I’ve started off by trying to build my vocabulary, rather than jumping straight in to phrases and conversations.

Here’s my approach so far.

Find a list of the most common words in Māori. I’ll save you the google search, the best list I could find is this one.
Freak out about the logistics of building a 1000-word flashcard deck.
Discover Anki and download their (free) Android app (sorry iPhone users, you have to pay for this one!).
Find the pre-made Anki deck for the 1000-word list linked above.
Celebrate!
Start.

I expect I’ll share more about my evolving use of Anki, for example how I’m now extending the default 1000-word “deck” by adding in more kupu as I discover them. If you’d like to download my current version of the deck, I’ll leave a link to this file on dropbox for a while.

*Updated 18 March 2020 - There’s a link to the latest version of my Anki deck on today’s post.

The Reo Project | Day 78

Welcome to my little corner of the internet.

I believe that place matters.

Our connection to whatever little corner of the planet we find ourselves in, or choose to place ourselves on, matters.

I'm relentlessly curious and continually learning.

My interests are scattered across topics including property, strategy, acoustics, psychology, theology, systems theory, quantum physics and leadership. I read, listen, watch, and learn about whatever grabs my attention in the moment.

This is a learning experiment.

I come here to try to make sense of something I’ve come across, by writing about it.

I’m immersing myself in a new language.

I’m learning to speak Te Reo Māori, the language of the indigenous people of Aotearoa New Zealand and one of our official languages. After spending 2020 studying, I’m figuring out how to keep the journey going outside the classroom.

You’re welcome to follow along.