Week 7, Term 2

Here are some champions from Renwick 3 from Week 7.

This week in Renwick 3 we have introduced a programme called 'Star of the Day'. It is to reward children who demonstrate a positive attitude towards their learning and behaviour at school. This very prestigious title includes many privileges for the recipient, which include...

* Sitting in the grand chair for the day
* Being the leader if we are walking around the school
* Taking notices to the office
* Assisting the teacher with special jobs as required
* Taking home Humphrey for one night with his overnight bag and activities

When Humphrey comes home to your house for the night be sure to drown your child in praise as this is a great honour!

Next week ....

Our letters will be o/u or ch/sh. The words will be on & up or she & shout.
This is our last week of number for the term as for the last 2 weeks we will be working on topic maths which is 'time'. Our skip counting is going superbly well! Most of us have mastered counting to 100 in 10's and we are working on 5's now. We are also continuing to work on backward number sequence, that is, counting backwards from 20 and stating the number that comes before a given number.
For P.E. we have decided to push large ball skills into next term and bring forward skipping. This helps us to share resources with other syndicates as well as keep the children off the muddy grass!

Have a happy week!

Week 6, Term 2

As it was the letter 'm' we were learning about this week we thought it only fitting to make milkshakes with milk and milo!




This week we had our Annual School Cross Country. We ran like champions!
Here are some shots of us lining up before the race. Unfortunately there aren't too many photos of the actual race because Neroli was either running or cheering too much!!

As part of our Inquiry Learning we went to visit the Landfill and Transfer Station to see what happens to our rubbish and recycling.
When we were at the landfill we spotted lots of things that sadly could have gone to the Transfer Station. Can you see them in the photos?

At the Transfer Station we had so much fun! Our best part was playing with the toys and the sports equipment. We all had a turn sitting on the Land Waka which is a recycled 'bikes'.

Next Week....

Our letters will be 'd' and 'g' or 'y' and 'x'.
Our words will be come, go, your, there.
During maths time skip counting will be our class focus.
Now that the cross country is over we will be concentrating on our large ball skills.
We are really enjoying our time in drama with Jo. A special mention of Kyah and Tate who always give their 100% effort and show outstanding manners.
Our Inquiry topic of '10 Ways to Save the Planet' is coming to an end soon and Steph will embark on the next one before the end of term. It will have a health focus.
Have a happy and safe week!

Week 5, Term 2

Well here we are at the half way mark of this term. We have had a few winter illnesses that have taken the wind out of our sails...but not for long!
Next week we are soooooooooooo looking forward to our friend Karels return. He has been in The Netherlands for 4 weeks.

This week we were very proud of Ben who was player of the day in his soccer team.
Way to go Ben!





















Here are a few funny moments we have had this week.
Mischievious Moments in Renwick 3!

This week in Renwick 3 we received letters from 'George the Giant'. He was happy to see that we are trying our best to look after our earth.
Here we are opening them.
















Next week.....

We are all looking forward to a days rest on Monday for Queens Birthday Weekend.
Our letters will be 'r' and 'm' or 'oo'.
During maths time we are continuing to work on number identification.
Wednesday will be a big day for us. In the morning we are going to visit the Recycling Centre and in the afternoon we will be having our annual school cross country. The children will need suitable footwear and a 'big' lunch.
Just a wee note on reading.
For children who have just started school this term it is important to remember during this early reading stage we are focusing on pointing to each word as we read it,using the picture for 'clues' and identifying high frequency words such as, it, the, on, look, come etc. I do not always expect the children to read the book they bring home word perfect (although they would have read it at least 2-3 times before coming home).
If you feel your child is struggling here are some suggestions...
*Read the book to your child first and then ask them to read it
*You read a page then they read the next page
*Have lots of discussion about the picture/story..if you can, sneak any words into the conversation that you think they might struggle on in the text
*Ask them to find a word (make sure they know it first as we want to ensure success for them)
*And the most important of all is it needs to be fun and followed by praise, praise, praise! You will be surprised how well children respond to being told the are champion of the world!
If you have any concerns, please come and see me.

Have a happy and safe weekend.

Week 4, Term 2

This week we had a wonderful surprise in Renwick 3. We had an email from our friend Karel in The Netherlands.
We wanted to take a funny picture to send to him to make him smile! We are certain it would have worked.
















As part of 'Friday Funday' we decided to make paper darts. It was quite a hard task getting corners to corners and straight lines, however we were very fortunate to have Fiona here as parent help. We all managed to get our darts off the ground and what a lot of fun we had!

As part of our topic work we have read Jack and the Beanstalk. We also listened to another 'Giant' story on the listening post. We have planted some of Jack's seeds and are monitoring their growth closely! We are learning about seeds and growth. This is helping us to learn how to appreciate and look after our earth.

Next week...

Our letters will be 'e' and 'h' or 'ng' and 'v'. Our words will be here, and & all.
During maths time we have been working on ordering numbers. We will continue to work on number knowledge and identification.
For our inquiry topic we will be working on our questioning skills. Even at this young age we introduce the children how to construct a good question that will assist them in the inquiry process. This skill will ensure our children are able to become life long learners.

Have a happy and safe week!

Week 3, Term 2

This week in Renwick 3 we have been learning about the letter 'p'. As a special treat we made popcorn. We used all of our senses. We could hear the crazy popping sound, smell the delicious aromas, feel the rubbery and spongy texture, it looked like fluffy white clouds and it tasted delicious!

We had another super time with our buddies in Room 3 this week. We raced around the school grounds looking for all sorts of different surfaces which we could use for rubbings using paper and crayons. We have created some lovely art work with our findings.

Next week...
It is hard to believe tht next week is Week 4 already!
Our letters will be 'n' and 'c' or 'z' and 'w'. Our words are my, you and can.
During Maths time we will be focusing on ordering numbers.
We are extremely lucky to have secured half hour time slots for all the Kowhai Syndicate classes for Drama with Jo. It is part of our 'Friday Funday' activities and the children love it!
Please also note that Friday is our library day. Children are able to have one book issued for the week but it must be returned by the following Friday in order to take out a new book. Kindly help your child to bring back their book before Friday.
As part of our 'Saving the Planet' topic we are in the process of arranging a trip to the Refuse Station in Tahuna. This will allow the children to see what happens to the recycling once it is on the trucks. The children already seem to have an impressive amount of knowledge about reducing our waste and recycling which is fantastic.
Have a happy week!

Week 2, Term 2

Here are 17 of the 18 champions in Renwick 3! Karel is still in The Netherlands and although we are all missing him we hope he is having a lovely time.
















This week we got together with our new buddies from Room 3. Every Friday we will spend half an hour after lunch doing lots of cool things. This week we were busy making Mothers Day gifts. We hope you enjoyed the results!



































Next week.....

Our letters will be 'ee', 'z' and 'i'. We will be revising high frequency words that begin with 'i' or have that sound in them, such as 'with'. I believe it is of great importance to consolidate what the children have been learning. I am sure this will benefit them immensely.
I have been advising the children if they can access the blog from home to click onto the Poetry link on the left hand side of the page. This will take them to a BBC site with activities for those who are learning two letters with one sound.
Cross country training is going very well! Our big day is planned for 3rd of June. More details will follow in regard to this closer to the time.
During ICT time the children have been working on their photography skills as well as learning about kidpix.
Steph and I are very pleased with the way all of the new children have settled into school. Please remember if you have any concerns we are available before and after school for brief chats. For a more involved chat we are happy to set a convenient time to get together. My email at school is nerolis@nelsoncentral.school.nz if it is easier to contact me this way.
Have a happy and safe week and a big Happy Mothers Day to all you wonderful mums!

Earth Rocks!