Kotuku Term 3

We are busy in term 3 with lots of learning. Many of our students are in the kapa haka roopu that is going to the national finals in Palmerston North in November. We are busy fundraising and having our kapa haka practises. Here are some impotant details to be aware of.

KAPA HAKA Organisation for the Nationals (2-6th NOVEMBER) is well under way. Accomadation is finalised and transport for students confirmed. To enable as many students as possible to attend all parents must organise their own transport and accomadation. A seven seater has been hired for the Sunday to enable a group to attend the powhiri our tutors and a parent with three students will travel on the seven seater, the bus will leave Monday. Practice dates- and times 2nd August SUNDAY 12-3pm a PARENT MEETING AT 3PM SUNDAY. August 15-16, 29-30 SAT and SUN, these are day practices 12-3pm September 12-13, 19-20, October 24-25, 31-1 Nov Sat 12pm to Sunday 12pm these are sleepover practices) The cost of the trip to the NATIONALS for students will be $90 this covers accomadation, travel, food, Wananga acitivities and a tea shirt. Students to bring $15 (give to Matua Dudley and a packet of biscuits or something for afternoon tea to every wananga until the $90 paid. If your child does not make the group travelling the full $90 will be refunded. (We have 180 students in TWA 40 will be travelling). Please let Matua Des (Boys), Whaea Ata (girls) know if your child will not be able to attend a session, or if you have any concerns or questions re the Nationals. School attendance and student behavior will be a major factor in choosing the final group.

Welcome to term 3

In kotuku this term, we are focusing on Te Reo Maori, Speeches, Bobby Maths, etc. The boys have had made a great start to the term and are showing great signs of progress academically.

Well done to Aitunaisa Aitu who was part of the year 6 rugby championship team who represented Clendon Park School at the Counties tournament.

We will be posting up pictures of our day to day learning and sharing with you our successes.

 Skyner is sharing his understanding with the class. A good mathematician is somebody who shares his ideas and is able to give reasoning about how he got his answer. Skyner

 I loved maths today. Here im working on ensuring that im showing every step i have taken to work out the answer. I feel confident enough to share my strategy with the rest of my friends. I have high expectations for myself and have set goals to achieve at high standard at 'national standards'.

 Our class are so excited and full of energy after a great maths session this morning. Our books are full and our brains a full of knowledge. Next block, we are working on /google docs'.

 Frankie is very proud of his work this morning during Bobby Maths.

 We are learning about measurement. The idea is to look at  using non standardized ways of measuring. We found this fun and enjoyed using a variety of things around the class to measure length and height.

 Quayd Marsh showing his peers his strategy and how he got the answer. Quayd " i enjoy doing maths everyday because it makes me think hard about which strategy im going to use. I also feel good because i need to ensure that my fiends understand how to get the answer too.

 We feel like scholars during maths time. I love maths.

Historical lesson with Matua Purcell

Matua Joseph is in charge of lunch today. Pizzas on the run as we have a busy day ahead of us. Angel Penewiripo

Matua Des observes as we prepare our dinner. Corn and Cockles that we worked hard for. Living off the land was what our ancestors did in the past. Tangaroa, we thank you for providing us with delicious kai moana on this trip. On a marae, we often have to work together to prepare kai for different events and occassions. Here, we work in teams to get our dinner ready. Suliafu.

It was a pleasant surprise when we took a trip to Mahurangi Bay. We heard heard about the history of the area and discovered that Maori fought tirelessly for their whenua. Here we enjoy this land with kai time. Chol Jackson.

Cooking Lesson at Waitangi

One of the things I liked about our trip was being able to cook for our manuhiri who were the other campers on the camping site. We learnt  about ensuring that we had the right oil and temperature when we cooked our mussel fritters. Skyner and I took our time in measuring the ingredients and cooked over a low heat. Matua Dudley taught us about the importance of safety in a kitchen. Matua Des gave us nice compliments when he tasted our delightful dish. 

One thing that I recognized was the Samoan flag with the Rangatira flag. It symbolises the close relationship we have with our Pacific friends. Although Samoa does not have a Treaty, we know through Matua Des that Samoan people support our tangata whenua status and tautoko our kaupapa to honour the Tiriti O Waitangi.

Waitangi haerenga and kaupapa

Kia ora all, just relaxing and a great chance for our boys and girls classes to socialise with each other. This year our focus is on 'RESPECT'. Whakawhanaungatanga is our way of knowing more about each other.

An oppurtunitty to relax after a long days travelling. Today we learnt about the 3 articles and discovered the difference between 'rangatiratanga' and 'sovereignty'. A swim is well deserved.

Welcome to Kotuku Class 2015

Kia ora and Welcome to 2015

My name is Matua Desmond and I am the teacher for Kotuku class in room 22. Please check our blog on a regular basis to see the many exciting things that we will do through out the year! We have many things planned an envisage a stunning and exciting new year. Mauri ora!