Kia ora, e te whānau,

What a lovely first week back at school, following the holidays! The children, as always happens after a holiday break, have loved reconnecting with teachers and friends. We warmly welcome our new children and their whānau: Ana, Asher, Ava, Aya, Charlie, Ethan, Finn, Poppy and Rome. It's wonderful to have you all at school with us, and well done to all for settling so beautifully into school life. 

A very warm welcome also to our new children, and their whānau, who joined us towards the end of last term - Finley and Freddie. It is so lovely to have these children in the hub with us as well. They too have both settled in beautifully and our 'golden oldies' have been really amazing at making everyone feel very welcome.

Nut-free lunches, please:

A reminder that in the Koru team we are nut-free. We recognise that some children may have dietary requirements which mean that nuts do need to be included in some lunchboxes, however we do ask that, as far as possible, your children's lunchboxes remain nut-free. This also includes coconut. Many thanks for your support with this.

Our school-wide 'Word of the Week':

Your children may have discussed with you that each week at Beckenham te Kura o Pūroto, throughout the school we have a 'Word of the Week', which, in the Koru team, is embraced by one and all, and guides our Learning Through Play. Our 'Word of the Week' last week was 'upstander'. An upstander is 'a person who speaks or acts in support of an individual or cause, particularly someone who intervenes on behalf of a person who may have been hurt by someone else.' An upstander is the opposite of a bystander.

Coming up, we have other such 'Words of the Week' as: honesty (which will be our focus throughout the week ahead), inclusion, respect, kindness, resilience, empathy, determination and cooperation. These concepts are so important for our wee ones, and we are always incredibly impressed with the way the children put these words into practice, as well as reflect on and discuss specific instances of their use.

Hats required:

Most children are remembering their hats each day, and are doing very well with looking after their hats when indoors. We are asking the children to keep their hats in their bags while they are inside. This way, the children should, in theory, always know where their hats are!

The week that was:

Don't you just love numbers?! Ready and awaiting their next number challenge!

On some days, the sandpit is definitely the place to be! Check out the collaborative and problem-solving skills on display in these photos.

Dolls for sale!

Practising for Athletics Day: the gumboot throw requires a fine combination of skill and style, as you will see in the photos that follow.

We look forward to seeing as many family members as possible at our Athletics Day on Wednesday. Please note that the Koru team children will be participating in their events from the start of the school day through to the morning tea break at 10:30 a.m. It's crucial that your children have sunblock applied before they arrive at school and that they have their hats and named water bottles. 

Please note that we have sunblock at school in the hubs, if, on any morning, you would like to apply more sunblock or perhaps have run out at home.

We do trust that you've all had a wonderful long weekend with your families, and we look forward to those wide smiles and sparkling eyes at school again in the morning.

Ngā mihi mahana ki a koutou,

Elizabeth, Georgia, Nicola, Tracey and Stacey