Category Archives: Weekly Newsletters

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter 2020-10-23 14:43:00

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Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

Staffing Update

Our congratulations go out to Jules May who has won a leadership position (Junior Team Leader) at Te Kōmanawa Rowley School, starting at the beginning of next year. Whilst we will miss Jules' energy and commitment to our tamariki, we certainly wish her well in her new position and celebrate that, once again, the success of our staff in winning new positions of leadership and furthering their careers.



The Year 5/6 Team Leader position which will be vacated by Anne Batchelor at the end of the year has been won by Steve Cooke. We are very excited to be welcoming Steve into our Leadership Team for 2021. 




Both of the above staffing changes result in us needing two more permanent teachers for our staff for 2021. We have these positions advertised and will let you know as soon as we have confirmed them. 

Cycle Safety Pōhutukawa

Our Year 6 students have been very busy this week (with one more group to participate next week), with the Christchurch City Council Cycle Safety programme. Many children, who already considered themselves to be road confident cyclists, have been very surprised about the number of important road rules that they didn't know about, and have been learning over this two day programme. 
As caregivers, please remember that, whilst this will have improved their confidence, nothing beats being out on bikes with your child and demonstrating good cycle safety with them.

Kōwhai Museum Visit

Our Kōwhai Team have had trips to the Canterbury Museum this week to explore and develop their understanding of both The Moon, and Māori traditional tools and living. When learning about the Moon, as part of the Science curriculum, they 
Part of their learning in the Te Ao Māori area was to learn about the legend of "Kupe and Te Wheke". You can click on the link and read this story for yourself - and talk with your children about it.
Thank you to the staff, and whānau, who made this trip possible with their support.


Pōhutukawa Marae visit

This week all tamariki and kaiako in the Pōhutukawa team experienced a wonderful day at Rāpaki Marae, over two days of visits. We all enjoyed taking part in a powhiri ceremony, sharing our pepeha and learning about the local history and tikanga, as well as exploring the surrounding environment. 
Noho ora mai

Outside the Rapaki marae

Matua Maui


Year 7/8 Camp Dunedin

This week our Year 7/8 team have been in Dunedin on camp. They have been having an amazing time with so many varied and challenging experiences. These include Moeraki boulders, Oamaru SteamPunk Playground, Baldwin Street climb, 'Hair-raiser' tour of Dunedin by night, campfire, Albatross colony visit, sports and learning exchange with Carisbrook School, Otago Early Settlers Museum, Otago Museum Butterfly Room, and a day of physical challenges at the Waihola Campground where they have been staying!
The bus is due back to school around 5:30pm tonight - we will email and put a message on FB when we have a more detailed ETA.
A huge thank you to the staff and whānau who have supported this camp, through fundraising, baking and attending, to make it possible.


We Get There Together

During the holidays, one of our wonderful New Entrant students and his dad spent half a day sweeping and tidying the court area outside Kōmanawa, all ready for his friends to enjoy when they returned at the start of Term 4. 
Thank-you Max and Gerard!

Have a wonderful weekend
Ngā mihi nui
Sandy Hastings
Tumuaki - Principal

Important Dates

Upcoming Events

Mon 26 Oct: LABOUR DAY School Closed
Tue 27, Wed 28, Thu 29 Oct: Kahikatea & Kōwhai SwimSafe programme - Pioneer Pool
Wed 28 Oct: 6:45pm Christchurch Arena, Christchurch Schools Cultural Festival - Te Whānau Mahi Tahi performing
Thu 29 Oct: BOT meeting POSTPONED
Fri 30 Oct: Whole School Athletics - Beckenham Park
Mon 2 Nov: Year 7/8 Technology (bus leaves at 8:30am) Note change of date for this week!
Mon 9th Nov: Zone Athletics, Hansen Park. 9am - 3pm
Thu 12 Nov: Celebration Assembly (our first for this term!)
Fri 13th Nov: Canterbury Anniversary Day - school closed.

Term Dates

Click here to view 2020 and 2021 term dates.

Citizen of the Week

Holly McIntosh - Year 4

Holly, you are a delightful member of the Kowhai hub.  You are kind, thoughtful and always strive to ensure others are included.  You consistently follow the school values "We Care" and "We Get There Together" by always being willing to take on extra responsibilities.   

School Notices

Mana Ake “Drop-Ins” are continuing…

A number of whānau have already made great use of the Mana Ake “drop-ins” that are available on Wednesday mornings from 8:30 – 9:30am. These drop-in sessions are here to provide parents with an opportunity to have a private, informal conversation around the well being of their child with one of our Mana Ake workers (kaimahi). If you feel like you would like to attend a drop-in session, please book in a time via the link here: Mana Ake booking  The code to use is 88t39. Alternatively, you can contact Jacky in the office (337 1404) and she will make a booking for you.

Head Lice are around... again!

We are noticing increasing numbers of children with head lice again. Anyone can get head lice, and it is important that they are treated before children return to school. You can find out more about head lice and their treatment here.
Children who have long hair should have it tied up. This is especially important for the prevention of the spread of head lice, and of course, a requirement for those children who are swimming next week.
Tight plaits, with some hairspray for more barrier, can sometimes help to raise the protection against headlice, as can a drop of tea tree oil on the hands and smoothed over hair.

Congratulations to...

Keanna Hakeagaiki who competed in the primary schools' competition for gymnastics. After some good routines in vault, uneven bars, floor and beam she ended up coming 4th overall. Well done Keanna!


BOT Mid-Term Elections 2020

Nominations for Mid Term positions for our Board of Trustees are now open. You will have received an email with nomination details and how you nominate. Nomination forms are available from the school office if you haven’t received them. Please note nominations close on Sunday 1st November. We look forward to your interest.

Wayne Jamieson

Returning Officer


Community Notices

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


Tell us what you want for 2050 - The Greater Christchurch Partnership

We want to hear from everyone that has an interest in Greater Christchurch as we develop this exciting plan for our sub-region’s future. Greater Christchurch 2050 will describe the kind of place we want for our future generations, and the actions we need to take over the next 30 years to make it happen. 

It should take around 5 minutes to give us your feedback. You can give feedback until 8 November 2020. To find out more about the greater Christchurch Partnership and the plan visit greaterchristchurch.org.nz/greater-christchurch-2050



Hell Pizza Reading challenge

The HELL Reading Challenge is a well-established programme, now in its seventh year, which has been hugely successful in getting kids reading and enjoying the pleasures of stories — with the bonus of free pizza rewards.
We are very excited to be continuing our partnership with HELL Pizza. Their enthusiasm for children’s reading and generous ongoing commitment is awesome.
Teachers, librarians and parents have been telling us how the HELL Reading Challenge has hooked so many reluctant readers into books. In 2020 we want even more young readers to discover the thrill of a great book.
The HELL Reading Challenge is free, and it is so easy! Children receive a stamp on their pizza wheel for each book they read. Once they have read seven books, children can exchange their completed pizza wheel for a free 333 kids’ pizza at HELL.
To find out more use the following link:

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter Friday 16th October, 2020

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Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

Welcome to our final term for 2021. Term 4 is always a busy term, with spring providing better weather for outdoor activities, camps that were planned, athletics, end of year activities. This year, we also have some additional 'COVID-catch-up' activities, that had previously been postponed such as the Year 7/8 camp next week, and the Cultural Festival in Week 3. 

Learning in the Hubs - Mathematics 



Our staff believe that games that stimulate our learners to take a risk and invite them to compare their ideas are a great way to capture and connect their minds to mathematics. This photo shows Kōwhai learners contributing their ideas to a new game our Teaching Assistants learnt on our recent Staff only Day.

Big Shake Out

Yesterday, we participated, along with many other schools and workplaces around the country, in the 'Big Shakeout' - demonstrating and practising what we would do in the event of a major earthquake during the school day. We all practised 'making a turtle' after which the whole school evacuated out to our assembly point on Beckenham Park. The children should be able to talk to you about this, and it would be a good opportunity to talk about the plan that you have at home for the family in the event of an earthquake when at home.

Pop-Up Penguin

Harcouts and 'Wild in Art' are presenting a second 'pop-up-sculpture trail' around Christchurch this year - this time in the shape of penguins. Our school was invited to decorate a penguin, which we were very excited to have the opportunity to do. Our students chose the theme: ‘We need to take action in order to keep the beautiful creatures on our planet’ and then weeks of work went into gathering ideas from students around the school and incorporating them into a cohesive design that would reflect this theme. 
Year 7/8 students worked with Nicky and local artist and friend of our school, Ira Mitchell, to then get that design onto a fibre-glass bird!
We are incredibly proud of the result!


Yesterday our penguin was picked up from school and taken to be reunited with all the other penguins, where they will have their photos taken, and then will be placed on a trail around Christchurch. We will let you know more about that when we have the information. 
After the trail has been going for 10 weeks, our penguin will be returned to us, and we can display it somewhere appropriate within our school.

Considering home groups for 2021

Very shortly we will be working on building our home learning groups for 2021. Our staff spend a lot of time carefully considering the needs of each child, and take into account a range of emotional, social, behavioural and academic considerations. We do NOT ask parents to choose a home room teacher that they would like for their child. We do know, however, that you hold information about your child's wellbeing at school that may be relevant when we are putting these groups together. Therefore, if you have any considerations about your child for us to add to our home group placement discussions for 2021 - please email these to Sandy by Friday 30th October (the end of Week 3 of this term).

Demonstrating how we are inclusive

At Beckenham we are constantly considering the ways that we can ensure we are being inclusive of all people, both whānau and tamariki, in our daily interactions both at school and with our wider community.
When we communicate with people, using both their name and pronouns correctly is an important way of demonstrating that we respect and value them. We work hard to use children's names correctly, and urge you to please let us know if we are not pronouncing or spelling your child/family's names correctly. 
Using pronouns is also important. As our children move through the school, they get many opportunities to learn about ways that we can use language to be inclusive. You may have noticed that some of our staff and students have added their pronouns to their digital signatures. When cisgender people (those who identify with the sex/gender they were assigned at birth) do this, it normalises it for everyone and protects trans and gender diverse people when they include their pronouns. Having pronouns in an email signature also signals you as an LGBTQIA+ ally.

The State Services Commission has recently published a page on their website that explains this particularly well, if you would like to read and learn more about it.

Ngā mihi nui

Sandy Hastings (pronouns she/her)
Tumuaki - Principal

Important Dates

Upcoming Events

Mon 19 - Fri 23 Oct: Kauri Team Camp in Dunedin
Mon 19 Oct: Canterbury Duathlon - Ruapuna Speedway
Wed 21 & Thu 22 Oct: Pōhutukawa trips to Rāpaki Marae
Thu 22 & Fri 23 Oct: Kōwhai trips to Canterbury Museum
Mon 26 Oct: LABOUR DAY School Closed
Tue 27, Wed 28, Thu 29 Oct: Kahikatea & Kōwhai SwimSafe programme - Pioneer Pool
Wed 28 Oct: 6:45pm Christchurch Arena, Christchurch Schools Cultural Festival - Te Whānau Mahi Tahi performing
Thu 29 Oct: BOT meeting 5:30 - 7:45pm, Staffroom, All welcome
Fri 30 Oct: Whole School Athletics - Beckenham Park
Mon 9th Oct: Zone Athletics, Hansen Park. 9am - 3pm
 

Term Dates

Click here to view 2020 and 2021 term dates.
If you are someone who uses a digital calendar, you may find syncing the school calendar with your calendar a worthwhile thing to do. You can find the link for this on the school website. 

Citizen of the Week

Sachit Rana - Year 7

Sachit, you are an exceptionally reliable member of the Kauri whānau. When given a job, you complete it without any reminders. You are kind and caring to all in our hub and we enjoy your wonderful sense of humour! Accha kam! 

School Notices

Our senior kapa haka group, Te Whānau Mahi Tahi, will be performing at the Christchurch Schools Cultural Festival at the Christchurch Arena on Wednesday, 28th October at 6:45pm.
Tickets are now available through Ticketek. (This is the only way to get tickets - schools are not selling tickets directly).

Term 4 - HATS

As is our usual practice, hats are compulsory in Term 4 for all outdoor play and exercise.  Please take a moment to ensure your child has a suitable red or black hat for use at school.  Caps do not provide adequate sun protection and are not part of the school uniform. Please name your child's hat clearly.
We no longer sell hats at the school office. Bucket style hats or wide brimmed hats are available from our uniform supplier, Mainland Uniforms at 189 Peterborough Street.  
Their website is: Mainland uniforms

New Finance Officer needed

We have regretfully accepted the resignation this week of Sandra Rauch, our Finance Officer. We are in the process of putting together an application package for this position which will likely be a part-time (around 25 hours, term time only) position, suitable for someone with bookkeeping and payroll experience. When the advertisement is completed we will circulate it, so keep your eye out for this if you think it might be the right job for someone you know who has the appropriate skills and is looking for this kind of role.

Mana Ake “Drop-Ins” are continuing…

A number of whānau have already made great use of the Mana Ake “drop-ins” that are available on Wednesday mornings from 8:30 – 9:10am. These drop-in sessions are here to provide parents with an opportunity to have a private, informal conversation around the well being of their child with one of our Mana Ake workers (kaimahi). If you feel like you would like to attend a drop-in session, please book in a time via the link here: Mana Ake booking  The code to use is 88t39. Alternatively, you can contact Jacky in the office and she will make a booking for you.

Lunchonline

Lunches can be ordered through the Lunchonline website on Wednesdays and Fridays
Refer a Friend Competition- $500 prize!!
Don't forget our refer a friend competition runs until 1st December.
Refer a new customer to Lunchonline, once the new member makes an order you go in the draw to win the $500 prize - just in time for Xmas !

Congratulations to...

 Zoë Clarke and Max Graham for participating in the South Speech Zone Competition on Monday evening. They did an amazing job presenting their wonderfully written speeches. Max Graham placed 2nd in the Year 8 section! Well done to the two of you!

PTA News

Calendar Art Orders Reopened 

Due to a number of you missing out on placing your orders we have arranged for the Calendar Art Orders to be reopened from 19 October, at 9am – 23 October at 11.59pm.
This will be your last chance to get your orders in this year.

PTA Bulletin Fourth Term

Please take a moment to read the latest news from the PTA.

BOT Elections

By now, all caregivers should have received an email containing information about the nomination process and nomination forms for the upcoming Board of Trustee Elections. You can also complete a nomination form online.


Nominations close on Sunday, 1st November at 12pm
If you have any questions about what might be involved in being a Trustee, do make contact with one of our current Trustees, or feel welcome to email our current Chair, Ester Vallero valleroester@gmail.com 

Community Notices

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

Election Day: Saturday 17 October

Voting will be open at the Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Hall - 9am - 7pm




Loop the Loop

Monday 26th October start 4-6pm
A bicycle treasure hunt and neighbourhood exploration, followed by a community party.
Start at the Beckenham Ponds and end at the corner of Malcolm and Birdwood Avenues.
There will be a BBQ, outdoor games and a prize draw! 

Studio One Performing Arts

Studio One Performing Arts, your local dance school, is currently giving Ballet, Jazz and Contemporary lessons in your area. The school’s director is teacher, choreographer & ex-ballet dancer Patricia Paul A.R.A.D. (London). Ballet lessons from 3 years through to Advanced, and all levels in Jazz and Contemporary starting from age 7. For all enquiries please phone 372-9191 or email info@studioone.co.nz

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter Friday 25th September 2020

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Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

What a lovely warm week we have had for the final week of this term. Yesterday, this warm weather was further celebrated as the tape was finally removed from the grass areas of the playground and the children rushed out with their morning tea to take advantage of sitting on the lush grass!


We were fortunate to be visited by 7 members of the New Zealand Army Band on Wednesday this week. They played a wonderful half hour concert for the children, hopefully inspiring many to begin or continue with their music lessons and practice in the goal of being a professional musician in the future!




We saw some of that wonderful talent on display this afternoon in our Annual Talent Quest! Congratulations to all of the children who performed, and who auditioned. Thanks to all of the staff who helped with the auditioning process, and to the team of staff and students who supported this today, back stage, judging and doing the sound desk.

Considering home groups for 2021

Next term we will be working on building our home learning groups for 2021. Our staff spend a lot of time carefully considering the needs of each child, and take into account a range of emotional, social, behavioural and academic considerations. We do NOT ask parents to choose a home room teacher that they would like for their child. We do know, however, that you hold information about your child's wellbeing at school that may be relevant when we are putting these groups together. Therefore, if you have any considerations about your child for us to add to our home group placement discussions for 2021 - please email these to Sandy by Friday 30th October (the end of Week 3 of next term).

Reminder - Term 4 begins on Tuesday 13 October.

Have a safe and relaxing holiday!

Ngā mihi nui

Sandy Hastings
Principal - Tumuaki

Important Dates

Upcoming Events

Sun 11 Oct: 10am - 3pm Te Whānau Mahi Tahi Wananga - School Hall

Mon 12 Oct: Staff Only Day - School Closed

Tue 13 Oct: Term 3 begins
Thu 15 Oct: Canterbury Swimming Championships - Selwyn Aquatic Centre
Fri 16 Oct: Welcome Assembly 9:15am - All family of new students this year who haven't yet been to a welcome assembly - Welcome!
Mon 19 - Fri 23 Oct: Kauri Team Camp to Dunedin
Mon 19 Oct: Canterbury Duathlon - Ruapuna Speedway
Mon 26 Oct: LABOUR DAY School Closed
Wed 28 Oct: Christchurch Schools Cultural Festival - Te Whānau Mahi Tahi performing
Fri 30 Oct: Whole School Athletics - Beckenham Park

Term Dates

Click here to view 2020 and 2021 term dates.

Citizen of the Week

Cortana Mee - Year 4

Cortana, you display a positive attitude to all aspects of learning with your persistence and enthusiasm. You are a role model in our hub who naturally demonstrates our school values and this has seen you always willing to lend a hand or help others who need it. This helps to make our hub a wonderful place to be. Tino pai, Cortana !

Max Page - Year 6

Max, you are an extremely positive and enthusiastic member of the Pōhutukawa hub. You consistently demonstrate the school values and you approach everything with a great sense of humour. You are respectful of all those around you and you work hard to achieve your goals. Tino pai!

School Notices

Claiming back 33% of your School Donations and Contributions from the IRD

A reminder that via IRD you can claim back 33.33 cents for every dollar you donate to the school. This includes both school donations, and 'contributions' towards activities and camps. You can submit a receipt to IRD at any time within the past 3 tax years.
This means that right now, you can claim for:
  • 2017 tax year (ending 31 March 2018). 
  • 2018 tax year (ending 31 March 2019)
  • 2019 tax year (ending 31 March 2020)
One of our parents did this recently – it took 20 mins of her time and $400 was deposited in her bank account a week later (4 years of donations for 2 children). 
The steps are easy: 
1. Email Sandra Rauch (accounts@beckenham.school.nz)  to request a tax receipt for your school donation and contributions for the past three years.
2. Go to the IRD Website and search ‘Submit a Donation Receipt’ and follow the steps. 
3. Attach the receipts online and submit.

NB. You’ll have to wait till after Mar 31 next year to claim back this year’s donations.

Congratulations

Here are two YouTube clips of the recent concerts that were held at Hillview Christian School and Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto.  Great to see some of the emerging talent in both the Jazz band and the Training Band.





The PTA will be running a sausage sizzle from 10am - 2pm in addition to a bake stall.  Wheelie Good coffee will also be there so bring some coins and catch up with the community when you cast your vote.

BOT Update

School Board of Trustee Mid Term Elections 2020

Nomination round
Our school will be undertaking Mid Term Elections for our Board of Trustees this year. This process will start with the issuing of nomination papers to our caregiver in our community by Friday 9th October 2020.
The Board of Trustees has again employed CES to undertake the election process on our behalf. This year with legislative change, our nomination forms and full instruction on how to place your nomination into our own School’s Election website will be e-mailed to you by Friday 9th October 2020. Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Board of Trustees election site
For those that do not have access to the internet, nomination papers will be available at the school office and those nomination papers should be returned to the school office. The school will send those on to CES for processing. 
Nominations close on Sunday 1st November 2020 at 12 noon.
We look forward to your participation in this process.

Wayne Jamieson 

Returning Officer


Community Notices

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

Children’s Aikido Class

For 8 – 12 year olds
Co-operative approach to conflict resolution. Physical and fun.
Thursdays from 4:30pm – 5:20pm, new intake - start of term 4.
At the Ōtautahi Community Dojo, cnr Truscotts and Martindales Roads, Heathcote.
For more details see www.aikido.gen.nz
Limited numbers so registration essential
Run by Ōtautahi Aikido, a not-for-profit community organisation





Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter, Monday 21st September, 2020

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Special Newsletter as we move to Alert Level 1 tomorrow

Kia ora koutou

Hooray for being back at Alert Level 1! The announcement today was well-timed with the final week of term upon us, and the school holidays about to begin. It does mean that a couple of tentative activities scheduled for this week are now able to be confirmed.

The first is a concert this Wednesday afternoon by an ensemble from the NZ Army Band. Now that we can hold an assembly in the hall, we can look forward to this concert for the whole school rather than just half of the students. It will be wonderful to have everyone back in the hall together again.

The second exciting event that is now able to be confirmed is the Talent Quest this coming Friday afternoon. We know that the children are all looking forward to this, and that those students who have made it into the show have been putting in lots of practice. Whilst we can't open the event to all of our community, if your child is performing, you are welcome to attend.

Celebration Assemblies will re-commence next term.

Drop-off and pick-up times

As we did last time we shifted back to Level 1, we would like to encourage you to continue with the drop-off at the gate routine in the mornings. We are seeing so many more settled children in the hubs in the morning, especially between that 8:30-9am time. We will continue to have teachers waiting at the gate to welcome you. If you do need to come onto the site, you are welcome to do that too. Please only come into the hubs in the morning if it is absolutely necessary though. Making sure that your child is at school before the 8:55am bell is the best way you can support them to have a smooth transition into school in the morning.

From tomorrow ALL children will return to a 3pm finish. Parents are welcome to come on site and wait outside hubs to meet their children. In the afternoons, teachers will continue to walk out of the hubs with their home groups, and make themselves available to talk with you if you need to catch up with them.

Special Congratulations to our Y7/8 ShowQuestTeam

We were very excited to learn today that our Year 7/8 Stage Challenge entry (video entry this year due to COVID) was placed 2nd overall for the Intermediate Section, with a 1st place for Storytelling and 1st place for use of location.
An enormous amount of energy, planning, rehearsing and commitment went into putting this production together by both the students and the staff involved, with support from whānau when the videoing needed to be done.
You can watch the performance on the ShowQuest site (Canterbury Junior/Open section)



If you don't want to watch the entire show, the Beckenham performance begins at 14m:10s

PTA News

It is Calendar Art time! The kids (and teachers) have been busy creating some wonderful art again this year. 
Please look out for the personalized orders forms with your child’s unique code.  Log into the Kids ArtWork website, and follow the prompts to view and order your kids' arts.  You can order Calendars, Diaries, Mouse Pads, Notes Books and Cards.  Orders close Monday 28th September.

There will be a final newsletter for the term this coming Friday.


Ngā mihi nui
Sandy Hastings
Principal - Tumuaki

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter, Friday 18 September 2020

Posted on by

Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

Getting outdoors for Learning

The wonderful weather this week has supported some great learning opportunities outside the buildings.
On Monday, everyone took part in a "Māori Language Moment" in support of Māori language week. Some hubs went outside to the park, and learned a counting game, whilst the Year 7/8 team played a game using rakau, and others sang waiata.


On Monday, in place of the cancelled Koru Games, some senior students participated in a local volleyball tournament at Hillview Christian School. A number of our students stood out for their excellent sportsmanship. On Wednesday, also in place of the cancelled Koru Games, some senior student had the opportunity to engage with a local tournament against St Martins School on Beckenham Park in football, touch, and ultimate frisbee. 


Caring for our local environment - Ngā Pūroto (the ponds)

Building on the work of our Healthy Ōpāwho ambassadors (Anna, Cleo and Ben), the students from the Pōhutukawa Team took part in a planting project around the Beckenham Ponds on Wednesday this week. They were supported by parent helpers, and Sampson Karst from our Board who talked with the children about the role that the importance of 'Kaitiakitanga' - being caretakers of our land and living creatures.  A huge thanks to Sally Airey and Heidi Wilton, and their colleagues from CCC who organised this planting and worked to teach the children about the ponds, the plants and the legacy that this planting will leave for our wider community and the ponds ecosystem. Sally emailed this following the event:
Thanks so much for your mahi today, it was a great morning.  We planted about 295 plants- a large area of swampy ground that will grow strong plants and in time grow a  forest that will support the ponds to be a healthy habitat for our native fish, insects and birds.   I was impressed with the care the tamariki made with their planting and lovely to see Anna and Cleo mentoring other students with their planting. 



Sandy Hastings
Principal - Tumuaki

Important Dates

Upcoming Events

Fri 25 Sep - last day of Term 4
Mon 12 Oct - STAFF Only Day - SCHOOL CLOSED
Tue 13 Oct - First day of Term 4

Term Dates

Click here to view 2020 and 2021 term dates

Citizen of the Week

Freya Braun - Year 6

Freya you demonstrate a friendly, positive attitude to all that you do. You are outstanding in the area of sportsmanship. Your bubbly personality brings happiness to those around you. You are a great friend and lead by example to your peers. Keep up the great work!

Erik Cassels-Brown - Year 8

Erik, you are an energetic and enthusiastic member of the Kauri hub. You are eager to learn and give 110% on the sports field. Erik, we appreciate your personable nature and you often make us laugh with your awesome sense of humour. Tino pai!

School Notices

BOSCO Holiday Programme




Bookings are now OPEN for the October Holiday Programme. We have some exciting outings planned such as visiting Christchurch Gymnastics, Orana Park & Margaret Mahy Playground. Cheapskate Skateskool will also visit us with all their exciting activities. We have a Survivor day, athletics and a dance day planned for our “home days” to include lots of fun and sports to make the most of the beautiful days we know October brings. If you are interested in sending your kids to BOSCO and not miss out on any of these adventures, head over to our website  http://www.bosco.org.nz/ to make a booking using Aimy Plus, or contact Juanita at supervisor@bosco.org.nz. We can’t wait to see you there!

A BOSCO trip out to Orana Park


BOSCO also available on Teacher Only Day 12th October 2020

Teacher Only Day on Monday, 12th October -  bookings are now open. We have a game of T-ball planned , the craft is making a foam ball octopus and our baking craft for the day will be yummy rice bubble marshmallow slices.
Use the following link to book your place:

Mana Ake “Drop-Ins” are continuing…

A number of whānau have already made great use of the Mana Ake “drop-ins” that are available on Wednesday mornings from 8:30 – 9:30am. These drop-in sessions are here to provide parents with an opportunity to have a private, informal conversation around the well being of their child with one of our Mana Ake workers (kaimahi). If you feel like you would like to attend a drop-in session, please book in a time via the link here: Mana Ake booking  The code to use is 88t39. Alternatively, you can contact Jacky in the office and she will make a booking for you.

Registrations are now open for the 2020/2021 Sanitarium Weet-Bix Kid TRYathlon Series!

The world’s largest kids TRYathlon series is back. Open to kiwi kids aged 7-15 years of all sporting abilities, the Sanitarium Weet-Bix kids TRYathlon is a fun day out for the whole family. Swim, bike and run your way to the finish line as an individual or in a team of two, and receive your very own gold medal from top Kiwi sporting stars. Go on give it a TRY!

Register NOW - the Christchurch event always sells out. Here is the link: Weetbix Tryathlon - christchurch
Be sure to link your entry to the Beckenham Te Kura o Puroto School Group- the school with the most entries can win LOADS of prizes!!
Sunday 28th February 2021, Jellie Park Burnside

Term 4 - HATS

As is our usual practice, hats are compulsory in Term 4 for all outdoor play and exercise.  Please take a moment over the upcoming holidays to ensure your child has a suitable red or black hat for use at school.  Caps do not provide adequate sun protection and are not part of the school uniform. Please name your child's hat clearly.
We no longer sell hats at the school office. Bucket style hats or wide brimmed hats are available from our uniform supplier, Mainland Uniforms at 189 Peterborough Street.  
Their website is: Mainland uniforms

COVID-19 Testing for Pacific people:

The Pasifika Health Collective have asked us to share their contacts and the information about COVID-19 testing. This message is for our Pasifika families:
 
Testing for COVID-19 is IMPORTANT and the Pasifika Health Collective are encouraging Pacific people to get a COVID-19 test.
WHO can get tested?
  • ALL PACIFIC PEOPLE
  • regardless of whether you have flu-like symptoms or not
  • regardless of your visa status
WHERE can I get tested?
  • At your GP
  • At Etu Pasifika, 173 Montreal St, 0800 388727
  • Community Based Testing Centres (CBACs) at:   
    • Orchard Road CBAC: 174 Orchard Road: 9am – 4pm, 7 days a week
    • Whanau Ora Community Clinic CBAC: 250 Pages Road, Wainoni: 9am-4pm, 7 days a week
    • Ashburton Hospital CBAC: 28 Elizabeth St, Ashburton, 10am-2pm Tues, Thurs, Sat
How much does a test COST?

All tests are FREE except if travelling overseas 
 
Pacific Health Collective contacts:
Etu Pasifika
Focal point: Amanaki Misa
173 Montreal St
0800 388 727 or (03) 3611002

Pegasus Health
Focal point: Maria Pasene
(03) 353 0216 or 021 222 6417
maria.pasene@pegasus.org.nz

Sports News

Canterbury Schools Orienteering Festival



Congratulations to Torun, Anna, Stella, Claudia, Fergus, Zoe, Archie, Pippa, Feyja, James, Laura, Ben and Tisha who took part in the Canterbury Schools Orienteering Competition last weekend.
Day 1 saw the competitors sprinting around Hagley Park and day 2 competitors tackled longer and harder courses at Halswell Quarry. Our team had a range of experience, for some it was their first time doing orienteering.  It was great to see children from our school in year 1 all the way to year 7 competing.
All children had fun and learnt lots from the experience. Congratulations to the year 6 and under girls who took out first place in their grade.


Volleyball Tournament

Three teams competed at a volleyball tournament organised and hosted by Hillview Christian School on Tuesday. The teams had been training to go to Koru Games this week so this was a welcome opportunity to participate in some competitive games. For some, this was an opportunity to further their skills and experience in volleyball, while others were new to the sport this season. It was great to see technique and confidence grow with every game. There were lots of close and exciting games and wonderful sportsmanship was shown by all. 

On Wednesday, St Martins joined us on Beckenham Park for some friendly games of ultimate frisbee, football and touch. This was another example of some children following their passion and others trying a new sport for the first time. 
A huge thank you to Brett, Nicola, Anna and Simon who supported and managed teams this week in these two events.

PTA News

It is Calendar Art time! The kids (and teachers) have been busy creating some wonderful art again this year. 
Please look out for the personalized orders forms with your child’s unique code.  Log into the Kids ArtWork website, and follow the prompts to view and order your kids' arts.  You can order Calendars, Diaries, Mouse Pads, Notes Books and Cards.  Orders close Monday 28th September.

BOT Update

Notice of adoption of new Home Zone for the school Enrolment Scheme

You will have received formal notification of this change in your email earlier this week. 

For clarification, if your child is already attending Beckenham, and this change makes your residence out of our zone, NOTHING CHANGES for your child. They are already enrolled and can continue attending. If you have a child at the school already, and they have younger siblings who will be starting here after 1 January 2021 and your address has been made 'out of zone' because of the change, your other children can also enrol and attend Beckenham, because of the 'transitional arrangements' described in the documentation.

However, if you leave, and another family move into your home, their children will NOT be able to attend Beckenham as 'in zone' students.

If you have any questions about the impact of these changes on your family/address, please don't hesitate to get in touch by emailing Sandy directly - principal@beckenham.school.nz

School Board of Trustee Mid Term Elections 2020

Nomination round
Our school will be undertaking Mid Term Elections for our Board of Trustees this year. This process will start with the issuing of nomination papers to our caregiver in our community by Friday 9th October 2020.
The Board of Trustees has again employed CES to undertake the election process on our behalf. This year with legislative change, our nomination forms and full instruction on how to place your nomination into our own School’s Election website will be e-mailed to you by Friday 9th October 2020.
For those that do not have access to the internet, nomination papers will be available at the school office and those nomination papers should be returned to the school office. The school will send those on to CES for processing. 
Nominations close on Sunday 1st November 2020 at 12 noon.
We look forward to your participation in this process.

Wayne Jamieson 
Returning Officer

Community Notices

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