ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

Ornate skinks at Ōhau Playcentre

During a working bee with whānau to tidy the grounds, the centre discovered an old garden box buried in a back garden, covered in weeds. As they pulled out the box, they were really surprised to find a small skink running out from the area, finding more as they cleared more.

The tamariki were very excited to see such cool little critters and eagerly jumped at the chance to build an area to keep them safe. 

They discussed what they needed and what they had around the playcentre that they could use to make it a safe space for the skinks. They decided to line the dirt pile left over from the garden box with rocks and large branches to give the skinks shelter and warmth. 

One of the parents suggested they could create some tracking tunnels to place in the area to see what else was there. Unfortunately, their homemade ones made from plastic milk bottles didn't pick anything up, so contacted Horizons to borrow some proper tracking tunnels. Happily, in the first week they put them in they had a skink print in there, as well as lots of ants, and the week after they found mouse prints too. 

Forgotten Fauna heads to Tōtara Reserve

Forgotten Fauna returned this time to Tōtara Reserve for two days of exploring some of New Zealand's lesser-known native species and the unique roles they play in our environment.

We were joined by students from Awahou School, Takaro School, and Palmerston North Boys' High School over the two days, which were filled with hands-on learning and unforgettable experiences. 

Adventures included looking at the fascinating world of pekapeka, New Zealand's only native land mammals, where students learnt about these remarkable bats, their habits, and the challenges they face in the wild. They immerse themselves in mātauranga Māori, with students listening and learning traditional techniques to create their own kōauau, a Māori musical instrument that has been used for generations to tell stories and connect people with the natural world.

Excitement reached new heights when students came face-to-face with mokomoko. Seeing these native lizards up close sparked plenty of questions and amazement as students discovered more about these secretive creatures and their place within our ecosystems. Next came an unusual invertebrate - peripatus a velvet worm that looks similar to a caterpillar and usually hard to find, so students were delighted to spot one hiding in a rotting tree branch. 

As the day drew to a close, students and teachers reflected on everything they had experienced and cast their votes for their favourite activity. While every session had its champions, there was one clear winner. The mokomoko encounter captured the hearts of most, proving that meeting these incredible native reptiles up close was an experience few would forget.

The hui was a wonderful opportunity for students to connect with nature, deepen their understanding of local biodiversity, explore Tōtara Reserve, and celebrate the unique wildlife that makes Aotearoa so special.

Environmental Leaders Action Fund

This year we offered a combined education action fund – the Environmental Leaders Action Fund, which offers any school or ECE within the region the opportunity to apply for funding towards an action project that links to Horizons strategic priorities and community outcomes. This fund replaced our Pat Kelly Enviroschools Action Fund.

We are pleased to announce the following schools and centres have been awarded funding for some amazing projects this year, and we can't wait to see the end results.

• Awahou School - Planting project
• Bainesse School - Erosion planting
• Bulls School - Ecological corridor 
• Funhouse Learning Centre - Māra kai
• Kiwitea School - Riparian planting 
• Levin School - Te Ngāhere o Ako (planting)
• Manchester St School - Whare Ngarara Uenuku (rainbow reptile sanctuary)
• Matiere School - Matiere Kaitiakitanga planting 
• Ohau School - Wonderful worms 
• Owhango School - Sensory Garden 
• Ruahine Kindergarten - Ashhurst - Water tank
• Ruahine Kindergarten - Foxton District - Planting natives 
• Ruahine Kindergarten - Linton Camp - Water tank
• Ruahine Kindergarten - Summerhill - Water tank

ENVIROSCHOOLS

New Enviroschools and Additional Funding Available

A big welcome to Ōhau School and Ruahine Takaro Kindergarten who joined the programme last term 💚

We have funding in Palmerston North for more schools, and Rangitīkei for schools and early childhood centres to join the programme. If you want to know more, get in touch here.

Tino pai 💚

Exploring pekapeka at Papanui Junction School

The students at Papanui Junction School have adopted the DOC reserve next to the school.  They have been tracking and trapping pests and learning about what native birds and trees are in the forest.  A question that they had was what animals are around at night, and they began to wonder if there were bats in the Papanui Scenic reserve.

Horizons' resident bat lady, Zoe Stone from the biodiversity team came out and set up some bat recorders throughout the forest and came back a week later to meet with the students and retrieve them.

The students shared with Zoe about their work and learnings in the ngahere. They gathered in the recorders and took them back to school where the data was analysed. It was clear from the data that there were long-tailed bat present in the reserve with 310 passes over a period of six monitoring nights from 20-25th February 2026.

Next steps include continuing with trapping pests, and targeting other ones with other traps.  The school is also planning for a Bat Community Evening with a BBQ and bat listening with detectors at dusk, followed by a night walk through the forest in Term 4.

Puketoi to the Pacific Catchment Collective work with schools

Since the inception of Puketoi to Pacific Catchment Collective, both Pongaroa and Weber schools, who are part of the Enviroschools programme, have had a strong connection to them. So much so, that they have their own environmental educator from the Collective who also helps to support their environmental and sustainability mahi. Check out their 2025-2026 review of the year on the catchment collective’s website. Ka rawe!

Resources | Puketoi to the Pacific Catchment Collective

Photos from Weber school students completing in the 2026 Green Week challenge.

Students rethink waste with Resource Recovery Centre

Ruapehu Enviroschools Facilitator Rochelle, recently organised a Taumarunui waste warriors hui at the local resource recovery centre. Read about the event here 

Another is being planned later on Term 4 for other Enviroschools in the area to attend.

IDEAS & RESOURCES

Join us for a fun filled family day of challenges and win prizes.

• Register your team today - Up to four people for just $5 per adult, children under 14 are free (your team can consist of a family or a group of friends you decide)

• Participate in 10 team challenges for the day including activities such as identifying pest animal tracks, native trees and packing a grab bag and more

• Enjoy a free sausage sizzle lunch provided by Awahou School

• Free bus transport available - Hop on from Palmerston North, Feilding, or Ashhurst, just select your pickup location when registering

• Spot prizes will be scattered throughout the day

• Team awards for top performers, best photo and more

Free bus transport is available from Palmerston North, Ashhurst and Feilding. To book and find out more head here 

Join us on Mon 19 October to learn about our FREE environmental education provision.

The purpose of this webinar is show you the breadth of education we offer, from taught sessions to education kits you can borrow, and teacher professional development.

Learn how you can still get your students out exploring the natural environment around them while still ticking off curriculum requirements (both the current and the refreshed curriculum).

Register or send apologies by emailing education@horizons.govt.nz. A Teams link will be sent on the day and the webinar will be recorded for those who cannot attend.

Learn about the 4 R's of recycling and grab a free resource pack that include stickers. Each sticker set consists of five bin stickers, for each of the five types of waste, recycling, glass, rubbish, paper and food scraps. The aim is that by clearly labelling bins, more items are likely to be recycled correctly, resulting in less waste going to landfill. Go grab yours today here