The learning this term has been rich, and engaging, and has enabled a variety of perspectives across the Kura. The theme of - Whatungarongaro te tangata toitū te whenua - While people come and go the land remains - has taken on so many lenses. We’ve had students hiking, beach clean-ups, geode hunting, and sediment/rock creation. Rocks Rock!

With the Science theme of local geology Karekare mini school and Piha LA2 walked the Karamatua track with our Science teacher Mark Towl. On these trips, they investigated the sedimentary history of the Waitakere Ranges and bore witness to the real-life volcanic carnage in the cliff faces they passed.

Piha LA1 and Te Henga mini school visited the Auckland Museum for a variety of educational sessions and to visit the infamous volcano room. In these sessions, our tamariki investigated the Māori histories of the Waitakeres and the greater Auckland Region as well as learning about the multitude of volcanos and lava caves we have right under our feet. A trip to the museum is always good fun.

Muriwai Mini School visited Muriwai Beach with Science teacher Mark Towl. As well as enjoying making sand castles they investigated the rock formations and types that are only found at Muriwai, which is a very unique experience! They also took part in a beach clean to care for their local beaches and engage with local citizenship.

On top of the EOTC opportunities to see science in real life, classes have engaged in all sorts of exciting activities. There is a rock creation competition happening across the school! Rm 16 have named their one Wagyu - It’s currently living in the staffroom if you wanted to take a look.

In Maths, classes have been enjoying time on moneytime.co.nz - a financial literacy tool. There is currently a competition for the winning class and Rm20 is smashing it!

There have been so many amazingly creative ways to engage in our learning that it is hard to list them all. So here are some photos of the outputs in classes!

We have been very lucky to engage with our whānau, families, and local community in a variety of ways. The Kapa Haka showcase was wonderful. We are so proud of our Kapa Haka group and so grateful to Miss Iti and our tutors for their passion, guidance, and organisation. Our students are richer for it. There were literal gasps as GEIS performed with power.

We have also been blessed with another successful cultural fia fia night. Miss Vai always organises an incredible evening to celebrate the multitudes of cultures at GEIS and this event was another example of it.

GEIS has run a successful ‘cultural week’ where every student and teacher was able to celebrate who they are and pay homage to their ancestors. It has been lovely to see everyone dressed in cultural attire, share cultural meals, and discuss traditions with everyone.

Our annual X-Factor was also a hit! It was so fabulous to see students supporting each other in the performing arts. Miss Klee and Mr Pritchard did a wonderful job organising the heats which secured excellent acts for the finale.

With these events, it is important to note the ‘GEIS village’ of staff who never hesitate to step in and support. Those who help with props, lighting, crowd control, backstage, consuming, make-up, gathering permissions, rehearsing, sausage sizzles, and money collection. The list could go on. We really do have a solid group of teachers!

We have also had our Y6 transition events where our student council led future GEIS students around whilst we discussed these students with their teachers in order to form a smooth transition between primary and intermediate. In week 8 we have our annual year 6 Māori and Pasifika transition event. It’s always lovely to meet the incoming students and help them feel more settled with the move between schools.

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