Education
Halo Whakatāne's educational goal is to connect tamariki with Papatūānuku by enhancing their knowledge of and access to experiences within our local rohe. Encouraging tamariki to become advocates for our local environment is a key focus, and our actions can benefit the environment, supporting our vision to allow tieke to live and thrive in the heart of Whakatāne.
We are proud to be working with students of a range of ages from a number of kura in our rohe.
Tamariki of Tāneatua Kura at Ngutuoha (Lion’s Hut)
Alongside our education with tamariki, kaiako (teachers) will also develop their skills and confidence in conservation education.
Our education programme is based around a number of marau (topics). These are further tailored to complement current learning topics as required by kaiako.
Educators will run a number of wānanga in class to lay the whaariki (ground work) for the chosen topic. Following this, we facilitate outdoor experiences to apply our learning hands-on. Through our experience, we've found this to be the most effective way for tamariki to deeply engage with their whenua, resulting in significant learning.
Halo Whakatāne are lucky to have many connections within our community which allows us more opportunity in accessing many wonderful sites of the Whakatāne district.
We have also built a large and varied resource bank, including the lovely support of volunteers, which enables kaiako to easily get their class outdoors. We support kaiako with all the necessary paperwork required for a successful trip, and will run the whole day.
Tamariki from Nukuhou North Kura with Robin Lane, a Halo Whakatāne Volunteer.
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- increase confidence to partake in conversations about te taiao, our environment
- increase capabilities in asking questions, finding evidence and carrying out simple investigations, in order to explore their world
- explore various aspects of an environmental issue and make decisions about possible actions
- have increased opportunities to experience education outside the classroom
- understand that living things are suited to their habitat and have requirements to stay alive
- be able to classify living things as native, endemic or introduced, and appreciate that living things in Aotearoa are quite different from other areas of the world
In addition to our main education programme, there are other opportunities to get involved with Halo Whakatāne.
One such initiative is our annual DOMP Comp (Destruction of Moth Plant) annually held in Term 2. This competition aims to empower tamariki by showcasing their potential impact on the environment and their capacity to drive change.
We deliver learning about pest plant species and their negative impact on our environment in a fun way, and invite all local kura to take part. After a very successful first year collecting over 13,000 moth plant pods, we are excited for 2024... watch this space!
Hands on activities (such as trap building and trapping) are offered, with emphasis placed on the reasoning behind these activities.
If you’re looking for a more local and low-key approach, we also run short sessions at Ōtamakaokao (Awatapu Lagoon). These sessions cover a wide array of learning outcomes and focus on practical skills, enabling participants to observe the natural wildlife in this serene space.
Tamariki from James Street Kura enjoying Ōtamakaokao
The programme focuses on student leadership, te ao Māori, learning by doing, the development of authentic skills and knowledge, while respecting matauranga Māori.
If you are interested in engaging with our kaupapa please get in touch with us at haloeduc@gmail.com.
We value the support of our collaborative contract, titled 'Enriching Local Curriculum,' established with Eastbay REAP, which has allowed us to fund a second full-time educator.
