TKOTW - awa / river

Paikea and Tom have starred in our last 3 'Te kupu o te wiki' snippets.  This week they are sharing their kupu filmed in our back yard (Omaru creek right next door to our kura).  

TKOTW awa river from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

TKOTW - papatūānuku / Mother Earth

This weeks te kupu o te wiki was written and performed by Tom and Paikea from Class 12 - ka pai kōrua ANO!


TKOTW - papatuanuku earth from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

TKOTW - Manu/Bird

We have the wonderful Paikea and Tom John bringing us this weeks kupu.   Ngā mihi ki a koutou Class 25 for your Te Kupu o te wiki jingle too.
TKOTW manu bird from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Class 6 - Whakapapa Boards

Class 6 - Whakapapa Boards from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Towards the end of last term and during the beginning of this term, Class 6 have been working very hard on their Whakapapa Boards.

Students had to research designs from each of their parents/caregivers culture and choose one that represents each of them.  Their third design had to depict something from 'Aotearoa'. 

Their first designs were drafted onto paper and coloured in with coloured pencils.  They then had to transfer their drawings onto particle board.  They learned a new painting techique called 'cutting in' which took a lot of patience and perseverance.

Students were very happy with their designs and most of them have decided to give them away as koha for christmas to special whānau members.  Ka pai tamariki o karaihe ono!

TKOTW - putiputi/flower

Our talented tamariki from Class 12 have been at it again. Our school focus for the term is 'Art Attack' so we brainstormed some ideas of how to create Te kupu o te wiki snippets through art. Chastyti and Julianna have produced this wonderful little 'speed art' movie for you to all enjoy. Ka pai kōrua ANO!
 
TKOTW - putiputi flower from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Te Kupu o te wiki - āporo/apple

This weeks Te Kupu o te wiki was made by Chastyti and Jorelle from Class 12

TKOTW - āporo/apple from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Te Ao Kori - Traditional Māori Games Workshop

I was very fortunate to attend a  Te Ao Kori workshop yesterday delivered by Harko Brown in partnership with PENZ (Physical Education NZ) at AUT South Campus in Manukau,

There were 30 or so educators from all over Auckland and Northland.  Most were from secondary schools, a few of us were primary school teachers and a handful of youth workers/correspondence tutors/sports organisations.

Our day began with the usual Karakia, mihimihi and whakawhanaungatanga.  Matua Harko gave us a korero about how Traditional Māori Games are intellectual catalysts that have the potential to enhance learning.  He shared with us some warm up games involving rākau (sticks) and ra uri (tubes), I look forward to sharing these all with the tamariki in my classes.

There were harakeke (flax) and nikau fronds lying all over the classroom and I was wondering what role did they play in Te Ao Kori?  Matua proceeded to show us how to weave a Kī (ball) using 2 blades of harakeke.  While skillfully weaving his kī, matua also taught us the importance of te hīhī (knots) and we were all itching to have a go at weaving our own kī.

With the Nikau fronds we made pākaukau, kites.  We took ours outside and ran around like little kids trying to get our kites to fly.  They were AWESOME!  We had to put our kites aside and learn a game called Toi uri.  This was the highlight of my day.  This game involves passing a kī around to  team members from one end of the court to the other, if your tagged you must pass the kī,  you score points by having a team member stand on the karangi (spots at the end of each court) you need speed, agility, fast reactions and a bit of cunning to play this game.  I know our PES kids with thrive playing this game.

It was a valuable day learning taonga that is 'Te Ao Kori" and I can't wait to start sharing/teaching our teachers and our tamariki.

Ms Tito

Te kupu o te wiki - Week 9

He mihi nui ki a kōrua Julianna and Chastyti.  Thank you for your snippet this week.  You both did a great job.


TKOTW - inu drinkmov from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Te kupu o te wiki - Week 8

This weeks te kupu o te wiki snippet was made by Mystique and Makayla from class 12.

TKOTW niho tooth from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Te kupu o te wiki - Week 7

This wiki's kupu comes from two tama from class 12.  Awathan (Year 3) and David (Year 4) worked together and produced this great little 'waea/phone' snippet.  They did a super job working on their own - ka pai to mahi Awathan & David.



waea phone from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Te kupu o te wiki - Week 6

TKOTW nau mai welcome from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

We have two partnerships who are sharing their Te kupu o te wiki snippets this week.  The first snippet was created by Ana & Angels and the second by Chastyti and Jorelle.  Ka pai koutou!

Te kupu o te wiki - Week 5

TKOTW - pahi bus from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

This weeks Te kupu o te wiki was created by Viliami and Javan.  The animator was Javan and Viliami helped with the voice over.  Kai pai kōrua.

Māori Rotation for Classes 6, 7 & 8

Every Friday afternoon classes 6, 7 and 8 get a special treat of Māori activities.  The 3 classes are split into 4 groups and get to spend 4 weeks learning something new.  Whaea Saf and Whaea Roz teach raranga (weaving), Mrs Jacobson is teaching tamariki tī rakau and tititorea (stick games), Mr Sommerville is teaching Ki-o-rahi (a Māori kemu/game) and Ms Tito does Māori art/mahi toi with the students - they are currently making 'taonga' from modelling clay.

We certainly have fun on Friday afternoons... Do you?

Class 15 and their Kahurangi Dance Group experience!

We enjoyed watching the Kahurangi dance group this Rāhina. They told us how to make a poi and their Māori skirts. Taiaha are the war sticks and tititorea are the mā and whero sticks they danced with. Some of the hine liked the handsome warriors. Our favourite parts of the show were the amazing dancing and fantastic waiata.

Poi in Class 11 & Class 19

After lunch yesterday I was walking back to my office and I could hear "E rere tāku poi, e rere tāku poi ki runga..." blasting from Class 11. I popped my head in the door and this is what I saw. Whaea Saf took some photos of the tamariki.  They all looked like they were enjoying themselves and I was very impressed with their poi making skills.  Their kaiako helped them make lovely poi.  Tino pai tō mahi tamariki ō karaihe tekau ma tahi! Your singing and poi twirling was pretty awesome!

Class 19 have been practicing their poi too.  Whaea Saf has been busy around the school teaching every class poi.  Thanks Mrs She for capturing their practice.




Poi from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Te kupu o te wiki - Week 4

TKOTW Tāwhirimātea God of the wind from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Jorelle and Maypo recorded their snipped for Te kupu o te wiki in the senior school green screen room..  The animation in the background was created by Howard a couple of years ago for the school karakia.  Thanks Howard and great acting girls!

Te kupu o te wiki - Week 3

TKOTW - Poitarawhiti Netball from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

This weeks Te kupu o te wiki was created by Naomi and Faioso.  They did a great job recording and good shooting Faioso.  

Te kupu o te wiki - Week 2

TKOTW - Chicken, Heihei from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Te wiki o te reo Māori - Māori Language Week

This week is Māori Language Week in NZ.  The theme for this year is 'Te kupu o te wiki' which translated means 'The word of the week'. 

Te Kupu o te Wiki will introduce 50 new Mäori words to the nation over 50 weeks –
that’s one new word a week over a year. After 50 weeks, New Zealanders will have 50 new
Mäori words in their vocab.

Here at Pt England School we decided to create a slot in PENN (Pt England News Network) teaching students Te kupu o te wiki, The word of the week.  So our students will learn a new word every week for the next 50+ weeks!

Take a look at this weeks kupu movie starring the talented tamariki of  Class 12.

Te Whare Tapere o Matariki 2014

Te whare Tapere o Matariki 2014 from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.


We were invited to attend the Te Whare Tapere o Matariki event during our last week of Term 2.  The event was run by the He Oranga Poutama Team - Sport Waitakare.  Students from Te kura kaupapa o Hoani Waititi ran the Māori Games workshops indoors, they did a wonderful job and displayed awesome leadership skills,  We took our kapa haka students to the workshops and two ki o rahi teams to the Yr 7 & 8 Tournament.

Whaea Karla Matua came to our school for 3 afternoon sessions to teach our tamariki how to play ki o rahi.  Our tamariki did very well in the tournament and one of our teams made it to the semi finals.  They played the champions from Te kura kaupapa Maori o Nga Tapuwae in a gripping game and lost by only one point.  We were very proud of both teams who did so well in a game they had only just learned.  We will continue playing the game at school in preparation for the next ki o rahi tournament.

Our Kapa Haka students who attended the workshops indoors made bracelets from harakeke and patiently waited for the pūoro workshop to make their own bamboo koauau.  We were also proud of how our tamariki conducted themselves throughout the day, especially when they performed a haka tautoko after the thankyou  by Whaea Ngawai on behalf of all participating schools.

This was a fantastic event and we will definitely be going again next year.  He mihi nunui to the He Oranga Poutama Team for their dedication to providing such a wonderful opportunity for tamariki to help celebrate Matariki.  For those schools who may be interested... I strongly suggest for you to get involved next year.  It is an awesome event!

Opening of NZDOHTA Conference

Our Senior Kapa Haka group were asked to perform for the opening of the New Zealand Dental and Oral Health Therapists Association Conference held at Waipuna Lodge in Mt Wellington, Auckland.

They performed in front of an audience of 300 people in the theatre at the conference centre.   Our students were very nervous but you would have never guessed from their performance.

Another wonderful experience for our Tamariki... and yes, again they were GREAT!

Kapa Haka Noho Marae

After our PES whānaungatanga hui on Wednesday night our senior Kapa Haka group stayed the night on Ruapotaka marae.  It was the groups first sleepover (noho marae) and we were all very stoked to be staying on our local marae.

We spent the next day perfecting kapa haka waiata and waiata aringa.  Their next performance was scheduled for Friday @ Waipuna Lodge in Mt Wellington.

 The kōhine (girls) got to finish off making poi, while other girls helped prepare lunch.

The boys spent time with Mr G sorting our actions for waiata and learning guitar chords for each of the waiata.  They also practiced a haka for their performance on Friday.

There was also another hui on at the marae while we were staying there.  The hui was for Financial Literacy (G-Fit) and our students were asked to perform for manuhiri (visitors) We welcomed the opportunity and our students made us proud yet again.

Our day ended with a hakari (feast) - the kōhine did a wonderful job preparing our hangi.  We shared lunch before walking back to school.  In summary we had an amazing experience on Ruapotaka Marae and we all look forward to the next one.

Whakawhanaungatanga Hui @ Ruapotaka Marae

We finally had a whanaungatanga hui for our whānau on Wednesday evening.  We felt very blessed to meet at our local Marae - Ruapotaka. 

Even though the weather was dismal, we had a great turnout.  Whānau and staff assembled at 5.30pm ready for the pōwhiri @ 5.45pm.  We were welcomed by kaumatua Tautoko Witika and ngā kaitiaki of Ruapotaka Marae.  It was a warm and wonderful welcome and we felt very much at home.

After our pōwhiri, we spent time getting to know each other and shared kai.  Our senior kapa haka students (who were also staying the night for their first noho marae) performed for whānau to conclude the hui.  We have awesome whānau wanting the very best for their tamariki and our school.  We all look forward to our next hui and hope to meet again at Ruapotaka Marae.

He mihi nui, he mihi aroha ki a Georgie Thompson and her team/whānau for their tautoko and allowing us to meet at such a special place. 

Jam Bus records PES waiata

Wednesday 25th June 2014, PES brought in the Jam Bus (Mobile Recording Studio) to record waiata for a school resource.  Our talented Kapa Haka group sang the songs that were especially written for their group by their kaiako Mr Patrick Gemmell.  The Jam Bus crew were impressed with the groups singing and we had finished recording all their songs before morning tea.

We are super proud of our Kapa Haka group and we look forward to hearing their professional recordings.  As soon as the discs come in, we will upload them onto our Māori @ PES site for all to enjoy.  Their songs are slowly being integrated into our whole school repertoire of waiata.

Poi making with Whaea Denise

This morning we were blessed to have Whaea Denise come in and teach some of our senior kapa haka girls how to make poi.

These girls will become the experts and teach the rest of their kapa haka sisters how to make poi at our noho marae next week.

The girls learned how to cut their string to the correct length, how to cut their foam squares into the poi heads, how to do four plait, how to sew their string onto their poi head and how to cover and tie on their two layers of plastic.

The girls loved their session with Whaea Denise and will be spending the next few lunchtimes finishing their practice poi ready to teach the others next week.

He mihi aroha, he mihi nunui ki a koe Whaea Denise... Thank you for sharing your taonga with us x

Karo Poua - strikes and blocks for mau rakau

 

Tyla-Marie and Isara demonstrate both the Poua (strikes) and the Karo (Blocks) coupled with the stabbing (Or Whakarehu) movements

People Leaders Day Performance @ Victoria Park Market

On Thursday 8th May 2014, our senior kapa haka group traveled to Victoria Park Market to perform for the 'People Leaders Day - Unleashing Potential' event run by Telecom.

We arrived on our luxury coach a little after 5.30pm.  The group were ushered to our changing room and began getting ready for our bracket.  Students were buzzing and excited to be performing outside of our school grounds.

The stage looked magnificent, illuminated by colourful lights and was dwarfed by an ancient Pohutukawa Tree.  This sight heightened the excitement of our students.  5 minutes before our start time, the heavens opened and down came the rain.

What started as a light shower soon turned into a downpour.  We rushed into the 'plan B' area, which was the market's car park.  The chaos didn't phase our wonderful students as they quickly repositioned themselves under the shelter of level one car park.  "Start now, start now" was the signal from Hannah, the event organiser.

The shelter acted as an amplifier and sent the beautiful voices of our group out towards and beyond the Victoria cricket grounds.  The managers from 120 different telecom retailers around NZ hovered around the performing group, enjoying the protection from the rain and the marvelous singing.

The group represented our school and community with kaha and dignity and were acknowledged for their efforts by Chris Quin who is the Chief Executive of Telecom Retail.  A generous koha was handed over from Mr Quin to our very own kaia Tyler-Marie and we are very grateful for both the opportunity for our students and the koha which will go towards whānau hui and Kapa Haka wānanga.

After the manuhiri tuārangi (distinguished guests) left, I could tell by students actions and faces, that the they experienced the pride of 'taonga tuku iho' (treasures passed down to us)  left by our Tupuna.  A wonderful experience for everyone involved - we are so proud of our students.  "Whaia kia eke' Strive to succeed!

2014 Fiafia

Every two years, Pt England School celebrates diversity with a Fiafia evening. Students choose which performance they want to participate in and spend time learning their dances.  We had 22 groups to choose from such as  Hip hop, Cook Island Drums, Tongan dance, Samoan Groups, Kapa haka and many more.

This year we were lucky enough to have 3 Kapa Haka groups - Junior, Middle School and Senior Kapa Haka. They all performed with dignity and pride and most importantly, had fun.

It was an amazing evening that lasted just over 2 hours.  We were all very proud of their performances and look forward to the next one in 2016. A big mihi to our community - over 2500 whānau members came to tautoko.

Check out the movie below made by Jordenne and Sela, it shows a snippet of our celebration.

Fiafia Movie - Jordenne and Sela from Team 5 PES on Vimeo.

Class 17's Counting and Karakia

Class 17 (Year 2 students) have been working VERY hard at practicing their Te Reo.  Here they are reciting the school karakia AND counting up to 20.  Ms Eadie (their lovely teacher) has been capturing their efforts - Ka pai Class 17 and kia ora for sharing Ms Eadie. 

Counting to 20 I'm Maori from Team 1 PES on Vimeo.

Ti rakau - Yr 5 & 6 Campers

This week our Year 5 and 6 students have their annual camp here at school.  Our school field looks like tent city and students spend 3 fun packed days doing various activities such as Kyaking, Top town, games and sports, blogging, item practice and cooking.

The boys groups got to make their own corn fritters and s'mores (melted marshmallows sandwiched between two biscuits) using a bbq.  One of the follow up activities after they had dried all their dishes and cleaned up was Ti Rakau.

A competition between group members emerged.  The winners that came up with the best combinations moved into the 'battle' round between groups.  I wonder who will win?  I'm pretty sure Ms Takarei and Mr Sommerville will take out the competition as the 'Ti Rakau' experts.

Classroom Mihimihi

This mihimihi you can use to start your morning in class.  It acknowledges

whoever starts the karakia, your teacher and your classmates.  So, say

the persons name instead of 'Rihari' in the recording, and say your

teachers name instead of Mrs Nua.  Have fun practising and remember to learn the english translation

too.

 

Whaea Saf's Taonga

Whaea Saf visits all Junior and Middle school classes throughout the week.  During her class visits she selects students to give out taonga that she has made with Aroha.  Students may be awarded for their manaakitanga, excellence in pronunciation, for doing their best, awesome singing and a whole lot more.  Check out these awesome students from Class 13 who have learned the school karakia and can recite it without looking at the kupu (words) - Ka pai koutou and ka pai whaea Saf x

From left to right: Job, Adrienne, Kerstein, Samoa, and Latu.

Te whare tū taua ki Ukutoia - Māori weaponry @ Pt England School

Our first kapa haka practice AND mau rakau class was held today for our Year 7/8 students in our school hall.

Patrick Gemmell who takes our seniors for kapa haka has kindly donated more time to teach our students mau rakau.  An awesome start to the year.  Well done students for your dedication and commitment.  Ka pai koutou!

For the students who attended, here are the ahai for you to practise.  For those of you who are keen to join, learn the kupu, the moves and turn up next week!

Ka kite 2013... Bring on 2014!

We had a full on end of year doing our best to finish things off properly.

Sadly we had to farewell our wonderful kaiako whaea Raewyn who has been teaching tamariki te reo me ona tikanga for more than 13 years here at Pt England School.  She will be sadly missed by all but we wish her all the best in her new venture.

We are happy to welcome our new kaiako whaea Safron to our staff and school.  Safron is local and of Ngati Whatua descent.  Nau mai haere mai whaea Saf.

The senior Kapa Haka group performed brilliantly on two special occasions at the end of the year.  The girls sang during whaea Raewyn's farewell and also performed a special haka which bought tears to our eyes, we were all so proud.  The year 5 & 6 boys also performed their Haka that whaea Raewyn taught them, which was very special indeed.  The seniors also opened our end of year prize giving.  I will search our archives for the footage so I can hopefully pop it onto our blog too.

Every year a special taonga is awarded to one senior student.  It's called the 'Parehuia-manu-o-te-tau' taonga, donated by Ms Tito for the student who shows excellence in Te Ao Māori - so it can be awarded for excellence in leadership, Te Reo, Tikanga, Kapa Haka etc.

This year the recipient of the taonga was none other than our wonderful Richard Takitaki for his manaakitanga.  Richard's whānau was VERY proud and judging by the reaction of the audience so were we, Ka rawe Rich x

So it was a great ending to our year and we are looking forward to having an even BETTER 2014.