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Whangaparāoa College students, Skye Cloete and Teata Iosefa, have dedicated their Young Enterprise business to raising awareness of Maori and Polynesian culture in schools.
The business, called Coconut Collections, makes learning resource booklets about Māori and Polynesian myths and legends.
The students recently released the Māori Collection, which focuses on four Māori myths with activities, including mazes and word finds.
“We started with the Māori Collection because it is the most applicable to Aotearoa,” Teata says.
“Māori language and culture are something we both wanted to learn more about, so this project made sense for us,” Skye adds.
The Maori Collection has been road tested by Year 7 students at Stanmore Bay Primary School. Skye says the response was positive.
“Some of the kids even asked if they could take the booklets home,” she says.
Now that they have perfected the finished product, Skye and Teata have been contacting school principals.
The Polynesian Collection will be finished in the next few months – a project which has been a family affair for Teata, who is Tahitian Samoan.
“My Dad is Samoan and my Grandad is Tahitian. I have also been in touch with my cousins who are Fijian and Tongan. Polynesian stories tend to be passed on verbally, so talking to them is a good way to do it,” Teata says.
The artwork for Coconut Collections was digitally created by Skye, who will study the subject at the Media Design School in Auckland next year.
Teata will study Business at Massey University in Albany.
All Whangaparāoa College business studies students take part in the Young Enterprise Scheme (YES), which provides guidance and business funding for participants across New Zealand.
Coconut Collections was recognised as one of the top eight YES businesses in the Auckland region.
To purchase learning resources from Coconut Collections, visit coconut-collections.mystorbie.com
