Elmwood House ventured to Orana Park on a cold Friday morning. 

Everyone in Elmwood house was at school ready to go. I realised how exciting it was. We were going to Orana Park! After that, we all went on the bus.

After we arrived, our ranger, Toby, took us up to a deck, where he introduced us to the other rangers. After that, we went off in our groups.

The first stop my group made was at the keas. They chased each other around the pond, and one solitary kea was on a rock in the centre, eating some fruit.

After that, we went to the lions, who were very beautiful but barely moved. We trekked around the park for a bit until we reached the giraffes and we got to feed them! The giraffes were stronger than expected - their long blue tongues curled around the branches and ripped them clean out of our hands.

After the giraffes we went to see the gorillas. There was a height chart next to the gorillas - I was a gorilla (160 cm and above) and most of my friends were orangutans (140-160 cm). Only a few people were gibbons, which was 140 cm and under.

We then tramped over to the Zoo School, and we got into groups for an amazing race. It was blisteringly hot after such a cold start to the day. We walked back and forth between the meerkats, the gorillas, the tigers, the wallabies and the lions. It was exhausting, and we learned so much! Overall, it was a really good day.

By Charlotte, Room 6