Pupils go vegan for project
Emily Ford talks to year 6 pupils about an unusual project.
‘‘I learnt animals can't be treated like that. You can eat potatoes or something, there's lots of other things you can eat.’’
It seemed like a daunting task.
Two weeks without things like meat, eggs, honey, or milk.
That’s what friends Lillian Zhang, Emma Lee, Lorreta Wang and Jacqueline Tsui thought when they decided to eat vegan for a school project about factory farming.
In fact, it turned out to be easier than expected for the year 6 Kristin School pupils.
‘‘I found giving up meat easy because my favourite foods are not meat,’’ Emma says.
‘‘After doing this inquiry, I learnt that animals can’t be treated like that,’’ Lorreta says. ‘‘You can eat potatoes or something, there’s lots of other things you can eat.’’
Lillian, Emma, Lorreta and Jacqueline also visited a farm in Kumeu to see animal living conditions and researched SAFE for information about animal products.
‘‘Factory farming harms animals and the planet. Because they have so many animals and they have to put the waste somewhere,’’ Jacqueline says.
The project is part of the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme at Kristin School.
Year 6 pupils spent a term researching causes they’re passionate about, including things like bees and homelessness, which culminated in a week-long exhibition for family and friends.
Best friends Rosa MacDonald and Isla Lewis focused on refugees and the effects of seeking refuge in New Zealand for their project.
‘‘Since there was lots on the news last year, we heard about it and we thought it would be a good idea to research more about it,’’ Isla says.
Rosa and Isla visited the Mangere Refugee Resettlement Centre and met children their age who now live in New Zealand with their families.
The pair then organised donations of sports equipment and clothes to donate to the refugee children and say it was amazing and touching meeting with them.
‘‘It was quite amazing how friendly they were when you consider all that they’ve been through,’’ Isla says.
‘‘The whole thing really stuck with us. We learnt that refugees aren’t always happy when they come to New Zealand.’’
The girls plan to donate Christmas shoeboxes to continue helping those less fortunate.