Newsletter Term 2 Week 4

Parent Helpers!
A big thank you to parent helpers who have volunteered in class and organised our books. Paula Allen, Amy McDaid, Sonja, Ali, Diane, Nicola Arnott, Nicole Forster, Nicola Smythe and Olivia Grantham...we really appreciate your help!


Rereading And Improving Our Writing






Hockey 
"THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVER" - quote from Annabel as we walked out of our second hockey lesson with Canterbury Hockey! 


Cold And Wet Weather! 
Its great to see many children wearing their gumboots to school and bringing their slippers to wear in the classroom to keep feet dry and warm! 


Oral Language 
As a part of our oral language unit, we have news time which falls on a Friday. Children are encouraged to share an idea or an item they have brought in from home. In their groups, they have been learning to start with an introduction, share their news, ask questions, answer questions, listen and taking turns at speaking.




JUNK FREE JUNE


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Next month in the Pōhutukawa Whānau we are encouraging children to take part in Junk Free June. This is a campaign run by the Cancer Society to help raise funds and awareness for their worthy cause. Not only will the children have an opportunity to ​support the Cancer Society, they will also be able to show how they love challenge and make a difference by choosing some 'junk' and giving it up for the month of June. Last year children chose from a huge range including; lollies, ice cream, fizzy drink and even video games!

​The children will be tracking their progress in their hubs and you can follow our journey on the Junk Free June website. We hope to inspire other children at Beckenham School to join us in this challenge and would love to hear from any families who decide to tackle the Junk Free June challenge together. For more information head to the Junk Free June website and check out our Pōhutukawa profile below.

Where are we going?

Writing Motivation: What an epic time we had at the Margaret Mahy Playground on Monday. Thanks to the slightly inclement weather, we practically had the place to ourselves. The children had a blast! Lots of good experiences to draw on for writing over the next couple of weeks. The task will be to write about a memorable activity / event that the child has been involved in recently. It could be Monday's outing, or it could be something else that was memorable. Brainstorming and planning happens on Tuesday and writing will begin on Wednesday. Talking about experiences at home would be really helpful. The exemplar is copied below the photos.





































Tracy's exemplar:
Success Criteria:
  • Writing is in chronological order
  • Write in the past tense
  • Include strong verbs
  • Use first or third person
  • Include details to add interest to reader
  • Use time connectives; next, meanwhile, within hours, soon afterwards
  • Link the conclusion to the introduction

It didn’t matter that the sun wasn’t shining. Who cared? Golden rays of sunshine were not necessary for this exciting activity that the Inwood family was about to embark on. As the speed boat motored out across the undulating blue expanse, smiles on dials reflected the feeling of the whanau.

After half an hour, Sam, their driver, signalled that they had reached their destination. On the surface, nothing indicated the treasure trove they were about to discover below.

Donning the necessary equipment, Kate was ready first, and gracefully slipped over the side of the vessel into the ocean. Jonny and Phil quickly followed suit, leaving Tracy struggling with her floppy flippers. Minutes later, Tracy joined her family overboard. However, as she swam towards her husband, she felt a prickling sensation on her arms. It felt like she was being shocked by hundreds of tiny electric currents. Alarmed, she called out to Phil, who reassured her that she was swimming through a swarm of pesky sea lice, and that further ahead the water was fine.

Meanwhile, Kate and Jonny had powered ahead, and all that could be seen of them were their blue snorkels poking out of the sea like submarine periscopes. They had discovered the coral reef, and were gleefully exploring the underwater garden, pointing out wonders to each other. Blue starfished extended their spiny arms, hiding ineffectively. Transparent, black striped fish darted by, very close to the surface. A deadly black and white banded sea snake slithered peacefully over the sandy bottom, keeping to itself. It was almost impossible to track the multitude of colourful fish, floating lazily or swimming with purpose through the coral reef.

An hour snuck by, and soon the underwater spectators were being recalled to the boat by Sam. It was a quick dash through the stinging lice to reach safety. Clambering aboard, flopping onto the deck like seals, everyone stripped off their snorkel gear, ready to continue with the adventure of the day.

When you visit Fiji, it would be wrong not to go snorkelling. Combining the silent peacefulness of being underwater, with the close proximity of so many beautiful fish, is truly uplifting. Flying freely among such stunning marine animals is an experience not to be missed!


Week 3 Term 2 Newsletter

Learning Conferences 

Thank you very much to all the parents that attended learning conferences last week. It was wonderful to see the children speak so confidently about their learning, celebrate their achievements so far, and discuss their next steps. We really value the partnership between home and school and it is great to have such a supportive and enthusiastic community of parents. Thanks for all that you do!

Cross Country

As part of our Physical Education programme, the children will be participating in Junior School Cross Country later in the term. At present the children are practicing for this as part of fitness time. We look forward to our Cross Country event which is on Thursday 16th June from 11:00am - 12:30pm. More detailed information will be sent home leading up to the event. In the time being, please ensure your child is wearing suitable shoes to school each day so they can participate in developing their running skills.

Reminder

Just a reminder that as we come into the cooler weather the school grounds become much wetter. We would like to encourage the children to bring water proof jackets and gumboots to school on wet days and wear extra layers to keep nice and 'toastie' on cooler days.

We have noticed over the past year, that many children have only worn their t-shirts and polar fleeces during winter and have often been cold. When it isn't raining the children are expected to play outside so wearing extra layers like black thermals under their t-shirts will not only help to keep them warm, but also help them to not get any chills. Children can also bring slippers to wear in the classroom. Thanks for your assistance. 

Parent Help

We have been receiving a huge amount of parent help in our classrooms across the team. Thank you so much for volunteering your time to help the children as this extra support boosts learning and self confidence. If you would like to help support our children with their learning please see your child's teacher. We greatly appreciate all your help!

Blog

Teachers and children are working hard to keep our blog up to date. We would love to see comments from anyone at home to help the children reflect on their learning. Thank you for supporting us with this.

Up and Coming Events

Here are some dates to pencil in your diary:
Monday 6th June Queens Birthday (No school Monday)
Tuesday 7th June Teacher Only Day (No school Tuesday)
Thursday 23rd June Matariki Performance by the Court Theatre 
Thursday 16th June Junior School Cross Country

Enjoy your week and keep warm!

Kowhai Teaching Team 
Gayle, Paulette, Anna, Mike and Rebekah




MAD Science

Our MAD Scientists  have  been  creating swirling, colourful  milk, weird goo and investigating if we can change the colour of flowers and celery.