Hillcrest Normal School eNewsletter

Kia ora koutou

Thank you to those that were able to make it to our Meet the Teacher and family picnic. Developing parent / teacher partnerships for your child's learning is important, so it was great to see so many of our whānau in classes and enjoying time together on the field.

School swimming sports are always a highlight on our annual calendar. The senior school held their event on Monday and the pool was full of fun, competition, giving your best and supporting others. Well done to the seniors for running their own fundraising event. It was great to have an enthusiastic group of parents cheering on all of the children. All the best to our team that will represent Hillcrest Normal School at the Inter-school swimming event at Tamahere next week. The middle school will be holding their event tomorrow from 9.00 - 12.30pm. All whānau are welcome.

Rich authentic learning happens both inside and out of the classroom. Today we have 4 senior classes having a learning experience at Miranda for the day. In a couple of weeks time we will have the other senior classes head off on their own excursion.

We are off to a good start to the year, with the number of students attending regularly. Every day counts for our children, so we really appreciate you getting your children to school regularly, on time, and leaving them at school until the end of the day when the bell goes.

A reminder that tonight we are holding our FOS (Friends of the school) meeting in the boardroom at 3.30pm. All parents are welcome to attend.

It is great to see so many families making the most of this beautiful weather, encouraging their children to walk, bike and scooter to school. This certainly helps with congestion and keeping all our tamariki safe before and after school.

Noho ora mai

Marie Bramley

Principal


Marie Bramley Principal	Corey Redwood Presiding Member

Helen Johnson Finance	Dean Baldock Parent Representative

Nathan Leith Parent Representative	Wencui Zhu Parent Representative

Miel Maclean Staff Representative	Prue Lye Minute Secretary

Junior School

Science

The Year Two team is diving into the fascinating world of animal habitats through science! They are exploring how different living things have specific needs to survive and thrive in their environments. They are also discovering how these living things can be grouped in different ways based on their characteristics and habitats.

Habitats

In Room 18 we are learning about cicadas and where they live. We went exploring and found four exoskeletons on the trunks of trees in our bush area. Cicadas shed their skin to help them grow. The exoskeletons protect their body.

A habitat is a home for animals. Animals live in different places. Some animals like the dark and some animals like the light. Some like warmth and some like the cold. In a habitat, animals can find what they need to survive. They need food, water, shelter and space. A cicada loves trees!

By Evie and Millie

Maths

In Year Two, students are exploring numbers and place value in exciting ways! They are using a variety of materials, including recently purchased equipment, to discover how numbers work together. With hands-on activities students are making sense of numbers and developing a deeper understanding of how digits are grouped into hundreds, tens and ones. This approach is helping them build a strong foundation in a fun and engaging way!

Middle School

In Room 12 we have been working on creating a class treaty. We have agreed on some class guidelines which involve making sure that we create a safe learning environment, respect each other and treat each other with kindness. We were inspired to use fireworks to represent our uniqueness and creativity as each stripe represents us but we come together as a class to work together.

Senior School

On Tuesday the Senior School had their swimming sports at the pool. There were width and length races, a house relay and last but not least a teacher vs students race. The crowd went wild everytime a race happened, cheering on their friends.

At the end of the day there was a teacher vs student relay race. Miss Tyrrell was telling everyone all day that she had forgotten her togs and wasn't competing but jumped in anyway with her clothes on. Miss Stretch also sped across the pool with the help of a rope, man did she fly! We also loved seeing Mr Jacob in his banana costume. The teachers won only just and will be coming back next year to defend their title.

Elodie: I did all the length races. I found it really fun and I am very proud of myself because I placed 3rd in most of my races. I enjoyed the sausage sizzle and seeing my friends in other classes.

Milla: I competed in all the races. I was proud of myself for getting in the finals for the butterfly. I loved the sausage sizzle and getting to stay in my togs all day.

By Milla and Elodie

If you have any issues or concerns during your time at Hillcrest Normal School please firstly contact your class teacher either by email or arrange a meeting to discuss the matter. If you feel the matter needs further discussion then please email the Assistant Principal responsible for the part of the school your child is in.