EYMM - Engineering Young Māori Minds

At 8.15am on 7 November, fourteen Ōtaki College students walked down to the Ao Amura Hui for Engineering Young Māori Minds. It was a great opportunity for students to engage in science and engineering activities. It was also an introduction to the senior science Pūhoro programme, which aims to encourage Māori students to continue with science, through extra tutoring and  intense science days.

The four practicals which involved groups of three and four students were to make a trebuchet, a motorised bug, a magnetic fishing line which would fish up the north island and coding a motor with wheels to travel from Otari, Puketapu to the West Coast.

Students found some of the practicals challenging but continued to work through the process with other students from different schools. Some students went on to win prizes which were Pūhoro merchandise. Overall it was a fun and challenging time for the students who were introduced to learning about science from a Māori perspective and understanding a little bit more about Pūhoro.