Heat Kits into Schools
Warm Homes Start with Knowledge
Heat Kits into Schools
Helping tamariki explore what makes a home warm, dry, healthy, and energy efficient through hands-on learning, practical tools, and real-life investigation.
Delivered by WISE Charitable Trust with support from Powerco and Health New Zealand.
What is Heat Kits into Schools?
Heat Kits into Schools is an interactive educational programme that gives students the opportunity to investigate how homes work — from heat loss and ventilation to moisture and energy use.
Through classroom presentations, practical activities, and at-home exploration, tamariki become “home detectives,” using real Healthy Homes tools to better understand their own living environments while sharing knowledge with their whānau.
The programme is designed to make learning engaging, empowering, and relevant to everyday life.
What Students Learn
Students are introduced to key Healthy Homes concepts including:
- Insulation
- Ventilation
- Moisture and condensation
- Heat retention
- Energy efficiency
- Healthy living environments
After an interactive classroom presentation, students use Heat Kit tools alongside a guided workbook to investigate conditions inside their own homes.
What’s Inside a Heat Kit?
Each Heat Kit contains practical tools that help students explore how healthy and energy-efficient a home is.
Included Tools
- Moisture Meter – detects dampness in walls, floors, or furniture
- Hygrometer – measures humidity levels inside the home
- Milesight Device – monitors carbon dioxide (CO₂) and airflow
- Thermal Image Camera – reveals areas of heat loss
- Heat Gun – compares temperatures across different surfaces
Each tool is paired with educational workbook activities that encourage observation, investigation, and discussion.
Learning Beyond the Classroom
The programme doesn’t stop at school.
Students take their learning home, where they investigate real environments and involve their whānau in conversations around warmth, ventilation, moisture, and energy use.
By turning learning into action, Heat Kits into Schools helps:
Build awareness around healthy homes,
Encourage practical behaviour change,
And empower young people with lifelong knowledge.
Programme Impact
Between June and September, the programme reached:
- 3 participating schools
- 9 classrooms
- Approximately 270 students
Key Outcomes
- 1,350 educational resources produced
- 675 student workbooks distributed
- 126 completed workbooks returned
Students and teachers responded positively to the programme, highlighting strong engagement and meaningful learning outcomes around healthy homes and wellbeing.
Why It Matters
Warm, dry, and energy-efficient homes play a major role in health and wellbeing.
By teaching tamariki how to identify heat loss, reduce moisture, and understand energy use, we’re helping build healthier futures for whānau and communities across Taranaki.
At WISE Charitable Trust, we believe empowering young people with practical knowledge creates lasting change — one home, one classroom, and one community at a time.
Interested in Bringing the Programme to Your School?
We’d love to hear from you. Contact WISE Charitable Trust to learn more about Heat Kits into Schools and how your school can get involved.
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