I've used Kidpix in the class since 2003 and there are many ways to integrate this tool with classroom learning, for 5-12 year olds.

1. 1 Kidpix
Ideas for how to use Kidpix in the akomanga
Hauora
· Food Pyramid – I made a template and asked the tamariki to make their own
food pyramid. Reinforcement of Hauora in class the previous week, where the
Food Pyramid had been introduced and extension – to see where the tamariki’
understanding was at. 1 hr 30 mins = wä mahi
tauira Tau 1
Tau 2
· Other Ideas:
Tau 3
Tau 3
- Tinana – drawing and labelling parts of the tinana to reinforce understanding
- Cycles – looking at hapütanga, what stages does the baby grow through?
- Responsibilities – making up an individual chart which reflects the mahi you
are responsible for at home, could lead into a group effort and/or be made into
a slideshow, where the tamariki could look at the different things their whänau
do around the home
- Diets or menus, could be group work, to extend on from the food pyramid,
where tamariki plan a healthy diet for a day / the 3 meals.

2. 2 Kidpix
Tikanga-ä-iwi
· Inia – A series of mahi.
Step 1 was to reinforce the takotoranga whenua. The tamariki had spent
classroom time exploring this and started making a mural also.
Step 2 was to introduce some of the languages and get the tamariki to write
their name using Hindi characters (an Internet download). No w or wh
characters in Hindi, so tamariki problem-solved to choose the closest
equivalent – B or V...
Step 3 was to bring in a picture of themselves and dress themselves up in the
clothes of India, sari, bindi etc. Reinforce cultural differences and probe for
some of the thoughts that the tamariki have about where the differences come
from / why?
45 mins = wä mahi for each step.
Tau 3
Tau 1
Tau 2
Tau 1
When we were preparing for a marae haerenga to Taranaki, we started to look at what
we thought the whenua was like. In class, the tamariki explored some of the history
and stories – they also started working on a whakaari, to retell the stories ä-tinana.
Te mahi tuatahi = what would Parihaka Pä have looked like, with Taranaki maunga
behind?
Te mahi tuarua = after the tamariki learnt the story of the maunga, they drew what
they thought the fighting would have looked like.
45 minute sessions in the ruma rorohiko.
Tau 2
Tau 1

3. 3 Kidpix
Tau 1 Tau 1
· Other Ideas
- To storyboard the whakaari at the same time as it is being written in the
classroom – to work on choreography and awareness of performance for an
audience – maybe to record some of the korero, go into the Powerpoint side of
Kidpix and make a video of their planning.
- To make a booklet, maybe for tourists, about a new whenua, including a
mahere whenua, some of the reo, some of the famous places...
-Map skills – to make a map of the ruma rorohiko with key, to look at maps of
home, of kura.... always with keys.
Tau 2
me 3
Tau 3
Tau 1
Tau 2
Tau 3 Tau 2

4. 4 Kidpix
Pütaiao
· Oro – We had just started the unit in the classroom and the tamariki had been
introduced to soundwaves and done a couple of experiments about how sound
travels. In ruma rorohiko, we aimed at finding out what the tamariki’
whakaaro was about how different sounds would look, as the soundwaves
travelled to the ear.
Tau 3 Tau 1
· When we were looking at Poraka as a kaupapa, it carried over into momo tuhi,
where the tamariki wrote a report on frogs. We used wä rorohiko to look at
publishing this work as a booklet.
· When the tamariki were studying Ngä Parekura-ä-Taiao, an integrated 10
week unit, the tamariki produced a video in Kidpix that incorporated their
tuhinga for momo tuhi, their reo, the photos taken of their mahi building the
shelter and weaving the plates, making the cups and gathering the manuka for
bedding, and we aimed at readability and relevance.
· Other Ideas
- Designing experiments, making a ‘Powerpoint’ that contains the design, the
steps taken and the results
- Looking at life cycles – showing each stage of the cycle and labelling
- Looking at habitats
Tau 1
Tau 2

5. 5 Kidpix
Momo Tuhi
· Rotarota – the tamariki wrote a series of poems in class. Together, we wanted
to find ways of presenting these using Kidpix. 3 sessions used, mainly due to
keyboard familiarity.
Tau 2 Tau 3
· Narrative writing – Designing a cover for a narrative piece written in class.
Aiming at having the artwork be relevant and not just ‘pretty’.
· Käri Poroporoaki – done with seniors and juniors – one session. With
nohinohi, usually supported by written message in the final poroporoaki book,
but seniors write their message in Kidpix. 1 session.
Tau 1
Tau 3
Tau 3 Tau 1
Tau 2

6. 6 Kidpix
Tau 1 Tau 2
· Other Ideas:
– Storyboarding – could support playwriting or scripting.
- Cartoons – could be used to strengthen concepts, or as a ngohe pänui
Tau 3
Tau 4
Tau 5 Tau 6

7. 7 Kidpix
Toi
· Ngä Kanohi Whaiaro – could have been used to support just about any
kaupapa for mahi toi, but when the tamariki were looking at self-portraits in
class, we looked at this also in Kidpix.
Tau 1 Tau 3
· Photography – we are looking at photography at the moment and using Kidpix
to frame / showoff the work that we are doing. Aiming at progressing to a
stage where there is an understanding of the focus, which you want to be the
actual photo, so trying not to distract the viewer’s attention. Also looking at
titles for the photo.
Tau 2
Tau 3
Tau 1
Tau 2 Tau 1

8. 8 Kidpix
Hängarau
· Designing an obstacle course (started off as a mainstream senior students’
project) – The nohinohi got excited one day when they came in and saw
the models that the senior students had built from their Kidpix designs, so
we decided to look briefly at the kaupapa. First, are the mainstream
examples.
Tau 5
· Pae Tukutuku – after the tamariki had finished their rangahau, they went
into Kidpix as individuals, to lay down their whakaaro about what the
website page layout could be. This was then taken back to the röpü, where
ideas were incorporated from each member to create a collective design,
this is in the process of being revised / polished before starting work on
making the actual webpages – to focus the thoughts, so that I can see
which tamariki might need more support / time to explore websites.
Below, there is a sample of the individual work, how the group’s first draft
looked and a revised draft for some – to show some of the process.
Tau 1
Tau 2

9. 9 Kidpix
1st group
draft
Tau 6
Tau 5
2nd group
draft
Tau 4
Tau 4
Tau 4
1st group
draft
1st group
draft
Tau 5
Tau 5

10. 10 Kidpix
When I first started in the classroom, Kidpix was something the kids were
used to and that I had never seen before. At first, I stressed and spent a
long time tutuing and trying to figure out what stamps were where etc.
But then, I noticed that the tuakana teina system was strongly in place. I encouraged
tamariki to answer each other’s questions and learnt a lot from them. In the beginning,
the focus in Kidpix was really on how to publish some writing or to make an
illustration for something being done in momo tuhi. Over time, this whakaaro has
changed. Kidpix is a strong and useful tool for visualising, for designing, to use as
part of a larger process.
Over the last couple of weeks, I have tried for the first time with the juniors to use the
tool itself as part of the aromatawai whaiaro process. I wanted the tamariki to share
how they thought they were doing, on one side, with photography and, on the other,
how comfortable they felt with their pukenga-ä-Kidpix.
Tau 2
Tau 3
Tau 2
Tau 1