Summer Learning Journey - Week 3 Day 4 Activity 2: The Seven Sisters

Activity 2: The Seven Sisters [4 points]

In the middle of winter, a very special cluster (group) of stars appear in the sky over New Zealand. This cluster is called the ‘Matariki star cluster.’ It re-appears in the sky each May/June and signals the start of the Māori New Year. Many songs (waiata) and stories have been written about the cluster. One of these is called ‘The Seven Stars of Matariki.’ It was written by a New Zealander named Toni Rolleston-Cummins. She is from Maketu. Click here to listen to Toni read her story.

On your blog, write a short summary of the book. What was it about? Try to summarise the story in 6-8 sentences.

There was a man named Meti who lived with all his seven brothers in his village. One day all of the seven brothers went hunting on a hill, they heard some beautiful music and followed it to the top of the hill. There they saw seven beautiful women singing. The women immediately fell in love with them. But, Meti did not like them. They became their wives. One day they went missing and when they arrived home they asked them where they had gone. They got into a rag. One day Meti spied on them and saw them turn into a bird. He listened to their plan. The next day they got caught in a net and was never seen again.