Self-paced foundations, built to be lived.

Ten-Week Kick-Start is a structured, audio-led learning experience for beginners. Across ten carefully sequenced modules, you’ll build pronunciation, everyday language, and practical confidence so te reo Māori becomes something you can carry into real moments.

By the end of Ten-Week Kick-Start, you will have built a strong, usable foundation in te reo Māori. The focus is confidence you can feel and language you can bring into daily life, whether you are at home, at work, or in your community.

What You Will Carry Forward

  • You’ll develop a strong pronunciation foundation through guided practice with the Māori alphabet and key sounds. With repeated audio support, you’ll build clarity and consistency so you can speak with confidence, not hesitation.

  • This course focuses on language that belongs in your daily life: practical phrases, natural responses, and the building blocks of simple conversation.

  • You’ll learn the structure and meaning behind a contemporary mihimihi, then shape your own with intention. Rather than memorising lines, you’ll build something that feels authentic and yours.

  • You’ll be introduced to foundational karakia and the contexts they support, so you can open and close moments with care. The focus is on understanding and appropriate use.

  • Beyond vocabulary, you’ll gain a dependable foundation: patterns you’ll recognise, structures you’ll reuse, and a learning rhythm you can return to. This is the kind of base that supports long-term progression steadily, and well.

Enrol now

You’ll move through guided lessons that introduce language in a clear, digestible way. Each module includes interactive checks for understanding and structured review, so key patterns are reinforced and retained, not forgotten. You will also have access to 70+ sound bites, giving you a reliable way to listen, repeat, and return to pronunciation whenever you need. The course is self-paced, but carefully sequenced, so your learning builds step by step, translating into confident, everyday use.

The Learning Experience

Learning for Home, Work, Community
70+ Sound Bites
Lifetime Access
Designed for Beginners
Ten Modules

Course Modules

A considered curriculum, designed by our founder to prioritise real use from the very first module. The modules are intentionally practical. We have removed what often feels slow or overly academic, and focused instead on language you can apply immediately. Each module introduces a clear, usable set of skills, then reinforces them through guided practice and review, so learning holds, confidence builds, and progress feels steady as you move through the course.

  • Focus on perfecting the correct pronunciation of the Māori alphabet, words, and phrases to build a strong foundation for language learning.

    • Learn the Māori alphabet and correct pronunciation for each letter

    • Practice sounds that are key to mastering te reo Māori

    • Develop confidence in saying everyday words and phrases correctly

  • Learn practical vocabulary and phrases for everyday interactions, such as basic responses, explaining feelings, and making small talk in Māori.

    • Explore ways to agree and disagree in Māori

    • Learn phrases for sharing emotions and asking about well-being

    • Practice making small talk in various social situations

  • Learn a modern Māori introduction, its significance, and how to construct a meaningful mihimihi for personal and professional introductions.

    • Understand the cultural importance of a mihimihi and its structure

    • Craft a personalised mihimihi for your personal or professional life

    • Practice delivering your mihimihi with confidence and meaning

  • Techniques and phrases for expressing gratitude and acknowledging contributions in mihimihi — from family, friends, colleagues, or community members.

    • Learn common Māori phrases for expressing gratitude

    • Understand the etiquette behind acknowledging others in your mihimihi

    • Practice using appropriate phrases to honour contributions in your life

  • Recite foundational incantations in Māori to open and conclude activities, events, and gatherings, empowering you to incorporate tikanga Māori into your daily life.

    • Learn traditional incantations for welcoming and concluding events

    • Understand the customs behind each incantation

    • Ways to integrate these powerful incantations into your own practices

  • Learn how to give instructions and directions within your home, workplace and community using te reo Māori.

    • Essential grammar for giving clear, concise directions

    • Practice listening and responding to instructions in te reo Māori

    • Build vocabulary for navigating common environments like the home or office

  • Gain essential phrases and food-related vocabulary for mealtime. Whether you're cooking, dining, or simply preparing food — we'll learn how to converse in this vital area of our lives.

    • Learn the Māori terms for common food items and kitchen essentials.

    • Enhance your ability to converse about food in both casual and formal settings.

    • Build your own grocery list in Māori and practice shopping for groceries.

  • Foundational numbers in Māori and practical counting structures for everyday use, whether tallying money, groceries, household items, or office supplies.

    • Learn how to count in te reo Māori from basic to more complex numbers

    • Practice using numbers for daily tasks, including shopping and budgeting

    • Understand how numbers are used in a variety of contexts

  • Elevate your conversational skills through dynamic role-playing exercises focused on core questions and answers. Learn how to ask where things are and use locative nouns to describe places and locations in te reo Māori.

    • Master key phrases for asking where things are in various contexts.

    • Explore locative nouns to describe places, directions, and locations accurately.

    • Practice navigating different environments using Māori, from home to work and beyond.

  • Discover how to describe your environment, people, and objects in Māori using a versatile and straightforward structure supported with new adjectives and nouns, expanding your conversational capabilities.

    • Learn adjectives and nouns to describe people, places, and things

    • Practice using descriptive language in everyday conversations

    • Build a rich vocabulary to describe your surroundings, both familiar and new

Start learning

Words From Learners

Learning is personal, but you’re not doing it alone. Here’s what learners have shared about their experience of Ten-Week Kick-Start, and what they have been able to carry into real life.

A few practical details to support your decision and help you begin with clarity. If you have a question that is not covered here, you are welcome to reach out, and we will point you in the right direction.

Before You Begin

  • Once your payment is processed at checkout, you will be prompted to create your login for the course platform. From there, you can access the course immediately and begin with Module One, moving through the curriculum at your own pace.

  • You will have lifetime access to the course platform, so you can return to the lessons and audio whenever you want to refresh or deepen your confidence.

  • Yes. This course is designed as a true foundation. It assumes no prior knowledge and builds capability step by step, with a focus on clarity, pronunciation, and usable everyday language.

  • Most learners find that around two hours per week supports steady progress. You can also move more slowly or more quickly depending on your schedule, as the course is fully self-paced.

  • Nothing specialised. You simply need a device with internet access. Audio is a key part of the course experience, so headphones can be helpful, but they are optional.

  • Yes. The course is designed around practical language and immediate application. You will learn structures and phrases that translate naturally into everyday settings, whether you are at home, at work, or in your community.

  • Absolutely. Because you have lifetime access, you can return to any module, activity, or audio at any time, whether you are refreshing pronunciation or rebuilding momentum.

  • If you get stuck or need clarity, you can reach out to Ella Sargent at ella@manawamaori.com and we will support you with guidance so you can continue with confidence.

Begin course

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