Mokopuna, the reflection
There are many times that Te Whāriki uses the term mokopuna when talking about the tamaiti. Mokopuna in the Te Whāriki glossary is explained as -” expresses intergenerational connectedness”. The below words from Che Wilson have been sitting with me for a few weeks, as I have pondered on the importance of this connection to past, present and future. In the book Te Kai a te Rangatira, Che Wilson, (Ngāti Rangi-Whanganui, Ngā Rauru, Ngāti Apa, Mōkai Pātea, Ngāti Tūwharetoa) said, “A person is measured by the length and breadth of their shadow. That means that your shadow is a representation of your tūpuna. It’s a representation of the people who support you. Uncle would always say that if you stand in the right place your shadow is as big as your wharepuni - or again, if you stand in another place it can be as big as your mountain. If we don’t have that bigger shadow, we’re only ‘me, myself, and I’, and that is pretty lonely. If you know that you have that support, you can lean
