We hope Term 2 is off to a great start for you and your students. CensusAtSchool is now in full swing, with 9,793 students from 234 schools already taking part. We’ll reach 10,000 this week!

This is an ideal time to get involved. The survey is open all term and designed to fit easily into your programme. Students love discovering what their classmates think and comparing their answers with students across Aotearoa. Take part here

New Primary Teacher Resources: Probability

Share with junior teachers in your school.

Year 1 Lucky Dip 

Ākonga will take turns playing a chance-based game that incorporates key vocabulary while anticipating outcomes. This game is intended as a single lesson for Year 1 ākonga, but it can also serve as a warm-up before the ‘Human Slot Machine’ investigation in Year 3. Additionally, it can be used as an ongoing classroom activity to reinforce language and key vocabulary.

Year 3 Human Slot Machine 

Ākonga will take turns playing a chance-based game that incorporates key vocabulary while anticipating outcomes. This game is intended as two lessons for Year 3 ākonga. The first lesson involves the creation of a pictorial tree diagram, and the second lesson involves exploring visual representations of chance-based data.

We hope you had a great break and are ready to dive into Term 2.

This is a perfect time to get your students involved with CensusAtSchool, our practical statistical literacy activity. The survey stays open all term, so you can easily fit it into your schedule.

We’ve added some new questions this year based on student ideas:

• Do you have pets? What kinds?
• Have you ever broken a bone?
• What’s your favourite colour, food, sport, or video game?
• If you could take a holiday anywhere, where would it be?
• How are you feeling today? (Answer in one word.)
• What word do you think is trending right now?

These questions help your students collect and use real-world data, promoting curiosity and strengthening their data science abilities.

Here’s how to get started:

• Register your class (if you haven’t yet)
• Already registered? Get your teacher code
• Complete the survey with your class

For more information, check out our Teacher’s Guide and the detailed Behind the Questions resource.

Any questions? Just email hello@censusatschool.org.nz.

New Resource: All Blacks and Black Ferns data

The Black Ferns and All Blacks stats website has recently been refreshed: stats.allblacks.com. It’s worth a look—data can be filtered by Black Ferns or All Blacks, current or former players.

There’s also a spreadsheet with information about current Black Ferns players that might be handy if you’re planning classroom activities during the Women’s Rugby World Cup (22 August–27 September in England).

And don’t forget about the Stat Attack data cards—these are available in Weet-Bix packets, or you can print the latest set of data cards.

CensusAtSchool 2025 is in full swing, and the response so far has been fantastic! So far, 5,131 students from 144 schools across New Zealand have taken part. Let’s keep the momentum going!

What Teachers Are Saying

We’ve loved hearing your feedback! Here’s what two teachers had to say about running CensusAtSchool in their classroom:

“[They loved] that it was about THEMSELVES!”

“They enjoyed how interactive it was and how it was all really relevant data to them”

Do you have a story to share? We’d love to feature your insights in an upcoming newsletter. Let us know how your students are finding CensusAtSchool!

Encourage Participation

It’s not too late to take part! Whether you’ve already registered or are just getting started, the process is simple. Head over to www.censusatschool.org.nz/take and get your students involved.

New Insights & Data

Of the students participating:

• 71% reported having at least one pet in their household, with 25% reporting owning more than three.
• 45% reported having a dog, with 36% owning more than one.
• 44% reported having a cat, with 45% owning more than one.

New Teacher Resource

This week, we’re highlighting DataWISE, a tool that helps students develop critical thinking skills by guiding them through the evaluation of data-based claims.

WISE stands for:

• Worthy of attention – Is this claim important?
• Inspect the data – What does the evidence say?
• Sense check – Does this claim logically add up?
• Emotion – What emotional response does it trigger?

Thanks for being part of CensusAtSchool 2025. Let’s keep the numbers growing!

We’re another week into CensusAtSchool 2025, and participation continues to grow. So far, 3,177 students from 102 schools across Aotearoa have taken part. It’s been amazing to see so many students measuring, reflecting, and exploring data in their classrooms. Thank you, too, for your feedback.

Interesting Stats This Week

Did you use any device in bed last night? ‘Device’ includes TVs, phones, computers, tablets, consoles, etc.

Do you feel like you got enough sleep last night?

Years 3 and 13 have been excluded from the graphs, as only a small number of students from these year levels have taken part so far.

Keep the Data Flowing

Haven’t taken part yet? Make sure your class completes the survey soon to be part of this exciting snapshot of Kiwi students. Remember, the survey is open during school hours until the end of 2026.

Register Now

Teacher Resource Spotlight: Data Puzzles

Are you looking for ways to bring authentic and relevant scientific data into your classroom? Data Puzzles combine classroom-friendly scientific datasets with the research-backed pedagogical practices of Ambitious Science Teaching to give your students the ultimate inquiry-based learning experience.

It’s been one week since the launch of CensusAtSchool 2025–2026, and we want to say a huge thank you to the many teachers and students who have taken part already!

Teachers have shared some great feedback about the experience so far:

“Students loved it, for once they were totally on task.”
“My students were interested with the questions about gaming.”
“The thrill of doing measurements.”
“Always fun to compare feet sizes and height in statistics.”

Top 10 Trending Words

Here’s what students are saying—how many of these words do you know the meaning of?

1. sigma
2. huzz
3. slay
4. rizz
5. skibidi
6. massive
7. dry
8. gyatt
9. baddie
10. hyperpigmentation

Thank you again for being part of CensusAtSchool – we love hearing how your students are engaging with the data! Keep the feedback coming, and we look forward to seeing even more participation in the coming weeks.

Not Registered Yet? It’s Not Too Late!

You can still sign up to take part. Register Now

Read the Teacher’s Guide

This has everything you need, including:

📌 Preparation Checklist
📌 Equipment List & Printables
📌 Measurement Station Setup
📌 Questionnaire Preview

Read the Teacher’s Guide

Optional: “Behind the Questions” Guide

Explore the purpose of all questions and how to use the data in class discussions.

Get the “Behind the Questions” Guide

Before we go: Cyberskills Live

Looking for an engaging digital learning experience for your students? Check out Cyberskills Live – an interactive platform where students can learn about cyber security, computer coding, working with data, and artificial intelligence. It’s a great way to build essential digital skills while having fun.

CensusAtSchool New Zealand – TataurangaKiTeKura Aotearoa launches today its twelfth biennial survey, giving students across Aotearoa the opportunity to explore real-world data about themselves. This large-scale national survey offers a fascinating snapshot of young people’s lives, experiences, and opinions.

Over the coming months, tens of thousands of students from Years 3–13 will take part, answering questions about everything from their screen time and tech use to their favourite foods, pets, sleep habits, gaming behaviour, and even what word they think is currently trending.

Supervised by teachers, students complete the survey anonymously online in English or te reo Māori. Alongside answering questions, they engage in hands-on activities such as measuring their height, foot length, wrist and thumb circumference, and testing their reaction speed and balance by timing how long they can stand on one leg with their eyes closed.

CensusAtSchool is a non-profit educational project, designed to make statistics engaging and relevant for tamariki and rangatahi. It is run by the Department of Statistics at the University of Auckland, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Stats NZ.

Rachel Cunliffe, co-director of CensusAtSchool, says:
“CensusAtSchool is such a brilliant way to bring statistics to life in the classroom! We’re putting real, relevant data into students’ hands so they can explore what life is like for their generation—while also growing their data science superpower skills.”

Pip Arnold, Statistics Educator and CensusAtSchool Resource Coordinator, says:
“CensusAtSchool gives students a unique opportunity to engage as both participants and data detectives. Since the first New Zealand survey in 2003, participation has grown significantly, and we’ve continually developed resources to support students and teachers. These resources help students collect quality data, understand the process of designing  questionnaires, and explore CensusAtSchool data in ways that align with current curriculum needs.”

The 2025 edition of CensusAtSchool is expected to be the biggest yet, with over 50,000 students anticipated to participate. As of launch day, 863 teachers from 490 schools have already registered.

Check out the questionnaire, explore the live dashboard, and see which schools are participating at: www.censusatschool.org.nz

CensusAtSchool Co-director Rachel Cunliffe was interviewed by Lisa Owen on RNZ’s Checkpoint this afternoon.

Listen:

And, read their follow-up article:
More than 200 schools register for census on New Zealand’s children

The new questionnaire launches in just 13 days on February 25, so now’s the time to sign up.

Quick & Easy Registration

Register now

🔎 See What’s New

👉 Preview the full questionnaire

🚀 Help Spread the Word!

Know a colleague who should be involved? Encourage them to subscribe to our newsletter.

We can’t wait to have you and your students on board for another exciting year of hands-on learning with real data!

Kia ora tātou,

Pip Arnold has put together a set of data cards for the 2024 New Zealand Olympic Team – 32 athletes who are competing at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium in the rowing and canoe-kayak events.

See information about using data cards for ideas on what to do with the data cards. Other ideas include:

• Make a set of data cards for another sport or group of sports.
• Make a set of data cards for a venue
• Add variables to the existing set of data cards, e.g., the Olympian number, where they are based, did they compete in the Youth Olympics, what year was their Olympic debut

All the data that is in the data cards is also in the CODAP document listed in the resources.

If you use these with your classes, please let us know!

Recent CensusAtSchool Resources

• Discussing the Data: Health Attitudes to Being Online and Alcohol Use
• Year 3: Survey Your Environment 
• Year 3: Leave Your Lunchbox Litter
• Year 5: Scooter or Skateboard
• Year 5: What do Year 5 Students Do At Lunchtime?

Elsewhere… 

Maths Week is coming up August 12-16. Maths Week provides free maths and stats resources for teachers and students. Register now

Nga mihi nui

Rachel, Anne, Pip, and Chris

Kia ora tātou,

Welcome back! During the break, we have significantly updated our Resources section to make it easier for you to find the materials you need to teach statistics. We’d love to hear your feedback.

Discussing the Data: Health Attitudes to Being Online and Alcohol Use

A new teaching resource to help students analyse and explore the CensusAtSchool data has now been published!

CensusAtSchool collaborated with Tūturu to create a health and mathematics resource that supports teachers as they guide students through an inquiry approach to wellbeing issues.

The resource “Discussing the Data: Health Attitudes to Being Online and Alcohol Use,” includes activities for years 9-11 students and is based on CensusAtSchool data. It provides real-life learning contexts that are engaging and relevant to young people, and includes both general wellbeing data, and tailored survey questions about being online and alcohol use.

The resource was funded by the Ministry of Education and has been in development over the past two years. Contributors included experts at NZ Drug Foundation, NZHEA, Otago University, University of Canterbury, Classifications Office, Netsafe, and Alcohol Healthwatch. The resource was trialled by teachers in a number of schools across the country earlier this year.

In addition to the teaching resource, four videos were developed to help students understand the issues reflected in the CensusAtSchool data and prompt classroom discussions. A recorded webinar hosted by the Auckland Maths Association in June guided maths teachers through relevant activities, and examples of the resource in practice.

Explore the resource

More New CensusAtSchool Resources

• Year 3: Survey Your Environment 
• Year 3: Leave Your Lunchbox Litter
• Year 5: Scooter or Skateboard
• Year 5: What do Year 5 Students Do At Lunchtime?

Elsewhere…

Maths Week is coming up August 12-16. Maths Week provides free maths and stats resources for teachers and students. Register now

Nga mihi nui

Rachel, Anne, Pip, and Chris