What will we be teaching this term?????

Well, Term 1 will be a very busy time indeed. There are 2 major focuses this term, or what we refer to as 'Integrated Units' One of which is 'Me, Myself, and I'. This looks at relationships with other people. The kids will be learning to describe and demonstrate a range of assertive communication skills and processes that enable them to interact with other people. They will also identify the effects of changing situations, roles and responsibillities on relationships and describe appropriate responses.

The second focus will be 'Footprints In The Past' Room 5 will be focusing on the era of 1960. They will learn that people pass on and sustain culture and heritage for different reasons, and understand that this has consequences for people.

We will also begin our reading programme using fictional novels and journals. This will be the only area in which Renee and I follow on from each other, mainly as this is such a large area and we would rather split it up so that the kids are doing a 'little bit each day' rather than one full block each week.

Recount writing is another area that we will be looking heavily into. This will involve the kids writing in their expressive diaries, writing letters to their teacher as well as transactional writing on their friendships.

Renee has a strong background in Te Reo Maori and I have one in Science so we prefer teaching these specific subjects. These two areas will be carried on throughout the year rather than in one specific term

Thinking skills is an area that B.I.S. has a large focus on. What this means is that we teach the kids to learn in different ways. Some children learn easier through simply getting on with things and working problems out for themselves, while others need a stimulus to get them started. Everyone will be given the opportunity to try out various ways to challenge themselves with their thinking skills. In Term 1, we will be focusing on 'Multiple Intelligences and Bloom's'

As for Maths, each child will be tested within the first 3 weeks for their ability within this subject. The whole school will then be 'banded' and your child will have a specific teacher who will teach at their preferred level. They will not necessarily have Renee or myself.

There will be alot of opportunity for sport, fitness testing and learning different areas within ICT. You will find that this is a fast paced school but hopefully your child will gain so much from it.