Online, Design
Te Kōhanga Reo are an organisation that oversees whānau-led early childhood education centres dedicated to immersing tamariki in te reo Māori and tikanga Māori. Beyond early learning, they play a vital role in revitalising the language across generations, providing opportunities for adults to strengthen their fluency and connection to te ao Māori.
OCULAR partnered with Kōhanga Reo to develop a website strategy that would meet the needs of whānau, kaiako, and kaimahi while evolving with the movement’s growth. Our goal was to create a platform that was accessible, intuitive, and easy to maintain over the long term.
The previous website didn’t fully support how Kōhanga Reo operates at a grassroots level. Many users found it difficult to navigate, making it harder to access key resources. To address this, we worked closely with Kōhanga Reo to create a strategic framework that ensures the site remains practical and adaptable. This included:
Structuring content clearly to make important information easy to find.
Developing a scalable system for ongoing updates and maintenance.
Establishing a governance model to keep the site aligned with Kōhanga Reo values.
Implementing a bilingual framework with side-by-side te reo Māori and English translations, ensuring content was consistent and easy to navigate in both languages.
OCULAR designed and developed the new Kōhanga Reo website, ensuring it was simple to use, functional, and future-proof. A key focus was making the site fully bilingual, with a seamless side-by-side translation system that supports both te reo Māori and English. We designed and tested this approach to ensure clarity, ease of navigation, and accessibility for all users.
Through collaboration with SOL Media, we applied a refreshed visual identity to the site—one that reflects the vibrancy and heritage of Kōhanga Reo while resonating with both grassroots communities and governance. The result is a website that not only looks the part but also serves as a valuable tool for the movement’s ongoing mahi.
