Learning Outside The Classroom
Aoraki Mount Cook National Park provides an awesome
environment for students to gain a deeper understanding of the
proccesses that formed the natural landscape and how people have
interacted with it over time. It has the potential to be a
rich experiential education site.
Learning Experiences Outside The Classroom (LEOTC)
is a Ministry of Education curriculum support project. LEOTC
organise many hands-on, interactive learning experiences for
children and young people visiting Aoraki Mount Cook. To get the
most out of their visit and learning opportunities, the majority of
schools stay for three to five days. Activities
include:
- Glacier Explorers: explore the Tasman Glacier
Terminal Lake by boat (school discounts offered)
- The Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre: adjacent
to The Hermitage Hotel, this centre offers schools a number of
fantastic activities; a 3D movie about the area, digital
planetarium, museum and hillary gallery (school discounts
offered)
- Search and Rescue: learn about safety in the
Mountains. Learn how the Search and Rescue team step in to help
when things go wrong.
- Walks: The Aoraki Mount Cook National Park is
home to 10 short day walks. The most popular for school groups are
the Hooker Valley, Kea Point, Blue Lakes and Governors Bush
track.
- Department of Conservation Visitor Centre: The
newly upgraded visitor and education centre opened at the end of
2009. This is an outstanding free educational resource. Schools can
organise a ranger to talk and also complete search activities while
researching and browsing the centre.
- Mackenzie/Twizel Area: visits include Twizel
Kaki/Black Stilt Recovery Programme, Benmore Power Station and
Visitor Centre and Twizel Department of Conservation Ranger
talks.
To organise your school camp or field trip and to make bookings
for any of the above activities please phone LEOTC Educator Coral
Butler on 03 4351795 or email cbutler@doc.govt.nz
For more information including learning outcomes, curriculum
links and teacher resources please click here