T4 W6 in Pōhutukawa

And what a competition it was! The teachers struggled to choose only two candidates from each homegroup, with so many children presenting their speech clearly and confidently. A lot of the content of the speeches showed a passion for looking after our environment and animals. We believe our future is in good hands!

Congratulations to these children who were in the finals: Quinn Clarke, Fergus Macdonald, Zoe Winsor, George Smith, Freya Braun, Vida Gerard, Olive Morel, Zoe Clarke, Layla Wallbanks, Frances Daniels-Maxwell. Thanks to Mahli who did a terrific job of being the presenter.

Special congratulations to the top four placegetters:

Zoe Winsor

Freya Braun

Zoe Clarke

Layla Wallbanks

On Wednesday we were lucky enough to hear the training band concert. What a talented bunch of musicians we have at our kura. Along with playing some popular Christmas tunes, Maree Parr introduced us to the instruments the children were playing. We were also privileged to hear several impressive solo performances. Congratulations to George Smith who received a trophy for having shown the most progress over the year.

Today we will be attending a string and ukelele concert at 12pm.

Congratulations to the large number of Pōhutukawa students who attended the South Zone Athletics Day on Monday at Hansens Park. It's always a big day, and the teachers were very proud of the way our students managed themselves in a positive and respectful way. We were very glad to hear that they kept safe and dry when the inclement weather rolled in!

Good luck to these students who have qualified for the Canterbury Athletics, being held on Wednesday 4 December:

Yesterday we began the sexuality programme of Navigating the Journey. The students are separated into Year 6 and Year 5 groups. Katie and Steve are working with the Year 6 students and Tracy, Gayle and Rae are working with the Year 5 students. The first lesson was about the visual images of Navigating the Journey, setting guidelines and establishing a positive environment. The use of a question box was also discussed. Next week the topics will be under the theme of 'Who am I?' Topics may include describing unique personal qualities, promoting a positive and inclusive body image,  self-worth: identifying gender and social strengths,  identifying and affirming the feelings and
beliefs of self and others, equity issues: recognising and challenging bullying,
stereotypes, and body image messages and recognising media, social media and consumer
influences.
When we teach sexuality as a Health topic, we are always guided by how the group of students reacts and the feeling we get from them as we introduce the lessons.
We strongly encourage the students to discuss at home content covered at school, and to ask further questions or for clarification from their whānau.
If you have any queries about this programme, please feel free to contact any teacher.