I am aware that rumours started to circulate in the community that one of our students may have contracted COVID 19. These rumours are false, however a student did go home yesterday (Friday) after lunch as he was feeling sick and as a precaution went for a test which returned negative today.
School resumes as normal on Monday and I reinforce the well known safety tips which will keep us all safe:
– stay home if you are unwell
– sneeze or cough into your elbow (should you be at school……?)
– wash your hands
– minimise contact with other people and do not share personal items
The Ministry of Health has reminded us that face masks may be worn at school but are not required.
Starting Year 7 poses many new challenges, but also offers exciting opportunities. It comes with a number of mixed feelings. Unfortunately for many Year 6 students, 2020 was marred with school closures and remote learning due to the pandemic and the overall impact of this is still unknown.
For many students regular orientation activities at the end of 2020 were less than ideal. Therefore, many students may be feeling a little bit more anxious than usual about their expectations of starting Year 7. Grasping new skills and establishing new study practices can quickly become daunting and overwhelming.
During this time of transition, parents and carers need to be supportive, but also realistic in their expectations. This is an important milestone in your child’s life. There will be feelings of exhilaration, but also the fear of the unknown. Therefore it will be important for parents and carers to be vigilant in monitoring their child’s mood and mental health during this time. They could easily become overly anxious or even depressed.
In this Special Report, there are a number of strategies offered that can make this transition period smoother and start things off on the right foot! We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this Special Report, and as always, we welcome your feedback.
If you do have any concerns about the wellbeing of your child, please contact the school for further information or seek medical or professional help.
Just a brief welcome message from me to our new and returning staff and students. I trust this year will be a fulfilling one for you all as you continue your journey of growing your greatness.
Hopefully we will be able to follow a normal start up to the year with Admin Day on Tuesday 2nd February. Should the lockdown levels change, owing to COVID, I will inform you as soon as possible by email, web site and facebook.
This message from the Ministry of Education is particularly relevant as we must remain vigilant and follow the regular reminders we received last year:
We continue to have a large amount of control over how we can prevent the spread of COVID.
For our school we will:
display QR code posters for the NZ COVID Tracer App
keep our visitor register, attendance register and timetables up to date
be monitoring for illness and asking anyone who is unwell to remain at home, or to go home
encourage people with relevant symptoms to seek medical advice through Health Line or their GP and get tested for COVID if recommended to do so
reinforce the importance of good hand washing and drying
reinforce good cough and sneeze etiquette
we will continue to regularly clean all parts of our school.
Many parents will attest to the fact that many boys are active, loud, rambunctious and prone to rough play, but this should not affect how a parent acts towards their son. Be careful not to pigeon-hole your son into gender specific behaviours or gender roles. The male brain is distinctly differently in its development. A boy’s physical maturity is often at odds with his mental and brain development.
Societal beliefs about how to raise boys can sometimes influence their adult carers. Although we are not determined by our biology, it is a factor. It is important to support boys in their natural tendencies and nurture their strengths and abilities. Teach them the skills they need for their future and to develop a healthy identity. It is important for boys to have a role model they can connect with and acknowledge who they are. One of the most important determinants for a boy’s development is how secure they feel growing up.
In this edition of SchoolTV, adult carers will gain a better understanding into some of the more complex issues relating to raising boys. We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this month’s edition, and we always welcome your feedback.
If you do have any concerns about the wellbeing of your child, please contact the school for further information or seek medical or professional help.
We have a lot of exciting events this term which will be even more enjoyable now we have returned to Level 1. Despite this relaxation of restrictions, we still need to remain vigilant about our health and hygiene. The experience of other countries who are experiencing a second wave of infections after appearing to have “flattened the curve” is a sobering reminder to us all.
We look forward to seeing you at the school’s eagerly awaited musical – “All shook up” in week 2 (19-24 October). Fans of rock and roll will particularly enjoy this wonderful display of our students’ singing, dancing and acting talent.
This week we celebrate Kindness Week with a number of activities which promote on of our core values – awhinatanga/compassion. This culminates in Pink Shirt Day on Friday which is an international movement to say no to bullying or simply “be kind!”
Our mantra is for all of us to be “upstanders” not bystanders. Research shows that it is the people who witness bullying behaviours who can have the greatest impact by showing their disapproval. This requires strength of character and reinforcement of another of our core values integrity/pono which can mean “to do the right thing”.
Let us encourage each other to be kind and do the right thing and so make the world a better place.
Following our annual cultural dress day when students and staff wear traditional costumes of their country of origin, Pacific Language Week when we celebrate the language and culture of Oceania it is appropriate that this week we join the nation while celebrating Māori language week. Staff and students will place a special emphasis on using the language as often as appropriate. Every Whānau has a plan for students to show their proficiency in the language and earn a cultural e-badge in the process supported by the Māori Student Council.
We are all on a learning journey. Many teachers have joined an inquiry group which helps us to understand the Māori world view and how it can be integrated into our curriculum and what we do. Recent advertisements and interviews of new teachers have focused on this important aspect of our strategic plan.
We will also participate in the Māori Language Moment at 12 p.m. on Monday which remembers the date and time that a petition was presented to parliament in 1972 for Te Reo Māori to be taught in schools. Our year 10s will be our first graduates who have had this opportunity, starting four years ago.
Following the PM announcement today we are in preparation for a lifting to Level 2 and thus staff and students returning to school on Monday 31 August.
I expect further guidelines to be sent to me from the MoE which will ensure the safety of our community while we continue with as normal a programme as possible and these will be emailed ASAP.
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