Good Bye New Zealand

As I begin to pack our bags for our return trip to New York, I've had time to reflect on our life here over the past year. It's been a wonderful experience living in New Zealand. I've made some good friends. I've tried different things. I've seen beautiful, memorable sights.

Working in the schools has been a valuable experience, giving me the chance to see other teachers in action. I'm very grateful to those who opened up their classrooms to me and shared their insights and passion for teaching, and to those who have steered me toward the educational books that have so influenced New Zealand education. Having the time to read, discuss and reflect has been priceless.

Perhaps one of the best reasons for travelling is that it gives you a chance to think about your own life in a way you could not before you were exposed to a different culture. Living in a foreign country has reminded me how much I enjoy my life back in New York and how much I miss teaching at Cottage Lane. While I'll miss my beautiful New Zealand, and I know that my life is richer for having spent time here, I am excited to be heading home. A year is a long time to be away.

Thanks to all of you who have been reading this blog. How I've loved reading your comments!

See you all soon! If you're around Cottage Lane at the end of August, please stop in. You know I'd love to see you!
~Ms. Christie-Blick

North Island, New Zealand

As you'll recall, New Zealand is made up of two large islands (plus some smaller islands). Although we've spent most of our time down on South Island, North Island is not to be missed! Here are some pictures we took while exploring the mountains, the forests, and the caves. Can you tell that the mountain in the photo above is a volcano? Would you go inside a cave with just the light on your helmet to see?

North Island also has some awesome geothermal features! That means it has geysers, hot springs and mudpots. They are fascinating and beautiful. They are also fun to watch because the heat inside the ground heats up the groundwater, causing it to shoot high into the air as a geyser. Sometimes the water boils and bubbles in a mudpot, making a blurping, blubbing sound.

Click here to listen to, and see, mudpots in action!

Click here to see an animation of how a geyser works.

Click here to see hot springs in other countries.

Visiting The Kingdom of Tonga

Chirpy and I completed our last set of school visits in the Kingdom of Tonga. What amazing sights we saw! This is a different country from New Zealand. We flew four hours north from my home in Christchurch, NZ, to reach the main island.

See if you can find Tonga on Google Earth. When you do, you'll see that it's an archipelago. It's a difficult word to pronounce, so click on the word to hear the pronunciation, and then try saying it aloud. An archipelago is a bunch of islands. Tonga is an archipelago because it is made up of 169 islands, although only 36 of the islands have people living on them.

Because it's so close to the equator, it stays warm all year round. Even though it's winter there now in June, the days are warm and sunny, with highs around 80 F. They also get lots of rain throughout the year. That means there are lots of beautiful, tropical plants growing all over the islands. There are also coconut trees and banana trees in people's yards, as well as just growing wild. See the banana tree growing at this school?

Even if you live on a beautiful, tropical island, you still have to go to school, so that's what the kids of Tonga do every day, Monday through Friday, just like the kids in the United States. Chirpy and I found many differences between the Tongan schools and Cottage Lane, however.

You'll notice in these pictures that the students wear uniforms. On Wednesdays and Saturdays mothers wash clothes, so the kids can wear whatever they like to school on Wednesdays.

The adults, both men and women, usually wear skirts. All of the teachers, and other government workers, are required to wear a taovala over their skirt. In the photos you can see the taovala tied on top of the skirts. Most Tongan adults wear skirts and sandals to keep cool and comfortable, and because it's part of their tradition.

The taovala is made out of plant leaves. The leaves are soaked in water, then hit with a wooden hammer until soft. They are then woven together to make the wrap-around. There are many different types of taovalas, and different designs are woven into the taovalas. It reminds Tongans of their traditions. In this photo, you see some young men in their skirts and taovalas walking past the fruit and vegetable markets.

One of the mothers made a taovala for me, so I too had one to wear to school each day. In this photo you can see some of the mothers making taovalas while they're waiting for their children at school. The mother on the right in the blue shirt made mine. I was delighted. The Tongans were pleased that I would wear one because it showed I respected their traditions.

The country of Tonga is a poor country. It doesn't have many natural resources like the United States, and until recently, it hasn't had the help of other countries. The result is that the people have a much simpler lifestyle than the typical American. Their houses are smaller and not as strong; the people don't own as many things; and many of their roads and buildings are in need of repair. This photo shows a typical house in Tonga. Notice the roosters in the front yard. Most families have roosters, chickens, and pigs. They run free around the neighborhood until they're cooked for dinner.

Many of the school buildings are also in need of cleaning and repair. Most classrooms have no books for the children to read, paper to draw on, or crayons with which to draw. They are given notebooks to write in, but these need to last them all year. This photo shows the entrance to one of the classrooms.

Many of the classrooms are overcrowded, with 40 children per class. The teachers do the best they can, but it's impossible to give individual help in classes this big. This photo shows a typical classroom. Notice that the teachers try to make the classroom as nice as possible by putting up children's work and instructional posters. If you click on this picture to enlarge it, you may notice that some of the posters are in Tongan but many are in English. At school, the children learn both languages.

Often, the school play areas are very muddy because there's so much rain in Tonga. Also, the pigs get in and tear up the grass looking for grubs in the soil. The schools cannot afford playground equipment likes slides and swings, but the kids always find fun games to play. The boys especially like playing in the mud. Since shoes are not required they don't have to worry about getting them dirty! In contrast, most of the girls don't like getting muddy. Click here to see a video of the girls playing on the playground.

In addition to the main island, I visited four other islands in Tonga. Some of the islands were so small that they had only one village and one elementary school on the whole island. To get to them I had to fly in a small plane for an hour and then take a boat for another hour. In this photo, an officer from the Department of Education is leading the way back to our boat (at the end of the jetty on the right) after one of our school visits.

To get to some of the schools I then had to walk through the bush (wilderness) to get to the village. This photo shows a boy in front of his house on one of the small islands. There are no cars and no roads on this island. In the village, and at the school, there is no electricity and no running water.

There are only 17 children and 2 classrooms at this school. The 5 to 8-year-olds are in one class, and the kids 9 - 12 are in the other class. There are two teachers. One of them is also the principal. When the children are 13, they have to move to another island and live with a relative if they go to high school. There is no high school on this island. In this photo, the younger kids have joined the other class while their teacher is at a principal's meeting. I gave paper and crayons to the school. The kids drew pictures for my American students in return. They liked the idea that their pictures would travel all the way to the United States!

You may be wondering where I lived while I was in Tonga. I stayed in the homes of teachers. They were very good to me and helped me understand Tongan culture. I learned a lot from them. I lived with Teuloi and her family on the island of Tongatapu for a week and a half. She teaches 8-year-olds at Longolongo School. This is a photo of Teuloi in her front garden.

I stayed with Losana and her family for a week on Va vau Island. She teaches at Va vau High School. She is also the assistant principal. Her husband is the principal. This is a photo of Losana looking at sea urchins on the coral reef. It was interesting to talk with these teachers in a country so far away from my own, and so different in so many ways, and discover that we had so much in common. We all work very hard to try to do what's best for our students.

I had many wonderful experiences in Tonga. I saw many sights that I had never seen before. Conversations with the Tongans made me think about our American society, our values, and our schools in a different way. My life is richer for having known them. I come away with a great deal of respect of the people of this small kingdom in the middle of the South Pacific Ocean.

Christchurch vs. Manhattan

When I tell you that Christchurch is the largest city here on South Island, in New Zealand, you probably picture a city like Manhattan. While it's true there are some similarities, they are very different. The most noticeable is the size. While Manhattan is home to about 8 million people, less than half a million live in Christchurch. In order to accommodate all of those people, Manhattan has many skyscrapers. Christchurch doesn't need to build such tall buildings. There wouldn't be enough people to live and work in all of them!

Here are some pictures from around the city. In the photo above you'll notice there are some tall buildings, although they aren't tall enough to be called skyscrapers. The trolley you see runs on tracks and is touching electric wires overhead. It takes tourists around the city and doesn't cause any pollution since it runs on electricity rather than gasoline.

In the middle of the city is a large, open area. It is often used by buskers. These are people who perform for anyone who is passing by. They ask for donations after their performance. The people decide how much to give depending on how much they enjoyed the show. This juggler has drawn quite a crowd for his performance!

Also in this large courtyard is a large chess set. Anyone who wants to can play. As you can see, the chess pieces are very large, although they are lightweight for easy moving.

While some of the buildings are quite modern looking, like the Art Gallery in this photo, other buildings are very old looking.

The early settlers came from England, Scotland, and Ireland. They missed their homeland when they moved to New Zealand, so they built some buildings that would look similar to the ones they left behind in their own countries. This building, made of stone, looks like it belongs in England, Ireland or Scotland. It used to be a university, but now it's a cultural center for the city. There are specialty shops and restaurants here, as well as movie theaters, and theaters for live shows.

One thing both Christchurch and Manhattan have in common is a large, beautiful park. Instead of Central Park, Christchurch has The Botanical Gardens. It has many lovely gardens, as well as grassy areas for picnics, and a little river for kayaking.

One of my favorite streets in Christchurch is New Regent Street, pictured here. The shops and restaurants are built to look like a street in Spain, with each one a different color. If you enlarge this picture, you can see teddy bears escaping from a shop window!

There are many fountains and gardens around the city to make it look beautiful. One of my favorite fountains is this one outside a restaurant. Does it remind you of dandelions? We went to this restaurant for dinner once. The fountain and pond looked even more beautiful at night all lit up.

The River Avon flows through the city. There are lovely gardens and grassy areas all along it so people can take a relaxing stroll, or sit on its banks and have a picnic lunch. It's very shallow, but it's deep enough for small boats. Some people rent kayaks and go kayaking on the river.

You won't be surprised to learn that the river bank is Chirpy's favorite place in the city. He makes friends wherever he goes!

We're lucky to live so close to this lovely little city, just a 20-minute drive away. There's always something interesting or fun to do: watching a show, looking through a museum, shopping in the New Zealand specialty stores, picnicking in a park, or just walking along the streets looking at all the sights. Do you enjoy going into the city?

Chirpy Visits Australia

Chirpy and I have just returned from a two-week vacation in Australia. My friend, Nancy from New York, joined us. We had a GREAT time!

Although many Americans get New Zealand confused with Australia, they are very different countries!

If you look at Google Earth, you'll see that both of the countries are in the southern and eastern hemispheres, but Australia is much larger than New Zealand. It is located northwest of New Zealand, which means it's closer to the equator. This is good for me, because it's fall here and getting cold in New Zealand, but it's still nice and warm in Australia. Some people call the country Oz. The people who live there call themselves Aussies.

We flew one hour to the North Island of New Zealand, and then changed planes and flew three more hours northwest to get to the city of Sydney in Australia. Sydney is a very big city and has lots of highrise buildings, just like Manhattan although not as many.

I took this picture from a boat in Sydney Harbor. Can you see the tallest building in Sydney? It is very narrow - just big enough for an elevator. At the top is a circular building - a revolving restaurant! We went to the restaurant at nighttime and ate our dinner while the restaurant slowly spun around. An hour and a half later, we had seen all of Sydney with its bright lights and beautiful buildings. What an experience!

The most famous structures in this city are the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Bridge. Many people recognize them in pictures before even reading the names. At night they are all lit up and look really beautiful. In this photo you can see the opera house to the left of the bridge if you look closely (or click on the picture to enlarge it). There's a close-up picture below.

We took a tour of the opera house to learn about its architecture. It was very interesting to hear about the man who was so creative that he was able to design a performance hall that looked like no other building in the world. Since it sits right on Sydney Harbor, he wanted it to resemble the boats, sails, shells, and the waves. Do you think he succeeded?

One evening we attended the ballet of Don Quixote (a Spanish name pronounced don-kee-hoe-tee). We enjoyed the ballet and just being in this famous building, and we LOVED the views of the city and the bridge from the balcony during intermission.

Australia is the home of amazing animals found nowhere else in the world! One day we visited a wildlife park to see a wide range of its animals. The most famous Australian animal is the kangaroo. When my family and I lived in Australia many years ago we saw kangaroos in the wild. They are afraid of people and hop off quickly. Do you see its powerful-looking tail and feet? If it feels threatened, it will stand up, rock back on its tail and then kick its enemy with its feet. It may also hit with its little hands, making it look like it's boxing.

In this park the kangaroos are very tame and used to people. You can even buy ice cream cones filled with hay and seeds to feed the kangaroos!

A kangaroo is a marsupial. That means the female has a pouch in front of her stomach. When she has a joey (a baby kangaroo), it rides in her pouch so she can keep it safe. As you might have guessed, the adult kangaroo can jump far and go very quickly with those long feet and strong legs.

Another marsupial is the koala. Some people think it's a bear, but it's not. Since it's a marsupial it also has a pouch for its baby, just like a kangaroo, so don't call it a koala bear! The koala in this photo looks fake, but he's real. He turned just in time for me to take the photo. If you're still not convinced, click below!

Click here to see a koala in action. Isn't he cute?! I got to pet one of the koalas. Its fur was very thick and soft. Its breath smelled of eucalyptus leaves - its favorite food.

Both the kangaroo and the koala are nocturnal animals, so most of them were asleep when we were at the park. We were lucky to see some that were awake between naps.

Do you know the song, "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree"? There are many kookaburras in the forested areas of Australia. A gum tree is a eucalyptus tree, and there are lots of them throughout the country.

Kookaburras make a noise that sounds like they're laughing. When one starts that gets all of the other kookaburras in the area "laughing" as well! It's lots of fun to hear them. Click here to see the kookaburra song and hear a real kookaburra.

There are also many colorful birds in Australia. This is a picture of a lorikeet. Isn't its coloring amazing? I got this close-up picture in the wildlife park, but we saw many flying in the wild. It camouflages itself among brightly colored fruit in trees.

Needless to say, Chirpy liked the birds the best. In this photo you see he's having a cultural exchange with an Australian pelican. He learned that there are many pelicans around the country, especially near the coast where they can catch fish in that long bill. The pelican has the longest bill of any bird in the world. Click here to find out more interesting facts about the Australian Pelican.

After a week in Sydney, we took another three-hour plane ride to get to the center of Australia. We wanted to see the famous Uluru (also called Ayers Rock). Here is a picture of it from the plane. It's a mountain in the middle of a desert. It looks strange because all of the other mountains have eroded away, leaving Uluru by itself. The native people of Australia are the Aborigines (just as the native people of the United States are the Native American Indians). The Aborigines believe that Uluru is very sacred, or holy. They have many legends about the gods and goddesses who formed this mountain.

One day we walked around Uluru. There is a walking trail near the base of the mountain. We began the 11 kilometer walk early in the morning when it was still cool. Soon however, the sun began beating down on us. The red earth soaked up the heat and radiated it back. The flies came out and pestered us mercilessly. It was hot and dry. Three hours later we reached our starting point. We had made it all the way around. We were glad we had experienced Uluru up close. It was so interesting and beautiful. Later we agreed it had been one of our favorite days.

You're probably wondering why the earth is so red in the Australian outback. There's lots of iron mixed in the soil. Iron is red so the dirt looks red.

On our walk around Uluru we met Jordan and his mom, who were also taking the walk. They're Aussies from Perth, a city on the other side of the country. Jordan is nine years old. He liked meeting Chirpy and holding a bird that had come all the way from New York. He'd like to visit the United States some day (And go to Disneyland!).

One morning we rode camels through the outback. As the sun rose on Uluru in the distance we could hear dingoes howling. Dingoes are wild dogs, similar to our wolves, but they look very different. I had hoped to see them, but they stayed well-hidden from our camel train. Click here to see pictures and to learn more about dingoes.

As usual when visiting another country, we learned lots, had loads of fun, and had new experiences we will long remember.

Click here to go to an Australian kids' Internet site.

Boy with a Thorny Devil.

Chirpy Just Wants to Have Fun

Playgrounds!

Aren't they wonderful?!

I wonder who invented the first playground?

I wonder how playgrounds have changed over time?

I wonder if playgrounds are different in different countries?

Chirpy checked out nearby playgrounds here in New Zealand.

Which one would YOU like to visit?

In this photo you can see that he made some friends.

These Kiwis live close by and often bike to the park.

Here's a larger playground with lots of things to climb.

Younger kids needed help on the climbing wall and some of the climbing frames, but the older kids had no problem.

Does this look like your kind of place?

Maybe you'd prefer a playground, with a wading pool, right next to the beach?

This photo was taken in February, which is summertime here.

The New Brighton Beach is on the other side of the playground.

As you can see in this photo, it's a lovely, big beach, with a pier that's great for walking, or fishing, or watching the surfers.

Unlike beaches in America, beaches in New Zealand never get very crowded, so there's always lots of room to play!

We live in the little town of Sumner.

Here is a photo of our little playground at Scarborough Park.

It also has a wading pool and it's right by a beach, so you could play at the park, cool off in the pool, and then go build a sand castle.

There's a cafe and ice cream shop here called Scarborough Fare.

You won't understand why this is funny, but your parents will!

Here is a very different playground.

It has lots to climb, plus it has a zip line!

It ALSO has a skateboard and bicycle park.

It's really built for big kids, your age.

On the other side, there's a smaller playground with play equipment just the right size for little kids.



Here's a photo of a kid about to ride the zip line.

Click here to see the zip line in action!

What do YOU wonder about playgrounds?

Reading. Reading? Reading!

Visiting a country is a wonderful way to get to know a place. Living in a country allows you to get to know the people. Reading, allows you to really understand the people and the place. It can also keep you out of trouble! Let me explain.

Throughout my time here in New Zealand, I have been reading often and from many different sources. Why? Because it's interesting and fun; also because it helps me have a richer experience living in my new country. It gives me a deeper understanding about why the country is the way it is, and why the people think and act the way they do.

Reading the local newspaper every day has taught me a lot about the good and bad things in the society. Although I would like to think that no bad things happen here, I know that's not realistic. I think it's better to know the truth.

Reading fictional and non-fictional books about New Zealand has given me lots of information and insight into Kiwi culture. For example, I now know that Captain Cook sailed to New Zealand from England in 1770. He told the English about this country and they sent people over to colonize it. At first the Maori people welcomed these white people to their land, but then fighting broke out. A treaty was signed between the two groups over a hundred years ago. Unfortunately, they did not always deal fairly with each other, so there are still some hard feelings between these groups even today.

In a historical fiction book I read, The Rose, I learned all about living in a little coal mining town of New Zealand in the late 1800's. Although the people in the story were just make-believe, the author described that period of history and the town so well, I could feel the cold, damp, bleak winters of the west coast as the miners slogged to work every morning to get to the mines.

Another interesting book I read was Jack's Hut, a series of true stories written by a woman whose family used to visit a little vacation house up in the Southern Alps.

A few weeks ago, when I was driving through these same mountains, I discovered the real Jack's Hut!

In this photo you see me in front of the house with the book.

After visiting the area I could really imagine what it would have been like for the author living here in the 1960's.

While in New Zealand, you know that I'm also learning about the schools. It's interesting to find out what another country thinks is important to teach their future generation(Kids!). What knowledge, skills, and values you children of today learn will determine what kind of society we have in the future when you become adults. That's why I think teaching is the most important job in the world. Luckily for me, in addition to visiting classrooms and talking with teachers, I've discovered a great teacher supply store with a wealth of books about teaching in New Zealand, and I have the time to read them and think about them!

One type of reading material that can be fun, and exciting, but also very tricky, is the brochure. I get very enthusiastic about visiting the great places I read about in brochures, but they don't always turn out to be as wonderful as promised. I have to remember that the author is using persuasive writing to try to convince me to come, so I must read it very carefully and imagine what it will really be like before I take the journey or spend my money!

Wherever we travel in New Zealand, we make sure to take along a few little guide books to the birds, flowers, and trees. Seeing them in real life is great, but knowing more about them makes my life richer. Nature is fascinating! For example, did you know that kiwis have their nostrils at the tip of their beaks? (See top picture of this posting. Chirpy and his new friend, a kiwi, are reading a folktale about the kiwi.) Kiwis are the only birds that use smell to find food underground. They tap their long beaks along the forest floor smelling for worms and insects, but then have to blow out their nostrils because dirt gets up their nose!

Finally, I also told you that reading can keep you out of trouble. It's true! Check out these signs that I've seen on my travels around the country. They further prove that reading is important! It could save your life!! Good thing you're reading this, eh?!!

Wainoni School

Once upon a time,

not so very long ago,

at the end of the world,

I met Tiger Lily.

He was sitting at his desk in his classroom at Wainoni School. Even though he had a girl's name, he's a boy and the kids loved him anyway.

Tiger Lily was a very special teacher, in a very special classroom, in a very special school. His students were ages nine to twelve. That meant that some of the kids would have Tiger Lily for their teacher four years in a row. Lucky kids! Jayden, here at the entrance of the school, is one of his students.

Sometimes the students worked hard at school, like when they were working on Math problems. Since the children were different ages, and had different abilities, they got different sheets to practice their Math.

Other times, they got to try out cool programs on the the school's new computers. Fisi took a photo of himself on the computer. At the click of a button he turned it into a "drawing".

Tiger Lily, like all dogs, had a master. Her name was Miss Scott. Sometimes, he let her teach a lesson. The kids liked her a lot. She was funny, and kind, and fun-loving. She was also very strict with them, so they knew she cared about them and wanted them to do their best.

Their classroom was called Totora. A totora is a native tree growing in New Zealand forests. Miss Scott reminded the kids to stand tall, like the totora tree. They should behave in a way that they could always stand tall and be proud of themselves. They promised they'd try.

Wainoni School students were a wonderful blend of Maori, Pakeha, and Samoan. As you know, from the other postings on this blog, the Maori people were the first people to inhabit these islands that make up New Zealand, just as the Native American Indians were the first people to inhabit what is now called The United States. Te Rata (the boy on the left) is Maori. Dylan is Pakeha. That means his family was originally from a European country (maybe England, or Ireland, or Germany). The Samoan children, like Fisi in the photo above, have parents or grandparents from the island of Samoa, which is not too far away from New Zealand. You can find it on Google Earth. You will see that it is north of New Zealand.

Sometimes, when a student was very well behaved, Tiger Lily took him out for a quick walk around the school yard. Michael was the lucky one this day. All the kids liked to have this privilege.

During my two weeks at Wainoni School I spent most of my time watching and learning. However, I did get to teach some reading skills, and I got to read to the students. I wasn't sure which book to choose as a read-aloud, so I emailed Mr. Freeley at Cottage Lane, and described the kids in this class. He encouraged me to read Holes, a book read by several of the 5th grade classes at Cottage Lane. Good choice. Tiger Lily's students loved it. Thanks Mr. Freeley!

Every Friday, for the last period of the day, all 150 students in the whole school (5-year-olds to 12-year-olds) got to choose an activity. Every two weeks the options changed. This week they could choose one of the following: gardening, make-up and jewelry, sports, playground time, computers, arts & crafts, cooking, or water play. Kids from different classes and different ages were mixed in together so they got to know each other. Older kids helped the younger ones. Which activity would you choose?

Didn't the girls do a good job on my make-up and nails?! (Click on the photo to enlarge.)

Look at the beautiful necklaces they made!

Cooking was a scrumptious choice!

The kids had a blast during the water activities!

Tiger Lily's students LOVED the Culture Books from my Cottage Lane students so much that they wanted to create Culture Books to send back to America. They had fun thinking about their culture and what makes it special.

They asked lots of questions, such as, "Do the American kids play rugby and cricket at recess?" and "Do the American kids eat Hokey Pokey?"

They made wonderful Culture Books. They would like to visit the United States some day, and hoped the Cottage Lane kids would visit New Zealand some time.

What about Tiger Lily? Well, it had been a busy week, and by Friday afternoon, like teachers everywhere, he was exhausted!

The Wainoni students lived happily ever after....

Global Warming

888Have you been hearing about Global Warming?777

It's big news in New Zealand, in the United States, as well as in most other countries of the world.

888It affects you so you need to know about it.777
2500 scientists from 130 countries have recently completed their report. They have been working together for the past six years to come to this important conclusion:

8888Human activities are causing the earth to get warmer.7777

Why is this important?

Why is this bad for everything that lives on our planet?

The planet needs to stay in balance. That is, there needs to be the right amount of hot and cold, dry and wet, oxygen gas and carbon dioxide gas in order for plants and animals to live here. These are the earth's systems. They need to stay balanced.

What happens if the earth's systems get too unbalanced?

Scientists say that ocean levels will rise. People who live near the ocean will be flooded. This is called "coastal flooding". Click on the photo above to enlarge. This is the town I live in, in New Zealand. See all of the homes that are near the ocean ? They would be ruined by coastal flooding.

Some areas of the world will become hotter and drier. They will have a drought. It is hard to grow crops or raise animals for food for yourself and others if you are in an area that is having a drought for many years.

Some areas will become colder, with more freezing temperatures. Some areas will have more storms and stronger storms. In other words, we will have climate change. The picture above is one I took when visiting the city of Auckland, on the North Island of New Zealand. Many people would be affected by coastal flooding in this city. Many offices and businesses would be flooded.

Many plants will not be able to grow if the climate changes too much. "Climate" means weather over a long period of time. If plants can't grow because the climate has changed, animals will lose their food and habitat. Many will become extinct.

Lake Tekapo, shown in this picture, is in the mountain range called The Southern Alps, a few hours' drive from my home. This area could also be affected by Global Warming. If these mountains get too much snow, or not enough snow, year after year, the plants cannot survive.

Beautiful areas throughout New Zealand will change forever if there's too much Global Warming. Many areas around the world would change.

...What's the good news?...

The good news is that people can help keep the earth's systems in balance. Earth's hot and cold, and dry and wet, are kept balanced by the amount of carbon dioxide gas there is in the air and the oceans. Having too much or too little gets all of the systems out of balance. I took this picture from the deck of my house. If you enlarge the picture you can see the ocean just beyond the houses.

How do we keep the amount of carbon dioxide balanced?

The carbon dioxide has gotten out of balance, and continues to get worse. People have created too much air pollution. The air pollution has carbon dioxide in it. The good news is that if we cut back on air pollution we cut back on the amount of carbon dioxide in the air. This will help carbon dioxide get back in balance!

How do we stop creating so much air pollution?

Cars, planes and factories are the biggest causes of air pollution. They burn gas and coal to run, and this causes air pollution.

However, they also use filters to trap some of the pollution. Using better filters will trap even more of the pollution before it goes into the air. Using cars and factories that burn products other than gas and coal, that don't create air pollution, will help the environment. Using solar power, water power, or wind power (instead of coal or gas) to make electricity will help a lot.

888What can a kid do to help the planet?777

lRide with a friend so fewer cars are used.

lRecycle products, so fewer new products need to be made in factories.

lUse only the electricity and water you need, and don't waste.

lTalk to grown-ups about Global Warming and the future of our planet. They can vote for people who will set up laws to protect our environment. Remind them that it's important to you and your future children.

88Working together, we can keep our planet a beautiful place to live for plants and animals and us!77

Click here to see animated movies about Global Warming.

Click here to play Climate Change games.

Click here to read more about Climate Change.

Click here to go to Recycle City and see how the townspeople are taking care of the environment.

Click here to see the EcoKids' club house and play environmental games.

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