Children at Goldfields School in Cromwell have brought local pūrākau to life, unveiling a series of interactive storyboards created and written by students as part of a learning project focused on place and history.

Whānau were invited to the school on Monday (December 15) to explore the new installations, which are dotted throughout the grounds and retell Māori legends linked to well known Cromwell landmarks.

The storyboards encourage readers to walk as they read, with words and illustrations created by pupils from the school’s middle classrooms.

Head teacher Nic Hale said the idea came from the children themselves while learning about “our place”, inspired by a similar concept they had seen along one of Cromwell’s greenways.

“They drove it,” Nic said.

“They completely took us down this road. It wasn’t even on our radar.”

Students organised themselves into working groups, including writers, illustrators, graphic designers and builders.

“There was 100 per cent engagement,” Nic said.

“Every child had a part to play, and every child executed their part.”

Year four pupil Wyatt Sutherland worked as part of the building crew, helping plan and construct the storyboard stands.

“We had to figure out the cost of the materials,” he said.

“It was quite hard.”

Rosa Lipscombe reads ‘Maia the Brave’. Image: The Central App

Parents donated tools and time to help dig holes and cement in poles, which now hold the story pages inside weatherproof display boxes around the school.

Fellow year four pupil Rosa Lipscombe had the chance to read all four completed stories last week and said she was impressed.

“I was like, ‘oh wow, these stories are amazing’ - the detail we put into them,” she said.

Rosa was part of the writing team that retold the story of Maia the Brave, who travelled through Bannockburn long ago in search of moa eggs.

“We brainstormed ideas and came up with a plan,” she said.

“I felt proud of myself and my team.”

Other stories retold by the Goldfields School children include Te Waka Huruhurumanu, which journeys from Mōeraki before crashing into the Pisa Range, the tale of the giant Kopuwai near the Clutha/Mata-Au River, and the story of the mist maiden linked to the mountains above Lowburn and Pisa.

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