Festival flower blooms

Matahui School creates a sustainable sunflower.

Read the full article on the front page of Katikati Advertiser, Thursday September 16 2021 below.

Bursting into spring is giant sunflower – not quite the plant species – but a creative one made of upcycled plastics and reuseable materials, that will be displaying during Katikati’s Festival of Arts in October.

Matathui School’s giant yellow sunflower is one of 111 large wooden sunflowers that have been distributed to preschools and schools in the area, to be decorated for the Festival of Art, hosted every two years by Katikati Open-Air Art.

Festival organiser Jacqui Knight says is was a real gift to see the sunflower from Matahui School, iwth all the Covid uncertainty about what events can and cannot be run at the upcoming festival.

“I think it is absolutely amazing, I don’t know here people get their ideas from, this one is fantastic!”

“I can not wait to see the others too.”

Designed to reflect the bright community spirit that surrounds Katikati, the Matahui School community has been working as a team – staff, students, parents and community members – on the giant sunflower. The students played an active role planning the project aimed at utilising reusable materials and upcycling plastics.

Principal Mary Woods says the focus on upcycling was thought to be the best use of plastic, as no further resources are required to process or recycle the plastic, it goes directly into another use – the ultimate in reducing consumption.

“It’s incredible the things that can be created out of a plastic bottle, can or glass container if you put your mind to it.”

The students reached out to the community for donations towards the sunflower which was painted before lockdown. They took their investigation of sunflowers a step further by examining them in great detail, up close, to find and develop the aesthetic and design.

During the lockdown “MrsB”, Kathryn Burtenshaw, teachers of the year 7 and 8 class worked on the project while communicating remotely with the students about here parts were glued on. Each piece was strategically placed to add character to the sunflower.

Students and families from Kauri Point village donated an array of plastic items, some from children’s toy boxes, and adults delved into their plastic recycling. Mrs B often found packages of plastic bits in her letterbox during alert level 4, a contactless delivery from community members.

“Every time the students see the flower they try to hunt down and identify where their donated piece is glued.”

“it’s almost like a Where’s Wally activity – one can spend hours looking at all the parts of the flower, so many different items have been collected and used.”

Mary says it has been a huge community project bring people together. “It represents more that just an art project. It shines a brightness on our community as we move forward into spring and summer.

“A time of colour, vibrancy, abundance, fresh food and good health.”

The sunflower will join others, soon to be on display at the Katikati library showcasing the talented work of our local children.

Chris Steel, Katikati Advertiser.

Parents as Educators – Mindset is Everything

We recently published tips and tricks for parents to make online learning work for you and your family in the Katikati Advertisers newsletter. You can read the full article below.

Parents as Educators – Mindset Is Everything

Donna McDonald – Junior Room Teacher at Matahui School

Practical advice from educators at Matahui School as we reflect on home learning over the past 3-4 weeks.  

During lockdown many parents were feeling the pressure. Breadwinner, caregiver, chef/cook, cleaner, enforcer and all things in between.  Add teachers/educators to this list! That’s a lot of roles to play and it’s been even harder for working parents and business owners. The teachers at Matahui School have learned a few things over this and last the lockdowns and want to share a few practical tips parents can use to bolster their educating skillset. 

  1. Modelling a problem solving mindset.  We’ve all had to do a fair bit of problem solving lately. As parents or teachers, we can’t always be there to solve every problem for our children. In fact, this isn’t our job. Our job is to TEACH our children how to solve problems by themselves. This way, they can become confident, independent, and successful individuals.  When YOU encounter a challenge, do a “think-aloud” for the benefit of your child. MODEL how to apply the same problem-solving skills you’ve been working on together, giving the real-world examples that she can implement in her own life.  At the same time, show your child a willingness to make mistakes. Everyone encounters problems, and that’s okay. Sometimes the first solution you try won’t work, and that’s okay too!  When you model problem-solving, explain that there are some things which are out of our control. As we’re solving a problem at hand we should focus on the things we CAN actually control.  Naturally, these abilities go hand-in-hand with a growth mindset.

Matahui School has a proud tradition of instilling problem solving skills – our senior class recently won the EPro8 science and engineering competition where their problem solving where put to the test against other schools in the Bay of Plenty Region.

  1. The mind is powerful and your mindset shades the way you see the world 

We’ve all heard the saying “Whether you think you can or can’t – you’re right!”.   This is important to Mrs McDonald, junior Teacher at Matahui School.   “This term we’re focussing on building a “growth mindset” and using the power of the word “yet”.  “If your child says, ‘I can’t do this’, we add the word ‘I can’t do this yet’ to build self confidence”, says Mrs McDonald.  The word “yet” can change disparaging sentences into positive ones, promoting growth.  This linguistic trick works especially well with sentences that include “can’t” or “don’t,” because it reverses the negative connotation.

What’s happening in the Junior School at Matahui this term? 

This term’s inquiry project is all about “Light”.  Where does it come from? What is light? How do light sources work? What is energy?  Who would have guessed that 5-7-year-olds would be so interested in physics, astrology and electricity – budding scientists in the making who thirst for more knowledge – they really are developing a love of learning through their own inquiry.  

Next week we’ll cover the importance of play in learning and how you can encourage a love of learning in your children.
For more tips or to find out more about Matahui School – visit our website www.matahui.school.nz or visit our facebook page here

Future scientists, engineers and mathmaticians

posted in: News/Media | 0

The September 2020 edition of the Lizard News is out, featuring this article on Matahui School. 

So far, this term it has been a hive of activity at Matahui School, with a big focus on science, maths and engineering.

Our year 1 – 2 students followed a scientific method of inquiry when they grew their own Scobie and made Kombucha (fermented tea) last month. The students studied the Scobie’s growth, made predictions about the outcome, watched it grow, change colour and create carbon dioxide, used their senses to observe the changes (which included taste testing the Kombucha) before bottling and flavouring with homegrown fruits. The children finished off the experiment with a reflection on their predictions while they enjoyed a refreshing drink of kombucha. One child even commented: “Does this mean we are scientists now?’

Last month the EPro8 challenge was held at KatiKati College. Several students from our year 5 - 8 classes represented Matahui School at the engineering and problem-solving challenge. The EPro8 Challenge involves teams competing in practical problem-solving challenges, fun experiments, maths problems, and engineering challenges. The students had to work collaboratively, dividing up the tasks so that everyone was actively involved; and practiced teamwork, leadership, perseverance and cooperation. The year 7 – 8 class entered three teams and ended up going head-to-head in a final challenge for third place. Congratulations to all the Matahui students who competed in the challenge, but a big congratulations to Harry, Isabel, Macy and Matilda (aka the Matahui Machines) who took the third-place position and will now move onto the semi-finals. They made us proud!

The year 3 – 4 students practiced basic maths and science, built self-confidence and learned about healthy eating habits, when they prepared soup and homemade bread on a cold winter’s day as part of their learning last month. Cooking offers children the opportunity to learn about measurements and practice multiplication and division. It also provides children with a basic understanding of chemistry, such as learning about how yeast comes alive when you add honey and water and why we need hot temperatures to cook. The students chopped vegetables, diced onions and leeks and added fresh parsley and bay leaves harvested from the Matahui gardens. During lunch the soup and bread was shared with everyone at the school; a tasty treat for a cold winter’s day.

Matahui article in the Lizard News September 2020

Shakespeare doesn’t just write, he rocks.

posted in: News/Media | 0

Matahui School students celebrated the life of British playwright William Shakespeare last week, in their biennial theatrical stage performance of the comedic musical Shakespeare Rocks!

Click here to read the full article.

N.B. They change the publication weekly, so make sure you click on the 13 August 2020 edition.

Resene Wall Worthy Mural Competition WINNERS!

posted in: News/Media | 0

We are thrilled to inform the school community that our wall worthy entry has
come out on top as one of the top 10 winners! Judges and the public were very
impressed with our entry. Thank you to all those who voted.

The Matahui School Resent Wall Worthy Mural

The mural represents Matahui as a community who wish to demonstrate an
awareness of the environmental impact our choices are having on the world
around us.

We have chosen a map that shows the positive impact we aim to achieve as a
school to help improve it.

Within our mural we have chosen animals and insects that are significant to
the environment we live in. The Bittern bird, our schools’ native bird, is
featured within our mural design.

Our aim is to have the mural completed by week 4 of term 4.

Read the full article here: Matahui School wins national mural competition

A Journey through Kowhai Class Term 1 2019

posted in: Class Blogs, Kowhai yrs 0,1,2 | 0
Self portraits by Charlotte
Can you see which one is happy, sad and excited?
Self portraits by Sammy, showing sad, angry and happy expressions.
We went to the Tauranga Art Gallery to see Emma Prill’s flower art. By Callaway
We made our own 3D flowers. Here is my crab flower. By Charlotte
The Chinese New Year celebrates the Nian dragon.
By Emma
Here are our stories about the Chinese dragon. By Anna
The Chinese dragon by Tyla
Here are our Chinese scrolls. We wrote our name in Chinese and our Chinese new year animal. By Emma
Chinese scroll by Luna
We had a great day on Boat Day at Omokoroa Beach.
By Isabella
We learnt about Impressionism in art and in our paintings we used little brush strokes to show light, dark and movement in the water. By Phoenix
We read the Maori legend ‘How Maui Caught the Sun’.
By Anna
We used the Koru design. By Luna
Can you see how the sun is feeling? By Isabella
How Maui Caught the Sun By Phoenix
We compared 2 legends – The legend of the Taniwha….
By Callaway
And…The legend of the Chinese Water Dragon. By Callaway
The legend of the Taniwha dragon. By Sammy
The legend of the Chinese Water Dragon. By Sammy
We wrote a bubble poem. By Tyla

Kowhai class would like to share some of their learning with you over Term 1 2019.

We have been learning to write persuasive texts.  They are trying to convince you which art form was the best way to express yourself.  Read their arguments and then you can decide!


My favourite art form is drawing. Drawing is the best because you can draw things that aren’t real.  You can use any colour. It looks like it’s real but it’s not.  You can use different types of pens. 
It is so fun. By Tyla

My favourite art form is painting. You can use little brush strokes to show light and dark and movement in the water.
You can paint whatever you want. I like painting. By Phoenix

My favourite art form is dancing.
You get to twirl and dance and jump.
Dancing is the best!
By Isabella


My favourite art form is painting. I like it because you can blend colours.  You can make different colours. You can make whatever you want.  You can take your art home and keep it forever. I love painting! By Anna

My favourite art form is drama. I love drama because you can act characters and I love making people laugh.  I love dressing up and I love being brave and calm in front of lots of people.
When I act, I can tell a story.
I love drama.  It is the best!
By Emma

My favourite art form is drawing.  We can draw things that are the best.  We make awesome pictures.
I feel creative!
By Luna

My favourite art form is music.
Music is the best because you get to listen to all different music.
Music is the best because you can play different kinds of music.
You can play ‘The Wind and the Sun’.  The wind is really loud.  The sun is really calm.  Butterfly Fly Away is very calm too.   What Does the Fox Say is very loud.
Music makes me feel happy.
By Callaway

My favourite art form is music.
You can dance to music.
You can play the piano and close your eyes.
By Sammy

My favourite art form is music.
The music is very nice because it is very beautiful to listen to music. 
I love to sing.
Music makes me feel safe and sound.
By Charlotte

Come and meet Kowhai class 2018

Haere Mai! Welcome to Kowhai class.

Here are our self portraits using black paint on a backdrop of primary colours, then mixed together to make a secondary colour.

We have been learning to introduce ourselves and our age in Maori.

Ko Darcy toku ingoa.  E rima aku tau.

 

Ko Aroha toku ingoa.  E ono aku tau.

 

Ko Callaway toku ingoa.  E ono aku tau.

 

Ko Cameron toku ingoa.  E ono aku tau.

 

 

Ko Payton toku ingoa.  E ono aku tau.

 

 

Ko Kaida toku ingoa.  E ono aku tau.

 

 

Ko Charlotte toku ingoa.  E rima aku tau.

 

 

Ko Emma toku ingoa.  E rima aku tau.

 

 

KoTyla toku ingoa.  E rima aku tau.

 

 

Ko Anna toku ingoa.  E rima aku tau.

 

 

Ko Phoenix toku ingoa.  E rima aku tau.

 

Ko Saxon toku ingoa.  E ono aku tau.

Haere ra!

 

 

THE LOST VILLAGE at MATAHUI SCHOOL

posted in: BLOG, Principal Blog | 0

THE LOST VILLAGE

 

On the 24th of August 2017, Allan Alach featured a thought provoking  article in “Leading and Leaning,1. ” by Carol Black which she wrote in 2016. She makes the following point….

“In many rural land-based societies, learning is not coerced; children are expected to voluntarily observe, absorb, practice, and master the knowledge and skills they will need as adults –– and they do.  In these societies –– which exist on every inhabited continent –– even very young children are free to choose their own actions, to play, to explore, to participate, to take on meaningful responsibility. “Learning” is not conceived as a special activity at all, but as a natural by-product of being alive in the world.” 2. And this got me thinking about the inception of “The Lost Village” at Matahui School.

We have a bush block which I affectionately refer to as Middle Earth. This is the area where students can go to construct huts. It is a space that encourages feats of engineering that result in creative architecture that rival what you find on Grand Designs. It is a space that the students at Matahui have claimed as their own and over the term, have transformed into the “Lost Village.” Venture over on any given day and you will hear and see the village folk collecting materials, designing and creating products and modifying huts.

            

The village itself is a hive of industry as it is made up of huts that double as “market stalls” trading in natural materials needed to enhance and develop all the dwellings that have cropped up throughout the bush block. The materials range from finely shredded bark strips that equate to rope or string, dead twigs, sticks, leaves and clay – all of which have defined and specific purposes.

The currency for trading is the Mahoe leaf which the village folk refer to as “skeleton leaves.” They are used to purchase the goods needed to create a variety of artifacts that can be sold in a market stall. There is a bank where a barter system operates. A skeleton leaf can be acquired if you have something “good” to trade like a solid, thick stick or a roll of exquisitely bound bark string.

I want to share with you aspects of a discussion I had with some of the villagers…..

“ Anyone can set up a market stall, but to be good at selling you need good stuff to sell.”

“ The clay mines are where you find two types of clay. The best is the white clay because it is special. It mixes with the other clay to make a good putty that you can use to make things to sell. Emma –Poppy is making a fox. Clare is making a white clay dolphin sceptre and Isabel is making a flower.”

The Lost Village is a world created by children. There is nothing fictitious about it – it is real, and a great study in economic development and growth. It is refreshing to know that our students “are free to choose their own actions, to play, to explore, to participate, to take on meaningful responsibility. “Learning” is not conceived as a special activity at all, but as a natural by-product of being alive in the world.”3.

References:

  1. “Leading and Learning” Allan Alach  (http://leading-learning.blogspot.com/)
  2. & 3.On the Wildness of Children: The Revolution Will Not Take Place in the Classroom Carol Black April 2016 “Leading and Learning” Allan Alach  (http://leading-learning.blogspot.com/)

Room 5 & 6, Romeo and Juliet at the Pop-up Globe Theatre

 

 

IMG_3865  IMG_3870

On Wednesday the 24th of February Room 5 and 6 from Matahui School supported by some fantastic parents made the trip to Auckland to attend a performance of Romeo and Juliet at the Pop-up Globe Theatre.

2016-02-24 13.26.48  2016-02-24 14.31.33

What a wonderful experience! We were filled with the artistry, drama and wonder of Shakespearian theatre. The performance had us spellbound.

2016-02-24 14.36.02

Matahui Room Five Students Win Prestigious WBEET Baymaths Competition

 

 

 

 

 

 

Matahui Room 5 students Rose Brunning, Rory Robertson and Bridget McGirr won the prestigious Year Six WBEET Baymaths competition last night against strong opposition from upper North Island schools. The three were first in the team challenge and second in the timed challenge and also highly competitive in the individual round. Another wonderful example of our students having outstanding success on the big stage. Congratulations!!!!! 

  IMG_2578 (2) Rose, Rory and Bridget show off their medals, cup and calculators following their fine win.