Description:

Te Pū Taka Māori is a bilingual, tactile learning set designed to help whānau and tamariki connect with te reo Māori through everyday play. At its core are two interactive alphabet books—one for vowels, one for consonants—and a matching memory card game. The project responds to a gap in early-stage language resources: while many te reo Māori tools now exist, few are designed specifically for beginners learning outside of kura or formal education. Fewer still are tactile, interactive, and crafted with young learners, and their caregivers.

The idea emerged from the designer’s own reo journey, sparked by a desire to support her nieces and nephews—both in Aotearoa and overseas. These are tools made to be held, shared, and explored together at home. Designed for accessibility, simplicity, and joy, Te Pū Taka Māori offers a playful path into te reo Māori that supports connection to language, identity, and culture.

The books use simple tactile elements like flaps and sliders to encourage movement, curiosity, and memory-based learning. Each letter is paired with a word and sentence drawn from daily Aotearoa life—grounding language in relatable moments. Rather than relying on English as the default, te reo Māori is given visual and spatial prominence, with English used only as a gentle guide. This deliberate shift invites immersion and confidence while still supporting caregivers who may be learning alongside their tamariki.

The design is warm and approachable, with rounded typography, a compact square format for little hands, and a palette inspired by the taiao: deep forest greens, ocean blues, and earthy tones, brightened for young eyes. Visual storytelling is guided by mātauranga Māori, acknowledging learning as holistic and relational. Illustrations are grounded in whakapapa and tūrangawaewae, based on the lived experiences of the designer’s whānau. Tamariki see themselves reflected in the imagery—not as a generic idea of childhood, but through real environments, relationships, and cultural markers. These visual cues help reinforce language while strengthening cultural connection and belonging.

The accompanying card game extends the learning beyond the book, making te reo Māori a part of whānau play. Casual, repetitive, and joyful, it encourages tamariki and adults to practise together, building confidence through familiarity.

Initial responses from whānau, educators, and fellow learners have been deeply positive. Many expressed how much they wished they’d had something like this as children—or as parents. Although still in prototype form, the work has already drawn attention at exhibition level and from the international children’s literature community, including interest from kura, kindergartens, and reo champions looking for inclusive, hands-on resources.

Te Pū Taka Māori is about planting seeds—of language, of belonging, of pride. It’s a gentle and joyful invitation into the world of te reo Māori, one page and one card at a time.