You can contact LEARNZ, part of CORE Education, at:
Postal Address:
PO Box 13 678,
Christchurch 8141,
New Zealand
Teacher testimonials
Wetland Biodiversity
It was very relevant as we visited our own local Maungatautari wetland, so it was great to compare.
This field trip has helped me to step out of the classroom and look at what is on our doorstep. It is great for the children to learn about authentic contexts.
Students valued the inclusion of speakers who related the land and resources to an earlier style of living on the land by Maori, in pre-European times.
The trips are well planned and resourced - especially with the use of field experts, and provide a wealth of material students can use to aid their studies. The multi-level pitch of these field trips makes them suitable for a range of ability levels, and they can be self-paced.
Another valuable and appropriate topic from the LEARNZ team, as we knew very little beforehand about wetlands and their importance. LEARNZ is an excellent education tool.
Kauri
It gave them the sense of being there, and the children were motivated and empowered to make a difference. The children loved watching the videos, and it made the whole learning process more authentic.
It brings things alive for the kids, as many are visual learners. Fabulous to learn from experts. It covered participating and contributing beautifully, and we also connected it to "Understanding about Science".
It was a really good way for students to learn about NZ and what's happening currently and in a manner that they could choose how they participated; some were more independent and others more supported.
Children really enjoyed learning about kauri dieback. We participated in all three web conferences and I am pleasantly suprised at how much the children learned. The field trip links well to the Key Competencies as well as our school values, and was inclusive of all cultures.
It has benefited all akonga (that includes me). We knew nothing about kauri dieback disease until this field trip. Really relevant to us in Northland.
It is a highly motivating tool for learning. Children were highly engaged about kauri and continue to have discussions about their learning. Saves me as a teacher a lot of time as almost all of the planning and preparing is done for me. Great to be able to "call on the expert" from my classroom. Makes learning very accessible.
My students from this field trip are now very connected to kauri, that four weeks ago was just another native tree. Very powerful to have online learning with experts. Made a national taonga come alive and made kauri dieback real, relevant and contextual. Brings in elements of Nature of Science and the Social Science curriculum.
Was extremely motivating for our learners! Very appropriate for our "Diversity" inquiry. Supported Science: Living World but also the Key Competences of "Thinking" and "Using Language, Symbols and Text". Watch the video where our Cambridge East School students share what they learned about kauri dieback at https://vimeo.com/272665119
Kauri is one of our taonga, and this field trip supported our role as tangata whenua and kaitiaki. A great resource and easy to use with the class who learnt so much about the kauri and the disease affecting it.
Linking a community issue with young adults (in this way with LEARNZ), has been empowering for the students. They are able to contribute to conversations outside the classroom using science and cultural based knowledge.
Land Sky and Space
I enjoy the real life aspect of LEARNZ with relevant topics for our students learning across the curriculum. This was of interest to my year 7 students of all (learning) levels.
It discussed topics that were of particular interest to the boys in my class, and was effective in engaging all the students to learn through a different tool. It required the class to use the Key Competencies throughout the whole journey.
This term our focus was on Ranginui and Navigation. This field trip was perfect for connecting our focus to technology and making it relatable. The newsletters were also really helpful in providing info on how the trip would work.
Globalisation, excellence, maths, science, engineering were all supported. It helped make connections between maths and science in real world contexts.
We are currently studying Outer Space and so learning about satellites was very appropriate. Students generated great "I wonder .." questions, which led to excellent discussions.
Sustainable Seas
Supported our study of Tangaroa, based on Te Marautanga o Aotearoa. We all learnt so much, both the students and kaiako. Very informative newsletters made using the site easy.
Great learning to be had by all children. Very engaging. We also used this field trip to prepare for an overnight trip to the Tawhiranui Open Sanctuary.
Highly effective. Year 5&6 totally engaged. The videos are gold, prompting much discussion and the kids loved being part of the webinars.
Fitted in perfectly with our school's vision, the key competencies and values. It was an excellent resource to supplement what we were doing in the classroom.
It has helped add innovative, engaging material to my teaching and further engaged my students in the issues we were already examining. Supported the principles, values and key competencies as well as LO's for NCEA Level 1 Geography.