Blossom

I went for a drive out to Oamaru yesterday for the North Otago ICT conference. My presentation was on how to use video in the classroom. These striking blossoms caught my eye against the clear blue sky backdrop.

St Clair Beach

A beautiful sunny weekend in Dunedin. These are the abandoned poles of a long forgotten jetty on the shores of St Clair Beach.

Spring

The flowers are starting to bloom, the sun is peaking through and Jessica is back out in the garden. It must be spring.

A nice seat in the sun

I love the view from Eglinton Road down over the harbour. It always looks different. Especially lovely on a sunny day.

Nice day for work

Luckily it is a beautiful day in Dunedin for these two guys as they carry out aerial acrobatics chopping down tree branches. Looked like a fun job as I went for a walk to get away from being cooped up in the house with my computer.

Gunslinger

Well I think I can officially say, I haven't nailed this 365 day challenge thing. But I am trying to post photos when I get the chance. Today's photo is of three of the members of Gunslinger. Two of them being my talented sons. Gunslinger won the OBHS Battle of the Bands and this is a photo of them playing a gig at the Dunedin Muso's Club.

Te Kura o Makarika

Now how is this for a view from your classroom window! I met the most marvellous principal today, Beris Brew at Te Kura o Makarika. She told us fascinating tales of struggling to get her school fixed and teaching classes in an abandoned woolshed. We met some amazing students who are spending a day a week learning in the local marae researching their whakapapa, connections to the area, and issues of conservation. We had to drive over two hours from Gisborne to this tiny school in the back of beyond, and when we got there we were told a story of a school working with the new curriculum to create a local curriculum to serve the needs of the community and put students at the heart of the matter. Wow.

Abandoned

Tokomaru Bay is just beautiful and untouched. There are lovely old buildings in various states of disrepair that add to the sense of isolation. There is also a sense that the land is reclaiming its place as these old building give way.

Another beautiful day in Tokomaru Bay

We are up on the East Coast again today, visiting with a cluster of teachers and principals from Māori Medium schools who are working with both the New Zealand Curriculum and Te Marautanga o Aotearoa. Their story is inspiring. Most of these teachers are not native speakers of te reo and therefore are learning the language as they work with the kids. So not only are they teaching difficult concepts to the children, but they are also helping the children to understand the language then the concepts. It was great to see how excited they are by the new marau and its possibilities. This is the best part of my job! The photo above is the beach at Tokomaru Bay, about an hour north from Gisborne where we stayed for the night.

Cat in a box

As I was walking home this morning from Derek Wenmoth's Ten Trends presentation in Dunedin, I spotted this cat in his letterbox. The cat just sat and stared at me as I took photo after photo, giving me the evil eye and not even moving a tail.

Duck pond

A nice spot to sit when the sun is shining. A chair by the pond at the Dunedin Botanical Gardens.

Texture

I loved the texture on this unusual tree trunk and thought it was accentuated by the fern in the background.

Portland Hotel, Wellington

Our 'home away from home' in Wellington is the Portland Kingsgate Hotel. The back room has often served as the unofficial CORE office, which is handy for when the day finishes and it is time for night time refreshments.

Rose garden

This chair is placed in the middle of the rose garden in the Dunedin Botanical Gardens. The chair is empty, as are the plants, all waiting for the cold to end and spring to come.

Birthday

I had another birthday. These flowers were a nice surprise.

Friends

I spotted these three and was reminded that not only 'birds of a feather' flock together. Diversity is to be celebrated. Now there's my deep thought for the week...

In flight

Went for a walk to Tunnel Beach yesterday and tried to capture this fellow taking off, unfortunately he didn't pose nicely so it looks like he has no head.

Mairehau School, Christchurch

We went and shot a school story at Mairehau School in Christchurch today. They have been doing some really interesting things around data driven decision making. For a dull, drizzly day, it was nice to see the cheery mural welcoming us to the school.

Christchurch photo shoot

Christina and I had our photos taken for the CORE website today on our trip to Christchurch. I took some photos of the photo shoot :) and Christina took one of mine.

Getting along

If these guys can share their paddock, why can't we share our spaces and be more accepting of each other? Just a random musing after a conversation with a friend.

Outram

Took a friend out to the airport yesterday. It is quite a drive out of town through beautiful countryside.

Leaving Dunedin

Well three weeks has come and gone and the matriarch is on her way home to the warmer climes of Perth.

View from the Scenic Circle Hotel

Dunedin is a beautiful city, unfortunately the view from one of its premier hotels doesn't really reflect this.

Speights Brewery

Speights Brewery, Dunedin

Clouds

I was looking for the silver lining in this today ...

Careys Bay too

It is interesting how when you start taking more and more photos, you are more aware of light and how it paints the picture. I like the muted colours in the golden hours.

Careys Bay

The light seemed dark and brooding across the bay. I tried with manual to capture what I could see but when I got it back to the computer it needed a lot of processing. Somehow I had the exposure right but the colours did not come out properly, they had a blue cast. I must have forgotten to look at the white balance.

Dunedin stadium

The roof is half on now. You can see this monstrosity from my house across the other side of the city. Hope it brings us some good entertainment.

Sheep

On the drive into Hanmer a soggy farmer was moving his bedraggled sheep to a new paddock. It made for a nice distraction, watching the farm dogs working to move their charges. With mum visiting from Australia it was a typical NZ scene for her to savour.

Hanmer River Holiday Park

We stayed at the Hanmer River Holiday Park which is just before the bridge on the way into Hanmer. It was a lovely place and if the rain ever stopped we were going to explore the surrounding forest and river (however it didn't stop). This is the view from our cosy cabin.

Moeraki Boulders

We had a weekend away in Christchurch and Hanmer Springs so of course we stopped at Moeraki Boulders on our drive there. Z decided they were the perfect aide for a somersault.