Social action and social responsibility

As a result of their research into the past and present use of the Waikato River the learners in Room 18 raised concerns about the water quality of the river.

Lots of discussion and investigation took place as the learners tried to find ways that they could look after the river.

They decided that the best way to get their message out was to make posters and put them up in their neighbourhoods.

The followed a technological brief to design, mock up and then produce their final poster. Below are the results.

I hope everyone has a safe and restful holidays.

Ange.

How much sugar in that drink?

This week Room 18 was lucky enough to have a visit with Zane from Project Energize. Zane did a fascinating presentation about exactly how much sugar there is in many popular drinks. The learners were astounded to see that there are huge amounts of sugar in fruit drinks and energy drinks.

Kete Aronui

Kete Aronui:  (noun) basket of knowledge of aroha, peace and the arts and crafts which benefit the Earth and all living things - one of the three baskets of knowledge. This basket relates to knowledge acquired through careful observation of the environment. It is also the basket of ritual, of literature, philosophy and is sometimes regarded as the basket of the humanities.

This year our Art Exhibition is entitled "Kete Aronui". The focus for our art in the upcoming term will be Māori and Pasifika patterns and symbols. As a class we will be learning about the meanings and significance of these symbols and incorporating them into our art.

As always, you, as whānau of the learners, are one of our greatest resources. I would love for anyone who would like to come along and share their knowledge to get in touch.

In Room 18 we have begun this journey by exploring the koru and pikorua symbols.

Source: Pinterest, original source unidentified.

Mindfullness

One of our daily activities in Room 18 is to practice mindfulness. We do this every day after lunch and I find it helps learners to get back into a learning frame of mind for our afternoon session. On Mondays to Thursdays we use an app called "Smiling Mind" (you may want to have a listen yourself to see what we're doing). This app encourages learners to think about emotions, kindness, breathing and focused their attention.

Learners in room 18 sit or lie in a position that helps them to relax and focus

On Fridays our mindfulness is slightly different and we sketch to focus our attention. Music for mindfulness is played and learners are encouraged to focus deeply on their subject. This week it was each other. The results were amazing and learners loved the opportunity to check out each others sketches and give positive feedback.

He piko, he Taniwha

If you've made in it to Room 18 is the last wee while you may have noticed the learners mural of their river journey and the Taniwha. We began by sketching Taniwha, using various books and pictures as inspiration. From the sketches we chose an area or aspect of our sketch to focus on and picked out the key details. These key details were then drawn in sharpie and we painted the Taniwha.

This mural represents both the journey of the Waikato River and also our learning journey through the year. Sometimes the journey is straight and fast, sometimes it is winding and twisted. Our journeys come together in our class as we travel together.

How do we look after our river?

As part of our inquiry into the Waikato River and it's history we have been exploring the quality of the water in the Waikato River and how this has changed over time and been effected by human activity in the area. The leaners have been investigating how we can better take care of the river. On Friday we discovered how what we put into the ground, or onto it, near water ways can collect in the soil and then make its way into the river. The next step in this investigation is to look at how we can educate our peers about keeping the water healthy and what we can do as a community. Watch this space to find out what learners have come up with! In the meantime, here is an experiment we did with an aquifer the illustrates how pollution gets into the water. If you look closely you can see the Polluted (red) water at the bottom of the rocks.

The Waikato River

Following our riverwalk last week the learners have been engaged in learning more about the history of the river and how human activity has impacted on the river. In the coming weeks we will be investigating this further and finding out how we can make a difference to the quality of the water in our environment. Room 18 also explored making their own river that mirrored their learning journey at Hamilton East. Alongside the river we also made tuna (eels) to swim along the river.

The learners making their tuna.

Also, if you haven't already, please sign up to Seesaw (a notice was sent home with the QR code), as the learners in Room 18 are so keen to share their learning with you.

Find your field of dreams

The learners in Room 18 have been lucky to have swimming instructors taking them for lessons twice a week. This week they learnt about life vests, how to enter the water safely and huddling in a group for warmth. They had an absolute blast.

We also took a walk down to the river as part of our Turangawaewae unit. The children were able to explore how the river is used and how it has changed over time. We have also been learning about how the Waikato river was used in the past, and the ways in which we, as kaitiaki, can look after our waterways.

We are looking forward to an exciting week ahead, learning about our pepeha and where we come from. Please remember to return the form that was sent home as this will enable your child to make a start on this.

A great start to term 1

The learners of Room 18 and I have enjoyed a busy and productive second week.

Our week has been filled with swimming, positive assembly, a mihi whakatau for the new teachers and students at Hamilton East school and lots of new learning.

Sketching our mighty Totora tree on Thursday, learners practise observational drawing.

We have started our first maths unit "All About Me" where learners are discovering how to collect and display data about themselves and their peers.

We have also started reading groups with Whaea Robyn and Room 17.

Another thing we began this week is our portraits. Each learner has come up with five words they think describe themselves. These are part of a collage that will be displayed in our classroom. I'm looking forward to seeing the amazing results. The photo below is our brainstorm of some words we could use to describe ourselves.

Next week is going to be another jam packed week for our learners. Swimming lessons with Find Your Field Of Dreams begin and we have our trip to Hukanui Marae on Friday. Notes were sent home this week, and need to be returned before Friday.

I hope you all are having a great weekend, and look forward to seeing our learners bursting and ready to go on Monday.

A letter introducing your new teacher

2nd February 2019

Kia ora koutou!

It was so lovely to meet the children today and I’m very excited to share this years’ journey of learning and growth with them. I thought I’d take this chance to share a little bit about myself with you.

My own journey to become a teacher has been a long one. After leaving university I studied Child Psychotherapy and then worked as an early childhood educator for a number of years.

I left teaching to look after my children (Noah, Isobel and Jack) and returned to the workforce as a teacher aide in a special needs unit of an Australian high school.

When we returned to New Zealand, I decided it was time to follow my dream and gained a Graduate Diploma in Teaching. Hamilton East was one of my practicum schools (which is why my pink hair might look familiar). I loved it so much. I was really excited to be offered a teaching position here.

My passions include art and craft (I am an avid sewist and make most of my clothes), I love reading, writing, and being in and around the water. In my spare time, I race dirt karts and collect and fix vintage sewing machines.

Your child’s year in Room 18 is going to be full of fun, lots of learning and exciting adventures.

If at any time you have any questions, problems, or just want to have a chat about what’s going on, please don’t hesitate to contact me,

Ngā mihi nui,

Ange Dent

adent@hameast.school.nz

Warmest Greetings!

Hello everyone and welcome to the first week of term 1!

I hope that your summer holiday was full of fun and memory making.

Izzy, Jack and my niece braving the water at Raglan this summer. 

You children have probably come home either full of exciting things to tell you, or completely wiped out after a long hot day. Hopefully they have a good sleep tonight ready for day two.

We are swimming this term, so everyone needs togs, towel and a bag for their swimming gear.

Stationery lists went out this afternoon. The children each have an 'Everything' book which they will work in until their stationery is ready.

Our focus for the beginning of term one is Turangawaewae, the history of Hamilton and where we come from. The children will be learning their pepeha, (who they are and where they come from). Sometimes, this can be challenging for families to talk about, so if there's anything you'd like me to know about your child, please don't hesitate to contact me.

I look forward to an exciting term, and getting to know your children!

Warm regards

Ange.