Author Archives: Nicky Dunlop

Kauri Whānau Weekly Update: Term 4, Week 8/9

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 It's been quite a week in Year 7 & 8. Production, Top Team, Corsair Bay and quite a bit of regular learning as well!

We have the pleasure of teaching a fabulous group of children and they were outstanding this week. Their effort, talent and joy on stage; their teamwork and encouragement of each other at Top Team and the way they made the most of their day at the beach, despite the damp weather, were so good to see. What a lovely way the round up 2022, and we are not done yet!

Coming up next week:

Monday

A regular day and the children will be bringing most of their books home at the end of the day. Please make sure they have space in their bags. 

Tuesday

In the afternoon the 24/7 youth workers from Cashmere High and some ex-students who will be in Year 13 next year are coming to talk with the Year 8s and have some fun outside getting to know each other. 

Between 4 and 6, the Year 8s have their pool party. This is being held at 96 Fisher Avenue. Children are to bring a water bottle (no fizzy drinks), their togs, towel, sunhat and sunscreen.  We have been given a generous donation that will cover the cost of pizza, so no need to provide any food. If your child does not eat pizza, please email their home-group teacher. If children are not being collected at 6pm, we will assume they are walking home. Please email us if there are any special pick-up arrangements for your child. Many thanks to Pip and Michael for hosting this party.

Wednesday

Our Year 8s are to come to school dressed in their best clothes, ready for the Leavers' Assembly. This assembly starts at 11am and concludes with a lunch for the Year 8s and their parents. School finishes for Year 8 after this lunch. We would like them to head home, rather than congregating on the park. 

Thursday

This will be Year 7s final day, with school finishing at 12:30. The children can bring their togs and a towel as we plan to set up a slip-and-slide. We are also planning to celebrate the end of the year for Year 7 with pizza (also donated) before they head home at 12:30.

Thank you

A huge thank you to all of the parents who have helped out this week with Top Team and our Corsair Bay trip. The children had a blast and you were a key component in making this happen.

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Kauri Whānau Weekly Update: Term 4 Week 7

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 In this post:

  • Key dates
  • Production next Monday and Tuesday
  • Top Team next Monday
  • Corsair Bay next Friday
  • Relationships and Sexuality
The end of the year is racing towards us! Below is a reminder of key dates:
  • Wednesday, Nov 30:  Canterbury athletics
  • Wednesday, Nov 30: Whānau picnic and Kapa haka concerts. Picnic and games from 5pm. Te Whānau Mahi Tahi perform at 6:30pm.
  • Monday, Dec 5: Top Team in the afternoon (see below)
  • Monday, Dec 5: 'A walk through the 80s' opening night (see below)
  • Tuesday, Dec 6: Last technology session for the year
  • Tuesday, Dec 6: 'A walk through the 80s' final night 
  • Friday, Dec 9: Final assembly starting at 9:45am.
  • Friday, Dec 9: Corsair Bay trip (see below)
  • Tuesday, Dec 13: Year 8 pool party, 4-6pm
  • Wednesday, Dec 14: Leavers' assembly and lunch, 11am - 1pm (Year 8s finish)
  • Thursday, Dec 15: Last morning for Year 7

'A Walk Through the 80s' Production, Dec 5th and 6th:

This week we are putting the finishing touches on our production and will be performing for the school on Thursday afternoon. All children performing on stage need their costumes at school by Thursday.

The children are very much looking forward to performing for you next Monday and Tuesday nights, starting at 7pm. Children are to come already in costume and meet in the hub at 6:30pm. Caitlin will send out a separate message about the dancers. 

Please encourage family and friends to come along and enjoy an entertaining evening. We will not be selling tickets prior, simply turn up on the night with a gold coin donation. You are welcome to come both evenings if you would like to. 



Top Team Monday, Dec 5th:

We are looking forward to an afternoon of fun and fabulous teamwork next Monday. Top Team arrive with all their gear late morning and the fun begins at 1:30. Some of the activities involve water so children need to bring clothes to change into. We suggest a rash top, polypro, house shirt or quick dry t-shirt and quick dry shorts. Sunhats and sunscreen will also be required. Pack a towel too. Many thanks to the adults who have volunteered to help; we will see you on the park at 1:10 for the briefing.

Corsair Bay, Dec 9th:

Next Friday after morning tea we head to Corsair Bay. Swimming, a walk to Cass Bay, games on the beach and chilling with friends will be the activities of the day. Children are to come to school in uniform. It would be best if they had their togs on underneath their uniform. They are to bring:
  • togs and towel
  • sunhat
  • sunscreen
  • lunch (friends may arrange to bring a shared lunch and this needs to be nut-free)
  • water bottle
  • inhaler (if required)
  • Optional: picnic rug, non-electronic game such as cards, wetsuit, sunglasses
We should be back at school by 3pm. 

Relationships and Sexuality:

We are currently looking at the 'growing and changing' section of relationships and sexuality. We have discussed changes at puberty and how to manage these changes. We have learned about the male and female reproductive systems and are moving on to conception and the consequences of sexual activity, which includes talking about contraception. 




    Kauri Whānau Weekly Update: Term 4 Week 5

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     In the post:

    • Production reminders
    • Reports
    • Relationships and Sexuality
    • Fabulous trips

    Production

    A reminder that our production, 'A Walk Through the 80s', will involve all Year 7 & 8 children on the two performance nights, Monday, November 5th and Tuesday, November 6th. The shows will start at 7pm and we think they will take 90 minutes. Teachers have talked with the students about costume requirements and children should be organising these with your support. 

    Reports

    Reports go live tomorrow. Please keep an eye out for the link on Hero.

    Relationships and Sexuality

    We are still working our way through the relationships and sexuality lessons and are currently looking at the changes that take place at puberty and how to manage these.

    Trips

    We have been hugely impressed with how the children responded to the last two days of education outside the classroom. This is the first time we have organised trips to Adrenaline Forest and Waka on Avon and they both provided fabulous and well-organised experiences. There were plenty of opportunities for the children to step outside of their comfort zone and challenge themselves. A huge thanks to the parents who joined us and to Tim who ran the activity at Spencer Park. The behaviour and positive attitudes displayed by the children were commented on by all of the providers we worked with. We were very proud of your children!







































    Kauri Whānau Weekly Update: Term 4 Week 3

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     In this post:

    • Help needed with trips
    • Spikeball
    • Quiz Night
    • Year 7 Leadership 

    We need your help

    Our trips to Waka on Avon / Art Gallery and Adrenalin Forest / Spencer Park are just two weeks away. As of today, we have had very few parents sign up to help, in fact we have no helpers yet for the town trips. If we do not get enough adult help, some trips may need to be cancelled. Even if you could give half a day, that would help. Grandparents make great helpers too. Please fill in this form if you think you can help.

    Waka on Avon and Art Gallery:

    • Caitlin and Jenny's homegroups Wednesday Nov 16
    • Nicky and Megan's homegroups Thursday Nov 17
    Adrenaline Forest and Spencer Park

    • Nicky and Megan's homegroups Wednesday Nov 16
    • Caitlin and Jenny's homegroups Thursday Nov 17
    Please note that the full day trips will be going ahead on Nov 17, despite the school being closed early this day for staff to attend union meetings. 

    Spikeball

    This term Spikeball is returning after school on Wednesdays, 3 - 4pm. If you have played Spikeball before or if you have never played before and are keen to learn, then come along! Talk to Dave to find out more. 


    Quiz Night

    Many thanks to the team who helped with our Quiz Night and to those who purchased tickets. We made $1580 that will help subsidise the cost of our Wainui Camp in term 1 next year.


    Year 7 Leadership

    This afternoon, we have sent out emails to the children who applied for House Captain, Deputy House Captain, Sports Leader and Student Council Exec for 2023. We had many more students apply than we have positions available and we know there will be a number of disappointed children. There are many more leadership positions that will be allocated at the start of next year. We ask the successful applicatants to take a humble approach when they come to school tomorrow.


    Athletics

    We had a superb day for our athletic sports last week and it was fabulous seeing the children have fun and give of their best. Jenny is currently collating results and we will be talking with children to finalise zone entries soon. The Zone Athletics will take place on Monday week, Nov 14th.










    Kauri Whānau Weekly Update: Ready to roll for term 4!

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     In this post

    • Canteen at technology
    • Sunhats
    • Outdoor education
    • Quiz night tickets
    • Production
    • Year 8
    • Term dates overview
    We hope you have had a pleasant two weeks with your tamariki at home. We have a busy term ahead! Please read the important messages below and records dates in your diary. 

    Canteen at Technology

    The canteen at technology will reopen this term. The children will be very excited about this! Just before it was closed last year, some purchasing habits were concerning, and we were about to address these when Covid stepped in and solved the issues. Please talk with your child about the following guidelines:
    • You must wear your own sunhat or you will not be served.
    • You must bring your own money and not ask other people for money.
    • You only purchase things for yourself, not for others.
    • Do not over-purchase. Two items max per person. This is just food for morning tea, not to be brought back to school for lunch.

    Sunhats

    Please dig out the sunhats and check that they are named. Children need to wear full-brimmed hats whenever outside in terms 1 and 4. If children do not have a hat they will need to go to a designated area at break times. 

    Outdoor Education

    We have several outdoor education events planned for this term and require parent help with these. Please fill in this form to indicate where you can help.

    Wednesday, November 16 and Thursday, November 17: Two home-groups will head into town and two will head to Spencerville. Groups will switch the following day.
    • Town day (9:30 - 3:00): Waka on Avon (history, team skills and waka experience) and Art gallery tour 
    • Spencerville day (8:30 - 3:00): Adrenaline Forest and activities at Spencer Park and beach 
    Monday, December 5 (1:15 - 3:00): Top Team event on Beckenham Park

    Friday, December 9 (11:00 - 3:00): Corsair Bay trip. 


    Quiz Night

    We still have room for a few more quiz teams. If you have yet to purchase tickets, please consider joining us for this great night out. You may be able to put a team from your workplace together. Click here to book tickets.



    Production

    After a break of two years due to Covid, we are immersing ourselves in the arts this term as we put together our 'A walk through the 80s' production. This will see the children working in either singing, acting, dancing or props-making groups. All of this creativity will culminate in two performances on December 5th and 6th, starting at 7pm. The props group would welcome any parent support. If you are able to pop along some afternoons in October and November, please email Nicky.  

    Year 8

    No doubt you will find it hard to believe that your child has less than nine weeks left of their primary / intermediate years! At assemblies this term we will be acknowledging our Year 8s with prizes being awarded across the term. We will notify you if your child is to receive a prize. Last year we changed our approach to the Leavers' Assembly, with the aim of focusing on all Year 8s rather than the spotlight being on the prize winners. The new format met that aim and we will be going with a similar approach this year. 

    Thanks to those who have sent in a photo of your child as a 5 year old. If you have yet to do this, please email your photo to Nicky ASAP or send in a paper copy for scanning this week.

    Term 4 Dates:

    October
    • Wed 26: Athletics day
    • Thur 27: Zone Speech Comp at St Peters. Good luck to Christopher and Fergus

    November
    • Wed 9: 2023 House Captains and Student Council exec leadership day at Christ College
    • Mon 14: Zone athletics
    • Wed 16: Outdoor edn day
    • Thurs 17: Outdoor edn day
    • Fri 18: Reports go live
    • Fri 18: Student Council dress up day - either teacher swap or PJ
    • Wed 30: Canterbury athletics
    • Wed 30: Whānau picnic and kapa haka concerts

    December
    • Mon 5: Top team afternoon
    • Mon 5: Production performance 1: A Walk through the 80s. 7pm
    • Tues 6: Production performance 2: A Walk through the 80s. 7pm
    • Fri 9: Corsair Bay trip
    • Wed 14: Leavers' Assembly and lunch. Year 8 finishes for the year after lunch
    • Thurs 15: Last day for Year 7, finished before lunch