Term 4 begins

This term we are introducing Banqer to our class. Students apply for jobs and receive a wage/salary for the work done. They will be able to use the money they earn to purchase activities towards the end of the term.

This programme comes free of charge to schools because Kiwibank sponsors each NZ class. We hope everyone learns a little financial literacy and enjoys the real life scenarios Banqer offers us.

We were also lucky enough to win a Raspberry Pi over the holidays and will be spending some time getting to know a little bit more about what it is and what it can do. Hopefully we will be able to share a project once it is done!

Remember to keep your eyes open for upcoming details about camp, swimming, cricket, and more!

Nevaeh's Poetry

Song for Oakridge Villas

We are learning this song to sing to the residents on our trip. Practice, practice, practice. Remember we won't have the words in front of us when we get there.

Storybirds

Yesterday we learned how to use a new tool where we can create and publish our writing. We started out with writing poems. Here are two wonderful poems. That have been shared already!

Science fun

Whilst we have Mrs Johnston, who is a science whiz, we are enjoying some science activities on Wednesday afternoons. 

Take a look at some of the things we have been doing!

In week one we found out about the properties of bubbles. We discovered:

This week we looked at different properties of a variety of liquids.

Term 3! Raring to go

Last term we worked on a single piece of writing to persuade people to look after our favourite place for quite a few weeks. The results...AWESOME! Here are just a few of the examples of the finished pieces. Come in, take a look and read some of the amazing pieces.

Can't wait to see what we can do this term!

New Furniture!

No doubt you have already heard about the new furniture that arrived in the Zone this week. It's been a long wait but most of it is now here. We are still awaiting some new chairs and seating for our Zone library space.

 

This week's KORU value was Excellence and we have spent time thinking about what excellence is. Here is what we decided Excellence looks like for the learners of Zone 31.

Ways we can help each other be excellent

• Encourage each other to keep trying. Don’t let them give up.
• Listen to the speaker.
• Explain how to work things out rather than giving someone the answer.
• Help them by showing them where they can get some help from e.g. Khan Academy, posters on the wall, text books, Google Classroom
• Sitting and paying attention to what the learning is e.g. not talking, fidgeting, bumping
• Leave the X’s clear so the right people can sit on them.
• Share ideas with each other, give an example
• Don’t distract others when they’re trying to learn
• Give feedback and feedforward
• Use a learning buddy/partner

Privileged Learners

This has been an amazing week of learning opportunities. This week have had visitors from the Far North District Council come and share with us about pest plants. We are learning to be experts about the plants in our environment that cause harm to our native bush. We got to see and feel some and we know how they can be spread.



Next we had a visit from David. David is an author and a journalist. He shared with us about some of the things he has done as a writer, some of the places his writing and taken him and the times when he has realised how much power words have to change the world around us. We have been doing lots of learning about persuasive writing and the writing process. Thanks David for sharing how this looks in the world.

The Whitebait Connection - Wairoa Stream Trip

We have had so much fun learning about the importance of whitebait in helping us to evaluate the health of our waterways. Do you know what five species of whitebait are?

Isabel, Whitebait Connection, has been sharing with us the instruments, tools and processes involved in testing the health of our local stream. 

Our trip to the stream was great. We had a little precipitation but we were prepared to be a little wet so that was all good.

The Intrepid Olwyn Returns

Olwyn has returned from Waipukurau School with a wonderful book detailing her adventures. Her arrival at school was just in time for some reading mileage with Maree. Here she is sharing her adventures. Thanks 7W, Waipukurau School for looking after her so well. We are loving reading about her adventures!

How the slime dripped through by Georgia

Far away where no one would go, something in a down hearted town was ready to petrify people. I was coming home when I felt something on my arm it was wet, clumpy and shiney. I didn’t know what it was. I could feel it spreading across my arm. I could see that it was a green, soggy slime. I felt petrified. It slid from my arm to the ground and fled to the drain. It dripped through the cracks down to the sea and carried on. It dripped in a dolphin’s blow hole and stayed there forever.

Cyber Safety with Hector's World

Hector's World

In ZONE 31 we are learning to be Cyber Safe. Today we learned about the importance of not sharing personal details on line.  We watched Hector and his friends.  

Nga Tupuranga Duathlon/Triathlon

Easter Egg Hunt with QR Codes

Working collaboratively to solve Mathematical Word Problems.

Polar Bears by Aryc

Orca Report

We have been learning to write Information Reports- We researched Marine Mammals.

Maps, conferences, and designs

This week has been full to overflowing with sharing ideas about learning. We completed our learning maps that help us to talk about the people, places and things that help us learn. We used these to share with our families and find ways to strengthen our learning. At the end of the conferences we had a learning goal and all of the people in our learning triangle now what we need to do to help our learners achieve those goals. Thanks to everyone who managed to share!

Some of the common themes that we heard were learners loving the library space because it was quiet and comfortable. We are all thinking now about how we can create more quiet and comfort around Zone 31.

Next we spent some time designing our learning space using furniture like the ones in Rooms 5-8. We have some very talented designers in our room. Take a look at some of their ideas!

Get NZ writing

Two weeks we sent Olwyn to Waipukurau School along with our own simile and metaphor postcards. We included a poster that shares some interesting information about ourselves and the place we live in. 

Last week we received a small package from 7W, Waipukurau School with their wonderful poetry and postcards. What an amazing experience this was. 

Today we heard that Olwyn will be going with 7W to Napier Museum! Now we wait with bated breathe to see what other adventures Olwyn has had when she returns to us. Keep an eye out on our blog to stay up to date on Olwyn's Exploits. 

Wonderopolis-Where the Wonders of Learning Never Cease

Library Lion

We love listening to Storyline Online. We really enjoyed Library Lion.

Old and New

Last week Zeb invited his friend Olwyn to join us and share our learning journey this year. She has done some tripping around preparing to go on her own adventure next week with our writing. We are preparing to send some work to Waipukurau School as a part of Get NZ Writing. This week we started looking at poetry. We will be writing 'If I Wasn't simile poems.

We had a great time at hockey learning and practising our skills. We are so privileged to have so many wonderful community experts. This week we are looking forward to working with Constable Rob and learning all about cycle safety!

Constable Rob visiting KKPS for cycle safety

Meet Olwyn the Ornithologist 

Zeb and Olwyn- Learning Partners and Koru Kids

Bike Safety in ZONE 31

Earlier in the week Constable Rob shared some Bike Safety Theory with us.  We shared ideas about why we need to wear helmets and shoes, and how to make sure our bikes are safe to ride.  We learned that we need to make sure our bikes have pumped up tyres, oil on our chains and that the brakes must be working.  On Wednesday and Thursday we got to practice safe cycling on a course that Constable Rob had made for us on the school courts. 

Prodigy taking ZONE 31 by storm!

Prodigy-Maths Game

Prodigy is an online Maths game played by millions of children worldwide.  The children in ZONE 31 are practicing Maths knowledge and skills in a fun and engaging way.   Even Zeb and Olwyn have enjoyed learning how to play.  Lots of collaboration, communication and problem solving going on!  It's just awesome! 

Similes and Metaphors

In Literacy we have been learning to make our writing more interesting using similes and metaphors.  We love this song from the Bazillions.  

Hockey Sticks are go!

Room 16 Practicing their hockey skills

Jose and Huia came to KKPS in Week 7 to teach us how to use a Hockey stick correctly and how to dribble the ball.  It was lots of fun.  We hope they come back to share more Hockey Skills with us.

And the rain came down......

Zone 31 was fascinated by the storm that arrived in Kerikeri on Thursday 9 and Friday 10 March.  We recorded our thoughts and ideas on this padlet.  

Water, water everywhere!

Wow, so many things happened in Week 5 and now we are ready to race into a new week!

Zeb has returned from his trip and has received his first ever learning certificate. Well done Zeb! Thankfully Zanthea was able to be with him for much of the trip so I'm sure that he felt well looked after. Take a look at what he thought of the trip in his daily diary!

On Friday we had our first disco for the year with a nautical theme. Thanks to all who supported the fundraising efforts of our Year 5 and 6 students who will be closer to meeting their camp fundraising goal. Some amazing costumes.

This week our year 4 students are heading across to Kerikeri High School pool for their swimming sports on Tuesday. We know there are some nervous and some excited young swimmers. We wish them all well.

Zanthea and Zeb brought back a song about looking after the terehu. Here are the videos to help us learn the actions and tune. We're going to spend some time in class learning this song and the actions to present at an assembly! Maybe you could learn them too!

Learn a terehu waiata from LEARNZ on Vimeo.
Aroha nga terehu from LEARNZ on Vimeo.

Week 5 is here already!

What?! Week 5 already! So much to do so little time!

This week our class member Zeb the Zoologist has been gallivanting around the Bay of Islands with the LEARNZ team. We have been learning about Terehu (bottle nosed dolphins)!

Zeb's new friends from LEARNZ

Zeb said he loved all of the Bay of Islands!

Tree Hut Treaty