Friday Mass

Please join us at 12:00 in the church on Friday.

We will be leading the Parish Mass and celebrating Maori Language Week with waiata.

Hopefully everyone who has a reading or a prayer will be at school!!  Take care everyone to get well.  Have another practice with Mum or Dad if you are reading at mass.

See you all there - it's only about half an hour.

Maori Week

Thank you so much to everyone for bringing treasures to share with us, and telling us about the history or stories of them.

   Hayvin with his taiaha and a special book about Maui.

Bobbie with his taiaha, his bone necklace that he made with his grandfather out of a goat's leg and a special glass koru that was blessed and given to him as a baby.

 Mason with his pounamu and a book of fantastic New Zealand stories - we are still to read about the taniwha.

Alia with a mini dictionary of Maori place names and two glass koru sculptures.  Thank you for telling us how the two koru on the one piece are the story of Rangi and Papa, which your group read this week.

Year 3 & 4 Ski Camp

Thank you to all those who managed to get to the Camp meeting on Thursday night. Your input has enabled us to make final arrangements that best reflect your wishes.

Year 3 & 4 Camp:

Mrs Ward completed a one-page Information Sheet which will come home this week.

The cost for our camp will be $175 per student.

The two staff attending this camp will be Mrs Eastwood and Mrs Ward.

A further ten adults will accompany us and stay overnight at the Lodge, including the adult driving the Emergency Vehicle. Names are outlined on the Information Sheet.

All costs for the staff, adults and bus driver have been built into the cost as agreed at the meeting.

Thank you to those parents who indicated they would be willing to take the “Day Only” option of making their own arrangements to visit us at the Snow Farm. These parents will travel independently (ideally you could car pool) and have the option of skiing at their own expense.

DAY 1

9:30 am	Arrive at Snow Farm. Settle into Lunch room space.
10:00 am	Get fitted into rental equipment, head out onto the Snow.
10:30 am	Lesson with Ski School.
11:45 am	Lunch: Packed lunch.
12:30 pm	Ski Tour around base trails.
1:30 pm	Snow Fun – Tubing etc.
2.30 pm	Return Rentals.

.

*Note: Day 1 can be extended with a ski around the main basin supervised by parents.  

DAY 2

9 am	Ski from the main basin to Meadow Hut.
11.30 am	Early lunch at the hut and return to base for 1.45 pm departure by bus.

*Note: The hut is 4.5 km away and may take younger kids a while to ski but is very rewarding!

This information is from Mrs Ward, so any questions please need to be asked of her.

Week 2 Term 3

Kia Ora - this week is Maori Language Week. Much of our learning will have a strong Maori flavour this week.  Reading myths and legends, finding out about taniwhas, beginning our mihimihi booklets, looking at kowhaiwhai patterns and of course enjoying our waiata and kapahaka.
It seems as if the bugs have really hit Room 3 hard.  There seems to be 3 different bugs about, the diarrhoea and vomitting, a cough which lasts for a long time and a 'flu type bug with headaches, aches and pains and feeling very tired.  We talked today about how important it is to wash our hands carefully to protect ourselves from these ills as best we can.  To those who are at home - we hope you get better quickly and are back with us soon.
A change to the school mass date: this is now Sunday 30 August.
We have begun our cross country training, however it is quite a challenge for those students recovering from the ills and chills. It would be great if you could email or send a note if your child is not to participate in this in the meantime.
This Friday we are leading mass at 12:00 in the church. There are many jobs from reading to offertory gifts to singing.  I do hope more of us are on deck to help out!!
Assembly 2:10 will be led by Rooms 1 & 2.
On Wednesday Mrs Brydges will give us a tour of our new school gardens which are located beside and behind our classroom.  It will be great to see where our brain food scraps go after our compost bucket is taken away.  Last week we looked at what the words "Reduce" and "Reuse" mean and what we can do.
Book Fair = every afternoon. Mrs Rendall has this looking fabulous - pop in one day after 2:30 to take a look.

Homework

1. Reading: don't forget your reading log.
2. Spelling: long 'a' patterns. Remember to conduct and tool each night. Check carefully that you have spelled the long 'a' pattern correctly.  Tell Mum or Dad a sentence with your spelling word in it.
3. Maths: check out Study Ladder - there are a selection of measurement activities which complement the hands on work that we are doing at school.
4. Cross Country Training: find time to take a run, even if it is just a few times around your back yard - the more you do the easier it will be on the day.

Study Ladder Maths

There are new activities for measurement on this site.  Congratulations Jelena - I see you have been busy already.
Information about how to get onto the site was on the blog at the beginning of the year.
www.studyladder.co.nz
Each child has their log in and password on the first page of the homework book.  If it is lost please email me and I'll send you a copy.

Estimating and Measuring

Our new mathematical word today was estimate.

A great day for using the court to estimate and measure each other.  Our measuring skills on these practical activities are really improving.  I was surprised at how accurate some estimates were.  We had talked about looking carefully and then thinking by seeing (imaging) how long 10 would be first. Then use our knowledge of skip counting in 10's to decide on our estimate.

WALTs:

• ·       Measure length using non-standard measuring units (we are using multi link cubes or 10 rods)
• ·       Estimate (think and guess) how many cubes or rods  a length might be before measuring

Maths Measurement Learning

WALT: to use non standard units to measure our toy's height (we used our multi link cubes and counting in 1's, 5's or 10's)

Soft toys = maths?  This is what we did. It was a very exciting morning to start the day though!

Cross Country Training

As we will be training each day for the school cross country, school track pants and runners may be worn as school uniform.

Years 3 & 4 Camp

Mrs Ward now has all the information she needs to sort out costings and arrangements for the year 3 and 4 camp. To share this information there will be a short meeting in Room 4 at 7pm this Thursday evening.  The dates for camp are Tuesday 1st September, leaving early in the day by bus fir the Snow Farm, sleeping over at the Lodge that night, then home again by bus next day Wednesday 2nd September.  Following Thursday night's meeting she will get all relevant information out to families with costings confirmed.  For those who have been to the Snow Farm before, you will know what to expect, but this is a first for Mrs Ward. The programme looks very exciting and meals are catered, so it should be fun and easy (except for the skiing bit).

Week 1 Term 3

Where have these holidays gone? It is great to see that our faulty heater has been replaced over the holidays and that the PTA has been busy setting up the uniform shop in what was once our corridor.

Once again as I look at the plan ahead of us, it seems that there is so much happening, so a heads up for you to put some dates on calendars nice and early.

Mrs Ward has been working hard on the Year 3 & 4 camp (1st & 2nd September at the Snow Farm) and information will come home during the first week of term. Exciting stuff!!

This is also the term that concludes with the Alexandra Blossom Festival, and yes, this is the year that the school enters a float. We will all be doing our small part to make this successful - "many hands make light work."

Room 3 will be leading the Friday Mass on 31st July, we would love you to join us for this.

School Cross Country Wednesday 12th August

School Mass - Sunday 16th August, where we will celebrate together the Feast of the Assumption.

School Photos - Monday 14th September.

Eisteddfod Speeches - Monday 21st September. Eisteddfod assembly speeches, Thursday 24th September at 1:30.

Holiday Scientists: Please bring back to school the bird observation sheets that you have from Mr Hogue.  11 people took a paper copy and it was exciting to hear that others of you completed this directly onto the website.

As we will be beginning some training runs for the cross country, please have some shoes suitable for running in at school each day. 

Sunshine-on-line has some great maths texts with activities that cover a range of maths learning in an interactive way. Have a look and a play.

Book Week: 27th - 31st July. There will be a Book Fair running in the library 2:30 - 4pm each day with longer hours on the Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Our School wide inquiry for term 3 is based around waste reduction. The Big Idea is "as a school we are learning to make a difference in our world by learning to reduce, re-use, recycle." We brainstormed what we wanted to find out about this at the end of last term - there is a very wide range of ideas and huge discussion about how we are affecting animals with our waste.  I was surprised at the snippets of knowledge that was shared.  Our questions are on the door of the classroom. 

Homework

Reading: This week I will be having a shuffle around of reading groups so some people may be bringing a favourite from the browse box to read at home.

Maths: we are beginning our measurement learning and will be doing lots of hands on activities.  Please bring a soft toy to school for maths on Tuesday.

Spelling: for the next 2 weeks we will be looking at the spelling patterns for the 'long a' sound

acorn        train         play      make   and level 4      eight

Looking forward to a great term of learning.  Thanks for all the support you give to your children and myself - we are a great team.

Winter Writing

These are too good to just have on the wall with our art work.  What budding authors we have in Room 3!  Enjoy our winter writing.  I'm sure that you'll agree that have met our WALTS of using Wow words to describe winter using our 5 senses.  Many of us are also beginning to use interesting starts to our sentences.  Well done Room 3.

I love the snow because you can roll in it.  I look out the window I see white sparkly swords pinging up. Ice dangling off trees. Ice tastes like baby wipes.

Hayvin 

Looking out the glittering sparkling window I see snowflakes and icicles hanging from trees.  The ponds are frozen. When the snow falls, I eat the glittery snow and it is freezing in my throat. The cold breeze whooshes past me. The freezing, frosty ice on my hands makes them numb. The ice cracking on the pond sounds scary. Smoke from bonfires gets in my eyes and I have to say “white rabbits” or “blue rabbits” if you want it to go close to you.

Nicolas 

Teeny, tiny snowflakes skiing on the mountaintops and coming down onto the ground. I see shimmering diamonds hanging off the trees. I taste the super cold diamonds when I eat them off the trees. I feel shivery inside my body. I smell the cold winter death wind.

Otis 

Looking out the window I can see thousands of snowflakes falling from the sky. I can taste the glittering snow. It is cold in my mouth. The blazing fires from houses smell smoky. When I go horse riding my fingers go numb.  They look like icicles. The whistling wind is flying through the air and is crashing into the frosty trees.

Annajhay 

The amazing, glittery snowflakes are falling on the green grass. There is glittery, white frost on the grass. The freezing, cold ice makes me freeze. When I taste the cold, icy icicles my tongue gets frozen.  The smoke from fires smells yucky. Kids playing in the snow are throwing snowballs at each other. When I jump on icy puddles it makes a crackling noise.

Gabrielle 

It is snowing.  There are snowflakes dribbling down on the amazing frozen field. It shines like diamonds.  The snow dribbled from the sky. Snowflakes falling from the snowy mountains shimmering from the sky, dribble across my face. My hands freeze like ice with sparkles.  I hear leaves flying across the field. I smell Jack Frost’s magic power. My toes and fingers are colder than ice. My front door froze and my dad had to rush and get some hot water and splash it on the door. The door creaked when Dad opened it.

Jelena 

At the gloomy field with the trees, there were a lot of icicles hanging on them. On the icicles it looked like there were diamonds. Today my dad got his window scraper, it made a really amazing noise like the wind. When I opened the car door it made a crackling noise like a big giant.

Lars 

The sparkling, glittery winter frost is shining like crystal diamonds sparkling in the air. The snowflakes are glittering across the wonderful air shining on the sparkling trees. Crystals are dangling like diamonds from trees. I taste delicious snow falling off trees. I touch slippery snow when I slid my finger across the trees. When I touched the slippery and slidy ice my fingers go freezing. I hear trees going whoosh in the air.  I smell flames flying out of the fire.

By Jack O

Looking out the window you can see the white grass looking like swords and looking sparkly and stuck in one shape from lots of frost on the field. The green grass is turning white in front of my eyes. The awesome trees have icicles that are like crystals. I can see the sparkly, icy ice. I can hear the howling wind whooshing past and …… it comes by people playing a game.  I can taste yummy, icy, icy, icy ice.  I can smell ashes from blazing flames from the fire.  When you look out the window you can see …… awesome, tall, white grass leaning across whooshing with the wind!!!  The white grass looks like a fluffy mat that’s just been vacuum cleaned as it leans one way. Smoking chimney’s smoke gets whooshed with the wind as the breeze goes past me.

David 

Sparkling snow on my frozen, cold feet, when I was running through the ice, cold snow. Once the snow got on my dad’s beard. Looking out the frozen, cold fog stuck on the window, I drew myself, then the frost melted, dripping down the window. When I taste the sparkly ice, my tongue freezes.  When I taste snow it is yuck like a sparkly, yellow snow stuck to a rock.  In the morning I see frosty frost on the deck.  I can feel frost tingling on my fingers.

Sullivan 

When I go outside on a freezing cold day I can smell the lovely smoke of the warm burning flames of fire. When I go ice skating I can hear my skates going sh, sh, sh on the ice. In the winter my family goes on bike rides and my hands get really chilly, so I say, “Mum can I have my gloves?” I stare out the window and I can see the snowflakes shimmer out the corner of my eye as it falls gently from the clouds above. I eat the snow off the ground. “Yum, yum!” I say, “and it’s cold too!”

Maggie 

It is winter and I watched the snow fall quietly and snowflakes fly past my window. Glistening snowflakes flutter by my window and land on my bed.  I like winter because the snow feels all right. When it falls, my tongue is frozen and my toes get really cold. Frost is cold. It is awesome because I can do skids on it.

Jacqui 

Snow sparks slip slide off icy mountain tips.  I see glistening snowflakes lifting gently off clouds, falling quietly and landing very, very softly onto the grass. Stringy icicles are hanging from frosty mountain tips. I taste the icy snow when it falls from the cloudy sky. My hands let me feel the frost on the car. I hear snow pitter-pattering and donging on the ground.  I smell the cold, cold breeze.

Casey 

Snow is falling from glittery, sparkly trees and ice is sparkly. Snow nearly looks like ice, and my nose is cold like ice. My mouth is cold and my tongue is cold.  I can smell fire floating past me, and snow, snow, snow floating down.

Liam 

I watch the glittering snowflakes fluttering through the air. I see the glistening snow sparkle in the air. Glistening icicles dangle off the trees and the chilly frost sparkles on the field. Winter is pretty. I can hear the whishing wind on a cold night and the crackling fire. I can touch the frozen ice on the glistening ponds. I can smell the smoke burning in the night. I can taste the snowflakes when they melt in my mouth.

Sophie 

The glittering white icicles are dangling across my eye. I feel snow falling from the sky on my hands, and my hands feel like shivering icicles stuck together.

Jack S

Mountains are covered in sparkling snow. Snowy flakes are falling in the night air. Pretty, pretty, snowy, snowy mountains are shining like diamonds. Jack Frost is sitting on my window and I see him every morning.

Bobbie 

Winter air and snow pitter patters down on the frosty fields and freezes my fingers and toes. Snow glides across the air making gigantic snowflakes. Trees are beautiful when icicles make music on the branches with bright, white snow. I feel the soft breeze in the winter and it is cold. I can taste the amazing water when it is an icicle. I can hear the snowflakes pittering down. In the morning I can smell the cold air and the awesome smell of the warm fire. I can feel the freezing snow and ice shiver up my body. I can hear the children playing in the outstanding snow.

Alia 

It is a very snowy winter day. I looked out the slippery window and I saw sparkly icicles hanging on the frozen trees and a frosty field. Our tap’s water is freezing to ice. Snowflakes came down from the black cloud when I looked out the slippery window. When I looked out the window I saw snowy snow and then I zipped out the house.

When I went out to play in the freezing winter day, we had a snow fight and one snowball landed on my face. It felt like I face planted onto ice.

Quinn

Shaky snow is falling off the mountains. Sparkly sun is shining on the snow, the ice is shining in the sun. The window panes are covered in shivering ice. When I taste the amazing ice, the ice is frozen solid and freezing on my tongue. I can feel the frozen ice on my face when it melts.  I can hear the snow falling on the shaky roof. I can smell the freezing frost.

Mason 

Snowflakes falling from the snowy mountains shining like icicles dangling from a sparkling tree. The icicles are falling off trees and stabbing the sparkling white ground like pointy knives. I went outside in the freezing cold. My fingers went purple.  They were freezing. There was an amazing crackling noise when I opened the frozen car door. Sparkling icicles dangle from the tree and out the corner of my eye I see a waterfall frozen. When I taste my horse Max, he is all freezing cold like a frozen horse. I feel freezing cold poles and can see glittery white concrete.

Keira 

 It is winter and the snowflakes are dangling off the white shimmering and glittery trees.  Looking out the window I said, “wow, it is amazing.”

Rhianna 

The sparkling snow is falling down the mountains and the snow is chilly. The snow makes a big snowball that’s falling down the hill. The snow is floating beautifully going down out of the sky.

Joshua 

In the winter I like playing in the glittery snow.  When it melts it makes the grass all shiny. I lie by the fire drinking hot cocoa and eating toast. It’s so yummy my tummy is happy.  I see the snow gliding through the strong air.  It hits the glass and freezes up the glass and cracks.  In the winter my eyes can feel the freezing winter.  The leaves are rustling so loud it’s like the wind is in my ear.  I smell the ice. It starts to melt.  The steam floats beautifully in the sky. When I talk to my friend, winter fog comes out of my mouth. When I climb up a tree my fingers get so cold that they freeze up.  I put them by the heater to unfreeze.

Kimberley 

On a snowy night the snow was whisking off the trees. Snowflakes are falling from the sky and falling on the field. The glittering field was so cold the snow turned into ice.

Winter is like a snowball touching you and icicles stabbing near you on the ground.

Shikyah 

In winter the SHIMMERING snow dangles on my eyelashes.  When the bright sun comes up it makes the snow glow on the glittering field. Snowflakes are gliding through the atmosphere.  I feel the snow freezing my lips as I walk outside in the glittering, sparkly snow. I feel the snow freezing my fingers as they go purple. I can smell the warm flame of the fire warmth.

Adam 

Every day of cold, freezing, sparkly, cool, inspirational, incredible, wicked, fabulous, fantastic winter I hear whistling snowballs crashing, mashing and splashing down on the ground. I feel frosty, freezing, cold, icy snow. I see snowflakes falling then gently touching the ground. I smell fresh, cold, freezing air zooming into my mouth.  I taste freezing, cold, frosty snow from wicked, great, fabulous, fantastic, amazing, awesome snowmen.  I hear super sliding skates whooshing and swooshing along the incredible ice rink. I feel super hard concrete that everyone fell on and got a bleeding leg. I smell freezing, frosty, fresh air zooming into my mouth. I taste freezing ice, swooshing, whooshing into my mouth. I love the tasty ice and I crunch, munch and SCRUNCH it down. It tastes yummy, YUMMY.

Archie