Te Taitokerau tamariki are learning about protecting our moana thanks to a special NRC marine ecosystems education programme.

Run in June this year, the programme was delivered to 14 schools and early childhood centres, mainly in the Bay of Islands and surrounding areas near Northland Regional Council’s new marine protected areas at Rakaumangamanga and Mimiwhangata. It reached over 1,400 children.

Marine education providers Experiencing Marine Reserves, Moana Futures, and Young Ocean Explorers offered schools and centres the opportunity for tamariki to participate in activities including kayaking, day and night snorkelling, marine biodiversity and pest identification, kai moana exploration, and videos and presentations about marine ecosystems. Staff hui to explore online resources was also offered.

Feedback from teachers described the programme as fun, engaging, and relevant.

“Your presentation was engaging and our tamariki were very interested to look at all your treasures!” the team at Tikipunga Kindergarten said, following a visit from the Experiencing Marine Reserves team.

“I think this was successful as it was a hands-on activity, which young children love, and the information you were giving them was meaningful and they could relate to it, with some of them having whānau that gather kai moana and because we are a community that enjoys time at the beach. This meant that some of the treasures you showed us were familiar to the kids, which gave them a sense of connection to the topic.

“The sorting activity was interesting to do afterwards and it was cool to use the hand-held microscope with the screen. This meant that the tamariki could all get a turn in a timely manner and this was a fairly robust tool, which made management of the activity easier.”

And the tamariki? Students at Kerikeri Primary School bubbled with excitement after their visit from Riley Hathaway of Young Ocean Explorers: “Riley made me pumped up because I LOVE the ocean too and we all need to be kaitaiki!” “Riley always picks up rubbish and looks after the ocean. When I go to the beach, I’m going to pick up rubbish too.” “When I went fishing, I told my dad not to keep too much snapper because we don’t want to do overfishing, that’s why there’s too many kina aye?”

For tamariki and teachers at Te Kura o Waikare, a Moana Futures kaimoana exploration session was full of surprises. "Our tamariki were so surprised at how close kina can be to shore and we're surprised at how much mahi goes into collecting kaimoana safely.”

“We need to look after Tangaroa and Hinemoana, because they care for us,” tamariki said after the session. “It was so cool to see all the sea creatures up close!”

Northland Regional Council Enviroschools Facilitator Zoe Jefferies says the kids really ran with the messages, passing on what they’d learned to their peers.

“Some of the Year 4, 5 and 6 kids at Riverview School did a follow up, making videos and presentations to show their learning to the school’s younger students,” she said.

For more information about Enviroschools, visit: www.nrc.govt.nz/enviroschools