Category Archives: Kowhai

Kōwhai News Term 4 Week 8

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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!





Kōwhai News Term 4 Week 6

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Kia ora Kōwhai Whānau!

We are having a fabulous Term 4. 

A reminder that all students need to have a hat at school each day or they will not be able to play in the sun. 

Thank you to all the families who have clearly named their hats. This makes them so much easier to be returned to the correct person should they go missing.

Word of the Week

Our word of the week is RESILIENCE. Resilience is the ability to bounce back after challenges and through tough times. It is a skill that we frequently revisit with the students as they tackle new challenges daily at school and in life in general. 

Nau mai te wero! (We Love Challenge)

Swimming

Last week was our final week of school swimming for the term. Our students had a great time learning new water skills and how to be safe both in and around water. The life jackets and inflatable boat were a big hit with the students.










Poetry

During our literacy lessons, students are currently exploring different types of poetry. Poems are a great way to express yourself in written form and the topics and types of poetry are endless. We are having so much fun exploring this genre.

Maths Learning

Here's a notice, think, wonder picture to get your math brain activated.

In regards to the picture:
- What do you notice?
- What do you think?
- What do you wonder?
- Where is the maths / what maths could you explore from the picture?

Cyber Safety

Staying Safe Online: Online Grooming 

As young people become more independent online, they can connect and communicate with people they don’t know.

Often this is a positive experience, but sometimes your tamariki could be being groomed or talking to someone who

isn’t who they say they are. Netsafe’s advice explains how unwanted contact works, including grooming and what

\whānau can do to educate kids.


Check out the link here.


Thanks!

Team Kōwhai,

Anna R, Rowe, Nick, Anna M, Krystal and Tracey

Kōwhai News Term 4 Week 4

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Kia ora whānau, 

There has been a lot on in the Kōwhai team over the last two weeks. 


Swimming

Over the past week, the Kōwhai team has been enjoying swimming sessions at Pioneer Pool. The students practised their swimming strokes, learnt about water safety, and built confidence diving underwater. The children are looking forward to returning to the pool next week to continue their learning. The remaining swimming lessons will run from Monday 11th November to Thursday 14th November.









Life Education

This week, the Kōwhai team had an exciting visit to the Life Education van, where we met Harold the giraffe! Our session focused on friendship and learning ways to show kindness and support. Harold helped us explore the skills needed to build positive relationships. It was a fun and valuable experience, and everyone left with new ideas on how to be more caring and thoughtful friends. A big thanks to Harold and Helly from Life Education.






Privacy and Social Media

Actively managing your tamariki’s privacy settings on any social networks they use can go a long way towards keeping control of their personal information.

Any information that is easily available online, whether it’s an email address, date of birth, or pictures, could end up causing harm if it gets into the wrong hands.

To help you navigate privacy on social media, Netsafe has put together a guide on How to Use Privacy Settings on Social Networks. 


Kōwhai News Term 4 Week 2

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Kia ora whānau, 

There has been so much happening in the Kōwhai hub already, and it's only week 2! Here's an update on the latest happenings in Kōwhai over the last two weeks. 

Maths 

All Maths groups in Kōwhai have enjoyed learning about the language of Chance and Probability in their Maths groups. Some of our tamariki were involved in a Probability Carnival held in Pūkaki. 






Writing 

For our Writing this term, we have begun with Procedural Writing, then later in the term we will be moving on to Poetry Writing. You may need to be prepared for them bring home instructions for making Tangy Lemonade, Delicious Pizza, or Fizzy Sherbet!



Athletics Day 

This week, we held our whole school Athletics Day and it was great to see everyone out on the park participating in their various events and disciplines. In the Kōwhai team, all the homegroups had 5 rotations: high jump, long jump, discus, shot put and sprints. It was amazing to see everyone give it a go and doing their very best. Congratulations to you all!









Swimming 

We will be heading off to our Swimming Lessons next week and also in Week 5. Please remind your tamariki to pack their swimming bag with their togs, a towel and goggles, if they have them, on Tuesday. 

Being SunSmart 

It has been great to see so many children remembering to wear their hats at school, especially with all these sunny days we have been experiencing. Please do continue to make sure that your child has a hat at school every day and that it is clearly named. There is always the option of keeping hats at school, either in tote trays or in an allocated hat tub. We also encourage everyone to have sunscreen on. This can be applied before coming to school and we also have sunscreen at school if anyone needs to top up or they forget to put sunscreen on. Thank you so much for your support with this. 

Staying Safe Online: Snapchat and Privacy

Snapchat is a popular messaging app that lets users exchange pictures and videos (snaps) that are meant to disappear after they’re viewed. Many young people love Snapchat but it’s important that they understand how to protect their privacy on the app.


Check out Netsafe’s Privacy on Snapchat page for some helpful information on Snapchat’s features. You can also find out more information about privacy, security and safety on Snapchat’s help centre.



Have a great weekend!





Kōwhai News Term 3 Week 10

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Kia ora e te whānau! Welcome to the Kōwhai team's week 10 blog.

Hats     

We are now starting to prepare for Term 4 and we are back to wearing hats outside at all times. Please could you ensure that your child has a named hat ready for the first day of Term 4 as they will not be able to participate in outdoor activities without it. Thank you so much for your support with this.

Willowbank

This week we have focused on our fabulous trip to Willowbank. It was a perfect sunny day and we all had a marvellous time. After arriving at Willowbank, the students had morning tea in the barn at the farmyard. We then set off on our fantastic adventure looking at all Willowbank had to offer. Everyone was very respectful of other visitors and the animals and as you can see from the photos below, there was a lot to see and enjoy.










































Athletics Day

On Thursday 24th October next term (Week 2), we will be running a whole school Athletics Day to which you are welcome to come and support your child/children. There will be more information to follow next term.


Structured Literacy Books

Finally, we are needing all the structured literacy books that have been sent home to be handed back ready for next term. Please make sure that all of them are returned as soon as you can.

Thank You

We would like to take the opportunity to thank your children for all their hard work this term. It has been a busy time but there has been a lot of fantastic learning along the way. Thank you to you as parents and caregivers for all you do to support us and your children. We get there together!