Our Learning
English
At Pakūranga Heights we build foundational skills in oral language, reading, and writing through structured literacy approaches, and deepen students’ understanding of how texts are crafted, how language shapes meaning, and how stories reflect diverse perspectives from New Zealand and the wider world.
Teaching builds on early childhood learning by developing foundational oral language, reading, and writing skills through structured literacy approaches. Oral language is a key focus, supporting students to express ideas and understand others.
Teaching strengthens students’ literacy as a foundation for learning across all areas. Structured literacy approaches continue, with a shift in emphasis to components that take longer to develop, such as vocabulary and comprehension. Reading instruction consolidates word recognition, deepens comprehension, and introduces critical analysis of context and purpose. Students explore written, oral, visual, and, from Year 6, digital and media texts.
Structured literacy is an instructional approach to teaching reading that is explicit, systematic, and sequential. It focuses on teaching the structure of language, including phonology, orthography, morphology, syntax, and semantics.
Here are the key components of structured literacy:
Phonology: Understanding the sound structure of spoken words.
Orthography: Learning the relationship between sounds and their corresponding letters and letter patterns.
Morphology: Studying the smallest units of meaning in words, such as roots, prefixes, and suffixes.
Syntax: Learning the rules that govern sentence structure.
Semantics: Understanding the meaning of words and sentencesTeaching strengthens students’ literacy as a foundation for learning across all areas. Structured literacy approaches continue, with a shift in emphasis to components that take longer to develop, such as vocabulary and comprehension. Reading instruction consolidates word recognition, deepens comprehension, and introduces critical analysis of context and purpose. Students explore written, oral, visual, and, from Year 6, digital and media texts.
Mathematics & Statistics
A strong grasp of the basics and the will and skill to apply them to real life problems is our aim for all our students. Using the latest evidence based practices we have tailored a whole school mathematics plan that:
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Deepens the understanding of key mathematics concepts
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Gives studentst the opportunity for individual practice and tracking of the “back to basics”
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Uses open tasks for developing understanding and reasoning
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Fosters collaborative problem solving skills with a variety of accessible but challenging tasks
Integrated Curriculum
We use an Inquiry approach to teaching and learning, integrating The Arts, Social Sciences, Languages, Science, Technology, and Health and Physical Education, while the English and Mathematics and Statistics curricula are woven through all areas of learning.
Our Inquiry is school-wide and taught in all classes at developmentally appropriate levels. Through student agency, and with teachers scaffolding learning to match students’ abilities, classes may explore different aspects of the same “big idea” as students develop interests in particular areas.
The Buzz Code
The Buzz Code is the behaviour management approach we instill at Pakūranga Heights School. At the heart of the Buzz Code is the principle that acknowledging and encouraging positive behaviour is more effective than punishing negative behaviour. Positive behaviour is centred around our four values:
Respect / Manaakitanga
Responsibility / Rangatiratanga
Honesty / Tika & Pono
Kindness / Aroha
Seesaw (Sharing Student's Learning)
At Pakūranga Heights School we use Seesaw as a digital learning portfolio for students to create and share their thinking with their peers, teachers and home.
As a Seesaw family member, you can:
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View your child’s work in real-time from any device
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Message your child’s teacher through the Seesaw platform (with translations in 100+ languages)
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Engage with student work and add comments while your child is at school, staying connected to their learning throughout the day
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Deepen conversations at home
Online Learning Links
Below are a range of useful websites that you may like to use to support your child's learning from home. Simply click on the title of the website to access.
An online library of books - login details in homework books
A range of books to read online - login details in homework books
Online reading - login details in homework books
A YouTube channel full of yoga exercises designed for kids
An online library of books - login details in homework books
A range of books to read online - login details in homework books
Online reading - login details in homework books
A YouTube channel to listen to stories online
Mathematics - basic facts practice
Mathematics - basic facts practice
Online mathematics and English practice - login details in homework books
Online game to learn times tables - login details in homework books
Mental mathematics practice
A YouTube channel full of yoga exercises designed for kids
A selection of writing prompts to inspire independent writing
For publishing writing - students can sign in with their school google account
A YouTube channel to listen to stories online
An online library of books - login details in homework books
A range of books to read online - login details in homework books
Online mathematics and English practice - login details in homework books
A YouTube channel full of yoga exercises designed for kids
Fun dance workouts to get kids moving in a small space
