About
About Wai Ako — Te Reo Māori & Treaty of Waitangi Classroom Resources for Primary Schools
Helping English‑medium primary schools teach te reo Māori, Aotearoa New Zealand histories & the Treaty — with confidence.
Wai Ako creates easy, classroom‑ready te reo Māori, New Zealand history, and Treaty of Waitangi lessons designed especially for English‑medium primary schools and teachers.
Our platform offers over 300 press‑play video lessons, already trusted by more than 20,000 tamariki across Aotearoa. With just five minutes a day, any teacher — even complete beginners — can build confidence and meet curriculum expectations while having fun with their students.
Our Story
Wai Ako was founded by Roimata Smail, a human rights lawyer specialising in the Treaty of Waitangi, and her husband Sam, a primary school teacher of more than 20 years.
When Sam wanted to bring te reo Māori into his Year 3 classroom, he didn’t know where to start — or even how to pronounce the words. As a lifelong learner of te reo Māori, Roimata understood how daunting it could feel. Together, they created simple, press‑play lessons Sam could use straight away — tested in his own classroom.
Those first lessons have grown into the full Wai Ako platform, now delivering ready‑to‑use te reo Māori, Aotearoa New Zealand histories and Treaty lessons to classrooms nationwide.
We’re proud to help schools meet the Aotearoa New Zealand Histories curriculum and build teacher confidence, all in just five minutes a day.
More Ways to Learn
In 2022 we launched Wai Ako Books, a growing collection of beautifully designed guides to help teachers, boards and whānau deepen their understanding of the Treaty of Waitangi and our shared history.
We also offer in‑person Treaty of Waitangi workshops for staff, boards and parent communities. See the dedicated website .
Get in Touch
Wai Ako is proudly family‑run. If you email us at info@waiako.com, you’ll hear back from my mum Jeanette — a retired teacher with four decades of experience — who’s always happy to help.
Ready to bring Wai Ako to your classroom? Subscribe here to get started!
Featured in the Media
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Testimonials
Wai Ako is trusted by primary schools nationwide to deliver easy, engaging, curriculum‑aligned lessons — helping teachers feel confident and students stay engaged. Here’s what schools say about our classroom‑ready resources:
“Wai Ako has worked wonders for teacher confidence.”
“We love using Wai Ako, we started with the junior school, but the seniors have seen what a difference it has made to our classes, so we will subscribe for the whole school in 2019. The songs are so clear, simple and relate brilliantly to building knowledge and daily use of te reo. The lessons are very easy to follow and link so well to the curriculum objectives. Wai Ako has worked wonders for teacher confidence across the school and we totally recommend it to others!”
— Leslee Allen, Principal, Kaurihohore School
“A superb innovation in teaching te reo.”
“We are working hard to develop our programmes and culture around teaching te reo and Wai Ako breaks down some of the barriers our teachers face. It is a superb innovation in the area of teaching te reo.”
— Gary O’Brien, Principal, Torbay School
(See Torbay School on Kea Kids News using Wai Ako for a student‑led learning pilot.)
Teachers on the ground say…
Sherwood School teachers shared how Wai Ako is making a difference in their classrooms:
“This programme has really helped me feel much more confident helping the students read Māori words. It is helpful to be able to revisit previous lessons if I feel I need extra support.”
"The kids love the songs and always have fun.”
“The repetitive phrases are great and there’s no pressure — we can move at our own pace and repeat as needed.”
“The children are far more engaged learning te reo this way. They get the correct pronunciation and enjoy the format. Definitely a far easier way to teach te reo.”
“It’s provided a fun and easy way for the kids and teachers to extend their te reo.”
“Super easy to use and engaging — my use and knowledge of te reo has improved greatly alongside the children’s.”