2025 Flexi Conferences

This FORM is for you to confirm your registration on the March 2025 Wairarapa Conference. (Webpage: https://snip.ly/2025MarchWairarapaConferenceWebpage )
PLEASE COMPLETE A FORM FOR EACH PARTICIPANT/EVERY REGISTRATION (Please share this link: https://snip.ly/2025WairarapaMarchConference ).

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Please confirm your interest in the Wairarapa conference. (If you wish to register for a different conference, click the one you want , then go to submit - we will send you the correct link) *
Please select your preferred TIMES of day to be in attendance:
After school (4 to 6.30pm) session
After dark (6.30 to 9 pm) session
DAY 1
Morning Session
Afternoon session
After school (4 to 6.30pm) session
After dark (6.30 to 9 pm) session
DAY 2
Morning Session
Afternoon session
DAY 3
Your School? *
Your Name *
Best email address for contact *
WORKSHOP 1:  The Tonight Show with the Bugman - AFTER DARK OPTION
Join Ruud Kleinpaste, "The Bugman," for a nocturnal adventure in "The Tonight Show with The Bugman," set in the perfect month for night trapping. This engaging workshop will unveil the fascinating world of creatures that buzz, creep, and flutter through the night. From stealthy spiders to fluttering moths and glowing glowworms, discover the hidden ecosystem that thrives under the cover of darkness. Using his signature humor and deep knowledge, Ruud will guide you in uncovering the secrets of nocturnal life during this prime time for observing nature’s night shift. Perfect for nature enthusiasts, educators, or anyone curious about the mysteries of the night!
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WORKSHOP 2:  Nocturnal Navigators: Crafting Traps and Unlocking Biodiversity - AFTER DARK OPTION
Discover the hidden world of moths with Kelly Body in this captivating after-dark workshop. Participants will design and build their own moth traps, witness Kelly’s expert model in action, and collect samples from the night’s catch. This hands-on experience offers a unique lens into biodiversity and highlights the essential roles moths play in ecosystems. Perfect for integration with microscope work or internal assessments, this workshop combines practical science with meaningful discussions about conservation and the importance of protecting our planet’s nocturnal pollinators.
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WORKSHOP 3:  STAR PARTY -AFTER DARK OPTION
Join "The Space Guys," Haritina (Hari) and Sam, for an unforgettable evening under the stars in their "Star Party" workshop. Using some of the finest mobile telescopes in New Zealand, this outdoor, after-dark experience offers participants a chance to explore the wonders of the night sky. From distant galaxies to sparkling star clusters and planets in our solar system, Hari and Sam will guide you through the cosmos with their passion and expertise. Perfect for stargazers, educators, and anyone curious about the universe, this workshop promises to leave you awestruck by the beauty and vastness of space.
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WORKSHOP 6:  Get lost with us! - AFTER DARK

Get lost with us and discover your inner strength! We will show you how you deal with the challenges of disorientation and uncertainty. We will encourage you to make the best decisions. In a supportive and safe environment we will guide you through the priorities of survival and show you coping strategies that will boost your confidence.

This hands on experience will take you to a space that may have you feeling somewhat ‘lost’. We will guide you through the experience with a step by step look at priorities. Your confidence and resilience will be boosted by knowing you are far better prepared should a survival situation ever arise.
 
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WORKSHOP 4:  Night Stalkers: Tracking Predators and Protecting Wildlife - AFTER DARK
Step into the nocturnal world with Kelly Body in this thrilling evening workshop, Night Stalkers: Tracking Predators and Protecting Wildlife. Participants will set ink tunnels and chew cards to detect predator activity, explore possum markings, and uncover signs of hedgehogs and rats under the cover of darkness. The session also features an unforgettable experience observing tuna (eels) and native fish at night. Dive into discussions on safeguarding our native species, including hands-on tips for creating weta houses, lizard gardens, and bird nesting boxes. This immersive workshop blends exploration and conservation, empowering participants to make a difference for our precious wildlife. 
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WORKSHOP 7: How to murder your plants more slowly 

Workshop Description

 Explore the fascinating relationship between plants and their environment with Ruud Kleinpaste in his workshop, "How to Murder Your Plants More Slowly." Perfect for schools with gardens or access to natural plant areas, this session dives into the challenges plants face from pests and diseases. Learn how these factors influence plant health and discover practical strategies to slow their impact. With Ruud’s signature wit and expertise, this workshop offers valuable insights for educators and students alike, fostering a deeper understanding of plant care and sustainable gardening practices.

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WORKSHOP 8: Mara kai 

Workshop Description

 Mara kai is usually defined as vegetable gardening but it can extend out into wild foods. We will visit sites of traditional gardens on the west side of Masterton and look at the reasons these places were chosen. It may be of interest that several of these sites are on or near schools. We will go to remnant forest to learn about edible berries, drupes and other parts of plants. And look at how Maori use whakapapa relationships between all life for nutrition and sustainability.

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WORKSHOP 9: Every contact leaves a trace

Workshop Description

 This workshop will introduce participants to the concept of trace evidence. Wherever they step, whatever they touch, whatever they leave, even unconsciously, will serve as a silent witness against them. We will guide you through a mock murder scene (with full PPE if required) describing the evidence that is critical to aid in the investigation through forensic science including Blood spatter, hairs and fibres, fingerprints and footwear and how we can utilise many differing chemicals to develop and preserve the items. Hands on workstations will allow you to develop and preserve fingerprints and footwear. We can show how this can be replicated for your students within the classroom.

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WORKSHOP 10: Māori Fishing technology and practices

Workshop Description

In pre-European times the seas around Aotearoa were the main food source for most Māori. But having recently arrived, the earliest Polynesian settlers were used to spearing fish in clear tropical waters. In Aotearoa the murky seas must have been initially frustrating. Māori went on to develop the fishing hook beyond any other culture on the planet.

This session will look at examples of hooks, lures, traps, nets and aquaculture, looking at design, manufacture, functionality, and explore some of the tikanga and science around traditional Māori fish harvesting and enhancement methods. This content links to NZ Histories.

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WORKSHOP 11:   Navigation

Workshop Description

Half day. The movement of the Earth around the Sun and the Moon around the Earth is translated into the apparent movement of the celestial bodies as viewed from the Earth. This has been used by humans for thousands of years to mark the passage of time and for assisting with navigation. This workshop will utilise our portable planetarium to demonstrate how the apparent movement of the stars, Moon and Sun can be used to help navigate. We will look at both Pacific and modern techniques in navigation and how these have developed over time. This will be an indoor workshop mainly in the planetarium but also using a range of navigation devices outdoors. 

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WORKSHOP 12: Exploring under the surface using low-tech solutions

Workshop Description

Half day. Looking at how schools can investigate/discover what's going on below the surface. Exploring the undersea world can be problematic. That can either put you off trying or it can create a worthy challenge to try and come up with simple solutions to find out what is going on down there. Low-tech answers can lie in using inexpensive action cameras in smart ways, taking bottom samples, video transects, light traps, plankton sampling, water sampling (temp/salinity/pH etc), sediment deposition and using ROVs. Much of this gear can be designed by students and built in a school’s technology suite. Getting real-world data from the real world, is life experience stuff and its value cannot be underestimated.

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WORKSHOP 13:  Teaching with Te Taiao

Workshop Description

 Learn how easy it is to use nature to support curriculum learning and well-being in your school greenspaces.


In this half-day experience, you'll learn how to use nature as your classroom and co-teacher to integrate almost all curriculum areas and support wellbeing.
Walk away with the knowledge, skills, confidence and a curriculum-linked resource to start immediately!

We will also focus on how to use nature to integrate science, social science and support hauora - our session will focus on plant identification and uses, seasonal wisdom (mātauranga Māori) and nature connection for hauora (holistic wellbeing) - we'll make and create with and in nature.

Big ideas and Significant Learning:
Science uses different inquiry approaches to develop understanding
Careful observations of the natural world contribute to the recorded practice, protocols and kōrero tuku iho of mātauranga Māori.

Science-based information can be used in decision-making and action:
Ākonga are empowered to take action in their own world. In Science, ākonga learn to explore different perspectives, develop and express their own reasoned opinions and make decisions.

Developing Key Competencies through Science: Thinking / Relating to Others / Managing Self / Participating and Contributing. Connections.
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WORKSHOP 14: Manu and their Kai 

Workshop Description

Starting with bird ID and five minute bird count sessions inside, before heading out for the rest of the day. Learn how to identify coastal birds and undertake 5MBC (with the group determining where they will carry out their surveys). At 5MBC stations, we will also do a quick quadrat survey (for example) of potential food sources, to determine if there is a link between the two. 
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WORKSHOP 15:  The Bioblitz of the Festival of Flight'

Workshop Description

An exciting, hands-on workshop that brings the art of a bioblitz to life. Participants will learn how to organize and conduct a bioblitz, with a special focus on catching and observing the incredible variety of critters that take to the skies. From delicate insects to dazzling winged wonders, you’ll uncover the secrets of the flying world. Perfect for educators, students, and nature enthusiasts, this workshop promises to inspire curiosity and a deeper appreciation for the creatures that share our skies. 
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WORKSHOP 16:    Understanding the Solar System

Workshop Description

In this workshop, we will look at how observing celestial occurrences has helped us build an understanding of the universe. Using scientific investigative approaches and examining scientific methods, we will look closely at the moons of Jupiter to determine the mass of Jupiter. This workshop will look at how we can measure distances in space, angular distances using telescopes and calculating basic relationships. To finish the workshop we will have a session in the planetarium to view both Jupiter and Saturn and try and measure the distance from one of the moons to the planet.

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WORKSHOP 17: Making A Mark (Uniqueness of Finger Prints)

This workshop will introduce participants to the only unique form of identification in the world. The history and science behind fingerprints and how this

differs from DNA profiling. The many types of powders and chemicals that can be used to develop fingerprints from a multitude of substrates. We will then introduce

our very own Automated Fingerprint Identification System AFIS (The only one in private hands in the world) for you to search your develop crime prints from the mock crime scene.

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WORKSHOP 18:  Rivers, terraces and floodplains

Workshop Description

A field trip exploring sites along a local river from upper to lower reaches, followed by discussion of the wide range of achievement standards that can be addressed with reference to Wairarapa’s rivers and alluvial landforms. Participants will learn that much of the modern Wairarapa landscape is a result of the interplay of tectonic uplift and climate cycles over the past million years. They will explore how the modern river system evolves along its course; how human activities have disrupted the natural flows; the rationale behind current remediation strategies, and mātauranga pūtaiao linked to river processes and histories. Options for observation and data analysis will be discussed in the context of agricultural contaminants, toxic blooms, climate change and ecosystem health.

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WORKSHOP 19: Mātauranga Māori (Rivers, terraces and floodplains)  

Workshop Description

Led by Professor Chris Hollis and Joe Potangaroa (Potangaroa Education).

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WORKSHOP 20: Sustainability in New Zealand Seas

Workshop Description

New Zealand/Aotearoa is the envy of many countries, being the only country in the world with a quota-managed fisheries resource for all commercial species. In the long term, how sustainable is commercial and recreational fishing in this country?

We will look at Commercial Fish harvesting and the controls and strategies employed to do the job efficiently. How does this compare with Aquaculture? Is aquaculture going to be the answer to supplying consumer demand for seafood? Where will we end up? How will climate change affect the marine environment and the way it works? What effects will be seen on species we are used to having in our waters. Includes a Mussel dissection and a demonstration of mussel water filtering.

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WORKSHOP 21: Controversy in Conservation

Workshop Description

Half day. Indoors for the first part, with some activities outside. Running through the ethical considerations in conservation (activities), the representation of data for projects such as 1080 application, investigating claims and creating a science communication piece. 
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WORKSHOP 22:  'Court' by Forensics (Law)

Workshop Description

This workshop will introduce participants to Identifying the use of science in the court of law. We will discuss the legal system’s reliance on forensic science evidence in criminal cases and the admissibility of forensic evidence including discussing stated cases like the Baines, Crewe and Sounds Murders. Using fingerprint and DNA science within the court system over the years.

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WORKSHOP 23:  Planetary Science - Atmospheres of the Solar System 

Workshop Description

Half day. This workshop will examine the atmospheric column on Venus, Earth and Mars and how energy is moved around the atmospheres of these planets and the impact this has on the surface. We will also look at the movement of energy in the Sun and how this radiates out to the planets. The workshop will cover concepts such as pressure, heat transfer, the electromagnetic spectrum and gravity. It will be mainly based inside but we will observe the Sun through a Solar Telescope and make observations of sunspots and other prominent solar features. We will also look at an experiment to measure total solar flux (depending on the weather).

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WORKSHOP 24: Exploring the Rocky Shore 

Workshop Description

Heading out and understanding what makes a rock pool tick. Measure rock pools (including depth), taking percent covers of algae, using quadrats to measure biodiversity and abiotic factors such as temperature and oxygen, pH. Includes tallies, measurements, observations, photos and fair testing.  Using this information to infer what depends on what, and what we might expect if an abiotic factor were to change.  Summing up back at base, comparing information, brainstorming report. 
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WORKSHOP 25:  Life or death under the microscope

Workshop Description

Identifying the use of entomology & palynology within a crime scene and environmental factors and how this assists in the investigation of a serious crime scene. The attributes of the specialist examining the crime scene and the unique science skills they use to obtain critical information to the investigating team.

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WORKSHOP 26:  Wairarapa Fault and the Hikurangi Subduction Zone 

Workshop Description

A field trip to explore how tectonic forces at an active convergent plate boundary have shaped the Wairarapa landscape from the coastal accretionary wedge, across the forearc Wairarapa basin, to the frontal ridge of the axial ranges. We will examine how oblique slip along within the Hikurangi Subduction zones is manifested in thrust faulting in the coastal hills and strike-slip faults in the west, with particular focus on the Wairarapa Fault – renowned for the largest lateral offset ever recorded on Earth, up to 16 m in the 1885 earthquake. The workshop will also explore strategies for managing the risks associated with earthquake and tsunami hazard, both locally and within the wider western Pacific region.

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WORKSHOP 27: Tracking and Trapping

Workshop Description

Half day. Time spent making ink and chew cards, running through the physiology/behaviours of introduced and endemic species, and control methods. Links in well to the ‘Controversy in Conservation’ session. 
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WORKSHOP 28: Light Pollution

Workshop Description

A workshop covering the development of the light pollution issue over the last few decades and the response that NZ had taken starting with Tekapo/Takapō and how this has also been implemented in New Zealand. We will look at the impact of light pollution on a range of issues including the effect on pollinators, birds and humans. We will show how the science around the impact of light pollution has developed and the role that citizen science has played in getting a better understanding of this global problem. This will be an indoor based workshop with a ' virtual field trip' component in our inflatable planetarium to view the Moon garden and planting that promotes pollinators.

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WORKSHOP 29: Local River Study 

Workshop Description

Understanding river health using a SHMAK kit (or similar) and visual health assessment, and the implications for the environment. Workshop would be undertaken on-site, with a reflection back inside at the end, to summarise findings. 

We will consider abiotic factors (temperature, reach dimensions, clarity, nitrogen), and biotic factors (invertebrates). This incorporates fair testing, as well as photos, measurements and tallies. 

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WORKSHOP 30: Leaning into Literacy

Workshop Description

Head out to Ruamāhanga Farm near Martinborough and experience different ways of embedding literacy into nature based learning. This will be a hands-on and reflective morning, including science, literacy and mindfulness activities designed to develop young people’s language capacity, confidence with written and spoken word and personal wellbeing.  Alongside planting wetland trees and grasses, you will engage in sitting still, storytelling, I, We and the Planet word gathering and free-fall writing.

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WORKSHOP 31: Surviving - You are not alone! (Daytime)

Workshop Description

In many survival situations you are not alone and this can provide both benefits and challenges. Let us take you through a team building survival scenario that is fun, educational and has just a hint of competition!
You will be required to create a shelter with a team, using nothing but the natural resources available to you(supplied). Protection is the second priority in wilderness survival and it is not as easy as it sounds.
People are the most suited to working together, but it is not always clear what role is your best fit.
Finding a way forward together is a huge part of survival where everyone’s needs are met and talents are recognised.
This is a fun way to build your resilience, communication and basic survival skills.

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WORKSHOP 33:   Make a grey rock interesting! 

Workshop Description

We will focus on how you can introduce physical geography and geology to students at primary level,

We will look at a way of approaching the curriculum that unfolds the topics holistically and sequentially for students. Mountains, erosion, rivers, rocks, crystals, fossils, earthquakes, volcanoes, weather and landslides – there is no shortage of material that we will explore.

There will be lots of ideas and demonstrations of hands-on activities guaranteed to make the world of landscapes and rocks come to life for the students.

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WORKSHOP 34: How The River Rocks Roll

Workshop Description

This simple and enjoyable field trip will take us to a minimum of three locations along a local river to observe and compare the size and shape of boulders and pebbles that are eroding from the Tararua Range and on their way to become mud on the sea floor of Palliser Bay. This is a great activity as it is conceptually easy to grasp but leads to many questions about landscapes, erosion, river flow, weather, different rock types and the rock cycle.

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WORKSHOP 35:  Shake up your class with all things earthquakes

Workshop Description

In this practical workshop, Julian will share all sorts of ideas, do-able practical activities, resources and information for teaching a topic on earthquakes in New Zealand.
We will look at why and where they occur, what it feels like to be in an earthquake, what scientists are learning about potential threats, how NZ landscapes change because of earthquakes, how scientists monitor and research them and what that teaches us about the earthquake hazard.
Finally we will think about how best to prepare for a quake and what sort of things to expect if one happens.

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