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Written By
Kelsey Howard
Published
9/11/19

Minecraft in Te Reo Māori!

We’re celebrating Māori Language Week

Do you know what this week is? It’s Māori Language Week! You may not know much about the Māori language, called Te Reo Māori, but this is a great week to learn about the language. We have two incredible stories about the Māori language and how Minecraft is transforming education in New Zealand (and all over the world).

Teaching Te Ao Māori… with blocks!

When Whetu Paitai, a New Zealand game designer who founded Piki Studios, created an immersive educational experience inside of Minecraft, he had his children in mind. His mission to pass down his knowledge and experience with the Māori indigenous culture led him to create Ngā Motu – a uniquely Māori Minecraft world!

Ngā Motu uses in-game lessons to teach students the language, history, and culture of the Māori. Fun and educational, Ngā Motu is a tool used by students and educators all across New Zealand. If you want to learn more about Minecraft Education, click here. Want to hear more from the mind of creator Whetu Paitai? Check out an in-depth interview with him here!

Meet A Minecrafter: OMGTech! 

OMGTech!, a charity that creates educational workshops on digital technologies, recently translated their “Hour of Code” Minecraft tutorial into Te Reo Māori. This month’s Meet a Minecrafter focuses on the organization and their important work to bring tech-focused education to language-immersive schools. After translating the tutorial into Te Reo Māori, OMGTech! were able to create a hands-on learning experience for the children to learn in their own native language!

Minecraft has long been a place for people to come together and grow, learn, and build things together… but we’re especially proud of the work that OMGTech! and people like Whetu Paitai have done and want to highlight their contributions to Te Reo Māori. Now go out and celebrate Māori Language Week by learning a thing or two!

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