| 1st May 2020 |
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** CLICK HERE FOR STUDENT TIMETABLES** Kia ora e te whanau! We reach the end of our first week in a blended learning environment - managing both online and face-to-face teaching. Of all the weeks since the start of Coronavirus in New Zealand, this has been the most challenging. Thank you to the staff at The Catlins Area School for their ongoing support and willingness to go the extra mile (and more) to keep our students on their learning pathways. Thank you to the tenacious staff in the school building, working in our very strange, dystopian environment - I know this is not how you envision your caring, interactive classrooms and learning spaces around the school! This week, it feels like the shine has come off some of the students and their willingness to engage with teachers. This has saddened our teaching staff. I ask parents to support where they can, but also to have the discussion with their child (if old enough) about supporting and caring for their family by taking on the responsibility to manage their own learning programme. Students should check their timetable every morning, then their school email. Make this the routine, set yourself up for achievement. Use the daily information to write a timetable for the day, ticking off items as you progress. There will be a mix of face-to-face meetings and self-supported work for all students; if your child tells you something else - check their timetable with them. Lack of passwords is no excuse either - simply email the teacher or lockdownhelp@catlins.school.nz for password assistance! In this brief newsletter, we'd like to display some of the work and experiences shared by our long-distance learners - there are certainly a lot of positive, pro-active learners out there too! Special mentions to anyone who managed to complete the Hot Lava Challenge as part of our Wellbeing 2-Week Guide, to the students journalling their lockdown experiences, to the persistent Zoom chatterers who use our Zoom access to link up with classmates to 'work alongside' or ask questions, to the senior students gaining credits under very tricky circumstances, to the ANZAC artists, studiers and creators.....and so many more. We applaud you! The service you are providing to yourselves and to your families by keeping on track for greatness is surely a goal for others to aspire to. We hope you enjoy your next learning week and continue to work hard and play hard. If we all stick together in meeting the requirements of Level 3, we should be heading towards lighter restrictions quicker. He waka eke noa! Kia Kaha TCAS! Kate Staniford, News
Students at Work in Alert Level 3The move to Alert Level 3 allowed the return to school of any students under 14 who cannot be supervised at home. 
ANZAC Day 2020ANZAC Day 2020 was an ANZAC Day like no other before it. There were no dawn services or parades or memorials. The slogan 'Stand at Dawn' became synonymous with people commemorating the day in their own way. 
Room 2's Lockdown ActivitesPlatforms such as Seesaw and Google Classroom have come to the forefront during this lockdown period. With their ability to share students' work, both with their teacher and family. 
Share Your ExperiencesAs we work our way through Term 2, we'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences of the lockdown so far...that's students, parents & teachers... 
Room 19's Lockdown SlideshowsThe Room 19 students have been busy during the lockdown, take a look at their slideshows! 
Home Learning TVThe Ministry of Education is partnering with TVNZ to deliver entertaining educational programming for our tamariki, including teacher-led lessons and featuring Suzy Cato, Karen O’Leary, Jordan Vandermade and Nathan Wallis.
Switch on SafetyN4L (Network for Learning) have launched a free safety filter to help keep children safe online while learning from home. 
Learning at HomeInformation for parents/caregivers regarding 'Learning at Home'. For your information: |
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Contact The Catlins Area School |
