About Sharon

I’m a teacher in Auckland and I use teaching resources from all over New Zealand – Te Papa, Canterbury Museum and POND to name a few! I’m pretty literate and relatively digitally savvy, but I still like to print things for my classroom. I like Te Papa – it’s our national museum after all – but it’s pretty hard for me to get me and my class there. Sometimes I forget that you provide education resources – I generally find them through Google rather than going straight to your websites.

I try to include te reo and Māori concepts in my classes, but it can be hard for me to find resources. My class love it when I connect them with experts – people who are passionate about their subject. I love history and learning about New Zealand – you’d call me a cultural enthusiast. I’m in a community of dedicated teachers in Auckland, and I like to share useful resources and findings with them.

Attributes

  • Longer attention span
  • Push and pull content
  • Re-use
  • Share knowledge
  • Time poor
  • Value me

My needs

  • To complete a lesson plan for my classes
  • To find and share all the resources Te Papa has for my students’ age group
  • To excite my students about the topics I teach
  • To easily find authoritative, trustworthy subject-based resources that I can use in my classroom
  • To understand how I can use and re-use the resources
  • Professional development and training
  • To see what’s on at (and maybe book a trip to) Te Papa for schools – self-guided tours and hosted by educators
  • To connect her class with experts at Te Papa – digitally, as and when she needs – either live or via filmed resources

My pain points

  • I find it difficult to find time to plan
  • I’m frustrated by not being able to see what’s suitable for my class
  • Unusable resources ruin my day
  • I find it difficult to find relevant resources
  • I’m frustrated by not knowing I can book, opening irrelevant crap
  • Incessant clicking makes me grumpy
  • Not knowing how to find a real person to speak to at Te Papa is really frustrating

Website must haves

If I use the Te Papa website it’s got to have:

  • categorisation by age, subject, topic and levels
  • easy to find stuff I can use in my classroom
  • easy to understand resources I can remix or use as they are
  • things that I can share with peers
  • clear navigation and an easy search so I can find what I need
  • a way to book education experiences
  • clear instructions on what I can and can’t do with the resources I find

I want you to

  • Guide me
  • Inform me
  • Inspire me
  • Involve me