The local mudflats are an important area (within walking distance of the school) to gather kaimoana (seafood) such as tuaki (cockles). The teacher recognised the value of the Mm2 survey for helping students look more closely at the marine community of the mudflats: “Mm2 really focuses your eyes in on what’s there … students discovered new things when they looked with that scientific eye”.
Students gained understanding of sustainable harvest and what they could do to ensure there were cockles for future generations, as evidenced by their comments: “If you took only a few cockle every day, then that would mean they would still be there when you are older”; and “We want the best for all our ancestors and all the people that come after us – we want to save it and keep it clean”.