My week in Samoa

Talofa Lava Stanhope from my home land - beautiful Samoa.

This week I have the privilege of working from Samoa.  I am here attending the Teuila Festival 2013 - check out the link to look at all the events.  http://www.teuilafestival.com/

We watched the opening ceremony yesterday and performances that went well into the night.

The people I have meet already.....all the SRS students that went to code will remember OZ, well he is here with Wairangi Koopu covering the PaoPao events.

I was also on the plane with Te Puke Intermediate - they are here for a cultural education trip - WOW how about that SRS....maybe something we can work towards!

WHAM - BIG CONGRATULATIONS to Nandita who has successfully completed our POSTER and TICKETS.  Also to the Media Team for getting a great article in the local newspaper - great work team.

SIVA AFI - FIRE DANCE 

Last night was the Siva Afi competition - each dancer showed off their skills and fearlessness as they performed two siva each.  At the festival people can also take lessons with local people and learn to weave, dance and put down an umu.

Today we are going to watch the PaoPao races down at the wharf.  PaoPao is the name for canoes or waka ama.

GREAT PERFORMERS - EVEN BETTER CROWD!

WOW what a wonderful festival we have here in Samoa - yesterday was full-on day trying to see EVERYTHING.....we saw amazing performers and exhibitors....but what I noticed also was how amazing the crowd was....they are really really enjoying everything and I can't help but be swept up in their enthusiasm for my country and culture!

There was a very special KAVA WELCOME CEREMONY held to welcome all the paddlers from around the world - this is traditionally done in a FALE FONO, but because this was a paopao regatta, the kava came in on a paopao - it was very cool!!!  you can see the man in the photo with a coconut shell in his hand.....the cup is full of kava and he is taking it up to all the VIP to drink.

The proud Samoan Team watching the opening ceremony from the water.

They also has a celebrity race....and our friends from CODE and the MANU SAMOA great PETER FATIALOFA (known as FATS) were part of the team....their paopao capsized and OZ lost his lavalava...the whole crowd was laughing!!!!

TATAU SAMOA - in the exhibit tent, you could watch traditional hand tattooing..... some of us know this technique as "tap tap" because it is done by a very skillful continuous tapping over the needle - that is shaped like a comb with lots of sharp needles.....not by machine.  Tatau is a very important part of our culture that signifies status in our MATAI system.

Get your WHAM tattoos 

Yes - soon you can buy your own WHAM temporary tattoos.

Make sure your family gets their tickets FAST!

Hi back ROOM 14....thanks for your comments - I love hearing from you.

Thirsty Thursday - This is me and BrothaD chilling in a village sipping on fresh coconut (niu) water.  We spent a day visiting some of our families at their villages.

NOT FAR UNTIL FRIDAY......I am really looking forward to this day....I will be visiting a school for a really special event!!! 

WATER TANKS FOR SCHOOLS IN SAMOA.....

Today we visited St Josephs School to donate a water tank that will provide all the students fresh, clean water all day.  This is a project I am involved in back in NZ...called My Alofas.

This was easily the HIGHLIGHT of the whole week....the beautiful students performed for us, presented us with ula and fresh niu to drink.

In the first photo you can see the water tank in the back ground, Swiss in the middle and BrothaD and Peter Fatialofa at the front.

TOFA MY BEAUTIFUL SAMOA......

Week 5 we are alive!!!!

Magnificent Monday....

Introducing the Personal Trainers (PTs) - these group of amazing senior students are in training to help a group of junior students develop their oral language.  They are all studying their activities for the week with their little buddies....I am super excited about our BIG TALKERS PROJECT and will look forward to giving you updates.  

The branding group are hard at work designing merchandise for our big WHAM (We Have A Message) night.   Tickets go on sale next week and posters will go up around the community - all work that this group has done to brand and promote the concert.

Room 19s model artist is the infamous NZ Poet SAM HUNT..... I really like this one from Patrick Tan, it truly captures the simple but vivid style Sam is known for.

Terrific Tuesday coming next......

What a great surprise for Stanhope.....SWISS & Charlie putting on a live show at our breakfast club....XOX thank you our lovely ladies that do this every week for us.

Then SWISS hung out with us for a while....visiting classes, playing touch & basketball and signing lots of bags!!!!  

Whats happening in week 4?

Competition Time....

Had a super Sunday watching the WaRrIOrS... keep watching our fb page and tell me who else we met at the game to win the prizes.

Keep scrolling down to see the week as it happens!!!!

Monday Talented staff @ Stanhope...

Mrs Burrell a talented photographer...showing off her photo that has been published in GULF NEWS...congratulations.

Room 11 at Tu Tuhi...we get to do pretty cool stuff there!

http://www.tetuhi.org.nz/

 Creative Stories we will learn about the various ways a story can be told and why storytelling is important. We will explore our own chosen story through role play and creating our own poster. 

In the art studio will use bold colours, shape and imagery to design a poster that visually tells our story.  As a class we will become creative story telling artists.

Tuesday  - ACTION PACTT (Parent and Child Time Together)

Peter is showing off how he can use symbols to express his culture & identity.... guess where Peters parents comes from?

Teachers and Parents....learning and planning for PACTT in classes this week.....the focus this term is maths.  These parents are attending the WAM class - Level 2 in Family Literacy & Child Development...and each week they spend precious time in their children's classes, so they can better understand how to support their child's learning.

Staff vrs Students Game....YESAH staff won !!!...and WOW you can tell Ms Salesa use to play for Samoa....what a gun!!! + we had four parents playing in our team.

 

 After school down the road at Sylvia Park School is where all the action was...our Mighty Middle School Rippa Rugby Team showing off their skills against Bailey Road & Sylvia Park.... we had parents, pompoms and even half time oranges.... so kiwi!

Where are you Wednesday? ...we are ready for you!!!

BIG PLANS AHEAD.......   we are looking at the school plans as we start to discuss the modernisation of the senior school.

Teachers in their professional learning session playing with shapes & rods....learning more about RATIOS & PROPORTIONS.    Take a look at the strategy on Mr G's ipad....Impressive!

Thursday and Captain Patrick is back.........

Room 9 really enjoyed their class with Patrick today. They had a lot of fun pretending to be 'fast like a cat' and 'slow like a pig'. I also liked their group work, particularly when they made sky towers.

Neat netball skills happening on the courts with our coach.

YAY - Caught looking at our SRS blogs.....ohhh look it my blog!!!

Check out the website next week for the winners of this weeks competition!

FRIDAY already !!!!

Another WAY COOL week at SRS

Friday....wow what a week!

Today was the last day of the Principals Master Class, where I have been presenting on Building Capacity.  All the people here took really good care of me and I learn't a lot from them too.  

 These are some of the Principals that were attending the Masters Class - there were close to 80 Principals there, that lead Catholic Schools under the Diocese of Parramatta.

This is me doing my thing.....

This is me with the other two presenters who spoke at the conference.

Woohoo!! SCORED a Penrith Panthers Jersey....can't wait for Sika Manu to sign it for me!!! Legend.

Now I'm back home in our great country NZ....See you all Monday!

Thursday in Penrith - Sydney - Australia

YES - I am based at the home of the Penrith Panthers team......But I am not here to watch league...I am here presenting at a MASTERS PRINCIPALS CLASS  - where all the principals come to learn. 

But before I had to present - I snuck out to visit a school nearby...Loyola Senior High School.

http://www.loyolamtdruitt.catholic.edu.au/This school was amazing.....it provides education and post high-school education training for students in years 11 & 12 and then beyond...they have hairdressing salon, automotive workshop & a cafe all at school for students to learn in.....good coffee too !!!  

I also learnt a lot about the Jesuit history and met the most polite focused students.  Analise and Karnell were my lovely hosts for the morning - Mangere and Manurewa born!!!!

READ ABOUT THIS STANHOPE

I witnessed HISTORY in the making today.....these students from St Agnes school have done an amazing thing.  As part of their CHALLENGE LEARNING they wanted to do something to help acknowledge and celebrate the Indigenous People of Australia.  They went about finding the correct Indigenous translation for their National Anthem - meet with an elder to get it approved and his blessing to go ahead with it.  They have learnt it and now recorded it so all the other schools in their area can learn and use it.  

Stanhope can you imagine NOT singing our Maori words first ......we have had this happening in NZ for many many years....the Indigenous people here.....not yet! but these students - have started it!!!!  

It made me feel so proud of NZ and NZ Schools and how Maori things are celebrated and just part of our identity as KIWIS

TUESDAY & WEDNESDAY

 After looking at my week ahead - I have decided to dedicate my blog this week to.... giving everyone an insight into my role as the principal... and leading learning.

This week the senior managers of the school, went on their leadership retreat.  They visited the Center of Leadership at the University of Auckland and learnt the difference  LEADERS, LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT.

Learning about how the VISION and the MISSION drive even the design of the buildings and what it symbolises.
The shape of the albatross which has the biggest wing span - means that the learning can spread a long way an soar high, to benefit all of NZ.

http://www.business.auckland.ac.nz/uoa/home/about/our-research/bs-research-institutes-and-centres/new-zealand-leadership-institute

Leaders learning how to work together.....look familiar student leaders???

Mrs Bristow & Mrs Allfrey enjoying the view.

Mrs Douglas demonstrating a Nuiean Queen Warrior dance.

Shhhhhhhh Professional Reading Time for the leaders

Passport.....boarding pass.... Im off to Australia - tune in Thursday to find out what I'm doing in Sydney!

Monday - it was a RAIN ON & RAIN OFF sort of day today... BUT I found SUNFLOWERS everywhere in Room 3.  

Thanks to our wonderful senior WET DAY MONITORS ...!

Looks who is back from the other side of the world !!! YAY