Week 8 - Term 4 2017

Ahakoa he iti kete, he iti nā te aroha

It is the thought that counts

Week 8 4 Hakihea - 8 Hakihea Year 13 Graduation Ball at Wigram - Tues 3 Junior Curriculum Project continues - 4 - 6 Celebration of Learning - Wednesday 6 Orchestra Practice - Prizegiving - Thurs 7 Touch NZ Champs - Fri 8 - Sat 9 EOY Junior reports given out - Fri 8 Year 13 Testimonials - Fri 8 EOY Prizegiving - Fri 8 start time of 6pm at CBHS	Week 9 11 Hakihea - 15 Hakihea Staff Farewells + Xmas Lunch
Assembly Junior Assembly - Fri p1 & 2	Assembly Nil
Meeting  Tues 5 - Learning and Teaching	Meeting

Information for Staff

This is the last Matai Messenger for the year....

1. Staff Farewells - On Monday 11 December we will get a chance to Farewell the following staff: Rachel Tutty, Mary Anne Evers, Melissa Mcleod, Louise Edmonds, Victoria Duyshtoff, Alan Fielding, Vanessa Payne and Rachel Fowler. A big thank you for all the work you have done with the girls'. Your hard work and effort with regards to Teaching and Learning has been very much appreciated.
We will start the farewells at 10am in the staffroom. Lunch for those who are going is at 12.30pm.

2. NZQA Updates: 

a. There are changes to a few A.S. in 2018 (Drama L2, and  L3, English L1 and L2 and Geography L1 and 2). HODs have been sent a list with the relevant A.S. number and standards. The new versions of the standards will be published on 12 December 2017.

b. There are a couple of new A.S. available in 2018. These are in Level 2 and 3 Business Studies, Level 3 Psychology and level 1 Digital Technologies (91877 - 91887). The new standards will also be published on 12 December.

3. Professional Development- Middle Leadership Matters: For any middle leaders who would like to consider developing their leadership skills in 2018 you might be interested in the 20 week course with CoreEd. More information about the course can be found HERE. If you are interested in developing in your Middle Leader role please consider this course for 2018 and see BLS.
As part of your professional reading as a Middle Leader, Joanne Robson and Martin Bassett have just released an article through the Journal of Open, Flexible and Distance learning. The Two Towers: The Quest for Appraisal and Leadership Development of Middle Leaders Online.

4. And something relevant to teachers only and you might find yourself agreeing to many of them. https://globaldigitalcitizen.org/30-weird-things-only-teachers-understand

Week 7 - Term 4 - 2017 - ODD

Ahakoa nga ueue

Kia kaha, kia toa, kia manawanui

When you find things that are difficult in life,

Stand strong, stand tall and be of great heart

Week 7 27 Noema - 1 Hakihea NCEA Scholarship Examinations continue - All Week Junior Curriculum Project Begins - All students to the Gym for project outline - Mon 27 Volleyball - SI Junior Champs - Mon 27 - Fri 1 Tennis - Canterbury Junior Champs - Tues 28 - Wed 29 Year 10 Camps/Tramps (AT and QC)  - Tues 28 - Fri 1 Other Y10 Camps begin - Wed 29 - Fri 1 NZCT Secondary Schools Girls Cricket Tournament - Thurs 30 - Sun 3 Athletics - National Champs - Fri 1 - Sun 3 Junior reports returned for collation - Fri 1	Week 8 4 Hakihea - 8 Hakihea Junior Curriculum Project continues - 4 - 6 Celebration of Learning - Wednesday 6 Orchestra Practice - Prizegiving - Thurs 7 Touch NZ Champs - Fri 8 - Sat 9 EOY Junior reports given out - Fri 8 Year 13 Testimonials - Fri 8 EOY Prizegiving - Fri 8 start time of 6pm at CBHS
Assembly NIL	Assembly Nil
Meeting  Mon 27: Staff - Special Prizes	Meeting  Tues 5 - Learning and Teaching

Information for Staff

1. A big thank you to everyone involved in getting the Curriculum project off the ground. This is a big change for us as a school and helps us embrace the front end of the curriculum document. Next week will rely on everyone to give it a go and try something different. Liz and her team have put in many hours behind the scenes to see make this week a success. It will be great to see what the students produce on Wednesday 6 December at their Celebration of Learning afternoon.

2. Prizegiving: The information that went out in the newsletter to parents - 

PRIZEGIVING 2017 We are very excited to be hosting our 140th prizegiving in the Great Hall at Boys’ High on Friday December 8th at 6pm. As this is a smaller (and considerably less expensive) venue than the Horncastle Arena, it does mean that seating is at a premium. All of Year 13 will be attending as this is their graduating year and their parents/caregivers have been invited. All other prize winners from Years 9-12 will be notified shortly and invites sent to their parents/caregivers. Additional invites will be sent to the parents/caregivers of the girls in the orchestra, concert band, choir and the parents of next year’s prefects (once they have been decided). Requests for additional tickets can be made through the RSVP option in the invitation.

3. Kawe Korero App

If you are wanting to gain further understanding of Māori language and contexts, please check out the Kawe Korero app, which helps with information about te ao Māori, pronunciation, and understanding tikanga (protocol) in business, education and personal contexts. It includes information about greetings, introductions, speeches, meeting protocol, and many other elements of tikanga. It is available on the app store from both Google and Apple.  Developed by the Waikato District Council, this fantastic app is promoted and explained in this Youtube clip: Kawe Korero

4. If you are wanting to know more about what Google Keep is - then watch the clip below.

Week 6 - Term 4 - 2017 EVEN

 Mā te tika o te toki o te tangere, me te tohu o te panaho, ka pai te tere o te waka i ngā momo moana katoa.

By designing and shaping the keel of the waka to perfection, your canoe will overcome obstacles.

Week 6 20 Noema - 24 Noema NCEA Scholarship Examinations continue - All Week Junior Chirnside Competition - Mon 21 - Fri 24 Junior Reports to be completed by 1.20 - Tues 21 Duke of Edinburgh Trip - Wed 22 - Fri 24 Summer Sports Ends - Wed 22 Whanau Celebration - Wed 22 at 6pm Year 9 DIT trip - 9 - 10.50am - Thurs 23 Year 9 Chalk Drawing - period 3 - Thurs 23 All Staff Training for Junior Curriculum Weeks - Sign up for a slot during the day - Thurs 23 - MWL will send out the details. Water Polo - Junior South Island - Fri 24 - Sun 26 Junior reports printed - Fri 24 Staff Long Service Function - 3.20 in PAC - Fri 24	Week 7 27 Noema - 1 Hakihea NCEA Scholarship Examinations continue - All Week Junior Curriculum Project Begins - All students to the Gym for project outline - Mon 27 Volleyball - SI Junior Champs - Mon 27 - Fri 1 Tennis - Canterbury Junior Champs - Tues 28 - Wed 29 Year 10 Camps/Tramps (AT and QC)  - Tues 28 - Fri 1 Other Y10 Camps begin - Wed 29 - Fri 1 NZCT Secondary Schools Girls Cricket Tournament - Thurs 30 - Sun 3 Athletics - National Champs - Fri 1 - Sun 3 Junior reports returned for collation - Fri 1
Assembly NIL	Assembly Nil
Meeting  Tues 21: Junior Reporting	Meeting  Mon 27: Staff - Special Prizes

Information for Staff

1. At one of our late start mornings, Pauline (GHP) ran a session on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and shared her resources (see post here for links). For those of you who might be wanting to explore this further, TKI have just updated their resources, with an updated guide and video. If you are interested in finding out more go to the TKI Website.

2. Our Code, Our Standards
From January 2018 the use of the new standards released by the Education Council come into effect. The old standards will no longer be able to be used. If you have been working on an inquiry that can be finalised before the end of the year then you may wish to do so, and have the final conversation with your appraiser. The school is required to keep a copy of your appraisal reports, so these must be passed onto the SLT person who has overview of each Learning Area. 
There will be a staff meeting early in 2018 where as a staff we will go over the standards and expectations. CGHS appraisal documents will be updated and available at the start of next year to reflect the new standards. One of the things that I have noted from the information out so far is that "amongst the evidence curated there needs to be at least two observations". There is also an expectation that there be "at least two appraisal conversations annually. One may be both end and beginning of a cycle and another may be interim".
Evidence analysis is also an area where the council are providing further guidance. You will need to "have though widely and analytically about your goal/s and inquiry using information/evidence/data that allow you to understand the relationship between practice (what you plan and teach) and the learner outcomes (learning, achievement and wellbeing)." So when you are thinking about data, examination results are only one aspect.

Another aspect to think about is the idea of what it means to be 'culturally responsive'.This is a crucial principle that teachers should be engaging with and has a lot more emphasis in the first Professional Standard "Te Tiriti o Waitangi partnership". Being culturally responsive is for all students, not just Maori and Pasifika. It does NOT mean that in your teaching your throw in the odd lesson that includes aspects of Te reo or culture. It means, no matter what you teach, you engage and respect your students as culturally located individuals. You need to get in touch with what is happening in their lives, their cultural knowledge and prior experiences. The use of te reo and tikanga Māori are also part of this professional standard. This aspect will need to be part of your daily interactions - again not just as part of one off lessons or units. I congratulate many of you who have already started this integration into your practice, it has been great to see a number of departments with this focus in 2017.

Hear how 'Culturally Responsive practice practice helps students' at a Core Ed podcast found HERE

3. Examination papers are available on the NZQA website around 48 hours after each exam finishes - you can find them online under the applicable subject section > Examination papers and exemplars.
http://wwnzqa.govt.nz/ncea/subjects/ 

4. Free Pop Up for MindLab - if you are interested in seeing what they have to offer, the next session to attend is:

CHRISTCHURCH: Thursday 30th November 2017, 4.00pm-6.00pm
WHERE: The Mind Lab by Unitec, 24 Walker Street, ChristchurchCentral, Christchurch 8011

5. The Youtube clip that Liz (MWL) has shared with our community: Born to Learn

Week 5 - Term 4 - 2017 - ODD

Ko te ahurei o te tamaiti arahia o tatou mahiLet the uniqueness of the child guide our work.

Week 5 13 Noema - 17 Noema NCEA Scholarship Examinations continue - All Week Last Day NCEA Internal Assessments - Tues 14 Exceat Day - Thursday 16 Canterbury Show Day - Friday 17	Week 6 20 Noema - 24 Noema NCEA Scholarship Examinations continue - All Week Junior Chirnside Competition - Mon 21 - Fri 24 Junior Reports to be completed by 1.20 - Tues 21 Duke of Edinburgh Trip - Wed 22 - Fri 24 Summer Sports Ends - Wed 22 Whanau Celebration - Wed 22 at 6pm Year 9 DIT trip - 9 - 10.50am - Thurs 23 Year 9 Chalk Drawing - period 3 - Thurs 23 All Staff Training for Junior Curriculum Weeks - Sign up for a slot during the day - Thurs 23 - MWL will send out the details. Water Polo - Junior South Island - Fri 24 - Sun 26 Junior reports printed - Fri 24 Staff Long Service Function - 3.20 in PAC - Fri 24
Assembly NIL	Assembly Nil
Meeting  Tues 14 - Student Support	Meeting  Tues 21: Junior Reporting

Information for Staff


1. 2018 Assessment Specifications
These will be published on the NZQA website by 8 December 2017. For NCEA they will be available from the NCEA subject resources pages and for New Zealand Scholarship they will be available on the Scholarship subject pages.

2. New features in G Suite for Education
A number of features have been rolled out in G Suite for Education across Classroom, Forms, and Slides. You can now import Forms quiz grades directly into Classroom, explore new diagrams and stock images for Slides, and copy and paste poll results right into Slides.

3. Examinations at Champion st have started well. Everyone who has needed to has found the site OK. I have been asked about the extra examination papers which are made available after the end of the exam. The plan is to try and send them back the next day, but feel to pop in to Champion st on the day and collect them if you want to see them straight away - either after 12.30 or 5pm depending on the exam slot.

4. Critical Thinking through research and Project-Based Learning (PBL): As we head towards our junior programme change for the end of the year I thought it timely to go back to the curriculum document, which reminds us that in education we want our students to be life long learners, active seekers on information and users and creators of knowledge.

Both research and project-based learning are tools that are used in the classroom to promote critical thinking. There are 2 main differences between these tools. The first is around the formality for each process, alongside the length of time for each task, with PBL often occurring over a shorter time frame.
Secondly, there is a difference in the product that is created or produced. Research usually has an end product such as an assignment/ poster/ or similar, containing answers to specific questions. PBL requires students to produce and actual product that is a physical demonstration of their learning. Both types of critical thinking tools take place in an authentic context and can be effective in enhancing academic skills. They also link nicely with the key competencies.
The clip below is from year 9 students at St Hilda's school, where every year 9 is mentored by someone in the community throughout the year on a passion project. It will be great to see what our girls come up with! 

More information can be found at: http://elearning.tki.org.nz/Teaching/Future-focused-learning/Project-based-learning

Week 4 - Term 4 - 2017 -EVEN

He kai kei aku ringa

There is food at the end of my hands

Week 4 6 Noema - 10 Noema Junior Study Leave and Examination Week - Mon - Fri Senior rank lists and senior prizes due - Mon 6 NCEA & Scholarship exams begin - Thurs 9 Volleyball - Canterbury Junior Champs - Fri 10 Sat 11 PD - Late start - Fri 10 at 8.30 - 10am in the staffroom. Outstanding Clearance items to PRD - Fri 10	Week 5 13 Noema - 17 Noema NCEA Scholarship Examinations continue - All Week Last Day NCEA Internal Assessments - Tues 14 Exceat Day - Thursday 16 Canterbury Show Day - Friday 17
Assembly NIL	Assembly Nil
Meeting  Tues 7: Department - Junior Exam Week	Meeting  Tues 14 - Student Support

Staff Information

1. Week 4 is when the moving all begins. We have a large number of movers in, shifting furniture and resources. Champion st will start to be set up on Monday morning for examinations. Thank you in advance for what is to be a very busy week with all hands on deck. With that in mind .......

2. The Provisionally Registered Teacher group (PCT's) met on Thursday for our professional reading discussion session. We looked at a couple of blogs posts, written by NZ educators. One of them is from Karen Spencer on Critical Pedagogy, and as Karen is great with her explanations, I recommend you read this particular blog post about what is is, and what critical pedagogy might look like in regards to 'actions' taken. There are some good discussion points for Learning Areas as we move forward with planning for 2018. (https://karenmelhuishspencer.com/2017/10/13/critical-pedagogy-how-to-respond-to-future-focused-discourse/) 

Near the end of the blog, she makes mention of one of the keynote speakers at ULearn17, Anne Milne and shares the video below.

Warrior Scholars - Decolonising education from Teach For All on Vimeo.