Yesterday a good friend dropped off a gift for my 3-year-old tamaiti. It’s a set of 50 flashcards with Te Reo on one side and English on the back.

It also has a set of suggested phrases that you can use with the kupu on the flashcards, so you can integrate the words into your day-to-day language.

My kid loves it! He’s learning Te Reo Māori (or Te Reo Maadi, as he says) with his dad. And he proudly tells everyone about it, and that “my dad’s really good at speaking Te Reo Maadi”.

I’m stoked he values Te Reo Māori and sees speaking it as something worth boasting about (even second hand). I'm super stoked he’s keen to learn himself. I love spending some time every day working with him on his Reo. And I look forward to the day when he can proudly speak it too.

The Reo Project | Day 196

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.