What's Been Going On In Room 13 Lately

Kahikatea Swimming Sports was a great buzz on Thursday 25 August at Cannons Creek Pool. Just about everyone in the syndicate competed and some superb swimmers graced the tiles. In lane 4, above, Cian has just nailed 50m of backstoke. Equally impressive was Esha, who Ms Souter noted had a quality backstroke technique. Others to stand-out were: Maia-Jet, Kaelab, Mathayus, and Acosta in freestyle, and Grace in backstroke - but to be honest the rest of the class wasn't far behind and I was really proud of their effort. It must be noted that Maia-Jet was lightening fast and led the relay team. Keep it up.

Ko Wai Au came to a wonderful conclusion on Wednesday after a superb year of possibly life-changing learning about ourselves and others, empathy, social and conflict resolution skills, te reo and tikanga Maori, and so much more. Thanks to the team at the Whanau Centre - they were magnificent and were totally connected to the kids. Here you can see the climax of the kids setting life-long goals, by smashing through them. A great metaphor and an inspiring series of moments. I hope they all keep their aspirations in a safe place and reflect on them in 5 years or 10 years time.

I got a bit carried away by the Olympics and tried to slip in a few classic events and skills this term, including the 280m running time trial, the 100m, the discus, and in these photos, the mighty shot put. We teamed up with some maths extension (ALiM) kids from Room 11 and extracted quite a bit of Maths with Statistics out of the charging and heaving, e.g., measurement, comparison, sorting data, calculating mean and median averages, identifying the range or measurements etc. Good stuff. Semisi nailed the shot put and broke the tape by going over 8m. It was an 8m tape. It will never retract again. Kalea showed good technique as well, using her hips to generate more power than that provided by her arm. Choice.

This term we have got a nice little relationship going with Room 16, which began with a mission to the Countdown construction site nearby. In these photos you can see the kids totally engaged in reading and being read to. It was one of those beautiful, quiet moments when everyone was in a zone and the power of the tuakana-teina connection became evident. Well done everyone.

Here we have Jahmane smashing the 25m flutterboard at the Creek.

Two more pics of the Ko Wai Au team and Room 13, along with Thonshai, Regan and Shayne preparing to smash their goals.

 Stilt Making in Room 13 for Matariki.

A Seriously Fun Challange. All Fingers and Toes Intact.

Watch your fingers, Croshan. The kids seemed to really enjoy getting the tools out and getting on with the job. There were a few problems to solve along the way, like poorly behaved nails. But nothing that couldn't be rectified.

Tyzharn was really into his stilt building. There's a lot more to it than you might think. The design needed to be practical, and the stilts strong and easy to use and hold on to.

Semisi takes one small step for mankind.

There were several skills required to complete the project. Not breaking Matua Lindsay's drill bits was one of them. Here Matua Terry and Jahmane prepare some pilot holes for nails.

The finished product was outstanding. There was something for everyone, from beginners to pros. They've been in action for over a month and there have been no breakages (or serious accidents) yet. Woohoo!

Kalea didn't have many problems mastering the technique.

The Annual Stroll

There's something really satisfying about watching the kids battle the burning lungs, the aching legs, and the desire to give-in - then carry-on up that merciless final hill up near the water tank. It was a beautiful but extremely windy day this year for the mighty cross-country, and Regan from Room 13 showed the talent and tenacity he always does when outside galloping around like a deer. Tino pai!

Camp at Teapot Valley

We went, we conquered, we came back - and many of us probably still miss what was an absolutely fantastic experience in sunny Nelson. I was nervous beforehand, but the week turned out to be one of the best of my teaching career. The students were wonderful: brave, charming, mad, open, experimental, successful, friendly and hungry! Here are the first of many photos.

 I guess it all began with the food. Glorious food. Monday: burgers. Delicious burgers!

 Remember these guys? That was the line to be in. 

 Don't tell Health and Safety! This might have been a little way off the track, but it was fun. And beautiful too. The Able Tasman walk was a highlight of the trip.

 Not a bad place to have afternoon tea, eh?

 It was like being on Miami Vice! That cruise back to camp via Kaiteriteri was sensational. And there were seals.

 What's she pointing at? Just horror, fear, and screaming!

 Discipline was tough at camp. Time on The Stump was hard.

 We had to work together, for better or for worse!

 We had to rid the world of deadly toxic waste. Hold onto the rope!

The team at Teapot Vally were magnificent and helped make it all possible. Cheers!

Year 7-8 Girls' Cricket Team Unbeaten in 2016

Rangikura really shone in the Porirua schools cricket competition this year. They won every game, played with skill, laughed possibly far too much, and displayed real talent at this challenging sport. It was a pleasure coaching them, and I'm sure that several of them could go on to play rep cricket in the future if they stay in the game. Room 13 was represented by Maia-Jet, Selina, Croshan, and Phoenix. 

This photo was taken after their defeat of Paremata School in a home fixture at Ascot Park. They all played well, but Area smashed a few mighty boundaries that day, Asha and Phoenix ran like the wind between the wickets, and Croshan bowled an immaculate over of Hadlee-esque pace. Cheers!

Last week we journeyed to Room 5 and shared our fantastic Big Books with them. This is Acosta enthralling the kids with his group's story The Cookie Bear. Their teacher, Miss Bonsey, said the kids absolutely loved our educational and entertaining texts and have been reading them non-stop. Tino pai!

We've been writing and illustrating 'Big Books' for the reading (and academic) pleasure of kids in the junior school. It's been all about understanding how and why authors create these stories so the kids can learn new words etc., be entertained, and also think deeply about valuable life skills, like persisting, or helping others. Phoenix's group worked on a narrative about a Grandma who was lucky enough to be helped in her various daily tasks. In the photo she is sharing the text with the class for the first time.