Koru team news, start of Term 2

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 Kia ora, e te whānau,

We hope you are all happy and healthy and had a lovely holiday break! It was such a treat to see all of those wide and happy smiles back at school this week. We would like to give an especially warm welcome to William, Eddie, Reinhold, Sylvia and Henri, who have all started school this week. What a wonderful job they are all doing settling in!

All of our tamariki have happily returned to the routines of school, and are enthusiastically embracing their learning. They have been doing a wonderful job in their Literacy and Maths lessons, and are putting lots of energy and enthusiasm into their Learning Through Play.

A reminder about routines:

  • It's great if your child is able to independently carry their own bag into school, unpack it and put their lunch and drink bottle on the shelves
  • Your child's Literacy folder needs to be returned to school every day, and put into their group Literacy box first thing each morning (children who were at school in Term 1 will already know which container is their group's container; new children will be helped with this by one of the teachers)
  • On Fridays, your child will bring home both their poetry book and their library folder. Both these items need to be returned to school by the following Friday
  • We ask that caregivers avoid bringing children in to school through the staff carpark, rather, if entering off Sandwich Road, please come in up near the flagpole or in through the gate down near the corner.
Friendship List
  • If you would like your name and contact details to be added to our Koru Team Friendship List, please email Georgia your information by Wednesday, May 10th, and Georgia will update the list and share it on the Friday of that week
  • Here is Georgia's email address: georgia.mckenna@beckenham.school.nz
  • If your name is already on the list, please don't worry about contacting Georgia again.
Exciting Koru Team outing:
We trust that you have all received our Hero message pertaining to the outing which we have coming up on Thursday, May 11th.
Just in case any of you haven't been able to access this information, here is a copy of the content of the message:

We have a very exciting outing planned for our tamariki! 

The Christchurch City Council Education Outreach team is booked in to run their Junior Park Explorers programme with our Koru students, at our local Beckenham ponds. The session will address outcomes within the New Zealand Curriculum Science domain. We will be exploring biodiversity & ecosystems in our local area, and will be looking closely at birds, bugs and trees/plant life. 

Children will need to bring the following items: 
  • Gumboots (especially if wet)
  • Rain coat
  • Named water bottle
  • Shoes, spare socks and change of clothes (in school bag)
The programme will take place on Thursday, May 11th and will run from 9:30 - 11:45 a.m.

We will need 10 parent helpers on the day. If you are interested in helping, please email your child’s homegroup teacher, as soon as possible.  

Many thanks for your support.

Thank you very much to those caregivers who have already emailed us letting us know that they would like to help. We will be making contact with all those who offer to help, with more information, closer to the time.

In the meantime, we do trust that you all have a very restful and happy weekend.

Ngā mihi mahana ki a koutou,
The Koru Teachers: Elizabeth, Georgia, Stacey and Sonya


Kahikatea News Term 2 Week 1

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Kia ora e te whānau,

It has been wonderful to see the children embrace being back at school this week after a slightly longer school holiday break. Over the past three days we have noticed children embracing 'We Love Learning' and 'We Love Challenging' as we settle back into our learning programmes.

Music & Technology Learning

Thank you to the many people who have collected their recycling and sent it our way! We will begin our Music and Technology unit next week. This unit will see us exploring how music is made, as children respond to elements of beat, rhythm, and tone. We will explore how different music makes us feel, as well as learn about some of the different families of musical instruments - wind, string, and percussion.

In Week 3, we have a group called 'Strike to Schools' coming to perform percussion instruments for us. We are very much looking forward to this! 

During Week 4 we will design and construct instruments using our recycled materials. It would be really helpful if you could have a conversation with your child/ren about what they would like to make leading up to this to ensure that they have the materials for their instrument ready to go.

This is the slideshow that will be shared with children when we begin the Technology component of the unit.















Mathematics in Kahikatea

This week for maths, our students have been focusing on using the statistical inquiry cycle. They have learnt about posing investigative questions, deciding on how to collect data to answer questions, sorting objects into categories for displays, making displays of data they have collected (pictographs) and making statements about data displays.

How amazing is this photo of the giant graph that Krystal’s Homegroup made? They read the book Greedy Cat and then created a pictograph of their favourite coloured cats. They even recorded the data using tally marks!


We are all extremely proud of the hard mahi that our students are displaying.


We hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Kind regards,
Team Kahikatea
katie.mcfarlane@beckenham.school.nz
krystal.hunt@beckenham.school.nz
quynh.nguyen@beckenham.school.nz
amber.donovan@beckenham.school.nz
lisa.collier@beckenham.school.nz

Koru Team news, to the end of Term 1

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 Kia ora, e te whānau,

We trust that this finds you having had a very safe, happy and relaxing Easter break, and now part way into an equally safe and happy school holiday break.

Our heartfelt thanks to you all for the amazing support you have given your children and the staff throughout the first term this year. We appreciate every offer of help and support, both small and large!

 Congratulations to the tamariki, who have had an amazing term, making impressive progress in their learning, including social and emotional as well as academic. This includes our little newbies, many of whom may have only had a few days at school, and who have all stepped into their new role as primary school learners, willingly embracing the challenges with positivity and enthusiasm. 

For those of you who would like to view (or view again!) the Literacy videos we've shared over the past term, here are those valuable links once again, including those at the Stage 2 level:

These videos will help you with understanding what our literacy stages involve and what you can be doing at home to support your child.

We also thought we'd include some links to fun Maths at Home activities and ideas. These links come from the Families and Whānau section of the NZMaths website:
...and now for our photo gallery, which includes images from our scone-making, building towers, showing persistence, outdoor fun, balance and physical challenges, art and craft activities and so much more!

Impressive focus being shown here!




"That will be $1:50, thank you."

Art and craft in the art space.

Beautiful, careful colouring!



Oh, my goodness - what's going to happen next?

At the vets.


At school, playing schools :)


Skip and Bounce will love this handwriting.

Great balancing in the next three photos.



Such wonderful focus and care being shown here.




The result of one of our Science experiments using dye and flowers... we followed the sequence: question, hypothesis, test, observe, discuss and conclude.




Playing one of Sonya's beautiful board games!

A favourite puppet.

My hand shape: traced around, coloured and trimmed.

What an amazing set up this team has created.

Animal dress up day - what a gorgeous little lion cub!

A cute little mouse showing great focus here.

A cheetah teams up with a unicorn.

Great physical skills on display!

Fun and games in the sandpit.

What a beautiful smile :)

Wonderful focus on display here.



An enthusiastic member of the jigsaw puzzle team.

We love books...

... and numbers!

All dressed up, having made a selection from the dress up box.

Scone-making photos from our final day of Term 1...















What a wonderful line up of photos of our wee ones! As we've said, their learning across all areas (including social and emotional) has been nothing short of incredible throughout Term 1. Very well done, tamariki :)

For now, we hope you continue to enjoy the school holidays, and we look forward to seeing all of those beautiful, wide smiles at the start of Term 2, on Wednesday, April 26th.

Ngā mihi mahana ki a koutou,
Elizabeth, Stacey, Georgia, Nicola and Sonya


School Newsletter Thursday 6 April 2023

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Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou


Happy Easter to everyone in our community who celebrates this as part of their family values and beliefs.  For some whānau, Easter is a very important part of their Christian faith and holds a significant place in their calendar. For some, Easter has a variety of family traditions that include hunting for eggs in the garden or around the house, spending important family time together, and lots of indulging in chocolate and Hot Cross Buns. Whatever your whānau do over the long, Easter weekend, we wish you a safe and hopefully relaxing break!

Staffing Update

We have welcomed a number of new students into the school during Term 1, and have more students enrolled to start in Term 2. We are seeing a particular growth in our Year 3/4 team, which was a big team to begin with. Therefore, from the start of Term 2, our Year 3/4 Kōwhai Team will be spreading out and using both their hub and the Pūkaki hub as key learning spaces. We have also been fortunate to have allocated some funding to appoint Kathryn Moore as a part-time teacher to support the Year 3/4 team. Kathryn will be in from 9:30am-12:40pm Monday-Thursday and will be taking Numeracy and Literacy groups in the Kōwhai Team. Kathryn is well-known to our school as one of our current preferred relievers.

Kathryn Moore - Year 3/4 teacher

Reminder - Term 2 starts on Wednesday 26th April

We have a Staff Only Day on Monday 24th April and Tuesday 25th April is ANZAC Day.

Ngā mihi nui
Sandy Hastings
Tumuaki - Principal

Important Dates

Upcoming Events

Term 2

Mon 24 Apr - Staff Only Day (School closed)
Tue 25 Apr - ANZAC Day (School closed)
Wed 26 Apr - First day of Term 2
Fri 28 Apr - 9:15am - Welcome Assembly
Mon 1 - Wed 3 May - Year 5/6 Camp - Living Springs
Tue 9 May - 1:30-2:40pm - Whole School Cross Country
Fri 12 May - PTA Discos - save the date!
Tue 23 May - Zone Cross-Country - Y5-8, Hansen Park
Thu 25 May - Board meeting 5:30pm Staffroom
Mon 5 Jun - School Closed - King's Birthday
Wed 13 Jun - Learning Conferences (school closing at 1pm)
Thu 14 Jun - Learning Conferences (school closing at 1pm)
Thu 21 Jun - Whānau Hui and PTA Hāngi
Wed 28 Jun - Board meeting 5:30pm Staffroom
Fri 30 Jun - Last day of Term 2

Citizen of the Week

Harriet Parawa - Year 7

Harriet, you are a superstar in our team. You are a motivated learner and always try your best at everything that you do. You consistently demonstrate a positive and caring attitude and are a great friend to others. You have excellent self-management skills, are a positive role model and a ray of sunshine. You are extremely reliable and are always willing to lend a helping hand. We love having you in our team. Well done!

School Notices

Whānau Junior Playground Support Roster

We have a wonderful group of whānau, parents and grandparents, who come along to school during lunch play to support our tamariki in the junior playground. We have had a couple of time slots become available for Term 2. The benefits of being on the 'parent supervision roster' include the opportunity to be a part of the school community, and getting to know other whānau, parents and your child's friends. Please email Katie if you would like to offer your help for Term 2. katie.mcfarlane@beckenham.school.nz

'Kiss & Go' Drop Off Area

A huge "Thank you" to all those who have supported the 'Kiss & Go' zone. This area is for whānau to pull in and drop off or pick up their children kerb side and then leave. We have noticed cars moving on more quickly which has freed up the space for drop offs, making Sandwich Road move more freely.

The area works best when it is just the children getting in or out of the car (on the kerb side).  If whānau need to come into the school please park elsewhere on Sandwich Road and surrounding streets.


Sports News

Swimming Finals

Well done to Emma Vaile, Olivia Yeates, Lily Miller, Lilly-Anne Bone and Izzy Clarke who went to the Canterbury Swimming finals last week. All students represented our kura with pride and should feel very happy with their achievements. Tino Pai!

Community Notices

(Notices placed here are contingent on space and do not reflect the views or opinions of the school.)


THE MAKE STUDIO 

Craft & Wellbeing workshops for children & families. 
Encouraging creativity and sparking mindful connections through craft.
Based from a friendly little studio in Cashmere.

April school holiday workshops for children aged 5-12 years:

Hot Air Balloon sculpture Wed 12 April  10-1pm  $50
Craft a whimsical hot air balloon from papier mache, complete with a little flying friend. Express your imagination and learn new skills.

Tree House Miniature Thurs 13 April  10-1pm  $50
Design your own treehouse using twigs and found objects, perfect for Lego people and other small toys.

Autumn Nature Table  Fri 14 April  10-1pm  $50 
Celebrate Autumn & connect to the change of season. Make your own beautiful little ritual table topper with crafts such as a snow globe and candles.

Tea Making & Tasting  Mon 17 April  2-3.30pm  $25 
Make your own special blend of tea from herbs & flowers, and package it up beautifully to take home & share. We will talk about connecting to our senses while nourishing ourselves with something yummy!

Party Puppet Tues 18 April.  2-3.30pm   $25
Make a bright festive puppet that moves, using beads, straws and cardboard. This fun craft creates a joyful dancing character to take home. 

Self Portrait Poster  Weds 19 April   2-3.30pm   $25 
You will make a self portrait good enough to frame. We'll talk a little bit about our 'inner worlds' while having fun expressing who you are.

Bookings & enquiries via email hello.themakestudio@gmail.com
Instagram @the.make.studio 
Facebook @theMakeStudioChristchurch

Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Newsletter Rāmere (Friday) 31 March 2023

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Principal's Patch

Kia ora koutou

Today it was "Welcome to the Beckenham Zoo' as we had every imaginable creature turn up at school, complete with smiles, for the Student Council's Dress as an Animal Day. Our amazing Student Council get the top spot in today's newsletter after having organised a stunning day of 'We Make A Difference' today for the SPCA.


A HUGE thank you from our Student Council to everyone who contributed to the SPCA fundraiser today. We were overwhelmed by the volume of donations, including blankets, towels, sheets, newspapers, food and money that was given. We will be dropping this all to the SPCA tomorrow, including just over $600 in cash! Wow! And all of the animals in the Beckenham Zoo had a fun day too! 

Frida, Grace and Rose - Beckenham Student Council

Next week is the final week of Term 1 - with the last day being Thursday 6th April. 

Ngā mihi nui
Sandy Hastings
Tumuaki - Principal

Important Dates

Upcoming Events

Term 1

Thu 6 Apr - Last day of Term 1
Fri 7 Apr -  School Holidays begin (School closed)

Term 2

Mon 24 Apr - Staff Only Day (School closed)
Tue 25 Apr - ANZAC Day (School closed)
Wed 26 Apr - First day of Term 2
Mon 1 - Wed 3 May - Year 5/6 Camp - Living Springs
Fri 12 May - PTA Discos
Mon 5 Jun - King's Birthday (School closed)
Fri 30 Jun - Last day of Term 2

Citizen of the Week

Banuja Hettiweediya Mudiyanselage - Year 4

Banuja, you are an excellent example of someone who tackles challenges head-on and approaches all that you do with a positive attitude that shines. 'We Make a Difference' is a kete value you demonstrate daily through your passion for helping others along with the proactive approach you take to helping out around the hub. Ka pai tō mahi, Banuja!

School Notices

Financial Statements

You will have received your student's financial statement today.

This is just a reminder that donation payments (including camp donations) are able to be submitted for the Donation Tax Credits from the IRD. This scheme entitles you to claim back 33% of your donation payments, if you meet the eligibility criteria.

Payments made to us today, 31st March, can still be submitted as part of your application for the financial year ended 31st March 2023.

If you need any assistance logging into Hero to view your statement or wish to find out more about setting up payment instalments, you can refer to our website https://www.beckenham.school.nz/ and follow the “Finances and Annual Donation” link in the “Information” dropdown menu.

Payments may be made in part or full to the school bank account - ASB Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto Board of Trustees 12 3148 0131641 000 using the child's name as a reference.

The school office also has Eftpos facilities available.

If you have any queries, please email accounts@beckenham.school.nz

Lost Property

A reminder to all whānau to check the Lost Property before the end of term and take your items home.


Whānau Report Feedback - Thank You!

Thank you to those who took the time to complete the 2023 Whānau report feedback survey recently.  We appreciate the time and consideration that you put into this. We are currently working through the feedback.

'Kiss & Go' Drop Off Area

You may have noticed the 'Kiss & Go' signs on the fence at the drop off and pick up area on Sandwich Road (by the bike stands). This area is for whānau to pull in and drop off or pick up their children kerb side and then leave. 

The area works best when it is just the children getting in or out of the car (on the kerb side).  If whānau need to come into the school please park elsewhere on Sandwich Road.

Thank you to all those who have supported the 'Kiss & Go' zone. We have noticed cars moving on more quickly which has freed up the space for drop offs, making Sandwich road move more freely.

Three-point turns on Sandwich Road

Sandwich road is a busy place on either side of the school day. To keep everyone safe please continue along the road and around the block, rather than doing three-point turns or U turns. The road works have moved on from the immediate school block, so access is much easier.

BOSCO

Update for BOSCO whānau:

The government will be making some changes to the childcare assistance grant that will commence on 1st April 2023. What this means is that more families are likely to qualify for this financial assistance under the new guidelines. This is a good opportunity for families who require before and after school care of their children to see if this could help them.

BOSCO provides before school care from 7:30am – 8:30am and after school care from 3:00pm – 6:00pm.

Should you have any questions regarding this please do not hesitate to contact Juanita at office@bosco.org.nz.

Dental Van Visit

One of our Community Dental Service vans will be making a visit to your school soon.
  • Only the children who currently require a check-up will be seen at this visit.
    Please do not be concerned if your child is not called for a check-up this time.

  • The dental therapist will provide a regular check-up and preventative care which may include:
    Cleaning/Scaling (to remove plaque from teeth)
    Dental x-rays (to check for decay in teeth, or presence and position of teeth)
    Fluoride Varnish (painted on teeth to help prevent decay)
    Fissure Sealants (coating put on teeth to prevent decay) if required.

  • If your child requires any other dental care, they will bring home a ‘Care Plan’ which will explain what dental care and appointment times are required.

  • When you receive the ‘Care Plan’ please contact our Call Centre as soon as possible as you will need to arrange a time to bring your child to one of our Community Clinics for this dental care.

  • Please contact our Call Centre if you want further information on the Community Dental Service, to enrol your child or if you have any specific questions about your child’s dental care (a dental therapist will call you back)

  • Year 8 students: all year 8 students enrolled with the Community Dental Service are transferred from the Community Dental Service to a FREE private dentist from year 9 until their 18th birthday. To help with this transition please ensure you have informed your child of their family dentist (not orthodontist). This will enable us to transfer your child onto the correct dentist for year 9 onwards. More information will be sent home after their year 8 check-up.
To contact our Call Centre: phone 0800 846 983 / email commdental@cdhb.health.nz

PTA News

Hot Cross Buns

Orders for hot cross buns are all in and we're looking forward to delivery day on Wednesday 5th April, just in time for Easter!

Donations

This recent wet weather has resulted in lots of wet feet - do you have old gumboots (especially in larger sizes to fit 11+ year-olds) that you could donate to the uniform room? We will gratefully receive them and save them for a rainy day!

Community Notices

(Notices placed here are contingent on space and do not reflect the views or opinions of the school.)

Nathan is returning to Christchurch for one night only to present a NEW PRESENTATION.

When:  Tuesday 4th April, 7:30pm - 9:00pm
Where:  Te Aratai College / CHRISTCHURCH
Presentation:  Understanding Your Brain: Building Resilience & Maximising Learning (note: this presentation caters for parents/carers and educators who care for children of all ages.  It is also relevant for us grown-ups!)

More info/tickets available on Eventfinda NZ or by clicking on the link below:


Early bird tickets are still available. Get in quick!




We are very excited to announce the NZSO are returning to the Christchurch Town Hall for Open Doors on Saturday 20 May. Our musicians are going to be running several fantastic events – there will be something for everyone!

Tamariki Time – 10:00-10:45 (Avon Room)

Tamariki Time is a free concert designed for the smallest members of your whānau. Suitable for pre-schoolers or students up to the age of 8 years. This 45-minute concert features various short and instrument demos that your kids will love! Including pieces from the Nutcracker, songs from Encanto and an exciting storytime performance presented by Chris Lam Sam. Have a listen to his catchy Octopus song before the performance!

There is a relaxed attitude to noise and movement during the concert and a chance to get up and move to the music. If you are interested in coming along, register you attendance here.


Relaxed Concert – 11:30 – 12:15 (Avon Room)

Our Relaxed Concert is a free accessibility concert designed for audiences with sensory needs who may feel uncomfortable in a traditional concert environment.

There is a relaxed attitude to noise and movement during the performance, minimal lighting effects, and a 'chill-out' space is available.

The 45-minute concert features a wide variety of short pieces and instrument demos that will grow your knowledge of the orchestra! We will also perform one of our popular Storytime books live presented by Chris Lam Sam, including his popular Octopus song!

If you are interested in attending our session, please register your attendance here.