Treaty of Waitangi (junior)

Where can I find information about the Treaty of Waitangi - Te Tiriti o Waitangi?

Junior Primary

(Years 1-4)

Black and white painting of a Māori rangatira (chief) signing Te Tiriti o Waitangi | The Treaty of Waitangi in front of the Aotearoa NZ Governor. They are joined by a Māori and Pākeha group. A tent is in the background.

Image: The Signing of the Treaty of Waitangi by Ōriwa Haddon from Archives New Zealand on Flickr.

Entry last updated: 1/03/23

Introduction

Te Tiriti o Waitangi | The Treaty of Waitangi was a treaty signed by British leaders and Māori chiefs. It was signed on 6 February 1840 at Waitangi.

General websites

These websites have lots of information about the Treaty of Waitangi. You can find out how it happened, who signed it, what it said, and why it is part of daily life in New Zealand.

Nelly in Aotearoa This is a series of videos put together by the Ministry of Education. They look at different history topics.

  • Look down the page to find Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

  • Select the video to watch it.

Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Te Ara is an excellent website for all questions about New Zealand Aotearoa. It has a story about the Treaty of Waitangi.

  • Go to Stories A-Z at the top of the page.

  • Choose the letter 'T'.

  • Look down the page and open the link to Treaty of Waitangi.

Tips: We like sites like this because they’re reliable. You can tell because of their web address – they have .govt meaning they are from government organisations. They’re also New Zealand sites, so relevant for us.

Christchurch City Libraries Kids

Christchurch City Libraries has lots of useful pages of information on New Zealand history topics like the Treaty of Waitangi.

  • Choose Te Ao Māori from the menu on the left.

  • Look down the page for Treaty Zone where Whetū Marama and her Koro (grandfather) explore the history of the Treaty.

Tips: Websites that have .com or .co in the address can have good information, but you need to assess how reliable it is. Check the About us link on this website, to find out what the company’s mission and values are.

Waitangi Tribunal

The Waitangi Tribunal was set up by the Government of New Zealand. It has resources especially for primary schools.

Tips: We like sites like this because they’re reliable. You can tell because of their web address – they have .govt meaning they are from government organisations. They’re also New Zealand sites, so relevant for us.

Books

Your school library and local public library will have books about the Treaty. Here are some titles that we found:

SCIS no: 1929333

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