Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa. Greetings to you all.

It was awesome to see 120 students showcase their learning in the school Science Fair this week. There was a great variety of exhibits covering Research, Investigations, Technology and Art/Creativity.The judges were so impressed with the calibre of entries, that 55 children will represent our school at the Regional Science Fair on Tuesday. Congratulations to all students for their effort with special mention to the top placing team Grace, Jean and Emmeline for their entry titled ‘Crazy Carnivorous Plants’ where they were praised for their excellent scientific explanation and enthusiasm. Certificates will be presented to all students proceeding to regionals at assembly on Monday. A huge thank you to Matt Robertson for supporting all entries, organising the events and for the passion he shows for developing Science through our pilot school wide STEM programme.

We are fortunate to have additional resourcing this year to run the Early Literacy Support and Reading Recovery Programmes led by Marion Barakat and Aoife O'Shaughnessy. This week a further two children will successfully exit the programme having achieved accelerated progress to meet curriculum expectations. Over the year, 28 students aged between 6 and 7 years will have access to these programmes that have proven high rates of success for students at Witherlea. Literacy teaching at Witherlea is continuously evolving in response to new research and internal review processes. Parents of junior children, who older siblings in the school, will notice some significant shifts to literacy practice in the last 12 months in response to staff professional development. Keep an eye out on the Term 4 calendar for an opportunity to come and learn more about how we teach literacy, how you can support this at home and the results we achieve.

Next week we have some moving planned as we prepare for the renovation of Room 3 and 4 next term. Details as follows:

• Monday: The STEM Programme (Mr Robertson) will relocate to the library.

• Tuesday: Room 4 (Miss Christie) will move to Room 12

• Wednesday Room 3 (Mrs Lucas) will move to Room 13.

Construction should be completed ready for the new school year. The library will continue to be open at lunch times and all classes will have access to exchange books during the afternoon sessions.

I was in a class this week during a talk about growth mindset, which prompted me to share this short video with you by Professor Jo Boaler from Stanford University. It's so important as parents that we understand and reinforce the concept of growth mindset so that our children know that their ability to achieve isn't fixed.

We have a very limited number of spaces available for out of zone enrollments for 2024, please see details below if you know anyone who may be interested.

As I write this, our choir of 120 students is heading down to the theatre for a final rehearsal before their big performance tonight at the Music Festival - I can’t wait to hear them!

Ngā manaakitanga,

Symon Beattie

Principal

We wish to welcome these new students and their families and whānau to our school and community;

Kowhai C, Eliza W

Welcome to School Certificates are given out at our assembly on a Monday morning at 9am.

Be Kind, Be Safe, Be Fair Shoutouts

Congratulations to these students who have displayed one or all of our school behaviour expectations and are a model to others;

FERNS TEAM

Euan C - For being a true 'Witherlea Way' ambassador by always showing our school values in everything you do. You are kind and thoughtful and include your peers in your games. We are so grateful to have you in our class; you are a true leader!

Cooper C - For being a Kind, Safe and Fair superstar! You are such a caring and empathetic class mate and give it your all to everything you do!

KOWHAI TEAM

Skye N - For the way you live and breathe our school motto. You are always kind to those around you, you make others feel safe to have a go and you are consistently fair. Keep it up Super Star!

KAURI TEAM

Shaylen I - You always model our school values Shaylen, being friendly, kind and considerate towards every single member of the class all the time!

The awards are for recognition in displaying and modelling our school motto and values; Be Kind, Be Safe, Be Fair.

Dear Witherlea School Community

We are well through another school year; the Board hopes you are all well and looking forward to a lovely break coming up at the end of term. We would like to thank you for your continued support of Witherlea School.

The Board are committed to continuous improvement of student wellbeing and achievement, and an area of this effort is a Principal review. This feedback provides valuable insights into the strengths and areas for growth of our school's leader.

We believe that the collective perspective of our diverse community is crucial in this process. Therefore, we are inviting you to participate by providing your feedback through Principal's Review survey (link below).

https://forms.gle/q6ZczGi9U6o97aRW7

Rest assured that all responses are confidential, and the data will be aggregated. If you would like to provide personalised feedback or have any questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me.

Your contribution to this process is invaluable and will help shape the future of our school. We thank you in advance for taking the time to share your thoughts and perspectives.

Kind regards,

Khalid Suleiman

Presiding Member

Witherlea School Board