Kia ora whānau,

We are rapidly approaching the end of term and the end of the year and we still have lots to look forward to. 

Hut Day

Next Thursday, we are having a Hut Day. This will start after morning tea as we have a Kahikatea performance to go to first up. The children have been forming groups and designing their huts, thinking about what they will need to bring from home. They will be bringing this list home next week. This could be things like pegs, blankets, old sheets or pillows etc. Every child can also bring a soft toy and a game that they want to play - only with your permission! It is always a fun event and the hub will be transformed into a labyrinth of huts which is impressive to see. Below are some photos from last time to give you an idea.

Peter Pan Ballet

Next Friday, we are excited to be going to see the Peter Pan ballet at the Isaac Theatre Royal. Here is a link to the social story if you would like to look at it with your child to go over expectations and prepare for the trip.

Transitions

Last week, we had transition time with Pōhutukawa when the Year 4 children went over to the Pōhutukawa hub in Parenga to spend time with the Year 5 children whom they will be with next year. The Year 6 children then came over to Kōwhai in Tahaki to join in Discovery with the Year 3 children. This was extremely successful and the children had a great time either connecting or re-connecting with one another. There will be another session on Monday afternoon next week.

This week, the Year 2 children came to visit the Year 3 children and had Discovery together while the Year 4 children had their own programme. This was also great for the children to re-connect with buddies that they spent time with last year in Kahikatea. Again, there will be another session on Wednesday morning next week.

Books

Over the next week, the children's workbooks will be coming home bit by bit in preparation for the end of the year. There will also be artwork coming home and any leftover stationery. If you have any reading books still at home, we would really appreciate if these could be returned to school over the next week too. Thank you so much for you support with this!

Kia ora whānau,

The term is progressing rapidly and we are extremely busy with our learning. Here is an update on some of the things we have been doing.

Inquiry

For Inquiry, we are now focusing on learning about world cultures and everyone has chosen a country they are interested in to research and will then create a presentation of facts and information about that country. This may be a leaflet, a poster or a digital representation. Some of the things we have been finding out about are flags, languages, climate, population, animals and food and drink. The children are really engaged in this topic and are learning valuable research skills, looking for and locating relevant information online. Below you can see some of the children making flags from different countries using mini construction bricks.

Writing

We are focusing on descriptive writing over the next few weeks, using our five senses to describe a scene. What do we see, hear, smell, feel and taste? In this way, we can create a piece of writing with lots of rich language which creates a moment in time that we really feel part of. We started with describing ice cream which involved having a taste tester that was very much enjoyed by everyone and really helped to motivate the descriptive writers in us!

Willowbank Trip

As you will know, we are preparing to go on a trip to Willowbank on Friday 20th September as part of our inquiry on world cultures. Thank you to all the offers of parent help! We now have more than enough which is fantastic. Here is a link to our social story for this trip. Please do take your time to go through this with your child/children.

Cyber Safety

One in five young people in New Zealand have been the target of online bullying – it can happen to anyone, and

it can be hard for parents and whānau to deal with. Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto takes online bullying seriously

and would encourage you to chat to your tamariki’s teacher if you have any concerns about online bullying.

Visit Netsafe’s Online Bullying Advice for Parents to read more.

Kia ora Kōwhai whānau,

What a fabulous start to Term 3! We have a busy term ahead. 

Below are some things that are happening within our team.

Maths

We are having a focus on fractions, measurement, addition, subtraction, and multiplication.

Here's a Notice, Think, Wonder (What do you notice? What do you think? What do you wonder? Where is the maths?) picture prompt linked to fractions:

Writing

For writing this term, we begin with persuasive texts and then move into descriptive writing later in the term. Some literacy groups have been exploring persuasive picture books (I Wanna Iguana and Dear Mrs LaRue).

Parents beware, your child may write you a persuasive letter with reasons why you should get them a new pet, or allow them to extend their bedtime! We have been blown away with the creative ideas from our tamariki.

Inquiry Lessons

Our inquiry focus this term is Social Sciences and we are going to be researching a country of choice and making a presentation to share.

Willowbank

In week 9,we will be having a trip to Willowbank. This will be linked to our inquiry focus on cultures from around the world as we will be learning about different animals from around the world as part of the trip.

Calendar Art

We are all very busy working on our beautiful calendar art pictures! This year the Kōwhai Team have decided to create Zentangle Name Art for the calendars. We can't wait for you to see them all.

Recorder Lessons

This term we are continuing with our recorder lessons with Josie, these will continue until week 6 when Josie goes on maternity leave. The students have learned how to play songs that use the music notes A, B, G and E. Hot Cross Buns is a favourite!

Cricket

We were fortunate to have a group from Canterbury Cricket come and run a session with us in week 1. We had an amazing time and the children learned some cool skills. Below are some photos from the session, as well as some flyers with information about how your child can get involved in cricket outside of school. 

Cyber Safety

How do random chat websites work? And what are the risks for tamariki using them?

Random chat websites, like Chatroulette, pair users randomly through text or webcam conversations. The appeal

is getting to talk to someone new that the user would never meet. But these websites are designed for adults and

often allow nudity and other inappropriate content from users.

If you’re concerned that your young person might be exposed to these sites or you want to introduce parental controls, you can find out more on Netsafe’s Random Chat Websites page. 

Regards, 

Kia ora whānau,

Welcome back to Term 2! We have an exciting term ahead of us with lots of exciting things planned, starting with our whole school cross country event next Tuesday. We have been practising every day since the start of term and the children are raring to go!

Cross Country

The weather is looking good for next Tuesday afternoon (14th May) so fingers crossed our Cross Country goes ahead! The Year 4 children are due to start at 2:15 followed by the Year 3 children approximately 10 minutes later. Please make sure that your child has a fleece to wear on the day while they are waiting to take part and after their turn. They will also need a drink bottle. We look forward to seeing you there if you are able to make it.

Health

For the first half of this term, we are focusing on health and healthy living for our Inquiry. We are looking at the importance of drinking water, physical exercise, sleep and eating the right foods. For one activity, we are planning our own healthy lunchboxes! Check out these balanced lunchbox ideas here. 

There is lots more great information about health and children on the Health Info website, including breakfast ideas, keeping active and snack foods.

Staying Safe Online

Discovery

Kia ora whānau,

Here is an update on what we have been doing over the past 2 weeks.

Reading/Library Folders

We would just like to remind you that in order to take reading books and library books home, your child will need to have a reading folder OR a library folder. This does mean that your child will need to keep their folder in their bag so they are able to take reading books home during the week, if needed.

Our library days are as follows:

Monday = Nick and Rowe's literacy groups

Tuesday = Anna M and Anna R's lteracy groups

Wednesday = Krystal's literacy group

Construction Boxes

We are needing more construction boxes for Discovery. The children just love making things, from houses to instruments and many other imaginative things besides. If you have any tissue boxes, cereal boxes, shoe boxes or any other cartons, please bring them to school as we would love to use them!

PB4L Focus

Victoria Park

This week we had some amazing trips to Victoria Park where we learnt lots about the native plants and animals that can be found on the Banks Peninsula and how things have changed over the years with pests being introduced and settlers arriving. We experienced a bush walk, looking out for the native plants and animals that we could see and we learned about pests and how we can track them by identifying their tracks and poo which we found out is called 'scat'. We also looked at the different traps that are used to get rid of pests. It was a very informative experience whilst also being lots of fun! A huge thank you to all the parents who came along to help. We couldn't have done this without out you. Have a look at the photos below: