Revolutionising how the Māori alphabet and Māori stories are brought to life through play

He aha ēnei taputapu? | What do our Pū Rākau blocks do?

On the surface, the PAKU Pū Rākau might look like a Māori version of existing alphabet blocks. However, our Pū Rākau blocks are a groundbreaking educational product. With their innovative features, they're poised to change how tamariki across Aotearoa engage with mātauranga Māori and pūrākau, important Māori stories. Key features of our blocks include:

• The blocks feature a range of Māori atua and art forms and styles that are in themselves learning tools about Toi Māori

• The blocks, when used with the PAKU AR app, bring Māori stories to life in an interactive and engaging way

• The product is designed through a bi-cultural lens, using both Māori and English languages

• Uses a new Māori language typeface featuring diagraphs for the unique Māori sounds "wh" and "ng"

Ko wai māua? | Who is Paku?

The original purpose of PAKU was simple, Dr Johnson Witehira and Jamie Prier wanted to create things for their kids that connected them to Aotearoa and to mātauranga Māori. This led to the creation of PAKU’s first products, the Toki and Timo gardening tools.

“A key part of our purpose is to bring attention to Māori design and mātauranga Māori. Our re-invention of Māori tools, through a contemporary lens, is about looking to the past to inform our future. Kia whakatūmuri te haere ki mua. The Pū Rākau letter blocks are an extention of this kaupapa.”

Commitment to Te Tiriti is reflected in the kaupapa behind the organisation. At PAKU, the goal is to help connect all tamariki in Aotearoa to Māori culture by putting products into the world that champion and are inspired by mātauranga Māori. While PAKU products connect Māori to our design heritage, they also connect Pākehā to Aotearoa. In the spirit of Apirana Ngata’s well known whakatauki, PAKU products look to combine the knowledge of Māori and Pākehā in creating a new future for Aotearoa.