Positive Accomplishments Galore !!  

We are celebrating a great Term 2 

As we reach the end of Term 2, it’s time to pause and celebrate the many moments of

learning, growth, and connection we have experienced in Tautoru.  This term has been full of

curiosity, challenge, laughter and lots of flourishing!

We reflect on our Flourish Model celebrating our many Positive Accomplishments so far.  

We have nurtured our growth mindsets, helping students see mistakes as kaizen steps and

challenges as chances to learn.  Manaakitanga sits front and centre.  We have had a big focus

this term on dialling up Kindness and Leadership ensuring we are building the mana of others.   

We want to take the time to reflect on what’s gone well, what’s made us smile ?

We’ve been able to celebrate the small wins, the big wins and the losses, 

chalking those up as opportunities to grow.  Reflection is also about seeing where

we can make improvements.  

You would have seen us dialling up our strengths of Creativity, Perseverance,

Bravery and Teamwork across the curriculum.  We would love you to continue some

Positive Education tools over the holidays.  

• Ask your child what strength they noticed in themselves or a sibling/parent today

• Share one thing you’re each grateful for at dinner

• Create a bedtime routine of reflecting on the best part of the day

• Set a goal or intention for the following day.  How will tomorrow be 10% better ?

• Celebrate your child’s effort, not just the end result

• Get out and about in nature - explore notice and cultivate an Appreciation of Beauty.  

Thanks again for your continued support and encouragement. Your children are flourishing

– and we couldn’t do it without a great home school partnership. Our Tautoru learners

have lots to be proud of.    Wishing you all a restful, safe and warm holiday !

Matariki me Puanga

Mānawatia a Matariki e te whānau !

As the cold mornings settle in and the stars reappear in our skies, we come

together to honour a special time in Aotearoa.  Matariki me Puanga.

This is more than just the start of the Māori New Year. It is a time of reflection,

remembrance, celebration, and hope.  We have accomplished plenty and

have big hopes and dreams for the future.    

Matariki is a cluster of stars (also known as the Pleiades)

that rises in the winter sky and marks the beginning of the Māori New Year.

Traditionally, Māori communities would observe the stars to guide planting,

harvesting, and spiritual reflection.

In some parts of the country, especially where Matariki is not easily

visible due to landscape or weather, Puanga (the star Rigel) is observed

instead. Both traditions share the same heart – reconnecting with people,

land, and purpose.

This week in preparation for Matariki me Puanga our students

completed an activity that focused them in on remembering those who

are no longer with us.  They celebrated the present by thinking about what

they are most proud off so far.  The final box was making a wish for the incoming new year.  

Inspiration and Imagination

“In our imagination, anything is possible — and in that space, we are learning, growing, and dreaming big.”  

In the world of a child, imagination is more than just play — it’s a vital tool for learning, expression, and emotional growth. Whether it’s building castles in the lounge with cushions and sheets or inventing stories with toy animals.  Children explore and make sense of their world through using their imagination.

The Imagination allows children to experiment with ideas, roles, and possibilities. It’s the foundation for problem-solving and creativity to name a few and of course it fits into many places within our Flourish Model.

There are also plenty of chances for kids to collaborate with others,  developing those social skills as they go. 

Creating Space for Creativity

Our worlds these days are fast-paced and often screen-filled, it’s easy for imagination to take a back seat. We make sure to set aside time each week to dial up our Creativity and use our wonderful imaginations. 

Our students have been expressing their unique and wonderful minds through creating imaginary landscapes.  It has been a great way to enhance and further develop our storytelling.  This has been an important next step in our Inquiry learning as we have been focusing on ‘our stories’, whether they are stories, myths, legends or fairytales and narratives.  We have been exploring stories, characters, heroes and villains that help explain things from different cultures and places and spaces around the world.   This was our deep dive into different settings. 

We have been super inspired on this journey by the book written by Keri Smith.  Check out her books for some guaranteed fun times !! 

NZSO with Marcus Winter - The Sandman

"Tuia ki te rangi       
Tuia ki te whenua       
Tuia ki te moana       
Tuia te here tāngata       
Ka rongo te pō       
Ka rongo te ao
Mārama te pō 
Mārama te ao
Haumi e hui e tāiki e"  

"What is written in the heavens, Is written on the land And on the seas Connecting the people Between the division of night and day For further wisdom and enlightenment"

This week we engaged all of our senses on a trip to hear the NZ Symphony Orchestra and watch Marcus Winter - The Sandman create the most amazing visual art out of sand and light. Marcus told the creation story of Rangi and Papatūānuku and other stories about 'Ngā Tohu o te Taiao.' - The Signs of Nature. We heard and saw how we can be Kaitiaki or Tangata Tiaki in our world. Some of the messages really fit with our philosophy and aspirations for looking after our place.

We were able to make plenty of links between our Inquiry -Myths and Legends from around our world and Ngā tohu o te Taiao. 

We were so lucky to have Kiri come and share her musical expertise with us this prior to our trip.  She played some music live to help us learn the song to accompany the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra on our trip. We certainly sounded amazing at the Michael Fowler Centre. Thanks to all our whānau who come in to share their time and expertise with us.  We really appreciate it.

We were amazed to learn that the NZ Symphony Orchestra created the musical score for the new Minecraft Movie !! 

Some of the other pieces of music we interacted with were:

E. Grieg Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, Op. 46: Morning Mood

L. Beethoven Symphony No. 6, Op. 68 Pastoral - Mvt  4: The Storm 

If we think of our students as plants ....

Over the last couple of weeks you would have seen some great examples of reading, writing and maths on the BLOG and in the newsletter.  There are so many other rich learning experiences and links that happen daily.  Formative assessment is an important part of our teaching and learning. There are lots of different ways we collect information on progress and achievement.  Formative assessment is the ongoing process of gathering evidence to inform students next steps in their learning journey.   If we think of our students as plants.....

We want to make sure we are celebrating and capturing student voice too as this is such an important part of the bigger picture. Here are some of the celebrations and what our kids wanted to share so far this week. 

Home school partnerships are key and of course our students are at the centre so their voice is important too.  We are always keen to hear what your child’s interests and passions are and what they would like to learn more about.  

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Inquiry Learning - Explorers of our World

 

In Tautoru we continue to learn more about each other.  We hope that our students will develop a shared understanding through The BIG IDEAS and DEEP UNDERSTANDINGS FOR THIS INQUIRY.   These are:  

• People come from many different backgrounds, and we all have unique customs, languages, and stories. 

• Cultural diversity means that people in the world have different ways of living, celebrating, and seeing the world.  These differences are part of what makes up our stories. 

We want our students to be able to:

• describe the difference between a myth and a legend 

• describe the difference between Protagonists and Antagonists -  Heroes and Villains 

• identify differences and similarities across different cultures.  

• develop an awareness of multiple perspectives for similar phenomena -  Creation stories 

• make links to our local curriculum and iwi stories (ANZHC)

• pass down knowledge through stories - oral storytelling as well as other ways of telling traditional stories -  art, hieroglyphs, symbols, songs and dreamtime.  

Here is an example of how our Inquiry learning is mapped out against of model of Inquiry. 

This Inquiry has many links to Literacy - Reading, Writing and Oral Language. 

Here are some examples of our opinion writing. 

Here are some stories that we have retold through writing. 

Rona and the Moon 

by Ava 

Long, long ago in Aotearoa there lived a woman named Rona.  She had a sharp tongue

and a bad temper. One day Rona’s husband and sons said “We are going fishing.”  

“Ae, yes and you are leaving me to do all the work” she huffed. 

“I'll get the place to cook ready”. Rona realised that she had no water

to make the steam so she couldn't cook.

”I have to get some water and if I don't, I won't be able to eat.” 

So she set off to get the water. She hopped over the roots and rocks

on her way in the dark. Suddenly Marama the moon went behind a cloud

and all went black.  She tripped and fell onto a rock.  As she fell she screamed

“Upoko kohua”. Rona shouted again and again. The moon was really

really angry.  She swooped at Rona and at the same time she screamed.  

Rona quickly ran to the closest Ngaio tree and hung on for dear life.  

The moon was too angry.  Marama was so mad that he just pulled

her up with the Ngaio tree and she was never seen again.

Rona and the Moon 

by Zac

Long ago, far far away there was a mountain with a cave in

the middle of it.  There was a woman named Rona.  Rona had a sharp

tongue.  Rona had hurting words whenever she talked to someone. 

Rona had a husband and one day there was no fish for dinner. 

Her husband went out to catch some fish.  “I know why you don’t want

me to come ” Snapped Rona.  “It’s because your jobs are better than

mine ! My jobs are boring.”  So her husband just hugged Rona and

set off to catch some fish.  Rona grabbed a jar, she started walking

and suddenly she tripped over.  She called the moon a cooked head. 

The moon was tempered, he grabbed Rona.  She grabbed onto the

Ngaio Tree.  Now Rona and the Ngaio are in the moon.

Rona and the Moon 

by Oscar

Long ago there was a woman called Rona.  Rona had a bad

temper and a sharp tongue.  She always had something to

say to everyone who crossed her path.  She was very harsh

to her family as well.  In fact,  she was mean to her

whole tribe and that gave her a bad reputation.

One day in the light of the moon,  Rona and her husband were

at their boat.  Rona was saying goodbye because they were about

to go fishing.   Her husband said that she had to heat up the hangi, 

“Grrrr ! Why do you lazy bones get to go out to sea and have a

great time ?”  Snapped Rona.  But she gave him a hug anyway

and then went to set the hangi.  She had to heat the rocks

when suddenly she realised she did not have water.

  “Aue,” Rona said.  “You can’t have a hangi without water” 

So Rona set out for the lake to get water.  

The light of the moon was almost like day when a big cloud

managed to cover the moon.  “Upoko Kohua !”  screamed Rona. 

This made the moon angry so he swooped down and grabbed

Rona and pulled but Rona grabbed onto the Ngaio Tree. 

The moon heaved and literally ripped the tree out of the ground.

She was whisked up to the heavens.  When her family came

back they shouted “Rona”.  They spotted her in the moon

where she was to stay.

Marvellous Maths Continued !

 

You would have seen a few posts ago how Tautoru maths programme is evolving. 

This week in Tautoru we have been focusing on our number knowledge and problem solving strategies.  Our number knowledge is so important as it also has a big impact on what strategies we can use when we are problem solving. 

Number Talks are short, focused discussions that build maths number knowledge and encourage flexible thinking. These are usually maths problems or rich tasks that are open ended to allow for a range of skills, knowledge and strategies to be used.  These sessions encourage students to share their thinking out loud, fostering a deeper understanding of numbers and operations.   We have the perfect opportunity to work across year groups ad we all learn something new from each other.   

Talk Moves is another phrase that you might hear as part of our maths programme.   These are the ways in which we communicate our ideas and solve problems.  We use such things as rephrasing, reasoning, and building on others’ ideas—students are learning to communicate their strategies clearly and respectfully.   Together, Number Talks and Talk Moves are helping out Tautoru students make sense of maths by developing flexible thinking, boosting confidence, and creating a collaborative maths classroom.   Everyone has an important part to play.  

Part of our maths programme is have the freedom to use materials to explain thinking.  We can draw our thinking or write down a process or equation.   

We can use place value blocks, counters, number lines, hundreds boards.  These can all be used in a variety of ways.  Here are some examples below.