The Addington Article

Duffy Rhubarb Huge Hit!!!

2011-09-20T14:04:00.004+12:00

Today we were visited by Mary Kippenberger and Peter Charlton-Jones who spend their time travelling the globe telling stories, singing songs, debating, and presenting drama and music workshops. Together they are "Rhubarb"!

At our school they sang and told stories that involved lots of the children, (and some startled adults), dressing up and acting out the parts. The children and adults present were spell bound and there were some fantastic performances from our new school actors.

Rhubarb are Duffy "Role Models" visiting school assemblies around the country. It was a fantastic assembly and thoroughly enjoyed by everyone. Thank you 'Rhubarb' and thank you Duffy.

Gareth Parr from Agility Logistics (our Duffy sponsor) was also present at the assembly and helped 'Rhubarb' present some of the Duffy books. Gareth was also pulled into the stories and dressed up beautifully as a bad wolf. A huge thank you to Gareth and Agility Logistics for their generous sponsorship of our school.

Conductive Ed Veges

2011-09-19T14:05:00.002+12:00

On Friday, a few of the Green Team members planted some lettuce plants out the front of the Room 5 classrooms. Also planted out were coreopsis plants which will give a nice patch of yellow flowers later in the summer. The children added compost to the soil and watered everything in.

"Now the room 5 children can just reach out from their classroom to have salad in their lunch" said Michael.

Scarecrow Update

2011-09-16T09:44:00.002+12:00

Thank you to the children in Rooms 2,3,4, 7 and Conductive Education for their wonderful entries into Hornby Mitre 10’s recent competition.

First place went to Lady Gaga from Chisnilwood Intermediate.

Second place was Betty and Bert from Burwood.

Although none of our amazing entries earned a placing, Hornby Mitre 10 have donated a wonderful pile of gardening gear to our school.
A big thank you to Mitre 10, and well done to all those involved in putting our lovely scarecrows together, and taking the time to vote. Our entries looked fantastic!!!

VOTE FOR YOUR FAVOURITE SCARECROW!

2011-09-02T11:27:00.007+12:00

Addington School has entered 5 fantastic scarecrows into Hornby Mitre 10 Megas Competition -

Room 5’s “Basil”

Room 7’s “Richie McAppleCaw”

Room 4’s “A.J.” (Addington Juniors)

Room 3’s “Mr Scarecrow”

Room 2’s “Tatty Boggle”.

They look amazing and the children have worked really hard creating these characters.

Voting starts Saturday 3 September and goes through until the end of Sunday 11 September.

Go and vote for your favourites and we could win $500 worth of Gift Cards for our school!!!!

School Friday

2011-08-18T13:26:00.002+12:00

School open Friday at usual time 8.50am. Please wear full school uniform.

School Open Thursday 18 August

2011-08-18T06:31:00.001+12:00

School will be open this Thursday 18 August, 10.00 am start. Please wear gum boots and warm winter mufti and bring slippers and a spare pair of socks. Many of our children do have slippers at school but if you are unsure send some anyway.

Wednesday 17 August Snow Update

2011-08-17T06:36:00.004+12:00

School will remain closed today (Wednesday) as roads and footpaths are still heavily laden with snow and ice making them treacherous.

Remember you can also check out our facebook page for updates.

School Closure

2011-08-16T06:43:00.004+12:00

School will remain closed today (Tuesday) due to the weather conditions. There will be no 'Learning Conversations' today.

Keep warm.

School Closed

2011-08-15T06:59:00.005+12:00

School is closed today because of snow. We will update you as soon as we know what is happening. Keep safe and warm.

We also have updates on facebook. Just click here to join us on facebook.

Red and Black Day

2011-08-01T10:20:00.004+12:00

The last day of Term 2 proved to be a very colourful event. Jarvis Liddington of Room 7 organised the Red and Black day to "raise money and cans for people in Christchurch who dont have power and water". As you can see from the photos, everyone got into the spirit and $160 and a heap of cans were collected on the day! Jarvis will be one of the children delivering the goodies to one of the schools on the east side of the city.
Well done to Jarvis for showing kindness and consideration to others. Awesome Addington Qualities!

Sophie Graduates!!!!!

2011-06-24T11:35:00.014+12:00

Today, a wonderful celebration was held for Sophie Woods from Room 8 who has now graduated from Reading Discovery!

Sophie, who was joined by her family, friends, and other Reading Discovery children, (Miracle, Jackson and Dante,) leaves the programme on Level Purple 19/20.

Mrs Pat Watson, our Reading Discovery teacher, says Sophie has worked very hard to achieve such a wonderful result.

A big thank you to everyone at home and at school for doing such a great job supporting Sophie's learning.

Well done Sophie, you are a champion!!!

School Opening

2011-06-15T15:41:00.004+12:00

School will reopen tomorrow Thursday 16 June. Please bring a bottle of boiled drinking water.

See you all there!

Earthquake - School Closure

2011-06-14T15:37:00.003+12:00

We will be closed tomorrow [Wednesday the 15 June] as we are waiting on an engineers structural report to be completed on our school buildings. We are hoping to open again on Thursday but will keep you informed via this blog.

School Leaders Morning Tea

2011-06-10T14:47:00.002+12:00

Recently our school leaders joined Addington Staff for a shared morning tea. Our eight leaders, two from each Whanau, enjoyed a large selection of savoury and sweet treats. Ms M was quick to point out to them that this was not our usual morning tea fare! Staff and the children enjoyed the opportunity for the social occasion.

Addington Student, Role Model For All

2011-03-25T11:45:00.006+13:00

Ahsan Ahmadi, also known as Ali, received an award in our full school assembly today. Ali is a refugee from Afghanistan,who with his family has been in New Zealand for only 8 months, received the award from the Addington Action Committee for outstanding contribution to the Addington Community, in the weeks after the 22 February earthquake. Presenting the award was Mike Peters of the Addington Action Committee and Jim Anderton MP.

After the earthquake struck, Ali got in touch with the AAC and with his Dad spent the next two weeks helping to clear rubble, dig toilets and deliver food and water to people in need.

We are all very proud of this young man, who is an inspiration and a wonderful role model. Well done Ali.

Ali was also featured in todays Christchurch Press.

Surprise Visit For Addington Children

2011-03-22T14:24:00.005+13:00

Today, our school was privileged to be visited by eight police officers, including members of the Australian Federal police force. These officers are in Christchurch to help in the aftermath of the earthquake, and are visiting schools as part of a Reassurance Team. The aim of this team is to talk to children about the earthquake and to acknowledge that there are lots of different people in uniform from all over the world helping in our city at the moment. The officers spent time with different classrooms answering questions and listening to the children tell their own stories. Later the children asked many questions of the Australian officers, including "How did they get here?" " By Quantas 757 "was the reply. The child responded "Oh , so you didnt come to Addington in a taxi" Wonderful!!! There were also many gun, taser and pepper spray queries!
It was a great visit that both the adults and the children enjoyed, and helped reinforce for us all the special relationship between Australia and New Zealand in times of crisis.

Laughter the Best Medicine

2011-03-16T12:05:00.003+13:00

Yah! Back at school after a very tough few weeks. It is great to see our lovely children back at school and keen to learn. And what better way to start back and forget our worries for a while than to have a Magician visit!! Magic Matt and Fairy Jessica are part of Make Christchurch Smile. These lovely people came down from Auckland with the aim of "Cheering up Canterbury Kids" And they did, but not just the kids, the adults at school were also seen to be laughing just as hard as the children. Magic Matt had the whole school enthralled. Thank you guys, you made our day!

School Opens Monday 14 March

2011-03-10T17:42:00.002+13:00

Good news... we now have water and are all ready to go. We will reopen on Monday the 14 March at our usual time.

Remember to send your children to school with a bottle of safe drinking water as the water fountains are not able to be used.

We are looking forward to seeing you all again.

Addington School Earthquake Update

2011-03-08T12:53:00.004+13:00

We have been given clearance by Civil Defence & Ministry of Education to commence the process of re-opening. The school and grounds have been assessed by MOE property managers and structural engineers. The school and grounds have been deemed safe for use.

Before students come on site we need to satisfy the Ministry of Education and District Health Authority that we can meet all requirements associated with isolating unsafe areas, and providing adequate water, drainage, sewer, power, heating, access, security and staffing. All classrooms and other school buildings will need to be tidied and thoroughly cleaned. At present the only stumbling block to our opening is the fact that two of our classroom blocks do not have water. This could impact on our desire to open on Monday 14^th March.

Our plan is to have the administration block tidied on Tuesday March 8, hall, library & classroom areas tidied and cleaned on Thursday and Friday, March 10,11 and complete the various checks to gain Ministry approval to reopen. On Wednesday we will ask all teaching staff to come in to meet together to share our own stories and debrief and to provide additional staff training and professional development in managing stressed and upset children. Thursday and Friday will be set aside to begin classroom tidy ups, so that our contract cleaners can then complete the cleaning of these areas.

Please appreciate that the reopening process must be done thoroughly and provide adequate time for the school to be made tidy, clean and safe, and for staff to be fully prepared to welcome children and families. It cannot be rushed.

Re-Start Visit Friday 11th March between 1:00 - 2:30 pm

We invite parents to bring children into school to visit their classrooms and teachers. This will provide reassurance to children that our school and their classroom are safe places to come to on Monday, see that their teacher is OK, collect their bags and clothes left behind, and see some of their friends/classmates.

Monday 14 March 8:50 am School resumes

Please send children with drinkable water and remind them that the drinking fountains will not be able to be used. Thank you

We can expect that many children to be fragile and easily upset.

We will be monitoring children’s reactions carefully and will provide additional teacher support throughout the school. Where numbers allow some teachers will team teach to support each other. The staffroom will be set up as a quiet rest and support space for children who are upset or not coping. Some may only need this for a short time then be able to rejoin their class. Others may need to have parents called to reassure or collect them. We will be as flexible as we need to; some children may only be able to cope with part days to begin with.

From the Ministry of Education:

Message to parents and educators

The Christchurch earthquake has been frightening for everyone involved especially for children who may not understand what has happened. Children will try to make sense of what has happened and adjust to the changes that have happened to their homes and schools. Parents and teachers are very important supports for children.

How children respond to the earthquake depends on you and your ability to re-establish some familiar routines and explain calmly what has happened and why change is occurring (even though you might be feeling very stressed). You may need to explain this over and over again. Children might:

Ø want to be with you all the time and be a bit clingy

Ø need more reassurance than usual

Ø be scared that the big earthquake is going to happen again

Ø be tired and have trouble sleeping and eating

Ø be more frustrated and impatient than usual.

Be aware that children are most afraid that:

Ø the event will happen again, buildings and other things will fall down

Ø someone might be injured or killed

Ø they will be separated from you or the family

Ø they will be left alone.

The earthquake will result in a range of reactions and questions from toddlers, children and young people depending on their experience of the earthquake. Talking and listening is very important. Let your child/students know that you will all look after each other. It is important for parents and caregivers to give lots of cuddles and hugs.

Some Parenting Advice

Many of the children of Christchurch will be feeling anxious, scared and insecure following the devastating earthquake . What they need most from Mum and Dad is extra cuddles, patience and reassurance.

Kids will be fearful of more earthquakes and of being left alone. They will be worried about other people and pets – and you, if they have seen you hurt or upset. After a big shock children are easily triggered into a fearful state. Here are some things you can do to reassure them:

· Concentrate on closeness and cuddles

· Surround them with familiar objects such as soft toys and blankets

· Let them talk

Traumatic events can replay over and over in the mind. This will happen when something triggers the memory like a smell, a sound or a picture that reminds them of the earthquake. The emotions can feel almost as strong as they did during the initial trauma. They need your closeness and sympathy. Try to minimise the triggers for your little ones.

· Limit their exposure to media coverage

· Everyone will want to hear how you are and where you were when the earthquake happened, but avoid dramatic retellings on the phone when your children are listening

· As they retell their story, include positive problem solving. “What will be different next time – if there is a next time? What would make things safer?”

One of the best things you can do is model calm – and that’s not easy given the devastation and loss. But it is amazing how much extra courage we can draw up when we know our children are looking to us for reassurance. When you are obviously upset or anxious, explain your emotions to your children – it may help them understand their own feelings.

Be prepared to handle their questions. You are allowed to say you don’t know the answers, but offer to find out for them. Don’t deceive them, because they really need to trust you at this time. You can’t say there won’t be aftershocks, or even another big earthquake. “There may be a few more – no one knows, really – but we are prepared.”

Earthquake... School Remains Closed

2011-02-28T08:46:00.000+13:00

Regardless of what you have heard, Christchurch Schools are CLOSED until further notice, and definitely closed for the rest of the week. This edict comes directly from Civil Defence. Civil Defence controls all decision making during the National State of Emergency that currently exists. Their edict is definitive, and must be followed. If their ruling changes, we will tell you.

Carving Report -Interview with Johnny Sparks Rm 11

2010-11-10T14:28:00.003+13:00

On Monday, Mr Miles Kau Kau, a tutor in Maori Arts came to school to show children from Rooms 9, 10 and 11 how to do soap carving. First we put a piece of paper over the soap and drew over the pattern. Then when we took the paper off, we could see the pattern on the soap. Next we got a special tool and carved over the lines. We had to cut away more of the soap around the pattern we wanted.

At lunch we cut around the outside to make it stand out more. Next we smoothed it over with a chisel. We added three pieces of paua , two for our parents, and one for ourselves. We carved more patterns to show how many brothers and sisters we had. Lastly we decorated the base.

It was awesome and Miles was lots of fun. We sang heaps of Maori songs with him as we did our carving.

Wellington Visit

2010-11-04T18:56:00.011+13:00

Well what a great day was had by all!

It started off with a very early rise for everyone involved (the bus left from the school grounds around 5.50am to transport the group to the airport).

They arrived in Wellington in time for breakfast and from there they were taken on a guided tour and lunch at Te Papa. They also had a ride on the “High Ride” and visited several of Te Papa’s Discovery Centres.

The highlight of the afternoon was a great tour of the Rugby Union Headquarters where the group were shown some very fascinating memorabilia and given a very interesting tour and talk. They were fortunate enough to be able to have their group photo taken with the Tri Nations Cup and some of the students even had their photo taken wearing on of the gold medals recently won at the Commonwealth Games.

The group later travelled to Parliament and although there was not time for a tour of the buildings they did have their photo taken on the steps of parliament buildings and were able to view the beehive and have a picnic afternoon tea on the Parliament lawn.

A short walk from parliament took the group to the cable car where they had a trip up the hill to the botanic gardens. This gave the group a chance to have a walk around to enjoy the marvellous Wellington weather and to take in the fantastic views from the top of the hill. After having their evening meal at McDonalds the group were transported back out to the airport to await their flight back to Christchurch.

As many parents will already be aware, a group of very happy but tired students arrived back in Christchurch after having spent a day in Wellington. We know that the memories of this day will be a highlight in their lives for many years to come.

All the students must be commended for their behaviour on this trip. They were all in Wellington as ambassadors for our school and they certainly represented us well at all times.

We would especially like to thank Shirley McDonnell for the tremendous amount of time and effort she put in once again to plan and book this trip for our year 6 children. Shirley’s organization was superb down to the last little detail and this certainly ensured the success of the whole day.

Zone Sports Success!

2010-11-03T11:28:00.005+13:00

Yesterday 17 Senior students travelled to Hillmorton High school for the Zone Athletic Sports Day. Our students competed in Sprints, Long Distance, High Jump, Long Jump, Discus and Shot Put. Everyone showed their Addington Attitude and had a wonderful day.

Congratulations to Grace Sorby who came second in the Long Jump and Caleb Gregory who came second in the 50 m Sprint. Both Grace and Caleb have qualified for the Central Zones. Well done!

A huge thank you to those parents who helped with transporting our team down to Hillmorton and were able to cheer our children on. It was much appreciated.

Farewell to Mrs Teear

2010-11-02T14:47:00.009+13:00

This afternoon Amanda Teear was farewelled at a full school assembly. Mrs Teear had taught at Addington for almost 7 years and said that they were the best teaching years of her life!

Te Tipuranga, Whanau Kowhai, Room 10, and the Green Team all paid tribute to the wonderful contributions she had made to life at Addington school.

Ms Heath thanked Mrs Teear for being such a great teaching practitioner, collegue and friend.

We will all miss her sense of fun and fantastic contributions to teaching at our school and wish her all the very best for the future.

TV Show Inspires Student Led Clean-up!!

2010-09-21T14:22:00.005+12:00

Yazmin Miles-Watson was watching the Erin Simpson Show yesterday after school, and was inspired by the show's star, to go out and clean up her own street. The clean up is part of National Clean Up NZ week which runs from 17 Sept to 24 Sept. In just an hour Yaz, (aged 11 yrs,) filled three supermarket bags from around her street. Today at school, she gave up her morning tea and lunch times to do a thorough clean up of the bushes and trees along the school boundary! She inspired some friends to join her, and they cleaned up other areas of the school.

Most of the boundary rubbish was from people who pass through the school grounds outside of school hours. There were wrappers, cigarette butts and beer bottles which were "disgusting" explained Yaz.

Yaz (pictured with Line Kalolo) hopes to encourage more of her classmates to help clean up other areas of the school community.

Fantastic Addington Attitude Yaz!! We are very proud of the initiative you have taken, and the inspiration you are to our school.

School Up and Running!!

2010-09-13T12:48:00.000+12:00

Addington School children were back at school today, catching up with friends, sharing stories and practicing their "Drop, Cover and Hold" moves.
Room 7 produced some great art work for their cloakroom about their experiences during the past week.

We are all pleased to be back and returning to our normal routines.

School Closure

2010-09-08T16:56:00.000+12:00

School will not be open until Monday the 13 Sept. See you all then.

School Closure until 13 Sept

2010-09-07T16:28:00.003+12:00

Because of the Earthquake to our area on Saturday 4 September Schools and early childhood services within the boundaries of Christchurch City Council, Waimakariri (including Rangiora) District Council and Selwyn District Council will be closed to students and children until Monday 13 September.

2010-09-03T11:55:00.008+12:00

Reading Discovery Graduation and Celebration!

Today two students, Mackenzie Wallace and Andrew Sparks celebrated their graduation from Reading Discovery with a special morning tea. At the celebration were Reading Discovery Teacher Pat Watson , class teacher Mrs Douglas, Mrs Barr and invited guests Andrew and McKenzie's Mums, Grandparent reader Mrs Rainey, Ms Heath and Ms Meachen.

Both Andrew and McKenzie entered the programme reading at level 2-3 and have finished off on level 19-20!! Fantastic, and a great example of how successful the partnership between home and school can be.

Learning Conversations

2010-08-11T07:07:00.002+12:00

Thank you to all parents/caregivers who made it along to your child’s Learning Conversation this week. We hope you were given lots of clear information about how your child is achieving and some next steps to work on. For those of you who found the two days we set aside to be inconvenient please note that the teachers will be in touch to set up an alternative time as we aim to meet with every parent each term.

Working on the Green Team Mural

2010-06-25T14:20:00.004+12:00

Last Friday, members of the Green Team along with Mitch, Anne, Dorinda, Sarah and Jo from the staff, continued on with the painting of the new mural. It was a great success as we were able to complete the background colours and the children began on the garden details, including a cat by Sofi that was both stunning and colourful.

Cross Country Zones at Last!!

2010-06-04T11:28:00.006+12:00

After two postponements, our team of seven senior students, finally got to represent our school at the South West Zone Cross Country. The event was held at a very wet and boggy Halswell quarry. Despite the slippery conditions underfoot and cold nip in the air, our team gave their personal best and did Addington proud. It was a great day. Well done Sharlene, Caleb, Jeremy, Josh, Yasmin, J'leel, and Isobel.

Addington Netball Shoot Off

2010-05-28T14:30:00.001+12:00

Congratulations to the winners of the ANZ Tactix Shoot out last Tuesday.

The winner of the Tactix Netball and goodies was Zania from Room 9.

The Team at the ANZ Sydenham and Addington Branch were on hand to support

us. Plus a special guest Victoria Smith from the Tactix.

If you wish to discuss any of your Banking needs please contact Jenny or

Sandra @ ANZ Sydenham Branch. In particular join your family to Kiwi Saver

and take advantage of the $1000 Government kick start:

jenny.higginson@anz.com ph 3682158

sandra.tait@anz.com ph 3682155

Duffy Theatre

2010-05-28T13:43:00.005+12:00

On Tuesday, three actors came to our school to show us why reading is awesome.
They did a show called the Duffy Show. Duffy was on a show called the big OE (Occupation Exploration). They got one person to spin the wheel. Whatever number it landed on Duffy had to learn about that occupation. First Duffy had to use his skills from reading to help understand what doctors do. Then the doctors got someone from the audience to have a brain surgery. Then someone else spun the wheel and Duffy had to do the same with learning things about Chefs. The last one was Sport Stars. The game was ping pong. Ting fon, the best ping pong player in the world vs Ding dong the second best, had one game of ping pong. Then we sung the Duffy Song.
The show was finished and then we got to say hello to the actors.

Summary: On Tuesday 3 actors came to our school and told us why reading is awesome. They played a game called the O.E. Duffy used his 9 skills to help him through the Occupations.

(Reporter Yazmin Miles-Watson)

Caught Being a Good Mum

2010-05-07T12:24:00.002+12:00

Congratulations to ….Kalesita Afemui

who was the lucky winner drawn out of the box for the Duffy “Caught Being a Good Mum” promotion.

The comments on the form that Caroline Afemui (Room 9) dropped in the box were

“mum is there for me and always helps me”.

The prize was presented to Caroline’s mum at the Full School Assembly today .

Inspirational Girls Breakfast

2010-04-26T14:34:00.006+12:00

On Wednesday last week, 30 girls and a member from each of their families, enjoyed a special breakfast in the school hall. The breakfast was put on by friends and members of the Addington school community, who provided a delicious menu for the girls.
Ali Palmer (our wonderful music and choir teacher) spoke to the group about everyone having a “gift”, and the need to find out what your gift is. It was important to grow your gift, like a seed and to persist and not give up. She talked about her own experiences in rock bands like Atlas, and how they were given so much but she felt something was missing. Ali explained she would much rather be here at Addington helping us with our music. Sharing her gift.
Ali gave each girl a spring bulb, which was later planted out into part of the Rose garden and will provide an amazing colourful display in the spring.

A huge thank you to our community, and to Ali for the wonderful and inspiring start to the day.

Celebrating Race Relations Day

2010-04-01T12:01:00.004+13:00

On Monday this week we celebrated Race Relations day with an afternoon of games and activities. Children were invited to wear clothes from their country of origin, and participated in games from around the world. It was wonderful to see those children in their Samoan and Tongan dress tossing the caber! Spider soccer and marbles (originally from Turkey) were some of the many activities children got to try. It was a fun afternoon and a great way to celebrate us all.

Corn Harvest

2010-03-30T13:45:00.010+13:00

Kahu , Amanda and Chan'el enjoy the feast.

Green Team bounty.

Today the junior members of the Green team harvested the corn crop, the remaining broccoli, more cherry tomatoes, and four very large strawberries. Then we cooked up the corn and broccoli (minus the odd caterpillar!) and had a lunch time feast!! Delicious!!

Now the Team needs to work out what else we can put in the garden to grow over the winter!!

Art Attack 2010

2010-03-29T19:31:00.005+13:00

Here are some photographs of our Art Attack 2010 for you to enjoy. What great artists we have here at Addington. Well done to you all.

Green Team Cook Up

2010-03-18T20:26:00.001+13:00

Ms Heath in Sydney Australia

2010-03-17T20:19:00.004+13:00

On Monday morning very early, 4.30am I arrived at Christchurch Airport ready to fly to Sydney for a tour of schools. We arrived to very warm weather and boarded a bus that took us to our hotel.

We were very fortunate to be able to go to the Hilton Hotel for a presentation by Apple. They gave a yummy lunch and talked to us for a while and then we got into groups. My group put together a Podcast, it was fun and I learned lots of new things.

On Tuesday we went to visit a school that goes from Yr 1 - Yr 12 called John XX111 and St Marks. It was a very new school with lots of lovely new classrooms. You will see some of the photos below. Later that day I went on a harbour cruise and saw the Opera house and had lots of fun.

Today is Wednesday and we visited a wonderful school called Methodist Ladies College and it had students from Yr 1 - 12 as well. Their junior school was only a year old and had an underground carpark for parents to drop their children off. The classrooms are called learning Studios and each space has two rooms working together. Their classrooms have no walls and are referred to as agile spaces. Check the photos below.

Harvest Feast

2010-03-05T10:20:00.014+13:00

Recently, on a Friday, the Green Team held a harvest lunch. At morning tea time, the team picked beans, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, courgettes, and dug some of their purple heart potatoes and new carrots. At lunch time they set to work preparing the vegetables for the huge “Green Team Flan”, with side dishes of boiled potatoes, lovely carrots and cherry tomatoes. This was cooked in the hall oven and then eaten outside, picnic style, in the shade next to the vegetable garden. Delicious yummy and very colourful!! The flan was a big success and ‘seconds’ were in hot demand. The carrots were sweet and tasty.

The potatoes were interesting as they were dark purple when dug, but faded to a very light mauve when cooked. “Not as nice as our other potatoes”, (Jersy Bennes) was the verdict, “but still yummy”. Slivers of our garden strawberries followed.

On the following Monday morning there were several reports of variations of the G.T. flan being made in the Addington community. Great fun, gardening and cooking!

The team are planning another feast later in the term.

On a sadder note……

Vandals have smashed the pumpkin crop during a recent weekend. Other produce has also been stolen. This is very disappointing for the children, as they were planning several soup lunches for the whole school later in the autumn. The culprits have been identified and are being dealt with by the police.

Regardless of these events, the children at Addington school continue to put a lot of heart and soul into these gardens, and are hugely enthusiastic and positive about its potential. We will keep planting and sowing, learning and sharing with our school community. Roll on the next harvest feast!!!

Walk the Walk Day

2010-02-12T13:53:00.002+13:00

The focus of 'Walk the Walk" was on getting the children to understand what our Addington Attitude and our school qualities were all about.

We had a fun afternoon involving orienteering, cooperative games and team work. The activities were based around our nine school qualities. Children were in groups of 3-4 and had to hold on to a length of string as they went around each activity. At the completion of each activity the children were given a piece of puzzle. These, once put together, spelt out our 9 qualities,Integrity, caring, risk taking, acceptance responsibility, respect, resilience, personal best and passion.

Robert Fruean......Inspiration at Leavers Dinner

2009-12-23T19:19:00.007+13:00

At our recent leavers dinner held at the Addington Coffee Co-op Robert Fruean shared his inspirational life story with our year 6 school leavers, their families and school staff. Robert’s story, which has seen him overcome life threatening health issues at the peak of his sporting career, held the children and adults spell bound.

Robert spoke to the group after a wonderful meal at the café. Robert’s final words of advice was to always remember the following three phrases “Please”, “thank you”, and “I’m sorry”.

Picnic Pizza with the Principal

2009-12-07T14:36:00.003+13:00

Today 10 children shared a pizza lunch with Ms Heath. Bayden, Caleb, Nevada, Nihmot, Jasmine, Utu, Alex, Yazmin, and Ryan had each earned 10 Green Cards for their consistant great behaviour, and wonderful Addington Attitude. The favourite varieties are Homer Simpson, and the Vegetarian Supreme, which was pronounced 'delicious' and 'very tasty' by Nihmot.

The pizzas are sponsored by Filadelfios Pizza in Beckenham. A big "Thank you" to Tony for supporting this programme in the school.

New Friend in the Vege Garden

2009-12-07T14:24:00.002+13:00

Late last month, the Green Team put their creative heads together and came up with what will hopefully be the solution to birds eating their lettuce seedlings!! Named Spud Murphy by the younger members of the team, he now stands guard, (in his pyjamas), over the strawberries and lettuce seedlings. So far he has survived three vigorous southerly changes, a nor'west blast and the theft of his t-shirt! The lettuces are looking better already.

Catching Grandmothers

2009-11-27T12:17:00.002+13:00

Congratulations to Mary Jones the grandmother of Kahu Jones whose name was drawn out as our Duffy 'Caught being a good grandparent". Kahu nominated her because "she gets books out of the library to share with me and helps me make stuff.

We Are Sailing

2009-11-27T10:03:00.006+13:00

Once again, our Year 6’s did us proud with their Addington Attitude during their Sailing Trip with CanSail in the Lyttelton Harbour yesterday.

It was a brilliant day with plenty of sun and wind. We enjoyed the company of three Hector Dolphins during our trip.

It was great to see all of the children challenging themselves in a new environment, working with such team spirit and for the teachers seeing our children achieving was magical.

It was a pleasure to be part of this wonderful day.

A quote from one of the students, “This is just like being on a family holiday.” - It’s pretty exciting when a school experience can feel like being in a family!

Our thanks go to the CanSail Trust who offered us this wonderful opportunity. Thankyou also, for their financial sponsorship, without it we wouldn’t be able to take part in such a unique and valuable experience.

Room 3 Reports

2009-11-20T21:26:00.002+13:00

Room 3 have been learning to write reports. Check out this great swimming report written by Grace.

Last week we went swimming First we got changed. Next we waited by the pool for room one to get out After that we got into our groups. Then we started to swim . I learnt to to swim on my back. It was fun in the pool because it was so warm.

After our swim we got out of the pool and got changed back into our school uniform. Then we went on the bus back to school.

By Grace .

Room 2 Swims

2009-11-18T21:35:00.004+13:00

For the past 3 weeks we have been going swimming at Pioneer Pool. When we get to the pool we have to get ready to swim and wait on the side of the pool for our turn. It’s so exciting.

When room 3 gets out, it’s our turn, so we line up on the side of the pool and wait for our instructor. There is Scott, Crystal, Charlotte and Liz. They are helping us learn to swim.

We can all put our heads under the water. I like going under the water and picking up the penguin. We have to race to the end to find them. The first one back wins.

I can float like a starfish and use a board to kick to the end of the lane.

The best part is going into the deep part and jumping in doing a bomb. I can go deep into the pool.

We love swimming.

Kiwa, Fuschia, Jacob and Josh

Radish-O-Rama

2009-11-06T14:28:00.005+13:00

Today, at lunch time, the Green Team harvested their first crop of radishes. These were then sliced up and offered to the rest of the school to try. The queue of children wanting to try a radish wound its way across the lawn, with children returning to the back of the line again and again. Some children opted for the radish with some dip.

Comments from the children included 'yummy', ' very delicious',"very sweet", "can I take some home for Dad?". Staff had to move quickly to get a taste!!

This was a great way to introduce children to new vegetables and the Green Team plan to sow more radishes for later on the year.

Town Versus Country

2009-09-23T11:36:00.006+12:00

Early on in Term 3 most of Addington's senior school went to Southbridge school to play some sport. It was a great day out there, and Southbridge wanted to return the favour by coming to our school for another day of sport. So on Tuesday morning, 60 children (4 sports teams) were welcomed at our full school assembly by Nga Matiko, Te Tipuranga, and Ms Heath. After a delicious morning tea (put on by the Addington PTA), we went out to play our sports.

First was soccer, which our team won 9 :1. It was a tough but fun game. Then it was the Netball B teams turn. Again we won 9:5. After this the A Netball team played and they lost 26:9. This was a very tough game.

Last game was the Rugby which we won 24:14. This felt really good because the teams had tied at Southbridge.

All the teams played really well and worked together to the end. They all showed resilience, persistance, passion and personal best. Fantastic Addington attitude.

After the games we all gathered together in the hall, to eat ice blocks and chat with our new Southbridge friends. Then we said our goodbyes and they hopped on the bus and set off to Southbridge.

It was a fun and spectacular day that we all enjoyed and hope to do again sometime soon.

Green Team Digs In

2009-09-21T11:29:00.004+12:00

Early Friday morning our soil arrived in a big truck and after lunch members of the Green Team enthusiastically filled the beds and spread the soil. Now we are set to go.

P.S. Our potatoes are up through the soil in our planter box bed!!!!!

Garden Beds Up and Ready For Planting

2009-09-18T12:01:00.005+12:00

Yesterday, members of our Green Team were very excited to see the arrival of the new raised beds for the vegetable garden. Together with Reg Platt of Fresh Harvest Planters, and Graeme Wood, (friend of the school and great supporter of the Green Team), the children assembled the two new beds. There was much hammering of nails and sawing of pegs and the beds are now all ready to go! Thank you again to Reg for making the beds, and to Graeme for his continued help and advise.

Four cubic metres of soil will be put in them today along with some donated compost from the Strictland St Gardens. The team is all ready to get planting!!!

Loud Shirts Brighten Assembly

2009-09-18T11:33:00.004+12:00

At today's assembly, children and staff wore their brightest, loudest shirts in support of children with a hearing impairment. With a gold coin donation per shirt, the school raised over $145 for the cause.

Room 1 have been studying the letter 'U ' and entertained the whole school with their UKELELE performance. Fantastic!!

Participants in the Literacy Quiz were acknowledged, and Alison Holland and Dorinda Hampton were thanked by students for all their hard work getting the two teams ready for the big night.

Shirley McDonnell and Mitch Luke were presented with flowers and thanked for all their hard work in getting Te Tipuranga ready for the Cultural Festival. (Photos from this will be put on the blog in the near future.)

Jamie McAllister's Dad, Andrew, was our Duffy "Caught Being A Great Dad", and received his certificate and prize book at the assembly. Jamie nominated his Dad because he "bought him cares and shared his money with him!!"

Erin Simpson Show comes to Addington

2009-09-11T13:56:00.004+12:00

On Wednesday, Dan Costello and Will Alexander, presenters with the Erin Simpson show, visited School for our Duffy Role Model Assembly. Dan and Will were welcomed by Te Tipuranga, and handed out Duffy books to selected children.

They shared their favourite books with the children, the 'Complete Works of William Shakespeare', and Dr Seus 'Oh the Places You'll Go'. Dan read his Dr Seus book to the assembly and encouraged the children to keep following their dreams.

After lots of questions about the Erin Simpson show, and a "few" autographs, Dan and Will were finally able to leave.

Surprise For the Seniors

2009-09-11T13:40:00.005+12:00

On Tuesday morning an enormous truck drove into the playground and parked up outside Rooms 9, 10, and 11. The truck contained a long awaited surprise for the senior students....... Fantastic new desks and chairs to go in the recently renovated classrooms!!!! It was all hands on deck to help unload and then unwrap each desk, and stack of chairs. Very exciting!!! This new classroom furniture is all in place and our old worn tables stacked up ready for disposal later next term.(More about that later)

Fantastic Performance at Cultural Festival

2009-08-28T12:00:00.012+12:00

Last night 80 children from throughout the school, put on a most amazing performance at the Christchurch Town Hall, as part of the Christchurch Primary Schools Cultural Festival. The children were in two groups, the Junior Nga Matikao, and the Seniors as part of Te Tipuranga.

Te Tipuranga had brought with them their kete of knowledge handed down to them by their treasured Tipuna. The children had photos of their special family members and ancestors in the kete.

During the performance two children used sign language to communicate the words of the waiata.

Nga Matikao celebrated the different cultures of our school in a colourful and lively performance.

" I was really nervous, but when we got on stage everybody knew what to do and it was awesome! It made me real proud to be supporting my own school and I saw lots of my old friends from last year. " Steve

"I got to wear my great, great, great Aunties piupiu, I felt very proud. And our girl's pukana at the end was 'funtastic' " Brooke

"It felt good. I knew all the people liked us because they clapped and clapped" Ben

Parents and Addington staff were very proud of all the children.

Conductive Education - One Small Victory but the Battle Continues

2009-08-14T14:39:00.010+12:00

We have just been notified that our Therapy Funding has been reinstated. While this is great news unfortunately it is only for children who are presently on our school roll. We will not receive funding for any new students enrolling at our school. There is a review of Special Education to take place next year.

Check out this article in the Press Newspaper Saturday 15 August 2009.

New Planter Box Arrives

2009-08-14T12:36:00.003+12:00

Last Friday the Green Team was also busy assembling a planter box. This was kindly donated by Reg Platt of Fresh Harvest Planters. Reg delivered and then helped the Team to assemble the box. This planter is high sided so that our Conductive Ed children can access them from their wheelchairs. A big thank you to Harvest Planters for this. The school will be purchasing two more raised beds for our planned vegetable gardens, and the children are busy planning what they would like to grow.

Green Team prepare the Rose Garden

2009-08-14T12:28:00.005+12:00

Over the past two Fridays, the Green Team has been busy in our Rose Garden, working compost into the soil, and discovering the joys of worms, centipedes, slugs and other grubs. The team have put compost and soil conditioner into the rose bed, so that planting of the blue and yellow pansies will be happening this week!! Thanks to Oderings Nursery who have given us a great deal on these plants, and another big thank you to Graeme Wood for all his help with the trailer and extra tools.

Junior School hit by “Earthquake Disaster”

2009-07-24T18:45:00.005+12:00

The junior school was hit pretty hard by a very localized Earthquake on Tuesday with desks and chairs tipping over and injured staff and students everywhere. Luckily for us the senior children were safe and sent to assist where they could in the junior school. All this activity was filmed by staff and used as an amazing discussion tool about disasters. All we can say is that it was a good thing that our whole school topic for this term is set around answering the big question of how to survive a disaster. The students all agreed that we are not prepared and we need to do a whole lot of work to find out how we can be. This should be a very interesting topic, one that will generate much discussion at home.

Member of Parliament visits Conductive Education

2009-07-24T12:22:00.006+12:00

Clayton Cosgrove MP for Waimakariri visited Addington today to look at the Conductive Education Unit and talk with Teachers and parents of students attending. Mr Cosgrove was contacted by a concerned parent who lives in his electorate.

Our principal Trudy Heath, Dave Ching, NZ Conductive Education Foundation member, and Teachers and Conductors from the Unit spoke with Mr Cosgrove about the history of the Unit, its funding, and the impact of funding cuts on our families.

Brittany and her Mum, Julie Baker, spent some time, outlining to Mr Cosgrove and the Christchurch Press reporters with him, the consequences for their family in particular.

At the end of his visit Mr Cosgrove thanked Trudy and her team and said he was now very aware of where our students would be without Conductive Education and was committed to assisting the school raise the profile of our funding issue.

Conductive Education Farewells

2009-07-03T13:30:00.006+12:00

At our full school assembly today, we said goodbye to two teachers from Conductive Education. Mrs Wycherley and Mrs Pilgram are leaving us after many years. We are very sad to see them go. We asked them what they would miss most and they said they would miss the wonderful children, teachers and staff, and how everyone gets on and treats each other so well. This was the best thing about Addington and they would miss everybody heaps.

Mrs Pilgram was going to spend more time with her family and maybe do a bit of study at university. Mrs Wycherley will be spending more time with her family. Both hope to do some relieving at school so we will see them again. YAH!

Reporters: Jyr and Jack

Earth Science in Room 2

2009-07-02T13:57:00.004+12:00

Today Room 8 went to Room 2 our Year 1 ‘Buddy Class’ to find out what they had learnt about the earth. They had three groups: one learnt about the earth inside and out, another about rocks and the last group learnt about volcanoes.

The Earth Group made a KidPix presentation telling us all about the earth. Mrs Craib said it was because they didn’t want to talk too much. We found out lots of interesting things - like sand is made from broken down bits of rocks.

The Rock Group told us all about what rocks are made of. If crystals cool fast they look like glass, but if they cool slowly they look like ice crystals. They made some yummy rocks by melting butter and marshmallows to make the magma and adding rice-bubbles for the minerals and chocolate bits for the crystals. At the end we got to taste some and it tasted delicious.

The Volcano Group knew heaps about volcanoes. They made a volcano and showed us how it erupted. It was all very interesting and amazing.

Reporters for Room 8- Caroline, Sheena and Skylah

Knit One , Purl One-Knitting Revival at Addington

2009-06-29T13:29:00.006+12:00

The new Addington Knitters meet every Friday in Miss Blackburn's classroom where they are learning all sorts of knitting, including finger knitting, French knitting and crocheting.

Miss Blackburn got her husband to put nails into wooden blocks so that the children could learn French Knitting. She says the children have been working extremely hard and all of them seem to enjoy the knitting.

Many of the children take their knitting home and have inspired other family members to take up knitting. At playtime and lunch times you can see children knitting around the school.

The All Blacks Take on Conductive Education

2009-06-26T12:18:00.004+12:00

On Thursday, Wayne Smith (the “backs” coach of the All Blacks), Bryn Evans and Neemia Tialata (current All Blacks) came to visit the Pre -School and Primary School Conductive Education children at Addington.

We asked Wayne Smith if he knew about Conductive Education and he said he had visited lots of times and he thought it was fantastic because it teaches children every day skills.

It was Bryn and Neemia’s first visit and they were both very excited.

After introducing themselves, the men met all the children and gave them a poster each. Then we all went outside for a game of “tug -of-war” . Conductive Ed verses the All Blacks!!! Conductive Ed WON!!!!!

Next Bryn and Neemia practised rugby line outs and scrums with the children. Brittany from our school caught the ball in the line out. Go Brittany!!

Then we asked Bryn and Neemia about being an All Black and they told us that they both get nervous before a game, but that was a good thing. They had both had serious injuries including Bryn’s ankle and Neemia’s problem with his knee and ear. For them, being part of a team was the best thing about being an All Black, especially hanging out with their mates.

The afternoon was lots of fun and we all got a chocolate frog at the end.

Cuts to Funding Put Conductive Education Under Threat

2009-06-24T13:58:00.004+12:00

Funding cuts recently announced in the Budget could have devastating affects on our Conductive Education Unit. Cuts have been made in the money given to our school as part of our therapy entitlement. It is from this funding that we are able to pay our two wonderful conductors.

Our principal Trudy Heath has recently travelled to Wellington to put our case for continuing the present funding for our Conductive Education Unit. The Ministry is keen for the Addington Conductive Education Unit to continue however, without the therapy entitlement, the whole programme is currently under threat.

New Pages for Addington Citizen Passports

2009-06-19T13:49:00.006+12:00

At today's senior assembly, four children were awarded Addington Article Reporter pages for their Citizen Passports. These children have had articles published on the school blog, and are now official Addington Article Reporters. Melissa, Damon, Bayleigh and Zane received their pages from Ms Heath.

Addington Passports recognise children's achievements towards their citizenship at our school. This begins as soon as they start within the Junior school, and continues throughout their time at Addington. Other awards include, learning milestones, achievements within various school activities, both sporting and cultural, and leadership roles within our school.

By the time children leave Addington School at the end of year six, they will have amassed a wonderful collection of pages within their passports reflecting their achievements during their time with us.

Also receiving an award today was Khale for his amazing work as our official "Wet Grass Manager".

Walking School Bus

2009-06-17T14:45:00.007+12:00

Addington School has a new school bus. A Walking School Bus!

Every Wednesday morning at 8am children from Addington School are meeting at three different places around the Addington area and walking together to school. The PTA have organised this activity. The children wear reflective vests and walk in lines to school. During their walk they sing, chat and get to meet other children from different classes.

A-Tunes save best till last

2009-06-17T13:55:00.009+12:00

On June 16^th 2009 the Addington A-Tunes performed a beautiful song, ‘Welcome Home’ by Dave Dobbin.

The A-Tunes have been practising every week for the past two terms. The children have all made a huge commitment and showed a great passion for singing.

Every member of the Addington A-Tunes, should be very proud of their performance. Their efforts were outstanding and have been acknowledged by other schools as the standout performance of the night. They received the loudest applause and a standing ovation. Ka pai A-Tunes!

Junior Literacy Boost Celebration

2009-06-12T12:19:00.005+12:00

On Wednesday the Literacy Boost Programme invited parents along to a celebration of their children's learning. Twenty three children had been involved in the programme which ran for 10 weeks, and was aimed at boosting letter knowledge and letter sounds. The children met three times a week for 45 minutes each session to learn and practise a variety of skills.

At the celebration the children displayed these skills to the many parents who attended. Each child was rewarded with a certificate of congratulations which was presented by Ms Meachen. The celebrations were finished off with fruit kebabs for the children and tea and coffee for the adults.

Cook up at Conductive Education

2009-06-12T12:10:00.005+12:00

It has been a busy week in conductive education as usual. We had a great time on Monday when we made potato paprika a Hungarian dish. The children chopped the onions, peeled the potatoes and cut up the sausages. They really enjoyed stirring up the stew but most of all they enjoyed eating it!!

The Green Team Trip to the Strickland St Gardens for World Environment Day.

2009-06-08T12:42:00.006+12:00

On Friday afternoon the “Green Team” walked down to the Community Gardens on Strickland St to find out some tips for our new school vegetable gardens, and to help celebrate Environment day.

The people who work there, told us that seeds need to be sown at twice their size into the soil, and that we could sow broad beans and sweetpeas in our new school plots.

We looked at their composting heaps and the size of their vegetable beds. We have started our own compost heaps at school, and collect foodscraps from the classrooms and lunch area. Mr Sinclair, our caretaker, puts the garden waste on the heaps too. In the spring we want to put our new compost onto the gardens to help our vegetables grow.

At the community gardens we helped plant parsley into pots and then painted the pots to take home.

We made coloured hand prints on a wall to celebrate Environment Day.

We had a busy afternoon, and even tried some rhubarb and apple muffins, and parsley pesto. They were yum!!

We are all looking forward to planting in our own school vegetable plots when they are made over the next few weeks.

Conductive Education Awareness Week

2009-06-05T12:28:00.001+12:00

Last week was Conductive Education Awareness and our troops were very busy visiting malls to spread the word about Conductive Education. On Tuesday the whole school was involved in a fun and games session organised for the morning. During this session Wayne Smith assistant All Black coach who is the Patron for Conductive Education visited us.

On Thursday Room 5 held an open day. It was attended by large number of people who dropped in to see the Conductive Education programme in action.