Mara Kai gets a thumbs up from St Mary's

St Mary's pupils (from left) Mark Rounds, 10, Madeleine Kealey, 9, Kayla Fox, 10 and Cohen Colledge, 10, with their riwai potato haul. Photo/Alice Guy

After a term learning about early Maori communities, Room 1 at St Mary's School have had a hands-on lesson in Rotorua Museum's Mara Kai garden.

The Mara Kai garden at the back of the children's art house has become an outdoor classroom as part of the museum's education sector.

Museum head of education Emma Liley said they were always looking for ways to offer curriculum-linked activities.

"The idea was to get the kids outside and hands-on," she said.

"We've been showing them tools and photographs from our museum collection and then they get to explore."

St Mary's pupils digging through the kumara patch. Photo/Alice Guy

Mrs Liley said children visited the garden at Apumoana Marae and were taught by kaumatua about traditional vegetables.

"We were able to access the riwai [traditional potatoes], but they helped us with the kumara and the hue gourds," she said.

Ngati Whakaue Education Endowment Trust puts on a free bus, so every Rotorua class gets one free visit per year.

St Mary's pupils have a go at weeding, with traditional Maori tools. Photo/Alice Guy

The outdoor activities were broken into seven activities - making fire, weeding, making mounds, tossing the soil, making fertiliser, building fences and harvesting the vegetables.

The children used traditional tools such as a kaheru - short spade, to turn over the ground.

Madeleine Kelly, 9, said it had been a fun morning.

"I liked doing the weeding but it hurt my back a bit," she said.

"Modern tools would be easier to use, like our shovels are rounder so you can lift more."

Corne Van der Merwe, 10, tries his hand at harvesting riwai potatoes. Photo/Alice Guy

There were thumbs up from all the kids when asked if they were enjoying the garden.

After harvesting the vegetables the pupils went inside to try them.

"At the end they'll get to try the riwai, a little bit of kumara and the hue," Mrs Liley said.

"Some of them may have had the riwai before but not many people actually get to try the hue."

Class teacher Sheryl Todd said it had been a great day out.

"It follows on to what we've been learning in class," she said.

"We're the second classroom to give it a go, it's perfect timing."