Kia Ora Whanau
I hope you all had a restful Easter break.
We have achieved 4 Top 50 finishes in the Country for Mathletics in a row! An absolutely amazing achievement. Thank you for encouraging your child.
We also received the Walk/Wheel trophy for the first time this week. Thank you for dropping your child off a few 100 metres from school as this will continue to develop the importance of being physically active.
The Cross Country is less than 2 weeks away. Year 6 Boys will race first at 1.15pm on Wednesday 13 April. We have had two good training runs and we will run the full course as a practise run next week.
We have enjoyed our mixed ability maths groups on Thursdays. We will continue that for the rest of the term. If it continues to work well I may move to 2 days of mixed ability groups per week.
We are investigating how we learn and what is the best way we learn. There is some really interesting stuff coming from the children. Good round the dinner table discussion!
Our Inquiry for Term 2 is 'The Secret Lives of Living Things'. This is going to be heaps of fun and I know there will be lots of learning taking place.
Have a great weekend
Nga mihi
Nigel
Wednesday, March 30, 2016
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
Week 8 Update
Kia Ora Whanau
Amazing that Easter is upon us! It feels like just yesterday that we were at Camp! It has been a very busy week:-
Achievements:
1. The highlight of the week was Assembly which the class ran extremely professionally. The MC's were Anu, Natasha and Neha while we also did a short play. The actors were Conner, Kanye, Sylvia, Hillary, Gracie, Fauzia, Sarah, Lily, Imogen and Charlotte.
2. We ran the Cross Country Course for the first time.
3. Most students are getting close to finishing their Pirate Stories
4. We wrote some awesome limericks
'There was was a truck
Which was loaded with muck
It wanted to tip
But couldn't quite flip
and ended up with hard luck'
Gracie
'There once was a girl called Butterbuys
She was always catching flys
And she loved to eat butter
but she didn't like to flutter
and she cries buy butterflies'
Nancye
5. Sadly we had our last swim of the season, however it has been a great summer for the pool.
6. We made some very creative leaves with Mrs Knowles. These leaves will compliment our painted leaves and will go up on our Tree-ty.
7. Our music with Mrs Robson was a great experience. Mrs Robson will definitely be back in Room 1 to provide some more music guidance in term 2.
8. We achieved a hat-trick of Top 50 places in the Mathletics programme. I'm very proud of the class for this collective achievement.
Next week:
1. We will complete our pirate stories
2. We will begin to lift the intensity of the training towards the School Cross Country. The official race takes place on Wednesday 13 April.
3. We will complete our painted leaves and take the pictures of the 'branches'.
Homework:
Please could you keep checking in with your child that they are doing their 40 minutes a week on Mathletics. Children must also read at least 4 times a week.
Have a relaxing and enjoyable long Easter weekend with your family. I look forward to seeing all the wonderful children of Room 1 again on Wednesday.
Kia kaha
Nigel
Amazing that Easter is upon us! It feels like just yesterday that we were at Camp! It has been a very busy week:-
Achievements:
1. The highlight of the week was Assembly which the class ran extremely professionally. The MC's were Anu, Natasha and Neha while we also did a short play. The actors were Conner, Kanye, Sylvia, Hillary, Gracie, Fauzia, Sarah, Lily, Imogen and Charlotte.
2. We ran the Cross Country Course for the first time.
3. Most students are getting close to finishing their Pirate Stories
4. We wrote some awesome limericks
'There was was a truck
Which was loaded with muck
It wanted to tip
But couldn't quite flip
and ended up with hard luck'
Gracie
'There once was a girl called Butterbuys
She was always catching flys
And she loved to eat butter
but she didn't like to flutter
and she cries buy butterflies'
Nancye
5. Sadly we had our last swim of the season, however it has been a great summer for the pool.
6. We made some very creative leaves with Mrs Knowles. These leaves will compliment our painted leaves and will go up on our Tree-ty.
7. Our music with Mrs Robson was a great experience. Mrs Robson will definitely be back in Room 1 to provide some more music guidance in term 2.
8. We achieved a hat-trick of Top 50 places in the Mathletics programme. I'm very proud of the class for this collective achievement.
Next week:
1. We will complete our pirate stories
2. We will begin to lift the intensity of the training towards the School Cross Country. The official race takes place on Wednesday 13 April.
3. We will complete our painted leaves and take the pictures of the 'branches'.
Homework:
Please could you keep checking in with your child that they are doing their 40 minutes a week on Mathletics. Children must also read at least 4 times a week.
Have a relaxing and enjoyable long Easter weekend with your family. I look forward to seeing all the wonderful children of Room 1 again on Wednesday.
Kia kaha
Nigel
Thursday, March 17, 2016
No swimming on Tuesday
Kia Ora Whanau
The students will be doing an e-asttle reading test on Tuesday afternoon next week when we normally have swimming. We will do some PE during the day but we will not swim.
Our final swimming session for the term will be Thursday 24 March.
Have a great weekend
Regards
Nigel
The students will be doing an e-asttle reading test on Tuesday afternoon next week when we normally have swimming. We will do some PE during the day but we will not swim.
Our final swimming session for the term will be Thursday 24 March.
Have a great weekend
Regards
Nigel
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Week 7 Update
Kia ora Whanau
Happenings in Room 1
1. The maths groups are working well. We are experimenting with 3 stations each maths lesson this week. Next week we will have 2 stations each day. I will then review and see what best suits our children. Advantage of having 3 means I see all my groups every day. The advantages of 2 are a) less transition time and b) when with the teacher the children will have more time which will allow more in-depth conversations.
2. We did some great art today. I have posted some pictures. The leaves will form part of our Tree-ty. The students will be the branches and the trunk of the tree will contain the 2 or 3 things which we as Room 1 will value most highly.
3. Our pirate stories are really taking shape. We will publish them next week.
4. What would St Patricks Day be without a Limerick! We have learnt about limericks, read a number of them and have had a go at writing some ourselves.
5. The Swan reading group are rehearsing a play as their reading activity at the moment.
6. Mathletics continues to be enjoyed. We are currently in 33rd spot in the Country. If we can hold onto a Top 50 place for week 7 then we will have achieved a hat-trick! Mr Marsh is very proud of Room 1.
7. Our ESOL programme is in full swing. We are very grateful to the wonderful work our ESOL department do.
What's about to happen
1. We are very excited about Mrs Robson coming into Room 1 on Monday 21 March. We will break a little from our normal programme and have some focussed instruction on music.
2. Next week is our final week for swimming. After Easter we will do PE on a Tuesday afternoon from 2.15pm. This will be a mix of skills and modified 'invasion' games. On Friday afternoons we will get into our winter sport. It's great to see a number of our children sign up for the Future Ferns programme.
3. Once we are finished writing about pirates we will write about 'teams'. This is linked to our Inquiry.
4. I will post a couple of our limericks
I'm running the City to Surf on Sunday so I won't be taking part in Cross-Country practise on Monday...!
Nga mihi
Nigel
Happenings in Room 1
1. The maths groups are working well. We are experimenting with 3 stations each maths lesson this week. Next week we will have 2 stations each day. I will then review and see what best suits our children. Advantage of having 3 means I see all my groups every day. The advantages of 2 are a) less transition time and b) when with the teacher the children will have more time which will allow more in-depth conversations.
2. We did some great art today. I have posted some pictures. The leaves will form part of our Tree-ty. The students will be the branches and the trunk of the tree will contain the 2 or 3 things which we as Room 1 will value most highly.
3. Our pirate stories are really taking shape. We will publish them next week.
4. What would St Patricks Day be without a Limerick! We have learnt about limericks, read a number of them and have had a go at writing some ourselves.
5. The Swan reading group are rehearsing a play as their reading activity at the moment.
6. Mathletics continues to be enjoyed. We are currently in 33rd spot in the Country. If we can hold onto a Top 50 place for week 7 then we will have achieved a hat-trick! Mr Marsh is very proud of Room 1.
7. Our ESOL programme is in full swing. We are very grateful to the wonderful work our ESOL department do.
What's about to happen
1. We are very excited about Mrs Robson coming into Room 1 on Monday 21 March. We will break a little from our normal programme and have some focussed instruction on music.
2. Next week is our final week for swimming. After Easter we will do PE on a Tuesday afternoon from 2.15pm. This will be a mix of skills and modified 'invasion' games. On Friday afternoons we will get into our winter sport. It's great to see a number of our children sign up for the Future Ferns programme.
3. Once we are finished writing about pirates we will write about 'teams'. This is linked to our Inquiry.
4. I will post a couple of our limericks
I'm running the City to Surf on Sunday so I won't be taking part in Cross-Country practise on Monday...!
Nga mihi
Nigel
Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Week 6 Update
Kia Ora Whanau
Recent Highlights:
1. We finished 42nd in the country in the Mathletics programme for Week 5
2. We are currently in 20th position for this week
3. Ngoc Le was our first student to receive a Gold Mathletics certificate
4. Nicky Coles (Olmypic Ambassador) presented her inspirational story to us. She spoke about resilience and being committed to achieve your goal.
5. The Smile Couch was a fun initiative
6. Kahoot's and Storybird were used in the class for the first time this year. (Please ask your child to tell you about these online programmes)
Maths Groups
After two lessons this week I made a minor tweak to the Maths Groups. We are now divided into 5 Maths Groups. One group goes to Mr Barnes, one group goes to Marilyn Hore and I teach the other 3 groups. Jo Le Gros is in the class from 9am - 9.25am each morning and she will provide teaching assistance.
Important dates:
1. Thursday 24 March is our last day of swimming. Thank you for sending your child to school with their togs each Tuesday and Thursday.
2. School will be closed on Tuesday 29 March (as well as Good Friday and Easter Monday)
Class Focus
Maths - Place value
Writing - We are writing a pirate story
Reading - Reading groups are reading from the School Journals and are doing related reading activities
Inquiry - 'What makes a good team?'
Have a great weekend
Nga mihi
Nigel Marsh
Room 1 Teacher
Recent Highlights:
1. We finished 42nd in the country in the Mathletics programme for Week 5
2. We are currently in 20th position for this week
3. Ngoc Le was our first student to receive a Gold Mathletics certificate
4. Nicky Coles (Olmypic Ambassador) presented her inspirational story to us. She spoke about resilience and being committed to achieve your goal.
5. The Smile Couch was a fun initiative
6. Kahoot's and Storybird were used in the class for the first time this year. (Please ask your child to tell you about these online programmes)
Maths Groups
After two lessons this week I made a minor tweak to the Maths Groups. We are now divided into 5 Maths Groups. One group goes to Mr Barnes, one group goes to Marilyn Hore and I teach the other 3 groups. Jo Le Gros is in the class from 9am - 9.25am each morning and she will provide teaching assistance.
Important dates:
1. Thursday 24 March is our last day of swimming. Thank you for sending your child to school with their togs each Tuesday and Thursday.
2. School will be closed on Tuesday 29 March (as well as Good Friday and Easter Monday)
Class Focus
Maths - Place value
Writing - We are writing a pirate story
Reading - Reading groups are reading from the School Journals and are doing related reading activities
Inquiry - 'What makes a good team?'
Have a great weekend
Nga mihi
Nigel Marsh
Room 1 Teacher
Friday, March 4, 2016
Winding up Pudding Hill Camp
The students all wrote a thank you letter to Aaron, the organiser at the Camp, and also to the parents who gave them a lift to the Camp. As a final summary of Camp the students did a PMI. They also put forward solutions to the the items that they listed in the minus column.
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
Week 4 Update
Kia Ora Whanau
What a busy and exciting start to the year! It has been absolutely non-stop with swimming, triathlon, mihi whakatau and the wonderful Camp. I'd like to express my gratitude to all of you who made a contribution to the Camp, be it a meal, some transport or a chilli bin! Thank you so much to those parents who actually slept over at the Camp.
I really welcome your suppport and encouragement of your child's learning. Things that will be a major help are:-
1. Asking them about what they are reading and if you can listen to them read that will be of huge benefit. As part of their homework they must read 4 times a week (at least 15 minutes at one sitting).
2. Getting them to show you what they are doing with the Mathletics programme. They must do at least 40 minutes of Mathletics a week for homework. I would expect most children to get a certificate at least 2 out of every 3 weeks.
3. Ensureing they have the correct materials/clothing for the day. eg Swimming togs everyday in February and on Tuesday and Thursdays in March. Swimming will conclude at Easter.
Extension work
For the children who'd like to extend themselves there are some exciting options:-
1. Science and Maths Badges
2. Creative writing course
3. Australasia assessments. These are run by the University of New South Wales
The closing date for the Badges and Creative Writing is Friday 26 February. If you would like your child to take part please see the office urgently to sign up. There is a fee for each of these extension activities.
Current focus
Maths - mapping
Reading - Reading and discussing stories from the School Journals.
Writing - Camp related and self related (ie origin of our names, our passions and 'the best part of me')
In a couple of weeks
We will start to develop our number knowledge in maths and also start to look at what makes a great team. By the end of the term we will have developed a plan (charter) as to how Room 1 is going to become a great team this year.
Assistance in Room 1
We have some wonderful assistance in Room 1. The very experienced Kirsten Aaron comes in from 11am to 12.30pm from Monday to Thursday. The highly industrious Marilyn Hore is with us for about 15 hours a week. We are fortunate to have the services of Karin Knowles who will be in Room 1 fortnightly on Wednesdays for the first term (while I find my feet!!!!)
If you have any questions about your child's learning please feel free to pop in either before or after school and if you can't get in please e-mail me on nigel.marsh@ilam.school.nz
I will update the Blog on a weekly basis before Thursday evening. I will also post some pictures from time to time during the week.
I have loved my first month in Room 1 and am really excited about the year ahead
Regards
Nigel
Room 1 Teacher
What a busy and exciting start to the year! It has been absolutely non-stop with swimming, triathlon, mihi whakatau and the wonderful Camp. I'd like to express my gratitude to all of you who made a contribution to the Camp, be it a meal, some transport or a chilli bin! Thank you so much to those parents who actually slept over at the Camp.
I really welcome your suppport and encouragement of your child's learning. Things that will be a major help are:-
1. Asking them about what they are reading and if you can listen to them read that will be of huge benefit. As part of their homework they must read 4 times a week (at least 15 minutes at one sitting).
2. Getting them to show you what they are doing with the Mathletics programme. They must do at least 40 minutes of Mathletics a week for homework. I would expect most children to get a certificate at least 2 out of every 3 weeks.
3. Ensureing they have the correct materials/clothing for the day. eg Swimming togs everyday in February and on Tuesday and Thursdays in March. Swimming will conclude at Easter.
Extension work
For the children who'd like to extend themselves there are some exciting options:-
1. Science and Maths Badges
2. Creative writing course
3. Australasia assessments. These are run by the University of New South Wales
The closing date for the Badges and Creative Writing is Friday 26 February. If you would like your child to take part please see the office urgently to sign up. There is a fee for each of these extension activities.
Current focus
Maths - mapping
Reading - Reading and discussing stories from the School Journals.
Writing - Camp related and self related (ie origin of our names, our passions and 'the best part of me')
In a couple of weeks
We will start to develop our number knowledge in maths and also start to look at what makes a great team. By the end of the term we will have developed a plan (charter) as to how Room 1 is going to become a great team this year.
Assistance in Room 1
We have some wonderful assistance in Room 1. The very experienced Kirsten Aaron comes in from 11am to 12.30pm from Monday to Thursday. The highly industrious Marilyn Hore is with us for about 15 hours a week. We are fortunate to have the services of Karin Knowles who will be in Room 1 fortnightly on Wednesdays for the first term (while I find my feet!!!!)
If you have any questions about your child's learning please feel free to pop in either before or after school and if you can't get in please e-mail me on nigel.marsh@ilam.school.nz
I will update the Blog on a weekly basis before Thursday evening. I will also post some pictures from time to time during the week.
I have loved my first month in Room 1 and am really excited about the year ahead
Regards
Nigel
Room 1 Teacher
As part of our Inquiry 'This is me' we have each done a Digital Mihi. This is Micky's work.
Below are some more action shots from Camp.
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