Download Matariki powerpoint

By Abbie
The Star Fishes
One day, a mother fish warned her seven
little fish,
“Now listen, you must stay close to these
rocks and don’t go adventuring out in the
open sea. Today Tataraimaka is going
fishing.”
Tataraimaka was a giant who loved to fish
with a giant black net. He had made the
net from the beautiful flax that grew near
Spirits Bay.
But the very same day the sea was smooth,
the sun was at it’s very reflect brightest so
the rainbow scales on the little fishes’ tails
were reflected by the sun as they played
tag. They were having so much fun that
they forgot all about their mother’s
warning!
All of a sudden disaster struck! The black
net of Tataraimaka smacked the water,
and all seven fishes were caught! The
fishes cried and cried making the water
salty with their tears. Tane the god of light
was so sorry for the them that he snatched
Tataraimaka’s net and hauled it up to the
sky. There, the seven fishes transformed
into stars.
The seven stars are now called Matariki.
You can see Matariki just coming over the
horizon in early June, which marks the first
month o the Maori year. The names of six
of the stars are Toheti, Tohita, Tupuanuku,
Tupu-a-rangi, Ururangi and Waipuna-arangi.
One star remains nameless. It is left for any
child who feels lonely to put his or her
name on it just before going to bed. In this
way, child can have company among the
star fishes.