|
|
|
Newsletter - Term 1 Week 5
|
|
|
|
|
From the Principal
Dear families/whānau/parents/caregivers,
|
Here we are, another new thing for Wairau Valley School! A brand new, shiny, exciting newsletter to keep you up to date with the goings-on and happenings around the place! We have moved from the old newsletter provider Smore to our website provider School Websites who produce a much more refined product that is easy to use and easy to share. For all your family and whānau who want to get our newsletter, simply email Lisa their email address or direct them to our website and on the newsletters page, they can subscribe by scrolling to the bottom and adding their details!
|
Another new thing this week is a new 5-year-old human. Welcome to you and your whānau Harper! We are so glad you have come to join us at Wairau Valley School.
|
One thing I would like to apologise for is the library book debacle earlier in the term. For whatever reason, any library books issued last year that are still outstanding will be written off. Some did come back so it wasn't a wasted venture! As a school, we are learning the new system and how to use a library - that we can't just take books off the shelf, we need to issue then return books through the computer and that books all have a place in the library. You could help by signing up and going to the town library - Te Kahu o Waipuna. Same concept, bigger scale 😂. We also have a mass of written off/decommissioned books that are free to be taken away. We haven't really got a system for this yet but we might do a bit of a market day to get rid of some of them. Furniture is then next on the hit list.
|
We have also started weekly Kapa Haka on a Friday. The kids are showing a real talent for this and so far, seems to be a highlight of the week. I love it - anything to get the kids up singing and moving, using different parts of the brain and coordination skills is good. If you want to come and be part of our journey, you are more than welcome to come and join in. We practice Fridays, 1:50 - 2:30 PM.
|
|
Next week will be the last week for swimming and using the pool. This means that all keys need to come back - tell your friends, there are a lot of keys out in the community that won't get this email. I've heard a rumour that in previous years, the key returning has been quite relaxed and slack - I do ask that this is not the case moving forward. The pool is our asset, costs us a lot of money to maintain and will simply disappear if everyone isn't on board.
|
|
|
|
Upcoming/Important Dates
- Y7/8 Immunisations - Monday 16 March
- Technology - Tuesday 17 March
- Pool Closes - Sunday 22 March
- PALS (Physical Activity Leaders) Event - Monday 23 March
- Rippa Tournament - Tuesday 31 March
- Technology - Tuesday 31 March
- Last Day of Term - Thursday 2 April (can you believe this is 20 days away!?)
- First Day of Term 2 - Monday 20 April
- Technology (every odd week in T2) - Tuesday 21 April
- SCHOOL CLOSED - ANZAC Day Observed - Monday 27 April
- SCHOOL CLOSED - TOD Day - Friday 29 May
- SCHOOL CLOSED - King's Birthday - Monday 1June
- Small & Rural Schools Cross Country - Friday 26 June
- Last Day of Term 2 - Friday 3 July
|
|
|
Constable Charlotte comes to town
|
Last Friday, our local School Constable, Constable Charlotte came to hang out with the kids and take the Y7&8 students along with the bus kids for some Bus Safety training. It was very exciting having Charlotte here - she let the kids have a look at some of her appointments and she turned the siren on! Charlotte is an excellent role model for our kids - her whole premise is that Police Officers aren't scary and are people in our community we can trust, hence why she wears all the 'talking points' when she visits. She was very impressed with the kids and even more impressed all the kids biking past were wearing their helmets.
|
|
Constable Charlotte is going to pop out every now and then, and it's great to see another community asset in the township.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Congratulations, Superstars!
Congratulations to Aria, Ollie, Caia and Declan for their certificates last week. Aria took out first place in every event at the Small School Swimming Champs, Ollie has impressed with his start to the year, Caia got player of the day in her summer football team (coached by the best coach in the world) and Declan was awarded the class award from Mrs Herbert. Kyah Black was awarded the Wairau Room certificate but unfortunately he was away!
|
|
If you would like to come and celebrate with us, assemblies are every 2nd week on a Wednesday afternoon. The next one is next Wednesday, 18th March at 2:15 PM.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Day the Cobra Strikes Wairau Valley School
|
Thanks to Dr. Malcolm, we had some very noisy but fun visitors on Wednesday roar and race through the school grounds. The Cobra Club was winding up its Top of the South event and made a detour on their way to the ferry to Wairau Valley School. The cars all roared their engines, then took the kids for a 'hot lap' of the school field (sorry Tony!). There were definitely some very big smiles after the kids got a ride. Here are some photos.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
School Shirts
DO YOU HAVE ANY SCHOOL TOPS AT HOME?
|
Please return any school tops to school, as we will be holding these at school now and handing them out as needed.
|
|
|
|
HERO - Payment of Stationery
DO YOU HAVE ACCESS TO HERO?
|
It is very important that all parents download the Hero App and view all notices and payments due. If you have not done this, you will be missing out on important information. The money owing for stationery is shown in Hero, and many parents have already seen it and paid it. This is a very easy way to manage payments, and I thank those parents who have paid online or through Hero. There are still 12 families with stationery owing in Hero, so please check if you have not already done so.
|
|
If you need help accessing Hero, please come in and see Lisa or Adam in the office - we are more than happy to help out!
|
|
|
|
Fundraising Committee
HAVE YOU RECEIVED THE EASTER FLYER AND RAFFLE TICKETS SENT HOME WITH YOUR CHILD?
|
Easter is coming up fast, and the Fundraising Committee is organising an Easter Raffle gift basket as a fundraiser. If you are able to donate some Easter eggs or Easter items for the basket, please bring these to the school office. We have sent Raffle tickets home with each family to sell. Tickets will be $2 each, with a prize going to the family that sells the most tickets. The Raffle draw will be held on 1st April, before the end of term. Could we please have all sold tickets back by that date.
|
|
The Dog Trials event is held on Saturday, 28th March, and the Fundraising Committee will provide catering. If you are able to help on this day to serve food and wash dishes from 10 am - 2pm ish, please let Lisa know in the office, or alternatively, Jane Fowler. This is a fun community day, and children are most welcome.
|
|
We are also requesting support from parents with baking and purchasing some grocery items. A list for this can he found on the button below. If you are happy to provide an item, please write your name beside the item. Feel free to choose more than one (it has been split up a bit to make it a bit easier to contribute).
|
|
Thank you so much for your support.
|
|
|
|
|
Fundraising Events Coming Up
|
DOG TRIALS CATERING - 28th March
|
|
EASTER RAFFLE - drawn on 1st April
|
|
Keep an eye out for a Golf Tournament in Term 3 too!
|
|
|
|
The Fundraising Committee needs new members! Do you have time to put into organising fundraisers? Come up with ideas and attend fundraising meetings? We would love to have you involved!
|
|
|
Attendance - Every Day Matters
|
It was fantastic to see 73% of our students attending regularly (over 90% of the time) in Term 4. A huge shout-out to our whānau for getting everyone here - we also hit a massive 100% for students arriving on time!
|
|
Being at school every day helps our ākonga build great habits, stay connected with their friends, and keep up with their learning. Even missing just five days a term over a kid's school life means they miss a whole year of school by Year 13.
|
|
We know things like illness happen, but we’re working hard to reduce "unjustified" absences - like term-time holidays or unexplained days - to keep the learning momentum going. You can find all the details on how we manage this in our updated Attendance Management Plan, which outlines how we support every student to be present and engaged.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reporting to Parents
Here's what you need to know (and what we know).
|
There has been a lot of changes from the Ministry of Education around reporting to parents. While this mahi | work is not complete by the MOE yet, here's what we already know. We know that we must report against the new curriculum to whānau twice a year in writing for Reading, Writing, and Maths. Reports will be completed for the end of Term 2 and the end of Term 4.
|
|
One of the compulsory items in a report is the language we use to describe where your child is achieving compared to other children in their cohort. The graphics below (from the MOE website) describes the five 'progress descriptors' what they mean in terms of mid- and end-of-year reporting.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
First Board Meeting for 2026
|
The first board meeting was held before school started on the 27th January. It was attended by Stacey Lowther (the Presiding Member), Adam Alexander (Principal), Bram Hoogeveen, Kayleigh Kahu and Katie Herbert (Staff Rep). As a number of things had not been done at this early stage, it was a fairly straight forward meeting. One of the big items presented and approved was the Annual Implementation Plan - essentially the document that drives the mahi of the school. A number of minor things were also squared away, such as an upcoming Teacher Only Day (Friday 29 May - Friday before King's Birthday), Principal delegations, Term 4 attendance report, some policy reviews from SchoolDocs and all the legal assurances. If you want to view a copy of the minutes, they are always available at the office and newsletters will contain a brief summary of the key points. The next Board meeting is scheduled for 24th March.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Have your say! ERO Surveys
ERO (Education Review Office - the place Dr. Malcolm helps out from time to time) have extended the invite to all parents who would like to complete some surveys for them. They can be found below - I have copy/pasted them from their email so apologies if it sounds repetitive:
|
|
ERO’s research centre wants to hear from parents and whānau about their children’s use of AI. Here is the links to a short survey: Parent survey_AI in schools.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Community Notices
|
|
|
|
|
|
April Holiday Camps @ Curious Cove
Enrolments are now open for our April holiday camps. Check out the details and complete an enrolment on our website (www.curiouscove.org)
|
Fishing Camp – Mon 6th – Wed 8th April (Ages 10 – 14 yrs). Cost $135
|
Wilderness Camp – Wed 8th – Fri 10th April (Ages 11 – 14 yrs) Cost $135
|
April Junior Special Camp – Mon 13th – Fri 17th April (Ages 8 – 11 yrs) Cost $225
|
|
Curious Cove (TVCC Trust)
|
|
|
|
Junior Table Tennis
|
The Marlborough Table Tennis Association is again running junior table tennis starting Tuesday 21st April. It will run during term 2 and 3.
|
|
4pm – 5pm, Beginners and developing players. 5pm - Two player teams competition, any gender, several grades depending on ability.
|
|
Blenheim Indoor Sports Centre 50 Batty’s Road.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
