Inquiry Based Learning
Along with the New Zealand Curriculum we teach and use a wide variety of tools to develop our student's understanding of the BIG IDEAS and values that underpin all we do at school.
Schools throughout New Zealand have the capacity to teach the curriculum in a way that suits them and their community, best.
At Crofton Downs Primary School we do this through an Inquiry approach to teaching and learning. Inquiry-based learning is a form of active learning that starts by posing questions, problems or scenarios rather than simply presenting established facts or portraying a smooth path to knowledge. Teachers facilitate students through our inquiry model to enable deeper thinking and understanding.
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Discovery spaceSince 2016 our school has been exploring the use of play-based learning within our Junior classes. We call this time “Discovery SPACE.”
Using play-based learning is currently a big focus for schools in Wellington and across New Zealand, as there is compelling research to support this style of learning at the Primary School level.
Involvement in Discovery SPACE is driven by students exploring self-selected activities, working in groups formed by common interests. Through using a play-based approach, our Junior classes have also had a greater opportunity to grow important life skills such as building friendships, problem solving, creativity, collaboration, resilience and independence.
Since starting, we have noticed an increased positive ‘vibe’ during learning sessions which continues across the day. Students are keen to talk about their learning. Their questions are becoming more investigative in nature and need answers to be discovered rather than simply talking about things they already know. This is leading to deeper, more meaningful learning experiences.
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P4C
“It makes me listen to others as well as myself and it makes me stop blurting stuff out and it helps me wait and it helps me change my mind about stuff.” 
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P4C or Philosophy for Children has been taught at Crofton Downs Primary for many years. All of our teachers are trained through P4C NZ to deliver an effective P4C programme and ongoing professional development takes place to maintain a quality programme.
P4C looks different at different ages and with our whole school approach, we are considered a ‘lighthouse’ school for P4C in New Zealand. In P4C, the children act as philosophers, exploring central, common and contestable concepts that we use to make sense of human experience, such as love, courage and knowledge. Children are not only capable of talking about matters of significance but they are also naturally disposed to question and wonder. The teachers act as facilitators and the children drive the community of inquiry to explore the subject matter in a way that they can relate to, they provide opportunities for students to explore, create and think within a range of developmentally appropriate learning contexts. 
So that the inquiry moves beyond mere conversation, we provide children with the skills to share ideas, thoughts and beliefs, and assist in the development of thinking and social skills. We teach and develop a number of skills, including giving reasons, making distinctions, clarifying ideas, formulating and testing criteria. Students are encouraged to develop hypotheses, give examples and reasons, build on each other’s ideas, justify decisions and recognise inconsistencies in arguments.
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Library
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At CDPS, we are passionate about developing our learners' love of reading and literacy. You can now access all our library services from home using our library catalogue. Library Homepage.
To login to view current borrowing, please use:
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KiVA
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What is Kiva?
KiVa is CDPS's Anti-Bullying Programme. The Parent Booklet, available at this site, is very informative. The Kiva programme is evidence based in its conception, and proven in its implementation. We encourage you to look at the Kiva website which has a great deal of information on the programme. This programme differs from other anti-bullying programmes by focusing on bystanders, as well as the bullies and victims. KiVa is evidence-based and has been designed to prevent bullying and to tackle the cases of bullying effectively. Prevention and intervention are both crucial, as no prevention efforts will make bullying disappear on their own. Schools need effective tools for when a case of bullying comes to light. A key aspect of KiVa is constant monitoring of the situation in one’s school and the changes taking place over time; this is enabled by the online tools included in KiVa. The surveys, for example, produce annual feedback for each school about their implementation of the program as well as shifts in behaviour. |
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HERO For School Communication
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HERO is CDPS's Application that is used to communicate reports on your child's progress and learning. HERO is our new communication tool and allows for push notifications. We encourage all parents to download the App.
If you have not yet downloaded the App, please do this as soon as possible, it will make things easier for you and pretty much essential moving forward. You can find out more on our website or directly at https://hero.linc-ed.com/parents/ |
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