Wednesday 27 March 2024
A Word Film
Tuesday 5 December 2023
Earth Poems for Paula Green
Over the past few weeks our writers have been creating poems for Paula Green's Earth Poem Challenge. Paula received so many poems from students all over Aotearoa, and she said it was very difficult to pick just a few.
Congratulations to the following poets who have had their poems selected and published on Poetry Box and a special celebration for Bridget and Mason, who Paula has picked to send a copy of her poetry book to. Fabulous!
I Dreamt …
I dreamt I was moana
and I was clear and clean.
I dreamt I was a kiwi
and I was small, brown and soft.
I dreamt I was a clean stream
and no one threw plastic bags at me.
I dreamt I was an elephant
and no one hunted me.
I dreamt I was a forest
and no one cut down my trees.
I dreamt I made a picture
with flowers
for all to see.
Bridget I, age 8yrs, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
Pīwakawaka
as brown as cocoa pops
legs just like twigs
(really skinny)
wings move so fast
you can’t see them
they hop
and fly
their tail is just like a fan
blowing on my face
Hollie B, age 8, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
My Mother
shiny, brown hair flows in the wind
her cold, ringed fingers grip my hand
and I shake, walking along the grey, bumpy path
her shoes glisten like crystals
her light blue nails shine in the soothing sun
her favourite red handbag sits beside her
on the seat of her grey car
Anna F, age 7, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
My Best Friend, Celia
Her soft, curly hair
pokes out of her head like springs.
She does amazing headstands, for ages.
Her smile lights up my face
with happiness.
Her favourite colours are the same as mine
black and blue.
Bridget, age 8, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
My Mother
Her long fingers glide
across the calculator
Her colourful scarves change
throughout the week
She cracks the egg
with one hand
and mixes it into the family recipe
orange cake that
lingers in your mouth
for days
Her help is in every corner
of the house
when you need it
Her kindness is
everlasting and
will last a lifetime
Moaz A, age 12, Year 7, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
Joshua
His sense of humour really gets me cracked up
his maths skills are divine
playing games with him is the best
his generosity is super nice
he has black, short hair
and usually wears a long sleeved t-shirt under his clothes
Joshua is a good friend
and trust me when I say that
he’s a good friend
Mason, age 9, Y 4, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
I Wish
I wish I was walking through a beautiful, healthy rainforest
I wish I was breathing fresh, cold air
I wish I was swimming through clear, flowing water
I wish I was wearing a crop top and shorts without anyone judging
I wish the world was a better place
Gemma C – age 11, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
Thursday 30 November 2023
Taniwha writing
Here are some awesome taniwha drawings and descriptions by some wonderful Team Roto Writers, inspired by Monica Koster's illustrations in Tama and the Taniwha.
Tuesday 28 November 2023
Lift Education's School Journal
Congratulations to Ethan Green, who has had a poem selected for publication by Lift Education in the School Journal.
Lift Education will commission a professional illustration for Ethan's poem, A Lounge of Little Lizards, and it will be published in the Level 2 School Journal in June 2024 alongside some of Aotearoa's finest adult authors. Congratulations, Ethan!
Tuesday 14 November 2023
A Trio of Authors
Published in Toitoi
Congratulations to Oliver Peters and Natalia Wakelin, who have both had their writing published in Toitoi #33.
Natalia was also the winner of the Toitoi Story Search Competition.
Published poet!
Congratulations to Isabelle Holmes, whose poem titled 'Pegasus the Winged Horse God' has been published in the NZ Poetry Society's 2023 anthology. Awesome, Isabelle!
Wednesday 1 November 2023
Tiny Poems
Haon - gliding falconRyan B - golden lionIsaac E - sneaky dogMadeline - fast cheetahGeorgia - wrinkly elephantEmilia A - falling down
gliding falcon
thin wings
glide
like paper aeroplanes
sharp beak digs for worms
big eyes
stare
Haon, age 10, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
Golden Lion
copper eyes glowing
like the sun
thin whiskers
pointy like needles
soft mane
as messy as a gorse bush
Ryan B, age 11, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
Sneaky Dog
creeps silently
to the pantry to retrieve his bone
acting like he’s on a secret mission
Isaac E, Year 7, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
fast cheetah running
brown dots,
brown as chocolate
fur bristles,
gold as a sunflower
Madeline, age 10, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
wrinkly elephant
enormous ears
big as the titanic
wriggly trunk waves like seaweed
feet as round
as dinner plates
Georgia, age 10, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
Falling down
Gorgeous green now blinding brown
A sheet of leaves covers the land
like a blanket
Emilia A, Year 7, Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School
Monday 16 October 2023
Check out our library themed poetry and readings on Paula Green's Poetry Box website!
Students from Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School read poems by Paula Green, Bill Manhire and Doc Drumheller. You can listen to them at the link above. Thanks to Amber, Zoe, Adeleyn, Max, Ayla, Emily H.
Some of our writers composed poems about our school library and these were published on Poetry Box.
Sparkling Universe
I open the door
and the wonderful smell of books
draws me in.
Characters creep
out of their books
longing to bring me into their world.
I want to find out
about tales of girls and their horses
running from home
and dangerous adventures
across sparkling ice.
The magic of books
fills my lungs
as I open a book the world
turns off like a lamp
and I am transported
to another universe.
by Bernadette S, 9 years old
The Library
The library is full of magical forests
fairies flying over sparkly bridges
where greedy ogres wait
unicorns with shiny horns
dogs barking at villains
cats hissing at disguised bag guys
shrinking girls climbing hay bales
and me,
in the library pit,
reading
by Mea (age 7) and Scarlett (age 8)
I walked into the school library and saw
robot dinos fighting,
a taniwha hovering around,
Lego people building,
a bunny hopping…
and my friends fainting!
by Bodhi Hill (age 7)
In the exciting library is
a greedy goblin
and a Star Wars robot
and the little yellow digger
and a giant Lego castle
and an evil scientist with its evil puppy
and the giant titanic
with a cat riding on it
and a giant green army
a cackly ghost
and a skydiver jumping out of a plane.
But… poor Mrs McCreanor…
she is getting chased
by a creeper!
Aaaaaah!
by Theo P, age 8
Party in the Library
Partying in the library is…
a giant taniwha boogying like cray
Baa Baa Black Belt chopping trees the size of mountains
and the little yellow digger
and a big T-Rex fossil
and Mrs McCreanor is…
running out!
by Lachlan H, age 7
In the dark library, there is
a humongous pirate
with a green and purple taniwha
and a tiny black ant
a humongous blue whale
and a scary big witch with a wand
and a yellow little digger
Mrs McCreanor is FREAKING OUT!
by Nico Meek (age 7)
In the Library
The library is a free place to be
surrounded by books
with stinky pirates ruling the land
big giants breaking down buildings
mysterious fairies hiding behind pages
the brave taniwha chasing the tuna
and Mrs McCreanor going crazy
by Bailey M, age 9
The library
The library is a gateway to a land of witches
riding on their dusty broomsticks
or a place in Rio where the bluebirds roam the land
or even the thrill of a green and purple taniwha chasing after you
and fairies helping Mrs McCreanor issue books
with their fairy dust.
Meera Sharma age 10
A Library is a Gateway
A library is a gateway
to a land of evil and goodness
where spells and battles happen.
A library is a gateway
to lead you into the 1400s
which was the time of olden castles
where there is a simple life for everyone.
There could be giants
when the library leads you deeper down
into the viscous chapter of World War One.
into the second chapter of the horrific World War Two.
The library leads you much deeper down
into the beginning of the old smoky 21 century
and even much deeper down you arrive at the brand new 21 century
where new vehicle arrivals enter are hybrids and electric.
And finally we are at the last adventure in the library
where we get to know how
will things look like in the future.
By Ammar, Year 5 age 10
Wednesday 13 September 2023
Groovy Fish
Congratulations to all our writers who had their poems published on Paula Green's Poetry Box website: Chris, Max, Laylah, Ayla and Nikan.
You can read them here: https://nzpoetrybox.wordpress.com/2023/09/07/poetry-box-welcomes-spring-with-poems-by-children/
Paula picked Chris and Max to send a copy of her poetry book Groovy Fish to. We are sure they will find lots of inspiration in Groovy Fish to write loads more of their own fabulous poems! Thank you, Paula!
Friday 8 September 2023
Given Words Results!
Charles Olsen made special mention of our film in his judging comments:
"I have received a wonderful collection of ‘word films’ from pupils at Te Parito Kōwhai Russley School in Christchurch. They had a lot of fun making them and were also excited about the poems they wrote travelling all the way to Spain!"
Now... to the results of the poetry.
Whilst we didn't win... some of our poems stood out as favourites among the judges and were among a small number selected to be published on the Given Words website.
Congratulations to: Laylah, Emily H, Jimmy K, Max B and Tenushki.
The judges had this to say...
" I particularly liked the simplicity of Broken Reflections and how it creates a beautiful image with its original way of looking and listening ‘the sound of the waves/as they calmly crawl up the sand’, how the sun becomes ‘a broken reflection/in the endless sea’ and the final path is one of the most original, the ‘orange beams’ … ‘a path to nowhere.’ "
I sit and listen
to the sounds of the waves
as they calmly crawl up the sand
while I watch the sun disappear
a broken reflection
in the endless sea
the sunset paints
an autumn colour in the sky
orange beams shoot from above
creating a path
to nowhere.
Ōtautahi Christchurch
On the side of my sandcastle
I place little pieces of broken seashells
as small as a newborn baby's palm.
The painted path is small chips
I stole from my sister's lunch.
On the top of my castle is
my mum’s small makeup mirror
in which I can see my dripping wet reflection.
But then in comes the mighty tide
causing my beautiful sandcastle
to disappear under the wild waves
never to be seen again
Soon after I can hear my mum ask,
'Have you seen my mirror?'
Ōtautahi Christchurch
It was sad when when we needed to leave your sight
and disappear from sri lanka
I look at my reflection
the spark in my hazel-brown eyes
and I think about you
Now I feel like the path to you
has broken
I really wish that you can stay in new zealand
forever and do fun stuff like painting
Ōtautahi Christchurch
Hey Dad,
Sometimes, I wish I had your skills:
being able to paint well;
walking straight tall and proud on the path;
able to make problems disappear;
and never breaking dreams.
I wish I was a reflection of you—
that would be awesome.
Ōtautahi Christchurch
My hands disappear into the cold sand,
I look at the ocean
The reflection of the blue moon
paints a broken path
across the water
I feel as cold as the waves
Ōtautahi Christchurch
Thursday 7 September 2023
Spring Poems Published
The Sun Shines Again
when all the bare trees
like pink, frilly hats
to see the golden daffodils bloom like
a cluster of stars shining bright in the night sky
The sun shoots its rays
all across the world
giving life to all
Christopher Pearman age 11, Year 7
Blooming
Thursday 31 August 2023
Sky Poems Published on Poetry Box
Our Russley Writers have had a cluster of beautiful sky poems selected by NZ poet Paula Green and published on her website, Poetry Box.
Congratulations to:
Kylie G
Millie S
Hayley C
Agrima K
Aoife
Kelvin
Joshua K
Mason
Anna F
Alfie
Bridget
Tenushki
Kiaan
Maia S
You can read their poems at the link below.
Monday 28 August 2023
Poems to Spain!
Here are some of our poems we sent to Spain for the Given Words Poetry Competition. Our poems could be on any theme, but had to include the five given words: broken, path, paint, reflection, disappear.
School Crazy
At school,
my pencil disappeared
I broke my book
I stepped in dog poo on the path
I painted my rubber
my reflection broke the mirror
Hopefully,
I don't have a day like this tomorrow
by Bridget I. (age 8, year 3)
Dear Grandma
It was sad when when we needed to leave your sight
and disappear from sri lanka
I look at my reflection
the spark in my hazel-brown eyes
and I think about you
Now I feel like the path to you
has broken
I really wish that you can stay in new zealand
forever and do fun stuff like painting
by Tenushki R. Age 7
Memories
I go every night to the broken mirror
in the attic
so I can remember my great grandpa
and how he chose the right path
in life
I look at my reflection
illusions surround me
memories of his stories in his diary
of his life at war
make my tears drop
I lock the memories up
so they do not disappear
otherwise
they will fade away
into the misty dust
and evaporate
into the depths of the soil
that slowly digests
into a gloomy sludge, like paint
by Ammar S. (age 9, year 5)
Sidhu Moose Wala
Dear Sidhu
I feel so broken without you
on reflection
you just disappeared
walking down the path
I see spray painted pictures of you
everywhere
it’s just not the same
without you.
by Javahn B. (age 10, year 5)
Rainy Day
The paint on the path
started to disappear
as the rain
dropped from a cloudy, misty sky
I saw my reflection
in the puddle
and the longer I stared
it seemed like
it was broken
by Meera S. (age 10, year 6)
Memory
I was at a blue river
the water
reflecting
on my broken sunglasses
I took them off
heart broken
my mum had
disappeared
I remembered
my mum
on a path
paint trickling down her top
she was painting a
beautiful picture
of me and my dad
Anna Foley, (age 7, year 2)
Broken Reflections
I sit and listen
to the sounds of the waves
as they calmly crawl up the sand
while I watch the sun disappear
a broken reflection
in the endless sea
the sunset paints
an autumn colour in the sky
orange beams shoot from above
creating a path
to nowhere.
by Laylah B. (age: 12, year 7)
Paint a New Path
I stare blankly at my younger self
as the reflection fades away
Back then
I was afraid of people disappearing
around me
As I try to paint a new path
I tell myself I shall fix
my broken heart
by Chris P. (age: 12, Year 7)
Painting a Picture
I was at the beach
playing tag
with my reflection
suddenly, the clouds disappeared
leaving the sky, blue as the ocean
showing a path.
As I walked down the path
it broke behind me.
It led me
to my younger self,
painting a picture
then the path fully faded
I
fell
into the void of darkness.
by Isiah C-P. (year 7 age 12)
Dear Bank Account,
Hope you have recovered
from my big purchase of lollies.
Now I can’t even afford
to pay my rent.
All my money has disappeared.
Now my heart is broken.
I’m on a path to homelessness.
I’m in the bathroom
with its paint peeling from the wall
looking at my downcast reflection in the mirror
rethinking my life’s decisions.
Lots of love,
from the Money Sucker.
by Ashton A. (Age 11, Year 7)
Hey Dad,
Sometimes, I wish I had your skills:
being able to paint well;
walking straight tall and proud on the path;
able to make problems disappear;
and never breaking dreams.
I wish I was a reflection of you-
that would be awesome.
by Jimmy K. (age 13, year 8)
My Sandcastle
On the side of my sandcastle
I place little pieces of broken seashells
as small as a newborn baby's palm.
The painted path is small chips
I stole from my sister's lunch.
On the top of my castle is
my mum’s small makeup mirror
in which I can see my dripping wet reflection.
But then in comes the mighty tide
causing my beautiful sandcastle
to disappear under the wild waves
never to be seen again
Soon after I can hear my mum ask,
“Have you seen my mirror?”
By Emily H. (Age 12 Year 7)
Brokenhearted
Brokenhearted,
I trudge along a crimson painted path
Suddenly I stop at a river
and see your reflection next to me.
Then I remember,
the warm sand in between my toes
sitting next to you by the fire
sipping out of antique mugs
the memories rush through my mind
like crashing waves
Eventually they calm down
my thoughts all sink and disappear
deep into my mind
I look next to me
you’re gone
My heart breaks
By Adeleyn W. (Age 11 , Year 7)
Waiting for the Turtles
My hands disappear into the cold sand,
I look at the ocean
The reflection of the blue moon
paints a broken path
across the water
I feel as cold as the waves
Max B. (Age 11, Year 7)
Dreamful Paradise
At the beach, I find
broken conch shells buried in the sand,
my blurry reflection in the water as the tide comes in,
it disappears
just then before my very eyes a path magically appears,
it is covered in paint and old and mossy
And then I wake up
By Ayla B. (Age 11 Year 7)
Broken Dreams
As my dreams started to
disappear
my heart felt
broken like glass
I tried to paint a picture
to lead a path for my dreams.
I looked in the mirror and I
saw a reflection of
me
and I wished my dreams
would come true!
By Agrima K. (AGE 8, YEAR 4)
hawaii
the ocean is like
a cool, blue paint
my reflection
appears in the waves
broken seashells
litter the ground
a soft-shell crab disappears
into the sand
a pebble path
leads me home
by Joel R. (Year 8)
Saturday 26 August 2023
Given Word Film
Our writers have had an awesome time exploring creative ways to illustrate words - inspired by the videos made by the students from López de Arenas Secondary School in Spain.
Check out our short word film below:
Tuesday 15 August 2023
Published in Toitoi #32
Congratulations to our newest published authors! These talented writers have just received their copies of the latest Toitoi journal containing their awesome mahi.
Well done to Ila, Porou, Kahurangi, Ned, Jack and Bernadette!
Thursday 29 June 2023
Rain Poems from Team Roto
Team Roto Poetry
Thursday 22 June 2023
Soon to be Published!
We are eagerly awaiting the publication of Toitoi 32! Some talented Russley writers have had their writing selected for publication. They are...
Jack N - for his piece about the Easter Bunny
Bernadette S - for her poem titled 'Autumn Breeze'
Ned P - for 'In Grandad's Shed'
Kahurangi R - for his piece titled 'Pods'
Porou R - for his piece titled 'Kahurangi'
Ila R - for her beautiful piece about her great grandmother, 'Irene Kibblewhite'
Toitoi 32 is going to print now and will be available early in Term 3. Exciting!
Monday 15 May 2023
Published authors!
Congratulations to Maia Sisson and Edward Bateman, who have had their writing published in Toitoi 31.
Maia was the winner of the Toitoi Story Search Competition, and her piece titled, 'The Naughty Kiwi' can be found on page 50-51.
Edward's poem, 'The Tiny Rifleman' is on page 82-83.
Congratulations to these talented published authors!
Monday 6 March 2023
Coming soon... in Toitoi 31
Congratulations to present and past pupils who have had their writing selected for publication in Toitoi 31.
Special congratulations to Maia Sisson, who was the winner of the Toitoi Story Search competition!
Lily Tasker | Wonderful Things | poem
Emily Tubman | Kakaruwai | poem
Edward Bateman | The Tiny Rifleman | poem
Maia Sisson | The Naughty Kiwi | story | Winner of the national Toitoi Story Search Competition
All of their pieces will be published in the next edition of Toitoi, which will be delivered at the beginning of term 2. They will each receive two copies of the journal to share with their family and friends.