Pōhutukawa News Term 1 Week 7 2025

 Ngā mihi e te whānau, warm greetings to you all


As the term races on it's time to catch up on what we've been up to in Pōhutukawa, and also let you know some information about a couple of upcoming events. Please read on!

CCC: "Cool Curriculum Areas" have been running all term and we are string to see some fantastic outcomes from these classes! The students skills in coding and technology are super impressive and it is awesome to see how enthusiastic they are to be heading to these classes, not that we thought they wouldn't be popular! Mindfulness, PE and visual art in full swim and the routines have been flawless. We are really impressed with how well things have been ticking over. Kai pai all! 

Mathematics and Literacy is taking off and the real mahi is beginning to show as well. We encourage your child to show you around our learning sites and all the awesome support activities they have at the fingertips for you to be able to engage in your child's learning. Ask for a tour today! 

Living Springs Camp 2025 planning is well underway, keep an eye out on HERO for the upcoming parent evening. Only three weeks to go! Very exciting! 

STOMP Percussion has been a hit! Literally. There has been some very noisy afternoons in the Pōhutukawa hub, so much we have had to move most lessons outside in order to cope! Students have been very inventive with their instruments and their sounds. The toughest challenge is to try to record them! Multiple sessions have been required but we are slowly getting there and they sound amazing! An update on this will be coming up!

We look forward to yet another great fortnight ahead and hoping for some settled warm weather of course. Thank you for all your support and aroha. 

Warm regards
The Pōhutukawa Teaching Team
Chris, Rae, Gayle, Megan, Nick, Georgie, Stacy and Laura

Koru Team Blog Term 1 Week 7 (14/03/2025)

 Kia ora, e te whānau,

Welcome to this fortnight's blog post! We are so impressed with the tamariki - they have been making amazing progress in their learning since starting school. This, of course, includes their academic learning, as well as their emotional learning and their social learning. 

Our blog post today contains information about:

  • the Koru team's class contract
  • a typical day in the Koru team
  • Structured Literacy in the Koru team
  • Online Safety information
  • and finally, some beautiful photos of the tamariki during the past fortnight.

He Waka Eke Noa:

We are all in this waka together!

As a team, we have discussed the meaning of this whakataukī and also the meaning of the word 'contract'. The tamariki together came up with some guidelines which we've all agreed to follow:

  • We show 'We Care'
  • We are kind to each other
  • We use gentle hands and gentle feet
  • We speak kindly to each other
  • We look after our things, like our hats and our drink bottles
  • We take care of our spaces and help at tidy up time
  • We take care of the games and toys
  • We are helpful
  • We use good manners, like 'please' and 'thank you'
  • We look after each other.
These guidelines were the children's ideas and we revisit them regularly, just as a reminder, and also so that our new children are familiar with them too. 

Other routines, which the children have embraced, include: 

  • unpacking their bags when they arrive at school in the morning, including putting their Literacy folder in the right container; 
  • remembering their poetry books and library folders on Friday; 
  • lining up after break times; 
  • 'showing five' whenever they are sitting on the mat; 
  • and following the expectations in their small Literacy group lessons (sitting up, chair pulled in, focusing on the learning, and 'whiteboards are for writing, not drawing').

We thank you all for your continued support with the start and end of day routines!

A typical Day in the Koru team:


We also fit into our days: interoception (short little activities with a focus on breathing and noticing how our bodies are feeling), music and movement, and of course aspects of both Literacy and Maths are incorporated into Learning Through Play. 

A fun focus during Learning Through Play at the moment is the theme of 'Shops and Shopping'. The original shop set up included a children's library beside the shop as well as roles such as the delivery person, two shopkeepers and visitors to the shop and the library. Elizabeth was included in the play (the Mum) as well as Katie (the Dad). Other children have been involved making signs, labels, money and purses/bags.

The children have been learning new songs and actions at our Music and Movement times, and they agreed that they would like two of these shared with you so that they can teach you at home. We know you'll love them! The expressions and actions that we see while the children are singing are absolutely adorable. See if your children will sing to you now (a great opportunity for 'the child to be the teacher').

Have fun at home with these songs!

Structured Literacy:

Our Structured Literacy groups are up and running, with the children learning the routines and expectations very quickly, and partcipating and contributing beautifully at these times. 
This link takes you to our school website which contains some background information for families about The Science of Reading
Your child will be bringing their Literacy folder home from Monday to Thursday, after school, and it's crucial that this folder is returned to school and unpacked from children's bags, every morning. Teachers will be topping up the letter and heart word packs regularly.
A big focus, when the children first start bringing folders home, is learning the letter sounds and the heart words to a fluent (or automatic) level, so practising using these as flash cards is incredibly helpful. This is explained for you very clearly in the second two links below.
Once the children recognise each letter and can make the sound, and recognise and read each heart word, they are then able to practise writing these at home with you. Letter cards can be joined together and read as words, for example, words with two sounds to start with (/a/, /t/ and /i/, /t/, and so on), then words with three sounds (/m/, /a/, /t/ and /f/, /i/, /t/, plus so many more). 
Have fun with this learning at home, and please remember it does need to be fun, so if your child is feeling tired, wait for a time when they have more energy and are better able to focus.
We hope that you find these links helpful:

Many parents didn’t grow up with the internet, so it can be hard to imagine how tamariki may use it. But these days, digital technology is a key part of our young people’s lives. They use it for learning, communicating and entertainment.

Netsafe has released research that looked into parental awareness of children’s experiences of online risks and harm. The research found a mismatch between parents’ awareness and their children’s experiences of upsetting online content.

To check out the research, and other Netsafe resources, visit this link

And now for some photos of your wee ones from over the past fortnight:

Wow, what a wonderfully creative model!

...and a bird's eye view.

Creating a 4 element pattern with the penguins.

Five friends working together with the Mobilo.

Showing 'We Care' to ensure that the Mobilo is fairly shared.

"Here you are. You're welcome to use these pieces of Mobilo in your construction."

Collaborating on a Lego construction.

Putting in best effort and focus to produce top quality work.

Counting large numbers using the abacus.

"How many beads have been pushed across and how many are left?"

Collaborating to solve a problem using the abacus.

Working with a big buddy to count the beads on the abacus.

Showing 'We Care' by sweeping up small bits of rubbish with the brush and shovel.

Also showing 'We Care' by looking after our learning spaces. Thank you!!

What a kind thing to do for everyone, including our cleaner.

How many different ways can we make the number 5?

Working together to play the 'Shops' game.

Ensuring that the Children's Library, situated beside the shop, has enough chairs and books for visitors.

"Here you are, Batty... a book for you."

"Is everyone who is visiting the library feeling happy and comfortable?"

"Yes, thank you. It's lovely here!"

Beautiful dance moves...

...getting some practice in before the next disco?

So much energy and so many fabulous moves!

We hope that you're all thoroughly enjoying the beautiful weather that we've been having this weekend. We look forward to seeing those bright, happy smiles back at school tomorrow.
All best for the week ahead!

Ngā mihi mahana ki a koutou,
Katie, Stacey and Elizabeth

katie.mcfarlane@beckenham.school.nz
stacey.mclachlan@beckenham.school.nz
elizabeth.drummond@beckenham.school.nz


Team Kauri Week 7, Term 1 2025

Team Kauri have had a busy couple of weeks since we got back from camp. We have held our swimming sports at Wharenui pool and selected students then participated in the South Zones on Thursday March 13th. Our students represented our school amazingly. A special shoutout to our sportsmanlike conduct at the pool.

We have also hosted a number of speakers this week who have spoken to us about Leadership. On Tuesday, we had the pleasure of hosting: Gen Macky (Olympic ambassador), Cameron Snell (Coach and Kickboxer) and Adam Whitelock (former NZ rugby player) who shared their stories and the challenges they have had to overcome. This has given the students in Team Kauri valuable insight into what qualities we need to be leaders, role-models and high performing individuals. 

Students are settling into the routines of the Kauri space and loving especially our Passion friday activities. Cooking is an absolute favourite and for those who haven't had the opportunity to cook or make something ourselves have been enjoying the delicious aroma's wafting from the kitchen.

The next couple of weeks will see students completing more outcomes for their Passion projects and preparing inquiry presentations focusing on how we can be effective leaders in our school.

Some of our Team Kauri boys with Cameron Snell.
Some Staff who are obvious fans of Adam Whitelock.

Our Olympic Ambassador guest Gen Macky with some our Kauri students.

Farewell Mikyla

This coming week we will farewell Mikyla who has been an amazing asset to the Kauri staff. We wish Mikyla well as she prepares for her new baby. Thank you so much for all your awesome mahi Mikyla! Good luck and don't forget to come visit with bubba when she arrives.

Online Safety: Gaming

Eighty percent of tamariki in New Zealand aged 8-17 have played games online. Games can have many benefits: entertainment, social opportunities, coordination development, problem-solving and multitasking skills. But, most of all, gaming is popular because it’s fun. 


But games can be tough for parents and whānau to navigate. How much gaming is too much? How do I make sure my tamariki aren’t seeing inappropriate content or chatting in-game with strangers?


Today we’re sharing Netsafe’s Online Gaming Whānau Toolkit so you have all the resources you need to keep your kids safe. 


YouTube Video: https://youtu.be/rPN_ev1RSDQ




Kōwhai News Term 1 Week 7

Kia ora e te Whānau, 

Welcome to the Week 7 Kōwhai blog. 

Top Team 

Last Friday, Top Team came to Beckenham, and the Kōwhai children had a great time trying lots of different team building activities out on the park. They worked in teams of 6-8, competing against other teams as they rotated around a variety of tasks. They showed amazing co-operative skills and really embraced the school values 'Nau mai te wero - We Love Challenge' and 'Mā tātou katoa te waka e hoe - We Get There Together'. It really was wonderful to see, and we are so grateful that the weather turned out so well for us. Have a look at the photos below:

















Science 

This term, our inquiry focuses on science, specifically understanding chemical and physical changes. Students have been exploring this concept through hands-on experiments. So far, they have investigated the reaction between Mentos and Coke, and some classes have done a fruity-sweet colour-mixing experiment. Throughout this inquiry process, students will be developing their scientific thinking by forming hypotheses, making observations, recording results, and reflecting on their findings. We look forward to continuing to explore this topic.






NO Nuts Reminder

This is a reminder that the Kōwhai Hub is nut-free this year, so please ensure your child has NO nut products in their packed lunch. Thank you for your support with this.

Online Safety: Gaming

Eighty percent of tamariki in New Zealand aged 8-17 have played games online. Games can have many benefits: entertainment, social opportunities, coordination development, problem-solving and multitasking skills. But, most of all, gaming is popular because it’s fun. 


But games can be tough for parents and whānau to navigate. How much gaming is too much? How do I make sure my tamariki aren’t seeing inappropriate content or chatting in-game with strangers?


Today we’re sharing Netsafe’s Online Gaming Whānau Toolkit so you have all the resources you need to keep your kids safe. 


YouTube Video: https://youtu.be/rPN_ev1RSDQ


We hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

Ngā mihi nui,
The Kōwhai team

Kahikatea Team News: Term 1, week 7

 We have had some wonderful learning happening over the past two weeks. The tamariki are really engaged and motivated in all areas of the curriculum. We are seeing a lot of progress already, which is amazing. Students' are now familiar with our routines, and the hub is humming along nicely.


Mathematics:

In Math this week we have been looking at measurement and have been using the context of the story of The Gingerbread Man for ordering and comparing length and height. Below are some pictures of some wonderful learning happening.



















How you can help at home:

Ask your child to make comparisons with toys; e.g., can they line up all of their soft toys in order from shortest to tallest?

Or sort dinosaurs or plastic animals? Can you line your family members up in height order?

Can you learn the Te Reo words for tallest, taller, shortest, and shorter?

Students could draw pictures to bring back to class to share next week!


Literacy:

We are currently assessing, adjusting, and reworking our groups. We are thrilled with the amount of progress students have made in such a short time.






Reminders:

It is school photos next week on Wednesday, 19th March. please ensure students are in the correct school uniform for this.

A reminder to please keep toys at home, unless you have an arrangement with your child's teacher. They can be a big distraction for others during learning time and can often get lost or become damaged.

We have House Games on Tuesday afternoon, children are encouraged to wear their house colour tee-shirts.