Getting funky in the classroom

Getting funky in the classroom

Something seriously funky is going to be happening in primary schools around the country as Funky Eye Friday is back for the fourth year running.

On 23 September – the last day of term - students will spend the day creating crazy, groovy, innovative eyewear with whatever materials they can get their hands on. In the past glasses have been made of everything from pipe cleaners to oranges, paper mache to bottle tops, lollipops to Lego.

Organised by the Royal New Zealand Foundation of the Blind (RNZFB), Funky Eye Friday is not only about having fun; students also learn about the importance of looking after their eyes.

“Funky Eye Friday is a great way to highlight eye care in a fun way. It’s important that teachers and parents know what to look out for in their children, especially when changes in vision can impact on learning,” says Alena Reznichenko, RNZFB Health Promotion Co-ordinator.

“Children do 80 percent of their learning visually, so often undiagnosed vision problems can result in associated learning difficulties,” says Reznichenko, “It is crucial people are aware of how serious vision problems in children can be.”

The RNZFB plans to use Funky Eye Friday as a platform for raising awareness of eye conditions and good eye care among children, parents and teachers.

Schools will be sent an activity pack which will include; Lesson plans for the day The Watch Out! environmental audit of their school An interactive 3VI CD-Rom will be available to the first 500 schools who respond.

Last year about 400 schools participated in Funky Eye Friday. This year organisers are hoping to double that number.

The best funky frames from each school will be sent to RNZFB national office in Auckland where winners will be selected by a panel including blind and vision-impaired judges.

The school that shows top participation in the environmental audit will win an Apple eMac computer kindly donated by The Apple Division of Renaissance. Individual students will be in to win Dirty Dog sunglasses, t-shirts and caps, in a range of categories from most tactile eyewear to funkiest frames.

All entries need to be forwarded to Alena Reznichenko by 10 October at RNZFB, Awhina House, 4 Maunsell Rd, Parnell, Private Bag 99941, Newmarket, Auckland.

Hot on the heals of Funky Eye Friday is Blind Week, running October 25th to 31st…Notice us this Blind Week.

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