In 2018, three friends sat around the fire with a desire to have fun with te reo Māori. In 2020, Kura Rēhia was founded. With immense support and enthusiasm from our community, we are proud to share our first board game, KAUPAPA.
At Kura Rēhia, we celebrate te reo Māori through play.
We create bilingual games and resources that help whānau and school communities learn te reo Māori by playing together—sparking deep learning, connection, and joy.
Our aim is for Aotearoa to experience te reo Māori as central to how we have fun as whānau and friends, empowering the next generation to thrive in a bilingual world.
Kia kawea tātou e te rēhia.
Let us be taken by the spirit of play.
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Excellence in Physical Games
The Pavs: NZ Game Awards 2022
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Voted Top 50 & Top 10
Aotearoa Top 50 Māori Products
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Excellence in Accessibility
The Pavs: NZ Game Awards 2022
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The Tactile Taste
The Pavs: NZ Game Awards 2022
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Gold Award Winner
Pride in Print Awards 2022
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The Accessible Ambrosia
The Pavs: NZ Game Awards 2022
Kia ora! We’re happy you found us.
We are the humans behind Kura Rēhia. As flatmates, we wanted to play together in te reo, so we made Kaupapa for ourselves.
When we realised how much our community wanted to play too, Rosie & Kuruho reached out to Aroha Tamihana and Hēmi Kelly to collaborate and soon, Kura Rēhia was born. Āio Mataira Wharerarauwhe, Tūī Hawke & Sara Moana have joined the waka since then and we are finding our flow - with some very exciting projects on the horizon.
The Kura Rēhia crew:
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Rosie Remmerswaal
Rosie co-founded Kura Rēhia with Kuruho Wereta, and is our Ringa Rauhī, bringing everything together.
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Āio Mataira Wharerarauwhe
Āio is our Pou Whakapuāwai, creating new games and working collaboratively to make ideas bloom.
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Tūī Hawke
Tūī is our Pou Hapori, connecting the Kura Rēhia community and creating crackup memes along the way.
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Sara Moana
Sara is the creative force behind the illustrations that bring Kura Rēhia’s games and resources to life. Of Ngāti Tamaoho, Tainui, and Welsh descent, @sara.moana is based in Tāmaki Makaurau and holds a Master of Fine Arts (First Class) from Elam. Her art is rich in character, warmth, and playfulness - infused with her signature wit and a love for storytelling. Through her work, she nurtures spaces for connection, self-expression, and joy.
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Jordyn Hautapu-Baker
Jordyn is the tā moko artist behind @toi.hautapu and the creative mind behind the artwork that wraps around our Ararau series. He uri ia nō Te Aitanga a Hauiti, Ngāti Awa, Ngā Puhi, me Te Whānau a Apanui, and is based in Matatā. Trained under tohunga Mark Kopua, Jordyn’s bold, intricate designs for Ararau celebrate the fluidity of kōrero and movement - visually bringing the game to life through the art of tā moko.
The team behind Kaupapa
Rosie Remmerswaal
A designer, teacher, facilitator and a life-long learner. Rosie's love of play, respect for te reo Māori and commitment to Te Tiriti led to collaborations to create tools to fuel awareness, learning and passion for te reo. Rosie's background is in designing worlds for films and television, and she continues to see the world through this lens.
Rosie is of Dutch, Irish, Welsh and Scottish descent and currently lives in Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland.
Kuruho Wereta
As a weaver and wood carver, Kuruho integrates mahi toi and tikanga Māori into every component of Kura Rēhia’s work. Kuruho’s commitment to tikanga is also reflected in his work with rangatahi, as a wānanga facilitator, in the environmental and recreation sectors across the motu with DOC and on Te Kāhui Kura Māori (Māori Advisory Board) of Recreation Aotearoa.
Kuruho is of Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga, Te Ati Awa and Ngāti Toa Rangatira descent.
Aroha Tamihana
Aroha grew up separated from her Māori culture but in adulthood felt called to reconnect with her Māori heritage and identity. Aroha and her husband are committed to their tamariki growing up bilingual in a country where the Māori language is alive and thriving. As well as her work with Kura Rēhia, Aroha is the owner of Maimoa Creative, which was born out of her desire to fuse her passions of design and te ao Māori to help normalise te reo Māori in Aotearoa.
Aroha is of Ngāti Raukawa and Ngāti Ranginui descent and currently lives in Tauranga.
Photo: Catherine Smith
Hēmi Kelly
Hēmi Kelly is a Teacher of te reo Māori, a licensed Translator and graduate of Te Panekiretanga o Te Reo (The Institute of Excellence in the Māori Language). He is involved in Māori language planning and revitalisation initiatives in a number of organisations, including his own iwi. Hēmi translated Witi Ihimaera’s novella Sleeps Standing, and he published books including A Māori Word a Day and A Māori Phrase a Day. Hēmi published his first creative writing piece in English in Pūrākau, a collection of Māori myths retold by Māori writers.
Hēmi is of Ngāti Maniapoto & Ngāti Tahu–Ngāti Whāoa descent and currently lives in Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland).
Photo: Te Rawhitiroa Bosch
Te Pae Ruruhau
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Kingi Biddle (Ngati Whakaue, Te Arawa)
Kingi Areta Richard Biddle was raised in the pride-lands of Rotorua. He pūkenga mātauranga, he pūkōrero, he pou tikanga, a weaver of worlds and an emanator of aroha, Kingi brings a puna of kōrero, connection and depth to the Pae Ruruhau o Kura Rēhia.
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Renei Ngawati (Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Pōrou)
Renei is a wellspring of experience in the fields of education, health, recreation and Māori development. She brings her dedication to creating accessible and equitable outcomes to the Pae Ruruhau, creating those connections with the things that help whānau thrive.
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Aroha Tamihana (Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāti Raukawa)
As the graphic designer for Kaupapa, Aroha brings her depth of understanding to the Pae Ruruhau. She also lends her wealth of experience garnered by reconnecting her whakapapa line to te reo Māori, and creating her business, Maimoa Creative.
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Rewa Worley (Ngā Puhi, Ngāti Porou)
A long-time game nerd, poet and kaiako, Rewa Worley knows first-hand the benefits of making things fun. Connecting the worlds of science, reo Māori and play, Rewa brings a huge sense of fun and creativity to the Pae Ruruhau.
Want to find out more?
- Read this article in Good Magazine: From reo zero to kōrero heroes: The wāhine behind the award-winning game Kaupapa
- Pānuitia: Read the Mahuru Māori - Embracing te reo Māori through fun and play - in English and te reo Māori.
- Watch this episode of Kea Kids News - New te reo Māori board game inspires English and Māori speakers.
- Read this article in the Guardian about our launch event 'Te Reo o te Rēhia': ‘They help us stay connected’: how Māori games enthusiasts are reviving tradition.
- Watch 1 News & Te Karere programmes about the launching of the ReoSpace in Auckland University’s library, which includes the first ever giant Kaupapa table.
- Read the cover feature article Hidden Treasure in Act of Play in Eastlife Magazine which covers the story of the game's creation.
- Check out this feature by TVNZ+ Te Karere: New board game fosters a new, bilingual Aotearoa
- Read this article in Woman Magazine: Game Changer: Meet the 27 year-old maker of a great new board game.
- Watch this Interview on Te Ao where Kuruho speaks to the gameplay.
- Check out this Waka Huia episode (particularly the second half), which gives a sense of the gameplay even across varying levels of fluency.
- Listen to this interview on Tainui Radio about the game’s creation and benefits.
- Watch the Toi Ako Webinar about Kaupapa.
- Check out this Interview with Kaupapa's co-creator Kuruho from the Toi Tangata Kura Reo.
- German TV show ARD Weltspiegel featured Kaupapa & and interviewed Miriama Kamo, Rawiri Waititi and Rosie for an episode about the revitalisation of te reo Māori. Watch: 7min ep / 1min section
- The Guardian: Gentle, respectful, humble: how non-Māori can help revitalise te reo, in which Rosie shares some kōrero.
Blog posts
View all-
Sell-out crowd attends Kaupapa game launch: Pōh...
After three years of hard work and development, Kuruho Wereta (Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Te Ati Awa, Ngāti Kahungunu) and Rosie Remmerswaal (Pākehā) have recently launched the final product...
Sell-out crowd attends Kaupapa game launch: Pōh...
After three years of hard work and development, Kuruho Wereta (Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Te Ati Awa, Ngāti Kahungunu) and Rosie Remmerswaal (Pākehā) have recently launched the final product...
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Kaupapa: Te Reo Māori Board Game by Kura Rēhia ...
When Rosie and Kuruho from Kura Rēhia approached me to be the designer for their kēmu (game) that was still under development, there was absolutely no hesitation to accept. I am very selective...
Kaupapa: Te Reo Māori Board Game by Kura Rēhia ...
When Rosie and Kuruho from Kura Rēhia approached me to be the designer for their kēmu (game) that was still under development, there was absolutely no hesitation to accept. I am very selective...
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Kaupapa featured on German TV - ARD Weltspiegel
This news piece for German national news ARD Weltspiegel delves into the revitalisation of te reo Māori in Aotearoa, highlighting the growing prominence of Māori traditions and language in modern...
Kaupapa featured on German TV - ARD Weltspiegel
This news piece for German national news ARD Weltspiegel delves into the revitalisation of te reo Māori in Aotearoa, highlighting the growing prominence of Māori traditions and language in modern...
