Pūrākau: A powerful way to connect past and present, culture and curriculum.

The article focuses on the educational value of purakau—Māori myths, legends, and oral histories—in strengthening literacy within Aotearoa New Zealand’s updated English Curriculum (Years 0–10). It highlights how purakau, supported by tools like story stones, fosters oral language development, cultural identity, critical thinking, and comprehension by connecting learners (akonga) to their whakapapa and place-based knowledge. Integrating purakau aligns with evidence-based literacy frameworks such as Scarborough’s Reading Rope and Joan Sedita’s Writing Rope, providing meaningful, culturally grounded content that enhances reading and writing skills while honoring te reo Māori and mātauranga Māori as distinct knowledge systems. The approach encourages educators (kaiako) to blend curriculum goals with cultural narratives, enabling learners to see themselves in their learning and develop confident literacy practices rooted in their heritage. [Extracted from the article]