Y4–6 Learning Portfolio
Five sections, one for each lesson · Years 4–6
This portfolio is yours
You will add one section after each lesson. By the end you will have five pieces of work that show what you think, what you value, and what you are aiming for this year.
You choose who sees each part.
Section 1 is about who you are and where you come from. You do not have to show it to anyone. You can share it with a partner, share it only with your kaiako, or keep it to yourself. That choice is yours in Lesson 1 and it is still yours in Lesson 5. Nobody is marked on how much they chose to show.
1. Ko Tōku Pepeha — or Tōku Mihimihi
From Lesson 1
Two pathways. Both are correct. Choose the one that is true for you.
Pepeha
Names the maunga and awa you descend from — a whakapapa connection, passed down through your family.
Choose this if someone in your whānau has told you these are your maunga and awa.
Mihimihi
Names the places you live in, belong to, and care about.
Choose this if you are not sure of a whakapapa line, or your connections are somewhere else, or you would simply rather introduce yourself this way.
Living near a mountain or river does not make it tōku. That is a whakapapa relationship, not a location. If you are not certain, a mihimihi is the right choice — and it is not a lesser one.
I am writing a…
My introduction
Write it out in full. Use te reo Māori where you can, English where you need to.
My artwork
Draw the places in your introduction.
One sentence of thinking
Why did you choose the pathway you chose?
Who I am choosing to share this section with
2. My Hauora House
From Lesson 2 · Te Whare Tapa Whā (Sir Mason Durie)
A whare needs all four walls to stand. So do you. Write one thing that is already strong in each wall, and one thing you could build up.
Taha Tinana — body
Moving, sleeping, eating, resting.
Taha Hinengaro — mind
Thinking, feelings, how you talk to yourself.
Taha Whānau — family
The people who are yours, and who you are for.
Taha Wairua — spirit
What matters to you. What gives you a lift.
One daily goal to strengthen one wall
Pick the wall you most want to build up. Make the goal small enough to do tomorrow.
3. My Kawenata Commitment
From Lesson 3 · Manaakitanga and our kawenata
A kawenata is a promise a group makes together. Ours is built on manaakitanga — looking after each other so everyone's mana is lifted, not chipped away.
The promise I contributed to our class kawenata
What this promise will look like on a hard day
Anyone can keep a promise on a good day. Describe keeping it on a bad one.
My handprint signature
Your handprint goes here and on the class kawenata wall scroll.
4. My Learning Pit Rescue Plan
From Lesson 4 · The Learning Pit (James Nottingham)
Being stuck is not a sign you are bad at something. It is the part of learning where the new thing has not clicked yet. Everyone goes in the pit. The skill is knowing how you climb out.
Something I have been stuck on
Three ways I can climb out
What actually works for you — not what sounds good.
Who I can ask, and what I will say
My resilience pledge
Finish this: "When I am stuck this year, I will…"
5. My Learning Goals
From Lesson 5 · Rangatiratanga — taking charge of your own learning
One learning goal for this term
Reading, writing, maths, or another subject. Say what you will be able to do, not just what you will try.
One wellbeing goal for this term
Look back at your Hauora House in Section 2.
How I will know I got there
What would someone actually see or hear?
Two Stars and a Wish — from my partner
Your partner gives feedback on the thinking, not on how private your work is.
For our celebration, I am choosing to share…
He Kōrero mā te Kaiako | Teacher note
Assess the thinking, never the disclosure. Section 1 is identity work and tamariki were promised in Lesson 1 that it could stay private. That promise still holds in Lesson 5. A learner who celebrates Sections 2–5 and keeps Section 1 to themselves has completed this portfolio in full.
On pepeha and mihimihi. Both pathways are complete and correct. A mihimihi is not a fallback for tamariki who "don't know theirs" — it is the right form for introducing yourself through the places you belong to. Proximity to a maunga or awa is never evidence of whakapapa, and no learner should be asked to name one they are not sure of.
Local tikanga. Where your kura or hapori has its own guidance on introductions, that guidance takes precedence over anything printed here.