Kauri Whānau Help for Carisbrook Lunch: Correct Link

In yesterday's blog post, there was a request for parents to supply a lunch dish for the Carisbrook sports exchange on the first Thursday of next term. Unfortunately, the link was incorrect. This is the correct link. 

Kauri Whānau Weekly Update: Term 3 Week 10

We are busy in the Intermediate Hub this week wrapping up our Choice health unit and getting stuck into athletics. We are looking forward to the talent quest final on Friday. All the best to our finalists: Walter, Paolo and Ben.

Cultural Festival

We were so proud of Te Whānau Mahi Tahi when they performed at the Cultural festival recently.  Here is the official Cultural Festival Video.

Congratulations

A big congratulations to Maddi and Henry who represented Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto at the South Speech Competition on Monday evening. Opawa, St Martins, Cashmere, St Peters and Hillview were all part of the event. Henry and Maddi were commended for the research, ideas and structure of their speeches. Henry was placed third in Year 7 and Maddi was first in Year 8!

We need your help

On Thursday in week 1 of term 4, we have Carisbrook School visiting from Dunedin for our annual sporting interchange. The children will be playing, Ki o Rahi, volleyball, ultimate frisbee and football.  The exchange runs for the morning and finishes with lunch that we provide for the visitors. If you are able to help by providing a lunch dish, please fill in this form. 

Furry friends need a home for the holidays

Fidget and Snowy are looking for somewhere to stay during the first week on the school holidays. They come with their own indoor hutch and supplies. If your family would like to welcome these wee furry bundles into your home from Friday Sept 27th until Monday Oct 7th, please send Nicky an email. 

Kauri Whānau Weekly Update: Term 3 Week 9

This week has been one out of the box. Sometimes being a teacher can be a bit tough going and sometimes is can be immensely rewarding. This week was all about the latter. We love working with your tamariki!

Monday

Ski day was a blast. The children followed all instructions, supported each other, persevered when the going was tough and the vast majority absolutely loved it.

Tuesday - Thursday

Koru games

Thursday was another sunny day and a fantastic finale to our three-day tournament. At Ultimate, a song was composed about the joys of the sport, at volleyball, the team formed friendships with their opposition and joined forces to take on some Canterbury Representative Year 10 players. The girls' football team embraced the challenge of a penalty shootout while the boys continued to impress with their skill and positivity.

Final Placings
Volleyball 7th
Girls' Football 6th
Boys' football 8th
Ultimate 4th

The ultimate team were awarded the top Sportsmanship Award and gifted with a goodie bag of sports merchandise. This kind of recognition surpasses any other win in our book and we are so proud of our tamariki for showing such positive values. All the children were exceptional for the duration of the tournament. They are such a pleasure to take away to sporting events and their efforts and attitudes have done themselves and our kura proud.


Those not in Koru games worked splendidly in the hub, they offered sensible and deep thinking ideas during 'Choice' sessions with Constable Ross and they stepped up to extra leadership duties due to 40 children being at Koru Games.

Friday

We held our breath when the full hub got back together again; there was the potential for a rumpity day. We shouldn't have worried, they were great. At our celebration assembly, we recognised the outstanding leadership shown by Ben Evans when he was presented with the Sir Peter Blake Young Leader award. Te Whānau Mahi Tahi gave Ben a stirring haka led so well by Paolo. This afternoon we had the auditions for the talent quest. What an entertaining afternoon it was and what a tough job we now have deciding on the three finalists! The afternoon wrapped up with Lucy talking about the next Climate Strike that is coming up next Friday, September 27th. She encouraged those interested to bring along as many extended family members as possible. If your child is planning on attending this strike on Friday afternoon, please send us an email.

Kauri Whānau at Koru Games

The 40 children competing at Koru Games have been putting in a tremendous effort over the past two days. The spirit of Koru Games is all about fair play and sportsmanship and our children are showing this in bucket loads during the competition. Making friends, offering advice to the opposition and even creating a musical commentary are just some of the things that the Beckenham children have been doing to show good spirit. There have been wins and there have been losses. It is great to see the children's enthusiasm, values and grit remain regardless of the outcome. All teams are showing learning lots and their technical play is improving as the tournament progresses.

We have our final day of competition tomorrow. We meet at 8:20 in the Kauri Hub. A good night's sleep is most likely needed for most. Please, remember to pack the sunscreen.

Kauri Ski Day

Well, it was definitely worth the wait! With a bad weather forecast - not many people ventured up Mt Hutt today, but we did and we had a great time. The weather was fine, the snow was spring-like (which means soft and slow) and the slopes uncrowded. We were so impressed with how so many of our whānau embraced challenge on the slopes and came up with beaming faces.

A huge thanks to all of the wonderful parent helpers who joined us and supported the children to take on more of the mountain.

Here are a few pics from the day...

Kauri Whānau Ski day Reminders

Our ski day is this coming Monday - September 16.

If the mountain is open we are going! Check the Mt Hutt Ski Report around 6am to confirm things at all go.

Be at school by 7:20am. Meet by the Sandwich Rd school carpark. Children must check in with their homegroup teacher and then they can board a bus, or go to the driver of the car they are assigned to.

Gear Check:

• thermals - at least two layers on top half and one layer on bottom half
• long socks
• weatherproof pants
• warm weatherproof jacket
• lace-up shoes
• gloves or mittens
• goggles or sun-glasses
• sunscreen
• optional neck muff or scarf
• long hair tied up 
• water bottle
• hearty lunch

Optional:

• The journey each way is 2 hours so a book, small game or small device to play on can be brought. All devices will stay on the locked bus during the day.
• Money for a hot drink or snack at the cafe. Children take responsibility for money. The cafe is expensive, so bring lunch.
• Own ski gear if you have it

Plan for the day:

• 7:20 arrive at school, on Sandwich Rd. Buses and cars leave at 7:30am. 
• 9:30 - 9:45 we will arrive at the ski field car park
• 10:00 morning tea on the deck
• 10:15 ski hire sorted (those with their own gear will meet a parent for a short ski)
• 11:00 lessons start. Everyone has a lesson, even the experienced skiers.
• 12:30 lunch on the deck or in the cafe
• 12:45 - 3:30 Have fun skiing with your friends.
• 3:30 return gear and back to the bus
• 4:00 buses leave
• 6:00 - 6:30 we arrive back at school

Parent Helpers:

Many thanks to the following people who have offered to help out on the mountain.

Skiers: Matt Cowie, Stu Clarke, Joe Evans, Tony Sice, Liz May, Brett Cooper, Mami Mori, Stuart Gray, Paula Winsor, Simon Elphick, Brett Sutherland, Matt Cornfoot, Dave McLoughlin, Adam Cooper, Matthew Reid

Non-skiers: Naska Borlase,  Kellyanne Bullen, Kate Packer

Many thanks to those who have sorted their $58 for this trip. We would appreciate the rest of the money in ASAP. 

Kauri Speech Finals

True to form, we were entertained and educated by an outstanding group of speakers at our speech final this afternoon. Unfortunately, we went overtime and the audience for our final speakers was rather diminished. A big thanks to Alice and Clara from the English Dept at Cashmere High who were our judges.

The results:

Year 7

1st:  Henry Hood
2nd: Thomas Lyall
3rd:  Ruby McNiven

Year 8

1st:   Maddi McIvor
2nd:  Ben Evans
3rd=  Morvern McDaid and Meg Macdonald

Kauri Whānau Weekly Update: Term 3 Week 8

We were relieved that we made the decision to move our ski trip on Friday. Many thanks to the ski parents for their flexibility. We have plenty of parent help for the 16th.

Thanks to those who brought their skis and boots to school, so the first-timers could have a dryland session. 

'Choice' Programme

While the rest of the school are learning about 'Keeping Ourselves Safe', over the last three weeks of term Year 7 & 8 will be working through the Choice programme.  This programme empowers children with information and strategies to support them to make good decisions around drugs and alcohol.  This week we will be discussing what a drug is, and the reasons why people might take these. We will also be covering coping strategies and resources that provide a healthy alternative to drug abuse. Next week Constable Ross will be having three sessions with each home-group.

Speeches

We loved hearing the children present their speeches last week. We understand the stress/anxiety that comes with speaking in front of your peers and were so impressed with how well so many of the children embraced this challenge. On Tuesday, Sept 10th, our finalists will present their speeches in the hall, from 1:30 - 3:00. Parents are welcome to attend. All the best to our finalists: Lucy, Gemma, Ella C, Maddi, Vienna, Ben E, Emily E, Morvern, Florence, Winni, Meg, Millie J, Henry H, Ben N (via video), Ruby M, Mia, Thomas and Eddie.

Cashmere High Testing

A reminder that this Tuesday, Sept 10th, is Year 8 testing at Cashmere High. They have sent the following information:

• 9.00am – 12.15pm in the Performing Arts Centre
• Please let us know if your student is unable to attend – we have an alternative morning available on Thursday 19 September
• Students need to bring: A pen, pencil, ruler and some food for morning tea
• Students will be permitted to leave their bikes in a designated supervised area.   All bikes should be brought to the Performing Arts Centre

Children make their own way to and from Cashmere High. They are to wear their Beckenham uniform. We expect to see them back at school by 1:20 at the latest.

Cultural Festival

This is a repeat of the email that came out from Sherrilee at the end of last week. Te Whanau Mahitahi kapa haka group will be attending a rehearsal for the Cultural Festival at the Horncastle Arena on Monday 9th September. The bus will leave school at around 1pm and return shortly after 3pm.                   
Nicky and Steve will be going along and Sherrilee will meet the group there.

On the night (THURSDAY 12TH SEPTEMBER) Show starts at 6:45pm

• ENTRANCE: Side door/performers special entrance to the far far left of the arena. Meet Nicky and Steve there.
• WEAR: Easy to put on shoes, warm zip-up top/jacket, stage make up if allowed to. 
• BRING: Your best smile, wonderful manners and fabulous Beckenham Te kura o Pūroto behaviour.
• ARRIVE: Around between 6:15pm-6:30pm, staff will guide you to our seating area.
• PICK UP AFTER SHOW FROM: We will move as a group and meet all parents/whānau downstairs in the main foyer,  just look for our costumes.

Our basketball teams finished their season last Monday. It has been a season full of skill development, progress and fun on court.

Ski Trip Postponement

Mt Hutt have contacted us to say that Friday is not looking like a good option for our ski day due to the snow that is forecast. They think the field is likely to be closed. It is much easier to reschedule clothing hire and bus transport if we postpone before the scheduled day.

We have rebooked for Monday September 16th.

Many of our ski parents have indicated that they can make this day. If you were not originally signed up to help, but would be keen to join us, please email me.

I apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. Hopefully, hire clothing can be rebooked for the 16th of September.

Kauri Whānau Weekly Update: Term 3 Week 6/7

Hopefully, there has been lots of speech practice taking place in your house over the past few days. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday this week, children will be presenting their speeches to their homegroups. Our hub final takes place next Tuesday afternoon, Sept 10. Finalists will be announced by the end of this week. Parents are most welcome to attend the final, which will be judged by a teacher from the English Dept at Cashmere High.

Cantamath Success

A big congratulations to all children who were involved in Cantamath, with work in the projects competition or in one of our problem-solving teams. Special congratulations goes to Morvern who won an outstanding award. She was one of only four to be recognised with this award and the only Year 7 & 8.
Excellence recipients: Erik, Henry H, Julia, Kate D, Amber, Ben E, Charlotte G, Eddie, Jack B, James, William, Morvern and Jenny's class project
Highly Commended recipients: Charlotte O. Matilda, Frankie, Paolo, Holly, Mia, Emma, Maria, Rylan, Angus, Devina, Fergus, Lurandt, Ruby M, Zoe, Boyd, Daniel S, Millie J, Thomas, Walter, Hannah's class project and Nicky's class project
Please check out the photos at the end of this post.

Year 8 Testing at Cashmere High

Next Tuesday morning, Sept 10, Year 8 students who have enrolled at Cashmere High for 2020 have their new entrant testing morning. You will have received information about this from Cashmere. Children make their own way to and from Cashmere. We expect to see all children back at Beckenham by 1:20 at the latest. School uniform is to be worn.

Ski Trip

We are only days away from our ski trip on Friday September 6th. We will be doing the last distributing of loan clothing and goggles to children today. If you still need to arrange these for your child, I suggest you contact Snowmania who rent gear at very reasonable prices: 4 Dalgety Street, Riccarton Phone: 03 961 6747. We do still have jackets, thermals, small gloves and some very small ski pants available at school. The package at Mt Hutt includes skis, boots, poles, helmet, ski pass and a lesson, so no need to organise a helmet or hat. 

Many thanks to the families who are sending skis and boots to school on Monday so that our first-timers can have a dry land session in the comfort of our hub on Monday and Tuesday.

We are still waiting for a few ski contracts to come back to school signed by children and caregivers. No contract, no go.

On Friday, children need to be at school by 7:20am. We will meet on Sandwich Rd. At 6am the ski report is available online: https://www.mthutt.co.nz/weather-report/ If the field is open, we will most likely be going. If we do decide that the conditions mean the trip needs to be postponed, we will send out an email and text.  We will be leaving the mountain to head home at 4pm, which will get us back to school between 6 and 6:30 pm. We will text with a more accurate time when we are on our way home.

Being dressed for the mountain conditions makes such a difference to the enjoyment of the day. Below is a reminder of what your child will need. 

• Several thin layers are much better for keeping warm and comfortable than a bulky layer. Cotton is not great for the mountains; thermal clothing is what’s needed.
• Polypro or woolen thermal top
• Thermal ‘long-johns’ or tights
• Fleece or woolen top / jersey
• Waterproof pants
• A warm weatherproof jacket
• Woolen or thermal socks, not too thick. Socks need to come up to mid calf at least.
• Weatherproof gloves or mittens
• Either sun glasses or ski goggles
• A scarf is optional, but must be tucked into their jacket, to avoid dangling ends.
• Hats are not needed as all children will be given a helmet
• Sunscreen, for the face
• A substantial lunch, including a drink. The mountain cafe is very expensive. Children may bring some money for a hot drink or snack, but please also pack a lunch. They are responsible for looking after any money they bring.
• Long hair needs to be tied up. Children who get asthma should have their inhalers with them.

Plan for the day:

7:20 arrive at school, on Sandwich Rd. Buses and cars leave at 7:30am
9:30 - 9:45 we will arrive at the ski field car park
10:00 morning tea on the deck
10:15 ski hire sorted (those with their own gear will meet a parent for a short ski)
11:00 lessons start. Everyone has a lesson, even the experienced skiers.
12:30 lunch on the deck or in the cafe
12:45 - 3:30 Have fun skiing with your friends.
3:30 return gear and back to the bus
4:00 buses leave
6:00 - 6:30 we arrive back at school

Parent Helpers:

Many thanks to the following people who have offered to help out on the mountain.

Skiers: Matt Cowie, Stu Clarke, Joe Evans, Tony Sice, Liz May, Brett Cooper, Mami Mori, Stuart Gray, Jane Brittenden, Brett Sutherland, Matt Cornfoot, Dave McLoughlin, Adam Cooper, Matthew Reid

Non-skiers: Naska Borlase,  Kellyanne Bullen, Kate Packer

We have five teaching staff going, including Nigel, as well as our youth worker, Dave. Many thanks to those who have sorted their $58 for this trip. We would appreciate the rest of the money in ASAP. 

Mountain Biking Parent Help Required

Next term Jenny will be running her very popular mountain biking passion. Please click this link to see what is involved and indicate if you can help.

Parenting Week

‘Strategies to help your family through the difficult times and enjoy being together’

‘Neighbourhood Trust is proud to bring you Parenting Week here in Canterbury. It’s happening from the 9th to 19th September and has around 30 events for any stage of parenting. They have a great line-up of experts including Mike King, Pio Terei, Dr Sue Bagshaw, Jenny Hale and Jax Hamilton, all right here.

 Their facebook page: Parenting Week, Christchurch www.facebook.com/parentingweekchch has all the events listed and more information.