'Toitu te marae a Tane, Toitu te marae a Tangaroa, Toitu te iwi' (If the land is well and the sea is well, the people will thrive.)

Some of us have already been out and about having visited Tuhaitara Coastal Park and Sumner Beach. It is lovely to see our students enjoying the sunshine and exploring Ōtautahi's shoreline with its dynamic, ever-changing environment.

The topic also lends itself to some creative opportunities both in baking and in sensory art. Last week we made some delicious meringues in the shape of oysters, all with a small marshmallow inside that represented a pearl. In art we made some 'Sensory Beach Bags' with sand, blue glitter and shells. Most of us enjoyed the tactile experience of feeling our individual 'beaches', with the students developing their fine motor skills, working their hand and finger muscles as they kneaded and squished their bags. It was also great for learning contextual vocabulary as staff described what the students were doing, using words like 'squish', 'knead' and 'squeeze.'

As well as our topic work, we have also started a Numicon and technology program, sensory writing making tactile letters, and we continue to work on our ILP/ITP goals.

Furthermore, we are very fortunate to have Claire lead us in weekly yoga sessions, with our students learning skills like stretching, reaching, jumping and balancing.

It is definitely going to be a fun-filled and busy term!