Recent

During our recent weXplore expedition to New Zealand’s South Island, Mother Nature tried to break our spirits from the get-go. We launched into the waters surrounding Abel Tasman National Park during a building rainstorm, our group taking a water taxi south of Separation Point and landing on the beach at Totaranui. We unloaded our gear from the boat and began to haul it to our first campsite, where students began...

This past week our grades 9 and 10 students had the opportunity to meet with Executive Chef Jinu Abraham in his kitchen at Hectors Restaurant in Auckland, New Zealand. Chef Jinu has earned renown across New Zealand for his commitment to the Good Food Project, which centers around promoting sustainable food that is locally sourced and healthy dining. It was an informative and interactive couple of hours, and Chef Jinu...

Our first class sessions of the 2014-15 school year involved a basic overview of what my goals for the course were, and I quickly shared my vision that the grade ten students create meaningful and engaging projects that deal with our local and global community. We started by discussing mission statements and worked for two entire class periods, finally coming together in agreement that: “By reaching out to the local...

Although it truly feels like our school year just began, reality dictates that in less than a month our students will be back at home for the winter holidays, sharing stories about their time in New Zealand with their family and friends. The best stories culminate from amazing experiences, though, and this week is devoted to giving our students experiences that they’ll want to share again and again. With that...

10th grader Danielle R. had the following to say about her reflection "Suitcases and shutters," which was written during her time exploring New Zealand's North Island: "I wrote the following while on a trip to the geothermal wonderland of Rotorua with the "Fellowsheep" (Editor's Note: fellow students and staff members who Danielle was traveling with). I noticed how many pictures we were all taking of something that was not particularly...

  It’s been two months since we arrived in Auckland, New Zealand, and our students have now had time to move beyond simply being visitors in a new land to rightfully categorizing themselves as full-fledged locals. Their opinions have been carefully formulated through trial and error as to who has the best coffee when its time to hit the books and which record store to hit up for the best...

Question: Have you recently fallen out of touch with someone you were once very close with? As time goes by and our social circles grow, it seems like an unfortunate inevitability. But that doesn’t mean it has to be permanent. During our recent weeklong weXplore trip to the Bay of Plenty, New Media Lab teacher Lindsay Clark decided to rekindle a lost connection for each of her accompanying students by...

To kick off our THINK Global School semester in Auckland, New Zealand, I wanted to create a unit that completely revolved around the incredible geography of our host country. Utilizing the THINK Global School Lens of Environment and Exploration*, my ninth grade global studies students challenged themselves to understand basic tenets of human geography. We began the unit with a Prezi on Maps and Map Skills. This Prezi, which can...

While enrolled at THINK Global School, students are encouraged to be creative during the course of their studies and travels. In her poem "Nature and its marvels," 9th grader Utkarsha V. recounts her adventures traveling throughout New Zealand's North Island. Nature and its marvels I gaze up at the sky full of stars, And remember my loved ones afar. It’s said that stars indicate your past, And I look at...