DAY 1: Driving Digital Innovation

Activity 1: The World Wide Web [4 points]

You may not have heard of Tim Berners-Lee but this man invented the World Wide Web! All of the information on the internet is stored and accessed on the web.

TimBL, as he is known, also created the first ever website. Cool right?!

One of my favourite websites is the Te Ara site. I use it a lot for school.

Activity 2: Influencers [4 points]

You probably know of YouTube - it’s where you can watch, create, share and comment on videos.

Anyone can have their own YouTube channel. People who create videos and post them on YouTube are called ‘YouTubers’. Youtubers post videos about music, make-up, fitness, cooking and lots of other things.

In New Zealand, there are many Youtubers, including Kiwi beauty YouTuber Miria Flavell and guitar guru, Nat Pua.

Activity 3: Apple vs Microsoft [6 points]

Bill Gates is the founder of Microsoft. He is now one of the richest people in the world. He has a charity called The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which helps a lot of people.

Steve Jobs was the co-founder of Apple. He invented the Apple computer, iPod, iPhone, and iPad. Sadly, he passed away in 2011.

Both men were very clever inventors of new technology. They were also competitors or rivals.

Another example of rivalry is between the All Blacks and the Wallabies rugby teams.

DAY 2: Cracking the Code

Activity 1: Through Careful Observation [4 points]

Some people have changed what we know about the world and about how it works. We often call these people ‘scientists’ or ‘theorists.’ Famous scientists include Sir Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, Katherine Freese, Maria Goeppert Mayer and Sau Lan Wu.

Each of these scientists came up with a new theory (idea) about how things work. Much of what they discovered came from observing (watching) things closely.

Activity 2: Overcoming Adversity [4 points]

Stephen Hawking was an English scientist who studied the origin (beginning) of the universe. When he was young, he was diagnosed with Motor Neuron Disease and slowly lost the ability to walk and talk. He needed to use a wheelchair to move around and a computer to help him to talk.

Stephen Hawking showed great determination and perseverance because he didn’t let his physical challenges stop him. He ‘overcame the odds’ and achieved a huge amount in his life.

Activity 3: Hidden Figures [6 points]

Ada Lovelace was the first computer programmer. She figured out instructions that a machine could use to solve difficult maths questions.

Katherine Johnson was a brilliant mathematician who worked with NASA. Katherine’s job was to check all of the maths that the engineers and astronauts used when designing the spacecraft and flying them into space. Katherine had to learn how to code when NASA started using computers.

DAY 3: Inventive Inventors

Activity 1: Nanogirl [4 points]

Michelle Dickinson is a nanotechnologist - an engineer or scientist who works with very small items called molecules.

Michelle is famous for creating cool shows about science which she performs as “Nanogirl” in schools around New Zealand.

Like Michelle, many people in New Zealand like to create nano-sized (tiny) things. Some people even like to build tiny houses.

Activity 2: Printing Prosthetics [4 points]

Chuck Hull invented the first 3D printer. A 3D printer prints out a design in layers from a computer. They often use a material like plastic.

3D printing has changed the way we design and create things. It is possible to 3D print parts for machines, buildings and even humans!

If you have ever broken an arm and needed a plaster cast you will know that they’re not much fun to wear - especially in summer! A NZ man called Jake Evill has designed a lighter 3D printed cast that is strong, recyclable, waterproof, and ventilated (let’s air in).

Activity 3: Need for Speed [6 points]

Bill Hamilton grew up on a farm in the South Island of New Zealand. He invented the jet boat engine. It lets boats, like the Huka Falls Jet, to travel at lightning speed along rivers.

John Britten set up the Britten Motorcycle Company from his garage in Christchurch, New Zealand. One of his bikes, the V1000, won a number of international races and set a world speed record for going 304km per hour! That is very fast!

DAY 4: Hauora

Activity 1: Medical Mavericks [4 points]

Florence Nightingale was born in 1820 in England. She trained as a nurse was sent to Turkey during the Crimean War to look after wounded soldiers. The hospitals were very dirty so she spent money to clean them up. She saved many lives.

Marie Curie was born in Poland in 1867. She was a scientist who conducted many experiments. She discovered new chemicals and new uses for x-ray. She earned two Nobel Prizes for her work.

Nobel Prizes are given out every year to people who have done something extraordinary.

Activity 2: iMoko [4 points]

Dr Lance O’Sullivan is a Māori doctor who lives in Kaitaia, Northland. He has committed his life to improving the health and well-being of both his patients and people in the local community. In 2014 he was named New Zealander of the Year.

He has been part of some pretty cool projects in NZ: affordable clinics, Kāinga Ora (healthy homes), MOKO Foundation, and iMOKO.

Activity 3: Putting Our Heads Together [6 points]

There are many parts of health - physical, social, mental and emotional. Mental health is the way we think and feel about ourselves and the world around us. Sometimes our mental health can be affected by things that have happened in our lives, or by changes in our brains that we cannot control.

Here in New Zealand, people like Mike King and John Kirwan talk a lot about mental health. Overseas, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are also talking a lot about it. One of the things they suggest, is being able to talk about how we feel.

DAY 5: Creativity +

Activity 1: Ministry of Inspiration [4 points]

Have you ever heard of the Ministry of Inspiration? It sounds like fun, doesn’t it?! Their aim is to get kids thinking creatively in the areas of science, technology, engineering, arts, maths and society (STEAMS).

The Ministry of Inspiration hosts many cool activities and events, including an Aquabot competition. Aquabots are underwater robots.

Activity 2: Caine’s Arcade [4 points]

Caine Monroy made his own gaming arcade! Cool right?! He used to spend his summer holidays at his dad’s work - an auto parts store. While his dad was working, he built an arcade all by himself out of cardboard boxes and things that he found lying around the shop.

One of his dad’s customers was interested in Caine’s arcade. The customer made a movie about it and invited thousands of people to come and see the arcade. Caine became famous!