Today, during Discovery Stations, we talked about why it is important to challenge yourself. The children had some great ideas:

"If you do something and think it is challenging, but keep trying and then eventually do it, you will be so proud of yourself."

"It's important to challenge yourself because otherwise you wont try new things."

"If you are doing the same thing everyday, and it's not challenging, then you wont learn."

Kia Ora Whanau

As many of you will be aware, we have tweaked our programme this term to include Discovery Stations at different times throughout our day. These stations have been very successful and the children are highly engaged with them - often starting them before school! A few of our routines have needed to change to accommodate this:

Morning Snack

• Please ensure your child's snack (fruit or wholemeal/wholegrain bread) is in a named bag or container as they put them into the snack bowl before school. 

Kia ora koutou,

Here we are into the second week of Term 3 already. We all had a wonderful first week back at school, following fantastic holidays, and what incredible weather we enjoyed throughout our two week break!

Here are some highlights and points to note from Week 1, as well as for the week to come:

Mihi
Over the next couple of weeks, our children are going to be working on developing their mihi. This is going to provide a springboard for us into our focus, Amazing Asia, this term. We are currently delving into the meaning of the word 'culture', looking at what that means for us, before looking into the cultures of various countries in Asia. It would be very helpful for us if you are able to discuss with your child, the names of the following:

• The name of a mountain (if appropriate to your family)
• The name of a river/lake/sea (if appropriate to your family)
• The name of the town or city which you hail from
• Your Christian names (father and mother)

 You or your child could write this information down so that it can be brought into school. Many thanks for your support with this.

Library
Please note that all children in the Kahikatea team will now be visiting the library on Fridays. Children will be taken to the library at times throughout the day, so if, for some reason, some children don't manage to exchange their library books on Friday, they are being encouraged to visit the library during a lunchtime instead.

Home Learning
Thank you so much for your ongoing support with your child's home learning. Regular practice of both Mad Maths Minute equations and spelling words is making a huge difference to your child's progress in each of these areas!

Water
Please ensure that your child has a water bottle each day. We are actively encouraging the children to drink water throughout the day, so that they remain hydrated. Please also remind your child to bring his or her water bottle home regularly for cleaning!

Snack Station
Learning spaces are going to have (or already have) a 'Snack Station' set up each morning. Children are encouraged to select a (wrapped and named, or in a named container) piece of fruit from their lunchboxes to put out at the Snack Station. This can then be eaten at some point between 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

Years 1 and 2 Kapa Haka
Congratulations to our Kapa Haka group - the group travelled into the Art Gallery last Thursday, to perform for members of the public. The children were accompanied by Sherrilee and Jenny, as well as some parents. We are all very proud of you, children! You performed beautifully and were all very well-behaved. Well done.

Writing
We are currently learning about a new genre of writing: persuasive writing! In this genre of writing, we follow a format in which we give our opinion, back it up with supportive statements, give examples and then restate our opinion. Please feel free to come into our learning spaces and have a look at some of our persuasive writing!
Last week we also wrote recounts telling about holiday events. Here are examples from two Hub 3/4 authors: