MINISTRY OF EDUCATION | HUIA PUBLISHERS
Autuhi: a creative writing suite for young Māori storytellers
This school resource offers five interactive entry points into creative writing – character, setting, plot, prop and reflection pathways – each packed with quick-fire questions, videos, activities and secret content that can be unlocked.
Creative thinking
Autuhi was commissioned to fill a gap in the literacy curriculum for tamariki (children). We knew that ākonga (students) really enjoyed telling stories but didn’t necessarily like the writing part. We wanted to encourage tamariki by tailoring the resource to various learning styles and of course make it fun, accessible, inclusive and relevant to multiple realities from everyday life in Aotearoa to international realms to the depths of outer space and beyond to stretch the imagination of every young writer. An inspiration button was always there to let ākonga summon a random trio of cards whenever they needed a creative spark. Students could create a personal account to save their work – a space that was genuinely theirs, with no teacher access.
Creative doing
As design lead, I led the full scope of the suite – a self-directed learning website, 500 illustrated prompt cards, 100 language activity cards and 20 classroom posters. I coordinated internal teams and briefed external suppliers, oversaw the direction and production of digital and illustrated assets and supported content delivery of audio and video components.
Creative partners
The full team at HUIA Publishers.
Illustrators: Scott Pearson (Visual Evolution), Isobel Te Aho-White and Pinar Ekinci,
Web developer: Phill Gray
The outcome
The resources were well received when testing with students and the physical components were distributed to selected schools. The website, the most ambitious part of the suite, was ultimately housed on an external platform that couldn't support the functionality it was designed around and is no longer live. This remains one of my proudest projects for the design thinking, craft and care that went into it. Even if the digital component didn't get the life it deserved, it showcased what is possible and what can be achieved for ākonga through digital design.
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