Back to busy Friday evenings once more, as swimming is on again for my oldest son.
I now do dinner duty, and ever since I told the fish and chip shop that they were undercharging me a few weeks back (the girl had typed in $2.80 into the eftpos machine, not $20.80), they've been giving us extra fish. It's terakihi, so it tastes good reheated the next day, and the cat likes it as well if we're stuffed.
I'm not sure how my week has gone. I've taken it easy on the younger son, leaving the new Maths curriculum until next week and giving him lots of English and Handwriting which he's beginning to enjoy! You wouldn't believe how big a breakthrough enjoying Handwriting is!
My older son has to be involved in a haka. So far I haven't been able to get a translation for what they are actually saying (or singing). But the whole idea seems wrong, getting a whole lot of kids of different religious backgrounds and cultures doing a primitive Maori dance. For what? Absorption into the culture? It seems that way. Not quite sure what to do about it yet.
I now do dinner duty, and ever since I told the fish and chip shop that they were undercharging me a few weeks back (the girl had typed in $2.80 into the eftpos machine, not $20.80), they've been giving us extra fish. It's terakihi, so it tastes good reheated the next day, and the cat likes it as well if we're stuffed.
I'm not sure how my week has gone. I've taken it easy on the younger son, leaving the new Maths curriculum until next week and giving him lots of English and Handwriting which he's beginning to enjoy! You wouldn't believe how big a breakthrough enjoying Handwriting is!
My older son has to be involved in a haka. So far I haven't been able to get a translation for what they are actually saying (or singing). But the whole idea seems wrong, getting a whole lot of kids of different religious backgrounds and cultures doing a primitive Maori dance. For what? Absorption into the culture? It seems that way. Not quite sure what to do about it yet.
Primate threat displays are best left in the jungle.
ReplyDeleteOswald,
ReplyDeleteYes! Except this school has a marae onsite and is doing the haka thing as a competition. So the form teacher doesn't want the class to look like idiots if they can't do it. Thankfully, the English teacher was horrified that it was suggested that they practise during her class time, as she should be. Obviously not getting with the program...
I miss terakahi.
ReplyDeleteThe haddock you get in the UK is good but not the same.
A bit of haka won't be too bad.
But I reckon we should inflict morris dancing and Riverdance on maori in return!
Actually, a former Pakahe workmate of mine has a half-maori daughter and she enjoys her Irish country dancing.
FFM,
ReplyDeleteYou'll have come back to NZ then, just to eat the terakihi.
LOL, I'd second the morris dancing!
But seriously, I have no issue with my son learning about Maori culture, I just don't want him actively participating in it. Considering how much animism pervades their beliefs, it's more than a bit worrying.