Traditional practices examined in follow-up book

Harko Brown, and his teenaged daughter Yves Tennessee, with their new book Te Mara Hupara.

Far North Maori games expert Harko Brown and his daughter Yves Tennessee have released a book on traditional practices.

Mr Brown said Te Mara Hupara is a follow-up puka to the well received larger resource Nga Taonga Takaro II: The Matrix released in 2016.

He said hupara were an important resource for ancient Maori which were utilised in social protocols, game play, skill, strength and conditioning exercises.

They were also used by tribes in psychological healing practices and as spiritual sanctuaries.

''My talented daughter and co-author, Yves, has been testing out our taonga hūpara with her friends and has some interesting youth-view conclusions about their practical uses and contemporary propositions in education today,'' Mr Brown said.

''It's an ideal cross-curricula resource which could strengthen cultural studies within kohanga/pre-school, kura, primary, secondary and tertiary education centres.''

He said because of their relevance today, in a world which is increasingly searching for alternatives to mining and fossil fuel-based products, hupara are enjoying a profound renaissance around the country in playgrounds, outdoor classrooms, and in recreation
and leisure centers.

''Hupara are an important teaching resource which can inspire intellectual inquiry, create social harmony, encourage artistic expression, promote conservation, empower concepts of kaitiakitanga and augment physical education and wider school curricula development,'' Mr Brown said.

''Te Mara Hupara is ideally suited for educationalists, developers of parks and reserves, conservationists, promoters of Maori cultural heritage and it provides teachers and students with power-packed information from which to develop cross- curricula studies through the arts, technology, maths, HPE, science and social studies.''

Yves is also passionate about promoting the educational adaptations of hupara and Mr Brown researched the historical aspects of hupara and with his teacher's hat on suggests ways in which they can enhance learning.

The book is available from Academy Books, University Bookstores and Wheelers Books.