Kauri Whanau: Term 4 Week 5 Update

Our week deviates from the normal programme this week. On Wednesday, over a third of our hub will be at Hansens Park for zone athletic sports. Sport buses depart from Eastern Tce at 8:45. Children not taking part in the zones will head to Champion Street at the usual time. We are off to Rapaki Marae on Thursday, see below. Friday is Show Day. 

Trip to Rapaki Marae this Thursday:

This year one of our strategic goals was that every child from Year 5 to 8 should visit a marae. We are looking forward to our visit to Rapaki Marae on Thursday this week. Sherrilee and Manaia Cunningham will be joining us for the day. The cost of the trip is $7.50. This amount will be added to your school account.

Children are to arrive at Beckenham by 8:50 and meet in the school hall. We will travel to Rapaki by bus and be dropped off at the top of the road. We will walk down and be formally welcomed onto the marae. After the powhiri we will have morning tea and then be taken on a tour of the wharenui where we will learn the history of the marae. After lunch, buses will head back to Beckenham at 1:30pm, in time for assembly.

Children are to wear school uniform. Girls need to wear track pants or culottes, not short shorts. All children need a backpack with sunhat, lunch, water bottle, sunscreen and their school jacket.


Big Day Out:

We had a great day in town last Thursday. At Quake City we looked at Civil Defence activity immediately after Feb 22nd, the physical impacts of the earthquake and quake-proof building techniques.


In the gardens we searched for clues to complete a scavenger hunt and enjoyed the park environment.


'Art in the palm of your hand' was a very engaging exhibition. We started by looking at examples of medals in the museum, before visiting the exhibition where our preconceptions of what a medal was were thrown wide open. Finally we had the opportunity to create our own artistic medals. These are drying at school, before we paint, ink and polish them.  


A huge thanks to Mike, Amanda, Robbie, Katherine, Tanya and Huriana who helped out on the day. 

Sports day: 

It was great to see so many parents at Beckenham Park last week for our athletics day. The children ran, jumped and threw with determination and enthusiasm. On Thursday champions in each age group will receive their medals at assembly (2:15 start). Best of luck to all who are competing at zones tomorrow.


Passion Friday continues to be a weekly highlight. Below are our fibre-craft group, proudly displaying their felted pictures.


Tale with a twist:

Since the start of term we have been writing tales with twists in our hub. We were focusing on using a variety of sentence types, including complex and short sentences for effect,  and varying our sentence starters. Here is Isla's tale ...

As the car swings profusely around the corner, I can’t believe what's before me. My eyes blink rapidly, trying to adjust to this crazy misconception. Why is this here? Who in the world did this? This can’t be right. It simply can’t. Very confused, I pull over to take a closer look.

It was the summer holidays. I had decided to take my new car for a spin. Fresh from University I was excited to get away from everything and just relax alone for a bit. It had been a stressful few years and I’m very glad they are over. I had chucked a bag of chips in the back (for emergencies of course) and packed a small bag of clothes and other junk Mum insisted I put in there, then I was ready to go.

My car sliding along the smooth concrete road, I gaze out my window at the shining sun ahead of me. The luscious lime green grass blankets the bare, chalky dirt in a unconditional green casing. As the last of the afternoon rays of sun disappear, a bright mustard sun sets ahead of me. Birds sit in the unlimited chain of tall, oak trees, chirping away. The rattle of my tyres driving over small, crunchy stones calms me and makes me want to fall asleep, but I am close to my hotel, so I keep driving, despite my droopy, tired eyelids blanketing my emerald eyes. Turning the corner quickly, I spot something that shocks me.

Pulling over to inspect this mystery further, I yank my cellphone out of my back pocket. In my entire 18 years of life I've never seen anything like this before. It is heart stopping and blood curdling. Sitting on the dark maroon mailbox is ‘ISLA’ written in bold, cream lettering. Just behind the mailbox sits a small, light yellow house. A large, dull oak tree sits right out the front, working like a giant sun umbrella, giving shade to the house. Attached to the large tree sits two, wooden swings. They go back and forth, back and forth, almost like someone is sitting on them. I squint my eyes super tiny. No one. Not a single person on either swing yet they still move back and forth, back and forth. Peculiar. Very peculiar.

After a lot of hesitation I decide to go investigate this mystery further. After all, my name is on the mailbox, and that’s not something you see everyday. I put my car in park and undo my sharp, itchy seatbelt practically strangling me. My hands shaking like crazy, I tentatively pull my door handle and step outside. A cold gust of air hits me like a monster truck, sending shivers throughout my whole body.  My cold, bare feet crunch on hundreds of little stones as I walk up the path to the house. As I get further and further up the path, the swings begin to swing more precisely. Quicker, faster they swing as I get further up the path. Then suddenly…. POOF!

With a large gust of wind two dark shadows appear on the wooden structure. Sprinting now, with nerves and a sick feeling in my stomach, I quickly approach the swings. Sitting there are two strange people.‘’I’ve been expecting you for some time Isla’’ says a tall, dark figure. The girl reminds me of myself, only older I guess. She has this weird sheen to her, almost like a ghost. ‘’Who, who are you?’’ I quickly say without hesitation. ‘’I’m you silly!’’ she replies. Very, very confused I take a look at the small child sitting on the other swing. Again, she reminds me of myself. It's almost like looking back at old photos. She doesn't talk, I guess. But there is something about her that shocks me. Her blood red eyes. They stare into my soul. My future and my past. My everything, in her eyes.

‘’Who’s in the house?’’ I ask, without thinking. ‘’Someone very important’’ the older one replied slowly ‘’Our master.’’ ‘WHAT?’ I think to myself. But without any hesitation I walk over to the old, small house. The long, long grass itches my legs as I walk past, but if I didn't go in I know I would regret it so I continue. My entire body shakes in the crispness of the night. I walk up the stone path, on my way to the wooden door. The wooden door. It gets closer and closer but I feel like getting further and further away. I approach slowly, yet I still feel like i’m going to jump out of my skin. I quickly knock on the door and it slowly creaks open. And then suddenly.. BANG..

Performance letter Room 11

7  November 2016

Dear Parents/Caregivers

As you will be aware from previous notices, Koru team will be celebrating their learning during Term 4 with a performance.

We invite our families and friends to come and watch ‘The Tiny Seed’ Friday 18 November at 2pm in the school hall.

The children have designed their costumes at school. To help them they will need some items from home. Could you please send the following along to school, named and in a plastic bag, by Monday 14th November:

Flowers (Vanessa, Asra, Keira A, Ruby) - green or black leggings/pants and pink, red or yellow top

Birds (Tyrell, Archie, Kaizah-rae) - brown or black leggings/pants and top

Bees (Abhay, Isla) - back or yellow leggings/pants and top

Butterflies (Lacey, Bailee, Lara): leggings or skirt and top. Choice of orange, red or pink.

Suns (Aine, Michael, Weaver): yellow or black leggings & yellow or orange top

Speakers (Luka, Ashlyn, Keira R) - school uniform (no need to send in prior)

We look forward to you celebrating Term 4 with the children.


Kind regards
Rowe, Andrea, Charlotte, Amanda and Jo
Koru Team teachers

Beckenham School Newsletter 4 November 2016

Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

Building  site health and safety update

Managing health and safety on our Beckenham building site has continued to take much of my attention this week. We are aware that access from Norwood St into both the school and the park continues to be challenging for pedestrians, especially those with prams, pushchairs, toddlers, dogs and cycles. We are working very closely, on a daily basis with the site team, to be as responsive and proactive as we can and getting this right, for the duration of the building programme, is a top priority. It isn't right yet, and it may take a couple of weeks or more to get it absolutely working the way we want it to, so we ask for your patience during this time. We are very aware of the need to keep pedestrians and vehicles separated for safety reasons. We also know that people don't want to have to walk through wet grass and mud for the next 18 months to be able to access the park.
Again - please can you be patient with us on the wet, muddy aspect and ensure that the safety part is adhered to whilst we work on trying to get council permission to put a path alongside the road track, for pedestrians!

Learning in and out of the classrooms

We have had lots of children involved in learning outside the classroom this week, with all of our Year 5 and 6 children visiting Rapaki Marae for the first time. Our Year 7/8 students will visit next week. They had an amazing time and we plan to make this a regular part of our school programme.


Our Year 7 and 8 students had a 'Big Day Out' in the city yesterday, visiting an exhibition called ‘Art in the Palm of Your Hand’ at the Canterbury Museum, Quake City and taking part in an activity at the Botanical Gardens.

Our Year 1 and 2 team learning groups have each taken a trip to the Art Gallery and Botanical Gardens over the past two weeks and it has been wonderful to hear about their experiences.

Thank you to all of the whānau who assist staff on these trips - without you we wouldn't be able to take the children out of school for these amazing learning opportunities.

Year 4 parents - meeting at Champion St next Wednesday evening

Year 4 parents should have received an email this week, inviting you to visit our site at 102 Champion St next Wednesday, 9th November from 7-8pm for a familiarisation meeting.
If you have any particular questions you would like addressed at that meeting, please email them to me at principal@beckenham.school.nz or give me a call before then.

Ferndale Satellite Class parking 

Tony is putting cones out each morning and afternoon at the bottom of Sandwich Road to ensure that there is a parking spot for the Ferndale taxi van, and for Ferndale parents who need to drop their children off. These vehicles do have mobility parking permits and need to be able to drop the children at the closest point to their classroom. Thank you all in advance for understanding that these are particular needs and for ensuring that this parking spot is available and that the users of this spot are made to feel welcome.

Enjoy your weekend

Sandy Hastings
Principal - Tumuaki

Important Dates

Upcoming Events

Tue 8 Nov
Y4 students, visit to Champion St site 9:30-11:30am

Wed 9 Nov
Zone Athletics at Hansen Park.  9am-3pm
Y4 parents meeting at Champion Street. 7-8:00pm

Thu 10 Nov
Yr 7 & 8 Visit to Rapaki Marae.  9am-3pm.

Fri 11 Nov
Show Day - school is closed.

Term Dates

Click here to view the 2016 and 2017 term dates.

Citizen of the Week

Name: Max van Eysden-Grice - Year 3

Max, you have grown into such a responsible and reliable student in our hub. You are learning to make the right choices when faced with difficult situations and are being a true role model. You are working hard on all your learning and showing how you can be an independent learner. You are a respectful, caring and kind friend, Max, and you should be very proud of the huge progress you have made. We are certainly extremely proud of you!

Sharing our Learning

Pohutukawa Team

We have had a fantastic start to the NEW term at our NEW location, Champion Street!




One of the awesome pieces of learning we have been able to do in our new learning environment was the annual Pohutukawa probability fair. The children spent the first two weeks planning and creating a probability game where they had to stack the odds in their favour. The result was a thriving probability fair full of fun, laughter and best of all MATHS!


PTA News

A BIG thank you to all the people who have offered to help with the Tip Top Fundraiser next week.
All shifts are now FULL. If you want to be ‘back up’ for a shift, please click on the Tip Top Link
We hope to get your passes to you at the beginning of next week.
Make sure you come & see us at the A & P Show.....& buy an ice cream!!

Sports News

Canterbury triathlon

The Canterbury triathlon is being held at Pegasus Bay on Thursday 1 December for students 9 years and older. The age group you race in is as of 1 Jan this year, so students must be already 9 years old on January 1 2016 to be eligible. This is an individual event, which means each participant must do all three disciplines - bike, run and swim. As this is a Canterbury event, participants need to be very competent and confident in all three disciplines.
Swim is 75 metres for 9 and 10 years, 100metres for 11 and 12+ years.
This swim is in the lake and it will be deep enough to be over students’ heads in parts. Guards from a local surf lifesaving club will be on duty. The temperature may also be quite cold.
Cycle is 5.4 km for 9 & 10 yrs, 10.8 km for 11 & 12+ yrs. These distances may change slightly.
Run is 2.5 kilometres
Students will need to be able to get themselves and their bike to Pegasus Bay by 9:30 on the morning. If transport there (and back) is going to be difficult, please contact Tracy who will try to help out by contacting other competitors.
If students are interested in entering this event, they are to let their teacher know, and they will record their name on a document, or contact Tracy.


Y 5-8 Athletics

We breathed a sigh of relief as Monday dawned, displaying blue skies and clear weather! A perfect day for the Y 5 - 8 team to participate in their athletics at Beckenham Park. The children competed in age groups, as of 1 October 2016, in sprints, high jump, shot put and discus. Long jump and the long distance races were run at Champion St on Tuesday and Wednesday. It was fabulous to see such a high participation level, superb sportsmanship and so much support for peers. Thank you to the amazing parent help from Pania Radnoty, Desiree Smythe, Sonja Sintmaartensdyk, Rod Gray and John Aramowicz. The day ran very smoothly thanks to all of the teachers and their organisation. It’s a big day! Congratulations to all the students who participated in all the events, earning house points and special congratulations to the following students for placing first in their age group for these events:

First Place Getters:


To  find the champion of each age group, points are allocated for the first four placings in each event and then accumulated. A huge congratulations to these students who have placed first in their age group overall:

School Notices






Community Notices

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

DO YOUR KIDS WANT A SHAKE DOWN BEFORE THE PRIMARY SCHOOLS TRIATHLON?
The weekend before our primary schools triathlon at Pegasus there is the House of Travel Triathlon Festival.
For more details www.triathlonfestival.co.nz
The swim and bike are the same as for the primary schools triathlon so it is an ideal warm up / trial run. The run is the same but in the opposite direction.
There is also options for younger kids from 5 years up over a shorter course.
If you can insert the following note into school newsletters it would be appreciated by John Newsom who runs the event and helps us with our event

DO YOUR KIDS WANT TO TRY A TRIATHLON?
If your kids want a challenge the House of Travel Triathlon is coming up on November 27th
There are events for all ages starting at 5 years and up.
For more details and entry visit www.triathlonfestival.co.nz

John Newsom
 Tel +64-3-6692216
 coachjohnnewsom.com
IMTalk podcast www.imtalk.me
HOT Triathlon Festival

Koru Term 4 Week 4

What an action packed fortnight we have had! Read below to find out about some of the activities we have been enjoying.

REMINDERS
*Koru Performance: Fri 18th November 2pm, in the Beckenham School Hall
*Please make sure your child brings a named water bottle and sunhat every day. The hot weather is upon us and we are eager to keep children sun-safe and hydrated.

Reading with Dogs
Noah's Mum has kindly brought their family dog Lottie in to read with Hub 10-11...thanks Nathalie!

   

Construction
We have observed a lot of action on the building site next to our Hubs. We have written about the builders and diggers, and also read stories to help us find out more about construction.

  

Maths in Hub 10-11
Hub 10-11 have been learning about multiplication using animal stories e.g. how many altogether, if I have 3 owls in each group? There are 4 groups. We have also been learning about fractions and practising addition and subtraction.

  

Maths in Hub 12-13 
We have been learning about doubles in Hub 12 and addition to 10 in Hub 13. At Maths time we enjoy our self-directed learning activities. Every day we can choose from a number of activities including writing numbers, number bingo, shape magformers, block constructions, making number booklets, counting penguins and Maths jigsaws.  


Teddy Bears Picnic  Term 3
We all had an absolutely fabulous time at our Teddy Bears Picnic at the end of Term 3 and here are some of the lovely photos capturing the joy of this event. It was so much fun making our teddy beds and blankets as part of our Maths measurement unit. Most of all we loved hearing Teddy stories with our parents.


Diggers    
Maybe it is because our children are used to the sight of diggers and dump trucks in Christchurch that it is just like another day at the office as far as being surrounded by these machines is concerned. It has been great motivation for oral language and writing in our Hub. We enjoyed the stories  written by Sally Sutton called Demolition and Construction. The Builders Cat by Gwenda Turner is another lovely book you may like to share with your children.      

Writing about Diggers in Hub 12-13

I saw the claws.
I love diggers. Crunch!
By Davish

I saw a digger yesterday at Beckenham School. Smash went the digger.
 By Bonnie

 The digger crashed the classroom down.
 By Ayla

 I saw the digger smashing down the building. I saw the grabber.
 By Finn

 Crash! Bang! Smash! The digger looks like a crocodile. It is breaking the building down for a new classroom.
 By Hatsumi

I was driving a huge digger. It was fun! It looked like a chomping dinosaur. It has long wheels to smash the floor.
By Quinn

Zzzzzz down went the tree. The dust spread all over the place.
By Xavier

We saw the humongous tree come down and there was a man with a chainsaw.
By Bobby

Rumble! bang! Crash! A yellow digger was lifting a piece of wood. It looks like a chomping dinosaur.
By Elsie

Koru Term 4 Week 4


What an action packed fortnight we have had! Read below to find out about some of the activities we have been enjoying.

REMINDERS
*Koru Performance: Fri 18th November 2pm, in the Beckenham School Hall
*Please make sure your child brings a named water bottle and sunhat every day. The hot weather is upon us and we are eager to keep children sun-safe and hydrated.

Reading with Dogs
Noah's Mum has kindly brought their family dog Lottie in to read with Hub 10-11...thanks Nathalie!

   

Construction
We have observed a lot of action on the building site next to our Hubs. We have written about the builders and diggers, and also read stories to help us find out more about construction.

  

Maths in Hub 10-11
Hub 10-11 have been learning about multiplication using animal stories e.g. how many altogether, if I have 3 owls in each group? There are 4 groups. We have also been learning about fractions and practising addition and subtraction.

  

Maths in Hub 12-13 
We have been learning about doubles in Hub 12 and addition to 10 in Hub 13. At Maths time we enjoy our self-directed learning activities. Every day we can choose from a number of activities including writing numbers, number bingo, shape magformers, block constructions, making number booklets, counting penguins and Maths jigsaws.  

Teddy Bears Picnic  Term 3
We all had an absolutely fabulous time at our Teddy Bears Picnic at the end of Term 3 and here are some of the lovely photos capturing the joy of this event. It was so much fun making our teddy beds and blankets as part of our Maths measurement unit. Most of all we loved hearing Teddy stories with our parents.


Diggers    
Maybe it is because our children are used to the sight of diggers and dump trucks in Christchurch that it is just like another day at the office as far as being surrounded by these machines is concerned. It has been great motivation for oral language and writing in our Hub.
We enjoyed the stories  written by Sally Sutton called Demolition and Construction. The Builders Cat by Gwenda Turner is another lovely book you may like to share with your children.          
Image result for builders cat book gwenda turner 


Writing about Diggers in Hub 12-13

I saw the claws.
I love diggers. Crunch!
By Davish

I saw a digger yesterday at Beckenham School. Smash went the digger.

By Bonnie


The digger crashed the classroom down.

By Ayla


I saw the digger smashing down the building. I saw the grabber.

By Finn

Crash! Bang! Smash! The digger looks like a crocodile. It is breaking the building down for a new classroom.
By Hatsumi

I was driving a huge digger. It was fun! It looked like a chomping dinosaur. It has long wheels to smash the floor.
By Quinn

Zzzzzz down went the tree. The dust spread all over the place.
By Xavier

We saw the humongous tree come down and there was a man with a chainsaw.
By Bobby

Rumble! bang! Crash! A yellow digger was lifting a piece of wood. It looks like a chomping dinosaur.
By Elsie