Te Kura O Te Kao  were given the opportunity to think outside the box with their fundraising at the end of 2017 when a member of their community approached them with an idea to raise four calves on their vacant land at the back of the Kura. The goal is to raise them up to yearling stage and sell them on for a profit that will go towards school trips that occur during the year.

“We are open to new ideas of fundraising and this aligns well with the health of our tamariki and their whanau, reducing the need for the more traditional ways of fundraising such as sausage sizzle, cake stalls and sugar fuelled events such as discos which we are also working closely with our Energizer to address making them healthier. The reasons we like this idea is that it does not impact on the communities limited funds by expecting them to dig into their own pockets. Instead we are looking further afield and using what is freely available to us which is the land and our time” says Principal Hemi.

“This has already impacted on the Kura by making links to the HPE curriculum, encouraging students to participate in creating healthy communities and environments by taking responsibility and critical action and linking to Strand D4 - People and the environment understand the interdependence between people and their surroundings and use this understanding to help create healthy environments” noted Energizer Garth.

This is evident as the students are learning the responsibility of owning an animal and how much they rely on you. “They have to be checked on every day, they eat and drink heaps, and it is a lot of hard work especially when they get out!” says student Rihari. The classes are rostered on to look after the animals each day. Hemi goes onto say “we are noticing the children have empathy for the animals as they have noticed they have certain characteristics and have named them accordingly”.

The Kura are looking at selling the calves in Spring 2018 when they will receive another four to replace them and continue with this kaupapa.