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IN THE BEGINNING

Produced by Kiwis for Kiwis

The Story of Creation

The Story of Creation is retold from Genesis 1 (Reading level ages 4-6 years). The Seven Days of Creation has been written in this collection of seven books, currently in six Pacific Island languages including Te reo Māori, with English translations. As children read each book, they will discover the different things God created on each day starting from the beginning and learn how creative our God is.

Our bilingual books have been developed based on the New Zealand curriculum framework as a resource to assist in the development of reading comprehension for English Language Learners at various reading levels using familiar stories from home for our Pasifika children – Bible stories. Our illustrator Ashton, at the time, was only 11 years old.

Description of each book.

 

The First Day

On the first day, God created light and separated the light from the darkness.

The Second Day

God separated the earth from the heavens and made the sky.

The Third Day

God separated the land from the waters.  He also created plants and trees.

 

The Fourth Day

God created the sun, moon and stars to give light to the earth

The Fifth Day

God added more life to the water and sky by creating fish and land animals.

The Sixth Day

God created the land animals and people to look after everything God made.

The Seventh Day

God was happy with His creation and then He rested.

Māori

SAMOAN

TONGAN

About the author

At this point in my life, this journey has been one of submission to God’s call. An unexpected call that was undoubtedly a response to my long-standing prayers asking God to use me to spread the gospel in any manner possible. During the first lockdown in 2020, I finished my master’s degree in Education after completing my teacher training in 2015. My research led to the publication of these books.  

The foundation of Legacy Books NZ is found in Jeremiah 29:11–12. I am aware of the plans I have for you; the Lord declares. “Plans that will benefit you instead of hurting you. Plans that will provide you a future and hope.” The mission of Legacy Books is to leave a legacy of faith, hope, and a future for God. 

 A crucial component of cultural identity is language. It is how we pass on our true selves from generation to generation. We communicate and convey our culture and its values through language.  Our books, which are based on Bible stories, not only help readers maintain their cultural identity through the languages that they are written in, but also come into a knowledge of who God is; understanding their identity in Jesus Christ.  Our current series – “In the Beginning – Story of Creation”- are written in 9 Pacific languages including te reo Māori with English translations on the same page.  The Good News – Birth of Jesus Christ is due to be released in early December. 

Nesa Tuigamala Prasad
BEd (Teaching)  MEd (Hons) 

About the Illustrator

Ashton Whenuaroa was 11 years old when he illustrated all the pictures for our very first series. ‘In The Beginning.’

He loves to draw in his spare time and spent all of the Christmas 2020 holidays finishing off the illustrations. When his older brother was playing PlayStation, he would be sketching out drafts and final proofs of his illustrations.

Nesa from Legacy Books, says, “We are so blessed and thankful that Ashton, an emerging bilingual himself, is using his God-given gifts to bless children to achieve their literacy goals in their home language and English”.