What are our school values?

Students in my class were thinking and talking about the meaning of our school values (waka hoe) and how these values will help them experience success at Tautoro School and beyond.

Students were set the task of creating a DLO (digital learning object) that teaches and promotes what these values are. Groups have started animations, posters, movies, and even a song as a way to deliver their learning!
Here is the work of oa group that focused on manaakitanga and a group that focused on Kaitiakitanga. Thanks for your tautoko Matt!

First day back at school 2017!

Kia ora,

We started the day with an awesome powhiri to welcome new students. I am happy to have three new students in Room 5. Leikhrynn, Seddon and Manaaki-tia.  . Nau mai haere mai ki te kura o Tautoro!

Today Room 5 students carried out statistical surveys on things that they are interested in. They posed questions, collected data on tally charts and used google spreadsheets to collate and present their data. These have been posted to their blogs with the question, ‘What can you learn by reading this graph?’ Please check them out and leave comments. Students will be looking at their own, and other, examples of data displays and make statements about what they communicate.

This is Sonny's survey results. I find these results fascinating and I am eager to understand where students are in spelling/maths and plan a learning program that will see their ability and perception of spelling and maths improve.

Over the next two weeks I expect students will be asking questions about your views on the Treaty of Waitangi. They will learn about possible reasons it was signed in the first place and begin to understand kawanatanga and tino rangatiratanga. A whole school trip to Waitangi Treaty Grounds is scheduled for Friday 10th February.

Stationery lists have been sent home today. Please ensure your child has the tools they need to get started on their learning.

Homework Kaupapa

In Room 5 students have homework. It is up to whanau support to ensure children spend some time on the following areas.

• Spelling

The spelling list words are taken home on Mondays. Read, cover, spell, check can be done independently.

Students are encouraged to log into the spellingclassoom.com account to access work around word meaning.

• Reading

Students are choosing books based on their interests. They are taught to read the blurb, check that they are not struggling with more than 5 words per page. For confident readers, the best support can be asking questions about the storyline or characters. In some cases students will need to take home the reader they have had with me and read it out loud to you. This is to support their reading fluency and to practice reading strategies they are taught in class.

• Basic facts

Each term all students sit a basic facts test. By week two your child will know the facts they are working on and will choose practice work based on those facts to do at home. Students who take home chromebooks are encourage to use sites such as Hit The Button.

Occasionally there will be topic based work. Lastly, although homework is actively encouraged and a classroom system is in place to monitor it, is up to the individual child and whanau support to get it done. Students will not be reprimanded if it is not completed.

Classroom learning site is  https://sites.google.com/a/tautoroschool.co.nz/tuakana-2017/home

This is a great place to keep up to date with your child's learning and the kind of work they are doing.

Our class blog  http://room5tautoroschool.blogspot.co.nz/

Here you will find links to your child’s blog. It is so awesome to have access to your child’s ‘portfolio’ throughout the year. Making positive and encouraging comments and suggestions is a great way to show your support.

Any questions or suggestions, feel free to contact me or come in for a chat.

lana@tautoroschool.co.nz

Merry Christmas everybody!

Thank you to all whanau and Kaikohekohe Cluster  students who have participated in Room 5's learning by commenting on our blog and on individual students' blogs. A special mihi to the students and teachers from Room 22 in Owairaka District School, Mrs Waho and Gliberthorpe School in Christchurch. I wish you all a safe and Merry Christmas. From Whaea Lana and Room 5 students.

Revisting our school's birthday!

For some reason this News Hub video made by Room 5 girls never was posted. It was made in Term 3. The girls wrote and filmed this as a group project. I love how it has captured a very special Whanau Day for us here at Tautoro School. The ending with Papa Joe's korero is a reminder and a challenge to love one another, and if we do not know how to then we need to learn to love.

The Ant Prank!

Last term we were learning about creating movies. We focussed on creating plots and using storyboards to help us plan. We also tried to plan for the different kind of shots that we will use too. For example, establishing, long, medium and close up shots. Tristan and Aryan worked together to come up with the ideas and they wrote the script for this movie. We think Waaka is an excellent actor.


Next time we will try use something to hold the camera still while we are recording so the movie does not look shaky.

Peru Project - The Beginning

Driving Question

How can we learn about, and persuade others to see, the benefit of growing peruperu?

China Inquiry

Today Room 5 presented their inquiry findings. It was awesome. We learnt a little about a lot such as, Chinese cuisine, the Great Wall of China, Mandarin, the Ghost Festival, New Year Festivals, growing rice, Chinese arts, Chinese medicine and the  wildlife in China.

Many students were learning to develop confidence presenting their inquiry findings.
Some students were learning to present their inquiry with confidence, using a variety of resources.

I chose to do this because too often students are cutting and pasting information from the internet that they do not understand or is not relevant to their learning.  By presenting live and getting instant feedback from friends and the teacher I expect inquiry process and presentation for next term to improve.

Things we focused on were:

• What is your focus question
• What did you find out
• Is your work in your own words
• Did you state your sources (where you got the information from)

What we will do differently next time
We will learn to find material on sites that is within our reading age
Using tools to help us build understanding such as online dictionaries, thesaurus and youtube.
Using a buddy system to support each other to present information in our own words and in a variety of ways.

Next term, our inquiry topic is science based. We will be investigating the life cycle of living thing that we are passionate about. We will also do  a whole class inquiry on the life cycle of the peru peru.