Te Awa were the flag bearers for our Welcome Assembly.
VR- On Monday, we spent a session viewing coastal waters from the sea bed, around New Zealand. This explored what makes a healthy marine ecosystem and what we can do as kaitiakitanga | guardianship to protect it.
Maths- changes to groups.
The changes to learning groups have been deliberate and considered. Students have been placed in mixed ability maths classes. The rationale behind this is based on research and is designed to align to the refreshed New Zealand curriculum, which has shown a greater positive forecast of student capability in mathematics.
As we transition into this new system your child's maths teacher will be reviewing work with students to gauge their depth of understanding. This will allow teachers to cater more specifically for their needs and any extension or support they may require. This may be what they are mentioning regarding the tasks being easy compared to previous work.
However, each class has a rich routine that challenges and extends their learning.
Passions
Friday passions have started for term two. This is a great opportunity for students to try something new in a supportive environment.
Rugby League Workshops-Cameron Snell (Coach Cam) has volunteered his time to run these workshops for our ākonga. Some of you may remember his name from being one of our community leaders when we ran our leadership talks.
Felting -Nicky is back in our classrooms on Friday for passions sharing her knowledge and craft of felting.
Minecraft-for our digi natives.
Buddies-working with our younger tamariki in Kahikatea.
Board Games- enjoying some fun over the colder months.
Inquiry- Art
We are diving into visual arts over the next few weeks as we explore and create pieces of work. As kaiako this is exciting to see different ideas come together. You will see more on this as ideas and concepts are finalised.
Winter Sport- parent volunteers are still needed. It's is not too late! Just email Hugo- hugo.weaver@beckenham.school.nz
Uniforms- Jackets- please remember to name jackets clearly.
This week we say goodbye to Macie and her family who are returning to the U.S. Thank you for showing our School Values and demonstrating We Make a Difference | Nā mātou he rerekē Macie. You will be missed!
Last week we also said goodbye to Mikyla who has gone on maternity leave. Thank you for your mahi over this year Mikyla.
House Games
A big thank you to our leaders who led the whole school in House Games on Tuesday. What a fun afternoon we had out on the field. Our younger tamariki had huge smiles on their faces as they got to know their House Captains and Deputies. Great job!
Inquiry
We have been digging into the '7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens'.
This learning was re-enforced by our Leadership Speakers.
Habit #6:Synergise - working together and valuing each other in a team.
Gem Macky emphasised this in the rowing team when she spoke about your actions making the boat go faster.
Adam Whitlock expanded on this by discussing the hefty financial fine you pay if you are late to practice and play for The Crusaders.
Our next focus is on Leaders who inspire us and how they demonstrate the 'The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People'
Students choose their own leader from a variety of backgrounds science, sports, politics, arts and culture.
Positive Behaviour for Learning- PB4L
What is a friend, what is an acquaintance?
This has been further discussed in Kauri Team Hui when we look at how we treat people around us.
Passions
In 'Passions' we really see our school values in action.
Check out some of the things we have been doing:
CYBERSAFETY
Awareness of Online Harm
Many parents didn’t grow up with the internet, so it can be hard to imagine how tamariki may use it. But these days, digital technology is a key part of our young people’s lives. They use it for learning, communicating and entertainment.
Kia ora e te whānau, What a wonderful fortnight we have had in Kahikatea. We have had several events and have more coming up. Here is the latest news from the Kahikatea team.
Have you got your tickets for the PTA Bingo and Silent Auction evening? This is happening on Saturday 9th November 2024.
Harold the Giraffe
The Life Education Trust brings us Harold the Giraffe. In Kahikatea we are focusing on problem solving and our emotions. It is identifying a small problem that I can fix myself, and a big problem, one that I need help with from an adult. For example, finding my hat. How can I solve this problem, where do I look, where did I put it?
The children were all engaged and participated with enthusiasm during the lessons. Thank you, Helly and Harold!
Swimming Week 5
We are looking forward to our final week of swimming next week: Mon 11th, Tuesday 12th, Wednesday 13th, and Thursday 14th November.
Thursday 14th November is the last day of swimming. Tamariki are asked to bring their PJs (or trackies and a t-shirt) for water safety.
Kahikatea -Art
We have been doing lots of art over the past fortnight. Different classes have been doing different arts and styles. A study of David Hockney style of water that reflects our swimming, oil pastel and watercolour, poster paint on a scene and skeleton building with cotton buds and lots of colouring.
Paralympian Visit, 14th November
"Rachael Watson is an Australian Paralympic Swimmer who has won two Paralympic gold and two Paralympic bronze medals across three games - Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. She became the first Olympian or Paralympian to win a medal in the 50m Freestyle three consecutive times and won the 500th medal for Australia. Rachael has also competed at 4 World Championships winning silver and bronze medals. She is currently training for the 2025 World Championships and aspiring to make the 2028 Los Angeles Paralympic team."
Kahikatea are lucky to have Jackson Waters's cousin Rachael visit us. Rachael is a muti-medal holder, Paralympics Swimmer, for Australia. She will discuss how she made it! Thank you to Kylie Waters for setting this up.
Production
Upcoming production! Save the date, week 9, 1.30-3pm (to be confirmed). We are "secret squirrels" on details. However, more information will follow. In the meantime if you hear tamariki singing the song below.
Kindness
Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L) - Our focus has been on kindness with an emphasis on our words and how we speak to each other. Manners do make a difference and our tamariki are good at showing them. We appreciate the everyday kindness like opening doors, making seating room, lining up, keeping things tidy, cleaning up and lovely words. Thank you.
On Thursday the 7th of November Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto enjoyed the sounds of the violin, viola and cello. What a fantastic performance! Thank you to our musicians who shared their passions. if anyone would like more information please check the handout available at the office.
House Games
On Thursday afternoon we got to enjoy the sunshine and fun and games with our houses. These are great opportunities for our tamariki to build connections within the school.
Have a safe and happy fortnight. Feel free to contact any on the team for questions, queries or clarifications.
Big Big thanks to all our parent helpers who made the DISCO possible.
Identity
You may have noticed a whole lot of waka going up in our homerooms. Tamariki (children) have been working on a hoe (oar) that expresses how they contribute to class. This shows our school value of Mā tātou katoa te waka e hoe, 'We Get There Together'.
Salt painting
Sarah and Quynh’s homeroom explored salt painting. This process involves the pulling (osmosis) property of liquid on salt. It was challenging to get the picture you wanted as you were limited by the materials. Our tamariki showed patience working together and demonstrated our school value of Nau mai te wero, 'We Love Challenge'.
Arts- Music
Last Friday some of our tamariki (children) enjoyed a music session with Ferndale ākonga (students). Both parties had a brilliant time - we are so lucky to spend time with our Ferndale friends
Cyber Safety - Gaming
Eighty percent of tamariki in New Zealand aged 8-17 have played games online. Games can have many benefits: entertainment, social opportunities, coordination development, problem-solving and multitasking skills. But, most of all, gaming is popular because it’s fun.
But games can be tough for parents and whānau to navigate. How much gaming is too much? How do I make sure my tamariki aren’t seeing inappropriate content or chatting in-game with strangers?
Today we’re sharing Netsafe’s Online Gaming Whānau ToolkitNetsafe’s Online Gaming Whānau Toolkit so you have all the resources you need to keep your kids safe.
LiteracyEncourage your tamariki on their reading journey through reading and storytelling. Every child is given reading books to take home for home reading.
Mathematics
We are currently exploring and developing an understanding of time through a unit of work called How Long Now?
Dear parents and whānau,
This week we have been exploring time and learning to tell time to an hour and a half-hour. We have also been looking at different sorts of clocks.
Please support your child in drawing pictures or taking photos of clocks in your home and community (for example, watches, appliance clocks, novelty clocks, clock radios).
Another way you can support your child's learning is by talking about the time when certain things happen, especially if it is on the hour or half hour. For example: "Look! It's 8 o'clock, time for bed" or "It's 5:30, time for tea".
In addition to this, we always appr
Also, we are always helping our children to consolidate their number knowledge. Any card and board games are a fun way to reinforce this learning. For example memory, fish, old maid, snap, stop the bus.
ResilienceThis week uur PB4L (Positive Behaviour for Learning) focus has been on Resilience. Here are the links from our daily notices:
We are fortunate to have a trainee Teaching Assistant joining our team.
Sanduni
Hi everyone
My name is Sanduni and I’m from Sri Lanka. We moved to
New Zealand 8 years ago with my husband Harsha and my 6-month-old son Sedas. My son is now 9 years old and studies at Beckenham School in year 5. I have another daughter too. I love to dance and teach traditional dancing to Sri Lankan kids in Christchurch.
I will start studying a teacher aide course this year
because I love to help children like you improve their
learning skills. I'm so excited to start my first day next week. Thank you very much to all the teachers who have allowed me to visit their classrooms. See you all on Monday morning.
Weeks 6 and 7 of Term 1 have really seen the weather changing as we head into Autumn. There are a few bugs about and some tamariki are showing signs of tiredness. Much like our environment that has been flowering and fruiting all summer we are ready to slow down a little and nurture ourselves.
We Care | Arohaina te tāngata me te taiao
Maths
Kahikatea is currently exploring pattern-making in mathematics. This has included patterns with skip counting, multiplication, identifying, and creating patterns. We have been on the lookout for ways in which maths is used in our daily lives, for example, in arts and crafts, nature and gardening, tattoos, wrapping paper, and design.
NZ Maths Website
NZ Maths has some great maths activities for tamariki. This is the link for NZ Maths home kete. NZ Maths also has some great resources on number facts games that support our tamariki in their number knowledge.
Literacy
Tamariki should all be bringing home their reading books regularly now. Most children are putting their literacy folders into their literacy teacher's container at the start of the day and packing them into their bags after literacy. We encourage tamariki to read and practice their sounds each night to increase fluency. We appreciate your support in their literacy journey.
Te Reo Māori
We have been focusing on daily greetings in Te Reo Māori. Here's the link to Ata mārie- Good Morning waiata. We have been learning kupu (words) in Te Reo Māori as we work towards creating our own pepeha (introduction).
Netball
Our netball unit continues and we are seeing some great skills developing in catching, throwing, dodging, and jumping.
Digital Technology in Kahikatea
Nick from the Kōwhai team has created some wonderful apps for our tamariki that align with learning in literacy and maths. The length of time in which children are on devices is usually 5-10 minutes and is supervised by an adult. We also use an app called ChatterPix - this app allows children to create characters and use an audio tool to give the characters a voice. If you have any concerns or queries, please contact your child's homegroup teacher.
Nuts at School
Just a reminder that we have children in our team who are allergic to nuts. One of these is life-threatening. Therefore, we are asking that nuts and nut-based products are not brought to school by your child. This includes all nuts.
Walk and Wheel to School
Thank you whānau for supporting this year's walk and wheel to school. It was a great opportunity for our kaiako to learn more about how your tamariki get to school.
Parent Playground Helpers
Last year, we had a wonderful group of parents and caregivers who came along to school during lunch play to support our tamariki in the junior playground. We will be restarting this again from the beginning of Term 2. The benefits of being on the parent playground roster include being involved in the school day, and getting to know other parents and your child's friends. Please email Katie if you would like to offer your help for Term 2. katie.mcfarlane@beckenham.school.nz
Visual Diary of Kahikatea
If you need to korero with your child's teacher please remember you can email us:
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