Manurewa Intermediate has officially opened its 6.5-acre Papakāinga rural campus in Bombay, offering students hands-on learning beyond the traditional classroom and opportunities to connect with the natural environment.
MI Papakāinga Director Jo McIntyre-Brown says the campus allows teachers to explore Education Outside the Classroom (EOTC) and Education for Sustainability (E4S) through te ao Māori (a Māori world view) to deliver learning that is essentially STEAM – covering science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics – to foster critical thinking, collaboration, creativity, and real-world problem-solving.
The school purchased the site in 2024, and landscapers spent last year dividing the campus into separate learning spaces that interact together.
A river running along the property doubles as a swimming hole, a place to build and test rafts, and an environment for children to learn about water testing, increasing biodiversity and keeping our awa healthy.
A hāngī/cooking fire pit allows students to learn how to light a fire and prepare food, while a mara kai with 30 raised garden beds teaches food security and maramataka – traditional te ao Māori gardening based on the phases of the moon.
Another area offers army-style fitness training, and a “one-of-a-kind” high ropes course allows students to experience safe risk-taking and develop resilience, perseverance, and communication and collaboration skills.
“It’s built to grow students’ confidence during their time at the rural campus. They are always clipped in, so they have a strong sense of safety,” Jo says.
Trillian Trust provided $300,000 towards the $450,000 cost of the ropes course, with the school’s application supported by Wiri Licensing Trust.
The campus also offers indoor and outdoor classroom spaces and accommodation, including a common room, dining area, industrial kitchen, and bedrooms and bathrooms.
Manurewa Intermediate students will start staying at the Papakāinga this term, visiting in class groups from Tuesday to lunchtime on Friday.
Most classes will visit once a year but some groups, such as the student leadership team and students on the eco council or campus council, may visit more frequently.
The school operates in a community that faces significant poverty, and many students have lived in Manurewa their whole lives, with limited opportunities to experience other places, Jo says.
“Even though this is only half an hour down the road, it feels very different. And the beauty of a rural campus is that it provides a level playing field for students.”
A traditional classroom setting can create barriers for some students. But the more hands-on, outdoor learning at MI Papakāinga suits those with different strengths, giving all children a chance to develop new skills and resilience.
“Kids need different things. Some of them need to climb a tree and be on their own for a while. Here, they’re not forced to be in a classroom.
“Often children who don’t experience success in a traditional classroom excel at the rural campus. That gives them an opportunity to have mana and be leaders, sometimes for the first time.”
Wiri Licensing Trust General Manager Kim Green says trustees were delighted to support a project that gives South Auckland children the opportunity to develop essential life skills and experience success.
“The high ropes course looks amazing. I think some of our team might like to have a go on it.”
or Jo, time at the campus is also an opportunity to reconnect children with nature, improving their wellbeing and helping them learn to interact with the environment in different ways.
“We don’t have to be a fast food, wasteful society – we can learn about reusing, upcycling, circularity, and the impact humans have on natural systems. We can teach kids to grow food sustainably and hopefully send them home with some produce and simple recipes they can make for their families.
“Borrowing from the relationship indigenous cultures have with the land is an approach that will allow us to live alongside our environment, rather than destroying it.
“And just being in nature is good for the students – we know that walking among trees in dappled light settles the brain. We are designed to be outside.”
Jo hopes that eventually the space can be used by other schools or made available for workshops, allowing teachers and community groups to learn skills and activities they can take back to their own schools and communities.
