Mindfulness Reflection Journal
Pukapuka Āta Whakaaro · Track Your Mauri and Mindfulness Practice Over Five Days
Ngā Whāinga Akoranga · Learning Intentions
- Practise a mindfulness or wellbeing technique every day for five days and track what happens to mauri
- Develop the habit of noticing — checking in with how you feel before and after a practice, not just assuming
- Identify which practices work best for you personally — building a personal wellbeing toolkit
- Reflect on what mindfulness practice means in a Māori context — āta whakaaro as a form of taha wairua care
Paearu Angitu · Success Criteria
- I have completed at least four of five days — consistency matters more than perfection
- I can describe a genuine shift in mauri from before to after practice on at least two days
- I have tried at least two different practices — not the same one every day
- My weekly reflection identifies one specific insight — not "mindfulness is good" but something I noticed about myself
Hononga Marautanga · Curriculum Alignment
Curriculum alignment for this handout has not yet been verified against the live curriculum statements. A generated placeholder that stood here was removed on 2026-08-29 because it matched no real statement.
Te Āhua o te Mauri · How to Describe Your Mauri
Mauri is your life force — it shifts throughout the day based on experiences, rest, connection, and practice. Use words, colours, numbers (1–10), or te reo Māori to describe it. There is no wrong answer — the goal is honest noticing.
Te Pukapuka Ā-Rā · Five-Day Practice Journal
| Rā | Practice I tried (name + how long) | Where / when | Mauri before (word or number) |
Mauri after (word or number) |
One thing I noticed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rā 1 | |||||
| Rā 2 | |||||
| Rā 3 | |||||
| Rā 4 | |||||
| Rā 5 |
Suggested practices: Koru Breath / 5-4-3-2-1 Grounding / Tūrangawaewae Visualisation / Kupu Grounding / Walking mindfully outside / Waiata / Journaling
Whakaaro Ā-Wiki · Weekly Reflection
The practice that helped most was… because…
I noticed a change in my mauri on Day ___ when…
Next time I feel overwhelmed I will try…
One thing I learned about myself from doing this journal:
Which pou of Te Whare Tapa Whā did my practice support most?
☐ Taha Tinana (physical) ☐ Taha Hinengaro (mental/emotional) ☐ Taha Whānau (social) ☐ Taha Wairua (spiritual)
He Kōrero Tuku · Sharing (Optional)
If you choose to share what you discovered with whānau, a trusted peer, or your kaiako — record the kōrero here. Teaching someone else what you learned is one of the most effective ways to consolidate it.
I shared with:
What I told them / what they said:
Aronga Mātauranga Māori
In te ao Māori, the practice of āta whakaaro — careful, intentional thinking — has always been part of how rangatira and tohunga maintained their wellbeing and clarity of purpose. To think carefully, to pause before acting, to notice what is arising in the body and the mind — this is not a modern invention. It is tikanga. The concept of whakaaro (thought, intention) and ngākau (heart, feeling) together point to what we now call mindfulness: the integration of thinking and feeling, attended to with care.
The mauri check-in at the beginning and end of each practice is itself an act of kaitiakitanga — guardianship of your own wellbeing. You cannot guard what you cannot see. When you notice your mauri and track its shifts over a week, you are building the kind of self-knowledge that allows you to act wisely on your own behalf and on behalf of those who depend on you. Kia āta haere. Go carefully. This is the beginning of wisdom.
Ngā Rauemi Tautoko · Support Materials
Resources already provided:
- This journal — use it for 5 days, then keep it as a reference for practices that work for you
- Koru Breath Card (unit-8-koru-breath-card.html) — guided breathing practice for daily use
- Grounding Cards (unit-8-grounding-cards.html) — six techniques to try across the five days
- Hinengaro Balance Map (unit-8-hinengaro-balance-map.html) — for deeper analysis of an emotion that arises during the week
Aronga Rerekē · Differentiated Pathways
Tīmata · Entry Level
Complete three of five days. Use the same practice each day if that feels easier — consistency with one technique is more valuable than variety. Complete the first two weekly reflection prompts. Share with a peer or kaiako if writing is hard.
Paerewa · On Level
Complete all five days with at least two different practices. Complete all weekly reflection prompts. Note a genuine shift in mauri on at least one day. Connect to one pou of Te Whare Tapa Whā in your reflection.
Tūāpae · Extension
Complete all five days with varied practices. Then write an extended reflection: "What does the concept of mauri tell us about wellbeing that the word 'mood' does not? How does tracking mauri over five days change how you understand your own patterns?" This is the kind of thinking that connects mātauranga Māori to psychology — honouring both without reducing either.