Waitangi Day Scavenger Hunt Junior Edition | Treaty of Waitangi Activity

Teach Waitangi Day in an active, age-appropriate way with this junior Treaty of Waitangi scavenger hunt.
Perfect for younger primary students, homeschool learning, New Zealand history, social studies, and literacy rotations.
Students move around the room, read fact cards, search for answers, and record what they learn.

Need a Waitangi Day activity that is meaningful, easy to set up, and suitable for younger learners?

This Waitangi Day Scavenger Hunt Junior Edition helps children learn about Te Tiriti o Waitangi / The Treaty of Waitangi, Māori and Pākehā relationships, and important New Zealand history in a way that feels active, accessible, and engaging.

Instead of asking young learners to sit through a long reading passage, this resource gets them moving. Students read fact cards placed around the classroom, search for answers, and complete a recording worksheet independently, with a buddy, or in a small group.

It is ideal when you want a respectful Waitangi Day lesson that combines reading, movement, social studies, and discussion without hours of preparation.

What’s Included

This printable resource includes:

• Waitangi Day fact cards to place around the classroom
• Student recording worksheet
• Answer key
• Easy teacher instructions
• Junior-friendly activity format
• Print-and-go classroom setup
• Follow-up extension activity options

Why This Resource Works

Waitangi Day can be hard to teach with younger students. You want the learning to be respectful and accurate, but also simple enough for children to understand.

This resource helps solve that problem by giving you a structured, junior-friendly activity that supports:

• Waitangi Day learning
• Treaty of Waitangi introduction
• Te Tiriti o Waitangi vocabulary
• New Zealand history
• Reading comprehension
• Information-finding skills
• Movement-based learning
• Cooperative learning
• Literacy integration
• Social studies rotations
• Bicultural classroom studies

It is especially useful for busy teachers and homeschool parents who need a low-prep February activity that still feels purposeful.

Best For

This resource is ideal for:

• Younger primary students
• New Zealand classrooms
• Homeschool New Zealand history
• Waitangi Day lessons
• Treaty of Waitangi activities
• Aotearoa New Zealand histories
• Social studies
• Literacy rotations
• Inquiry learning
• Buddy work
• Small group work

Suggested Use

Place the fact cards around the room. Students move around the space, read each card, search for information, and record their answers on the worksheet.

After the scavenger hunt, use the answers as a class discussion starter. Children can also complete a follow-up task such as a poster, drawing, fact sheet, or short writing response about Waitangi Day.

This works well as a whole-class activity, literacy rotation, partner task, homeschool lesson, or February social studies activity.

Created by Montessori Kiwi

Created by a New Zealand registered teacher and Montessori-trained educator, this resource is designed for real classrooms where children need learning that is active, visual, respectful, and accessible.

It gives younger students a gentle introduction to Waitangi Day while helping teachers save time with a clear, print-and-go activity.

16 pages

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Waitangi Day Scavenger Hunt

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