Is preserving our community for the future worthwhile?

Rationale:

• For students to understand how their actions can have an impact on the community and to develop skills to effectively communicate with the wider community / make links with the wider community. 
• For students to know the groups that make up their community and understand the value and importance of a community 
• For students to know Kaitiakitanga and special places in our school and community that need protecting
• For students to know and understand what influences a community and who holds power and influence over a community
• For students to know they have a voice and it is important to be heard

Through exploring this fertile question students will develop critical thinking skills, communication skills, emotional intelligence as well as questioning and problem solving skills.

Term 1 Focus: What is our vision of a ‘perfect community’?

Big Ideas and Key Understandings:

• Know which people influence a community
• Who has power and importance in a community
• Can students contribute to a community?
• Know and unpack Tikanga (do what is right) and the interconnections between us and our world
• Know what tikanga do we have in our community
• Understand and unpack Kaitiakitanga - What are places in our community that need protecting?
• What rules and practices make a good community?

Term 2 Focus: How can my actions eventually change the world?

Big Ideas and Key Understandings:

• To Identify Natural Energy Resources and their uses 
• To Identify effects of using Natural Energy Sources on the environment
•  Identify the range of natural energy sources and the type of energy contained in them 
• Consider their current and historical uses 
• To classify the use of these energy resources as renewable or non-renewable 
• Consider the downstream environmental impacts of their use 
• To understand the effectiveness of climate change over time
• Unpack and understand the Chaos Theory

Term 3 Focus: What needs to change?

Big Ideas and Key Understandings:

• Understand the effects of plastic in our oceans
• To create an alternative plastic 
• Discover the marine food chain and how it has effects on the earth 
• Discover and decide what needs changing in our community and make a product that will help