Hero photograph
 
Photo by Lucy Naylor

Te wiki o te reo Māori.

Lucy Naylor —

Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa. Greetings to you all!

Last week we celebrated Maori Language Week - Te wiki o te reo Māori.  The theme was Kia Kaha te reo Māori. ‘Kia Kaha’ is a well known phrase in New Zealand, meaning ‘be strong’ and refers to the connection between language health, strength, and revitalisation. So  ‘Kia Kaha te Reo Māori’ means  - ‘Let’s make the Māori language strong'. 

As a bicultural country, with te reo Māori being an official language,  we are in a unique position to be able to immerse ourselves in te reo and tikanga,  helping to secure its future as a living, dynamic, and rich language.

Each Friday all our children participate in te reo and kapa haka and learn about New Zealand culture. This is part of the New Zealand Curriculum;  "The curriculum acknowledges the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi, and the bicultural foundations of Aotearoa New Zealand. All students have the opportunity to acquire knowledge of te reo Māori me ōna tikanga." The New Zealand Curriculum, p 9

At Stanley Bay, the Learning Languages Curriculum is integrated into many aspects of teaching and learning. We believe that learning a language provides a means of communicating with people from other cultures and also exploring what makes New Zealand unique. Every language has its own way of expressing meaning; each has intrinsic value and special significance for its users.  Language whether oral, written or visual links us to the past and gives us access to new and different streams of thoughts, beliefs and cultural practices.

"By learning a language and associated culture children come to appreciate that languages and cultures are systems that are organised and used in particular ways to achieve meaning. Learning a new language extends students’ linguistic and cultural understanding and their ability to interact appropriately with other speakers. Interaction in a new language introduces them to new ways of thinking about, questioning, and interpreting the world and their place in it. Through such interaction, students acquire knowledge, skills, and attitudes that equip them for living in a world of diverse peoples, languages, and cultures. As they move between and respond to, different languages and different cultural practices, they are challenged to consider their own identities and assumptions." NZ Learning Languages Curriculum 

Learning a language provides students with cognitive tools and strategies;  often inspiring them to learn further languages and to increase their understanding of their own language and culture. This week Te wiki o te reo Māori has provided an opportunity to celebrate and learn te reo Māori. 

If you would like to explore te reo click here for some great family-friendly resources - https://www.tetaurawhiri.govt.nz/en/online-resources/

Celebrating The Arts 

This term we have been focusing on The Arts and to inspire our students we have had a couple of professional artists spend some time at school. 

Finn Wilson, Street Artist
You may have noticed the stunning new mural in the tunnel! This is the end result of several students and the Arts Leaders working with the very talented street artist, Finn Wilson. Finn very kindly gifted us his time to help design and spray paint the wall.   

Finn’s work has evolved from math book doodles to pieces that sit in galleries, commercial & public spaces as well as on the walls in peoples homes & private collections. His style is firmly placed in the street genre with a heavy influence from the surf and skate culture, mixed in with graffiti, illustration, and cartoon. Beyond painting traditional canvas pieces, Finn reuses old or run down materials like skateboards, surfboards, furniture, and vintage car parts, breathing life back into something with no functional use. Finn is based in Mt Eden, Auckland.

Thank you to our talented artists; Luke, Hazel, Josh, Ryoma , Ema, Marley and Ivy.

Many thanks to Rachel Rohloff for arranging for Finn to come to Stanley Bay....and putting the finishing touches to the mural!

Check out Finns work at - Instagram: @finn_gerry_wilson or Finn Wilson Illustration & Design. See photos below. 

Chris Barclay, Musician 
Chris Barclay is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist and last week he came to assembly and performed for our children. Chris has recorded many songs and has enjoyed a decade of performing, also working in several cover bands including Nstinct with LA Thompson. After performing at  Transmission House and The Occidental, Stanley Bay was a small gig!

See and hear more about Chris at http://chrisbarclay.net/

A heartfelt thank you to Finn and Chris for inspiring our students!

Measles

We have been having a few questions with regard to measles. If we have a confirmed case of measles parents will be notified via email.

As stated in the guidelines from Auckland Regional Public Health Service;  should we have a confirmed case of measles we strongly advise that students who have not been vaccinated, have had only first dose and those with weakened immunity, should stay at home for 10 days.  

Extended Absences 

A  reminder that if you are planning for your child to be absent from school for more than 5 days the school needs to be notified in advance. Depending on the circumstances of the leave eg. family reunion,  will determine how your child's absence is recorded on our student management system.  Requests for extended absence should be emailed to principal@stanleybay.school.nz

Open Day - Sharing of Learning

Movies are being made, instruments tuned, dances choreographed, artworks polished in anticipation of our Term 3 Open Day. Timings for the day are as follows:

Year 5/6: 9 to 11 

Year 0/2: 11.30 - 12.15

Year 3/4: 12.15 - 1

The children really look forward to sharing their learning and love an audience! We look forward to seeing you there. 

Finally to round off Te wiki o te reo Māori, a proverb that is very apt to Stanley Bay!

Ahakoa iti, he pounamu.
Although it is small, it is of greenstone.

Nga Mihi 

Lucy Nyalor 

Principal / Tumuaki