Connected – promoting STEM literacy

The New Zealand Ministry of Education publishes the Connected instructional series to promote scientific, technological and mathematical literacy. Connected is provided to all New Zealand primary schools and since 2013 Connected resources have been freely available to educators and students on Google Drive.

The Hub partnered with Connected to feature selected articles. We share a similar philosophy – engaging students in a critical and informed manner with authentic, contextual STEM resources.

Adding depth with Hub resources

Connected articles are ideal for cross-curricular literacy learning. With thoughtful planning, educators can integrate science with literacy to enhance learning in both areas – the article Literacy through science provides helpful information on how to achieve this.

Hub articles that feature Connected titles serve several purposes. They provide a brief synopsis of the article, associated teacher support material and links to the digital resources on Tāhūrangi. They also provide a wealth of related Hub content and activity ideas – wrap-around resources to deepen or extend student thinking and learning, practise content vocabulary or prompt inquiry.

Sampling Connected articles

This link will take you to all of the Connected articles on the Science Learning Hub.

Alternatively, we have grouped Connected titles by topic and/or concept.

• Adaptation
• Classification
• Ecology
• Environmental monitoring
• Habitat
• Mātauranga and pūtaiao Māori
• Measurement
• Science and society
• Taking action/citizen science
• Technology

Adaptation

The following articles showcase animal adaptations – what helps the animals live in a particular habitat.

• Life in Aotearoa New Zealand
• The buzz of bees
• Catch my drift
• Who’s eating who?
• Can you hear that?
• Raʻui: Giving it back to the gods
• Wildfire
• The fish highway

Classification

The following articles feature how we use classification systems to help us understand living things.

• Te tapa ingoa
• What Alice saw
• The buzz of bees
• Under the sea

Ecology

The following articles explore the interactions of living organisms with each other and the environment.

• Listening to the land
• Bringing back the birdsong
• Whakaotirangi and her kete of kūmara
• Gardening in the living room
• Counting kākahi
• What now for the Rena?
• Under the sea
• Te tapa ingoa
• Life in Aotearoa New Zealand
• Raʻui: Giving it back to the gods
• The fish highway

Environmental monitoring

Monitoring provides data – information to help us make decisions and take action. The following articles feature monitoring protocols.

• Captured in ice
• Testing the waters
• Three drones
• Kimihia Kermit
• What now for the Rena?
• Sensing data
• Listening to the land
• Under the sea
• Raʻui: Giving it back to the gods
• The fish highway

Habitat

The following articles feature habitats – the natural environments in which organisms live.

• City of bugs
• Counting kākahi
• What now for the Rena?
• Under the sea
• Raʻui: Giving it back to the gods
• Life in Aotearoa New Zealand
• The fish highway

Mātauranga and pūtaiao Māori

Mātauranga and pūtaiao Māori refer to Māori knowledge, Māori ways of knowing and associated practice, and Māori science. The following articles provide rich examples of mātauranga and pūtaiao.

• Whakaotirangi and her kete of kūmara
• Black is back
• Te tapa ingoa
• The science of rongoā
• Counting kākahi
• Kimihia Kermit
• Listening to the land
• Learning from the tangata whenua
• The tsunami that washed time away
• Sun, wind or rain?

Measurement

The following articles feature mathematics in authentic, context-based settings.

• You can count on it
• The takeaway table
• Squawkzilla
• Watching the weather
• More than a box
• Can you hear that?
• The fish highway

Science and society

We commonly encounter science-related issues. The following articles feature how science supports societal issues and how science literacy can help with decision-making.

• Fake facts
• Building for the future
• Black is back
• Emotional robots
• What now for the Rena?
• Betty Batham: biologist
• Animal X factor
• Down the drain
• Keep your cat inside
• Winning ways
• Foulden Maar: fossils or food?
• Wildfire

Taking action/citizen science

The following articles showcase student and/or community action inspired by a local interest or issue.

• City of bugs
• Sea science
• Bringing back the birdsong
• Down the drain
• Kimihia Kermit
• The war on weeds
• Global action
• Defending the dark
• Making scents
• Fostering felines
• Foulden Maar: fossils or food?
• Trees, seas and soil
• The fish highway

Technology

The following articles feature real-life technology-related issues and/or innovations.

• Amazing algorithms
• Beating the wind
• Driving us into the future
• Emotional robots
• Fake facts
• Fostering felines
• The Global Positioning System
• Lighting the sky with Raspberry Pi
• Kiwis in space
• More than a box
• Sensing data
• A sinking feeling
• The long pause
• Three drones
• The war on weeds
• To build a bot
• Turning old into new
• Watching the weather