Spot the Dot
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Approach:  Station
ACCESS
Level: Year 4 and year 8
Focus: Knowledge of New Zealand geography  
Resources:
Computer program on laptop computer
139KB
Questions/instructions:

This activity uses the computer.
Click on the button that says Spot the Dot.
voice-over and onscreen instructions:
You will see pictures of New Zealand places. For each picture, click the point on the map where you think the place is.
Towns and islands are marked with an orange circle.
Waterways, oceans and mountains are marked with a white square.
Click the mouse to begin.
[Each location then given by voice-over and onscreen,
same as adjacent.]
 
 
% responses
2009 ('05)
y4
y8
Correctly located: Aoraki/ Mount Cook – New Zealand’s highest mountain 27 (30) 46 (51)
  Waikato River – New Zealand’s longest river 17 (9) 47 (33)
Pacific Ocean – meets one side of New Zealand 23 (27) 46 (45)
Cook Strait – ferry boats travel across this 23 (36) 70 (84)
Lake Taupo – great for fishing and boating 23 (28) 57 (74)
Clutha River – has a large power station at Clyde 9 (11) 14 (22)
Stewart Island – a national park 38 (53) 76 (87)
Mount Taranaki – has also been called Mount Egmont 7 (11) 27 (30)
Waitangi – where an important treaty was signed 10 (9) 25 (27)
 
Total score:
 8–9
0 (0) 5 (6)
6–7
4 (5) 23 (25)
4–5
13 (18) 33 (42)
2–3
29 (33) 22 (19)
0–1 55 (44)
17 (8)
Subgroup Analysis [Click on charts to enlarge] :
Year 4
Year 8
Commentary:
On average, about 20% more year 8 than year 4 students were able to locate specific places on a New Zealand map. The places located most frequently were Stewart Island, Cook Strait, Lake Taupo, Aoraki/Mt Cook and the Pacific Ocean. At year 8, boys performed significantly better than girls. Year 4 Mäori and Pasifika students and year 8 Pasifika students scored much lower than their Pakeha counterparts.