Tweet tweet! Come birdwatching with us!

Over the past three weeks, our Year 5/6 mathematicians have been preparing to take part in this year’s Garden Bird survey with Land Information New Zealand and the Department of Conservation. Before collecting official data, we have been practising the important skills needed for successful birdwatching and scientific observation.

On average, we have completed birdwatching sessions three times a week. During each session, the kids spend 10 minutes carefully observing and recording what they see. We have been collecting information about the time, weather, location, and bird sightings while also learning how to correctly identify different bird species.

One of the biggest learning areas has been developing focus and patience. Birdwatching requires us to slow our bodies down, stay still, and carefully train our eyes to notice movement, colour, shape, and sound. We quickly discovered that the more calm and observant we were, the more birds we were able to spot. It has been really positive to see students becoming increasingly attentive to the natural world around them.

At school, we have identified many familiar resident birds including tūī, pīwakawaka, thrushes, blackbirds, sparrows, magpies, and starlings. We also visited the beach to explore how coastal habitats can affect the types of birds that live there. During our beach trip we spotted oystercatchers, three different species of seagull, and pīwakawaka. This helped the kids understand that different environments support different bird populations.

This project is also strongly connected to our Maths learning. Once we begin contributing our official data to the July garden survey, we will use the findings for a wide range of statistical investigations. We will categorise bird sightings, discuss data reliability and human error, create comparison graphs, and calculate the mean, median, mode, and range of our data.

We will also apply measurement and geometry skills by calculating the perimeter and area of our birdwatching zones. Later in the term, we will design birdhouse blueprints using scale drawings and budgeting skills. We will also explore probability and prediction by investigating which birds are most likely to appear under different conditions. If you are interested in contributing to the Garden Survey, or are keen to learn more about birdwatching, have a look at this website. Happy birding!

Football Tournament

On Wednesday this week, three football teams headed off to compete in the Eastern Zones Football Tournament, with teams participating across all three divisions. There was plenty of energy and and excitement as the kids spent the day competing alongside schools from across the Eastern suburbs.

One of the most valuable parts of days like these is the oportunity to connect with the wider school community. The kids had the chance to meet and compete alongside children from other schools, strengthening their sense of belonging and understanding of what it means to be part of something bigger than themselves. Sport provides opportunities for students to challenge themselves, build confidence, and develop important life skills such as communication, cooperation, and grit. Well done to all players involved for their effort and positive attitude!

Wharewaka and Library tour

 This week we left our Kura to explore some of the amazing things in our city centre. We continued our relationship with Wharewaka tours where we learned all about waka and visited the remains of the Te Aro Pā site. Seeing that some of the bases of the structures are still here amongst the city buildings was a good reminder of the history of our place.

Our groups also had a tour of Te Matapihi ki te Ao Nui the newly reopened Wellington City Library. I cannot speak highly enough of the amazing staff who showed us all around the new spaces, introduced us the range of texts available, checked out the new maker spaces and they even took us into the lower floors to see the earthquake proofing and the amazing sorting machines that scan the books and sort them for returning to the shelves.

I would highly encourage you to check it out when you have the time. There was so much to see and do that we barely scratched the surface. Check out some photos of the big day!

The amazing sorting machine!

Learning, connecting, and growing

On Wednesday we held our first Whānau Day of the school year. Students spent the morning working alongside others from different year levels, building friendships and contributing to the shared revitalisation of our school gardens.

One of our key focuses was sustainability. The kids helped install new compost bins, which was building on the learning that we did in Term 1 with our Inquiry focus. Alongside this, we explored the stories of Rongomātāne, the atua of cultivated food and peace (among other things too). Each stone represents hopes for good fortune, growth, and wellbeing.

"This taumata atua (resting place of the gods) was found on Mokoia Island in Lake Rotorua. Taumata atua were tapu stones placed in kūmara fields to increase the productivity of crops. They represented Rongo, the god of cultivated foods." (https://teara.govt.nz/en/object/30822/taumata-atua) We are looking forward to the next stage of our garden project: weeding, continuing to work on the compost, Spring planting, and placing our special Taumata Atua in the garden beds.