Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

Update on the Building Programme, and the move to Champion St

A big 'Thank you' to all of the Y5-8 parents who attended the meeting on Wednesday evening to find out about the logistics of the move to Champion St. We are feeling very excited about the changes ahead, and confident that we have the plans in place to make this move to Champion St a very successful and positive learning experience for everyone. This weekend I will be updating the slideshow that I shared on Wednesday, and will then post it up on the website for everyone to view by Monday.

At this stage, next Friday (23 September) will be our Y5-8's first day at Champion St. We would like to invite all of the Y5-8 parents and caregivers to join us at 102 Champion St from 12:30-1:30pm on that Friday for a sausage sizzle and to have a look around the site. The children will then spend from 1:30-2:30pm in class, and bus back to school for the 3pm finish.

We are still waiting for final confirmation from the Ministry of Education that they have signed off the contract with the builder. As soon as we have this we will be able to confirm all of the plans that are currently pending. We are very hopeful that this will be confirmed this coming Tuesday.

As the contract hasn't yet been confirmed, we haven't yet had a chance to meet with the builder and the site foreman to confirm all of their site plans, and agree on the final details of the health and safety plans for our building site. This will be our first priority as soon as the contract is signed.

Once we have had this meeting, we will be able to let you all know what these details will be. There will be areas that will be fenced off and limitations on the access points into and out of the school grounds. Ensuring that our junior students can move safely and easily around the school will be a priority.

Changes in the office:

The Board of Trustees have recently accepted the resignation of Audrey Cooper as our Executive Officer. Audrey has served the school tirelessly for over 32 years, first as a Teacher Aide and then moving into the office. She has seen several principals and many hundreds of children and families come through the school. Her own granddaughters still attend Beckenham School. Audrey is will finish her full-time role next Friday, however, she has agreed to stay on in a part-time role (completing payroll activities to ensure our staff get paid via the beast that is NOVOPAY) until the end of the year. We will farewell and thank her properly at that time.

Sandy Hastings
Tumuaki

Citizen of the Week

Name - Rekha Thony Year 6

Rekha, you are such a conscientious, hardworking student. You diligently complete every learning task to the best of your ability. You embrace leadership opportunities and help others in your own quiet and thoughtful way. We know that we can rely on you whenever there is a job to be done and we enjoy your ready smile and your generous personality. Thank you for making our hub a better place.

Sharing our Learning

Kauri Team

One of the key skills that workers of the future will need is flexibility: the ability to cope with change. Our Year 5 - 8 students are on the cusp of embracing change as our building project is about to begin.  Over the past week, both Pōhutukawa and Kauri have visited Beckenham @ Champion Street. The classrooms look different, the playground looks different, how we get to school will be different, however what we do in our classrooms will be essentially the same. There is definitely a buzz of excitement and there are lots of questions. We love it when students ask questions. Questions show that they are using their deep thinking skills. Kauri whānau had a great time exploring the Champion Street site. Great trees, lots of court space, a new configuration of classrooms and new opportunities to embrace. Our passion choices for next term will include a gardening club, to make the most of the garden beds right beside our hub.

One of our current passion groups are enthusiastically painting their kiwiana murals. We hope to have these finished and up on the exterior walls of the Champion St buildings before the end of term. There is lots of change to embrace and we are doing this with enthusiasm and a ‘glass half full’ attitude. Bring on term four, we can’t wait!

Celebrating recent successes in Year 7 & 8:

As usual, we have been very busy in and out of the classroom in Year 7 & 8.
Te Whānau Mahi Tahi were awe-inspiring at last week’s Cultural Festival.
Oskar and Jordan did a fabulous job of representing Beckenham at the south zone speech finals last week.
Two weeks ago our Year 7 and our Year 8 Cantamath teams were placed in the top 10% of schools in Canterbury, both scoring 100%.
Dom, Isaac, Kaia, Hannah, Oakley and Alex displayed their science projects at the Canterbury Science Fair last weekend. Special congratulations to Kaia for receiving the prize for excellent use of statistics in a science project.

School Notices

Mobile Phone Recycling Appeal
This week is Conservation week in New Zealand - the overarching theme for Conservation Week is 'Healthy Nature Healthy People'.  It encourages people to become aware of the link between a healthy natural environment and their own health. By providing environmentally responsible recycling we are all helping to divert phones and accessories away from our landfills, keeping our environment healthy and protecting our future. Please support this great cause and bring any old mobile phones to the school office.

Dental Care over the School Holidays
The Community Dental Service will operate an emergency service over the school holidays.
This service is to provide relief of pain only and will not undertake ‘routine’ treatment. The
service will be available each working day from 8:30am until 12:30pm from the Hillmorton
Hospital site.
Monday, 26 th September to Friday, 30 th September 2016 (excluding weekends)
and Monday, 3 rd October to Thursday, 6 th October 2016 (excluding weekends)
This service will operate by appointment only and if we are unable to see your child,
alternative options will be given. If your child has dental pain as a result of an accident please
contact your dentist in the first instance.
You can phone and make an appointment for the emergency clinic by ringing 0800 846 983.

Sports News

Four of our yr 5/6 girls took up the opportunity to attend a workshop organised by Mainland
Football as part of the FIFA 'Live your Goals Week' which is promoting girls football in New Zealand during September.  The session involved various football skills and games as well as the opportunity to chat with some of our Football Ferns and get autographs!

PTA News

The PTA needs YOU!

For the last FOUR years we have been lucky enough to sell Tip Top packaged ice creams at the A & P Show across the three days it is open. We provide the labour & in exchange we keep the profit on every ice cream sold. Over one hot Show Week we have managed to raise $13,000 profit. Last year the weather gods were unkind but we still managed to raise a profit of $7,500. This is the MAJOR fundraiser for the PTA in 2016. All funds raised will go into the growing 'Outdoor Spaces' fund. This fund will be used to landscape & create outdoor spaces for the children to play in after the school has been rebuilt. Currently the MOE have allocated NO budget towards this. If you can help with this fundraiser in any way please click on this link. We need 80+ helpers across the three days. Extended family, friends & ex-students are welcome to help.
Thanks for your support & you will enjoy FREE entry to the Show the day you help with a chance to shop, connect with the school community & have lots of FUN!!!
Tip Top A & P Show Fundraiser offer to help

Community Notices

The Mother Earth Little Garden Task Force: One lucky school is going to win all the equipment they need to turn their New world Little Garden into a big garden.  The prize is worth $5000 and includes plants, gardening equipment, soil and vegetable beds. Any school in NZ can be nominated for this prize.  Plus, everyone who enters the competition by nominating their school will be in with a chance to win one of 10 goody baskets from Mother Earth $100
How to enter:
1. Purchase any Mother earth product from New World between 12 Sept & 14 October.
2. Photograph the store receipt.
3. Email your photo of the receipt along with the name of the school and town and your contact details to: littlegarden@mothereath.co.nz

JUNIOR SATURDAY CRICKET - register now!!!!!
Last summer the number of teams competing in Junior Cricket in Christchurch rocketed up by 37 teams, in addition to playing in teams, many of the Clubs around Christchurch run development programmes pre-competition for children to learn Cricket skills before they are included in teams.  To find out details of you local club go to this webpage for all the contact details you are after.
The playing season starts on the 15th of October with team entries from clubs due from clubs by the 28th of September so the clock is ticking - get involved.
ChCh Junior Cricket Association
The Christchurch Junior Cricket Association is affiliated the Canterbury Cricket and works for its members - the Cricket Clubs of Christchurch - to promote and organise Junior Cricket up until Year 8 at School.
Kore School holiday Sailing Programme:
KORE are running sailing programmes throughout the holidays at Lake Pegasus and Roto Kohatu reserve.
Join one of our groups or get a group together for even more fun.
Our courses are over 5 sessions of 2 hours running Monday to Friday each week of the holidays.
Contact us for details info@kore.co.nz, www.kore.co.nz or KORE sailing on Facebook.
Book online on our Coachseek page.After school programmes start on October 11th.

SUMMER FOOTBALL - HALSWELL UNITED AFC
Football continues through the Summer all at Halswell Domain.
We have programmes for First Kicks / Fun Football (4-8 year olds), Halswell Skill Centres (8-12 year olds), Halswell GIRLS ONLY HUB (5-12 year olds)
& we have kick arounds for 13 years + to Senior players play every Wednesday too.
Information and Registration: http:/
/www.hawkfootball.org.nz/summer
QUESTIONS?: Email: Sam Bunn (General Manager)  huafcGM@gmail.com  (ph: 0277 748 232)

The New Zealand Ice Figure Skating Championships 2016 will be held in Christchurch from 11-14 October between 3pm-7pm each day.
The two figure skating clubs in Christchurch, Centarus Ice Skating Club and the Canterbury Masters Figure Skating Club, will be co-hosting this event at the Alpine Sports Ice Centre on Brougham Street.
The championships will include the same ice skating events that you are used to seeing as part of the Olympic Winter Games with ladies and men’s singles, pairs and ice dance.  It will also include synchronised skating with teams of up to 16 skaters on the ice at one time.
Entry is $2 per adult $5 per family per day.
Hope to see you there!

The Christchurch Boys' Choir is an auditioned choir made up of boys with treble (unbroken) voice from all schools around the city. We provide boys with opportunities to perform in a choir of a high standard and also to tour around the country, performing in many remarkable venues.
We are auditioning for the choir on Wednesday 28th September from 2:30pm at STAC and are reaching out to all schools in the Christchurch community to provide boys with the opportunity to audition. Any boys who want to audition need to email me at musicaldirector@christchurchboyschoir.co.nz to book an audition time.

We were very proud of all of the members of Te Whānau Mahi Tahi who performed at the Horncastle Arena last Friday evening at the Christchurch Primary Schools Cultural Festival.
The level of complexity of the waiata and te reo Māori that they perform is very high. The songs are carefully chosen to share stories and messages that are relevant to our children and their place in the world.
You can see their performance here:

Building Update

At this stage, the Unconfirmed start date for demolition is the first week of the school holidays. It isn't yet confirmed as we are still waiting on two key items - the building consent and the acceptance of the builder's price by the Ministry. We have always said that we won't be moving children off-site until the start date had been finalised, and this is still the case. At the same time, we are hopeful that this start date will be confirmed and all of the plans below are working towards it and assume that it will be so.

Moving of the Library

Some of you may have noticed that the library has been closed for the last couple of weeks as Anne has been busy boxing up the books for 'yet another' move! As we are going to be needing every classroom space, Tony and Anne have been very busy re-purposing the dental clinic and this is currently being turned into a fabulous 'Junior Library' for our Year 1-4 students.
The 'Senior Library' is sitting in banana boxes, waiting to be shifted over to Champion Street where a cosy room there is being prepared for it to be reinstated.

Moving of Year 3/4 Classes

Assuming that the start date is confirmed for the holidays, we need to move the Year 3/4 classes into new spaces so that the demolition and building programme will be able to move ahead. These moves are currently planned for the last two days of this term, ready to start properly on the first day of Term 4 in the new spaces.

Hub 8/9 

(Anna and Rebekah's building) is not being demolished. However, it is going to be quite cut off from the rest of the school during the building process, and was originally down for demolition. We have managed to negotiate with the Ministry a sensible and positive community outcome where the Ministry signs over these buildings to BOSCO, finally providing BOSCO with a permanent home that will be much better suited to their size and operation than the hall foyer!
Anna, Rebekah and the children from Hub 8/9 will move into Rooms 21/22 which they are looking forward to very much as the rooms are bigger and lighter.

Hubs 5/6/7 

Rather than being demolished, it has been decided by the Ministry that Hubs 5/6/7 can be relocated to Hornby High School and this is pencilled in to happen on Wed 28 September.
Gayle and the children of Hub 7 will be moving to Room 19 which has been the home of the library this year.
Paulette and Mike, and the children of Hub 5/6 are moving into the staffroom! This space has great potential as a learning environment, with three quite distinct spaces that can be opened up or closed off and, of course, includes a kitchen! Michelle and I are very excited about being so close and involved in the learning in Hub 5/6.

Staffroom - moving to the Hall Foyer

"But where are the staff going" I hear you ask! As we will only have half the number of staff on site, we are moving the comfy chairs to the hall foyer for morning tea and lunches and we will hold meetings as needed in a classroom space after school. The staff workroom will move into Michelle's old office and these spaces should work well for us.

Year 5-8's move to Champion Street

Every day there is some further work being done at Champion Street as we prepare to move there with our Year 5-8 students next term.
This week we welcomed James Beauchamp to our staff - James is going to be working part-time at Champion St (and sometimes at Beckenham) assisting with maintenance and grounds work and helping in other ways where he is needed.
Some other very exciting news this week was that Class* Furniture Solutions have offered to put brand new furniture into the learning spaces at Champion St for us! They would like the opportunity to be able to show prospective buyers (other principals usually) what the furniture looks like in a real school setting, and the Ministry suggested that Beckenham School @ Champion St would be a great place to do that in! Nicky, Susan and the teams are busy selecting furniture at the moment so that it will be delivered ready for when we start in Term 4.
We have invited all the parents of our Year 5-8 students to attend a meeting in the hall next Wednesday, 14 September, from 7:30pm, to learn more about the logistics and details of the move to Champion St.
We are taking the Year 5/6 students over for a short visit this Friday afternoon, and the Year 7/8 students will visit on Tuesday afternoon next week. At this stage, all going well we will have all of the Year 5-8 students at Champion St on the last day of term - ready to begin in earnest on the first day of Term 4.

So... as you can see, there is a LOT going on at the moment and its very exciting to think that, after nearly three years of talking about it and planning, the building project might actually begin!

That's it from me for the moment, keep looking out for school emails and communications as there will be regular updates as this exciting phase progresses.

Ngā mihi nui
Sandy

Important Dates

Sharing our Learning

Koru Team

Our Koru children have had wonderful support from parents helping in school. The better the engagement between parents, families, and schools, the greater the positive impact on student learning.

Examples of home-school partnership includes:
Parents supporting learning in class, e.g. parent help in reading or sharing their cultural customs.
Supporting learning by reading with children at home .
Discussions between students, teachers, and parents/whānau e.g. learning conferences.
Further information on home-school partnerships from the Ministry of Education.
In Team Koru, recent home-school connections have included:
Rohini (Abhay’s Mum) sharing information about the Indian festival of Diwali with us, in line  with our current Inquiry into cultures. Students loved hearing the Diwali story, and colouring rongoli patterns like this:

Other Diwali customs include lighting candles, wearing traditional sari (for girls) and special treats. We enjoyed eating semolina cake as part of this.

Gyaltsen (Lilian’s Father) came in to share aspects of Tibetan culture. Students loved hearing about how Gyaltsen rode his pony when he was young as there were no cars.We found out where Tibet is and discussed how many plane  rides it takes to get there and who the Dalai Lama is. Another highlight was trying  on and talking about costumes worn during times of celebrations.


During discovery time on Friday afternoon we were very lucky to have Annabel’s mother (Olivia) and Grandmother, Scarlett’s mother (Carolyn) and Frankie’s mother (Aileen) come in to help hub 10 and 11 bake gingerbread. The process of measuring, mixing, cutting, baking and tasting was enjoyed by all. This experience would not have been possible if we did not have these amazing helpers!




Room 13 is up and running. Welcome to the new children and families. We are looking forward to working together to help the children settle into school.




Writing from Koru

Flynn
I found a big cat eating Little Cat’s food.

Felix
I saw a dragon in my bed.It breathes fire and it roars.It flies fast.
I hid under my bed .It is fun because I like to hide where no-one can see me.
My Mum likes making chocolate chippie cookies.They are delicious !

Alex
I am hiding and my dad is too.
“1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Mum! Mum! Mum!
I know where you are ! “

Keira
I wish I can be a hippopotamus in China. I love hippopotamuses. They are so cute. I wish I could see a real hippopotamus. 

 Abhay
One weekend I had a competition and I won. My Dad lost.

Team Pōhutukawa's Market Day

Recently the students in Team Pōhutukawa have been working hard to develop products and stalls for our Asian-inspired market day.  The market will be open on Thursday, 15 September from 11:00 to 12:00. The students will sell lots of interesting (and delicious) items such as Asian food, baking, confectionery, drinks, games, challenges and more.

Market day tickets will be sold before school near the flagpole. The tickets will be used as currency to purchase goods at the market. Most items at the market will cost between one and three dollars.

The money raised will be used to reduce the cost of Team Pōhutukawa's camp in Term 4 and to offset the market day's expenses.

Sports News

Sports uniforms

Now that winter sports is over, all sports uniforms and borrowed equipment should be returned to school to Tracy please.

PTA News

The PTA would like to extend a HUGE thanks to all our children, who put in so much effort, and to their families and friends who have given so generously. The Spellathon has been a huge success, and we have collected an amazing $10, 395 sponsorship money so far !! If anyone still has sponsorship forms and money lurking around at home, please drop it in to the office. Room 14 won the prize for handing in their sponsorship money first, and scoffed an enormous morning tea this week. The lucky children who have won tickets to Hoyts Riccarton Cinema will be announced in School Assembly on Friday....

Community Notices

NEW MEMBERS & COACHING OPPORTUNITIES BECKENHAM TENNIS CLUB

Beckenham Tennis Club Motto is to be family friendly our goal is for families to play tennis together
We are open for NEW members to play tennis.
Registration interest on our new web site: beckenhamtennis club
Pee Wee Junior First Day Saturday 3 September 8.30am (already had some coaching), 9.30am class for beginners.
Junior/Intermediate TEAMS (children can serve a ball) free coaching for three weeks in September.
ADULT – EASY TENNIS COACHING for beginner adults coming back into tennis or learning. Tuesday morning group or Saturday afternoon (after 4pm).
Contact: Leanne Dunbar cell 0275 316 026 landline ph 9606021

Holiday Programmes

Mainland Futsal Holiday Programme
Age:        6-12 year olds.
Dates:    28th, 29th and 30th September 2016
Times:    9.00am - 3.00pm
Venue:  CHCH Boys High School, Straven Road
Cost:     $37.50 per day ($112.50 for three consecutive days) 10% discount of second child when registering two or more siblings.
Mainland Football Outdoors
Age:        7-14 year olds.
Dates:   5th, 6th and 7th October 2016
Times:    9.00am - 3.00pm
Venue:  English Park
Cost:     $37.50 per day ($112.50 for three consecutive days
All information on Mainland football website: www.mainlandfootball.co.nz

rockitCHCH

My name is Danial Neale and I'm a local music tutor, operating a music school called rockitCHCH, situated in the heart of Sydenham.
I provide guitar, drums, and bass lessons to aspiring musicians, with a contemporary focus and an emphasis on providing performance opportunities for my students. I am a professional, friendly teacher with a modern approach to learning and a focus on the student as an individual.
One on one lessons are available as well as lower-cost group lessons. I can teach all levels, beginners to advanced. All ages welcome.
If you would like to find out more please feel free to contact me​ via the contact details below
Danial Neale - Guitar and Drum tutor
www.rockitchch.com
027 8211 544
lessons@rockitchch.com
www.facebook.com/rockitchch​

School Holiday Golf Coaching Programmes

Have fun learning golf these school holidays, programmes running 26-30 September, venues include Hagley, Rangiora, Harewood, Hororata, and Waimairi Beach.  Contact rachel@canterburygolf.co.nz or 359 4000 ext 2 to find out the details of a programme running near you.  Cost is $10 per session.

Inspired by the Rio Olympics?

PRT HILLS ATHLETICS will help your child discover skills and determination they didn’t know they had. Above all though, it’s about friends, meeting personal goals and setting new ones.
Clubnights-weekly Interclub-Colgate Games-Cant Championships
Prepare for school athletics! Want to know more?
Come to Registration;
Sunday 18th September 2.30-4 pm
Wednesday 21th September 5.30- 7 pm
Based at; Hansen Park, Opawa.
Info; T&F Junior Club Captain Megan Allan
021 02737136 yal@xtra.co.nz
WWW.PORTHILLS.ORG.NZ

Christchurch Football Academy holiday camps: Registration is now open to footballers of all abilities.  Please register at: holiday camp registration

Southern Districts Cricket Club:
Come join our Southern family!
Registrations open now on our website or call into the pavilion on any of the following open days, we would love to meet you.
Adult and Junior players welcome in all grades.
Open Days Beckenham Park:
September 3rd 10am-12pm
September 10th 10am-12pm
September 17th 10am-12pm
Cat: 0272981031
info@southerndistrictscricket.co.nz
southerndistrictscricket.co.nz
facebook.com/Southerndistrictscricket

Willowbank Holiday Programmes: for details and bookings please visit: info@willowbank.co.nz

Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

It was a real pleasure for teachers to have dedicated time with each family and their child this week, to celebrate the learning achievements that the children have made, and to share their next steps. i am always in awe of our teachers during these weeks; they put in very long days, and appear in the staffroom at the final bell full of smiles and expressing how much they enjoy learning conferences and the 1:1 conversations that they have had time to have with you all.
Thank you to all of the families who were able to visit the building display in the hall. We have put up a slightly smaller version of the display in the office foyer, so that you can revisit it at your leisure, and those of you who didn't get to see it can pop in and have a look.
Please do email me, or come and knock on my door if you have any questions about the programme.

Move to Champion St

At this stage (still not 100% confirmed, but looking probable) our Year 5-8 students will be moving to Champion St on the last day of this term, with our fully fledged start at Champion St being from the first day of Term 4.
We have plans to take our Y5/6 and Y7/8 students over in the next couple of weeks for a visit, and to then have all of the Y5-8 students there on the final day of this term, along with a picnic lunch that Y5-8 parents will be welcome to attend. More information will come out about the details of this next week.
We are also planning to have a meeting for parents of Year 5-8 students here at school on Wednesday 14 September at 7:30pm to talk through the details of the move.
During Term 4, once we are up and running, we will arrange a time for the Year 4 students and their families to visit Champion St in preparation for them being Year 5's there for the first three terms of 2017.

Cultural Festival Performance tonight

Our best wishes go out to our senior kapa haka group, Te Whānau Mahi Tahi, as they represent all of our whānu and tamariki at the Christchurch Primary Schools Cultural Festival tonight at the Horncastle Arena at 6:45pm. Our special thanks to Sherrilee who ensures that this group is prepared to perform at their very best.

Ngā mihi

Sandy Hastings
Principal / Tumuaki

Citizen of the Week

Name Aidan Henderson - New Entrant

Aidan, you are a self directed learner who demonstrates a love of learning throughout your day. The way you are learning to embrace mistakes as a part of your learning journey shows that you love a challenge, what an amazing attribute! You are always willing, and take care, in setting up learning areas to share with your peers, you also gently support others in joining in with this learning. You are a gentle and caring class member who looks out for others.  Kia kaha Aidan!

Sharing our Learning

Kahikatea Team

What’s been happening in the Kahikatea Team this term?
We have been learning a lot of new skills through our Discovery Stations. We have been focusing on these key questions:

• How does this station help my learning?
• How are our school values being shown?
• What can I choose to challenge myself?
• Can I teach a buddy something new?

“This was helping me learn picture words. I can draw words.”



“We are writing the story of the Gingerbread Man together. We are all doing different parts.”

Each week we develop our learning and skills around gymnastics, target and invasion games. We have been focusing on:

• Moving our bodies in a variety of ways
• Developing large ball and target  skills
• Developing effective communication within a team

“I’m keeping the ball in circle using one hand.”

School Notices

Celebrating our stunning mathematicians

On September 24th our Year 7 and Year 8 Cantamath teams competed against the best mathematical brains in Canterbury, as they frantically solved as many problems as they could within the 30 minute competition. There were over 90 schools competing in the Competition at Horncastle Arena. Those of us in the audience were worked into a frenzy of enthusiastic support, as we watched the runners put their thumbs up for correct answer after correct answer. The Year 7 team answered every question correctly within the 30 minutes, earning a golden ticket (displaying their 100 points) and coming in sixth place! And then it was Year 8s turn to stun us with their mathematical talent. They also earned a golden ticket and were placed 9th. This was a fabulous achievement and very much a team effort.
The other part of Cantamath is the display competition. Again a number of our children were commended for their superb efforts.
Excellence awards went to: Gabriel Lyall, Alex Braun, Isaac Macdonald, Sadie McLoughlin, Ailie Robertson, Georgia Tindall, Daisy York and Nicky’s maths class.
Highly Commended awards went to: Joel Kingham, Declan Allan, Kristy Winchester, Rosie Zinzan Dickie and Caleb Jorgensen

Speech Competition Winners:

On Monday afternoon we were treated to a superb afternoon of story-telling from our Year 7 & 8 speech finalists. From a tear jerking tale about puppy farming to a side-splitting yarn about insane Aunt Shirley, the stories were superbly written and delivered with confidence. We wish Jordan and Oskar the best of luck for the South Zone speech competition on Monday evening.
Congratulations to:
Year 7: 1st, Jordan Hardwick; 2nd, Daisy York; and 3rd George Ryan.
Year 8: 1st, Oskar Frampton; 2nd, Vita Hindin; and 3rd William Hanlon.

Sports News

Winter tournament

After a bitterly cold day last Wednesday, we were glad that Thursday warmed up a little for our last visit to Hagley Park for winter sports.
The Year 7 & 8 hockey Red team and the Year 7 & 8 football Red team, along with four students who were playing for St Patrick’s Bryndwr rugby team, headed off to the park, as they had qualified for the Canterbury Winter Tournament.
The hockey team played at Carlton Corner, and were coached by Jenni Adams. The tournament was 6 a-side with a mix of girls and boys. The team played six games in the pool round. They won three, lost two and drew one. This meant they rated third in their pool. They drew their final game which meant they came about tenth equal overall, out of 28 teams.
The football team played at South Hagley, and were coached by Fred Simpson (Cashmere Technical’s Junior Development Officer). The tournament was 5 a-side, which is a very different game from the 9 a-side they normally played on a Friday. The team experienced mixed results, and then ended the day with a win.
The rugby boys were successful in their first game. However, coming up against tough opposition who were much bigger than they were meant that the remaining games were very challenging. They had fun and were very supportive of each other.
Many thanks to our two fabulous coaches, and the lovely parents who provided transport - Jo Barnett, Mike Hanlon and Rachel Wiscombe.

Swimming lessons for Years 5 - 8

Swimming lessons started this week at Aquagym for the Year 5 - 8 students. The students will be having eight lessons in total, busing four times a week for two weeks to Hereford Street, to the swimming pool. Shea Crotty is our contact there, and she and her staff have been absolutely fabulous at accommodating the needs of our students. Much shuffling has been going on to ensure each child is in the appropriate ability group, with the prospect of more movement as the lessons go on. Each session sees five or six tutors catering for all the levels the groups present. The students are loving the opportunity to learn with their peers and are enjoying the aquatic setting. If you have any queries about the swimming programme, please contact Tracy Inwood at school.

PTA News

Community Notices

CASPA is now taking enrolments for the Sept/Oct Holiday Programmes, for more information go online to www.caspa.org.nz or phone 03 3499260.

NEW MEMBERS & COACHING OPPORTUNITIES BECKENHAM TENNIS CLUB
Beckenham Tennis Club Motto is to be family friendly our goal is for families to play tennis together
We are open for NEW members to play tennis.
Registration interest on our new web site: beckenhamtennis club
Pee Wee Junior First Day Saturday 3 September 8.30am (already had some coaching), 9.30am class for beginners.
Junior/Intermediate TEAMS (children can serve a ball) free coaching for three weeks in September.
ADULT – EASY TENNIS COACHING for beginner adults coming back into tennis or learning. Tuesday morning group or Saturday afternoon (after 4pm).
Contact: Leanne Dunbar cell 0275 316 026 landline ph 9606021

SURFKIDS:
Childrens Surfing  Programme.
Learn the skills of Surfing in a fun, safe environment. All equipment provided and professional instruction from Aaron Lock and team. For kids 8 - 14 years.
School Holidays  10 am -12 pm. 26, 28, 30 September 3 - 7 October.
Sundays 10am -12 pm from 30 October.
Cost $30 per day or $135 for five. Bookings essential.
Venue :Sumner.
Call Aaron on 0800 80 SURF (7873) or register online at www.surfcoach.co.nz

Aquagym: 459 Cashel Street, Ph: 3810299.  Learn to Swim & Coaching.  Book now for October Holidays and Term 4. Leaders in Aquatic Education. info@aquagym.co.nz

Buildback Smarter:  The Christchurch City Council is now providing a FREE healthy home advice service called Build Back Smarter.  Visit: www.buildbacksmarter.co.nz for details re home insulation, heating options, lighting, ventilation, smoke alarms, water heating & conservation and grants /subsidies you may be eligible for.

Vintage Fashion Show:
Remember when studies and hotpants were the 'must haves' in any wardrobe? Halswell School is giving you the opportunity to immerse yourself in the '50s, '60s and '70s as you marvel at over 100 stunning outfits with matching hair and accessories. Visuals and music from each era will accompany the shows to get your toes tapping. You will be treated to a delicious retro afternoon tea/supper and a bar is available at the evening show.
Date: Saturday 10 September
Time: 2pm (adults and children), 7pm (adults only)
Place: Halswell School
Duration: Approximately 2 hours
Ticket prices: $25 adults, $15 children
Online purchasing: Email carmeltutty@hotmail.com   Tickets can be collected when you attend the show
Dust off your purple jumpsuit, orange flares or brown cable knit vest, we hope to see you there!

Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

Building Update - come and see what's happening...

We are re-activating the Building Blog - which has been renamed 'Beckenham School Moving Foward' and we will be regularly publishing to this blog as new information about the building process comes to hand. We are very excited that the process which, held up for most of this year, has now reached a point where action is about to happen, and we have information to share with you.

Learning Conferences

A guide to Learning Conferences.

Next week children will have their Learning Conferences with their teachers. If you would like some more information about how the Learning Conferences run please read through this guide:

What is a Learning Conference?

A Learning Conferences is when your child will share their learning with you in their Hub. Their teacher will be in the Hub too. It is a time for your child to celebrate what they are doing well and what are their next steps in learning. Your child will practice speaking confidently, and taking responsibility for their learning.

What is a Hub?

The Hub is your child’s learning space. Usually this has 2 or 3 classrooms joined together. There may be 2 or 3 teachers who work in this space and your child will work in both spaces.
Do I need to go?
It is important that you and your child come to the learning conferences, so you can celebrate their learning with them. You can bring a support person with you too.
What do I need to do before the conference?

• Make an appointment with the teacher (through an online booking form or ring the office and they will do this for you)
• Talk to your child about what is going to happen.

What will happen at the conference?

Teacher:

• The teacher will help your child to show their work.
• They will talk to you about what your child's next learning steps are.Child:
• Your child will talk to you about what they have been working on in class.
• They may show you their work, read a book or some of theirwriting.

Parent/caregiver:

• Listen to your child talking.
• Ask them questions about what they have learnt or been doing.
• Make a positive comment about their effort on their learning.

What questions could I ask?

What did you enjoy?

What did you find hard with this?

What would you want to do different next time?

How can I help you at home?

What do I need to do after the conference?

If you are worried about your child's learning or have any questions, you can make a time to talk to the teacher on a different day.

When are the learning conferences?

Tuesday 30th August & Thursday 1st August (week 6)

What time will school finish?

School will finish at 2pm on Tuesday and Thursday. If you can not pick up your child speak to Jacky in the office. Your child(ren) will be supervised at school until you pick them up at 3pm.

Ngā mihi nui

Sandy Hastings
Principal - Tumuaki

Important Dates

Citizen of the Week

Dan Webster - Year 1

Dan, your positive, enthusiastic attitude in all situations is both a credit to you, and an inspiration to your classmates and teachers. You are thoughtful, considerate and reliable, displaying our school values in all that you do. You put maximum effort into all school activities. You also support your classmates to participate and achieve, which demonstrates your kind and caring nature.You display wonderful willingness and initiative, always ensuring that our learning spaces are clean and tidy, and doing more than your fair share. Your positivity is also contributing to great progress in your learning - what an amazing friend and learner you are, Dan! Tino pai tou rawe!

Sharing our Learning

Kowhai Team

Gymnastics

We have had a great start to the term with the children participating in a gymnastics unit. This has seen the children working on equipment to develop static, locomotion and balance skills. Hubs 5/6/7 went to the Christchurch School of Gymnastics on Tuesday 23rd August to participate in the, ‘Have a Go’ session. For many of our students they demonstrated the key school value, ‘We Love Challenge’ by attempting activities on new and challenging apparatus. They had to think positively using ‘Growth Mindset’ phrases and it was great to see the other children supporting one another. “I can do it. I just need to keep on trying. I’m learning because this is hard. People are here to help me, I CAN do it!

M.A.D. Time in Kowhai Team

Every Thursday afternoon, the children participate in a variety of M.A.D. Time (Make a Difference) activities. This term, we have been fortunate enough to have the support of some parents who have offered other options for the children to do. This term, the children have been able to choose from, sock puppet making, Wood work (making birdhouses with Mr Lee), construction, choir, paper mashe and visiting the residents at Thorrington Resthome.

Kowhai Sport

Every Friday, the children have chosen a sport to learn how to play. In Kowhai Team, we vlaue the skills that playing sports can teach us. WE have been working hard on persisting when learning is tricky, sharing and taking turns by using ll the players in our team and supporting and encouraging other with our words. Each week the children participate in skill drill and they then play a modified version of their sport so they can put the skills into practice. We are lucky enough to have been able to offer a sixth sport this term with the help of Nicola Reddecliffe, who is taking  basketball.

Olympic Learning

Over the past 4 weeks, our inquiry focus has been investigating the history of the Olympics and what is means to be an ‘Olympian’. The children have travelled around the world, learning about other cultures, and have learnt about the torch, Olympic events, the Rings, motto, mascot and have made comparisons between the ancient Olympics and the Modern Olympics. We  are looking forward to sharing our learning later on in the term in a team performance, where we will communicate our  learning through dance and drama.  Our performance will be on Wednesday 14th September at 6pm.

Writing in Kowhai Team

We have been working hard on adding detail to our writing this term by including precise language and details that, ‘paint pictures’ with words. The children have created some stunning pieces and here is just a sample:

Olympics:
Wow! She’s won! It was worth all of those years of practice. The crowd are roaring. She is so, so proud of herself. She is also proud of the other competitors. I knew she could get there, first place! Not everyone can get first place, the others were gutted.
I see the smile on her face. She is waving her hands in the air and you can tell she is so proud. The crowd are on their feet. They are so happy for her. She can see how proud her coach is. The other coaches look as devastated as the other competitors.
Arabella Froggatt

School Notices

Cultural festival tickets

These can be collected from the school office, thanks

Scootering & Cycling in the school grounds after 3pm

We have had a few near misses recently and complaints about children scootering and cycling in the school grounds between 3:00-3:30pm. Due the the number of adults and children walking around the school grounds we have asked all children and adults not to scooter or cycle in the school grounds between 3:00-3:30pm due to it being so unsafe.
If individual children are continuously being unsafe, their scooter or scooter or bicycle will be taken by a teacher to the office, so that it can be collected when parents pick them up.
Thank you all for supporting us to keep everyone safe.

Supervision after school

A reminder that all children need to be actively supervised after school to keep them safe. If you are late picking up your child, they will be asked to wait in the office area where they will be safe and warm.

Community Notices

Science Alive: Introductory Robotics (Ages 8 - 13 years) - $11 per child
Cultural Constellations (Age 5 -13 years - children must be accompanied by an adult) - $5 per child and adult

For more details and for booking tickets, simply hop over to http://www.eventfinda.co.nz/user/sciencealivenz

Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

Paid Union Meeting Wed 7 September - please collect your child at 12:30pm

As you may have heard in the media this week, the primary and secondary teacher's unions are organising joint paid members meetings throughout the country in the next three weeks to inform members about the 'global budget' funding proposal that is currently being discussed by government.

The meeting for Christchurch city schools is scheduled for 1:30pm on Wednesday 7th September. As almost 100% of our staff are members of the union, and are entitled, under their collective agreement to attend the meeting, we are asking that you collect your child from school at 12:30pm on Wed 7 Sept. 

If you are not able to collect your child(ren) from school that day, please let us know by clicking on this link, so that we can arrange supervision for those children who will remain at school.

Music lessons will continue as usual. Concert Band has been cancelled for that day, and Jazz Ensemble will run from 3:30 - 5pm in the hall.

As we appreciate this is likely to cause some inconvenience to caregivers, we hope that you also understand this is a national issue of concern to education,reflected in the decision that both the secondary and primary teachers' unions have taken to work together and meet during the school day. You can read briefly about the meetings here: http://betterfunding.org.nz/
Other links to information are available here, and we will share further links as they become available:

• Radio NZ Morning Report "global Budget just bulk funding in disguise" 2'03"
• Waatea 5th Estate "Education funding Proposals" 15 Aug 2016 29'39"
• "Educators join forces for better funding for learning" NZEI, 9 August 2016
• Parliamentary question time - 16. Aug 2016 - Question 9 - Catherine Delahunty to the Minister of Education
• Better funding for Support Staff NZEI

Welcome to Jo Smith

We are delighted to welcome Jo Smith to our teaching staff this week. Jo is a very experienced teacher and is joining our Koru team to take our newest group of New Entrants. Jo will work part time alongside Rowena and Andrea in Hub 12/13for the next two weeks, and will begin full time on Thursday 1st September

Learning Conference Bookings

If you haven't yet made a learning conference booking for either Tuesday 30th August or Thursday 1st September, now is the time to click this link, enter the code b3tj4 and make your booking.
Please remember that school will close at 2pm on both of those days. If you are not able to collect your child at 2pm, please let Jacky in the office know, and we will ensure that your child is supervised until 3pm.

Building Update - Information sharing

During the two afternoons of learning conferences (2pm-6:30pm Tuesday 30 August and 2pm-7:30pm Thursday 1 September) we will have displays set up in the hall for parents to visit before/after learning conferences, to see plans of the new building design and to talk to Sandy and Michelle, along with (as available) Board members, staff from the Ministry of Education, and the project management team, about the designs, the building process and the decanting logistics.
Following the learning conference week, we will then hold meetings for further discussion and sharing of information that may be more specific to particular year groups.

Ngā mihi nui
Sandy Hastings
Principal - Tumuaki

Sharing our Learning

Pohutukawa Team

Market Day:

This term, in Team Pōhutukawa, we are learning about economical activity and decision making. We are creating small businesses and developing products to sell at a market day later this term. The profits from this market day will go towards our camp in Term 4.
This year our market is inspired by the many different cultures of Asia and all the products available will have an Asian theme. The market day will be held on Thursday 15 September at 12pm. We will let you know more about this later in the term.

Canterbury RAMs

Every Tuesday afternoon a group of Team Pōhutukawa students make their way, excitedly, to the hall to work with Marcus from the Canterbury RAMs on basketball skills. This is a high energy hour, with fast paced action as they learn to dribble with “magic hands” and shoot hoops like professionals.

School Notices

Bookclub number 4 brochures have been sent home. Unfortunately the incorrect closing date is stamped on it. Closes 22nd August, thanks.

Immunisations:

Many thanks to the parents of 300 or so students who have provided their immunisations details....only 150 to go!! I am now sending out individual emails...please respond if you receive one, even if it is to say "I don't know how to get this information, please help!" If you have an immunisation certificate please either bring it into the office or scan and email Jacky office@beckenham.school.nz

Cultural Festival Tickets:

Ordered tickets can now be collected from the school office. Thank you

PTA News

Community Notices

Keep New Zealand Beautiful 

NZ's largest litter clean up is set to take place from Sept 12-18th.
Keep New Zealand Beautiful Clean-Up Week’s central aim is to increase community participation of all kinds, but also addresses issues of sustainability, environment, health, crime and social inclusion. They work in partnership with government bodies to deliver on sustainable and environmental initiatives.Clean up events can be registered to happen in any corner of New Zealand at any time between September 12 to September 18th.  Keep New Zealand Beautiful will arrange to send you everything you need to ensure your event is a success.  This includes rubbish and recycling bags, gloves, health and safety guidelines, volunteer registration forms and much more.
To register an event and receive your free clean up kit see www.knzb.org.nz/cleanupweek
For more information about registering an event please email cleanup@knzb.org.nz

Active Kids Holiday Programmes

Sportastic

Okinawa-Te-Karate Organization International Incorporated