They are master chefs in the making. Natasha Pheng and Farzana Rahimi of Botany Downs Secondary College (BDSC) were thrilled to win a cheque of $1000 at the Eye on Nature Cooking Competition, hosted by the Manukau Beautification Trust at the foyer of the Botanical Garden Visitor Centre, recently.

The five high schools competing for the prize money were Botany Downs Secondary College. Saint Kentigern College, Pakuranga College, Alfriston and Aorere Colleges.

The dish that won the judges’ approval and top marks was seared venison and tartare with potato and mushroom croquettes, butternut puree, mushroom soil and kale.

Head of food technology at BDSC, Angie Thomson says that the brief was to prepare a dish that relates to the New Zealand restaurant industry.

“It is a dish that is inspired by recipes seen on/in some of New Zealand’s most famous restaurants menus and cook books (Cluprit, Cibo and French Café to name a few). The dish is also made up of locally sourced ingredients which we felt represents many of the classic Kiwi staples,” she says.

Year 12 students Natasha and Farzana say that the dish is a fine example of modern New Zealand cuisine that celebrates the beautiful ingredients New Zealand has to offer.

“We used the mandatory components of the competition (venison, potatoes and mushroom) as a starting point and looked for other ingredients and cookery techniques that we thought would complement these.

“With the help of our teacher – who is extremely passionate about fine food, we trawled through websites and cook books to be inspired by what New Zealand chefs are serving in their restaurants,” they say.

The post So what’s cooking? appeared first on Times.

Students at a local primary school have been trying to take down a pesky drone which has been buzzing the school.

Cockle Bay Primary School’s acting principal Paul Crowhurst said in May in a school newsletter: “In recent weeks we have encountered the roving presence of a high-spec drone around school.

“As such, I commissioned, with the blessing of the Civil Aviation Authority, Cockle Bay School’s first ever anti-drone defence system.

“Although this shower of soccer and rugby balls has been unsuccessful at bringing said drone down to earth, it has seemed to stop the visits during school hours.”

However, close to the end of the May, the school had more sightings over the school outside of school hours. “The police and CAA have been contacted as flying drones over private property is not lawful,” Mr Crowhurst.

“The police are looking into the matter. It is clear that the drone is being launched somewhere between Cockle Bay School and the coast, we would be most appreciative of any information on who is flying this drone or where it is being launched from.”

Police confirmed to the Times they have made enquiries however have been unable to identify the origin of the drone and have since had no further reports.

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More than 100 parents, children and friends of the kindergarten got together at Pakuranga Baptist Kindergarten to throw a surprise party for head teacher, Jacqui Lees.

The get-together was last Thursday July 5.

Jacqui has been teaching at Pakuranga Baptist Kindergarten since 1998, and has been the kaiwhakahaere (head teacher) since 2001.

Jacqui says it’s amazing to now have children at the kindy whose parents she remembers teaching two decades ago.

“Over the years I have been here I have met and come to know many wonderful friends,” says Lees. “I think of myself as a tree, with deep roots in this community.”

Parents at the kindergarten commented on the dedication and love Jacqui brings to her role.

“Jacqui is very modest about her work and doesn’t see how special she is,” says kindergarten parent Carrie Harman.

“But we see it very differently. Her focus on holistic education shapes everything about this amazing kindy. It feels magical the moment you walk through the gate.”

Jacqui’s passion for the environment is obvious in the kindergarten’s strong environmental focus. Pakuranga Baptist Kindergarten became an accredited Enviroschool in 2015 and started the popular ‘Outdoor Explorers’ programme in 2017.

Jacqui has a Bachelor of Education from the University of Auckland and has continued her professional development over the years participating in many different courses and research projects, both in New Zealand and overseas.

Pakuranga Baptist Kindergarten is a community-based kindergarten offering full and half-day session for 2 to 5-year olds. Their mixed-age centre provides a place of connection and collaboration, allowing our younger children to be inspired and challenged by the older children, while our older ones learn to share their skills and take responsibility for others.

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Anchorage Park School in Pakuranga will become a TREEmendous school next term when they transform an unused area of their school field into an inspiring outdoor learning environment.

And the school is inviting locals to attend the planting day on Saturday July 28.

MCd by Ruud (The Bugman Kleinpaste, planting will take place from 9am-12noon followed by an official opening.

Volunteers are welcome from 8:45am and encouraged to bring gloves, wheelbarrows, spades and shovels. Refreshments will be provided. For more information or to offer your assistances please contact the school directly.

The project was initiated by students in the STEM club and supported by lead science teacher Lorraine Field.

The students have given up their lunchtimes to design and create a scaled down model of what the area will look like once completed.

Boosting a native bush walk, bird feeders, weta enclosures, a lizard garden, insect hotels and a viewing worm farm, this space will allow students to develop their understanding of the local environment and empower them to take responsibility and care for their environment and protect the ecosystem.

They hope to attract birdlife from the adjacent Tamaki Estuary.

The area will not only benefit the school but also their neighbouring kindergarten, Somerville Special School satellite classes based at the school, and the community as a whole both now and for generations to come.

Working bees are already being held most weekends at the school in preparation of the official TREEmendous planting day.

“As a small school, this is a huge undertaking, and while we have been given a TREEmendous grant and will have assistance from the Mazda Foundation & Project Crimson volunteers, we still need further assistance to complete this project” says principal Belinda Johnston.

“We invite the whole community to come along and be involved”

Sponsorship or donations from local businesses or organisations would also be gratefully received by the small, decile 3 school who have been fundraising hard all year to top up their TREEmendous grant.

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It is not very often a husband and wife team are appointed as principals of local primary schools.

Ian Dickinson, principal of Pigeon Mountain School, admitted to being a little jealous of his wife Carol Dickinson at the powhiri hosted to welcome her as the new head of Riverina School. 

“I’ve always wanted to be the principal of this school and I’m a little jealous of Mrs Dickinson who got this role. But I will wait my turn. Maybe I will get to be the 12th principal of the school,” he said on Tuesday morning.

Introducing himself as “the younger and the better looking version of the Dickinsons,” he said it was such a proud moment for his wife who is often described as Florence Nightingale/Superwoman for going out of her way to help anyone and everyone with a problem.

“She well imbibes the school values of courage, courtesy and kindness,” he said.

“This week is a very important one for us but I’m sure my wife has forgotten all about the other important event in our lives.

“It’s our wedding anniversary on Thursday…but I do know how much the school and the students mean to  her and well understand that with so many things on her mind, she has forgotten about it,” he said.Getting very emotional as her husband introduced her on her special day, Mrs Dickinson, said it was always her dream to be a teacher.

She started her career as a teacher in a rough area in London. She later went to teach at Pigeon Mountain School followed by a six year stint at Riverina School.

“I have fulfilled my dreams and I encourage you to follow your dreams and aspire to achieve them,” she told students.

“It reminds me of a quote from a very important man from the 60s – Martin Luther King. He said he had a dream. It was a very simple dream for everyone to be treated as equal and work and play together.”

Thanking the former principals of the School Doreen Martin and Caroline Chawke  for giving her mana and confidence to help drive the school forward, she finished with a whakatauki (Maori proverb) on the school playground dedicated to the memory of Koro Percy which reads: “Let the uniqueness of the child guide our work.”

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Its fast arcade racer jumps off cliffs, slides off ramps and bashes everything out of sight.

Year 12 and 13 students from Pakuranga College recently presented the latest version of their Virtual Reality sledding game at the New Zealand game developers’ meet-up at the Auckland University of Technology campus.

They shared some of the insights they have gained along the way, at the game developers’ meet-up which was an opportunity for professional game developers, students studying game design and other professionals with an interest in the virtual gaming world to exchange notes.

Many attendees were keen to try out the students’ game. The latest iteration of the game is more polished with an updated release due to hit Steam very soon. Steam is a digital distribution platform, which offers digital rights management, multiplayer gaming, video streaming and social networking

Prior to the meet-up, students went on a tour of computer science departments at AUT, Auckland University and Media Design School, where they got an opportunity to see projects currently in development by students and various facilities.

Ex-Pakuranga College student, Rory Buchanan was on hand to talk about the electric racing car that the engineering department is developing.

The students also got to try out the full-size motion capture facility at AUT. To see these technologies at work in an authentic context, the group visited Method Digital, a company currently developing a variety of virtual reality and augmented reality solutions for New Zealand applications.

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Ormiston Senior College will be doing things differently with Year 11 students and NCEA next year.

With schools becoming more aware of the adverse effect of continual assessment on adolescent mental health, come 2019, a new approach to NCEA in the first year of senior college has been planned.

Students will begin working towards NCEA Level 2 over two years instead of focusing on NCEA Level 1 for a year and then Level 2 the second year.

The school is committed to taking learning more slowly and allowing time for exploration and discovery.

Diana Patience, principal of Ormiston Senior College, says the current NCEA practice of a constant focus on assessment all year takes away from the process of learning.

“Real learning takes time. Employers are telling schools they are looking for students who not only have a  good subject knowledge but also display the skills listed above,” she says.

“By making NCEA Level 2 a two-year journey, the school will focus on both in-depth content knowledge and the above dispositions.”

At present, the stress and pressure do not abate for the final three years of schooling. By taking two years to gain NCEA Level 2, assessments will not be so frequent nor the time frames so pressured.

“The only important qualification is the one the student leaves with. Once a student has achieved NCEA Level 2, they automatically achieve Level 1,” she says.

“The government is currently reviewing NCEA Level 1 and the changes we are proposing are in line with those up for discussion by the Ministry of Education.”

Assessments will not disappear. Students in Year 11 next year will have the opportunity to achieve some credits towards Level 1 or 2.  Assessment will be linked specifically to attaining numeracy and literacy standards and working towards some Level 2 standards. This will have a knock-on effect of also making Year 12 less pressured.

Past and present students have been surveyed and a good number of the nearly 200 responses indicate that there should be more focus on learning and less on getting credits.

“The drivers for change are many,” says Ms Patience.

“The World Economic Forum has published the skills required to thrive in the 21st century. As well as the foundational literacies (numeracy, scientific, ICT, financial, civic and written literacy) they have listed creativity, critical problem solving, communication and collaboration as key competencies every person needs as they enter adulthood.

“They also add the character qualities of curiosity, initiative, persistence and adaptability.  A school needs time to allow students to focus on developing such skills.”

She says that these changes will deepen students’ content knowledge, remove the high level of constant stress and provide time to embed the competencies outlined by the World Economic Forum.

“The response to this proposal from the community in the contributing schools has been overwhelmingly positive and innovative course design for 2019 is well underway,” she says.

The post Ormiston Senior College’s new approach to NCEA appeared first on Times.

Principals of local primary schools are deeply concerned about the crisis of teacher shortage and the increasing strain on teachers.  

Consider this – a student gets into a wild rage in a classroom and starts throwing everything around including books and a pair of scissors. He starts kicking chairs and sends a desk flying across the room. The rest of the children watch, terrified.  The teacher quickly evacuates the class to keep other children safe.

The student ends up smashing up the entire classroom. The teacher is stressed out by the disruptive behaviour. She can’t cope with it anymore.

In another classroom, there is a huge gap between the students with high needs in a class. There is a mix of students with a range of disabilities from speech problems to auditory processing difficulties, epilepsy and a couple of children on the autistic spectrum disorder. They all need special attention.

Admitting that teachers are finding it extremely hard to cope with the stress of  increasing special needs students filling up the classrooms, Alan McIntyre – principal of one of the biggest primary schools in Auckland  with a roll of 800 students, says teachers are beginning to collapse under the strain.

Getting relief teachers is a major issue.

With fewer teachers getting into the profession and the more experienced ones retiring, there is an ever-widening chasm. “There are no teachers applying for ae job,” says Mr McIntyre.

His deputy principal at Owairoa Primary, Christine Bull, says that equally stressful is the responsibility of being a Special Education Needs Coordinator (SENCO). It gives her very little time to complete other aspects of her job. She ends up spending all her time trying to ensure that children with special educational needs and disabilities within the school receive the support they need and deserve.

“Our school is now employing 12 teacher aides, paid from locally-raised funds, to assist in classes,” says Ms Bull.

“I have to meet up with the families and try to figure out what the real problem is and then connect them to the special agencies for help. It could be that the parents have separated and the child’s routine is disturbed because he is living in more than one home. Or that the parent has major family/health issues and is more dependent on the school to look after the child. There are so many other issues to be considered,” she says.

“The largest growing problem for children in all schools is the rising anxiety levels and it’s “a trend that is growing with children becoming distraught and anxious”.

There is a great deal of time involved in having meetings and recording all the data, she says. “We often have to play counsellor, which is something we are not really trained for.”

Leyette Callister, principal of Howick Primary, is equally concerned about the under-resourcing of schools.

She says that while inclusion is good, there is a point where the Ministry of Education needs to tell the parents that they need to put their child in a special needs environment.

“We have a policy of inclusion and catering to every child’s needs but it gets to a ridiculous stage because of being under-resourced. We just don’t have enough teacher aides. It’s important to understand that while we really enjoy having your child at school, we also have a responsibility of keeping other children safe.”

A case in point is an autistic child at school. “The child couldn’t sit still and would keep circling around the class which was very disconcerting for the teacher and students.  There were times she would get so agitated she’d snap a pencil and start chewing on it. It was inappropriate behaviour and, unfortunately, the mother wasn’t willing to work with us.

“Another child with Down syndrome once ran away from school. Fortunately the child was found. The Ministry of Education then fenced the property around the classroom with a patch of green.”

She says that additional resourcing is needed to help senior staff as teachers are beginning to say `we are not going to deal with this’.

“There is just not enough money to run our schools,” she says.

“A lot of experienced teachers have moved house out of Auckland and for younger teachers who are just learning the ropes, it is a big ask. The quality and number of new applicants is low.  It’s a huge challenge we are facing. The Ministry of Education is in a mess.

“In my opinion, our much experienced teachers would go without an increase of salary if there are better working conditions.”

Ian Dickinson, principal of Pigeon Mountain School, says the complexity of needs has increased and, with that, it is getting harder to get teachers in the classroom.

“Recruiting teachers is the biggest challenge. With the expectation and increasing demand on the teacher as well as accountability and paper work increasing, from 60 applicants for a teaching job, it has reduced to three or four,” he says.

“To support our children we have to dip into our own school funding for more teacher aides. Fortunately for us, the Board of Trustees have been very supportive.

Deputy principal Tracy Leader, who has the additional responsibility of dealing with SENCO, reiterates that sometimes they have no idea what they are dealing with. “We are not psychologists.”

Admitting that it can get very frustrating, she says that there are multi-agencies involved when it comes to dealing with high needs students. “You are passed on from one department to another. We have to make referrals to the Resource Teachers for Learning and Behaviour (RTLB) at Pakuranga Intermediate which is a fabulous service but they are under a lot of pressure as well.

“The whole system is at a breaking point.”

• What do you think? Email farida@times.co.nz

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Elim Christian College’s Year 11 Chinese Class took home the best creative award in the Chinese Short Film Contest, hosted by International Languages Exchanges and Pathways and New Zealand Chinese Language Teachers Association.

The short film ‘Hot dog Lovers’ directed by student Georgia Bilby and assisted by camera-woman Alison McWilliams, features a full-class cast with shared roles and efforts divided amongst the eager Mandarin-learning students.

The film in Mandarin has both English and Mandarin subtitles. The script involves a plot based on cliché and stereotypical love stories, with a twist… hot-dogs.

The creative take on a typical romance, it stars Year-11 students Musasiyashe Muodza and Jackson Taylor as main characters. Students of the class are tight-knit, with a love for learning the language and “having fun with all things Chinese,” says Year 11 student, Anusha Gaundor.

Teacher Karen Liu, who has taught Mandarin for more than 10 years at the college, gave students a free reign of the non-assessed project just before she went on a six-week’s leave and was very impressed with their efforts once she was back at school.

Mandarin is a compulsory subject in Year 9 at the school, with many students voluntarily continuing to pursue it further.

Prizegiving for the event will be held at the University of Auckland Epsom Campus this Friday, revealing all the winners of categories.

By Maxine Fourie

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The kids at Howick Primary School are diverting the Howick community’s oral care waste from landfill for their chance to win one of two recycled community garden sets, as part a national recycling competition run by Colgate and global recycling pioneers TerraCycle.

Between 1 August and 16 November 2018, the Colgate Community Garden Challenge invites pre, primary and secondary schools nationwide to collect all brands of oral care waste and send it to TerraCycle – who will give the waste a second life by creating new products.

Two recycled community garden sets will be awarded to two schools, with each set including one garden bed, one park bench and one bin, plus a $300 gardening voucher to buy seeds and plants.

Besides showing how recycled materials can be used as a sustainable alternative to virgin plastic, Colgate and TerraCycle hope the sets will promote gardening and healthy eating among schools.

Howick Primary School teacher Samantha Searle said the competition was a great way for the students to learn about sustainability.

“Recycling oral care waste in the Colgate Community Garden Challenge has helped bring our school and the community together to care for our environment,” Miss Searle said. “Winning a recycled community garden set would be a great opportunity for the kids to learn how to grow their own food.”

The Howick community is encouraged to drop their used oral care products at Howick Primary School to be recycled, and vote for them every day online at www.terracycle.co.nz/colgategardenvoting.

“At TerraCycle, we want to ‘Eliminate the Idea of Waste’ and a perfect place to start is with schools,” Jean Bailliard, General Manager of TerraCycle Australia, said. “We want to thank the kids at Howick Primary School for their amazing recycling work, and wish them all the best in the competition!”

Schools can visit www.terracycle.co.nz/colgategarden to join the competition, access posters and resources to get started, and to watch their competition ranking on a digital leaderboard.

The Competition

The competition will have two winners: one will be the school that earns the most Garden Points; the other will be drawn at random. Each win a recycled community garden set.

Accepted oral care waste includes: any brand of toothpaste tubes and caps, toothbrushes, toothbrush and toothpaste tube outer packaging and floss containers.

Additionally, in monthly prize draws, schools will have the chance to win a pack of 90 upcycled pencil cases made from recycled toothpaste tubes – another example of how oral care waste can become a valuable new product.

Competition entry, rules and an interactive leaderboard can be found at www.terracycle.co.nz/colgategarden.

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In an age of short attention spans, gardening in schools is making a huge comeback.

Friday morning was evidence of that as students and teachers from six local schools – Farm Cove Intermediate, Willowbank School, Sunnyhills, Wakaaranga Primary, Tyndale Park Christian School and Ormiston Junior College – shared stories of how the Fruit Trees in Schools initiative is encouraging school kids to get their hands dirty.

In its fourth year, the programme which is part of the Healthy Howick initiative and funded by the Howick Local Board, is helping students unearth the fruits of their hard labour.

Plant Barn Botany is a hot bed of activity as students, teachers and Howick Local Board members David Collings, Katrina Bungard, Adele While and John Spiller get a quick lesson from plant doctors on how to get to the root of the matter and work with vegetable garden kits.

Joseph D’Ambrosio, a teacher from Farm Cove Intermediate, says the school has 30 fruit trees and two bee hives that produce 7kg of honey every season.

He takes pride in the fact that Farm Cove Intermediate will be using home-grown vegetable for the Koanga Spring Festival on the day.

“The kumara that we have grown in our school gardens will be used for hangi,” he says.

So enthused is he by the act of gardening that helps students relax while also delivering plenty of health benefits that he is currently doing a Masters and the thesis is “Teacher’s perception of garden-based learning”.

Sharon Baldwin from Willowbank School says that digging deep in the school garden has been an enriching journey.

“We have parents buying silverbeet, spinach, lettuce, broccoli, cabbage, beetroot, parsley and other fruits from our gardens. This helps us to raise money to buy more supplies for our fruit and vege garden.”

Equally enthused is Annami Blom from Tyndale Park Christian School who says that vegetable gardens teach students where their food comes from.

“They get to learn more about the eco system, soil biology and fertilisation. It gets children to be thinkers and workers and creates an inter-generational link between grandchildren and grandparents,” she adds.

The fruitful initiative that brings communities and school networks together has reached out to 26 schools in the last three years, says Mrs Bungard.

“Now in its fourth year, this year we have 17 schools and kindergartens receiving fruit trees and vegetable gardens and advice this year.”

Taking the project a step further based on the feedback from students and teachers, local schools are now keen to develop vegetable gardens in their schools.

Gustavo Ferreira, specialist advisor Auckland Council Community Empowerment Unit says, “One of the reasons for that would be a higher involvement of students, since a vegetable garden is more hands-on. We have taken their feedback on board and are now also providing vegetable garden kits.

“Our partner, Kings Plant Barn, offers free-of-charge consultation to the schools on the existing fruit trees and on how to establish the new vegetable gardens.”

This year schools can choose from three different garden kit options.

Chris Hall, Plant Barn CEO, rounds up saying that there was a missed generation of gardeners and now it’s a tree-mendous experience to see kids get off their laptops and enjoy gardening.

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Pakuranga Baptist Kindergarten has been awarded a $1,000 grant by Auckland Airport’s staff grant scheme.

“We feel blessed to have been awarded this grant” says Kindy kaiwhakahaere, Jacqui Lees. “We are thinking of using it towards installing water tanks to harvest the rainwater from our roof to use for watering plants and water play at kindy.”

The kindergarten were nominated by kindy parent Michael Side “so you can continue your hard work in teaching the next generation of Aucklanders about the treasures to be found in our local environment, and how we can protect and add to these treasures.” The nomination included information about the kindy’s tireless efforts as an Enviroschools member.

Being an Enviroschool means the kindergarten are conscious of the environment in all they do. “We look after our gardens and the worm farm together. We work together composting our food scraps, recycling where we can, and bringing waste-free lunches. We learn about the insects, birds, fish and animals that live in our local area. We run our Outdoor Explorers sessions so children can learn in an outdoor classroom”.

Research shows that adults with a strong connection to nature usually had experiences in nature as children.  Richard Louv (2005) suggests that early nature experiences are essential if we are to produce future thinkers and change agents.

Each year Auckland Airport ask their staff to nominate which causes they’d like the airport to support, and award 30 grants of $1,000 to groups doing great work in communities across Auckland. “We’re thrilled to support groups across the city that are dear to the hearts of our staff members, groups that we may not otherwise hear about. Our people want to work for a company that does its bit in our local communities and this is a way for them to be a part of that” says Helen James, Auckland Airport’s People and Capability Manager.

Pakuranga Baptist Kindergarten is a community-based kindergarten offering mixed-age session to 2-5 year olds. Each day children create, play and discover in their beautiful and inspiring kindergarten environment, where nurturing teachers guide them to make their own discoveries. They offer a range of activities to appeal to their mixed-age group, incorporating natural materials and outdoor experiences as much as possible.

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At least two dozen meals will be going to feed hungry families this week thanks to a group of students at Somerville Intermediate.

Twenty five kids have spent the last week designing, planning and creating much needed fresh food parcels as part of their STEAM project. The STEAM project is about doing something good for the community, while also incorporating the use of science, technology, engineering art and maths.

Each student involved opted into this project by choice because they wanted to do something meaningful for the community.

One of the students, Molly, says: “We had to think about which meals would make the greatest difference to the people who will be eating them so we came up with meals that would last the longest, feed the most people and be the most filling.”

The students found recipes and ingredients that would make a meal to feed a family of four for under $15.

They had to ensure the meal included protein, carbohydrates and vegetables.
They held a practice run on Tuesday so the students could familiarise themselves with the recipes, and have the dishes taste tested by a teacher of their choice.

Today the proud students get to hand over their fresh food parcels to the South Auckland branch of the St Vincent de Paul Society – a charity which looks after those in need in our community.

Teacher Debbie Thorpe who led the students says this project has really opened up the students eyes to the simple things they can do to help other people.

The post Feeding the needy appeared first on Times.

From posh kids to those a little rough around the edges, she has taught at some of the best international schools all over the world as well as worked with decile one schools in New Zealand and helped turn them around.

Mel Bland takes great pride in the fact that as a native Fijian, she is founding principal of Te Uho O Te Nikau, a new school primary in Flat Bush that will open its doors in February 2019.

Housed currently at Ormiston Junior College till their school construction is completed, Ms Bland is already creating quite an impression.

The first thing that strikes you about the vivacious and friendly school leader is a black Labrador that follows her on a leash wherever she goes.

It is not unusual to see the founding principal surrounded by a young fan club that wants to play with Nikau, a pet therapy dog.

A dog lover who has even worked as a community outreach manager with SPCA, she says that dogs on-site are priceless.

“And it’s great for some kids who find it difficult to make friends,” says the educationist who has worked with pet therapy for children with rage problems.

The Public Private Partnership School will cater for 700 students between Years 1-6. The school will also house the Mt Richmond Special School unit.

Having interacted with diverse communities – she extensively taught in the Philippines, Taiwan and Singapore -Ms Bland says that she finds the diversity of the community in Flat Bush appealing. “I do believe I have worked with every nationality in the world which adds such an exciting dimension to my current job.”

Excited about the curriculum and the design of the school, she says that the site has two bridges built over river tributaries running through. There are two massive fields and huge learning buildings.

Explaining the significance of the school name she says, “We are the heart of Nikau that was used for nourishment and shelter. Everything in the school is connected and is part of a narrative.

“All the trees planted are native and we have plenty of bird-feeding trees as well as a beautiful path through the garden. The idea being that the Nikau provides for the once many manu (birds); the analogy is the berries are the teachings and the manu are the tamariki (children).

“Ten per cent of the school curriculum is committed to outdoor learning. I want children to climb trees and learn about plants; to take water samples and study them. Ours will be a waste-free school,” she says.

“We have worked on thoughts of a cultural concept for the bridges connecting the car park to the school.”

From a walking dog school bus to cool uniforms designed by Kukri Sports, there is a burst of new ideas that lean on the practical as well as work on building exciting and positive relationships with neighbouring schools and the community.

The school at 187 Flat Bush Road is taking student enrolments.

The post New Primary School-heart of Nikau appeared first on Times.

As you read this, Macleans College student is in Russia as part of the New Zealand team at the first International Economics Olympiad.

Barely had Yang Fan Yun returned from Tanzania after representing New Zealand at the International Biology Olympiad that he was preparing for an Economics Olympiad in Moscow from September 13 to 24.

“The International Biology Olympiad was held in Iran this year but due to political sanctions, student representatives from five countries including the US, the UK, Canada, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand went instead to Tanzania and Malawi to carry out ecological research,” says Yang Fan, days prior to taking off to Russia.

Yang Fan will have less than a week to unpack his bags from his international sojourn, before the ace debater heads off to Hawaii.

“I’ve had this opportunity to represent New Zealand for debating at the Global Tourism Summit in Honolulu, Hawaii, to be held from September 30 to October 5,” he says. “I am one of the two Macleans College students on the team.”

It’s not just international travel that takes up all his time.

The 17-year-old is allowed to take Wednesday’s off school because he is doing an internship as a research assistant at the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Auckland.

“I’m part of a community research project to do with molecular biology. It’s still at its introductory stage,” he says.

The young go-getter is also an active part of the Howick Youth Council.

“We’ve spearheaded an event to give 20 high school students in Howick an opportunity to get their First Aid Certificate free of charge,” he says.

Yang Fan is an accomplished musician and plays the cello for two of the school orchestras.

So how does he find time to participate and excel at so many activities?

He gives credit to his mum who nurtured a love for learning at an early age.

“Parents shouldn’t push their children but inculcate in them a growth mindset. Mental health is a big issue and it is important to be happy and pursue all the things you love doing,” he says.

He also believes that success doesn’t revolve in the classroom and “natural talent doesn’t have too much to do with excelling at things”.

Case in point is learning how to play the cello. “I wasn’t a great cello player but in my free time I used to watch YouTube videos and learn,” he says.

The secret he says is hard work with a bit of luck as well as taking a keen interest in different things and being aware of various opportunities available.

As I write this, there is a small note from Yang Fan saying, “If you are interested, I found out today that I also came first out of 2500 students around the country in the New Zealand Economics Competition held by the University of Auckland, in June earlier this year.”

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Somerville Intermediate student Gareth Choo won three prizes at the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research Science and Technology Fair (NIWA) with his original and technically advanced project `Electromagnetic Propulsion Launches the Future’.

Gareth’s science project that explores technology for cleaner transportation, won first prize in the Physical and Material World Category, Best in Innovation, Invention or Investigation and the Science Award Trust Prize.

Electromagnetic propulsion is an emerging technology that has many applications including launching rockets into space. Like many young people these days, Gareth found inspiration on YouTube. “I found the world of electromagnetics and clean propulsion,” he says.

“I built an electromagnetic launcher to test different materials for speed and efficiency. I discovered I could alter the electromagnetic flux and help projectiles gain speed and efficiency with magnets and springs.”

The judges of the fair were impressed by Gareth’s level of understanding and his project’s technical skill.

The budding scientist used an Arduino microcontroller to accurately measure and record the speed of the launches. “I conducted several tests to see if I could come any closer to finding an energy efficient solution for reducing carbon waste in train systems.”

This isn’t the first project Gareth has done using Arduino.

Gareth has been participating in Young Engineers Workshop Programs for three years where he built up his knowledge and experience in electronics.

Najam Haq, Young Engineers Workshop instructor, says, “Gareth has really taken the skills he’s acquired in our programs to the next level.”

At the Young Engineers Workshop, Gareth has been exposed to many types of technology and engineering but has developed a real interest for electronics. He has built a few impressive projects from scratch including including a motor, a flashlight that runs from dead batteries and an autonomous robot.

Gareth says, “Winning this prize has inspired me to want to focus more on technology and science to find innovative solutions to problems that we face in the world.”

The post This is rocket science! appeared first on Times.

Be prepared to be scared. You should be!

The ‘Trail of Terror’, is an Owairoa Primary School rite of passage according to past pupils. Too much for you? The beautiful fairies and princesses will guide you through.

With more than 50 years of successful gala experience, Owairoa Primary on Saturday (September 29 from 10am-2pm) will deliver another day of fun-filled family entertainment.

The gala offers amazing attractions for all ages from lucky dips, face painting and fair grotto to fairground rides, inflatables and nerf combat.

Hungry? Don’t worry, the choices are endless with South African BBQ, Asian foods, New World gourmet cheese burgers, just to name a few.

If your feet get tired or you need a rest, watch the spectacular acts on the big stage. There will be performing arts, dancing, cheer leading and, this year, Somerville Intermediate will be showcasing their wearable arts collection.

Looking for something to take home?

How about the sweet stall, filled with amazing sweets, chocolates and fudge. Check out the fantastic home baking in the cake stall and morning tea room.

Feeling lucky? There is plenty on offer at the quick fire raffles including a weekend away, things to pamper, automatic pool cleaners and even a vasectomy available!

Try something new this year like the QR Family Quest, a digital scavenger hunt. Scattered around the gala are 10 QR codes. Find and scan them to be in to win a Chrome Book.

See you all at the Gala!

The post Watch out for the Trail of Terror at Owairoa Primary appeared first on Times.

Some local school teachers are pushing the envelope with a revolutionary educational philosophy.

While not many traditional schools are aware of Flipped Classrooms, they are a definite trend and part of the national education conversation in New Zealand.

At a recent Reach Every Student Conference (RESCON) hosted at Ormiston Senior College by leader of mathematics Subash Chandar K, more than 60 teachers spent two days with Jon Bergmann, one of the pioneers of flipped learning. Mr Bergmann was accompanies by a team of leading New Zealand and Australian teachers including Jeremy Cumming, Beth Lamb, Matt Lambert, Steve Griffiths, and Aimee Shackleton.

The opening session by Mr Bergmann started with a keynote on `Rising above to make a difference’. He asked teachers why they are in the profession—is it to  inspire, make a difference, pure joy?

He also received many honest answers to questions around debilitating factors that hold schools back.

`Toxic culture, inflated egos, traditional mindsets’, were some of the responses by teachers recorded on the Mentimeter app that instantly showed the poll results on the big screen.

Mr Bergmann said teachers could give themselves permission not to be perfect. “But you must remember that the main thing is to reach to every student in the classroom,” he said.

So how do you flip a classroom?

In a traditional classroom set-up, the teacher delivers lessons face-to-face to students who listen, interact and take notes.

However, in a flipped classroom students access teacher-created videos and pre-recorded lessons on their devices. They are introduced to content before the class begins. It effectively frees up more time in the classroom to assist students with problems they face whilst working on an assignment.

“It’s not about chalk and talk,” said Mr Bergmann.

The American educationist works with governments, schools and universities globally, and has an international faculty to introduce the learning model in Australia, Sweden, Norway, Argentina, Brazil, Spain, China and Taiwan.

A former science and technology teacher, Mr Bergmann decided to “flip” what students did in his class, watching video lectures at home and doing exercises (homework) in class under supervision. He found that student grades went up.

“It’s time to stop lecturing and engage students by using the time in the classroom to have discussions and debates,” he said.

“A lot of kids who used to miss class also found it very helpful to have pre-recorded lessons as flipped learning creates a student-centred environment. Students can stop and rewind the video for information as often as they need to do understand the concept.

The post How do you flip a classroom? appeared first on Times.

Even as the raging controversy between Botany MP Jami-Lee Ross and Leader of Opposition Simon Bridges, made screaming headlines, a speech competition to select a Youth MP for Botany went ahead on Monday evening at the Howick Bowling Club.

While no one that evening knew the fate of the Mr Ross’ career, young representatives from different colleges in the area- vied to represent him in Parliament as they spoke on the fiery topic  `Should there be limits on free speech in a democratic society?’

Each Member of Parliament selects a Youth MP to represent them in Parliament for two days in July. The youth MP gets a chance to experience what it like is to be in Parliament for two days.

The young speakers were judged by a motley group of Rotarians from the Rotary Club of Somerville, Rotary Club of Botany East Tamaki and Highbrook Rotary as well as the Lions Club and National Party loyalists.

While Leane Te Boekhorts from Ormiston College, Kelly Mascarenhas from Santa Maria College, Kate Hartley from Botany Downs Secondary College, Ethan McCormick from Howick College and Jordyn Trallop from Elim Christian College well articulated their thoughts on the pro and cons of freedom of speech,  the audience voted by secret ballot.

The contenders for the Botany seat in Parliament were asked about their priority and goals, should they be chosen as Youth MP for Botany.

Finally Kate Hatley from Botany Downs Secondary College was declared as a winner that will represent the Botany MP in Parliament. She said she her priority would be to encourage diversity and focus on mental health.

The Times had earlier written about Kate entering an international short film competition with her film From the Hospital Bed that captures some of her experiences of hitting rock bottom after falling off a skateboard and struggling to walk for two years.

The speech competition was run by Mr Ross’s efficient staff.

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Three little words – pause, breathe, smile – are making a big difference in east Auckland’s primary schools.

Pause, Breathe, Smile is the mindfulness programme that is helping school kids cope with stress, anxiety, and anger both in and out of the classroom.

Pointview School principal Robin Kirkham says the programme, which is developed by the Mindfulness Education Group, teaches students how to understand and cope with their emotions and also improves concentration in the classroom.

Pause, Breathe, Smile is supported by the Mental Health Foundation, Pause, Breathe, Smile is aligned with the New Zealand Education Curriculum.

The initial programme is only eight weeks long, but Kirkham says teachers and students are practicing mindful techniques all year long.

“You watch the students on the playground and you see them stop, take a deep breathe, smile and then carry on.”

It teaches children how to let their emotions settle before they react to a situation.

Now he and several other local principals have banded together to help the Mindfulness Education Group  petition for funding from the Ministry of Education to help more teachers train in mindfulness.

Two weeks ago they met the committee that advises the government on mental health to discuss sponsoring the teacher training programme.

Kirkham says the eight week long mindfulness education programme is helping to address the youth mental health crisis in New Zealand.

He says it is all about building a positive culture within an organisation rather than trying to fix a negative culture.

So rather than only trying to address depression in teenagers,  he says mindfulness helps students practice positive behaviours, build positive self esteem and develop self awareness and efficacy early on.

Baverstock Oaks School is getting ready to roll out the mindfulness teacher training programme for its teachers next year.

“We currently have only our senior leadership team trained, but the eight week programme has had such a huge impact that we want all of our teachers trained,” says principal Genée Crowley.

She says it has been challenging to implement the programme with only a handful of trained facilitators.

“We have seen this programme have a huge impact on our students. It covers kindness, it covers gratefulness, it covers being a good citizen but also having the ability and knowledge to look after yourself as well,” she says.

She says the programme has also shown an improvement in academic results.

“One class was about to do a basic facts test, and before they started the teacher ran through mindful breathing and mindful movements with them and 75 per cent of the students received their best score ever that day.”

Crowley and Kirkham say more and more schools are jumping on board.

“I think if this programme and these techniques were seamless across all primary, intermediate and colleges, we would start to see huge improvements in New Zealand’s mental health statistics,” Kirkham says.

Baverstock Oaks and Pointview School are joined by Mission Height Junior College, Willowbank Primary and Ormiston Junior College in teaching mindfulness in schools.

The post Pause, Breathe, Smile – Teaching Mindfulness in schools appeared first on Times.