Kahikatea News: Week 8 Term 3 2026

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 Kia ora whanau, 

We are thrilled to see the warmer days arriving and, with them, the opportunity to get outside and begin some athletics practice! Our whole-school athletics event will be held early in Term 4, alongside some other exciting activities, including swimming lessons. Keep an eye out for further notices with more information about these events coming your way soon.

While we are enjoying the signs of spring, winter illnesses continue to affect both students and staff. We are working hard to support the health and wellbeing of our school community by maintaining good hygiene practices, including regular handwashing and covering coughs and sneezes. We are also encouraging everyone to keep warm, get outside into the sunshine and fresh air, and take good care of themselves as we head into the warmer months.

Upcoming Event From Our Student Council

On Sept 18th, next Friday, the Student Council has organised a Heritage Day to celebrate our diverse cultures. Children are invited to come to school dressed in something to represent their family's heritage. This could be a costume, something special about the country, or simply wearing the colours from the country's flag. Please bring a gold coin for Big Brothers and Big Sisters.




Life Education Trust Visit


We are excited to welcome Harold the Giraffe and our Life Education teacher back to Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto, from Monday 7th - Thursday 17th of September. Each home group will have two sessions in the mobile classroom for interactive lessons to support our Body Systems learning.
Here are some photos from our first session: 



















Kahikatea Talent Show Auditions 

Congratulations to the very talented tamariki who have practised and prepared for this wonderful event! We had so many fabulous performances, and here are some photos from the auditions, which were held in our theatre space on Friday. 
















Our judges: Lisa, Toto and Sarah

Congratulations to the following students who have made it through to the Beckenham's Got Talent Final: 


Eleanor
Vincent & Max
Sadie, Marnie & Elsa
Elodie & Frankie




Ma te wa, Team Kahikatea: Sarah, Amber, Sarah & Talia 
















 


















Kōwhai News Term 3 Week 8

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Kia ora e te whānau,

Welcome to Week 8! Time is flying in the Kōwhai hub, and our days remain packed with energy, learning, and discovery. As Term 3 draws to a close, our students continue to be fully engaged and working hard right up to the finish line. 


Life Education

Harold the giraffe continues to inform and entertain our tamariki in the Life Education bus. The Kōwhai team have all attended our first session, with the second session focusing on interpersonal relationships coming up in Week 9. This programme complements the friendship lessons that we are currently teaching in class. With the aid of some wonderful friendship books from our library, we have facilitated some great discussion and reflection on what it is to be a good friend.


















Hip Hop Dance Lessons

We continue to enjoy learning and practising our hip hop dances in our home group classes. We are improving each time and are having fun along the way. We had planned to perform our dance at the end of Term 3. This has now been moved to the beginning of Term 4; more information about this will be communicated soon.


Kapa Haka Performance

A reminder that in Week 10, the Kōwhai team will be performing at assembly. Our tamariki have been working hard to put in the final touches on our performance and have worked hard to learn waiata. You are welcome to attend the Celebration Assembly in the hall at 10:00 am. We look forward to seeing you there to support our tamariki.


Maths In Action

Maths is fun when we can apply it in the real world. At the moment, all children in Kōwhai are learning and practising our measurement skills. We are enjoying measuring the length, weight, and capacity of classroom items as well as learning to tell the time, with lots of hands-on activities involved. 




Privacy and Social Media

Actively managing your tamariki’s privacy settings on the social networks they use can go a long way towards keeping control of their personal information.

Any information that is easily available online, whether it’s an email address, date of birth, or pictures, could end up causing harm if it gets into the wrong hands.

To help you navigate privacy on social media, Netsafe has put together a guide on How to Use Privacy Settings on Social Networks. 



Learning Languages: New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL)

We have been working hard in Term 3 to learn the basics of New Zealand Sign Language, which has been a good challenge and lots of fun! We are very lucky to have two members of the deaf community visiting us in the Kōwhai hub next week to talk to us about NZSL, deaf culture and the importance of being inclusive and respectful of different ways of communicating. 


Beckenham’s Got Talent

The final of Beckenham’s Got Talent is fast approaching! 

The Kōwhai team have held the semi-final auditions and have narrowed performances down to five acts. Next week, they will put on a whole hub performance where we will choose the top three acts to go through to the whole school show in Week 10. We certainly have some talented tamariki in our midst! 


Heritage Day: A Message From The Student Council

On September 18th, next Friday, the Student Council has organised a Heritage Day to celebrate our diverse cultures. 


Children are invited to come to school dressed in something to represent their family's heritage. This could be a costume, something special about the country, or simply wearing the colours from the country's flag. Please bring a gold coin for Big Brothers and Big Sisters. 


Big Brothers Big Sisters is an organisation that helps children and young people build confidence, resilience and positive relationships through mentoring. The programme matches young people with caring adult or older-youth mentors who spend regular time together, talking, sharing activities and simply being there. These supportive relationships can make a real difference to a young person’s sense of belonging, self-confidence and ability to navigate life’s challenges.



Have a great weekend!


From the Kōwhai team

Term 3, Week 8 – Kauri Blog

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Term 3, Week 8 - Kauri Blog

What a busy couple of weeks it has been in Kauri! We’ve packed so much into our days, from skiing and cricket to a fantastic performance at the Court Theatre, our school duathlon (and the Canterbury event), Koru Games training and a visit from the Life Education bus. In between all of the excitement, we’ve still managed to squeeze in plenty of learning, too! There’s certainly never a dull moment in Kauri, so here’s a look at what we’ve been up to.

Upcoming Dates

Term 3, Week 9:
  • Tuesday: Ohitahni Reserve Planting Day (select students)
  • Wednesday: CHOIR - Area Rehearsal @ Haeata Community Campus (select students)
  • Thursday: Pō Whakangahau Performance @ Cashmere High (Te Whānau Mahi Tahi)
Term 3, Week 10:
  • Monday: Long Jump practice at Hillview (all Kauri students)
  • Tuesday - Thursday: Koru Games at Foster Park / Lincoln University / Selwyn Netball Centre
  • Friday: Beckenham's Got Talent
Term 4, Week 2:
  • Monday: Year 8 fun and formal photos
  • Friday: BTKOP Athletics Day

Reminders from Kauri Kaiako:

  • Hats are required to be worn when outside in Term 4. Please take the time over the holidays to ensure your child has a hat. 
  • Year 8 High School - All year 8 students should now be enrolled into a high school for 2027. If you are needing support with doing this, please get in touch with your child's homegroup teacher or the office.
Have a lovely weekend and we can't wait to see your tamariki back on Monday for another jam-packed two weeks!

Ngā mihi nui,
Hugo, Kate, Sarah & Megan


BTKOP & PSC Duathlons

Over the last two weeks, we have had our school and Primary Sports Canterbury Duathlons. It has been fantastic to see so many students getting involved, challenging themselves and giving it their best effort. There were some impressive performances, with students showing great determination, resilience and sportsmanship throughout both events. We are incredibly proud of everyone who took part and represented BTKOP so well. A special congratulations to Zach who finished first overall for Year 8 Open.

Year 7 Open - 3rd Haydn, 73rd Lucas

Year 7 Girls - 11th Jayme, 22nd Clara, 68th Lily

Year 8 Open - 1st Zach, 6th Daniel, 11th Dylan, 20th Ben, 42nd Samson

Year 8 Girls - 8th Laura

Koru Games Trainings

With Koru Games in Week 10 fast approaching, we have already had two fantastic training sessions underway. We are so fortunate to have some incredible helpers and providers giving their time and expertise to help get our tamariki ready for the tournament. A huge thank you to Jacob from Kī-o-rahi Selwyn and Emma from Mixx Korfball, as well as our fabulous parent helpers Amanda, Roberta and Elise, for supporting our teams and helping build their skills and confidence.

The countdown to Koru Games is well and truly on, and we can’t wait for a fantastic week of competition, fun and plenty of Kauri spirit!











He Hura Kōrero: Court Theatre Performance

We were lucky enough to enjoy a special visit from He Hura Kōrero and the Court Theatre. The performance took us on a journey exploring the importance of precious taonga and the stories, people and connections that make them so meaningful. It was a wonderful opportunity for our tamariki to experience live theatre and engage with themes of whakapapa, culture and the things we value and treasure. We thoroughly enjoyed the performance and appreciated the opportunity to experience such a meaningful story right here at school.


Ski Trip - Mt Hutt

What a fantastic day we had on the slopes! It was wonderful to see our tamariki enjoying themselves, challenging themselves and making the most of the opportunity to get out on the snow. Unfortunately, the strong winds meant we had to finish up after half a day, but that certainly didn’t stop it from being a great day. A huge thank you to all our wonderful parent helpers and teachers who gave up their time to make the trip possible. We really appreciate your support!








Canterbury Cricket Sessions

We were lucky enough to have Dan from Canterbury Cricket visit us, with each class enjoying a 45-minute cricket session using the Smash Play format. It was a fantastic opportunity for our tamariki to develop their cricket skills while having plenty of fun along the way. There was lots of batting, bowling, teamwork and, of course, plenty of enthusiasm! A big thank you to Dan for coming along and getting everyone involved.




Life Education Bus (Harold)

This week, each class had their first session with Life Education and Harold. Our focus was on reputation and integrity, exploring what these words mean and how our choices and actions can shape the way others see us. It was a great opportunity for our tamariki to think about the kind of people they want to be and the positive impact they can have on those around them. We’re looking forward to our next session!

Competitive Jump Jam team

Our competitive Jump Jam team have been working incredibly hard over the past few weeks, and today they officially submitted their entry for Nationals! We are so proud of the dedication, teamwork and commitment the girls have shown throughout their preparation. A huge thank you to Kate Meder for all of the time, energy and hard work she has put into supporting and coaching the team. We can’t wait to see them take the stage!

Koru Team News Term 3 Week 8 (11/09/2026)

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Kia ora, e te whānau,

We warmly welcome our new tamariki into the Koru team, and to Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto! Luca, Zoe and Ruby have all started school in the last fortnight and have settled beautifully into the team. We appreciate the wonderful help of our 'golden oldies' who are truly amazing at providing wrap around support, thereby demonstrating our school value, 'We Care'.

Life Education:

This week and next, the Life Education van, along with educator, Kirsty, and her support crew, in the form of Harold the Giraffe, are based at school with us. The Koru team have two lessons with Kirsty and Harold, the first of which was on Monday, and the second, today. Our broad focus is on Living Things, with questions relating to:

  • Where does our food come from?
  • Why do we need to eat a variety of food?
  • What do all living things need to stay alive? 
These lessons dovetail beautifully with our current Science topic, in which we investigate the questions:
  • What do living things need to survive (food, water, shelter, sunlight)?
  • How do plants and animals grow and change?
  • How can people care for plants, animals, and natural places?
Harold's 4 favourite letters!

Harold, being a little bit mischievous

Harold, singing his song about friendship

Some living things work together as a group


Working together as a group

Enjoying time with one of our Friday big buddies

Ordering numbers to 20



Sketching different types of plants around our school grounds


Making giraffe shapes with our hands

Student Council Heritage Day:

On Sept 18th, next Friday, the Student Council has organised a Heritage Day to celebrate our diverse cultures. Children are invited to come to school dressed in something to represent their family's heritage. This could be a costume, something special about the country or children could simply wear the colours from the country's flag. Please bring a gold coin for the Big Brothers and Big Sisters organisation.

Big Brothers Big Sisters is an organisation that helps children and young people build confidence, resilience and positive relationships, through mentoring.
The programme matches young people with caring adult or older-youth mentors who spend regular time together, talking, sharing activities and simply being there. These supportive relationships can make a real difference to a young person’s sense of belonging, self-confidence and ability to navigate life’s challenges.

A few items of note:
  • Kiss and Drop 💛 - as our Koru Team grows, our hub can get pretty busy in the mornings, and this can feel a little overwhelming for some tamariki. To help everyone have a calm start to the day, we’d really appreciate it if you could “kiss and drop” your child at the door, rather than coming into the hub with them. This gives tamariki a chance to come in, find their friends, unpack and settle into their morning independently. Thanks so much for your support with this — it really helps us keep the mornings calm, happy and settled for everyone! Please note that if your child is new to school and may well need extra support with the drop off, that is absolutely fine :)
  • Toys at school - we are trialling, with the tamariki, that if/when toys come into school, the toys then spend the day in the teachers' office, where they are able to sit up high enough to be able to see out through the window and each keep an eye on their child. We hope that this means that no toys end up out in the playground where they might inadvertently be lost or damaged, and also that they don't become a distraction during learning times. It would be really helpful if you could talk about this with your child, please. We do prefer that toys remain at home :)
  • Late pick ups - if you find that you're going to be late to collect your child after school, please phone our school office to let them know, and your message will be sent through to us in the hub. Any child who hasn't been collected from outside Tāhaki, by 3:10 p.m. will be taken over to the office by their Home Group teacher, so that teachers are able to be ready for any after school meetings which might be taking place - meetings generally start at 3:15 p.m.
We hope that you all have a lovely weekend (perhaps including the chance to visit our PTA Clothing and Book Sale, which is taking place on Saturday and Sunday in our school hall).
We look forward to seeing those beautiful, wide smiles back at school on Monday!

Ngā mihi mahana ki a koutou,
Stacey, Nicola, Kendall and Elizabeth

Pōhutukawa Team News Term 3 Week 8 2026

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Ngā mihi e te whānau, warm greetings to you all,

Read on for news and information about what has been happening around the hub in the last two weeks!. Have a great weekend everyone, kia pai ngā rā whakata.

Wow what a busy time we have had in the Pōhutukawa team! Over the last few weeks we have done Cycle Safe, Food for Thought Programme, Special Visit from Ross Meder (Volunteer Ambulance Officer), Kiwi Competition, Beckenham's got talent and many more! 

In class we have been learning about Body Systems. We got our hands on some clay and made some brains! What a fun wee hands on activity to focus in on the main component of our bodies here are some pictures of the creative outcome. 











Operation! 
We have begun the task of building our own version of the game Operation. We will be doing our own copper wiring, wiring it all up together and connecting it all to LED lights and a battery pack. This is how were getting on so far. 








Student Council News

On Sept 18th, next Friday, the Student Council has organised a Heritage Day to celebrate our diverse cultures. Children are invited to come to school dressed in something to represent their family's heritage. This could be a costume, something special about the country or simply wear the colours from the country's flag. Please bring a gold coin for Big Brothers and Big Sisters.

Big Brothers Big Sisters is an organisation that helps children and young people build confidence, resilience and positive relationships through mentoring.

The programme matches young people with caring adult or older-youth mentors who spend regular time together, talking, sharing activities and simply being there. These supportive relationships can make a real difference to a young person’s sense of belonging, self-confidence and ability to navigate life’s challenges.




Privacy and Social Media

Actively managing your tamariki’s privacy settings on the social networks they use can go a long way

towards keeping control of their personal information.


Any information that is easily available online, whether it’s an email address, date of birth, or pictures,

could end up causing harm if it gets into the wrong hands.


To help you navigate privacy on social media, Netsafe has put together a guide on

How to Use Privacy Settings on Social Networks. 


Have a lovely weekend, Ngā mihi nui. Kia Kaha.

The Pōhutukawa Teaching Team

Chris, Chloe, Nick, Kate, Rae, Megan and Laura