You can contact LEARNZ, part of CORE Education, at:
Postal Address:
PO Box 13 678,
Christchurch 8141,
New Zealand

Real life engagement with scientists on ice was interesting - great for students to see what we had been studying in real life.
This LEARNZ Antarctica field trip has given me the confidence to continue to integrate digital technology into my programmes. My class were very engaged in their learning and it was well integrated through Literacy, Science and Mathematics.
Students said it was great because it simulated going to Antartica and it was awesome seeing (our ambassador) BuzzBee there. It was easy to set up my programme using Google classroom so students and their families could see what was happening whenever they wanted.
All students (Year 8, Levels 2-5) were able to access and make sense of the content. Antarctica fitted perfectly with our concept study of 'Environments'. It was our first experience and we will be back for more.
My students have a different view of the world we live in after this field trip. My students love the field trips.
The LEARNZ virtual journey to Antarctica was great because EOTC is not possible in Antarctica for a school classroom to do for real. The opportunity to hear real scientists talk to the LEARNZ representative, Shelley Hersy, was very valuable and also helped us form some of our science goals.
We loved the field trip! Thanks so much for all that you do. It is such an engaging way to connect with various areas of the curriculum.
This is an effective and engaging part of my literacy programme. My Pasifika students, in particular, are much more engaged with a Learnz field trip than other academic activities. Especially relevant in meeting the vision of the NZ Curriculum.
The LEARNZ personnel and experts feel like real friends or students' own personal teacher, which helps to make the learning experiences very potent. They field trips like Antarctica are great and I just love the work you all do to make them interesting and engaging. Thank you.
The unit was an excellent opportunity to integrate the Principles, Values, Key Competencies across a range of curriculum areas within authentic learning situations. The students really enjoy the online learning resources, especially the audio conferences.
It has been one of the best units I have taught in my 16 years of teaching - I would recommend it to anyone. I do think that it has been particularly successful in my classroom because we signed up for the extras such as the ambassador and the audio conferencing - that's what really made it come alive for me and the children in my class.
The field trip supported the development of Key Competencies, and provided up-to-date information relevant to Education for Sustainability.
It definitely ticked the boxes. A great topic. We enjoyed all that was on offer.
The 'real-time' trip increased motivation for students and hooked them into their learning. The virtual relationship with Shelley was a highlight. A class visit from David Wallace, who visited Antarctica in 2012, reinforced all the students had seen and inquired about through LEARNZ.
The idea of virtually going to Antarctic created such a buzz and a HUGE level of engagement. It's great the way LEARNZ leaders connect with students - they present everything in such an accessible way but have high expectations that students can and will be able to understand fairly sophisticated concepts.
Listening to someone who was there reinforced how close we are to Antarctica and viewing the videos diaries really focused the students into the whole experience. The readings and activities made students manage their time appropriately.
Excellent source of information for the students, aimed at their level, well presented and easy for the students to access and work with. Students found it extremely interesting and they learnt plenty of new things about Antarctica.
Provided real meaning and connections to topical subjects like global warming. There was a high level of interest about Antarctica from the students.
We integrated the learning across all curriculum areas, which was easily done. All my students enjoy learning in this way and the background reading was perfect for my Year 4 class.
WOW, what a powerful learning tool the Audio Conference was - our extension Year 3-4 students were so engaged in listening and learning that they didn't make a sound.
The students particularly enjoyed the videos and the quizzes. They also commented on how much they liked how the diaries were written as if they were there. This LEARNZ Antarctica trip fitted in well with the Nature of Science aspects of questioning and using vocabulary that we were focussing on.
The trips like Antarctica are fantastic. It enables all children no matter what ethnicity or socioeconomic group to explore the world. My teaching practice has been transformed as LEARNZ allows me to present learning with a digital approach, using multiple computers and devices and guiding students in combination with Google Classroom.
Children loved every part of the experience- thoroughly engaging. Really cool for the students to be able to participate with a group outside of their immediate context!
I run the GATE programme and we do Future Problem Solving so the ecological sustainability was particularly relevant. A great teaching tool which is motivating for students.
It has taken my students to new worlds of understanding, given them purpose and focus to read and write about a 'real-life' topic that is of interest to them.