Kahu Huruhuru - Student Voice

Last week as we learned about Kahu Huruhuru, we looked at the significance of these historic and important bird feather cloaks.

Photo Credit: https://collection.pukeariki.com/objects/27456

The students reflected on the phrase "It takes many feathers to make one cloak".

Here are some of their reflections:

Jensen "It takes more than one person to show that they can do something.  Say if someone is trying to lift 1000kg but they can't do it (only if they are the hulk) but if they have thirteen other people they would be able to (lift it) and then they can celebrate -YAY!

Maria "We all need to help"

Elise "If nobody helps it won't get done."

Marcel  "In GATE we work together and you mostly need a few people to make a cloak and it will take a very long time to make one with only one person."

Wairangi . "Because we need to collaborate with tasks and you can get more work done with multiple people.

Lejla  "We are always learning and collaborating."

Line Drawing Techniques

Our learning for our Kahu Huruhuru began today .  We learned about these beautiful feather cloaks and the strength that they inspire.  We talked about the way all the feathers work together to create the cloak.  You can't have a cloak from just one feather, and if all the feathers aren't together, the cloak is patchy and fails to keep you warm or dry.  This metaphor links to us as a group of GATE students and the collaborative skills we need to function as a team.

We practiced some line drawing and shading techniques in preparation for beginning the designs on our feathers next week.

Goal Setting Begins!

GATE students from Kahurangi, Haepapa and Tautoko began their Goal Setting journey this morning.  We spent time discussing the value of goal setting and the huge progress the students can make by taking systematic steps to refine their practices.  This lead beautifully into our discussion about potential.  Wairangi, Ryan, Elise and Jensen, were able to define potential, highlighting the characteristics of growth, improvement and talent, that impact on it.  We also talked through how our potential can be effected by the range of skills and environments we are exposed to - opportunity creates potential.

With any luck, there will be discussion in your homes this week about the skills and characteristics the students have inherited - ideals, interests and talents that can be traced back through generations.  This might be anything from a passion for rugby, to a fighting spirit passed down through generations.  This is all leading to our Big Idea for the term - "Kahu Huruhuru - It takes many feathers to make a cloak".  We will be looking at individuality and potential, and how these things pull together to form a strong, capable unit or team.

Goal Setting - thinking hard about ways to make a meaningful goal.

Discussion about inherited characteristics or potential.