GrayMacaw

Background

I started GrayMacaw in 2020 because out of a passion for language learning. I worked on it in my entrepreneurship class at university and it was my sort of Capstone Project. The name GrayMacaw combined the colour South American "Macaw" parrot with the West African Grey Parrot

The idea The best way to learn a language is to live in it. So GrayMacaw was built on four promises to every learner:

• Immersive. Play, eat, dance, act and even dream in the target language, instead of memorising grammar tables.
• Fun. Classes led by non-traditional "teachers" from different backgrounds who bring their own stories and creativity to each session.
• About you. Lessons shaped around each learner's personality and interests, not a fixed syllabus.
• No scary exams. Learners finished with a GrayMacaw certificate, without grades or tests.

Underneath that sat a few beliefs. Language is social, so we learn it through games, challenges and time with other people. Understanding is not enough, so every programme pushed learners to speak and write. And anyone can learn a new language, at any age.

Here's what I built

• Yoruba Flashcards. Our first product and the easiest way in. A learner could buy a deck and start building vocabulary the same day.
• The one-month immersion course. An online programme with a bold promise: become conversational in Yoruba in a month. Learners took short, low-stress 45-minute classes three times a week, plus two weekly speaking sessions to build confidence. The goal was practical: understand what your family says at the dinner table, and what your favourite Nigerian musicians are singing about.