John Mills and ten Year 10 students left in a van at 8am as part of their Social Studies inquiry into equity. As poor weather was forecast, we modified our itinerary to cover the North Head Tunnels first. An awesome time was had by students as we explored the mystery and history of North Head. We then went to Bayswater for an early lunch break.
Second stop was at Westhaven Marina to start our photo essay of extreme wealth. Unfortunately this part of the trip did not work so well, as the rain was torrential and yacht, superyacht and berth prices couldn’t be investigated fully.
The Wynyard Quarter was followed by a slow cruise up Paratai Drive, with lots of stunned comments from the kids about the decadent properties. I was unable to resist a slow drive-by of the Prime Minister’s Parnell mansion. I did though, ensure we did this part of the trip before we visited any shops which might sell eggs or flour!
The students were then tasked with photographing upmarket shops, hotels and vehicles as they walked down Parnell Rise. Following a detour pointing out Auckland University and AUT,students were dropped at Aotea Square, with instructions to wander down Queen Street to the Ferry Building, meeting there at 3 pm. Six students did not turn up at the planned rendevous, so after minor panic on my part, I drove back to where they had been dropped. To my relief, they were all standing there, looking rather sheepish! We headed home, getting back at 6.15.
The students gained a lot from the experience and interacted well at all times.