Building Our Enviro Vision - The Project Completed in our August Working Bee

What a super successful working bee we had again at Sunnyhills.  A beautiful fine day and many willing hands.  Thank you to all the wonderful parents who came along and helped.

The Projects worked on were:
Our new sculpture garden at the end of Room 2.
Removing the pile of top soil from the car park 
Filling the Junior Adventure Playground with soft-fall 
Stacking the bricks ready for sale
Planting a camellia hedge along Room 14 and 15
Back-filling along the pathway to Fordyce.
Painting the seating at the end of Room 14 
Applying the first coat of stain to Tree Island

Our School looks awesome!

Working Bee - Tree Island - Soft Fall for Adventure Playground - Colourful Seating

August Working Bee Car Park Tidy Up

August Working Bee Planting of the Camellia Hedge

August Working Bee Sculpture Garden

Senior Members of the Enviro Group Inquiry About Fruit Trees

On Tuesday the Senior members of the Enviro Group meet with the Enviro facilitator and started an inquiry about the fruit trees we have been gifted by Kings Plant Barn through the 'Fruit Trees for Schools Programme'

The children saw the benefits of a school orchard as
1. Fruit could be given to students who didn't have a healthy lunch
2. Give fruit to people in the community who need it
3. Study the fruit to see how it grows and its life cycles
4. Planting trees is good for the environment as it reduces carbon dioxide
5. They could sell excess fruit as a fundraiser

During their next session the students will do some experiments to check soil type and drainage and possibly plan the trees

Howick Fruit Trees in Schools Project launch at Kings Plant Barn

Finn and Georgia represented Sunnyhills Primary School at the Howick Fruit Trees in Schools Project launch today at Kings Plant Barn in Botany Road. This is part of the Healthy Howick initiative.

David Collings and Katrina Bungard from the Howick Board gave a short speech and a local Minister blessed the trees. 

Our very own Mrs Driver also spoke about how the students and staff at Sunnyhills Primary School feel that Education for Sustainability is very important. The students planting fruit trees is one way of leaving a legacy for future students to utilize and enjoy.

  

Setting up a new Middle School worm bin

Wonderful Wriggly Worms

Room 20 had an Enviro Day with Mrs Daniel. They learnt all about worms, in a very hands on way. Next they set up a new Middle School worm bin; complete with 2 000 wiggly, squiggly worms to munch our lunch scraps and make worm tea food for our edible gardens. Room 20 can't wait to feed, water and care for our wonderful worms.

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More Replanting Our Trees For Survival

Replanting Our Trees For Survival

Room 18 had a very important job today; we "pricked out" and replanted over two hundred tiny flax seedlings, as part of the Trees For Survival programme.

We worked so carefully as a team. Mrs Daniel was also very impressed with our problem solving skills; we worked out with 16 crates and each crate holding 52 seedlings, Senior students, Room 17 and 18 together, have replanted 832 seedlings. WOW!!

Why are we doing all of this? Well, in 12 months time, we'll have over eight hundred plants to create new habitats, prevent errosion and help fight global warming in our local area. We're doing vital work to create a sustainable future!

Planting Trees for Survival

Planting Trees for Survival

Room 17 and Mrs Daniel, with the help of Lynda from Auckland City Council, repotted TWO HUNDRED & FIFTY seedlings, as part of the Trees for Survival programme. The children were such enthusiastic and careful botanists.

Did you know Sunnyhills Senior School students have already repotted over 300 seedlings? We're looking forward to our tiny seedlings growing 30 cm in a year, then we'll be replanting them in a  local reserve for our native fauna to enjoy.

What a fantastic project; a wonderful learning experience with a really positive environmental outcome.

Middle school Enviro Tech Challenge

 Enviro Tech Challenge

 Room 16 read Weslandia by Paul Fleischman, with Mrs Daniel. They talked about the author's messages about sustainability, innovation and being true to yourself.

Next they broke into teams to take part in a tech challenge. Could they build a tower for Weslandia with 20 bamboo skewers, Blutak and 3 rubber bands?

Yes they could! It took lots of talking, problem solving and quite a few fails before BINGO success! Well done Leon, Jenny & Tiffany for creating the tallest tower.

2016 Edible Garden Journey

2016 Edible Garden Journey: First Half of the School Year

JANUARY

At the end of 2015 we found that we had to acquire a resource consent to remove some of the  pohutukawa trees on the boundary line to make way for the planting of the garden.  (The original site was found to have a major sewer line going through it so we wanted to move it along the bank).  

Mrs Venville met with a Consultant Arborist during the school holidays.  

Term 1

A report was prepared and  attached to resource consent documentation Mrs Venville had prepared and submitted to the Council on the 12/2

Ngai Tai Ki Tamaki expressed an interest in the application for the removal of the Pohutukawa trees on the 11/3.  Mrs Venville and Mrs Driver met with the Kaitiaki on the 18/3  and the trust had no objection to the felling of the trees and were not even interested in the wood as the trees were in such poor condition. 

Unfortunately the Council would only grant for the removal of 2 trees which was not enough room for the long term plans of the garden and orchard. 

Not deterred it was decided to relocate the garden to behind M/S prefabs.

Term 2

The Enviro group worked with Noble-Campbell who is a specialist Education for Sustainability teacher.  They will have sessions later in Term 3 and 4 to investigate options and formulate an action plan. They will be looking at things such as - irrigation, compost bins, new worm bins, tools needed, upkeep, fencing options etc and ideas for stage 2 which the whole school will have input on.

Working bee on the 29/5 to dig in planters, flatten area for Trees For Survival structure.  Tree seedlings pricked out and planted in Root trainers by Senior and M/S students.  M/S plants germinated and planted in planter boxes.  Room 18 spouting repaired as was leaking into garden area

The Caretaker Mr Lesley cleaned out worm bin in Junior courtyard and it has been restocked with worms and bedding by Mrs Daniels and Rm 20 who is looking after it.  

New compost and worm bin are to be purchased for Edible Garden Area

Mrs Venville and the Enviro Group will be investigating best option for a large school bin

We had a staff meeting facilitated by Sian Noble-Campbell on Education for Sustainability in week 9 of Term 2.