Kaitake

The wonderful Kaitake class! Taught by Jonathan Faapoi.

Kia Ora! My name is Jonathan Faapoi and I am the teacher in Kaitake room. This is my 5th year teaching at Midhirst School and I love the rural feel and friendly community. Some of my passions are music and sports and I enjoy sharing these passions with the Tamariki.

Liz learning assistant

Weet-bix try challenge

In week four we were joined by Avon school to take part in the awesome Weet-bix try challenge. After our powhiri Avon school went first and they absolutely smashed the course. Then it was Nga motu's turn and they had some super fast runners. After a couple more classes it was our turn and believe me we weren't waiting around. First we scurried under the giant ropes and leaped through the tires, next we slid down the optional water slide and weaved through the maze of ropes, next we had to get the ball in the bucket. After that we had hurdles and went through the giant Toyota town inflatable castle and finally, we crossed the finish line where there was a shiny medal and a fresh bowl of Weet-Bix and peaches waiting for us.

By Jethro Dixon (Year 7 student)

Puanga Art Celebration:

Puanga Artwork in Kaitake Class
Recently in Kaitake class, we created Puanga artwork.
We were split into different groups to complete our art. One group was with Mr Sands (our principal), one was with Mr Faapoi, one with Miss Tett, and one with Miss W.

Each group did a different kind of artwork:

Mr Faapoi’s group made paper Puanga stars. Each point of the star represented something special about Puanga.
Miss W’s group created pastel art. They drew a Marae with Mt Taranaki in the background and a river.
Miss Tett’s group made koru designs using pastel and Indian ink.
Mr Sands’s group used 3D printing to create a Tungāne Whā and Mt Taranaki artwork, decorated with star stickers and coloured paper.

Happy Puanga!
By Mackenzie Lett (Year 7 student)

Marae Trip

In Week 7, the three senior classes visited Whakaurangi Marae. We experienced a pōwhiri and learned about the rules and customs of the marae. During the day, we took part in various activities.

Later in the afternoon, the Year 4 and some Year 5 students returned to school, while the remaining Year 5s, along with Year 6, 7, and 8 students, stayed the night. For dinner, we had hāngi, followed by jelly and ice cream for dessert. We slept on beds that were surprisingly comfortable!

From: Ashlee Jordan (Year 7 Student)

Structured Literacy

At Midhirst school we follow a Structured Literacy approach for the teaching of Reading, Writing, Handwriting and Spelling. Structured Literacy is explicit, systematic, and sequential teaching of literacy at multiple levels – phonemes, letter–sound relationships, syllable patterns, morphemes, vocabulary, sentence structure, paragraph structure, and text structure.

In Kaitake class for structured literacy we use the Code to focus on spelling patterns, rules and morphology and a range of different texts including: decodables, novels and sophisticated picture books all integrated together to explicitly teach reading, writing and spelling.

PR1M3 Math

At Midhirst School we follow the Prime Math programme as our main approach to mathematical teaching and learning. This programme is built on clear, well-structured progressions that map a pathway through year 1-8 based on practices used by top performing countries in international studies. The Prime math programme follows two foundational principles.

Principle 1: Teaching is for learning; learning is for understanding; understanding is for reasoning and applying and, ultimately problem solving.

Principle 2: Teaching should build on students’ knowledge; take cognisance of students’ interests and experiences; and engage them in active and reflective learning.

Important Links for Home Learning:

Maths Buddy Seesaw ReadWorks

jonathan@midhirst.school.nz

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