Oratia District School Newsletter
Week 06 - 10 March 2022
Message from Ms Linda
Tena koutou katoa. Nau mai ki te whanau o te Ōrātia. Ni hao. Talofa lava. Zdravo. Kia orana. Namaste.
Greetings Ōrātia whānau. This week is our Family Friendly week where we halt our school meetings and encourage our teachers to finish work a little earlier than usual and go home to spend time with their families or on their own well being. We have found this to be a really refreshing week in the midst of all the Covid sickness and isolation many of us are experiencing.
I was in a Ministry of Education meeting on Wednesday and they were saying that here in Auckland we are in the midst of the Omicron peak, and that numbers of cases will continue to fluctuate up and down for a couple more weeks before settling down again. So, we are expecting our absences here at school to continue in a similar vein to what we are having now. Thank you very much to those of you who have phoned or emailed us to let us know about positive cases in your households - we wish you all good health and a speedy recovery. Our teachers would really appreciate you popping them a note too to let them know when your child is heading back to school so they can be ready and prepared for their arrival back to class. If you are using a RA test at home we have been asked to remind you to please send the result(positive or negative) into the Ministry of Health, either from your Covid record on the app or via the MoH website.
Last Friday we met as a school on the tiger turf outside and had a lovely assembly run by Room 13. They had learned a beautiful song about living in paradise here in NZ and had learned sign language to go along with it. As they sang it made me very thankful to reflect on the benefits of living here in NZ through this time in history. When we consider the trials the people of Ukraine are enduring at the moment it makes us even more grateful, and we uphold them in our thoughts and prayers.
Kia kaha, kia atawhai. Stay well and may you have good health.
Ngā mihi nui
Ms Linda.
Calendar of Events - Term 1, 2022
Tuesday 15 March - Parent Network Meeting by Zoom. EVERYONE WELCOME!
Friday 18 March - Teacher Only Day. School is closed for Instruction
Monday 21 March - Rock your socks day. Children are encourage to wear bright coloured socks to celebrate World Down Syndrome Day. See poster below for more details.
Monday 4 April - Board of Trustees Meeting - 7pm
Thursday 14 April - Last day of Term One
All school events are recorded in our public calendar on the front page of our website.
COVID RED LEVEL - PHASE THREE
IF A STUDENT HAS SYMPTOMS
- Get a Covid test
- Isolate at home until they receive a negative Covid test
- Advise the office of the reason for absence via school app, website absence tool or phoning absence line on 818 6216.
- Check with class teacher if there is any suggested home learning to do.
IF A STUDENT HAS A FAMILY MEMBER WITH POSTIVE COVID TEST RESULT
- Advise Oratia School of the reason for absence
- Isolate at home for 7 days, same as the person with COVID (with Day 0 being when they tested postive or when symptoms started)
- Continue to do online learning as much as possible
- Get an RA test on Day 3 and Day 7
- Can stop isolating and RETURN to normal life once you have received a negative Day 7 RA test AND once 7 days have passed (ie. on Day 8).
IF A STUDENT TESTS POSITIVE FOR COVID
- Please contact us by calling 818 6216 or email janinem@oratia.school.nz
- Isolate at home for 7 days (with Day 0 being when they were exposed to the virus) or longer if still sick
- Follow the advice you receive from the Ministry of Health to manage Covid illness https://www.health.govt.nz/covid-19-novel-coronavirus/covid-19-health-advice-public/advice-people-covid-19
RETURNING FROM ISOLATION AS A HOUSEHOLD CONTACT
If students have completed their required 7 days’ isolation but have had family members subsequently test positive: Currently there is no legal requirement for family members to remain in isolation beyond the initial 10-day period.
Learn more: What does it mean if I’m a household contact?
To manage this risk, it is important that if the student develops symptoms they stay at home until they are symptom-free and have returned a negative test result. Alternatively, they could be managed as a case without any need for testing.
It’s important that anyone with symptoms remain at home until they are symptom-free for at least 48 hours.
Please be assured that the current measures in place (masks, physical distancing and ventilation of rooms) in schools continue to provide high levels of protection from infection in a school environment.
Important points to note:
- School entrances are at Shaw Rd and West Coast Rd (sliding gate only)
- School access can begin at 8.30am
- Parents are to remain off site for drop off and pick up. Please do not let children back over the fence to play in playgrounds after school while teachers are on site.
- Any parent volunteer in the classroom must be fully vaccinated and wear a medical grade mask while onsite, sign in using the contract tracer app and sign in at the office.
- Pick up at the end of the day will be staggered to reduce congestion at the gate - Potiki (Junior) at 2.30pm, Arawhata (Middle) at 2.40pm, Tuakana (Senior) at 2.50pm, Bus travellers at 3.00pm Siblings can leave at the same time as their younger sibling.
- If your child shows any sign of illness, please keep them home till they are well again
- If your child becomes ill at school we will call you and ask you to collect them. (We will meet you at the school gate).
- Children from Year 4 - 6 and their teachers will be wearing masks in the classroom and on the school buses; no masks are required when children are outside
- Please call the office on 818 6216 if you need to drop something to your child or collect them early and we will make arrangements with you.
Friday Lunch Schedule
Friday lunches can be ordered on Kindo and will be delivered to your child's classroom at the beginning of lunchtime. Cut off times for orders are 7.00pm Thursday night except for Sushi which is Wednesday night. If your child is absent on the ordered and you would like to collect the lunch please phone the office.
Friday 11 March - Subway
Friday 25 March - Sushi
Friday 1 April - Jesters Pies
Oratia District School - Out of Zone Ballot
Enrolments at Oratia School are governed by an enrolment scheme, details of which are available on our school website. The board invites out of zone applications from parents or caregivers who wish to enrol their children at Oratia District School.
The board has determined there will be 30 places in total across year levels 0 - 6 available for out-of-zone students in this ballot.
- Applications will open on Monday 14 March 2022
- Applications will close on Tuesday 10 May 2022
- If the number of out-of-zone applications exceeds the number of places available, students will be selected by ballot. The ballot will be drawn on Tuesday 17 May 2022
- Successful applicants must commence their first day at school on or before Thursday 30 June 2022
Information on how to apply will be available from our school website from Monday 14 March.
Please note: Applications are to be submitted online. We will not be accepting any applications at the school office.
Do you have an in-zone five year old due to start at Oratia School this year?
Seaweek studies
Pasifika update
Teacher Feature!
Kia ora whānau, I’m Lucy Lewis and I teach in Room 13. I have taught at Oratia for 6 years in Potiki and Arawhata syndicates. My husband Jason is on the school board and our 3 children have all attended Oratia. Maddy our oldest is at College, Ollie is at Intermediate and Charlie is in year 5 at Oratia.
We live locally and share our property with Sam and Stumpy the kunekune pigs, our cats Misty and Izzy, 8 chickens, George the goat, as well as Layla the puppy (our most recent addition). .
On the weekends we are often coaching or playing sports, visiting beaches or meeting up with friends and family. Sunday afternoons at the moment involve lots of flippa ball games, if you want to know more about this come and see me in room 13!
Library Corner
Come and visit us online, with Access-it Library. Check out our new range of books on the carousel. http://aiscloud.nz/ORT01
Congratulations Aubrey Wilson and Keeva Parsons on attaining their Bronze Librarian certificate. Well done!
Librarian’s choice:
What if I can't? Which way to the flowers? That way. 200 miles. How am I supposed to travel that far?! You fly. Can I take a plane? No. Then I'll never make it! This comical companion to Ross Burach's The Very Impatient Caterpillar pays loving homage to every child's struggle to persist through challenges while also delivering a light-hearted lesson on butterfly migration. Remember, if at first you don't succeed, fly, fly again!
On Monday 21 March we are celebrating World Down Syndrome Day
PB4L (Positive Behaviour for Learning)
Our school wide PB4L focus for week 6 is at the pool. In order to support our learning could you please encourage your child to bring named togs, towels and goggles to school.
We are also going on a bear hunt! If you have any teddy bears or soft toys in good used condition that you no longer need, we would hugely appreciate them being donated to our apple shop where we can find them new homes. (All teddy bears are washed before they are re-homed).
Parent Network Meeting - Everyone is Welcome!
The next Parent Network meeting will be online and they invite any parents/caregivers who are interested to join.
Time: Mar 15, 2022 07:30 PM Auckland, Wellington
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us05web.zoom.us/j/84348851632?pwd=VkFJNzZFeDNJSUE5UWFrUFU0UEdVQT09
Meeting ID: 843 4885 1632 Passcode: wh6Teq
Policy for Review
The instructions to contribute to the review are below:
- Visit the website https://oratia.schooldocs.co.nz/1893.htm
- Enter the username (oratia) and password (0604).
- Follow the link to the relevant policy as listed.
- Read the policy.
- Click the Policy Review button at the top right-hand corner of the page.
- Select the reviewer type "Parent".
- Enter your name (optional).
- Submit your ratings and comments.
- If you don't have internet access, school office staff can provide you with printed copies of the policy and a review form.
Netball Notices
Netball notices were handed out last week. Attached is a copy of the netball notice for those families that did not receive one. Completed notices are to be returned to Mrs Moore in the office by 18 March and Netball payments can be made online on Kindo.
COMMUNITY NOTICES
PARENT CORNER
Contact Us
Email: principal@oratia.school.nz
Website: https://www.oratia.school.nz
Location: Shaw Road & West Coast Road, Oratia, Auckland 0604, Auckland, New Zealand
Phone: +64 9 818-6216
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OratiaSchool/