Roimata Smail: children interacting with Aotearoa's history

Napier-based lawyer with a passion for education and an unswerving belief in its capacity to make positive changes in our society Roimata Smail speaks with Kathryn Ryan about her sixteen year career in human rights and public law, specialising in discrimination against MÄori. Alongside the law, Roimata has created some wonderful interactive teaching aids, the lastest of which help primary school age children learn about Aotearoa's history and Tiriti o Waitangi. All done in her spare time, to help teachers plug a gap in school resources,and coming as the Minister for Education Chris Hipkins announced New Zealand History will be compulsory in schools from next year. The new Wai Ako resources add to her online introductory Reo MÄori resource for primary schools complementing ukele waita which help children learn te reo. Roimata came up with this idea to help her husband Sam, who is a primary school teacher, when he was looking for resources to get more te reo in his classroom.