Te iwi tahi tatou - We are one family.
Tēnā koutou, Konnichiwa, As-salāmu 'alaykum, Hola, Hello!
It is really refreshing to be able to write a newsletter that is filled with news about school life, now that we are back to some form of normality. I wanted to pass on a BIG THANK YOU to you, our parents and community members, for trusting us to look after your children as they return to school under the level 2 lockdown. All of the advice from the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education about the importance of getting back to a normal routine for the health and wellbeing of our students has been widely received by you. Students being around their peers and teachers will help them to feel in control and reassured and we are seeing more and more of this as the days pass.
Also, thank you for following our contact tracing protocols (adults must sign in at the office and not enter or exit the school anywhere else). It helps us to keep the students and our staff safe.
My Sabbatical: Just a quick update the I have deferred my term 3 sabbatical until 2021. Personally, I do not think it is the right time to be taking up this opportunity and I am grateful that the option to defer was made possible.
School uniforms: It is important that students are dressed in the correct school uniform items. I know it is getting colder in the morning, but we do have school fleeces, track pants and sweatshirt options for children to wear. We also have a wide range of secondhand options available at the school office if you would like to come in and find something suitable for your child to wear. These are free to you.
Green or black thermals are also allowed to be worn underneath the school polo and black jackets are also encouraged.
If children come to school in other items of clothing, they will be asked to remove them when they enter the buildings.
Students also have a PE uniform that must be worn. Teachers will be telling students which days these are to be worn and we do have facilities if children would rather change into this at school.
Class Reps: Our class reps are well and truly getting involved as they return to school. Last week Aloma and I started to work with the team, helping them develop solutions to the question we posed them: "How will you build up and strengthen relationships in class?" I have been really impressed with the ideas they have come up with and they have started working with their teachers to find time in the day to run with their ideas or get the support they need to work on their ideas independently.
Minor maintenance: We are about to start work on the toilets (Girls toilets by the office and boys toilets down by room 1). The girl's toilets will have the floor replaced and the boy's toilet will have the urinal repaired. This work will begin on Saturday, June 6th to keep any disruption to a minimum.
Rebuild update: A small note to say that the staff began looking at ideas that had been presented by the architects this week. The plans are not even close to anything that can be considered "final" and were, instead, an opportunity for us to ask questions, consider what is important in a teaching and learning environment and how we marry the need for teaching spaces along with the needs of storage and admin space for staff. It is part of an interesting journey! Soon we will start sharing ideas and getting feedback from the students and also invite our community to voice their ideas. I'll let you know in plenty of time of this happening so you can come along.
Key Dates: Don't forget to scroll to the bottom of the newsletter to see the key dates for our school.
|
|
Reporting on Student Progress: We have been toying with many different reporting options for this term and have now made a decision on the format the reports will take for our Mid Year report. At the end of this term, we will be sending home written reports with your child. These will be sealed in envelopes and be addressed to you. The report format will include two sections.
Section one be focused on the Key Competencies and how these have been applied to areas of the curriculum. We will also be stating how your child is progressing against expected curriculum levels. See below for an explanation of the Key Competencies.
Section Two will be a General Comment. This comment will focus on the child's progress in Reading, Writing and Maths and what the next steps are for further progress. Teachers will then comment on other aspects of the student's learning and life at school.
Key Competencies are the foundation for the New Zealand Curriculum. These are:
-
Thinking is about using creative, critical, and metacognitive processes to make sense of information.
-
Relating to others is about how a student interacts with others. This includes their ability to listen actively, share ideas and recognise different points of view.
-
Using language, symbols & text is about communicating information, experiences and ideas. The ability to use words, numbers, images in a range of contexts.
-
Managing self relates to self-motivation. The ability to lead, follow, and working independently are all represented by this key competency.
-
Participating and contributing relates to the ability to work in groups in a variety of contexts. We are assessing contribution and adaptability as part of this key competency.
|
|
|
|
It is really nice to be able to celebrate some of the work students have done while both at home and at school. Have a look a the small sample below:
|
|
|
|
We have been opening the library at lunchtime since our return to school and the students are really enjoying having a quiet space to hang out in. The numbers are growing day by day.
|
|
|
|
Room 2's shoes made in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) and constructed from newspaper.
|
|
|
|
Lola poem (Room 12)
|
|
|
Lizzie's Poem (Room 6)
|
|
|
An important message from the Bee Healthy Regional Dental Service
"Bee Healthy Regional Dental Service are pleased to inform you we are able to start doing dental checks from our mobiles in schools at level 2. We can examine any child who is well (from class) using strict infection prevention and control processes. Your child’s temperature may be checked with a thermometer prior to entering the mobile. If a child has a temperature higher than 38o we will defer your child’s examination until they are well.
Parents should contact us on 0800Talk Teeth 0800 825 583 if you do not want your child to receive their dental check at school. This will be recorded in the child’s notes as either a temporary or permanent consent change."
Visits to the Bee Healthy Dental Van will start on June Monday 8th.
|
|
|
|
|
