week.

Week 5: Poetry of the Islands

Have students recite favorite poems if they can. Discuss why they like them. What does poetry bring them that a book can't or doesn't? I Heard a Blackbird Singing by Maynie Thompson is this week's book of poetry for children. Mrs. Thompson is a 90 year old grandmother, writer, and anti-nuclear activist. Several of her poems compare things in nature to food (clouds = mashed potatoes). Students will divide into groups, each group gets a poem to turn into a skit for the rest of the children. A box of props will be provided.

Week 6: People are the same everywhere!

Bullies seem to be everywhere. Intro: what are some ways that bullies act? How can you get them to stop picking on you and be your friend? Taming the Taniwha by Tim Tipene is about a young boy being bullied at school. A taniwha is a monster or meanie. His family helps him find ways to tame the taniwha. Students will act out ideas from the book so they can get practice standing up to bullies.

Week 7: Hairy Maclary

Hairy Maclary stories are very popular books for New Zealand children. If you haven't seen Hairy Maclary yet, this will be a treat. Hairy Maclary and his friends are dogs that have all sorts of adventures. On YouTube, a woman (ChopsytheCat) has narrated all of the books in a very professional manner. Hairy Maclary books are written by Lynley Dodd. Today, students will watch several of the Hairy Maclary YouTube videos, and they can feel free to rhyme along (it's very easy to catch on). The activity today: write a story about one of Hairy's friends or create your own rhyming pet name and a story to go with it. Share as many as time allows. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dxMVuXpk8c

Week 8: Art and Design

This will be the week to finish up our tapa cloths. In some of the Pacific Islands, tattoos are used to create scary faces on warriors. Other tattoos show which tribe a person belongs to. In our book today, the illustrations show some of these tattoos. We will use these designs to finish our tapa cloths. Whirikoki and His Seal by Mere Clarke is a legend about the name of a mountain. It also introduces a few more Maori words to the students. Have pictures of some designs that the students can use to fill in their tapa cloths. Finish cloths by crumpling, dampening and drying them. Give students a bibliography of all books read and others like them.

Bibliography
Brooke, A. M. (1996). The Owl, the Two & The Medlar. Christchurch: Hazard Press. Clarke, M. (1998). Whirikoki and His Seal. Wellington: Huia Publishing. Dodd, L. (2001). Hairy Maclary From Donaldson's Dairy. Berkely: Tricycle Press. Douglas, W. (1990). The Bush Alphabet. Sydney: Hale & Iremonger. Forteath, N. (2000). Hippa Comes to Beauty Point. Trevallyn: Omlas. Hereniko, V. (1997). Sina & Tinilau. Suva: IPS Publishing. Ihimaera, W. (2000). Little Kowhai Tree. Wellington: Huia Publishing. McDermott, E. (2003). Cranky Granny. Queensland: Ages2Ages Publications. Reedy, M. P. (2000). Timo and the Kingfish. Wellington: Huia Publishing. Tamehana, E. (1997). The Sandman. Wellington: Huia Publishing. Tawhara, M. (2000). The Puriri Tree. Wellington: Huia Publishing. te Awa, M. (2001). Ko Toku Whanau. Wellington: Huia Publishing. Temple, P. (2000). Legend of the Kea. Dunedin: Longacre Press. Thompson, M. (2000). I Heard a Blackbird Singing. Wellington: Steele Roberts. Timpene, T. (2001). Taming the Taniwha. Wellington: Huia Publishing. Young, H. (1995). Hinemoa & Tutanekai. Wellington: Huia Publishing.