Students at Ellerslie School will strive to be confident, connected, actively involved lifelong learners. Our students will be literate, numerate, critical and creative thinkers.
They will aspire to be positive in their own identity, able to relate to others, willing and able to contribute to the well-being of New Zealand. We believe that through their learning experiences our students will develop their own values and respect the values of others.
The New Zealand Curriculum is the basic document for all New Zealand Schools to plan their learning and teaching programmes from. Allowance is made within each class for children to work above or below their age and the curriculum level. This means that many programmes in the classroom have a range of grouping and levels of work happening at the same time. The New Zealand Curriculum has eight learning areas and these are:
English
In English, students study, use, and enjoy language and literature communicated orally, visually, or in writing.
The Arts
In the arts, students explore, refine, and communicate ideas as they connect thinking, imagination, senses, and feelings to create works and respond to the works of others.
Health & Physical Education
In health and physical education, students learn about their own well-being, and that of others and society, in health-related and movement contexts.
Languages
In learning languages, students learn to communicate in an additional language, develop their capacity to learn further languages, and explore different world views in relation to their own.
Mathematics & Statistics
In mathematics and statistics, students explore relationships in quantities, space, and data and learn to express these relationships in ways that help them to make sense of the world around them.
Science
In science, students explore how both the natural physical world and science itself work so that they can participate as critical, informed, and responsible citizens in a society in which science plays a significant role.
Social Sciences
In the social sciences, students explore how societies work and how they themselves can participate and take action as critical, informed, and responsible citizens.
STEAM
In STEAM, students learn to be innovative developers of products and systems and discerning consumers who will make a difference in the world.
We are committed to making a difference and being the best we can be.
At Ellerslie School we are structured into 5 teams:
Years 0 / 1 situated in Rimu Pods
Year 2 situated in Rata Pod
Years 3 / 4 situated in Mataī Pods
Years 5 / 6 situated in Pōhutukawa Pods
Years 7 / 8 situated in Kauri Pod
Children begin school on the first Monday following their 5th birthday and are classified as Year 0. Children who begin school before April will be classified as Year 2 the following year. Children who begin after April will be classified as Year 1 the following year. Children who are born during April are reviewed at the end of the year and are either placed in Year 1 or Year 2, depending on what is considered best for the child.
Term One 2024
01 February - 12 April
Holidays - Waitangi Day - 06 February, Good Friday - 29 March, Easter Monday - 01 April, Easter Tuesday - 02 April
Term Two 2024
29 April - 05 July
Holidays - King's Birthday - 03 June, Matariki - 28 June
Term Three 2024
22 July - 27 September
Term Four 2024
14 October - 18 December
Holiday - Labour Day - 28 October
Term One 2025
03 February - 11 April
Holiday - Waitangi Day - 06 February
Term Two 2025
28 April - 27 June
Holidays - King's Birthday 02 June, Matariki - 20 June
Term Three 2025
14 July - 19 September
Term Four 2025
06 October - 17 December
Holiday - Labour Day 27 October
Each guardian group from Years 2 - 8 will receive multiple 60 minute specialised music lessons throughout the year in the music suite with our music specialist teacher. The classroom programme offers hands-on musical experiences, grounded in the NZ Music Curriculum, integrating an Orff style teaching approach with music appreciation and analysis, games, movement, playing of instruments, performance opportunities, composition, and plenty of fun and creativity.
Through this programme other groups such as Choir, Marimba Group, a Rock Band and a Ukulele Group are also on offer for children to participate in.
Parents can also sign their child/ren up for private music lessons with some highly skilled music teachers. These are held on site, during school time. Please click on the link below if you would like to sign your child/ren up for drums, guitar, ukulele or piano lessons.
Ellerslie School runs a varied and engaging Physical Education Programme for our students where a skills based programme is delivered. Alongside this run extra-curricular opportunities for children to engage in sport and sporting events. Some of the highlights of our programme are:
- Whole school Cross Country
- Junior and Senior School Athletics day
- Netball teams
- A range of sports teams for Zone tournaments (senior school students)
- Kelly Sports Programmes (run within school)
- Senior School Swimming Sports
Technology (STEAM)
Ellerslie School runs a STEAM Programme for Years 2-8 with a our specialist STEAM teacher. During STEAM, students learn about Electronics, Hard Materials, Soft Materials and Food Technology. Year 2 - 4 students will attend twenty, 90 minute sessions of STEAM throughout the year. Year 5 and 6 students will attend twenty, 90 minute sessions of STEAM throughout the year and the Year 7 and 8 students will attend a 180 minute STEAM session each fortnight. Lessons are held in our purpose built Technology Suite/Innovation Pod with John Macnaughtan, our technology specialist teacher, and Melissa Jacobs, our Teacher Aide. Team 1 will do Technology within their pods and with their guardian teachers.