Category: Ako | Learn

Pātaka

Hangarau Māori

Pataka:

  1. Investigate the way that food is stored in your home.  Think about preserving, drying, and refrigeration, and ask or find out about how they preserved meat and other foods in the “olden” days.

The Māori preserved their food by drying, fermenting, and sealing the food in fat. These things reduced bacterial infestations within their food storages. The Māori also buried their food beneath the surface of the Earth. 

2. Create a diagram comparing the pataka with modern methods of food storage.

Old methods for storing food. Modern methods for storing food.
Meat was dried and stored underground or stored in a Pataka, away from pests.  Meat is now kept in refrigerators or freezers.
Fruit was kept in a Pataka or an underground pit. Fruit is now kept in the fridge or your fruit bowl. 
Grain was stored in a Pataka.  Grain products are now stored in the pantry/cupboards or in an airtight container.

 

3. Make a model of a pataka. Remember to have an opening in the middle of the floor, a removable ladder to access the opening, and sturdy stilts to rest the pataka on.

Dave Maitland

Learning Outcomes

 

I will identify the author’s point of view. –

I will locate key ideas and consider these at a deeper level. –

I will answer all questions in full sentences, punctuated accurately.

 

Newspaper article This article was printed in the Sunday Star Times 02/02/25.

 

  • Collect your copy of the article. Skim and scan the article and highlight any vocabulary that is unfamiliar to you. 
  • Read through the questions below before you start reading the article closely. 
  • Read the article closely and with purpose. Consider carefully the choices of language made by the author. 

 

  1. “Good bugger, tough bastard: Humble hard man lines up for his 30th Coast to Coast” 

 

What do you notice about the language used in the title of this article? Why do you think the author chose to use the language he has selected for the title of this article? 

 One thing I noticed about the language used in the title of this article was that there were words used to describe him as a man who is tough but also kind and he is someone who won’t brag about his accomplishments. I think that the author chose to use the language that he has selected for the title of this article because those words are descriptive of the type of man Dave is and chooses to be. 

How old was Dave Maitland at the time this article was written? Were you surprised that someone of his age was competing in the Coast to Coast? Why? Or Why not?

Dave Maitland was 67 at the time that this article was written and that is really cool how he is still doing this Titan of adventure races.  I am not very surprised that Dave is doing this because when he was younger, he competed at the national level for swimming, he did numerous Triathlons, and he did crazy amounts of kayaking so I am not surprised about his commitment to the Coast to Coast.

 

  1. Dave Maitland has had many struggles and challenges in his life. When he was a young man he said he “was just a bit lost”.  What did he mean by that and what event happened to make him seek a more positive outlet?

One of Dave’s many struggles and challenges came when he was 16 years old. He was heading for the 1974 Commonwealth Games but got distracted with drinking, and other stuff that made him unfit for the Games. 

The event that made Dave seek a positive outlet was beating the guy up. When he did that, the aftermath was bad and I think that he was disappointed in himself for resorting to anger. After that troublesome event he started doing Triathlons. 

  1. According to the article, what motivates Dave Maitland?

According to the article Dave Maitland is motivated by his love of the outdoors, his family, and because adventure is in his blood. He shows this by being in the outdoors as much as possible and he loves the outdoors so much that even when he fractured his pelvis in 4 different places, he still did the Coast to Coast 3 months later. 

  1. What evidence from the text explains Dave Maitland’s philosophy about life? 

Dave thinks that if people are in need of help and you help them you could be humbled but if they are pretenders then he wouldn’t waste his time with them not even one minute. I believe that this philosophy is very important to his way of living because he helps and gives support to people who have cancer, people who are supporting someone who has cancer, and people who just need support in life. 

  1. What do you think the author’s purpose was in writing this article?   What life message was he trying to convey? 

I think that the author’s purpose for writing this article was to show how inspiring Dave Maitland is with his 30+ years of Triathlons, Kayaking, Tramping, and basically anything outdoors related. 

I think that the life message of this article was that you help people up if they are down and you should always keep doing what you love even when you are getting older. 

-Chase