Kia ora e te whānau,
We have made it halfway through our second term of the year! We hope you are all managing to stay clear of the winter bugs which are starting to circulate. We'd like to share a warm welcome to Bruno who started school with us on Tuesday. Bruno has a big brother in the Kōwhai team, so we welcome Bruno's family to the Koru team!
If your child started during Term 1, they will be receiving a Mid Year report. These have beem sent out today, so please check Hero to view this. We have had a busy last few weeks, and still have some exciting upcoming events. Below are the important dates:
- Learning Conferences (next week); Tuesday 11th and Wednesday 12th June
- NZ Opera; whole school performance in our Hall; Thursday 13th June
- Koru trip to the Christchurch Art Gallery; Monday 24th June
- Matariki Evening at school; Tuesday 25th June 5:30-7:00pm
- Matariki (school closed); Friday 28th June
- Hillview Cross Country Zones; Tuesday 2nd July (Anna Reid will have been in contact if this applies to your child)
- Last day of Term 2: Friday 5th July
- First day of Term 3: Monday 22nd July
Morning routines:
We are so proud to see the children continuing to show 'We Love Challenge' by carrying their own bags; putting their lunch box and drink bottles on the shelves; putting their Literacy folders in the group boxes and then settling down quietly into a game or activity each morning!
We thank all the Whānau for the quick and calm 'good byes' in the morning. As we get more children starting school, sometimes we notice it feeling very overwhelming and busy with so many people in the Hub before school, it is really helpful when you say goodbye and leave your child with us, leaving them to have some fun with their new school friends.
House Groups:
Our Koru children have all been allocated a 'House' to belong to: Fisher, Heathcote, Tennyson and Waimea. Children from the same family/whānau are put into the same house. Each house has its own 'chant' and tamariki learn this, so they can participate in the house chant at sports and special events, and in Celebration Assemblies, if it is their house that has won the House Points for that fortnight! You can find the House Chants here, and other are also videos that you can share with your child to help them learn their house chant. Mā tātou katoa te waka e hoe! We Get There Together!
Lunchbox Reminders:
- Please ensure your child is only bringing water to school (no juice or other drinks)
- It is also important to help teach your child how to open and close their lunch boxes, so they can do this independently at the start and end of eating times
- It would be great if you could also either pre-cut or teach your child how to open packets in their lunchboxes (for example potato sticks, chip bags, twisty yoghurt pouches, muesli bars etc.)
Thank you for your help and co-operation with this!
Word of the Week:
Each week, we have a school-wide word of the week that we discuss, watch videos about, and try to implement throughout the day. The words we have had so far this term include:
- Upstander: Standing up for others in situations that aren't right, and supporting others who may need your help
- Honesty: Being truthful in what we say and do
- Inclusion: Making others feel a part of something and including others in your activities/games.
- Kindness: The quality of being considerate, friendly, and generous.
- Respect: Accepting others for who they are, even when they are different from who you are, or don't agree with you.
- Resilience: Bouncing back from challenges and trying again.
Our Koru tamariki are becoming very knowledgeable about these words! Have a look at some of the awesome photos of our tamariki showing our "Word of the Week" and our school kete values:
Disco:
Today, we celebrated our school PTA Disco. Our tamariki had some awesome outfits, and showed off their amazing dance moves. Have a look at some photos showing the fun we had:
Learning Conferences:
A reminder we have Learning Conferences coming up next week. If your child started at the beginning of the year, the Learning Conferences are optional if you would like to chat with your child's homegroup teacher about their mid year reports. If your child started at the beginning of Term 2, we recommend you booking a Learning Conference time so that your child's homegroup teacher can discuss their transition with you. School will be finishing at 1:30pm. Please refer to the School-wide newsletter from last week for more information about this, and for how to book a learning conference.
Reminder - Art Gallery Trip: We are still in need of some parent helpers for our Art Gallery Trip. If you are able to be help for this trip, please email your child's home group teacher. Thank you to those who have already done this.
Staying Safe Online: Bullying
One in five young people in New Zealand have been the target of online bullying – it can happen to anyone, and it can be hard for parents and whānau to deal with. Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto takes online bullying seriously and would encourage you to chat to your tamariki’s teacher if you have any concerns about online bullying.
Visit Netsafe’s Online Bullying Advice for Parents to read more.
We hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and stay warm!
Ngā mihi mahana ki a koutou,
Georgia, Stacey, and Elizabeth
stacey.mclachlan@beckenham.school.nz
georgia.mckenna@beckenham.school.nz
elizabethgail.drummond@beckenham.school.nz
