One of the focus in the Whare Whakamanawa has been showing caring to others and co-operate with them – value that we are all different and all have something to offer. We have had some beautiful moments over the last week with this.   Brook is teaching Saidan to use google draw, Charlie worked with Apii to help sort out some very tangled shoe laces, Ryker made rice bubble cake and made sure everyone got a piece.   They all also played a really cool game of tag where the fitter kids kept tagging in for those who were puffing! It is wonderful to see such kind and caring people looking after each other.

Shoeboxes hold such promise. These could become anything and we are only limited by our imagination. Room 9 were given the challenge of transforming a shoebox into anything! We all planned what we wanted to make and listed all the equipment we would need. Children recognised the importance of a plan in clarifying ideas and making sure they were prepared. A good plan will help identify possible hurdles and we can find solutions.   Then making the item becomes much easier.

Ryker made a computer with a google search screen. He used his problem solving skills to make the google sign three dimensional.

Apii, very successfully created Wreck-it Ralph.  He had a good clear plan and used the internet to help with the detail on the clothing.

Saidan made a computer. He added a dirt bike scene. He also had a very clear idea. Saidan learnt what a plan was for and the purpose of this.

Charlie made a cool boat. This had a deck and a sail. Charlie and Trudie worked together to problem solve for the sail. It was tricky getting it to stand upright and not fall over.

Brook made a car. She gave herself the very tricky challenge of making wheels that turn. We got there by using skewers for the axles and posting these through cotton reels . Then the wheels had to be stuck in nice and tight so they would turn.  Brook found two solutions to this – tape and hot glue.  Both worked well.

Big thanks to Room 1 for their great idea of making shoe box creations!

As a celebration for Ceazar-Dre mastering a goal, we all went to Locals Cafe for a treat! None of the children knew they were going and they got a huge surprise.  When we got there we lined up nicely and selected what we wanted from the cabinet. Yummy treats were the order of the day. MandM biscuits and lemon tarts were popular! All children politely gave their orders and spoke up with confidence. We were very proud of them and the MANA they showed.

Hohaia loved the trip and said it was like a dream. Apii said he learnt not to order lemon tarts as they were too sour!

Our focus in reading has been learning about hedgehogs. We have learnt about where they live, why they are called hedgehogs, and what they eat.  We have read and listened to stories about them and watched some videos to learn information.

Apii has done a lot of learning about hedgehogs making a bubble map with facts he has learnt, a hedgehog in its home, and also painting a lot of the foods hedgehogs eat.  Apii has learnt they eat “slugs, caterpillars and ants.”  Apii now wants to learn about ants!

We had extra bananas and so decided to make a banana cake. This is a great way of using bananas so they don’t get wasted.

Learn: To follow instructions to make a cake
Create: Bake a banana cake.
Share: Give people a piece of the yummy cake I made.

Saidan: I mashed the bananas and I added flour, baking soda, baking powder, milk, two eggs, and sugar. I stirred it up with an electric mixer. Then we put it in the pan to cook. I licked the bowl. The best part was using the mixer. I shared it with everyone,.

Apii was feeling very active and needing to move!

He chose water play as a way to calm as well as a way to explore floating, sinking and bubble creation.

We got pretty interested in shoes.  After colouring the ones we selected we wrote about them.

Learn: What is an adjective.

Create: A short piece of writing using adjectives.

Share: As a display and a blog post!

We hope you enjoy reading our descriptions.  Can you spot the adjectives?

Saidan and Ms Warren played “Fish for Ten” today. To play this game you turn two numbers over and if they equal 10 then you get to keep them. If you turn over a shark then you have to give up all your counters. Miss Warren turned over 5 sharks and lost all of her counters. Saidan has exceptional skills at remembering where the numbers were and he won!

Saidan learnt to remember which pairs equal 10 and he was also starting to develop skills in counting-on to find the answer. He recorded some of the sets on a white board.

Can you find the numbers that equal 10 in the photo below?

When we feel cross or angry it is important to take the time to calm our brains and bodies. There are several ways to do this including deep slow breaths, walking, bouncing a ball, watching the leaves on the trees, blowing bubbles and playing with a calming toy. All these activities can help calm our brains and bodies, so that we can move into solving the problem and learning.

Charlie kindly modelled a good strategy for calming. Using simple coloured stones he created pictures with them. Some children just like to hold them or count them or just let them trickle through their fingers.

There are many ways to calm ourselves and finding the best strategy for our own selves is so important.

Thankyou Charlie for this learning.

Many of the Whare Whakamanawa learners have been learning to sew. This is a great skill to have so that we can repair clothes that get

ripped or create wonderful items. Peyton-Rose has sewed together her own pencil case.

“I had to sew the sides together. I used a needle and thread. I have also done sewing with Wendy on the sewing machine. This is different because I used the sewing needle. We had to sew top and then loop back up to the top again to join the sides tog

ether. I like sewing on the machine better. It is faster.” Peyton-Rose.

Mason and Apii have been sewing dinosaurs and Hayley has learnt how to cross stitch a unicorn and is now using these skills to sew a teddy bear.