Team Paerangi have been enjoying a walking trip to Styx Mill Reserve looking at our local environment as part of the Turangawaewae inquiry.

We had a great time at Styx Mill, we learnt lots of things about helping wildlife and how to protect them.

There were lots of activities to join in, for example looking at what kind of insects live in water, how to keep the water system clean, and looked at posters about wildlife.

In the first activity we got given a sieve and scooped out little and big insects that live underwater.

There were things like under water fleas, back swimmers, baby dragonflies, that grow up underwater and then evolve to fly above water!

In the second activity we learnt about how to feed ducks properly and different types of ducks in New Zealand.  Did you know that it's bad for ducks to eat bread?

The next thing we did was learning how to protect the wildlife and how pollution can kill them.  Another example is that when you wash your car all the soap goes down into the drain which connects to the rivers and ponds that wildlife lives in.

We would like to thank  Styx Mill for inviting us to enjoy a fun adventure that we all enjoyed!

By Ava R & Kayleigh W from Room 15

On Monday, Kea hub visited the Styx Mill Reserve. We investigated the insects and bugs that live in and around the lake and learnt about the factors that impact on water quality. We had a great time exploring this wonderful reserve, getting our feet wet and scooping up a wide range of bugs from boatmen, to dragonfly nymphs and even leeches! We used magnifying glasses to see the creatures more clearly and to identify them. At the end, we played a role play game to help us to learn about the way that pollutants in the water affect the habitat of water dwelling animals.

Mrs Spencer, Room 16