Home School Communication

Term 4 week 7                                                                                                                                   This week… In Writing students will write narratives around the theme of sustainability. In Reading we will work on completing our Novel Study. The deadline has been extended to this Friday.  In Maths students are working independently on completing their Measurement/Geometry/Statistics/ Algebra tasks. Students will also work on  improving their understanding of Decimals. For PE we will focus on catch/ throwing and striking games. The year 5/6 classes are doing a PE rotation on Wednesdays to expose our students to a variety of activities.  For Inquiry students are working on personal inquiries on Sustainability. Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes.  Notices/Dates .    We would like to conclude the Readathon this Friday, therefore all monies must be in by Thursday. The monies collected will go towards our class total - winning prize will be shared lunch! Thank you all for your support with this. .    Our swimming day is on Thursdays, so students must have their swimming togs and towel at school. Lunchtime swims have been organised for Wednesdays. Students will be excused from swimming for medical/cultural reasons. Regards Joseph du Plooy Term 4 week 6                                                                                                                                   This week… In Writing students will write poems and work on improving sentences. In Reading we will work on our Novel Study. Students will work on this independently and it is due Friday, week 6. Reading testing continues. In Maths students are working independently on Measurement/Geometry/Statistics/ Algebra tasks. Testing continues. For PE we will focus on catch/ throwing and striking games. The year 5/6 classes are doing a PE rotation on Wednesdays to expose our students to a variety of activities.  For Inquiry students are working on personal inquiries on Sustainability. Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes.  Notices/Dates ·   Thank you for the great costumes last week. We hope that the big focus on reading over the last four weeks has inspired our students to continue reading in their own time. .    We would like to conclude the Readathon this Friday, therefore all monies must be in by Thursday. Thank you all for your support with this. .    Swimming will start shortly, so students must have their swimming togs and towel at school. Lunchtime swims will also be organised. Regards Joseph du Plooy 4 week 3                                                                                                                                   This week… In Writing students will have a discussion on the reasons we should all use less plastic and dispose of it responsibly. In Reading we will work on our Novel Study. Students will work on this independently and it is due Friday, week 6. As part of our Read-a-thon, students will also have  sustained reading time (SSR).  Reading testing continues. In Maths we will solve problems involving addition of decimals. Students will also have a revision exercise to complete.  For PE we will focus on Athletics and Tee-Ball. For Inquiry we have made gardening structures from re-cycled material. Some groups will have time to complete their structures this week. Students are also encouraged to think about their personal inquiry on Sustainability. This week’s Home Learning: Basic facts Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:   Spelling 1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing. 2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding. 3.     Testing on Friday. Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes.  Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper articles, biographies, autobiographies. Notices/Dates ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    School hat are now compulsory. We also want to keep students hydrated in class, so please supply a water bottle. .    Please support your child during our Read-a-thon.  This is to raise funds for our new school library and it will also get them reading. Hopefully the reading bug will bite, if it hasn't done so yet.  .    We will have a Character dress-up day on Friday, 6 November to celebrate the end of our Read-a-thon. Children will then come to school dressed as their favourite book-character. .    Please support our Working Bee this Saturday. 9am start. Regards Joseph du Plooy Term 4 week 2                                                                                                                                   This week… In Writing students will share their powtoon creations of synonyms and antonyms. They will also learn how to use a Cause and effect map to identify cause and effect relationships. In preparation for writing a persuasive argument next week, students will have a discussion on the reasons we should all use less plastic and dispose of it responsibly. In Reading we will work on our Novel Study. Students will work on this independently and it is due Friday, week 6. As part of our Read-a-thon, students will also have  sustained reading time (SSR).  Reading testing continues In Maths we will focus on the Statistics Strand, looking at the modes of transport used by HDS students. This week we will read graphs.Students will also have a revision exercise to complete. For PE we will focus on Athletics and Tee-Ball. For Inquiry the classes of Piha and Te Henga teams will rotate between the rooms to be exposed to different aspects of Sustainability. Students will also assess their current understanding about the topic. We will also be discussing plans for developing our garden in a sustainable way.  This week’s Home Learning: Basic facts Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:   Spelling 1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing. 2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding. 3.     Testing on Friday. Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes.  Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper articles, biographies, autobiographies. Notices/Dates ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    School hat are now compulsory. We also want to keep students hydrated in class, so please supply a water bottle. .    Please support your child during our Read-a-thon.  This is to raise funds for our new school library and it will also get them reading. Hopefully the reading bug will bite, if it hasn't done so yet.  .    We will have a Character dress-up day on Friday, 6 November to celebrate the end of our Read-a-thon. Children will then come to school dressed as their favourite book-character. Regards Joseph du Plooy Term 4 week 1 Welcome back to term 4! From today's sharing time, it sounds like most of us had an exciting holiday. Some of the children have also grown a lot!  The last term is usually full-on and this one won't be any different. Assessments will be on the way almost immediately - week 1. Our Inquiry this term is on 'Sustainability' and we will be asking ourselves, 'Sharing the planet. Why should we care?" This will be integrated through everything we do, as much as possible.

This week… In Writing students will retell a holiday event, compare the structure of two different writing purposes and compile a list of synonyms and antonyms. We will also start on our vocabulary list relating to Sustainability. In Reading we will start on our Novel Study. Students will work on this independently and it is due Friday, week 6. As part of our Read-a-thon, students will also have  sustained reading time (SSR). During group work we will discuss text about Sustainability. Reading testing will start this week as well. In Maths we will focus on the Statistics Strand, looking at the modes of transport used by HDS students. We will hypothesise, organise data using a table and create graphs, using spread sheets. This will hopefully lead to discussions around sustainability (transport) and all the issues Auckland... and the rest of the world are facing. For PE we will focus on Athletics and Tee-Ball In Inquiry students will start on our topic for the term. We usually start with the children thinking about what they already know and what they are wondering about the topic. We will be watching video clips on Sustainability to get them hooked and thinking. They will also use the Question Matrix (a questioning tool) to develop deeper level questions. This will be ongoing.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notices/Dates ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    Warmer days are approaching, so please help to get your child back into the habit to wear a school hat. We want to keep them hydrated in class, so please supply a water bottle. .    Please support your child during our Read-a-thon.  This is to raise funds for our new school library and it will also get them reading. Hopefully the reading bug will bite, if it hasn't done so yet. Recording sheets have gone home today - please initial for every 15 minutes of reading. .    We will have a Character dress-up day on Friday, 6 November to celebrate the end of our Read-a-thon. Children will then come to school dressed as they favourite book-character. .    Variety Bash are coming through our school this Friday (16 October).  They are a charity that supports disabled, disadvantaged and sick children.  Approximately twelve cars will be driven through the back of the school.  To support them we will be having a /mufti day (no theme) on the day - with a gold coin donation.  Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 3 week 10

Thank you for your support during the term. I am sure the students are looking forward to a well-deserved break. Enjoy your young ones. :-)

This week… In Writing students will complete their adverts, write an asstle writing assessment and complete a Spelling assessment. In Maths we will continue with simple ratios and basic facts. For ART we will do marbling and work with silhouettes. On Wednesday, we will have the Puberty Talks. You are welcome to attend the Parent session on Tuesday to hear more about the programme.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home. .    Please support our Read-a-thon by helping your child get sponsors during the holiday. Our Read-a-thon will happen from week 1 -4 next term. Students will have time to read in class, but need to read at home as well. Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 3 week 8

This week… In Writing students will be assessed on the Essential Spelling lists. Students will also update their Journals and write freely about a topic of their choice. In Reading we will focus on specific comprehension strategies, which varies for the different reading groups we have in class. Students will also use this time to work on the Inquiry investigations. In Maths we will learn to solve problems involving simple ratios. For PE we will focus on catching and throwing. In Inquiry students will  do research to investigate their question.  Presentations are due in  week 9.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Please be aware that we'll be visiting Stardome as part of our Inquiry on      14 September 2015.  Home notes have been sent home. Thank you to everyone who've returned their slips already.  .    I have enjoyed listening to every speech during our Class Speech finals. Thank you to Tania for assisting with the judging. Our Senior School Speech Competition will take place this Tuesday, 8 September 2015. Room 4 will be represented by Liz and Scarlett.  .    On Wednesday 23 September 2015, we will have a Positive Puberty Talk programme. An information evening about this will take place on Tuesday 22 September 2015.  An information email has been sent all parents of year 5-8 students. If you did not receive an email, please contact me. Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 3 week 7

This week… In Writing students will work on their persuasive speeches. Our Class Speech Competition is on Wednesday 2 September 2015. Two students will be selected to represent our room in the senior school Competition in week 8. In Reading we will focus on specific comprehension strategies, which varies for the different reading groups we have in class. In Maths we will continue our focus on Division and multiplication. Some students will focus on using known facts and others will solve division problems using proportional adjustment For PE we will focus on catching and throwing. In Inquiry students will  do research to investigate their question.  Students have two weeks before their presentations are due.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Thank you to everyone who've attended our learning conferences. .    Please be aware that we'll be visiting Stardome as part of our Inquiry on      14 September 2015.  Home notes have been sent home. Thank you to everyone who've returned their slips already.  Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 3 week 6

This week… In Writing students will work on their persuasive speeches.  In Reading we will focus on specific comprehension strategies, which varies for the different reading groups we have in class. In Maths we will continue our focus on Division and multiplication. Some students will focus on using known facts and others will solve division problems using proportional adjustment For PE we will focus on Volleyball. In Inquiry students will  develop fact files on planets and select their inquiry question. They will then do research to investigate this question.  Students will have two weeks before their presentations are due.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    A big thank you to all parents who were able to support our Cross Country last week. .    Learning Conferences on Thursday. Please book a slot if you haven't done so yet.  .    Please be aware that we'll be visiting Stardome as part of our Inquiry on     14 September 2015. A home note will be sent this week.  Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 3 week 5

This week… In Writing students will work on their persuasive speeches.  In Reading we will focus on specific comprehension strategies, which varies for the different reading groups we have in class. In Maths we will continue our focus on Division and multiplication.Some students will focus on multiplying tens and others will solve division problems using multiplication. For PE we will focus on Volleyball. In Inquiry students will  learn about the shape of some of the planets' orbits.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    HDS Cross Country will take place this Friday. The year 5/6 races will take place after Morning tea (from 11h20) .    Learning Conferences in week 6.  .    Please be aware that we'll be visiting Stardome as part of our Inquiry on 10 or 14 September 2015. More information and the exact date will follow.  Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 3 week 4

This week… In Writing students will learn to identify and use persuasive strategies. These strategies must be used during speech-writing. In Reading we will focus on specific comprehension strategies, which varies for the different reading groups we have in class. In Maths we will continue our focus on Division and multiplication.This week we will find out how many ones, tens, hundreds and thousands there are in a number. This will strengthen our understanding of Place Value and how our number systems works. For PE we will focus on Volleyball. In Inquiry students will  learn about the Earth's movements relative to the Sun , and the Moon's movements relative to the Earth.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Our cultural evening will be on Wednesday12 August 2015. Their will be a dress rehearsal/matinee performance on afternoon of Tuesday 11 August 2015. .    HDS Cross Country in week 5. .    Learning Conferences in week 6. .    Please be aware that we'll be visiting Stardome as part of our Inquiry on 10 or 14 September 2015. More information and the exact date will follow.  Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 3 week 3

This week… In Writing students will learn to identify and use persuasive strategies. These strategies must be used during speech-writing. In Reading we will focus on specific comprehension strategies, which varies for the different reading groups we have in class. In Maths we will conclude our focus on weighing and start with our focus on Division and multiplication. Students will learn strategies to solve problems that involve multiplication and division.  For PE we will focus on Volleyball. In Inquiry students will conclude their research on the phases of the moon and learn about why we have day and night.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Our cultural evening will be on Wednesday12 August 2015. Their will be a dress rehearsal/matinee performance on afternoon of Tuesday 11 August 2015. .    HDS Cross Country in week 5. .    Learning Conferences in week 6. Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 3 week 2

This week… In Writing students will convince people to live on a different planet. In Reading we will focus on specific comprehension strategies, which varies for the different reading groups we have in class. In Maths we will conclude our focus on Time and start with our focus on weighing. Students will estimate and weigh objects using scales. For PE we will focus on Volleyball. In Inquiry students will learn about the moon and how it affects us.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Learning Conferences will take place during week 6. Please read the news letters for more information about this. .    Our HDS Cross Country Championship will take place in week 5, so please encourage your child to prepare as best as possible. We will practice at school as well. Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 3 week 1

Welcome back! I trust that all of us have enjoyed the break and have 're-charged our batteries'. We have another busy term ahead of us, with learning conferences, etc.

This week… In Writing students will retell a holiday event and a Maori Myth about about the moon. In Reading we will focus on specific comprehension strategies, which varies for the different reading groups we have in class. In Maths we will focus on the Measurement Strand, specifically Time. We will estimate, measure convert between analogue and digital time, and read a train timetable. For PE we will focus on Volleyball. In Inquiry students will start on our topic for the term , which is Space Systems and Exploration.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Learning Conferences will take place during week 6. Please read the news letters for more information about this. .    Our term letter, containing information about what we will be doing this term, will be sent shortly. Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 2 week 11

Thank you for your support during the term. Enjoy your young ones over the holiday.

This week… In Writing students will complete their chosen task on The Maori Myth' he seven sisters of Matariki.' In Reading we will on completing activities about the Maori Myth 'Papa and Rangi'. In Maths we will check activities completed individually during testing. We will also look at decimals and common fractions.  For PE we will focus on Netball. We are working on passing and footwork. In Inquiry students will cutting flax and learn how to weave various objects.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Thursday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Reports will be emailed to you this week. Please celebrate your child's successes.  .    Learning Conferences will take place during week 5 , next term. Regards       Joseph du Plooy

Term 2 week 9

This week… In Reading we will work on increasing our vocabulary, and improve how we use the predict and check strategy. In Maths students will revise strategies already learnt, practice knowledge goals and work on improving Basic facts.  For PE we will focus on Netball. We are working on passing and footwork. In Inquiry students will be completing and presenting their own inquiries.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    This week we will focus on completing our Maths assessments. This will require students to work independently, supported by our Learning Assistant. .     Students on Commonly Misspelt Words lists 1, 2 and 3 will be assessed this week. .     This week our Life Education session is on Wednesday. Our focus is to improve our students' ability to form positive social relationships.  Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 2 week 8

This week… In Reading we will work on increasing our vocabulary, and practice creating an image about what we are reading. In Maths students will revise strategies already learnt, practice knowledge goals and work on improving Basic facts. For PE we will focus on Netball. We are working on passing and footwork. In Inquiry students will be working on the own inquiries. Our goal is to present our inquiries in week 9.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    This week we will focus on completing our Maths assessments. This will require students to work independently, supported by our Learning Assistant. .     Students on Essential list 5,6, and 7 will be assessed this week, and Commonly Misspelt word list 1 and 2 will be assessed next week. .     The Life Education bus has arrived. We will have have two sessions on Thursdays over the next two weeks. Our focus is to improve our students' ability to form positive social relationships. Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 2 week 4

This week… In Writing we will write a narrative. We will continue using an image and describe what happened before, during and after the image. This week we will discuss success criteria for our writing. In Reading we will start off with discussing the parts of a story. We will continue to learn about different types of questions, focusing on inference questions, and some of us will use reciprocal reading to deepen our understanding of texts.  In Maths students will be looking for and discuss similarities in the strategies they've learnt thus far. Students will also solve problems involving fractions. For PE we will focus on hockey. In Inquiry students will be watching video clips about forces and complete cloze exercises afterwards. They will be encouraged to record their questions/wonderings.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Learning conferences will happen  this week on Thursday 14th May 2015. Please access the newsletter on the school website if you have not yet booked a slot.  .    Please note that there will be time to speak to me if you feel the need to. The time will be limited though (10 minutes). If we need more time, we can arrange to meet on another day. Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 2 week 3

This week… In Writing we will write a narrative. We will use an image and describe what happened before, during and after the image. In Reading we will learn about different types of questions, focusing on inference questions, and some of us will use reciprocal reading to deepen our understanding of texts.  In Maths students will be practicing the use of Tidy numbers when adding. They will also look for  and discuss similarities in the strategies they've learnt thus far. For PE we will focus on hockey. In Inquiry students will be completing their investigation on gears.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Learning conferences will happen on Thursday 14th May 2015. Please access the news letter on the school website. Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 2 week 1

Welcome back. I trust that all of us have enjoyed the short break and have 're-charged our batteries'. We have another busy term ahead of us. More about this follow in the term letter.

This week… In Writing we will describe a moment in time to retell a past event. In Reading we will learn about different types of questions, focusing on inference questions, and some of us will use reciprocal reading to deepen our understanding of texts.  In Maths students will be identifying their knowledge and strategy goals. They will also solve problems in their problem solving groups. We are learning how to add large numbers. For independent work students will be completing practice tasks, select games from the Math Game boxes and practice their Basic facts. Students will be encouraged to show their understanding on their student blogs when they're ready. For PE we will focus on catching and throwing large balls and using space.  In Inquiry students will be reflecting on what the know about Forces and motion. They will watch video clips and be exposed to a variety of forces by different teachers. Each day, they will be encouraged to make a note of their wonderings/questions.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 1 week 9

This term has flown by. Thank you for your support during the term. Enjoy your little ones during the break.  A very happy Easter to you all.

This week… In Writing we will improve/develop our ability to use describing words.  In Reading we will learn about different types of questions and some of us will learn how to do reciprocal reading.  In Maths students will be solving problems in their problem solving groups. We are learning how to add two-digit numbers For independent work students will be completing practice tasks, select games from the Math Game boxes and practice their Basic facts. Students will be encouraged to show their understanding on their student blogs when they're ready. For PE we will finish our tennis instruction with a coach provided by Northern Tennis.  In Inquiry students will be interviewing the grandfather of our new student from India. We have learnt that it is important to understand our own culture as well as other cultures. Students will also be presenting their own inquiry question this Wednesday.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Hats are to be worn everyday this term to help protect students from the harmful rays of the sun. Slap on sunscreen in the morning as well for added protection. .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Final swimming lesson this Wednesday.  .    Bike riding lesson will have to wait for next term.  .    Please follow our school on Google plus using this link:       HDS Google Plus Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 1 week 8

Thought for the week: "Always chase your dreams instead of running from your fears." -- Anonymous

This week… In Writing we will write a moment in time recount on a past family event. In Reading we will use the reading strategies as well as learn how to do reciprocal reading.  In Maths students will be solving problems in their problem solving groups. We are learning how to use known facts to multiply. Most students are now showing great understanding so we'll be working with larger numbers. For independent work students will be completing practice tasks, select games from the Math Game boxes and practice their Basic facts. Students will be encouraged to show their understanding on their student blogs when they're ready. For PE we will continue our focus on learning cricket skills. We will focus on playing forward stroke and fielding a ground ball correctly. We'll be hitting balls off a tee, ball that bounce three times and some will be hitting ball that bounce only once. We will also be continuing our tennis instruction with a coach provided by Northern Tennis. The cost for this is included in the activity fee. Please make a payment towards this if you haven't paid the activity fee yet. In Inquiry students are saying what they know about Forces and motion in preparation for next terms' inquiry. Students will also be researching  and presenting their own inquiry question for the next two weeks.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Hats are to be worn everyday this term to help protect students from the harmful rays of the sun. Slap on sunscreen in the morning as well for added protection. .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. (If for some reason the device is not charged, I'd rather have them charging it at school than leaving it at home.) .    Swimming continues on Wednesdays.  .    Mufti this Friday. Theme is 'Wild and Whacky. Gold coin donation will go to Starship. .    We will have a bike riding lesson later this week to improve our riding skills. More information will follow via email as soon as I can secure a slot on the time table. .    Please follow our school on Google plus using this link:       HDS Google Plus Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 1 week 7

Thought for the week: “Don’t let what you can’t do stop you from doing what you can do.” – John Wooden Sometimes we make things more complicated than they really are. Sometimes we focus on all the wrong things. Focus on what you can do, right now, where you are.

This week… In Writing we finish our description of someone who have influenced us. In Reading we will use the reading strategies as well as learn how to do reciprocal reading.  In Maths students will be solving problems in their problem solving groups. We are learning how to use known facts to multiply. For independent work students will be completing practice tasks, select games from the Math Game boxes and practice their Basic facts. For PE we will continue our focus on learning cricket skills. We will focus on playing forward stroke and fielding a ground ball correctly. We'll be hitting balls off a tee, ball that bounce three times and some will be hitting ball that bounce only once. We will also be continuing our tennis instruction with a coach provided by Northern Tennis. The cost for this is included in the activity fee. Please make a payment towards this if you haven't paid the activity fee yet. In Inquiry students are working on the research on their place in the world. This week we will also spend time on an art activity to help us think about the places that are important to us.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Hats are to be worn everyday this term to help protect students from the harmful rays of the sun. Slap on sunscreen in the morning as well for added protection. .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. .    Swimming continues on Wednesdays.  .    Thank you for the awesome cultural artefacts your children have been sharing in class.  .    Thank you for support with our Tryathlon last Thursday. Your support is highly valued. Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 1 week 6

Thought for the week: “What makes you different is what makes you beautiful.  Anonymous.

This week… In Writing we will identify descriptions of characters in texts. We will then try to use this to describe our own characters . In Reading we will use the reading strategies as well as learn how to do reciprocal reading.  In Maths students will be solving problems in their problem solving groups. We are learning how to use known facts to multiply. For independent work students will be completing practice tasks, select games from the Math Game boxes and practice their Basic facts. For PE we will continue our focus on learning cricket skills. We will focus on playing forward stroke and fielding a ground ball correctly. We'll be hitting balls off a tee, ball that bounce three times and some will be hitting ball that bounce only once. We will also be starting our tennis instruction with a coach provided by Northern Tennis. The cost for this is included in the activity fee. Please make a payment towards this if you haven't paid the activity fee yet. In Inquiry students are working on the research on their place in the world. We are also discussing the following questions:  What is unique to NZ/kiwiana? Do people need to learn about their own identity? Why? Is it important that people learn about their own culture? Why? Is it important that people learn about other cultures? Why? . Apologies for not updating the blog this week due to technical problems.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Hats are to be worn everyday this term to help protect students from the harmful rays of the sun. Slap on sunscreen in the morning as well for added protection. .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. .    Swimming continues on Wednesdays.  .    Thank you for the awesome cultural artefacts your children have been sharing in class. Last week's photos has been added to our blog. .    PAT Listening Comprehension test will take place this week. .    Tennis instruction starts this week. .    Thank you for the great attendance at our Community day on Friday. .     School Tryathlon will be Thursday 12 March 2015. If you are able to assist as a marshall, please contact Toni Howard at toni@huapaidistrict.school.nz Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 1 week 5

Thought for the week: “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go…” – Dr. Seuss

This week… In Writing we will describe a character who has influenced our lives in some way. In Reading we will use the reading strategies as well as learn how to do reciprocal reading.  In Maths students will be solving problems in their problem solving groups. For indepedent work students will be completing practice tasks, select games from the Math Game boxes and practice their Basic facts. For PE we will continue our focus on learning cricket skills. We will focus on playing forward stroke and fielding a ground ball correctly. We'll be hitting balls off a tee, ball that bounce three times and some will be hitting ball that bounce only once. In Inquiry students will share their cultural artefact. Students will also share their research on food eaten by different cultures. This was an unplanned activity that developed from a discussion. If time allows student will commence their research on their place in the world. This will be followed by an Art activity that may be carried over into next week.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Hats are to be worn everyday this term to help protect students from the harmful rays of the sun. Slap on sunscreen in the morning as well for added protection. .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. .    Swimming continues on Wednesdays.  .    Your child have made an invitation in class and should have handed/emailed it to you by now. .    An email with additional information will be send. .   Thank you for the awesome cultural artefacts your children have been sharing in class. See the post with last week's photos. .     I will be away with the Year 5/6 T-ball team on Tuesday. Students will have work to complete. Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 1 week 4

Thought for the week: “Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken” - Oscar Wilde

This week… In Writing we will write on our student blogs, making sure that it is error-free. In Reading we will use the reading strategies as well as learn how to do reciprocal reading.  In Maths students will be solving problems in their problem solving groups  and be introduced to the Basic Facts Mastery program.  For PE we will be learning cricket skills. We will focus on playing forward stroke and fielding a ground ball correctly. We'll be hitting balls off a tee, ball that bounce three times and some will be hitting ball that bounce only once. In Inquiry students will share their cultural artefact. Students will also research their place in the world. This will be followed by an Art activity that may be carried over into next week.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Hats are to be worn everyday this term to help protect students from the harmful rays of the sun. Slap on sunscreen in the morning as well for added protection. .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. .    Swimming continues on Wednesdays.  .    Information on sharing day will be send via email (refer to newsletter of week 3). Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 1 week 3

Thought for the week: “Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken” - Oscar Wilde

This week… In Writing we will write a Recount to share an interesting/important past event.  In Reading we will look at what good readers do, while revising the reading strategies.  In Maths students will be solving problems in their problem solving groups  and be introduced to the Basic Facts Mastery program.  For PE we will continue our focus on catching and throwing. Students will be doing a variety of catching and throwing activities to develop and extend their abilities.  In Inquiry students will create their own mihimihi.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Hats are to be worn everyday this term to help protect students from the harmful rays of the sun. Slap on sunscreen in the morning as well for added protection. .    Some of the student devices run out of battery during the day, so please ensure that your child's device is fully charged. .     Please send an artefact/item to school that represents your culture. It could even be something that represent the culture in your home. Students will be sharing this in class next week. Please see a definition of culture using this link.  http://www.thefreedictionary.com/culture       (We will be referring to definition 1(a)of the noun.) Regards Joseph du Plooy

Term 1 week 2

Thought for the week: “Challenges are what make life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.” - Joshua J. Marine

This week… We are getting used to routines and expectations, therefore much of what we'll be doing will have this focus.  In Writing we will write a Bio-poem to help student develop their self awareness, and to share something about themselves to the class. We'll also learn how the writing goals will be set and monitored. In Reading we will look at what good readers do, while revising the reading strategies.  In Maths studnets will be introduced to their problem solving groups and how this will look this year. For PE we will practice our catching and throwing, and have swimming trials on Wednesday.  In Inquiry we will get started on our Big idea for this term , which will be on Culture and Identity. We will be asking,  "Who am I?" and, "Who are we?" This week students will create their own mihimihi.

This week’s Home Learning:

Basic facts

Please use the links on our Class Blog to practice basic facts at home:  

Spelling

1.     Ten words chosen by your child. Words are selected from the essential / Commonly misspelt word list or their own writing.

2.     Students use at least 3 of these words in sentences to show their understanding.

3.     Testing on Friday.

Students need to read at home for at least 20 minutes. 
Reading log must be updated to give an indication of your
child's reading preferences and interests. At level 3, students
must read a variety of text, i.e. narratives, newspaper
articles, biographies, autobiographies.

Notice ·    Please ensure that all clothing and stationery are labelled. .    It's important that students have nutritious food to eat during the day, so please limit luxury items like chips, lollies and biscuits.  .    Hats are to be worn everyday this term to help protect students from the harmful rays of the sun. Slap on sunscreen in the morning as well for added protection. .    Swimming starts this week. Please ensure your child has togs and a towel every Wednesday. Swimming sports will take place at Massey High School this Thursday 12 February 2015. This week we will have swimming trials, as the non-swimmers will remain at school on the day of the swimming sports. Please return the swimming note ASAP to help us with our organisation. .    A big thank you for making the time to be at the interviews. I view it as hugely beneficial, as we get to know each other a little bit before we get stuck into the year.  Regards Joseph du Plooy