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Teaching resources for learning in nature
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Conservation education resources

Introduction

View a list of all our conservation education resources.

A bird in the hand

Explore the features of some of our most endangered birds and the recovery programmes, techniques and technology that is helping them survive.

Birdbrain CD by Fatcat & Fishface

This CD features 13 original songs in honour of our unique native birds.

Blue duck/whio fun facts posters

These posters have fun facts about whio/blue duck, and why they are important.

Build a tree

Build a tree is a fun way to demonstrate how a tree functions.

Coastal surveys teaching resource

Learn about your local marine and coastal environment through an estuary or rocky shore survey.

Conservation Dogs Programme education resource

Use these resources to learn about conservation dogs, biosecurity, Predator Free 2050 and how to take conservation action in your local community.

Create a play area for outdoor exploration

Create a new play area in your centre/school grounds, to enable children to find out more about plants and animals in your local natural places.

Create your own nature scrapbook

A nature scrapbook is a fun and creative activity that leaves you with somewhere to keep your treasured materials from nature.

Enhancing biodiversity in your green space

This resource provides ideas and learning experiences to enhance the native and endemic biodiversity in your green space.

Experiencing birds in your green space

Use this resource to experience birds in your school grounds or another local green space.

Experiencing invertebrates in your green space

Use this resource to experience invertebrates (insects) in your school grounds or another local green space.

Experiencing native trees in your green space

Use this resource to experience native trees in your school grounds or another local green space.

Exploring your local environment

Use this resource to learn about and develop connections to a local green space.

Fabulous facts about Auckland's wildlife

A series of posters to support learning about Auckland's unique animal life, and to encourage outdoor exploration.

Forest ecosystems

This activity introduces the concepts of ecosystems, biodiversity and interdependence within the forest community, and human influences on these.

Forest structure

This outdoor activity encourages students think about the forest structure by comparing it to a house.

Freshwater board and card games

Learn about New Zealand’s wonderful freshwater ecosystems with these great board and card games brought to you by Hastings Central School.

Habitat Heroes: Explore your local stream

This resource supports outdoor exploration of a local stream. Investigate the health of a local stream, and decide what conservation actions would improve the health of a local stream.

Healthy water

Play the 'making a rainstorm' game or create a collage to teach kids how living things use water.

Introducing biodiversity

Fun activities to introduce children to the concept of biodiversity (variety in nature).

Investigating alpine environments - Years 9-13

This resource is designed to introduce secondary students to New Zealand’s extraordinary alpine environments, and support them to take action to help protect them.

Investigating introduced predators in your green space

Use this resource to investigate introduced predators in your school grounds or another local green space.

Investigating weeds in your green space

Use this resource to investigate weeds in your school grounds or another local green space.

Kākāpō Recovery education resources for teachers

Use this resource to uncover why the kākāpō is so important to New Zealand.

Kia Kaha te Reo Taiao posters and booklet

These posters and booklet include te reo Māori and English words and phrases about the environment: Te Ao o Tangaroa – Marine, Wai Māori – Fresh Water, Te Wao Nui a Tāne – flora, Te Tini a Tāne - fauna

Land deed

This activity asks students to imagine they have the deed to their very own forest and their mission is to encourage native wildlife to the area.

Let’s be a tree

A dramatic experiential game to feel the life in a tree.

Local field trips

Find resources for field trips to local hot spots.

Marine mammals of New Zealand

This poster has details of the different types of whales, dolphins and seals in New Zealand and where they are found.

Meet the Locals videos

Watch Meet the Locals videos to learn about New Zealand's unique plants and animals, habitats and the people working to protect them.

Nature tasters

Designed to pick up and go like a recipe card, these six 'nature taster' cards make it easy to get outdoors and use nature for teaching and learning.

Observing a royal albatross/toroa

Use these to support student viewing the albatross 'Royal cam'.

Opportunities for action around school and kindergarten

A list of conservation action ideas to support teachers to surround their students with as many positive experiences of being in nature as possible.

Our own gold coast

Explore the importance of sand dunes and the impact of losing them. Find out about the largest coastal plant protection programme in the southern hemisphere.

Possum picnic activity

This activity is designed to introduce and re-enforce ideas about the impact of introduced predators. It could also be used for plant pests, and to show the relationships between living things in a community.

Preservation versus use

This activity introduces students to various ways people view and use our natural environments differently, and how people make decisions about access to and use of resources.

Protecting our estuaries

Use this resource to learn about, explore and protect our unique estuarine environments.

Protecting our estuaries

Use this resource to learn about, explore and protect our unique estuarine environments.

Protecting our marine world

Use this resource to learn how to protect our unique marine environment.

Protecting your environment

Use this series of resources to encourage primary and intermediate students to go outdoors, explore and connect to a local green space, eg school grounds, local park.

Restoration through the seasons

This resource can help you plan, implement and take action on restoration projects throughout the school year.

River life: ecology of the braided rivers education resource

This resource is based on braided rivers in the Mackenzie basin, but the concepts can be applied to rivers anywhere in New Zealand. Students will research topics such as disappearing river habitat, pest control, and food chains.

Seabirds factsheets

Explore the lives of seabirds and investigate the impact humans have on the ecology of seabirds, and the role seabirds play in their environment.

Sensing nature activity

Get kids outdoors and exploring their environment using their five senses.

Tāiko/black petrel education resource

This resource is an integrated unit of teaching and learning material about the tāiko/black petrel and other seabirds, for use in primary schools.

Te whio mō ake tonu atu – he rauemi mā ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori

Te whio mō ake tonu atu – he rauemi mā ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori

Teaching conservation across Te Whāriki

This document aligns conservation teaching and learning experiences to Te Whāriki principles and strands, to support teachers with planning.

Teaching conservation across the New Zealand Curriculum

This document provides ideas on how conservation can be incorporated across the New Zealand Curriculum, to support teachers with planning.

The big friendly giants - the giant wētā

Find out how the wētā evolved, why it's threatened and how we are protecting this ancient insect. Students will see why the wētā is unique, assess recovery plans and find out how to improve living conditions for wētā in their own backyard.

The reptiles

Explore the features of some of our most endangered reptiles and the recovery programmes, techniques and technology that is helping them survive.

They're oldies but goodies

Explore the reasons for retaining and maintaining treasures from the past (hisorical sites).

Tools for environmental action

Use this resource to plan and carry out successful environmental action, alongside your local community.

Toyota Kiwi Guardians

An activity programme designed to get kids off screens and into the outdoors. Learn about protecting our nature, earn cool rewards and go on epic adventures!

Uncle Don knows heaps of wacky stuff

Follow Sylvie as she takes a holiday with Uncle Don the DOC ranger and learns about New Zealand's plants and animals along the way.

Up the Creek

By focusing on the life cycle of whitebait, this bilingual online resource introduces concepts about biodiversity in freshwater, in a context that is relevant for students.

Wet Feet – investigating freshwater

Wet Feet is about involving schools and communities in the care and restoration of freshwater systems.

Wetland life

The wetland life poster features native species living in a lowland swamp – birds, fish, invertebrates and plants.

Whio Forever education resource

Take your students on an amazing learning journey, discovering why the whio/blue duck is so important to New Zealand.

Related

With children

Find conservation activities you can do with children.

National education programmes

DOC supports a range of education programmes that promote conservation and get young people into nature.

Useful websites

Find other New Zealand websites that support conservation teaching and learning.

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