My reading task by Isabella

Ruby Group 2
Title: Matariki Returns

Learning Intention:
I am learning to link prior knowledge and experiences into the texts I read.

1. Why is Matariki an important event on our calendars?
It is a new moon


2. What is Matariki in the physical sense?
Matariki is a cluster of the seven stars within the constellation Taurus.


3. What does the term Matariki mean?
The word (Mata riki) means little eyes and (mata ariki) means eyes of god


4. Describe the process of Matariki.
Toward the end of may the seven stars of matariki sink below the horizon and disappear from new zealands night sky


5. What should you look out for?
If you keep a close eye on the sky in june, you might be lucky enough to witness a special sight.


6. Describe the stars of Matariki.
Matariki is made up of several hundreds stars but only seven of them can be seen with the naked eye.


7. What does the dawn rising of Matariki mean?
When you have seen Matariki at dawn and the new moon at night you’ll know that the maori new year is beginning. Also the dawn rising of matariki was a sign to maori that the hunting season was coming to an end and the planting season was about to begin.


8. How were birds preserved?
They had no freezers so they stored their birds in their own fat. The word for fat is ‘hinu’


9. What happened during Matariki?
Matariki is a time for catching fish, especially Korokoro (lamprey eels).

10. What are some of the legends of Matariki?
One of the legends says that the stars of matariki are members of te whanau Marama - the children of light. Another legend says that Raumati (the summer) and Raro (the underworld) were parents of Puanga, Takurua, and Matariki.


11. Why is the Matariki cluster special to people?
The ancient greeks named it the pleiades.


12. How can you become involved in Matariki celebrations?
you can also contacted a museum or a astronomical society.