Kupe and the Giant Wheke
This traditional tale features in the oral traditions of many iwi.
About this resource
Series: School Journal Level 2 May 2020
Reading year level: 4
Topics: Aotearoa, courage, creature, culture, discovery, exploration, Hawaiki, Hine-Te-Aparangi, history, journey, Kupe, legend, Māori, MASAM, monster, Muturangi, navigation, octopus, place name, story, storytelling, tale, traditional story, Te Wheke, waka, wheke
Kupe and the Giant Wheke
Words by Steph Matuku
Illustrations by Isobel Te Aho-White
It tells of how Kupe discovered Aotearoa while pursuing a giant wheke (octopus) across the Pacific. As he chased the creature around Aotearoa, Kupe explored the new land and named many places.
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More from this series
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School Journal Level 2 May 2020
Inside this School Journal are two articles (Monsters; Our First Olympians), one poem (Megabyte), one play (Let's Vote on It!), and one story (Kupe and the Giant Wheke).
1 of 5Monsters
This article describes a selection of mythical creatures and monsters from around the world.
2 of 5Let's Vote on It!
The author uses this light-hearted play to introduce ideas about voting, elections, and MMP.
3 of 5Megabyte
This humorous poem describes the poet’s pet monster and its dining habits.
4 of 5Our First Olympians
This article provides information on some of our earliest Olympians, with a particular focus on the four athletes who attended the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium.
5 of 5
