Tips’n’Tricks - He Kupu Āwhina
Words By Kody Ward (He/Him) Taranaki, Ngāti Maniapoto.
Learning te reo Māori as a second language learner is not an easy feat. It is a never-ending journey and can feel discouraging at times. Below are eight tips that I have found useful as a second language learner pursuing a reo Māori degree at Vic:
Be a baby: You have to listen to the reo all the time for it to be ingrained into your subconscious. Whether you listen to music, podcasts, or videos, hearing the reo is important. You will learn without even realising.
Be a nerd: Spend time writing down every word you don’t know. Make a Notes list on your phone of any phrases you don’t understand. Spend hours trying to translate them. It pays off in the long run
Be crazy: Talk to yourself. Have full blown conversations. Being the only reo speaker in my whānau never has, and never will be, a reason not to speak.
Be confident: Oftentimes I found myself in situations where I stayed quiet rather than speaking with whatever reo I had. Feelings of inadequacy are experienced by all learning reo, especially Māori. Do not let this deter you. Once I learnt to feel comfortable being uncomfortable and stopped worrying about making mistakes, the reo started to flow. Fake it till you make it e tai mā. Only you can help yourself overcome feelings of whakamā, and once you do, you’re away.
Be kind: We all have our off days. We all have those moments where we feel like giving up. It is important to remember that learning te reo is a marathon, not a sprint, and it will be full of ups and downs. It is imperative that we look back at how far we have come and celebrate the small wins to stay motivated.
Be cheeky: Make the reo fun. Find ways to roast your friends and talk smack. Our tūpuna were vulgar and witty, so there is no reason why we can’t be now. Start banter with your mates; it is the easiest way to take the awkwardness out of trying to switch to conversing in a new language.
Whakamāorihia tō ao: Learning the language requires a change in lifestyle. The easiest way to do this is to start small with the things you find yourself doing every day. A good place to start is social media. Whakamāorihia your newsfeed. Follow pages like Te Mana o Te Reo Māori, Te Reo Māori memes, Kiingitanga, Whakaata Māori. The more exposure to Te Ao Māori, the better. Also, create rumaki (immersion) spaces. If you go to the gym, learn all the relevant kupu. If you go for coffee, make that a reo speaking time. Start with small activities, and overtime you will naturally begin to incorporate the reo into other areas of your life.
Be friendly: Above all else, make reo friends. Nothing beats having a reo buddy who is on the same journey and understands the ups and downs of learning te reo Māori.
To close, I would like to thank the lectures of Te Kawa a Maui—the ones who taught me these tips.