Tag: Room 8

ATAMIRA: Kori Purakau Workshop

St Patrick’s School had an exciting trip to the Four Winds Theatre at the Due Drop Event Centre in Manukau. As soon as we got on the bus, the journey felt special and thrilling! When we arrived, we were greeted by five wonderful guides and dancers known as: Rachel, Andre, Maddie, Jossie, and Abby. Rachel kicked things off by telling us a captivating story about the ‘Pou Kapua,’ which really sparked our imagination and inspired my blog.

After the story, Rachel took us inside to learn about the traditional Māori dance. She kindly asked us to remove our shoes and socks to show respect for the cultural dance. Everyone eagerly gathered around. Rachel had us spread out and led us in a fun, energizing game that had everyone laughing and enjoying it.

The most exciting part about the Atamira workshop was exploring Kori Purakau, where stories come alive through dance. The dancers from Atamira Kori Purakau Workshop demonstrated how Māori legends can be told without words—just through movement and expression. 

After warming up, we worked in groups to create our own short dances, acting out adventures and emotions from the legends. Performing these dances was inspiring and a lot of fun, showing us just how powerful movement can be in storytelling. Overall, it was a creative, joyful experience for everyone involved, and we even did 6/7 hands!

It was the best day

Christopher’s perspective.

Hi, my name is Christopher Boone, my age is 15 yrs and 3 months. It was 7 past midnight. I was walking alone, along the path when I saw Mrs. Shears poodle lying in her backyard. Her house is two houses to the left of mine. I ran towards the poodle as fast as I could to see if it was okay. I knelt down quickly next to the poodle. I saw that there was a pitch fork inside its body and it was flooded with blood.  The poodle’s name was Wellington. I’d really liked dogs, they are loyal and they will never lie to their owners.I took the pitch fork out of his body and laid it down on the grass. Blood was spreading everywhere on top of the grass. I heard a door shut, then footsteps that began to run faster and faster. They stopped, I turned my body around slowly and looked up, it was Mrs. Shears, she was wearing purple and pink pajamas.She stood still, then started to scream so loud that my ears hurt. I put my head on the grass and my hands over my ears. I hate people screaming, it’s really annoying. She stopped screaming when there was a familiar sound. The police arrived. There was a police woman and a man getting out of the car. I really like police officers, they will  capture any wanted criminal. They had dark blue police clothes with  badges on their chest. The police man asked questions and the other police officer went inside to talk to Mrs. Shears.The police officer asked me questions faster and faster. It makes me feel really unbalanced every time I try to answer. I fell to my knees and started to cover my ears and head on the grass. Trying to ignore him, but he grabbed my arm and said “Are you alright?” I really hate people touching me with no permission. I pushed him away and hit him on purpose to stop him from touching me.I stood still feeling guilty. He stood up on his feet telling me, “you’re under arrest for assaulting a police officer on purpose.” I felt calm when he said that, then he cuffed my hands and took me inside his police car.The police officer drove me all the way from Mrs. Shears house to the police station. When we arrived we went inside and put me in a cell. I sat down on my bed.