My unique whānau Tōku whānau tino motuhake
Explore your unique whānau. Using the Oho Idea cards and the My unique whānau activity sheet, explore the things that make your whānau unique.
Oho — Resource collection
This activity is part of the Oho resource collection.
Essential info
- Timeframe:
- 1-2 lessons
- Years:
- 4–10
- Format:
- Individual or groups
Learners will
- Explore the personal and wider cultural connections between place, language, time, events, people and identity.
- Express and listen to ideas confidently.
- Describe themselves in relation to the groups within their class and to the whole class.
- Explore and discuss similarities and differences and how they contribute to the unique whānau, culture and identities of each class member.
- Identify personal strengths of theirs and others.
- Develop a deeper understanding of their whānau and personal histories.
- Investigate the factors that shape our identities and how.
- Identify different ways identities, languages, cultures and values are and could be represented in learning communities.
Ways to use the resource
- Connect this activity to Enriching Local Curriculum (ELC) by exploring the names of the places you visit.
- Centre these activities around relevant global, national or community places, events or themes.
- Try the activities as an individual, as a small group and as a whole class.
- Use the resources at home to get a deeper understanding of whānau culture.
- Capture outputs in a format of your choice.
- Use insights from these conversations in your learning design.
- Use blank Oho cards to record new ideas that are not in the pack.
- Capture outputs in a format of your choice.

Instructions
What you will need
My places, My languages, My time, My events, My people and My identity cards.
My unique whānau activity sheet: One per person or group.
Set up
1. Prepare cards
Add or remove Oho Idea cards to suit the context of your classroom.
2. Prepare activity sheets
Print or photocopy one My unique whānau activity sheet for each person or group.
Using the Oho Idea cards and the My unique whānau activity sheet, explore the things that make your whānau unique.
Place cards on the activity sheet. Discuss why you made each selection. We suggest introducing the card types, one set at a time, as you work through the steps.
Activity
1. Place
Select a My places card to represent a significant place to your whānau.
2. Language
Select a My languages card to represent an important language of your whānau.
3. Time
Select a My time card to represent a time in history that was significant for your whānau.
4. Event
Select a My events card to represent how you celebrate, express joy or share special occasions.
5. People
Select a My people card to represent a person or people that have been significant to your whānau.
6. Identity
Select a My identity card to represent a value or belief that guides or is important to your whānau.
Discuss and compare
Explore the different perspectives and ideas around whānau culture. Then, discuss and compare your findings with the group or classroom.
Downloads
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Oho My unique whanau activity sheet
The A3-size Oho My unique whānau activity sheet in pdf format.
Pdf, 62 KB
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Oho My unique whanau teacher support material
Teacher support material for the Oho My unique whānau activity.
Pdf, 451 KB
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Oho cards jpgs
A complete set of all the Oho cards in jpg format.
4.9 MB
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Oho cards Printable
A complete set of all the Oho cards on print-friendly A3-size pages. Files are in pdf format.
2.7 MB
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Oho Blank Cards Printable
Blank Oho cards in an A3-size printable format. Use for capturing ideas and customising the resource.
Pdf, 385 KB
Next steps
Explore other aspects of whānau and identity with activities such as My place in time, My people of inspiration, I inspire, My whānau in my place of learning, and My culture in my place of learning.