Year 3 Mahi in the Mara - Thank you Kings Plant Barn

 Today Year Three had a big job planting our spring Mara Kai.  Kings Plant Barn gave us $200 for seedlings.

"First we had to dig up weeds and loosen the soil to help the plants grow" Lucas

"We picked broad beans" Shyloh

"We picked and ate cabbages" Azara

"We pulled out the broad bean stalks which was hard" Ella

We fed the soil with our own compost and planted flowers for the bees, herbs and vegetables like cucumber, courgettes and spinach.

"When we found slugs and snails we put them in the cold compost, so they doen't destroy our plants we use for food" Koen

"I planted chives" David

Next time we are looking forward to finding out how long things take to break down with Mystery Science.  We will check on our plants too.

Professional Development - Rotoroa Island

 

Sparky the world's 1st electric tug boat. 

Olya Magazines 

Professional Development - Te Ao Māori Wānanga Taiao ki Papakura High School, 22 September 2025.

 

Today Ms Daniel attended Te Ao Māori Wānanga Taiao ki Papakura High School,

It was an inspiring event connecting Te Ao Maori and sustainability. 

Takeaways:

- E Tu Rakau Charitable Trust 

- Rongoa - kombutcha, foot scrub, dry the peppermint and kawakawa 

- Pou for PE

- requested House names from local iwi

- Climate Resilience Funding

- picture books from Auckland Emergency Management

- Maori musical instruments

- Te Ao Marama app

- Sandy Shore Hangi for events

E aku nui e aku rahi, nei rā te mihi matakuikui ki a koutou katoa i tae a tinana mai ki tā mātou wānanga ki te Kura Tuarua o Papakura.

 

Thank you all so much for attending our Te Ao Māori Wānanga Taiao for 2025.

We hope you enjoyed the day as much as we enjoyed hosting you.

 

A few special mentions, firstly to Ngāti Tamaoho te mana whenua, who opened our kaupapa with a karakia, pōwhiri and kōrero. Also, for your support to organise our wānanga and in particular Whaea Monique for your dedication to see our wānanga blossum. No mātou te whiwhi.

 

To our South African brother Matua Chris Matthews (Tumuaki Tuarua), Matua Simon Craggs (Tumuaki), Whaea Mardi, Whaea Rangi and all the whānau of Papakura High School, thank you for sharing your lovely kura with us and showing manaakitanga and whanaungatanga. Nei rā te mihi.

 

Ki ngā ringawera Whaea Sandie Shaw and your crew, thank you for all our kai and the hangi almost put me to sleep. Aue te reka.

 

To our tohunga, our wonderful facilitators and guest speakers, we are extremely priviledged to have you share your many taonga and passions with us. Many have already expressed how wonderful your workshops were and we are truly grateful.

 

If you would like to contact any of our facilitators or guest speakers for future opportunities here are their details below:

 

Ayla Hoeta (Maramataka) – ayla.hoeta@auckland.ac.nz

Some cool rauemi:

Maramataka Dial for Tamaki Makaurau 

Tohu framework 

Planting seeds podcast: Maramataka Ayla Hoeta

Maramataka expert Rereata Makiha on Waka Huia 

Maramataka monthly korero - the Spinoff

Mikaere Berryman-Kamp (Taonga puoro) – mikaere.bk@gmail.com

Mia King (Rongoā Māori) – mia@eturakau.org

LeRoy Paul (Taonga Tākoro) – leroy.paul@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

Ngā kēmu: Tī kōuka, Hakariki (Haka o ngā Ariki), Poi Toa

Renee King (The Wonder Project for Year 5-13 ākonga) – https://wonderproject.nz/

Mana Ora Youth Resilience, Student Led Project Funding – sustainableschools@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz (powerpoint slide attached)

Hazel Meadows (Kia Rite Kia Mau) – Hazel.Meadows@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

 

We hope you enjoyed the wānanga e te whānau. It was lovely to have some of our tamariki enjoy the activities with the whānau too 😊

 

It would be greatly appreciated if you could take 5 minutes to fill in a short survey. This will help us improve future wānanga opportunities.

 

Enjoy the rest of your well deserved holiday and all the very best for Term 4.

 

Ngā manaakitanga

Anaru Hetaraka and The Sustainable Schools Team

 

 

Anaru Hetaraka | Senior Kaupapa Māori Sustainable Schools Advisor 

Environmental Services | Ngā Ratonga Taiao

Ngātiwai/Ngāi Te Rangi/Ngāti Whātua/Ngāti Hine/Ngāti Kahu/Ngāti Maniapoto

Mobile 027 308 3650

Auckland Council | Te Kaunihera o Tāmaki Makaurau

Level 19, Auckland House, 135 Albert Street, Auckland

Visit our website: www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

Year 6 Kia Rite Kia Mau

 Today Johnny & Hazel from Auckland Emergency Mangagement explored the Kia Rite, Kia Mau programme with Year Six.  We used Maori values and atua to think about how we can prepare for natural disasters in Tamaki Makaurau.

Firstly we related our GEMS school values to the Civil Defence values:

Growth relates to Ako (learning)

Empathy relates to Manaakitanga (support) and Kotahitanga (unity)

Mana  relates to Oko (alertness) and Ramgatiratanga (leadership)

Self Belief  relates to Manawaroa (resilience) 

Next we focussed on the Maori Atua that represent the natural disasters that can occur in our city:

Whiro represents Pandemic

Tawhirimatea represents Floods and Storms

Tangaroa represents Tsunami

Ruamoko represents Earthquakes

Mahuika represents Fire

We split into groups and worked through an activity that identified issues that can arise from natual disasters and how our whanua can prepare for them.  For example, if the internet goes down we need to have a way to listen to the radio.

Lastly we practised:

'Stop, drop and hold' for earthquakes

'Get down, get low and get our' for fire

'If it's long and strong get gone' for tsunmai evacuation

We will be bringing home a picture book and plan to share with our whanau so we are all prepared. You can also find out more here: Auckland Emergency Management https://share.google/9T0lwF0ftIBJclO8y 

Year 5 - Kia Rite, Kia Mau

 Today Hazel from Auckland Emergency Mangagement explored the Kia Rite, Kia Mau programme with Year Five.  We used Maori values and atua to think about how we can prepare for natural disasters in Tamaki Makaurau.

Firstly we related our GEMS school values to the Civil Defence values:

Growth relates to Ako (learning)

Empathy relates to Manaakitanga (support) and Kotahitanga (unity)

Mana  relates to Oko (alertness) and Ramgatiratanga (leadership)

Self Belief  relates to Manawaroa (resilience) 

Next we focussed on the Maori Atua that represent the natural disasters that can occur in our city:

Whiro represents Pandemic

Tawhirimatea represents Floods and Storms

Tangaroa represents Tsunami

Ruamoko represents Earthquakes

Mahuika represents Fire

We split into groups and worked through an activity that identified issues that can arise from natual disasters and how our whanua can prepare for them.  For example, if the internet goes down we need to have a way to listen to the radio.

Lastly we practised:

'Stop, drop and hold' for earthquakes

'Get down, get low and get our' for fire

'If it's long and strong get gone' for tsunmai evacuation

We will be bringing home a picture book and plan to share with our whanau so we are all prepared. You can also find out more here: Auckland Emergency Management https://share.google/9T0lwF0ftIBJclO8y 

Year 3 Invertebrate Investigation

 Today Year Three investigated the invertebrates that live in our compost. We began our lesson by listening to a song about compost at Sunnyhills made by the Year 5's using AI: Compost Heroes

We carefully sifted through the compost samples and checked of the bugs we found against an identification sheet. 

Theo "We saw a springtail.  It's like a rolly polly but it's tiny and white"

Elijah "I saw a red worm".

Leo "I saw a millipede.  It looks like a centipede but skinnier and you can't see its legs"

Jaxon "I saw centepede.  It was long and had lots of legs"

Logan "I saw a pill bug"

Jasper "I saw a mite"

Theo "I saw a slater"

We wanted to find our more about slaters.  

Archer thinks they are related to dinosaurs.

How do they get their shell? What is their life cycle? Theo

Valentin "What do they eat?"

How do they digest their food? Logan

We sketched a Slater / roly poly. Then researched the questions. 

Room 7 wanted to investigate leopard slugs.  We wondered how they move, what they eat and if they are good for the compost.We sketched a spotty slugs then recorded facts.  Did you know they are helpful in the garden, can grow 20cm long and can live for 3 years?

Lastly it was Room 18's turn. They want to focus their research on 

Eco Leader Trip to Howick Pimary Silver Enviroschool

 Today, our Year Six Eco Leaders went on a trip, with Ms Daniel to Howick Primary Silver Enviroschool, to see how they are progressing on their sustainability journey.

We were welcomed into their Green Room and given cookies they had made as part of the Garden to Table programme.  It was really interesting to hear about how the school employs 2 gardeners, a chef and a learning assistant to work with small groups of children to grow food and cook it for GTT.  

Next, they showed us their big tidy kai gardens, seedling house, potting table and composters.  Ms Daniel particulary like the potting table. There was so much kai growing even through the winter!

Each year the HPS Year Sixes make enviro art around the school.  We saw the beautiful rainwater tank they had painted.

The HPS Kaitiaki told us about how there is an award system for each class. They can gain points by having litter free lunches and using their red (landfill), orange (recycling) and green (compostables) class bins correctly. How motivating!  Each class has a monitor to assess the classes' progress and award points.  Rewards included ice cream, mufti and a shared lunch. 

We loved seeing all the ways the children had reused items like

the green bins.  So sustainable!

Afterwards we checked out all the amazing native planting and path creation around the school.  Alexander spotted a kingfisher.  We all loved the idea of a picnic spot in the middle of the bushy forest.

Lastly we got to hug a GIANT pumpkin. Thank HPS Kaitiaki and Mrs Long. It was so inspiring to see how a big team effort can have amazing results embedded across the whole school.