Aotearoa Awaits – Māori In Minecraft

The following Minecraft content has been posted with the permission of it’s creator Lt_Peanut.

It seems almost every day I’m having conversations with schools or education partners about Minecraft and how this can be creatively used to teach students across a wide range of curriculum areas.

Today I was super excited when my colleague pointed out to me this story on the Minecraft.net website showcasing the work of Minecraft & Twitter user Lt_Peanut:

Lt_Peanut explained their creation in Minecraft on this Minecraft Forum posting in both Te Reo Māori and English:

Maori:

Kia Ora, Ko Taylor toku ingoa, i kore anake toku tamataraa mo Octovon engari ahau hanga ano hoki tenei hanga te reira rite te kanohi o te tikanga Māori. Tatou Maori, ko te iwi Kiwa taketake o Aotearoa. hiahia ahau ki te tohu Aotearoa ki tenei whakairo i roto i tūmanako o te faaururaa iwi ki te ako e pā ana ki to tatou tikanga. Tenei hanga whakaatu he rangatira Māori, mau ana Korowai me te piupiu me te hapai i te taiaha i roto i te ngahere tikitu Aotearoa. Kua tamata ahau ki te waihanga i tētahi tikitu waho te whakamahi o te rakau kia rite ki e haere ki tua atu i te rangi i nga rakau, pera hei utu kua hanga e ahau te manu taketake o Aotearoa, te Kiwi, me te ponga, to tatou whakato tino tohu, e hua te koru.

Te ti’aturi nei e ahau ki a koutou katoa oaoa i.

English:

Hello, my name is Taylor, this build was not only my trial for Octovon but I also created it as a representation of the Maori culture. We Maori, are the indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand. I wanted to represent New Zealand with this build in hopes of inspiring people to learn about our culture, as recent studies have shown that fewer than one million Maori people are on our earth today. This build showcases a Maori chief, wearing his Korowai, piupiu and wielding his Taiaha in a New Zealand rainforest. I have tried to create a rainforest without the use of trees as the trees would go beyond the build limit, so instead I have created the native bird of New Zealand, the Kiwi, and the silver fern, our most symbolic plant, that produces the koru. To represent a New Zealand rainforest instead.

I hope you all enjoy the build. 🙂

[gallery columns="2" size="medium" ids="8355,8365,8375,8377"]

In my mind, this is a classic example of how students can connect their passion for their heritage and culture with their creative passion in Minecraft and then share this with their community online (both school and wider users). Providing an explanation of the motivation such as Lt_Peanut did above deepens the learning and allows for cross-subject applicability and even potential assessment opportunities.

Tino pai rawa atu Taylor!