Category Archives: Weekly Newsletters

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter Rāmere (Friday) 25 November 2022

Posted on by

Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

With only two and a half weeks of the school year to go, there is still a lot of learning and celebration to get through!
It was a momentous day on Monday to finally be able to open our new Junior Playground. We are grateful to the Ministry of Education for the funding that made it possible, to Richard Scott from our Board, and Richard Garner (Logic Group - project manager) who over-saw the project, and to PLAYCO for making it all happen!
We were grateful for sunny weather for the opening, after a very wet spell over the weekend, and our newest 5-year-old, who had only started school on the 1st of November, had the honour of cutting the ribbon and declaring - 'This playground is now OPEN"


All of the children have been getting plenty of opportunities for exploring the playground and are practicing skills of turn-taking, patience, and of supporting and encouraging one another as they use the different pieces of equipment.

Whānau Picnic and Kapa Haka Concerts - this Wed 30 Nov

The student council are holding an event on the 30th of November, the Whānau Rōpū Picnic
event from 5:00 - 7:00.We will have mini-games and prizes up for grabs. You can bring your own picnic. Our Kowhai, Pohutukawa and Kauri Kapa Haka groups will be performing at the following times:
Year 3-4 - 5:30
Year 5-6 - 6:00
Te Whānau Mahi Tahi -  6:30
We will also play music and hope students can bring families to the community event. 
- From the Student Council

Ngā mihi nui
Sandy Hastings
Tumuaki (Principal)

Important Dates

Wed 30 Nov - Whānau Rōpū Picnic and Kapa Haka performances (see below for more info)
Fri 2 Dec - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Thu 8 Dec - BOT Meeting (5.30 - 7.50pm - Rūma Kaimahi/Staffroom)
Fri 9 Dec - Final Celebration Assembly (9.45-10.30am)
Wed 14 Dec - Year 8 Leavers Graduation - 11am - 12noon, followed by Leavers' Lunch
Thu 15 Dec - Last day of Term 4 - School closes at 12:30pm

Term Dates

Citizen of the Week

Clarel Caen - Year 4

Clarel, you are a hardworking and motivated learner and always try to do your best. You consistently demonstrate a positive attitude and are a great friend to others. You have wonderful self-management skills and are an excellent role model. You are extremely reliable and make a positive difference in our hub. Well done, Clarel!

School Notices

Whānau Survey - please contribute your perspective... 

Over the next 2 to 3 years we will be further developing our understanding of gifted learners and how we meet their needs at Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto. This survey is part of the initial process and helps us with our planning and direction. We encourage all whānau to complete this survey which will be open until Monday 28th November.

Christchurch School of Music

Your child can learn to play a string instrument at school with the CSM Outreach Strings Programme. Children who learn music build confidence, increase their learning abilities, sharpen organisational skills and gain valuable social, physical and academic skills. Most importantly learning an instrument in the Outreach Strings Programme is fun. In the strings programme we teach violin, viola and cello.

Students receive a lesson each week (either individual or in a group of two) and will also have time in a small ensemble. Lessons and the ensemble happen during school time.

Your child will play in concerts at their school and in concerts organised by the Christchurch School of Music with other orchestras, ensembles and groups. The Outreach programme works closely with the CSM Junior Symphony Orchestra (JSO) and all Outreach strings participants are invited to attend the JSO camp each year.
What will it cost?
We teach in your child’s school for 32 sessions throughout the year. Each term can have a different number of lessons depending on the other activities happening at the school and children’s timetables. The cost for the Outreach Strings Programme is $572.00 per year. This is invoiced by term ($143.00). We can also arrange a weekly payment plan if that suits better. If you have a community services card you may be eligible for a 50% discount on the base fee. This is dependent on the availability of grant monies.

Hiring an Instrument
You can hire an instrument from CSM. The cost for a violin is $140 per year ($35.00 per term) and a cello is $240 per year ($60 per term). You can also hire instruments from Sedley Wells and KBB Music. Your school may also have instruments available.

Enrolling
Go to www.csm.org.nz/enrol and choose the Outreach Strings Programme.

Christchurch School of Music
60 Ferry Road
T: (03) 3661 711
E: office@csm.org.nz
or the Outreach Strings Coordinator Anne Robinson at annejohnrobinson@gmail.com

Issue 8 of Book Club is here!


This exciting Issue of Book Club has all the best books to get festive for the holidays and to be ready for summer holiday reading!

It's the last issue for the year, so make sure you place your orders on time to ensure you have books for Christmas gifting and school holiday reading.

Issue 8
Opens - Monday 14 Nov
Closes - Monday 12 Dec

Lost Property

All items in the Lost Property need to be claimed before the end of term. This also a reminder to name all items coming to school with your tamariki. Any items clearly named (first and last) are returned to the child's teacher directly. 

Congratulations to...

Congratulations to our two Theatre Sports teams for their competitions on Saturday 5th November at Rangi Ruru Girls High School. Zoe Winsor, Ashlyn Taffs, Cleo Hopkinson, Oliver Mclachlan and Lachy Mcleod were amazing with their wit and working together to create great improv. Emma Reedy, Stella English, Haile Harmer-Campbell, Reagan Maule, and Katya Atlas were humorous and provided great entertainment while on stage. They were runner-ups in their heat. Both teams worked from the beginning of Term 2 to perfect their skills. Well done to you all!


PTA Update

Help needed please!

Our Uniform room is open this year on Mondays and Fridays after school for 20 minutes or so.
We are in danger of having to close it as our wonderful Jaana who has volunteered for many years is off on a new adventure! 

We are looking for a kind person to take on a shift once a week. It does not have to be a certain day and could even be in the morning before school. It's very easy and a great way to get to know lots of people in the school community. 

It's a great service for the school, so please do email us at pta@beckenham.school.nz or message us on Facebook. 

Ngā mihi 
The Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto PTA

Community Notices

Community Helpline

1737 - free text and phone counseling 24/7 
Youthline – 0800 376 633 or free text 234 
Depression Helpline – 0800 111 757 or free text 4202
Anxiety New Zealand - 0800 269 4389
What's Up – 0800 942 8787 (5–18-year-olds).
thelowdown.co.nz –or email team@thelowdown.co.nz or free text 5626

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter Rāmere (Friday) 18 November 2022

Posted on by

Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

New Playground Opening - this Monday, 21 November, 9:10am

Nau mai, haere mai! 
After much excitement from our tamariki, who have been keenly watching the removal and rebuild happening in our Junior Playground area - with many pātai (questions), the new playground will be ready to be officially opened this Monday morning at 9:10am. We invite all whānau to join us for the opening. The playground will be opened with a Karakia, and a ribbon cutting and Te Whānau Mahi Tahi, our senior kapa haka group, will perform. If you are able to join us, please feel very welcome to do that.

Please note, all children need to be at school before the bell at 8:55am so that they can be in their hub when the roll is taken. Teachers will bring children over to the playground at 9:05am, ready for the opening at 9:10am. We will aim to be done by 9:30am. 

A big thank you to PLAYCO and our Property Team, especially Richard Scott from the Board of Trustees, for all the work that has gone into the planning and the build. 



Whānau Survey - please contribute your perspective...

Over the next 2 to 3 years we will be further developing our understanding of gifted learners and how we meet their needs at Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto. This survey is part of the initial process and helps us with our planning and direction. We encourage all whānau to complete this survey which will be open until Monday 28th November.

Thank you... 

...to all of you for your support and understanding in picking up children at 1pm yesterday so that our teachers could attend their union meeting. It was very much appreciated by us all.

...to all of the children who participated in our fun PJ or 'Dress Like a Teacher' day today and to the whānau who supported them! Contrary to what I put in the newsletter last week, the gold coin donation was not for charity this time, but to fund the Student Council Art Project that the Year 8 students are creating to gift back to the school. The student council will let you know next week how much was collected.

Ngā mihi nui
Sandy Hastings
Tumuaki (Principal)

Important Dates

Mon 21 Nov - Junior Playground Opening Ceremony (9.05am - all welcome)
Wed 23 Nov - PTA Meeting (7.30 - 9.30pm - Green Room)
Fri 25 Nov - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Wed 30 Nov - Whole School Picnic and Kapa Haka performances (see info below)
Fri 2 Dec - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Thu 8 Dec - BOT Meeting (5.30 - 7.50pm - Rūma Kaimahi/Staffroom)
Fri 9 Dec - Final Celebration Assembly (9.45-10.30am)
Wed 14 Dec - Year 8 Leavers Graduation - 11am - 12noon, followed by Leavers' Lunch
Thu 15 Dec - Last day of Term 4 - School closes at 12:30pm

Term Dates

Citizen of the Week

Izzy Clarke - Year 4

Izzy, you shine in everything you do. You are always willing to help and take on challenges with a smile. Your passion for dancing has made you such an eager and enthusiastic student. In Kōwhai, you have been an amazing role model everyday since day one, and that effort has never gone unnoticed. We appreciate your positivity and passion for learning at school. Tu meke, Izzy!

School Notices

End of Year Reports

Today, 2022 End of Year Progress and Achievement reports are available to whānau through Hero. 

There will be no timetabled end of year Learning Conference. If you would like to discuss any elements of the end of year report, please contact your child’s Homegroup teacher.

Please note: 
  • any children who started at Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto in Term 4 2022 will not be receiving a written report. Please contact your child’s Homegroup teacher if you would like to talk about how they have settled into Beckenham

  • the Homegroup teachers of Koru children who started at the very end of Term 3 or during Term 4, will be or have been, in contact with whānau about booking a transition to school meeting, in place of a report
Please take the time to sit with your child and read their report together, celebrating their successes and their accomplishments this year, in all areas of school life.

If you have any further questions, please contact your child’s Homegroup teacher.

Te Ahu o Te Reo Māori

The Ministry of Education fund a Te Reo Māori language development programme called 'Te Ahu o Te Reo Māori'. This programme is designed to support school and Early Childhood staff, and whānau (with priority for whānau Māori), with their personal te reo Māori journey, so that all of our tamariki benefit from improved use and teaching of te reo Māori across our kura.

Whānau are welcome to register, if you would like to grow your knowledge and use of te reo Māori, and if you are able to then give back to our kura in some way and support and encourage staff and tamariki. (Please note that this course is for adults only, not tamariki).

Registrations for this programme for 2023 are now open, and places are filling up fast!

Programme and time committment required.
The current programme is delivered in the following way for 2023: 14 weeks of face-to-face classes or online (if you choose this option). 
Classes are held after school/Ece hours:
(there is a later online option for participants who cannot attend until after 5.30pm).

2023 classes will start in week 2 February 13th and run for 8 weeks in term 1 and 6 weeks in term 2.

Two 1 day wānaka (9-5pm) will be held as well one on a Saturday and one on the last Friday in the April School holidays for level 1 for example, other levels will differ.

Once you have pre-registered , Te Ahu will send out the wānaka dates for each level.
Next year they are offering face to face classes for Taumata Levels 1-5 in the first half of the year and online levels 1-4.
For enquiries about our programme please email: Teahu@whitiora.org.nz

To pre-register, click on this link.  Once you have done that, please let Sandy know (principal@beckenham.school.nz), as she will then need to set you up with a Ministry of Education login, so that your registration can be processed.

This year, we have had nine of our staff, including our Senior Leadership Team, teachers, admin and long-term relievers, participate in this course and we have all learned so much. Many will be continuing next year. 

If you are unsure or have questions, do come and talk with someone at school about it! "Mā tātou katoa te waka e hoe" We Get There Together!

Whole School Picnic and Kapa Haka Performances Wed 30th Nov

On Wednesday 30th Nov, from 5pm, we invite you all to attend a school picnic which will then be followed by three kapa haka performances. (NB if the weather is wet, the picnic will be cancelled but the kapa haka performances will continue as outlined below)

Everyone is welcome to attend all of the kapa haka performances and, we have scheduled each group in its own time slot so that families can just attend the one that their child is in if that works better for them. We also know that our hall can't accommodate everyone if we run a single concert with all of the groups performing! Each group's performance will run for approximately 20 mins

The timetable for the evening will be:

5pm onwards - Whānau Picnic in front of the Admin area and beside the hall. The Student Council will be running some activities for children, using games that the PTA had made for the school fair 2 years ago!

6pm - Year 3/4 Kapa Haka group performance

6:30pm - Year Y5/6 Kapa Haka group performance

7:00pm - Te Whānau Mahi Tahi kapa haka performance

"Wheel and Walk" to school prize draw

The staff at SEIPP Construction, who have been doing all of the water mains replacement work on our local Beckenham streets, have been working with us to encourage students to 'Wheel and Walk' for the remainder of the term. They had four major prizes this week, and will be donating spot prizes to give to students over the comng weeks who get to school by bike, scooter, walking or any other form of transport that isn't a car! This includes students that are dropped off at any of the surrounding streets to avoid congestion on Eastern Terrace. 

Today at our Celebration Assembly these prizes were drawn out of the box and awarded to the following students (with thanks to their whānau for supporting this):

The Birdwood:
Violet Chatterton

Hetties:
Harper Freeman
Blake Grayburn
Leo Davies

Again thank you all for your patience while the infrastructure is upgraded, and a reminder to all whānau doing the school drop off and pick up, that Sandwich Road is closed to everyone except for residents, school staff, and those with accessibility needs. This will likely be the case until the end of term. 

Year 8 2023 School-Based Vaccination Programme

School Phone - Important Information

We are having some ongoing issues with our landline phone which is causing problems for people trying to dial into the school.  If you are unable to reach us on the landline please use the school mobile phone, 021 0279 4107.  

We are in the process of upgrading the phone system and this will alleviate the issues we are having. Many apologies for this inconvenience - we are working hard to get it resolved.

Please note, next Thursday the 24th of November we will be undergoing a network upgrade which may affect our phones and internet. Please send any absence messages to the school mobile phone where possible, and use the school mobile to call if the main number is not working. 

Community Helplines:

1737 - free text and phone counselling 24/7 
Youthline – 0800 376 633 or free text 234 
Depression Helpline – 0800 111 757 or free text 4202
Anxiety New Zealand - 0800 269 4389
What's Up – 0800 942 8787 (5–18 year olds).
thelowdown.co.nz –or email team@thelowdown.co.nz or free text 5626

Congratulations to...

Christopher McCracken-Shannon for a huge 6.9 km of challenging trail (likened to a 10km flat) at the TrailBlazers krayzie kapers event at Orton Bradley park. Supported by mentor Conor, one jelly snake, a bit of badly sung bon jovi by Conor and an ice block at the finish line. An epic effort.


All of our Kahikatea and Kōwhai tamariki who have just completed two weeks of water safety sessions. For many of our tamariki, just getting into the water was a pretty big deal, with a range of worries and anxieties some of them had about this challenge. Clearly, once in the water, pure joy was found, as the photo below demonstrates! A huge thank you to the staff and whānau helpers who worked hard over the two weeks to make sure these sessions were such a success!

Sports News

Last weekend, Haile Harmer-Campbell, Keanna Hakeagaiki and Elijah Hakeagaiki competed in the Pacific rugby league Series for Te toka tū o Waitaha,  Māori rugby league. Keanna and Haile played in the 15s girls' grade and Elijah in the 10s grade. 
They all played some awesome games over 2 days against some great competition all while representing their proud Māori heritage with mana, haka, waiata, and manaakitanga.

Both of their teams came 3rd in their grades.


PTA News

Community Notices

(Notices placed here are contingent on space and do not reflect the views or opinions of the school.)

Basketball fans 

The Sky Sport New Zealand Breakers are coming back to Christchurch to play games on Thursday 1 December vs South East Melbourne Phoenix and Thursday 12 January vs Melbourne United. The Breakers have made a strong start to the NBL season sitting at the top of the ladder and don't look to be slowing down anytime soon! Both games will be played at Christchurch Arena and will be a great atmosphere for all. Tickets are on sale now and are as low as $15! Buy yours now from the Ticketek website or from this link: https://premier.ticketek.co.nz/shows/show.aspx?sh=BREAKERS23

St Martins Scout Outdoor Gear Sale: Saturday 26 November 9-12noon

 Singing Competition on Newstalk ZB

The Star of Christmas: WIN TRANSPORT, ACCOMMODATION & STUDIO TIME WITH NATHAN KING 

This Christmas morning on Newstalk ZB – it’s The Star of Christmas singing competition… on The Crazy Kiwi Christmas Kids Show! The grand prize? The opportunity to professionally record any Christmas song with Nathan King, lead singer of Zed. You’ll be treated like a star – with return flights for two to Auckland (if you’re out of Auckland), hotel accommodation, and a music studio tour. If you can sing, and are under 13, email your audition singing a Christmas song to christmas@newstalkzb.co.nz or call 0800 843 864 before 12th December. Then tune into Newstalk ZB on Christmas morning from 6am to see if you’ve won! 

More information on the Newstalk ZB website HERE. 

3 Day School Holiday Programme - SINGING & RECORDING


CCC seeking Feedback from the community

Christchurch City Council would like to hear what you think about Cashmere Rd, Colombo St, Centaurus Rd, and Dyers Pass Rd intersection improvements.

The intersection of Cashmere Rd, Colombo St, Centaurus Rd and Dyers Pass Rd is heavily used by people catching the bus, cycling, driving and walking.  This includes school aged children from nearby Thorrington Primary and Cashmere High School.

A number of buses pass through this intersection, including the popular Orbiter bus route. However, bus stops are located some distance away which makes transferring between bus routes difficult.

There have been a number of injury crashes here involving people travelling by bicycle and motorcycle so we’re proposing changes to make it way safer for everyone.

You can find out more about this project and tell us what you think online, until Wednesday 14 December 2022.


More information/purchase of tickets can be found on Eventfinda NZ or by following the links below:

 https://www.eventfinda.co.nz/2022/change-your-brain-change-your-life/christchurch/tickets

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter, Rāpare (Thursday) 10 November 2022

Posted on by

Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

I hope that you are all enjoying the long weekend. 

Attendance Matters

You will probably have heard a discussion on the news this past week about the declining school attendance rates of NZ students, both in the primary and secondary sectors. This conversation was prompted by the release of a report by the Education Review Office this week, and you can read the summary or the full report here.
Regular attendance (90% or more) at school is something that we want to see for all of our tamariki.

Please do look carefully at your child's attendance when you get their report next week. 'Regular attendance' is classed as being 90% or more. We know that there can be specific reasons why a child's attendance may drop from time to time including illness and, this year, Covid being very likely reasons. However, when average, yearly attendance drops below 90% year after year, this has a significant impact on your child's ability to access the education they deserve and are entitled to get.
  • If a student has an average of 90% attendance, over ten years they will miss a year of school.
  • If a student has an average of 80% attendance, over five years they will miss a year of school.
  • If a student has an average of 75% attendance, they are missing a term of school each year.
  • Being at school every day matters because of the sequential nature of learning, especially in literacy and numeracy.
  • By law, students must attend school.
  • One of the highest predictors of education success is attendance levels at school.
We know that every family wants their children to be successful in learning and in life. As whānau, you play a huge role in ensuring your child attends school regularly.  If you have concerns about your child's attendance, or would like to discuss ways that we can support you to improve your child's attendance, please make contact with your child's teacher and we will be happy to meet with you.

Upcoming Roadworks - closure of Sandwich Road...

From Tuesday 15 November the intersection of Sandwich Road and Norwood Street will be closed for roadworks. This is likely for the remainder of this term.

Vehicle entry into Sandwich Road, from Eastern Tce, will be for residents, school staff, and those with accessibility needs.

To help keep the traffic flowing as easily as possible at school drop-off and pick-up times, there will be two drop-and-go zones on Eastern Terrace, on either side of Sandwich Road. The map below also highlights other areas near the school that would make good drop-off places if you usually drive children to school where you could park and walk or, for older children, drop them off.

Pedestrian access will still be available from both ends of Sandwich Road.

We encourage whānau over the coming weeks to walk or bike to school as much as possible. Alternatively, park on Fisher or Martin Ave and walk to school.

Seipp Construction Ltd is aware of the changes this will have to morning and afternoon routines. To thank the school community for their patience and understanding they are providing a prize draw next week. Everyone who walks some or all of the way to school will receive a token to go into the draw for a prize. 

The following week Seipp Construction Ltd will be providing spot prizes to be given out at the school entrances to people who are walking, scootering or biking. 

Please see the map below and the attached information from Seipp Construction Ltd.


End-of-Year Reports

These are being proof-read at the moment and we expect to publish these through HERO this coming Friday, 18 November. 

Reminder - school closes at 1pm this Thursday 17 November

Our teachers are expected to attend a paid union meeting this coming week, along with all of the other teachers in Christchurch. Due to us having almost 100% union membership, finishing at 1m on Thursday 17th will allow them all to attend at the same time; the most workable option with releivers also attending the meetings. 

Year 7/8 students are on a trip that day - they will continue with that and return to school for the usual 3pm finish. The Y7/8 teachers have the option of attending another meeting. 

If you have a student in NE-Year 6 who:
  • needs to stay at school after 1pm on Thursday, OR 
  • is being collected by someone else, OR 
  • is going to BOSCO, OR
  • you give permission to travel home independently...
...please fill in this survey so that we know which children are not being collected by you. We will provide supervision for those who are staying at school until the usual pick-up time of 3pm. 

Whole School Picnic and Kapa Haka Performances Wed 30 Nov

On Wednesday 30 Nov, from 5pm, we invite you all to attend a school picnic which will then be followed by three kapa haka performances. (NB if the weather is wet, the picnic will be cancelled but the kapa haka performances will continue as outlined below)

Everyone is welcome to attend all of the kapa haka performances and, we have scheduled each group in it's own time slot, so that families can just attend the one that their child is in if that works better for them. We also know that our hall can't accommodate everyone if we run a single concert with all of the groups performing! Each groups' performance will run for approximately 20 mins

The timetable for evenng will be:

5pm onwards - Whānau Picnic in front of the Admin area and beside the hall. The Student Council will be runing some activities for children, using games that the PTA had made for the school fair 2 years ago!

 6pm - Year 3/4 Kapa Haka group performance

 6:30pm Year Y5/6 Kapa Haka group performance

7:00pm Te Whānau Mahi Tahi kapa haka performance

Ngā mihi nui
Sandy Hastings
Tumuaki (Principal)

Important Dates

Thu 17 Nov - School finishing early at 1pm (Union meetings)
Thu 17 Nov - BOT Meeting (5.30 - 7.30pm - Rūma Kaimahi/Staffroom)
Fri 18 Nov - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Fri 18 Nov - Student Council Dress Up Day (PJs or as a teacher)
Wed 23 Nov - PTA Meeting (7.30 - 9.30pm - Green Room)
Fri 25 Nov - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Wed 30 Nov - Whole School Picnic and Kapa Haka performances (see info above)
Fri 2 Dec - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Thu 8 Dec - BOT Meeting (5.30 - 7.50pm - Rūma Kaimahi/Staffroom)
Fri 9 Dec - Final Celebration Assembly (9.45 - 10.30am)
Wed 14 Dec - Year 8 Leavers Graduation - 11am-12noon, followed by Leavers' Lunch
Thu 15 Dec - Last day of Term 4 - School closes at 12:30pm

Term Dates

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter Rāmere (Friday) 4 November 2022

Posted on by

Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

What an amazing week we have had...
  • Kahikatea and Kōwhai have been at swimming lessons each day.  The team at Pioneer Stadium have been extremely well organised and responsive to the needs of our tamariki.
  • Our first House Games - incredible leadership and organisation by our Year 7 and 8 Students.
  • Cashmere High School visiting with our Kauri hub teaching team to plan Year 8 transitions to High School and share information.
  • Our return to whole school assemblies also saw the presentation of the first of the Senior cups and a packed audience to watch our Koru team perform three Kapahaka items.  Lots of camera clicks, filming and smiles in the audience.  Thanks to Whaea Cath and the Koru team for all the work involved in getting these gorgeous tamariki ready to perform.  Thank you to the parents who sent us feedback - we appreciate your words and time.
"My mum and I came to the celebration assembly today to see my little girl and all the other gorgeous little ones sing, and to see her get her first certificate! I just wanted to say how blown away I was by the assembly, the mana and energy was so high and I just loved hearing and seeing all the cheering and high fives for people getting awards. It's so cool to see children altogether and so keen, but then also quickly regulated and calm when they needed to be. Anyway, I just wanted to share that with you! Have a wonderful weekend."

A huge thanks also goes to the parents who helped with the whole School Athletics last week.  Your support is invaluable.  We were especially struck by the group of Junior School parents who came early or stayed to help with the Senior Sports events.  Thank you for living our school values and showing our tamariki how we all get there together, care and make a difference.  He rawe koutou!

Ngā mihi nui
Sue and Jo
Tumuaki Tuarua (Deputy Principals)

Important Dates

Fri 11 Nov - Canterbury Anniversary Day - (School Closed)
Thu 17 Nov - School finishing early at 1pm (Union meetings)
Thu 17 Nov - BOT Meeting (5.30 - 7.30pm - Rūma Kaimahi)
Fri 18 Nov - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Wed 23 Nov - PTA Meeting (7.30 - 9.30pm - Green Room)
Fri 25 Nov - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Fri 2 Dec - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Thu 8 Dec - BOT Meeting (5.30 - 7.50pm - Rūma Kaimahi)
Fri 9 Dec - Final Assembly (9.45 - 10.30am)
Thu 15 Dec - Last day of Term 4 - School closes at 12:30pm

Term Dates

Citizen of the Week

Jenna Sitompul - Year 7

Jenna, you are such an eager and happy student in the Kauri hub. You always show up on time to Student Council meetings which displays your reliability. Every day, you give all tasks your very best and you are so efficient at completing jobs and assignments. You show our school value, 'We Care' in all you do. You are helpful, kind and caring Jenna. Ka pai!

School Notices

Staffing update for 2023

As you will be aware, we have been working hard in the background these past couple of months organisng our staffing for 2023. 
Bearing in mind that there could still be changes between now and the start of 2023, this is our current teaching plan for next year:

Koru Team
Elizabeth Drummond - co-Team Leader
Stacey McLachlan - co-Team Leader
Georgia McKenna 

Kāhikatea Team
Amber Donovan - Team Leader
Katie McFarlane
Krystal Hunt
Lisa Collier 
Quynh Nguyen  (3.5 days)

Kōwhai Team (Year 3/4)
Anna Reid - Team Leader
Nick BruceRowena Barker
Charlotte Verity
\Anna McNeill
Quynh Nguyen (1.5 days)

Pōhutukawa Team (Year 5/6)
Steve Cooke - Team Leader
Gayle McNaughton
Rae Marsh
Megan Culver
Georgie Jones (part-time)

Kauri Team (Year 7/8)
Thomas Woodfield - Team Leader
Sarah Junghenn (Terms 1/2) & Jenny Diggle (Terms 3/4)
Bridie Zarifeh
Nicky Dunlop 
Thomas will be joining the team from his current role as a teacher in the Year 7/8 team at Cashmere Primary. Thomas has been teaching for 9 years, both in Auckland and in Christchurch. Bridie has been teaching for 6 years and will be moving to Chch from her current position at St Josephs's School in New Plymouth. Sarah (who has been working part-time in our Year 7/8 team this year) will be stepping in for Jenny in Terms 1 & 2 as Jenny will be taking refreshment leave and doing some travelling. Jenny will be back in Term 3. Nicky has decided to step down as team leader. Caitlin is moving to Ashburton at the end of the year and has secured a job at Ashburton Intermediate.

Dress Up Day

Kia ora e te whānau, 

On Friday the 18th of November the student council will be holding a pyjama day and "teacher student clothing swap" dress-up day. A T.S.S PJ day. Whether the students want to go all out with wigs and dresses to be dressed up as a teacher from our kura or just laze around in their pajamas, there will be room for all styles. A gold coin donation will be required! Have some fun!

From the Student Council

Community Dental Service

One of our Community Dental Service vans will be making a visit to your school soon.
  • Only the children who currently require a check-up will be seen at this visit.
    Please do not be concerned if your child is not called for a check-up this time.

  • The dental therapist will provide a regular check-up and preventative care which may include:
    - Cleaning/Scaling (to remove plaque from teeth)
    - Dental x-rays (to check for decay in teeth, or presence and position of teeth)
    - Fluoride Varnish (painted on teeth to help prevent decay)
    - Fissure Sealants (coating put on teeth to prevent decay) if required.

  • If your child requires any other dental care, they will bring home a ‘Care Plan’ which will explain what dental care and appointment times are required.

  • When you receive the ‘Care Plan’ please contact our Call Centre as soon as possible as you will need to arrange a time to bring your child to one of our Community Clinics for this dental care.

  • Please contact our Call Centre if you want further information on the Community Dental Service, to enrol your child or if you have any specific questions about your child’s dental care (a dental therapist will call you back)

  • Year 8 students: all year 8 students enrolled with the Community Dental Service are transferred from the Community Dental Service to a FREE private dentist from year 9 until their 18th birthday. To help with this transition please ensure you have informed your child of their family dentist (not orthodontist). This will enable us to transfer your child onto the correct dentist for year 9 onwards. More information will be sent home after their year 8 check-up.
To contact our Call Centre: phone 0800 846 983 / email commdental@cdhb.health.nz

Congratulations to our Y8 Award Winners...

Science Cup: Rowan Hopwood

 Rowan, your love for everything science is amazing! You are in your element when you are studying the unknown and how things work. You question why and how things work and your drive to learn about different science topics is admired. Earning eight science badges and your bronze award is extremely impressive. Your goal to earn two more badges and your silver award by the end of the year is something we have not seen happen on the Kauri team in quite some time. Continue to have that inquisitive mind, experiment,  manipulate variables and discover new things! Congratulations, Rowan.

O'Sullivan Cup for Excellence in Art: Reagan Maule

You always seem to have a drawing pencil in your hand.  You create intricate, well-proportioned, life-like characters that look ready to step off the page and into your fantasy world. You love to share your learning through art and do this in a sophisticated and detailed manner. You applied your digital drawing skills to design the backdrops for our ShowQuest performance. These were outstanding. Thank you for the joy and wonder that your artistic creations bring to others. Congratulations Reagan.

Acknowledgments

We recently received the first issue of a new series of chapter books from the Ministry of Education for students in Year 3.  They are designed to support the transition to reading longer texts and to foster a love of reading.
The first issue we received has a special connection with Beckenham as it has been written by Renata Hopkins, one of our Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto parents.

Ka pai Renata, I'm sure the children will love reading about 'Super Spies' when these get issued to the hubs!

Sports News

Learn to Play Touch

Students from Year 5 - 8 have an opportunity to take part in a 6-week skills-based session learning how to play touch rugby.

These sessions are designed to be an introduction to the sport; no prior experience is required. This is for students who would like to learn basic skills before joining teams that play in competitions.

The sessions will consist of skill teaching, drills, and a casual game at the end focusing on the skill that has been taught. The emphasis is on fun, building confidence, and skill development in a non-competitive environment.

The sessions will run on Wednesday afternoon from 3.15 til 4.15 at Beckenham Park. Students will need to bring a drink bottle and wear their hats. If your child has any individual medication such as an asthma inhaler, they should have this with them at every session. 

Adult help is desperately needed - this ranges from just helping to get students into age groups and starting drills to taking mini-games and working with small groups. All help is gratefully accepted; there is no previous experience required for this either!

The first session will be Wednesday 9th November and run every week until Wed 14th Dec. 

If it is wet, a decision will be made by 2pm. School and caregivers will be notified. 

A google doc is linked below and must be completed by a caregiver - we must know how students are getting home afterwards.

PTA News

Our PTA fundraiser this term is selling a range of Goodies for Christmas, some new and some old favourites!

The 3 Product ranges available are:
  • Cured Salamis
    - One size, 4 flavors + Biersticks, all $20 each
    - Venison
    - Garlic 
    - Pepperoni
    - Spicy 

    All Salamis and biersticks are Gluten, Dairy and MSG free.  Find out more at www.cured.nz
  • Panfortes from Pilgrim
    - 250g Panforte $20
    - 1kg Panforte $60
    Panforte is an Italian Christmas fruitcake.  Packed with walnuts, almonds, figs, mixed peel and spices.  Bought to you by Pilgrim, a business owned by a school whānau. For more information visit https://pilgrim.net.nz/
  • Fix and Fogg Peanut Butter
    - 375g Smooth Peanut Butter 
    - 375g Super Crunchy Peanut Butter
    - 275g Everything Butter
    - 275g Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter
    All jars are $8.00 each. Please note they are smaller jars than the last fundraiser.
The link for the online order form is below, there will not be any paper order forms this time.  


There is a very short time frame on this fundraiser.  Orders close: 6pm, Sunday the 13th of November 2022. 

Pick up will be from the PTA stall outside the hall after school from 6 December and will be advertised on Hero and the PTA Facebook page.

Thanks for your supporting the Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto PTA! 

Community Notices

(Notices placed here are contingent on space and do not reflect the views or opinions of the school.)

World Sustainable Toy Day

The global toy industry produces 1 million tonnes of waste annually. At the same time, 75% of kids are worried about their future because of climate change and the oceans are in a plastic-waste crisis.

Toys shape how our tamariki see and interact with the world, which gives us the opportunity and responsibility to use play to help them become more climate confident. We can leave them a better legacy than ocean waste and toys they lose interest in after just one week!

That’s why the team at Sustained Fun, creators of the reusable water balloon, EcoSplat, created World Sustainable Toy Day to be celebrated annually on the 3rd Friday of November (one week before Black Friday). 
Do you have toys that have been in your family for generations? Toys that your kids have played with for years? Toys that your kids have used in many different ways? Record a video or take photos of you and your kids with favorite' toys that last', tag us in your social media posts #WorldSustainableToyDay November 18th. 

Share or follow them Facebook https://www.facebook.com/WorldSustainableToyDay 

TMC Trucking Industry Show

A fantastic family event is coming up on Saturday, November 26th at the Canterbury Agricultural Park in Christchurch. The TMC Trucking Industry Show is New Zealand’s largest Trucking Festival and there is so much going on, making it heaps of fun for the whole family! Kids are FREE and all kids activities at the show are FREE too! Adults are just $10 entry.

There are so many activities for the kids – plan to stay all day! These include:
  • The largest truck bouncy castle in the world – a 22m long truck obstacle course (for kids over 10 years old)
  • The Mega truck bouncy castle 14m long!
  • The Carter Tyre Run – race through the tyre run in the quickest time to win prizes at the end of the show
  • Road Metals Giant Sand Pits with hidden treasure– one for the little-ies and one for kids over 8 years old. Did for treasure and win prizes!
  • The Valvoline Road Safety Scooter Track – grab a pedal kart or scooter and race around the track, learning some fun road rules at the same time
  • Activities Chill Tent – including colouring-in competitions for all ages
  • Trucking 9-hole Mini-golf course – grab a putter and make it round the trucks to beat your family and friends
  • People’s Choice – vote for your favourite truck, it’ll be pretty hard to pick from the 400 trucks on display!
  • The RC Haulers Radio Control Trucks – these miniature trucks have amazing detail and will be driving around a huge Trucking Village
There will be plenty to see and do at the show, with industry competitions also taking place including the TR Group NZ Truck Driving Championships, the Palfinger Crane Competition, Liebherr All-terrain Crane Competition and the NZ Forklift Competition.

Over 400 big shiny trucks will be on display, so walk around and vote for your favourite in the People’s Choice competition. There will be plenty of food vendors, coffee, ice cream and sheltered areas to relax, as well as the huge Monstavision screen where you can sit and watch the excitement from the industry competitions. The Show Shop will have a great selection of truck toys and remote control trucks available from just $30 – arrive early as these sell out fast.

This event only comes around every 2 years – so come along on Saturday November 26th and enjoy a family-friendly, affordable day out (please leave your furry family members at home).

Adult Tickets can be purchased online and grab your free kids tickets here too: Tickets for 2022 TMC Trucking Industry Show - Christchurch - Eventfinda


Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter Rāmere (Friday) 28 October 2022

Posted on by

Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou


We know that Diwali is a very important time of the year for a number of our families and we hope you have all enjoyed celebrating Diwali together this past week.

Upcoming works - Heathcote River Crossing - Footbridge closed

There is a section of major works beginning soon on Eastern Terrace (at the end of Malcolm Ave) which will affect pedestrian traffic from those that use the footbridge.

A new pipe is being installed underneath the Heathcote River, next to the footbridge at Malcolm Ave, and into Palatine Reserve. Palatine Reserve will also be closed for quite a long period of time, and the bridge will be closed over a 6-week period.

There will also be a section of Palatine Road closed just next to the bridge.

Ngā mihi nui
Sandy Hastings
Tumuaki (Principal)

Important Dates

Fri 4 Nov - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Fri 11 Nov - Canterbury Anniversary Day - (School Closed)
Thu 17 Nov - School finishing early at 1pm (Union meetings)
Thu 17 Nov - BOT Meeting (5.30 - 7.30pm - Rūma Kaimahi)
Fri 18 Nov - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Wed 23 Nov - PTA Meeting (7.30 - 9.30pm - Green Room)
Fri 25 Nov - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Fri 2 Dec - Celebration Assembly (10 - 10.30am)
Thu 8 Dec - BOT Meeting (5.30 - 7.50pm - Rūma Kaimahi)
Fri 9 Dec - Final Assembly (9.45 - 10.30am)
Thu 15 Dec - Last day of Term 4 - School closes at 12:30pm

Term Dates

Citizen of the Week

William Orchard - Year 6

William, you are a hard-working student who is always giving your best and taking care to take on board and practice new learning. You show empathy for others and ensure you are an upstander when necessary, thereby always showing our 'We Care' and We Get There Together' values. You notice and do things that need to be tidied or sorted out and this is such a good skill to have. Ka rawe, William.

School Notices

School Photos

School Photos are now available to purchase again on the photographer's website: https://www.schoolphotography.co.nz/

The Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto link was temporarily removed at midday yesterday, while the photographers increased the security of their website and our pictures.

Thank you to all parents who informed us of various issues with passwords and our photographs - this should all be working again now with the same password provided previously.

As we have lost 2 days and had quite a few queries in regards to the link being unavailable, the Photo order close-off is being extended until Sunday 30th October.

Last chance Calendar Art orders

Did you forget to get your Calendar Art orders before they closed at the end of last term?

The order portal has been reopened until 1 November.  This is your last chance.  

Each product is made from your own child’s art.
These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.

Follow these instructions to place your order online:
  1. Go to www.kidsartworks.com

  2. Use the Entrance Code: KZ*….. (add in your entrance code from your welcome letter e.g. “KZ3452”)*

  3. Enter your child’s room & name
Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.

Congratulations to...

Andrew Robertson, for receiving the Rātā Cub Award at Scouts.

Congratulations to...

 Fergus Macdonald and Christopher McCracken-Shannon for placing in the Speech Zone Finals Competition which took place on Thursday evening. They delivered their speeches beautifully. Congratulations to Fergus for placing 3rd for the Year 8s. 

Mana Ake

TUNING INTO KIDS & TRIPLE P PARENTING PROGRAMMES

We still have some spaces available for Tuning into Kids and Triple P. Please see the attached flyer with parents. Triple P is offering a free online course for parents who would like to support their children who experience anxiety.

Helping whole families manage anxiety - Triple P Positive Parenting New Zealand (triplep-parenting.net.nz)

MANA AKE WEBSITE


Parents going to this site can be assured of finding up-to-date and quality information on wellbeing and parenting skills. https://manaake.health.nz/supporting-your-child/

SPORT UNIFORMS

Unless your child is competing in the Zones, we now require all sports uniforms to be returned to school, please have these cleaned prior to returning.

SCHOLASTIC

Issue 7 is out now. Please click here to view the catalogue, or here to sign up and learn how to order.
In this Bumpre edition you will find:
  • Christmas and Holiday Gift Ideas
  • The Best Books of 2022
  • Halloween Reads
  • Big Savings on Packs
  • $7 and Under Books, $3.50 Value Books and much more!
To make it easy to give the gift of reading this year, the LOOP Gift Function has automatically been turned on for this issue. Gift orders are intended to be given directly to the parents, not the child. 

Sports News

School Athletics Day

We were fortunate to wake up to a beautiful sunny day on Wednesday for our whole school athletics event. This day is a celebration of the learning that our tamariki have been participating in over the past few weeks, focusing on run, jump and throw. It's an opportunity for the children to challenge themselves, encourage others and come together in a day of shared experiences being outside and active. 

A huge thank you to all the staff for their planning and running of the day's events, to the adult helpers who made the event possible and to the crew of dedicated senior students who came to school early to turn Beckenham Park into an athletics arena. 

A personal highlight was seeing tuakana teina in action at the house relay. It was an exceptionally close race between Heathcote and Tennyson for a while, but Heathcote ultimately took the win. 
Jenny Diggle
Sports Coordinator

See below an awesome athletics day video made by Luka Aramowicz on our Media Team.


PTA News

We are well into this short last term and we have a few requests for help, please!!!

Uniform room

One of our dear PTA members is off on a new adventure so she can no longer work in the school uniform room. We would love a volunteer to open it one afternoon a week. This is about a 20-30 minute job and is an incredibly valuable service for our school. We are looking now so Jaana can train you up before she goes.

Please private message us on Facebook or email pta@beckenham.school.nz

Leavers Lunch

Every year the PTA coordinates a lunch after the Leavers assembly (14th December). Most of the PTA have leavers themselves and want to relax and enjoy the lunch this year. If you think you could help out by coordinating ordering the lunch or helping on the day to serve it, please let us know! 

Bike and Scooter racks

We would like to use some of the Outdoor Spaces funds that we hold by upgrading the scooter and bike stands. If you have particular knowledge about bike stands and how to fit the most bikes in a space we want to talk to you! Please contact us. 

As always, thanks for your continued support! 

Community Notices

(Notices placed here are contingent on space and do not reflect the views or opinions of the school.)

From the Christchurch City Council:


Kia ora,

We’d like to hear what you think about Safe speed neighbourhoods.
We’re making it safer around all schools and surrounding neighbourhoods. Whether you’re visiting whanau and friends, letting tamariki walk, scoot or bike to school or driving to work and home again, you should be able to do it safely.

You can find out more about this plan and tell us what you think online, until Wednesday 30 November 2022. 

Talk to the team.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss this further, please email me, or give me a call on the numbers below. 
 
Ngā mihi,

Hannah Ballantyne
Engagement Advisor
Communications and Engagement  
     
03 941 8055 | 027 310 1546

Somerfield Playcentre Garage Sale

Saturday 29th October
9am - 12pm

Clothing | Toys | Books | Plants | 
Baking | Candy Floss | Bouncy Castle | 
Sausage Sizzle | Bric a Brac |

BYO bag. Cash only.