Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori 2025

 

Our Russley Writers took up the September Poetry Box challenge... to write a poem celebrating te reo Māori. We began with the word whanau and used it to springboard ideas and "grow a poem". Some poems use one or two te reo words and others use more. What is your favourite te reo word?

All five poems were selected for publication on Poetry Box. You can read them below, or go to the Poetry Box NZ website to read more. Paula Green said she received an astonishing amount of wonderful poems and it was very hard to pick what to post. Congratulations to Jharred, Brodie, Ila, Daisy and Sankalpa for being e-published, and special mention to Sankalpa who Paula chose to send a book to. 

Childhood Dream

To be a tamaiti:

I’d need,

two warm ringa hugging me tight,

a feed of bite sized pieces,

and baby finger kai

I’d need to

sail an imaginary moana,

in a bumpy bucket boat,

get yelled at everyday,

do your mahi!

go to school!

I’d 

use blankets as my kingdom,

crawl around my soft crib,

with blankets like fluffy clouds,

I’d need 

a harry potter pukapuka after bed,

and a softly whispered,

goodnight.

Jharred J

Year 8

If only I could go back

Soft toy panda twice the size of me

Little red balance bike

A million rākau on dad’s 10 acres backyard

Branches creaking like rusty door hinges

Eating devilled sausages like a greedy pig

Eat all of your veggies, Brodie, mum would say

– at least eat half of it

Ice cream at kura

If only I can go back

Brodie

Year 8

My Childhood In Nepal Fades Away As My Life Moves On

football at the pāka

with my cousins

festival dumplings 

with chicken and chilli fillings

 

my mum tells me to eat my kai

without looking at a screen

the rooster’s crow

wakes the neighbourhood

early morning

kite flying on the roof

Sankalpa P

Yr8

In The Past

old mā bear

is now considered childish

a fun picture pukapuka filled with laughter and happiness

is now immature

an animal duvet cover

now plain kāhurangi 

enjoying fun pāngarau sheets

now more complex with confusing letters and symbols

a bed I cried getting into 

is almost impossible to get out of

a cute dress or skirt 

is now jeans and hoodies scented with perfume

keep the heads on your lego people, mama says

a lego room full of adventure 

now has been taken apart

don’t jump from the rākau, papa says

a trampoline, rope swing, monkey bars, high climbing tree

now, the backyard is empty

kei te pehea koe? you ask

I’m missing the past

Ila R

Year 8

My moana 

My moana loves her creatures

My moana loves her stars

My moana loves her people

My moana loves me

Daisy F

Yr8

lightfast, pair, hold, justice, endure

Here are our entries for the 2025 Given Word Poetry Competition. All our poems had to include the five given words: lightfast, pair, hold, justice, endure. See if you can spot them!

 

She Left

We were a perfect pair
We held hands to withstand our despair
She sought justice for our
            friendship
Walked in sync to endure
            our hardship
We were like lightfast fabric
            a bond that never fades
Tears fell under the shade
She was like a sister to me
            we skipped around carefree
On my own now, she found
            a new friend
I guess its just me now
            until the very end…

Ila Rutherfurd

The Pain Experience

I endure this pain
and cry out for justice.
I lost to a game,
holding my lightfast ball.
As I suffer from losing,
sitting alone with my hope
strip off my pair of shoes
and start to give up,
tears well up in my eyes.

Jharred Jacinto

22 February 2011 12:59pm

as I hold time between my palms 

I take a look around

these houses were built to endure centuries

but now they're torn to the ground

a pair of tears rolls down my cheek

I thought I was lightfast, indestructible

but now,

I’m lost

justice slips off of me like a stick of butter

Daisy Forster

Grandad, listen 

Grandad, hold your breath 

Grandad, pair your shoes 

Grandad, endure your justice 

Grandad, listen to me from the heavens

Lightfast hair never fades in the sun

Brodie Morris

The fear of losing

The laughter echoes, a lightfast melody,

in the chambers of my heart, eternally.

As I endure the hardship of grief, 

as I hold onto your ashes

I walk in the ripples of the ocean

thinking of your favourite spot to sit.

A pair of seagulls dive into the shining water

the birds fight for justice 

just like you.

 

Sankalpa Poudel 

 

Sound Poem

We wrote 'sound poems' inspired by Apirana Taylor's 'haka' poem.

when i hear nan's clock

by Daisy

when i hear the clock

in nan's bedroom

i feel the surroundings start to shift

it makes my body loosen

it is the memory holder

it is an early morning hug

it is nan's slow footsteps

crunching through the snow

when i hear the birdsong

by Sankalpa

when i hear the birdsong

i feel my body relax

it makes my breathing calm and steady

it is a band of flutes

it is the low whistling of the wind

it is my mum's conversation

Flash Fiction

Enjoy reading these flash fiction pieces by our very clever Year 8 writers:


Grandma's Early Work in Nepal

by Sankalpa 

The rooster’s crowing wakes the neighbourhood. Grandma gets up, feeds the buffalo and milks her. Grandma’s face is wrinkled and she wears plastic gloves. The buffalo’s tail is curled, its horns are thin and short. She flicks her tail and snorts. 

When Grandma finishes with the buffalo she carefully brings the bucket full of milk up two flights of stairs. The door squeaks like a hungry bat. She opens the fridge and puts the bucket in. She sits on the battered old couch and waits for the rest of the house to wake.

Early Days

by Ila R

Arihi marvels at the stunning Southern Alps. Soft snow drapes the mountains like a blanket. Arihi talks the whole way to her older brother Koa, until she starts eating.

Arihi stares out the car window, picturing skimming rocks across the lake and jumping in the hot pools, disturbing everyone around them. Now, Koa is telling Arihi about the infamous stone grill through their makeshift wall of pillows separating their two designated seats. 

“Koa, look! I see our Tekapо̄ house! Koa look!” Arihi shouts, grabbing Koa’s shoulder.

“ I see it, I see, Arihi. Put your seatbelt back on!” Koa says. 

Koa reaches over to Arihi's seatbelt. “Hey! You're on my side!” Arihi wails.

“Look, we’re here!” Koa says, distracting Arihi.

The car comes to an abrupt halt. Arihi sprints out of the car and into their holiday home wanting to claim her bedroom before Koa. Koa grabs Arihi's belongings she’d discarded on the stone driveaway. 

Soon, Arihi and Koa will be looking out those same windows weeks later. Once snow-covered mountains will be green, blooming with the new life of spring flowers.



Ice-cream at School

by Brodie M

Ice-cream at school is still my dream. I remember ice-cream at 5 years old in those little kid cones during class time. Sitting on the little blue benches with the rest of the class until out of nowhere I was pushed off the bench and still managed to save my ice cream. Ice-cream dripped all over my hands, melting from the hot sun. I slurped it all up off my little fingers. It’s a struggle to stay focussed in Miss Aiken’s math class… if only I could go back to being that 5 year old.

Marker on the wall

by Daisy F

The marker in my hand drags across the white wall. My brother stares at me. “Mom!” he screams and runs away. I freeze momentarily. 

Mom stomps down the hall. “Who did this?!” she interrogates. 

My fingers shake, my cheeks turn numb. I point to Alfie.

Cat Poems published on Poetry Box!

Congratulations to Daisy, Isla, Jharred and Sankalpa who have all had their cat poems selected by Paula Green as favourites! All four poems have been published on Poetry Box.They can consider themselves e-published poets! Woohoo!

https://nzpoetrybox.wordpress.com/2025/08/26/poetry-box-popup-challenge-some-favourite-cat-poems/

Twinkles

his green glowing eyes stare me down
his walk is pure sass
his fat tail swings in the frosty wind
his fur is no longer black
his hiss is like a snake
his claws drag along the new couch
his smile turns into a smirk
his paws leap towards me
TWINKLES, how rude!

Daisy F, 12yrs, Yr8, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School

Cat’s Catalogue

My cat wakes up at dawn
It eats in the morning
It cuddles at noon,
It meows in the afternoon,
like it’s trying to talk to me.
It purrs like an engine at dusk,
It chases me in the evening like I’m its last food.
It sneaks into the night like a spy.
It sleeps at midnight.

by Jharred J, Y8, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School

A Tangle of Terror

Its chubby face looks like your companion,
it grooms itself innocently,

but…

its sharp claws dig into its prey,
devilish eyes gaze into their souls

Sankalpa P. Yr 8, 13 years, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School

Moose

Bringing birds inside
What are you doing?
Side-ways walking down the hallway
What are you doing?
Eating like you have never been fed
What are you doing?
Attacking birds left and right
What are you doing?
Constantly staring out the window
What are you doing?
Searching for a bunny that is no longer with us

What are you-
Oh…
“You want Waffles back!”

Ila R, 12yrs, Year 8, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School

More Given Word Poems

Here are a few more poems written for the Given Word Poetry Competition, from our senior poets. See if you can spot all five of the Given Words, which had to be included: feather, whisper, time, eat, PHANTASMAGORIA.

                                      

Titanic

I look up at the ship of dreams

or is it just a 

phantasmagoria

Is it there – but I can hear the 

whispers of excitement 

ladies wearing feather and tulle hats  

and leather shoes stomping around

I look at my ticket then check the time

should I go on – or go to

The Grapes

to grab something to

eat,

or maybe a final drink?

By Daisy

The Beach is a Phantasmagoria

The beach is a phantasmagoria,

a fantastic fantasy in an auditorium. 

As the waves eat at the sand 

I hear a faint whisper 

almost like my elder sister. 

Time is flying fast now

although I don't know how. 

As a feather brushes past my nose 

I forget all my foes. 

The perfect place to start from scratch

as I look over my shoulder 

at the joyful bach.

It's easy to stay but hard to go . . . 

By: Mila C

Hallucination

Phantoms

Hovering

Above

New Zealand

The wind whispers like 

A

Snake as it eats 

Mice one

At a time,

Griffins with golden feathers swoop down,

Orcas 

Racing

In the crashing waves 

At the beach

by Perez S

PHANTASMAGORIA AT THE GOLF COURSE

Purple dazzling feathers

Happily falling from the
Aquarium roof in the
Night sky
Ticking off time
As we eat
Spinach with a lovely scent of
Mild mint sauce, all
At the
Golf course cafe
Observing every little thing while my dad is
Racing my sister
In
A one hundred metre spring race

by Brodie M

 

As Night Ate the Day

As night ate the day

And the sun went away,

While looking up there

In the world where,

I remember a story

In my history.

Where stars twinkle and dance

I hear a whisper

with my lovely sister,

We’re having a magical time

We feel like birds in warm feathers

in a phantasmagoria dream

by Victoria K

List Poems

 We have been experimenting with List Poems. We each picked a category - some chose a colour, some chose 'tiny things', some chose 'fast' or 'slow' things. 

We brainstormed to come up with a list of objects that fitted into that particular category. We then added some detail to each object. An adjective (describing word), a verb (action word), or perhaps a simile. 

I learn so much from my wonderful writers... they never cease to amaze me with their wealth of knowledge and experience, and their unique way of looking at the world. I love the way they weave these treasures into their writing.

This week I learnt that a John Deere 9R-540 tractor has a 13.6 litre engine and that the super giant star called Rigel is 860 light years from Earth! I absolutely love the simile from Desmond, comparing lines in a school exercise book to human veins. Brilliant!

Check out some of our list poems, hanging on the wall in the Writing Club Room:

Black:

a grippy tyre

a grippy tyre rolling

soft creased leather shoe

matariki night scaring me

smooth ink writing poems

my shadow copying

a cook racing car dashing

frizzy, long hair

by Antonio

Fast:

racing cars, smoking tyres

slender cheetah sprinting

Isuzu truck, roaring like a tiger

John Deere 9R 540's loud 13.6 litre engine

motorbike spinning its muddy wheels

blinking, winking, a pounding heart

speedy Sophie Pascoe

freestyling 200 metres

by Hayden

Slow...

newborn baby, wiggling tiny fingers

frustrating traffic jams in the city

soft shell turtle eating a goldfish

tiny snail slithering

difficult maths test in room 8

green and blue Earth rotates

by Gemma

Yellow:

buttered popcorn popping

sunflowers rising

like calm dancers

.

bees buzzing

hot fire sizzling

like loud lions roaring

by Daisy

Fast:

no traffic jams

cars racing

camouflaged cheetahs, black spots

strong wind

small leaves swishing

like waves

blinking people

beating heart

tough athletes sprinting

to the finish line

by Elise

Blue:

clear sky

oceans, smooth as plastic

Rigel, super giant,

860 light years from earth

straight lines in schoolbooks,

like veins

by Desmond