Learn more about ocean science kits for hands-on learning in the classroom designed for New Zealand curriculum levels 1-4.
What is the House of Science?
The House of Science has a vision to raise scientific literacy in local communities. Its main focus is on empowering primary and intermediate school teachers with resources and confidence to enable them to foster curiosity through hands-on science activities. Marine Stewardship Council has partnered with House of Science in the creation and development of hands-on learning resources for NZC Level 1-4.From inside at the House of Science
Jane Hoggard (Kit Developer) and Sandra Kirikiri (Business Development Manager) from the House of Science share the inside info on House of Science kits and how they work, the kit development process and their favourite bits in the new Antarctica kit.
What is your favourite activity in the Antarctica kit?
Jane Hoggard (Kit Developer): “I do love whales and there are two whale activities in this kit. These activities focus on whales, how they eat and how much they eat.
There is a pretty cool activity where kids model how baleen whales feed (eating krill) and how tooth whales feed. Learners create a cubic meter square and calculate how much a blue whale eats in a day! It’s a lot!”
To find out more about the relationship between whales, krill and climate download our Southern whale slides to use or adapt for your classroom OR explore our other Antarctica teacher resources.
Is it true that there is a life size penguin in the Antarctica Kit? And why did you decide to include one in the kit?
Jane Hoggard (Kit Developer): "Yes! There is a life-sized penguin in the kit and it’s a 1.2m Emperor penguin!
I just wanted something that would really capture the kids' interest and imagination right from the word go…. You know they stand at 1.2 m tall and that’s taller or as tall as a lot of kids.
As soon as the teacher unpacks the penguin... there is a starting point for all kinds of discussion and learning.
The penguin is also linked to an activity in the kit around adaptations and how penguins survive in the Antarctic."
Ways to bring penguins into your classroom?
Join House of Science to experience the new Antarctica kit and/ or book a virtual classroom visit with the penguins at the National Aquarium of New Zealand?
How do you come up with the ideas for activities in House of Science Kits?
Jane Hoggard (Kit Developer): "I think about what kids would be interested in around the topic. That's where I start ... and then I have to be more structured and think about science concepts.
With Antarctica I immediately thought of things like penguins and whales… as well as ice and snow and how cold it is…
I look at the topic from the science point of view and then bring it down further to hands on activities that kids can do. So for example, Antarctica is ice cold and we want to give that feeling of coldness so there are a whole series of activities around ice investigations. That means looking at heat transfer, holding ice cubes, lowering the temperature of the ice with salt, trying to stick cubes of ice together, looking at how things melt and how to make frost.
I wanted to include things that are really visual and really hands-on but still get across the idea of cold which is the big thing that kids think about when they think about Antarctica."
How do you make sure that the activities will work well for teachers and kids?
Jane Hoggard (Kit Developer): "There is a lot that happens before we get to the point that a kit actually gets put into schools. Once we have decided on content, which happens in discussion with our kit sponsors, then a draft of all activities is developed.
We then create a kit prototype which is sent to one or two of our test schools to put the activities through their paces. We are not at the test school to control the delivery of the activities, that's up to the teachers to do. We give them the kit for about 4 to 6 weeks and ask that they do everything in the kit... and send us as much feedback as they can.
Getting feedback from the test schools is a really important step and that has to happen before we move any further."
How does a school get to use a House of Science kit?
Sandra Kirikiri (Business Development Manager): "So in parts of the country where we have branches a school can go on to our website and make an enquiry.
We can join them up straight away and they can go into our booking website and start booking kits that are available in their area.
Each branch has a manager and a team of volunteers that are involved in delivering the kits to schools. Once delivered the school can keep the kit for a fortnight.
The branch will then go back out and collect the kit from the school. Then they clean it and replenish everything. Make sure everything is working right and get it ready for the next school to book. So it's on a fortnightly loan cycle.
Branches are responsible for finding sponsorship to get copies of the different kits. That's why sometimes a branch might not have all the new kits available straight away."
If your school is not a House of Science member but you want to try a kit out and get a feel for it - is it possible to trial one?
Sandra Kirikiri (Business Development Manager): "Yes.
When a non-member school makes an enquiry there's a couple of things we can do.
We can just drop off a kit and have the teachers use it as a trial. They can have it for fortnight or maybe even up to a month.
The other option is for the school to arrange for the branch manager to attend a staff meeting and talk them through the kit. This way teachers get to do a couple of activities as participants.
This often works better as most teachers aren't trained science teachers. They are generalist teachers. Sometimes they are nervous about even lifting the lid off the kit. So us going in and actually walking them through the activities can be a really good way to help teachers see how these kits can make teaching science easy and fun."
Are all kit activities aligned with the NZ curriculum and in both English and te reo Māori?
What do you think teachers most like about your kits?
Jane Hoggard (Kit Developer): "I think they like the supporting information that we give them around delivery of the lesson.
We include background notes that are relevant to the topic. This gives teachers a background to the topic that they're going to be teaching.
The activities are created so students work from instructions. All activities have supporting documentation written for the teachers to help deliver the lesson. Teachers have sample answers. Its all about empowering teachers to deliver lessons.
Teachers like that kids are really engaged because the learning is hands-on.
Teachers quickly see how they can scaffold other learning in the classroom based on science. They can use it as a platform for literacy and numeracy and everything else they're doing in the classroom.
Teachers love the fact that everything is contained in the kit. They don't have to buy anything. They don't have to think. They just need to have to lift the lid and get straight onto the lesson.
The other piece of feedback we get is that teachers love the quality of the learning and the quality of the reo. Kura don't have to re-translate our resources. The reo Māori is good."
Explore more
Featured{{item.Headline}}
{{item.Description}}