Kauri Whanau Weekly Update: Term 4 Week 9

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Waltham Pool tomorrow, Wednesday:

We have checked the raindrop graph on MetService often today. It looks like the rain, if it comes, will settle in around midday. Our plan is to be at Waltham by 11am, for a 45 - 60 minute swim, before walking back to school for the afternoon. Can you please make sure your child has the following packed for tomorrow:
  • A raincoat
  • Togs and towel in a plastic bag
  • Sunscreen
  • Sunhat
  • Lunch and water bottle. No lunch orders please, just in case the forecast changes and we stay for longer.
  • Medication if needed, e.g. asthma and hay fever

Year 8:

We had a lovely time with the Year 8s on Monday evening at the pool and pizza party. Excitement is building rapidly as they approach their final day on Monday. Many thanks for replying to the graduation assembly invitation. The hall will be open soon after 10:30am on Monday, ready for an 11:00am start.

The message below was in the daily notices today. Please encourage / support your child to sort out their google drive.

If you are leaving Beckenham School at the end of the year and want to keep any of your school Drive files or emails, please go to the website below before the end of the term. This website will ensure that all files are properly copied to your personal account. If you are under 13, ask your parents to create an account for you using Google Family Link.

https://takeout.google.com/transfer

Your Beckenham accounts will be permanently deactivated over the holidays so if you don't use the transfer tool, your files will be lost forever.

Walk up to Victoria Park on Thursday:

At the last minute we have had a parent let us know they are unavailable to join us on the walk up  to Victoria Park on Thursday. We are hoping that someone will be able to step in at the last moment. Please email me if you can help. nicky.dunlop@beckenham.school.nz. All children will need the following on Thursday:

  • Day pack
  • Hearty lunch
  • Large bottle filled with water
  • Sunhat
  • Sunscreen
  • Rain coat
  • Mufti suitable for walking, including sturdy shoes
  • Medication if needed, e.g. asthma and hay fever
We leave school soon after 10:30 and will return by 3:00pm.


The children will be bringing their school books home on Friday. 


Photos from the last week:

Our passion mountain biking group had an awesome afternoon at the bike park last Friday.




It was pretty cosy in Jarred's pool on Monday.

Fun at the pool party.

Leading our young learners in Christmas decoration creation.




Exciting News! A new name for us!

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Special Edition Newsletter

Tēnā koutou e te whānau o Beckenham School

Over the past few years, our wonderful school has faced many challenges including damage sustained from earthquakes and a fire that claimed our library which has resulted in the design and rebuilding of our beautiful school. This is something that our school and community will never forget.

During this time our Board of Trustees and senior management team have worked alongside our students, staff, community, and iwi to create a new vision and values for Beckenham School which is now well embedded in the culture of our school. We have been fortunate to have been very well guided and supported through the consultation process by Dianne Collier from Matauraka Mahaanui (Ngāi Tūāhuriri Education Committee) and the Ngāi Tūāhuriri rūnanga (mana whenua of the area that Beckenham School sits in).

The Ngāi Tūāhuriri rūnanga has generously gifted Beckenham School with a name that reflects our place in the area around the Ōpāwaho River. The name we have been gifted is “Te Kura o Pūroto” which literally translated means “The School of the Ponds”.

Discussions at our November Board meeting resulted in the acceptance of this name which has been linked with Beckenham School’s existing name. We are proud to announce that both Ngāi Tūāhuriri and the Ministry of Education have accepted our new school name as being

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto. 

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto (Beckenham, the School of the Ponds) will take effect from 01 January 2018. Work is already underway to ensure the new name, logo, and signage will be ready to go in the new year.

The Board of Trustees believes that Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto not only affirms a sense of place and belonging for our tamariki, but that it also reflects the bicultural nature of Aotearoa New Zealand and shows our commitment to upholding the Treaty of Waitangi.

There will be a ceremony late in term 1 2018 to unveil the new name officially to our community which everyone will be invited to.

If you have any questions or if you would like to know more about the process we have followed please see the school website to find a Trustee (from 2017) you can talk to about it.

The BOT wishes you and your families a safe and happy holiday break. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.


Beckenham School Board of Trustees

Term 4 End of term

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Kia Ora koutou whanau,

What a wonderful last few weeks we have had.

Hedgehog fun
'We Love Challenge'  ....... We Get There Together' and sometimes we read a book at reading time that offers us opportunities for challenge and working as a team. 'Hedgehog Fun' was one of those books.  Some of our children made 'hedgehogs' for the whole of the West Wing.  Great teamwork, great sharing and generosity.













Beautiful weather and our learning environment.We have been making use of our outdoor classroom spaces this term and including outside hut and tent making, construction, reading, drama and science.  Here are some pictures we have taken in the last few days.





















 Children & anxiety: what parents can do.
A highly insightful talk by Nathan Makere Wallace excellent - well worth 20mins. Listen here



Similes and Metaphors
A couple of language features we explore in writing are similes and metaphors. Adding a simile to a descriptive piece can make a real difference in the level of interest for our readers.

Watch this video with your child and learn all about similes and metaphors together.





Some of the children wrote some poems using similes and metaphors.  






We would like to have all reading books back at school asap so we can sort and do a stock-take all ready for the new year.  Please would you check behind the couch, in toy boxes and children's bookshelves to make sure you have returned all books to school.
If you are able to come and help with the stocktake on Thursday or Friday afternoon please email Sue or Charlotte.  We would all really appreciate your help.

Pohutukawa Trip Cancelled

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Dear Parents/Caregivers

We have unfortunately had to cancel our trip to Spencer Park due to unforeseen circumstances. Many thanks to the parents that offered to help.

We have instead organised a fun day of activities to be held on Tuesday, 12 December. On this day we will be running a lot of different activities including slip and slides, friendly water fights, crafts and games.

On this day, the children will need to bring:
  • their togs, a towel, a waterproof bag and a water pistol (or a clean water bottle for squirting) for the "water fun" activities.
  • board games, crafts, gaming devices or similar items for the "crafts and games" time.
We may also repeat some of these activities later in the week, depending on the weather. We will let you know if this is the case.

Kauri Whanau Weekly Update: Term 4: Week 8

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We very much hope you enjoyed seeing the 'Trials of Alice in Wonderland' this week. We know the children have loved sharing the show with you. We are trying to secure one more audience for next week.  See the end of this post for photos.

Year 8 Pool and Pizza Party

All Year 8s are invited to Jarred's place, 244 Opawa Rd, on Monday afternoon (December 11th). The party will get underway at 4pm. Please arrange to collect your child by 6pm. They are welcome to bring their togs for a swim if they would like to.

Waltham Pool Trip

We have our fingers crossed that the current weather forecast for Wednesday, December 12th, will shift and that we will get a fine day to enjoy at the pool. We will be walking down at Waltham Pool late morning and returning by 3pm. Please make sure your child has a packed lunch and bottle of water. They will also need sunscreen, togs and towel and sunhat. If the rain does come, we will look at some alternative school based fun.

Victoria Park Walk

Rain is also forecast for Thursday December 13th, so more finger and toe crossing! We will be heading off on our tramp up to Victoria Park at 10:30. That day children will need the following:

  • day pack
  • hearty lunch
  • large bottle filled with water
  • sunhat
  • sunscreen
  • rain coat
  • mufti suitable for walking, including sturdy shoes

Helpers' Morning Tea and Final School Assembly

We have had so many parents help out at school and on our many trips this year. We would love to see you at our helpers' morning tea on Friday morning, starting at 10:30, in the hall. This will be followed by our final school assembly, that everyone is welcome to attend, at 11:30.

Graduation Assembly

Our Year 8 students will be celebrated at our graduation assembly at 11am on Monday December 18th.  On that day they wear their very best clothing and arrive at school at the usual time. Many thanks to all of the Year 8 parents who have replied to the invitation. If you have yet to do so, please click on this link.