A Day in the Life at a New Zealand Primary School

Morning in Primary School

School opens at 8:30am, although we don’t have to be there that early. When I arrive, I put my bag on my peg and I usually head straight to the classroom to talk to my friends, but if I’ve got time, I might play football on the field. My school bell rings at 8:55am and my class sits on the floor while our teacher takes the roll (which in England is called the register). Sometimes after the roll, we look at phases of the moon or learn about which traditional Maori tasks would take place at the particular time of year, like harvesting crops, fishing in rivers, or remembering special people.

After the roll, we go outside for fitness, which we do three days a week. Our year group has three classes with about 70 children in total, and we do fitness together. Sometimes we run around on the courts playing playground games, such as ‘rock, paper, scissors’ or ‘octopus’, which is my favourite. These games were new to me when I arrived in NZ, but they were easy to pick up and so much fun. Or, we’ll play four square, dodgeball, do fitness circuits or dance, which is my least favourite.

Back inside, we eat our brain food, which is a healthy snack of fruit or vegetables, and learn some te reo Māori language. I was nervous before I started school in NZ as I thought I’d be the only person in my class who couldn’t speak te reo Māori, but there are new people joining my school every term and sometimes we have international students too, so we all learn together. If we don’t learn te reo Māori, we might watch a video about wellbeing and mental health instead. My class has been learning about how the brain works, how it reacts when we feel scared and how we can help ourselves feel more confident.

After brain food, I practise my handwriting and spellings before completing ‘must do’ tasks. My teacher sets ‘must do’ and ‘should do’ tasks on a Monday and we have to complete them by Friday. These could be maths, writing, or a Kiwi Kids News comprehension. Today, I used my Chromebook to do some maths learning. I did some practice on Times Tables Rock Stars and then answered some questions on fractions.

Middle Block at a NZ School

When the bell rings, it’s telling us it’s time for morning tea. I have ten minutes to sit outside the classroom with my friends and eat my snacks. After I’ve eaten, it’s time to play. At my school, there’s a large field where I can play football, ripper rugby or run around playing tag. On the courts, I can play basketball, netball, four square, or playground games and there are three playgrounds with play equipment for different ages. Playtime lasts for 20 minutes and in terms 1 and 4, we must wear a school bucket hat outside to protect us from the strong sun.

Back inside, my class reads silently. Some days my teacher will read to us instead. We can sit at our desk, lay on the floor, or take our book outside to read – under the slide is one of my favourite spots to read. All my work can be done where I am most comfortable and I can move to quiet desks or shared spaces too. Some classrooms even have desks which you can stand up at to complete work.

At lunch, I eat my food outside my classroom with the other classes in my Year. After ten minutes, if I’ve finished eating I can go and play. There are lots of clubs and activities to join in with at lunch time play, such as skateboard lessons taught by students, interschool sports practice, eco club, Kapa Haka, singing club, board games club, and the library. On Fridays, I help run activities for younger children by setting up games for them to play.

Almost home time!

In the afternoon, there’s roll again and then we might do music, art, coding or PE, which we do twice a week. In term 1, we have been practising athletic skills, with activities such as high jump, discus or sprints. In other terms, we might practise for our cross country run or go swimming. Today though, we are working on our topic - Space. My friend and I researched black holes on our computers, which was really interesting!

About fifteen minutes before the end of the day, after we’ve packed everything away, my class heads out to the play equipment and I run around playing ‘The Floor is Lava’ with my friends before the bell rings. I have to leave a bit early as I’m on road patrol duty today. I help other children to cross the road by stopping the traffic with a barrier. I had special training from the school police officer to make sure I know how to be safe. Some of my friends cycle or walk home by themselves, some are collected by their parents and others are part of a walking bus where adults walk a goup of children back to their neighbourhood. Once everyone else has gone home, it’s the end of my school day too.

Education in New Zealand

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