Week 4 Newsletter

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Thank you to those of you who could make it to the “Meet the Teacher” afternoon or evening last week. I will type up the few bits of information I told those who were present and will send it home sometime this week.

Swimming Sports
On Tuesday at 10.00 we will have our Senior Swimming Sports. You are welcome to come and watch your child as they take part in a variety of width or length races, depending on their swimming level.

Can the children please bring a spare t-shirt along to wear while they are waiting for their races? That way we won’t get a huge mix-up again with the big number of unnamed red tops.

There is a dress-up race at the end of the sports. If the children want to take part in that, they need a t-shirt and a hat which can get wet. It is also a good idea to pack two towels because they do get very wet.

Homework

The children are getting used to doing their homework every day. They need to write their words out three times every day, and complete a basic fact sheet which is in the back of their homework book. Reading diaries need to be filled in as well. It would be good to see the Year 5s write in their own comment.

Generallly, if homework is not done, they need to stay in at playtime. If your child can’t complete their homework, I would appreciate a note. Thank you.

Email

You are welcome to get in touch with me by email if you have any questions or concerns. I try to check them every morning. If your child is absent it is best to ring or text the office.

My email address is arehmann@centennial.school.nz

Have a great week,

Annie Rehmann

Week 3 Newsletter

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

It’s week 3, and we are well into it as you can see by the many extra-curricular activities that are coming up:

Kiwi Can
This is a weekly session with Dom and Richie which focusses on respect. This term’s theme is “Positive Relationships”. The sessions are run in the hall and will take place on Tuesdays. 

Swimming
On Thursday and Friday we are going to the town pool from 11-12 to practice for our Senior Swimming Sports which will be on Tuesday 19^th February.

Daily swimming in the school pool is going very well. There are no issues with children forgetting their togs at home this year. Well done!

Safe cycling

Keri Brown is going to take two sessions with the Senior classes. One will be a theory session tomorrow, and one will be a practical bike safety session. This coincides well with the “Go by bike” day on Wednesday.

Could children please bring a bike and a helmet to school on Wednesday. If they don’t have one, it would be great if they could borrow one from someone else.

Meet the Teachers
On Wednesday, there will be two sessions available for you to come and hear about the Senior school and Ruma Kakapo. First session is at 3.15 pm, and the second one at 7.00 pm. I look forward to seeing you then.  

 

Homework
This week we are starting spelling homework. The children need to write out their spelling words three times into their homework. Let me know if the words are too hard. It will take a bit of time to get the level right for each child.

Data squares

We made predictions about our class data. Now we are going to check if they were correct.

Me-poster

Have a look at the wonderful children of Ruma Kakapo and find out more about them from their Me-posters.

Same or different?

Week 2

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

It has been a wonderful start to the new year with “my” new Ruma Kakapo class. Thank you for getting the stationery organised so quickly. I think this was a new record in speediness.

 

Swimming

With the wonderful weather we have had some great swimming sessions. The children have been excellent in bringing their togs to school. This week we will continue swimming instruction in groups which allows me to work on specific skills with each group.

 

Homework

Thank you for helping with filling in reading diaries. Every morning by before 8.55, the children put their reading diary into a box in the classroom. They get to move their name up on our class star chart if the diary is filled in and signed.

 This week we will start Basic Facts homework. This is a programme which Mrs Constable used very successfully last year.

 Each child has a set list of Basic Facts to learn for the week. There are four sheets for the children to fill in, one for every day.

Day 1: Complete the facts and get them checked. Take as long as you like. Study the ones you got wrong. Why were they wrong?

Day 2: Practise the facts, trying to get all correct. Rewrite the wrong ones.

Day 3: Time yourself to complete all facts.

Day 4: Time yourself to see if you can complete them within 4 minutes.

 

At this stage, the facts should rather be too easy than too hard as I want the children to experience success.

If you find that the facts are too hard, or your child is fretting over the time pressure, please let me know. The whole Basic Facts programme should be enjoyable with a rewarding feeling after the Friday test when, hopefully, all facts were completed in four minutes and the next level can be started on the following Monday.

The last thing I want is for your child (or you) to feel anxious and stressed about learning Basic Facts.

 

Have a good week,

Annie Rehmann