Kia ora Kōwhai whānau, 

We have had a great Week 3 in the Kōwhai Hub - our first full five-day week! We have been very busy establishing routines, engaging in learning activities and having lots of fun along the way. We have also started going to kapa haka with whaea Cath. Every homegroup will be given the opportunity to try kapa haka this term. Anna R, Rowe and Nick's homegroups are going to kapa haka from weeks 2-5 and Charlotte and Anna M's homegroups are going in weeks 6-9.

Home Learning

Our literacy groups are well under way. We will be sending a letter home soon informing you of how our home learning programme works. It is separated into two parts, depending on whether or not your child takes home a structured literacy reading book.

1. Once your child has completed the Structured Literacy programme, home learning will consist of reading a chapter book or non-fiction book of their own choice each night. Some students will bring home a journal story or article that they have read in class. All students visit the library once a week.
2. Optional spelling activities are also outlined.

Library days are as follows:

• Rowe and Nick's literacy groups on Mondays
• Anna M and Anna R's literacy groups on Tuesdays
• Charlotte's literacy group on Wednesdays

Geometry

Currently, our students are enjoying lessons and activities based on the geometry strand of mathematics. These activities are based on learning 2D and 3D shapes and their properties. The students are being introduced to vocabulary associated with these properties, e.g., faces, edges and vertices.

There is a Geometry section in Mathematics Games on the intranet which they can use as well. Try getting the children to identify the names of common household shapes or send them on a scavenger hunt to locate shapes. 

Butterflies

We were very fortunate last week when we were given 2 monarch chrysalises for us to observe. The students were spellbound, waiting and watching as the monarchs emerged from their chrysalises. Many rich discussions about the process of metamorphosis took place. The children also discussed the process of monarch butterflies drying off their wings before they could fly. 

Art

The focus this week for Art has been creating a self-portrait. The children have been following the rules of facial proportion and have achieved some outstanding results.

Have a lovely weekend. 

Ngā mihi, 

The Kōwhai Team - Anna R, Anna M, Nick, Charlotte, Rowe and Megan.

Kia ora whānau,

Welcome back to the start of another year! Thank you all for coming to the learning conferences. It was fantastic to see you all.

The children have had a great start to the term. We have been doing lots of activities involving getting to know each other. and we have had our first Discovery sessions, making things with play dough, constructing towers with wooden blocks, making up games with chalk, hula hoops and cones, learning how to play Four Square and many other things besides. The favourite thing for most of our tamariki has been the waterplay in the afternoon - lots of slipping and sliding and squirting and having lots of fun!

Have a look at all the photos below:

We hope you have a wonderful Waitangi weekend and look forward to seeing you again on Tuesday.

From the Kōwhai team

Kia ora whānau,

Here we are at the end of the year and what a fantastic and busy year it has been! 

Ukulele Concert

In the last week, we had the pleasure of listening to a ukulele concert put on by Roger and his students from Kōwhai. 

Final Celebration Assembly

We also had our final assembly. Congratulations to the recipients of the end-of-year kete certificates for showing all the school values throughout the year. 

Hut Day

This week, we have been doing all sorts of fun activities to finish off the year, the favourite being our Hut Day on Monday. The children were brilliant at putting up all sorts of different hut creations and the hub looked incredible. Have a look for yourselves! 

Finally, thank you to you all for your continuing support throughout the year. We are truly grateful as we cannot get there without you! We hope you have a restful summer break and a Happy New Year!

From the Kōwhai team

Kia ora koutou,

This term has been full of excitement! We have recently had a big focus on transitioning in preparation for 2023. The Year 4 children have had a visit to the Pōhutukawa team and the Year 3s have had Discovery with the Year 2s. All the visits have been very successful so far and enjoyed by all!

Playground

Our new junior playground opened recently and is very popular. Here are some photos of the children's favourite playground activities. 

Concert

Kapa Haka Performance

Kia ora whānau

It has been a super busy start to the term...which is flying quickly past! Enjoy reading about our latest learning and activities. 

Quynh's News 

Quynh has leave, as of late next week, to go and visit her family in Vietnam. We wish Quynh a wonderful time with her family and thank her for all her hard work this year. We will miss her! Kathryn Moore will be covering for Quynh's class until the end of the year.

Cricket 

House of Science Learning

 

We have access to an amazing set of science kits from The House of Science, an educational organisation established to help teachers, students and schools teach and learn about key science ideas. This fortnight, we are learning about Plants, Pests and Produce. Our activities include learning about some key beneficial insects and pests in New Zealand, the six parts of a fruit/vegetable plant and their functions, transpiration, pollination and pest control such as pheromone traps. Many aspects of the living world, the nature of science and the material world are covered through the lessons.

Raised Garden Beds

The PTA has kindly given us funding to have two raised garden beds, like the ones by the hall, built in the garden behind our hub. Thank you, PTA! Tony will be constructing these over the coming weeks. We will then need to fill them with usable garden waste (tree clippings etc.) and soil. If you happen to be undertaking landscaping or maintenance at your house at present and have any usable garden waste or soil to donate, please email charlotte.verity@beckenham.school.nz.  

Swimming 

The children loved our water safety sessions at Pioneer. They learnt a range of key skills at their point of need. This included: 

• Floatation and water familiarisation
• Swimming strokes
• Kicking techniques
• Key water safety skills, including how to put on a life jacket, what to do if a boat capsizes, how to keep warm in cold water, how to stay in a group and how to signal for help

Assembly 

Congratulations to our Week 3 Celebration Assembly award recipients. A big thank you to Isaiah for creating and sharing his cultural presentation about Malaysia.