Working Bee

Thank you to all those who came along for some Working Bee fun!
 

We didn't know at the time that this would be our final fling until we return to 'Our Place'.  Although we will all miss the physical space, we aim to keep tightly connected.  We are all members of Te Kura ō Whetūkairangi - let's keep 'stargazing'!

Being Connected- Learning from Home

It has been such an inspiration to see and hear about what everyone has been doing at home this week. Thank you for sharing! Here's a little snapshot of our community of learners.

Do keep posting your photos on Seesaw and sharing your ideas so that we can all learn from each other.

Digital Technologies

We are learning about binary code and thinking like a computer

The new digital technologies curriculum has been implemented this year. It is about giving them an understanding of how digital technologies work. They will learn the skills to become creators of new digital technologies which can help solve modern world challenges. Our teachers and students are on a learning journey together.

There are now two new technological areas:
1) Computational Thinking
2) Designing and Developing Digital Outcomes.

Watch this space as our learners (teachers and students) play with what is possible. We want our students to be creators, not just consumers of technology. 

We challenged Suz to work out a secret code in binary! 

Learning at Home

With the announcement from the government, we have been working on a plan to support learning at home.

Here is:

Learning, Week 8, Term 1, 2020

You will be receiving a unique Seesaw QR code so that you can add to the learning journal at home. Seesaw is one of the tools that will enable us to engage with student learning when students are working remotely.

When learning at home, students could:



- do a bit of reading every day (read to self, read with a sibling, read with a parent or via audiobook etc.)



- spend time outside in nature and fresh air. What can you find in your backyard?




- help with the gardening



- do something kind for someone else




- do some free writing now and then. A diary, a comic...





- do some practical hands on maths via cooking, cleaning, outside or some maths games, physical or digital (an example is Sumdog, Prototec, Practise one of our times tables songs or Online Maths)



- some fine motor work e.g. lego, cutting, playdough, tidying up small toys.



- physical exercise everyday



- yoga and meditation



- some art/music where possible through the week. Doesn't need to be guided.



- to independently work on a project. This is great for keeping brains ticking over. Students could be researching in a book or online and putting together something to present to you or your family.



-Tell jokes

Miramar Library Visits

We will be walking to Miramar Library every 3 weeks. 

This is us at the library on Tuesday. It was great to choose books that we want to read. We had a lovely afternoon, walking and some calm... building on our Positive Emotions and Positive Health as well as reading for enjoyment!

Phonics Across the School

Today in Māhutonga Matariki we started our morning rotations. From Tuesday through Friday, each base group visits each of the four teachers in the morning to practice key literacy skills. Spelling with Nic, Typing with Jenny, Te Reo Māori with John and Handwriting/Phonics with Nik.

Today we had an introduction to phonics session. Some of us were very familiar with phonics. Some of us had no clue what it was!

We discussed what phonemes and graphemes are. We practiced listening & dictation, adding phoneme lines to words and segmenting/blending words with the 'robot.'

We are aiming for consistency in our phonics teaching and learning! As senior students, we want to be able to visit Autahi and Tautoru to help with their learning in phonics and reading. Embedding common phonics language across the school will help us towards achieving this goal.

Phonics in Autahi

Buddy reading in Autahi

We already help a lot with reading. Equipped with phonics in our toolkit we'll be even more effective.

Please ask us about phonics at home!

Camp Kaitoke 2020

At camp, our students:

● participated in both individual as well as team activities 

● developed teamwork and collaboration skills. They discovered that more can be achieved when people work together 

● demonstrated self-care skills while staying away from home. They cared for themselves and others too!

 

● developed skills in ensuring the well-being and safety of each other

● showed initiative, commitment and perseverance 

● developed leadership skills 

● worked through challenges with a Growth Mindset

● tested ideas and solutions and made decisions 

● had fun!