If you go to Castlecliff beach in the next few days you may notice sculptures adorning the sand in front of the surf club.
The sand and driftwood sculptures were made by 300 students at Carlton School on Tuesday as part of the school's Puanga celebration.
It was an early start for the students who gathered at the school well before dawn with their families for a ceremony led by the school's head of Maori language, Robin Ohia. The ceremony included karakia and waiata, the unveiling of a new entranceway to one of the classrooms, and tree planting.
Principal Gaye O'Connor said around 200 pupils and family members sat down to a hot cooked breakfast just before 7am. This was followed by craft activities for the kids, then the entire school got on buses and went to Castlecliff for the morning.
There they had a beach sculpture competition.
"They're supposed to making sculptures with a Puanga theme, and a lot of them are. But some of them are just making driftwood huts - because that's what you do at the beach," Ms O'Connor said.
She said the school was closed for the morning and the entire staff, including the office staff and the caretakers, and about 35 parents, had joined the children at the beach.
"We're lucky because the weather is beautiful - and we even have a great view of Mt Taranaki," Ms O'Connor said.
Ms O'Connor said the school was grateful to Horizons Regional Council for donating trees, and New World who donated a food voucher.
Puanga is the traditional Maori new year celebration. Elsewhere it is known as Matariki.