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Pink Shirt Day 2024 at Peria School

Kia ora Koutou,As winter beacons we come to think of the approaching Māori New Year that is signified by the appearance of the starcluster ‘Matariki’ and the special star Puanga. Our students will be learning about the significance of these stars andthe Māori New Year throughout this term and into the new term.Our teaching staff were away last week at a Professional learning day at Oromahoe School. One area of focus this yearis on learning effective strategies to teach Mathematics. We have made this a goal in our School Strategic Plan andnow we begin our work on it. We are working with Sue Pine from ‘The learner first’ which is an educational groupthat has worked in thousands of schools across NZ and Australia to improve Maths outcomes for students bysupporting teachers to grow their teaching and learning knowledge in Maths. We were seeking expertise in Mathsand we found it in this group and they just happened to be having their first workshop with Oromahoe School so wejumped at the chance to be a part of this session. Our teachers got the opportunity to observe Sue teaching Mathsstrategies to different year groups of students at Oromahoe School. The teachers and myself got so many usefullearnings out of the day. We look forward to undertaking really rigorous and intensive Maths PD with Sue.You may have also noticed that on Monday the teachers were again out of the classrooms. We have decided to take awhole school approach to all planning and professional development. The reason for this is to ensure consistency ofpractice and teaching across the school. On Monday we looked at a couple of books from some well regardededucationalists. The books were called ‘The Knowledge Gap’ and ‘The Writing Revolution’ and the authors are NatalieWexler and Judith Hochman. The authors highlight the inability for students to learn how to read and write in ameaningful way if they do not have the subject knowledge needed to write about the topic. An example would be forstudents to have to write a report on World War 1 if they haven’t been taught that content, or if they are asked tosummarise Te Tiriti o Waitangi if they do not have the knowledge to do so. So at our kura we are determined to teachthrough a knowledge based curriculum, where students learn knowledge about subjects in an in depth way so theycan use all their knowledge as a basis for all learning, in all curriculum areas, connected of course to local stories andhistories and Te Ao Māori concepts. We are sorry if this seems unsettling at the time for students but in the long runhaving these days are invaluable for our teachers to be able to teach and learn effectively and feel enthusiastic andexcited about the mahi they do.The Topic we are focusing on this term in the classes is on ‘Plants’ and we are going through this subject step by stepand learning about plants in our writing, in our reading, through Science, The Arts and Maths. We look forward tonoticing more engagement in the Topic and more of an ability for students to write about concepts such asphotosynthesis, pollination or what plants need to grow. We are linking this to Te āo Māori through the Matariki stars- Tupuānuku - The third star, which is associated with food grown in the ground. You can look upon this star and set anintention to get out into your veggie garden. June is a great time to plant winter vegetables such as spinach, silverbeet, lettuce, onions, and peas. Homegrown kai that can be shared with whānau and friends. Tupuārangi,the fourthstar, which is associated with food that comes from the sky and is linked to birds. Traditionally kererū were harvestedaround this time. It is also connected to the harvesting of elevated foods such as berries and fruits. Winter berries andfruits can be harvested around this time. Such as kiwifruit, feijoa, lemons, limes, oranges, mandarins, andpassionfruit.I have already learnt so much these last couple of weeks in terms of teaching and learning but also about our Topicand I can’t wait to learn more. Ngā mihi, Whaea Ari.

Board of Trustees NoticesIf you would like to get in contact with the Board of Trustees please email Nikole and attention BoT atoffice@peria.school.nzOur next BoT meeting will be held on the 26th of June 2024, 5:30pm at Peria SchoolPeria School Policies and ProceduresWe utilise SchoolDocs for its set of policies and procedures.SchoolDocs policies incorporate all of Peria School's legislative and regulatory requirements.To view our complete set of policies and procedures, please follow this link.Sign in with username: peria and password: oruruOnce in use the search feature to locate school policy or procedural information.Dental clinic contact detailsPhone: 0800 698 3384Mobile: 021 576 594Website: https://www.northlanddhb.org.nz/myteethKAUHANGA MARAE PERIA - HEALTH CLINICTUESDAY 16 TH April 2024: 10.00am – 1.00pmTUESDAY 21 ST May 2024: 10.00am – 1.00pmTUESDAY 18 th June 2024: 10.00am – 1.00pmTUESDAY 23 rd July 2024: 10.00am – 1.00pmFREE CONSULTATION – Exam vitals – ScriptsPlease register inside the Marae on arrivalConsultation in Mobile ClinicFREE FLU VACCINATIONALL WELCOME

Kia ora e te whānau,We had a rubbish clean up day last week. Thanks to all of you that came along! It made us really aware of how muchwaste we produce as a kura and where it all ends up (out in the environment!) We respectfully ask that children takehome their rubbish from now on so we become more mindful of the waste we produce. Remember: reduce, reuse,recycle!We also celebrated Pink Shirt Day last week. Thanks to those that came dressed in some form of pink! We learntabout the history of pink: Did you know that pink used to be a 'boys colour'? In 1918 the trade publication Earnshaw’sInfants’ Department claimed the “generally accepted rule is pink for the boys, and blue for the girls. The reason is thatpink, being a more decided and stronger colour, is more suitable for the boy, while blue, which is more delicate anddainty, is prettier for the girl.” The same way it is accepted that boys can be soft and gentle these days, while girls canbe strong and assertive, our view on colours has changed over the years too. Most people these days agree thatcolours are for everyone and you can wear whatever you want. Check out the shirt we designed about ways we canprevent senseless bullying about what people wear, look like or enjoy doing.The children met Constable Mandy on Tuesday who taught us about road safety. We talked about always crossing theroad with an adult, always wearing a seatbelt and not using a cell phone while driving. Ask your child to tell you the 3things they need to do if they’re crossing the road! We also were super excited about a police car colouringcompetition. Some of us even spent all lunchtime colouring in! Next Wednesday Constable Mandy will be back and wewill find out what the prize is!Nga mihi all,Whaea DominiqueThe shirt Te Puna designed!

Kia Ora Whanau,There’s been lots happening in Te Awa over the last couple of weeks.This week we are focusing on Road Safety and many students from Te Awa designed a bike helmet to put in acompetition. The entries have been sent, and now we just need to wait to see if any of our creative students won theircategory.Last week our focus was on Pink Shirt day where we worked together to design a class pink shirt. What an awesomedesign. We had fun modelling it and showing off our own pink shirt costumes. It was a great opportunity to rememberthat we are kind to others, and accept other people's cultures and choices of colour and styles.Last week we also had a great Clean Up Day around our school. Even though it didn’t look very messy, it wassurprising how much rubbish we found around the fence lines and in the bushes. Also as part of our enviro schoolaction, we are now bringing home any rubbish except food scraps from our snacks. This is to help us be mindful ofwhat packaging comes to school. Also, if your child eats snacks supplied by school, you will be able to see by thepackaging that comes home.At school this week, we have enjoyed kapahaka and rippa rugby. See our photos.Thanks for helping your child at home with learning their spelling and maths facts, and returning library books andreaders for Thursday. Please spend as much time as you can reading to, and listening to them read. It’s the bestinvestment you can make in their education.RegardsWhaea Jo

I was really proud to come back to class on Tuesday morning (after a coupleof days out of the classroom alongside the rest of the teaching team learningand working on various teaching areas) only to have heard from a couple ofsources that Te Moana students, while spilt out across the school carriedthemselves really well. They got on with their mahi that I set for them tocomplete independently, they were kind, helpful and respectful. At thebeginning of the year we spent a lot of time setting up the culture of ourclassroom, and while we are all together with the shared understanding andexpectation that can be easy enough to maintain. It’s outside our space whenit can be challenging or easy to stray from this, but Te Moana have shownthat they can hold true to our values. It was also really evident to me that they stuck on task as Ilooked through their workbooks and saw all the work they had achieved! Ka pai to mahi tamariki ma!Every Monday we have a school assembly. Our whole school gets together and celebrates studentachievements, birthdays and classes taking turns running the assembly. Last week was Te Moana’sturn to lead the assembly and showcase some of our mahi. Leading up to that assembly we hadbeen learning sign language for New Zealand Sign Language week. We learnt how to introduceourselves using sign language and the sign lyrics to Six60’s song Pepeha. I think it was safe to saythat we wowed the rest of our Peria School whanau with our performance! Many students were notonly able to introduce themselves, but learned how to sign other peoples names! I am constantlyamazed by how our students not only meet challenges but also surpass them, elevating theirlearning to the next level! Pink Shirt Day was a great success here at Peria School. Te Moana hadsome great anti bullying messages to share with the world. A couple that really stood out for mecame from Indy Baker with “Let your inner pink out” and Dallas McQueen with “Don’t be mean, be akind Queen.” We had a fun little parade just before lunch to show off our PINK dress up’s and ourPINK t-shirt designs.Mā te wā!Give it a go whanau, you can do it too! https://nzslweek.org.nz/resources/posters-and-pamphlets/

Our Term So Far…In our Maths sessions, students have been honing their skills through the steps of Noticing,Thinking, Wondering, and Reasoning. These steps are crucial as they help students develop adeeper understanding of mathematical concepts, foster critical thinking, and enhanceproblem-solving abilities. We've been focusing on number patterns and the order ofoperations using BEDMAS (PEDMAS), ensuring students grasp the importance of sequence incalculations.In Literacy, we've been exploring what ignites our enthusiasm and interests. Students havebeen turning these passions into meaningful content, using them as a foundation to craftsimple and complex sentences. This approach not only makes writing more engaging butalso helps students connect their learning to personal experiences and interests.I am immensely proud of the focus and commitment Te Rangi students have demonstratedthis term. Their enthusiasm for learning is evident, and I eagerly anticipate the excitingeducational journeys that lie ahead for the rest of the term.We've also been fortunate enough to participate in some fantastic workshops recently.Sharee from EcoSolutions has guided us through "Compost Connection" teaching ourtamariki all about composting, and has also taught us how to make wildflower seed bombsfrom recycled paper. These engaging sessions have been both educational and fun foreveryone involved.

Kia ora e te whānau !Makerspace this term is students' hands on engaging in prepping for the time of Puanga / Matariki (TheMāori New Year).In MakerSpace we are focussing on getting kapa haka under our belts, then secondly we are working onturning the makerspace into a stage ready for the end of term Ka Hui Hikitia (celebration assembly) in whichthe students will share their kapa haka bracket and schoolwide learning with whānau.We have been invited to perform a Kapahaka bracket at Kauhanga Marae, most of our students have neverperformed kapa haka - so they're learning it all - not just repeating the kupu (words) - but learning what theymean and how to express the mana within them.We are very lucky to have Whaea Ren and Matua Tawiti as the kapa haka Kaiako (teachers) for this term -the energy and passion these two are bringing to ensure these kids will stand strong on stage is awesome!!!Learning the kapa haka waiata and some of the pūrakau (knowledge) and whakapapa (links) is important tocentre the students in the time of Puanga.The kids will engage in stage design, communicating through nga toi, and kapa haka uniform creation &t-shirt designing and creating, to connect to and be a part of sharing the time of Puanga/Matariki. The firstpart of this is learning kapa haka (waiata and haka) - everything else will revolve around this, the stagedesign, learning the stories and sharing them through visual language on t-shirts is all part of making ourstudents stand strong as they look to the future. We can't wait to share with you our kapa haka bracket atour Ka Hui Hikitia - this will be a rehearsal for us too for the bigger event at Kauhanga in the school holidays.This is an ambitious project - but the kids can do mega things when we have faith in them :)Kia pai tō rāWhaea Ren, Whaea Josephine, and Mātua Tawiti.

Rubbish Clean Up Day: A Huge Success!Yay!! We are thrilled to announce the successful completion of our first Rubbish Clean Up Day! A massiveTHANK YOU goes out to everyone who participated. To the parents who worked alongside us, REAP’s roadsafety advisers, and Constable Mandy for ensuring the safety of our tamariki while working on theroadside—your support was invaluable.Creating opportunities for our students to give back and connect with their community and local environmentis incredibly important. Kaitiakitanga, one of our core school values, was beautifully demonstrated by all thestudents, staff, whānau, and community members who took part in this event. I couldn’t be prouder of thecollective effort and the commitment to environmental stewardship shown by everyone involved.We look forward to making this a regular event and are excited to see which area we will care for next!Waste Reduction and Recycling InitiativesJust a reminder, to promote mindfulness about waste production, we have implemented a new policy: anynon-recyclable or non-compostable lunchbox waste will be sent home with students. This initiative aims toencourage families to consider the types of materials used in lunch packaging and to minimiseunnecessary waste generation. Similar strategies have been successfully implemented in neighbouringschools, fostering more conscious consumption habits among students.Furthermore, we are excited to announce upcoming workshops where students will have the opportunity tocraft their own reusable food packaging. These workshops will empower students to take practical stepstowards reducing single-use plastics and embracing sustainable alternatives.