Read what our Year 1 children and teachers have been doing this term.

This term has been an exciting and busy one for us already. We have welcomed 8 New Entrants into our team of 6 classes and we are creeping towards a total of 100 children.

We have been working tirelessly with our Year 2 buddies on our Junior School production called Books on Broadway. Each pair of classes worked on an item based on a children’s book. Room 3 and 8 celebrated What a Wonderful World, based on the song by Louie Armstrong, which talks about the wonders all around us, and spreads a message of peace and hope. We’re Going on a Bear Hunt was Room 13 and 16’s book, with a funny Wiggles version of the song. The children looked very cute dressed as swishy grass and squishy mud! Room 4 and Room 7 gave us the story of The Gruffalo and made beautiful masks to show the characters in the story. The Tiger Who Came to Tea was Room 1 and 5’s story. Their fun song by Robbie Williams had tasty treats dancing across the stage. Room 6 and Room 2 performed When I Grow Up, from the stage show version of Matilda by Roald Dahl. The children thought carefully about what they want to be when they grow up, and this was the basis of their costume in the show. We had policemen, vets, scientists and artists.

We were taken on a journey through some great literature and had a lot of fun singing and dancing for our whānau. It was a lot of work for the children and teachers, but they should be very proud of themselves, as it was a wonderful show. 

Year 1 children have been lucky enough to have had 2 Therapy Dogs coming to visit us on a weekly basis. Miss Lin has organised through St John for Kira and her dog Ramsey the Leonberger, and Karen and Chase the Labradoodle to join us in the classroom. Children selected by the teacher will come and read with the dogs, or just spend time patting and asking questions. It is a great opportunity for children to develop their oral language and practice important reading skills. Our children are always very kind, caring and inquisitive, so this is chance for them to enjoy some real-life, hands-on experiences while stepping out of their comfort zone. https://www.stjohn.org.nz/what-we-do/community-programmes/therapy-pets/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI7I7pxNuXggMVrz6DAx1opgdLEAAYASAAEgLj-_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds 

In Term 4 we are learning about Toys and the ways these have changed over time. Looking at toys from the 20th century and comparing them to today has been interesting, discussing the similarities and differences. As an integrated STEM unit, we are learning concepts such as force, momentum and levers and how these can be applied to common toys. We will use these ideas to design and experiment in making our own toys, using everyday materials. As part of our EOTC for this term, we are also lucky enough to be going on a trip to MOTAT and will spend time exploring their collection of toys across the ages.