Learning outcome

Students will investigate different ways which feathers and bird parts are used by people, and use this information to create their own korowai (cloaks).

Curriculum link: The Arts - The Visual Arts

Resources

Paper, feathers, examples of weaving (actual, books, Internet), pencils.
Hinepau by Gavin Bishop.
Fifty-five Feathers by Ben Brown and Helen Taylor.

Directions

1. How have feathers been used in the past and in the present? Read the class the story Hinepau or Fifty-five Feathers.
2. Look at a variety of woven objects (for example, kete, mats, cloaks) and talk about their purpose, their significance, and ways they were made. Brainstorm some ideas.
3. Show some examples of korowai and identify the special features of feathered cloaks.
4. Students will design and weave their own personalised mini korowai. Think about the purpose and wearer of the cloak before weaving so that the materials they use can reflect this.
5. Use paper and feathers to experiment with weaving methods and techniques.

Focus questions

• What do clothes tell us about a person?
• Who would wear these clothes and why?
• Is it important what these clothes are made from?
  

Kahu huruhuru - these are ancient feathered garments that were very valuable and spectacular. They often appeared in mythology and legends of Maori and other Polynesian groups. They weren't a feature of Mäori culture at the time of European contact, but by the second half of the nineteenth century cloaks ornamented with feathers emerged. This trend was originally introduced in the borders of the changing korowai, but garments completely covered with feathers soon appeared. Early examples of feathers used included those of the brown kiwi, tüï, käkä, kererü, koekoe, and käkäriki.