Happy holidays

Hi Everyone,

This is the last blog entry for the year. The class now stands silently empty, the chairs and tables all stacked up in the middle of the room and my class roll for 2009 has been signed off.

I want to thank-you all for an amazing year. Every student has worked incredibly hard and achieved personal success. I am so very proud of you all and know that you will go on to do great and wondrous things. Next year will be a new year of learning adventures and you are ready for a new challenge. Enjoy the break, play LOTS! you have earned the break. Listen to your Mum and Dad - even when you think they are just being grumpy -they love you and know you better than you think.

To my wonderful amazing supportive parents - THANK-YOU! Thank-you for being part of our learning team. I couldn't do what I do in the classroom without your support and insight. It really does take a village to raise a child and I thank-you for all the cutting, pasting, listening to reading, phone calling, trip supervision, spelling testing, photocopying, electrical circuit making, gluing and emails. Just brilliant -your children are lucky to have you!

Enjoy the holidays and summer sun. Keep safe and I look forward to catching up with you all in the New Year.

Don't be a stranger
Merry, merry Christmas
With love
Deborah, Leighton and Kaitlyn.
PS "Woof" from Anya the dog.

Interesting News

Today Hamish shared a photo from a wildlife photographer capturing a hippo attack on a crocodile.

Here is a link to the NZ Herald website for the whole sequence.

T4 Weekly 6

Dear Parents,
Today Ms Radford will be in Room 2 while I am on Classroom Release (CRT). I will be using my time to analyse all the data from our Reading and Math testing and beginning to write reports. It is an exciting time of year when the final testing has been completed and the analysis begins. It’s wonderful to look back on results from February and March and look at the learning that has taken place, as well as set new learning goals for the year ahead.
This week we have a couple of interesting visitors to our school. Today “The Cabbages” a drumming group will be performing in the hall at 11am. I’m sure your child will update you on the different beats and sound that they heard, I think it should be quite a talking point. On Friday we have author Christine Fernyhough sharing her story. Christine runs Castle Hill Station, near Porters Pass in Canterbury, with her husband John Bougen. An ardent advocate of learning and reading, she was the founder of Books in Homes and later the Gifted Kids programme.
Speaking of events, our PTA put together a wonderful Christmas Market on Thursday night last week. It was fabulous to see so many Meadowbank parents perusing the aisles and taking advantages of some fantastic bargins. Don’t forget if you see any of the organisers in person to pass on your compliments. I know this event took a huge amount of preparation and organisation.
The roadworks at the front of the school continue this week and our new footpath and driveway are underway. Please take extra care on Waiatarua Road during morning drop off and afternoon pick up. There are lots of moving trucks, cones and children and visibility can be difficult.
When was the last time you logged onto our blog? Have you voted in our online poll yet? Have you watched the video of our Assembly performance? Did you make a comment?
Have a super week!

T4 Weekly 5

Dear Parents,
It was fabulous to see so many of our Room 2 parents in the audience at our assembly presentation on Friday. I know many of you made special work arrangements to be able to attend and the children just beamed when you arrived! They worked so hard on their dance, learning new steps, keeping in time and working as a group to choreograph the final sequence. It was wonderful to see them up on stage under the spotlights and everything coming together beautifully.

Congratulations Room 2 you did an amazing job and Im so very proud of you!!

Today we head off on the bus for our Athletics Day. We have had many many opportunities to develop our skills in long jump, high jump, throwing, sprinting and relay racing. It’s been great to see so many children approaching new activities with a “Can Do!” attitude. We have also been fortunate to have both Miss Crofskey’s specialised instruction and outside expertise from Jane Kiely who has represented New Zealand in long jump on many occasions.
This week is also our final week of assessments in the lead up to report writing. I have been really impressed with the improvement in Reading in the past few months, particularly in their comprehension and knowledge of what to do when it doesn’t make sense or I don’t know a word. Keep up the great reading support at home, together we are making great progress. A big thank-you as well to our Mums who have been assisting with spelling. Your time is greatly appreciated.
Have a super week! If you have additional photos of our assembly please email them in and don’t forget to vote on our online global travel poll!!

Athletics Update

Athletics Day UPDATE

Just a reminder that Children need to be at school at 8.15am on Monday wearing their House colours.



Hilary Yellow

Batten Green

Rutherford Red

Sheppard Blue



All children are to bring

Warm and waterproof clothing

Hat

Sunscreen

Sports shoes

Food and drink to last the whole day



Children should come to school prepared for sports regardless of the weather. You can ring the school after 8.30am to check whether the Athletics Day has been cancelled.

IF, this happens Athletics will be held at school on Wednesday the 11th of November.



Parents may like to bring their running shoes and shorts for a student, parent, and teacher relay at the end of the programme. Please see Miss Krofskey early in the day if you are keen to run!

Parents are also able to purchase coffee as the Coffee Guy will be there, the Food Caravan will be closed.



Regards,

Deborah Gosnell

T4 Weekly 4

Dear Parents,
We are getting really excited about our Assembly this Friday. We start at 2pm SHARP so best be here early to grab a seat and get settled. Our class is up first and I would hate for you to miss our “bit.” The children have been asked to bring their costume –black top and pants in a plastic bag on Wednesday for our rehearsal. It will stay at school on Wednesday and go home on Friday after our performance.
This week is our data collection week on assessment. There is lots of math, reading, and listening testing happening in the lead up to report writing. We are currently revising our spelling lists and looking at our “HOT” words. These are the words that we find tricky off our essential lists. To move up a list children must be able to spell all words accurately – so we are really “going to war” on our HOT words. It is also the time of the year where we see how many addition and subtraction facts students can solve in 2½minutes. There are 25 facts in total and focus on knowledge up to 20.
Eg.
2 + 4 =___
7 + ___ = 16
___+ 9 = 14
14 - ___ = 6
Your child will be keen for any extra practice they can get this week.
I still need a number of Athletic’s Day permission slips to be returned. Please can you get those back to me as soon as possible. At present I only have permission for half the class.
Regards, Deborah Gosnell

Bollywood comes to Room 2

So you think you can dance?? Have you tried Bollywood dancing??

Room 2 have been using the Youtube clips below to assist us in exploring bollywood dance as part of our Globalisation unit on Connecting to Asia. Go on be daring click on play and give it a go!!

Part One


Part Two


Part Three


We have absolutely loved it, although some of the moves are quite tricky. We have also thought up new names for each of the moves. Ask your child about "Throwing the ball" "The sun is rising" or "The Snake"

T4 Weekly 3

Dear Parents,
I trust you all enjoyed the long weekend. We did the traditional tackle the gardens for Labour Weekend and are now looking forward to fresh summer veges!
Room 2 have their Assembly presentation on Friday 6th of November. (Yes! Next week.) I am asking that the class wear black clothing for their dance and I will look at purchasing some indian print to make sashes. Black shorts, pants, skirt, tights it doesn’t matter so please do not stress. Blue jeans and a black top are also fine if you really don’t have anything. Let me know if you have any indian cloth that you are happy to donate or I will head off to purchase some on Friday afterschool.
Mr Mac is in our room on Tuesday and Wednesday this week as I have Senior Teacher Release and a Conference in Red Beach on those days. We are also looking at updating our Parent Contact list as we have had some change of addresses and enrolments. Please let me know if you are happy for your name and your child’s name, address and phone number to be added to the contact list AND if there have been any changes to your contact details. Just write these in your child's homework book.
This week is production week. The Year 6’s have worked incredibly hard to put together a topic and sophisticated production. Make sure you get your tickets early as this will definitely be a sell out show.
Regards, Deborah Gosnell

Celebrating 350 Day

First Mrs Gosnell drew the 350 signs then Rm2 put finger prints on the 350 sign. We had to count 350 very carefully. We used green paint because 350 is about climate change our sign is a play on the gardening phrase "Having a green thumb." We all had green fingers!!

By Sophia and Madison

www.350.org

Clowning around in Room 2

Diwali Trip

Last week Room 2 went to see a Diwali Festival performance. We really enjoyed going on the buses and the chance to learn something new about another culture. The puppets were really funny. They stuck in mind because they were really bright and colourful. They danced all around the stage. The dancing was really interesting to watch. The music was catchy and interesting to listen too. It played in my mind for the rest of the afternoon.

By Hamish and Zoe

T4 Weekly 2

Dear Parents,

Room 2 is really picking up speed as we head into the final term of the year. No doubt you will have seen our term calendar in the newsletter and noticed just how many things are on, -it really is an exciting time. In Room 2 we have been discussing the importance of personal responsibility and independent organisation as part of the lead into Year 4 next year. Yes, the junior school years are almost over and we join the BIG kids. To aid this, Room 2 has made up independent get ready charts for the children to use by themselves to be prepared for events in their day. As part of homework this week you may like to discuss the routines and expectations that you have as a family. This may be chores around the house, routines before and after school or sporting commitments.
Our Globalisation topic is well underway. I would like to thank those parents who attended our trip to the Diwali performance, and also those who have dropped in items from Asia for our topic table. Our table display is growing quickly and we are keen to see new items from anywhere in Asia. At the moment we have some things from China, India and Malaysia.
Have you got anything at your house?
A reminder that this term that results of basic fact and spelling testing will be in the end of year report. It’s a good time to make sure that your child is participating in the weekly Mathletic challenge and completing weekly spelling practice.
Enjoy the long weekend this week

Regards Deborah Gosnell

Term Four!

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Welcome to Term 4. Our school-wide concept this term is Globalisation. We will be looking at what it means to be part of a global community and what is means to be a global citizen. Our Year 3 emphasis is “Connecting with Asia.”

In Literacy we will be continuing our focus on Narrative writing by exploring Myths and Legends. Myths and Legends help us to reflect on our own lives because they often deal with issues that are cross-cultural and have relevance across time. Later in the term we will be looking at report writing and exploring how to present factual information in a concise manner using a specific structure.

Mathematics this term we will start and finish with a focus on Measurement. Students will kick off with 2 weeks exploring Volume and Capacity, before moving into a 6 week block focused on developing both their knowledge and strategy understanding of Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication and Division. The final 2 weeks of the term will again focus on Measurement, this time exploring Mass. Mathletics will continue as a school and home base task with our goal of all children achieving 1000 points each week.

In P.E. under the heading of Athletics we will be developing throwing techniques, long jump, long distance running and relays. In the second half of the term there will be a focus on striking particularly in softball, cricket and tennis. Towards the end of the year if the swimming pool is ready for action there will be an opportunity to explore flipperball and waterpolo skills. Our Year 3 sports afternoon will continue on Wednesdays, this involves all Year 3 students in mixed teams.

Reports will also be sent home later this term and closer to the end of the year there will be a week of data collection ready for Year Four. This term children are required to wear their hats as part of our sun-safe policy please make sure that your child has a named hat at school.

We look forward to a fantastic term of learning.

Cross Country

On Thursday the 13th of August we walked to College Rifles to do our cross country. The Year 3 girls went first. Hannah came first out of the Year 3 girls, Emily came second and Sophie came third. Then it was the year three boys. Our class did really well! Louis came first, Nathan came second and Alec came third. The race was fantastic. Louis and Alec are in our class. We had a good time but it was a long way. We were pleased we had run a lot of practice races.

By Jaden and Louis

ElectroCity –THE GAME!

You will be given complete control over a small town within New Zealand. What you do with that town is up to you. You can build stuff, destroy stuff, and even leave stuff alone. You can get loads of money! You can buy stuff, but when you click on it there is bad and good stuff so be careful. On the icy mountain you can build a ski field.
If you build an airstrip and keep clicking on it to make a international airport. That gives you more population and money. At the end you will have a score based on your game. When you finish the game you will get rated on how well you do. You can get A+ -that is the hightest rating. That means you are really good. Your overall score is based on your environment, population and money.

Have a go click on the link below
Electrocity

By Henry and Elliot

Term Three Weekly 3

In Written Language we have been learning about character description. You may like to ask your child about the clown they are creating. We are having lots of fun learning about adjectives, similies, physical descriptions, characteristics and quirks that our clown might have. There are some great ideas and we look forward to presenting them in a few weeks. – Stay tuned!!
Our cross country fitness is going well. We are keeping a record of our personal times and seeing if we can beat it each time we run. It is helpful if the children have appropriate shoes for running. We have been very lucky with the weather and are looking forward to cross country next week.
Next week we also have our trip to MOTAT!! We are really looking forward to learning more about electricity and exploring their equipment. Thank-you to everyone who has returned their trip form and to all our offers of parent help. It will be a fun day!

Term Three Weekly 2

We are increasing our focus on basic facts and vocabulary after analysing our Numeracy and Literacy data. Please support your child with making sure they complete their timed basic facts challenge, we are endeavouring to increase the accuracy and speed of our basic facts. The vocabulary box is a chance to brainstorm as many words that you can use instead of the one written. This weeks word is said, I am expecting students to write at least 5 other words they could use –eg, whispered, shouted. It is an open ended activity and each week children will be challenged to think outside the square. Some weeks will focus on the meanings of words, chunks or word endings or like this week, words you can use instead. I have also added more detail to our reading log and an opportunity to record how often your child achieves 1000points on Mathletics. Let me know how it goes and what you think of our new format.

Room 2 also thought that it would be a good idea to post our school stationery list so that we can check it from home.
English, Written Language, Topic (1I5)book $1.30, Maths (1H5)book $1.40, Pencil 60c, Rubber 80c, Ruler 80c, Sharpener 30c, Highlighter $1.60, Glue Stick $2.50, Library bag $5 and Pencil grip $2.50

Regards, Deborah Gosnell

Term Three Weekly 1

I hope you all had a fabulous holiday. The children have been all a buzz this morning with their adventures and have written some fabulous recounts in postcard format. I will be putting these together into a display in our written language area along with our instructional writing from last term.

We are lucky to have three students from Korea joining us this term. We would like to extend a warm kiwi welcome to Ji Eun, Nan Joo and Dong Hun who are here for the next three weeks. We are enjoying learning about Korea as well as celebrating our differences and similarities.

We are starting our class fitness programme 3 days a week as a lead up to the school cross country in Week 4. As with all new things we will be starting slow and building up the distance that we run. We will also be talking about healthy living so everything fits together nicely. We have discussed healthy foods for lunches today and the importance of drinking water. Feel free to continue the discussion at home or chat about it when shopping.

Term 3 is a busy term so please read through our upcoming events and mark important dates like Parent Interviews, Cross Country, Y3 trip, Talent Quest, Science and Technology Exhibition etc

World Environment Day

Room 2 are all about the phrase

Reduce, ReUse, Recycle

We are asking questions about our habits and taking responsibility for our waste. This term has seen us change our recycling bins to fall inline with the council recycling colours. Red for waste and Blue for recycling. Interestingly we are now more effective with our recycling and dont make as many mistakes. We are running a survey at the moment to find out who does the recycling at home. Is it the responsibility of the whole family, or does Dad do it just before the rubbish truck comes??

What happens at your house? Answer our poll!!

Room 2s Anthem

Did you know that KiwiKids have their own anthem. I have decided to adopt the following song as our anthem and slogan for our blog.

Yup
The Dynamic World of Room 2

-Where kiwi kids are ROCKIN IT!!


Here are the lyrics... I hope to learn how to embed the track so you can have a listen in the next few days.

Kiwi Kids are Rockin' it!

Now the show begins
As the spotlight beams upon us you can see us centre stage
We're your kids, your hope. We're the heroes of the future
We're the new, unwritten page
The time has come around at last for us to show the world that...

Chorus
Kiwi kids are rockin' it, rockin' it
Kiwi kids are tops
Kiwi kids are living it, living it
Look what we've got
Kids can do anything, anything
Give it a try
Kiwi kids are rockin' it, rockin' it
Just watch us fly!

Now the game begins
You can see us from the sidelines, we are in the winning team
We're the best there is, we can take it to the limit
We can live our wildest dreams!
The time has come around at last for us to show the world that...
Repeat Chorus

Our Presentation Assembly

If you would like to see the full size voice thread click here.

Sherbit Fizz

If you would like to see the full size voice thread click here.

"Just a Minute" speeches

If you would like to see the full size voice thread click here.

Innovation

If you would like to see a bigger version of this voice thread. Click here

Welcome to Room 2's Blog

Hi there,

Room 2 is an exciting class with 24 amazing learners, 14 boys and 10 girls. We are looking forward to developing our blog throughout the year and being able to showcase the wonderful learning happening in Room 2.

We hope you enjoy reading about all our discoveries,
Regards
Mrs Gosnell and the students of Room 2