Kahutara Primary School, Kupe’s sail: Ngā-Rā-o-Kupe

MoE funded PLD at Kahutara Primary School with Field Based STEM PLD Facilitator, Dr. Chris Hollis who specialises in palaeontology and climate change, and has helped establish several field based learning initiatives with schools and iwi groups.

See you in the field!

Work with us

MoE funded PLD at Kahutara Primary School with Dr. Chris Hollis

Chris Hollis and students

Chris specialises in palaeontology and climate change, and has helped establish several field based learning initiatives with schools and iwi groups. Staff and student leaders are taking advantage of fully funded PLD to help design their local curriculum.

Field Based STEM PLD Facilitator, Dr. Chris Hollis is sharing his vast knowledge of this region. Chris spent 23 years as a research scientist at GNS, with much of his research being focussed on this region.

Getting into the detail

At Kupe’s Sail Rock, it is possible to walk up stream and go back in time.

First you are able to go down the sequence of the fossiliferous sandstones (formed 10 million years ago) that make up Kupe’s Sail (photo below).

Fossil brachiopods provide evidence that these sandstones were formed in shallow marine environments.

Fossil brachiopods

Fossil burrows (below) made by animals on an ancient sea floor.

Greywacke Inclusion

The hammer is highlighting the presence of a greywacke pebble within the sandstone. This is evidence that the greywacke must have existed BEFORE the sandstone, i.e. this is evidence that the greywacke is older than the sandstone.

Greywacke

Lost Time

Beneath the 10 million year old sandstones are greywacke rocks that are approximately 110 million years old. The line that separates the sandstones from the greywacke represents a period of time of around 100 million years in which, at this location, all evidence of what was happening, has been removed. The term that we use for such a boundary (red line) is an unconformity.

Check out Geotrips

Kupe’s Sail is located at the southernmost end of the North Island.

For more information visit geotrips: https://www.geotrips.org.nz/trip.html?id=478

what we've been up to

Outdoor Science Adventures

Check out some of our outdoor science adventures. Field Based STEM facilitators are all passionate and experienced field workers.
Some have spent their working lives in Crown Entities such as GNS, others are experienced teachers with huge experiences leading EOTC, and some have combined their working lives in education and the scientific community. At Field Based STEM, we are proud to claim that every one of our facilitators can provide unrivaled field based experiences.

Read More »