Kia ora koutou e te whānau;

A HUGE thank you to the parents, caregivers and staff members from our first POSITIVE case last weekend;

• Firstly - the early notification was an amazing help
• The families followed the guidelines perfectly
• Every student and staff member returned NEGATIVE results
• Most students and ALL staff members are back at school learning

We did an exceptional job navigating this changing landscape and we did it together! School is a SAFE place and coming to school is vital for students and to keep NZ operational.

So...Phase 3 has begun and it is all about SELF MANAGEMENT - no more contact tracing or letters home. We will continue to keep our community informed regarding positive cases but these will be managed by the families and whānau.

We have created an EASY to follow FLOWCHART for us all. It is attached below and it is in the form of a PDF at the bottom of this update if you would like to print it out and put it on your fridge. If you have any questions or queries please contact the office.

Sickness

Please note we will be EXTRA vigilant at school regarding SICKNESS. If you or your children are sick or have symptoms you must STAY HOME. If symptoms develop at school or we think a child is sick you will need to collect them.

We also continue in Red Light; scanning, mask-wearing, LIMITED numbers onsite, staggered breaks and separate play for our teams.

Extra Understanding for Year 4-6

It is important to note that our Year 4-6 teachers and students in Kōwhai and Kauri are finding the mask-wearing very difficult. Teaching is such an art form and connecting with students, modelling and explaining are fundamentals for learning. Our teachers are using the outdoors, taking regular breaks and doing their very best under the circumstances however it is hard. This could become part of our new norm so we are working on this aspect and changes that may support both the teacher and the students in these environments. Learning is happening however it just may look different while we get used to this way of being.

Have a lovely weekend, take care of yourselves and your whanāu and please do not hesitate to get in touch with any questions or queries.

Ngā manaakitanga,

Andrea Harnett - Tumuaki