Pinehill School News, 10 November
10 November 2021 - Week 4, Term 4
Message from our Principal
Kia ora tatou,
Welcome to Week 4!
It was wonderful to have our students and families join us in our School Zoom assembly to start the week. A big welcome to our five new students who have started their Pinehill School journey with us this week.
As retail has opened, our Level 3 bubble classes have increased. We now have four bubble classes on site and the students are doing a great job of managing school in a spaced out and different environment.
Chris Hipkins and the cabinet are expected to make a detailed education announcement later today. We will keep you updated with how that will look at Pinehill School as we receive further information from the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health. In the meantime, we are planning end-of-year events such as graduation and prizegiving in a Plan A scenario and a Plan B scenario, depending on the levels and stages we are in at these times.
The Resilience Project
This year Pinehill School has been fortunate to be a part of TRP - The Resilience Project. The pillars of GEME (Gratitude, Empathy, Mindfulness and Emotional Literacy) support mindfulness and resilience. Little did we know when we embarked on this journey how pivotal TRP would be in 2021.
During our assembly, we shared a staff slideshow with the students on gratitude. The children have become familiar with the story in TRP of a boy called Stunzin. He would point to things and say ‘Dis’ when he was extremely grateful for something he had. Lockdown has had its challenges for us all. We talked to the children at the assembly that even in the times we are experiencing now, being away from friends and school, we can still be thankful for the things we have around us and we too can say ‘Dis’. Staff put together their own ‘Dis’ moment to share with the students. We have a copy of the link below for you to click on to view and share our Dis moments. Enjoy!
Class Placements for 2022
We have reached that time of year when teachers are starting to place children in classes for 2022. As you would appreciate, we have many things to consider when placing children together. Some of these are:
equal class sizes
male/female mix
balancing children with English as a second language across classes
academic balance
teacher/child strengths, interests
children who learn well together
children who do not learn well together
children needing learning or behaviour support
friendships
Teachers have a lot of knowledge about their students, and parents can be assured that a considerable amount of thought goes into making the best placement for each child. Teachers will talk with the students in their class about positive learning relationships/friendships, which will be taken into account.
If you have any special considerations about your child’s placement that you wish for us to be aware of please put these in writing to carla@pinehill.school.nz by Friday 12 November. Requests for specific teachers are not able to be accommodated. As mentioned above, friendship requests will be considered.
Class Lists for 2022
We are currently compiling our class lists for 2022. Thank you for the contributions we have received, which we are taking into consideration alongside teacher input and student voice. We endeavour to combine your input with our knowledge of your children to make the best decisions we can. If you are NOT returning to our school in 2022 and haven’t told us for some reason, could you please let the office know, info@pinehill.school.nz. This helps us with class organisation.
New Enrolments
Enrolments for 2022 are now being taken at the office. If you know of any families who have a four year old who will be starting school next year and live in the Pinehill School zone, please encourage them to contact the office regarding their child’s enrolment. Please see the school website for zoning and enrolment criteria details. All our enrolment information can be downloaded and found on the school website https://pinehill.school.nz/our-school/
Full School Assembly - Monday 15th November at 9:00 am
To begin our week next week, we would like to start the week together as a school with a full school assembly on Monday 15th November at 9:00 am. Families are welcome to join us. Please ensure your child’s microphone is on mute, so there is no background noise while the assembly is running. Details for the zoom assembly are below.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86068241306?pwd=aEpUVVVxVUZXN3IzQS9mTHFJMDcyQT09
Meeting ID: 860 6824 1306
Passcode: 59GZer
As always, please let us know if there is anything you need to support you and your tamariki during this time.
Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini
Success is not the work of one but the work of many.
Ngā mihi nui,
Carla Veldman, Principal
Scholastics Book Club
While we are currently schooling from home, we’ve created a special digital catalogue to help families stay inspired to read and learn. It's jam-packed with bonus Christmas pages and the best of the best books of 2021!
This issue is available by viewing the catalogue online and placing an order on the LOOP platform. All orders will be delivered directly to the home!
Click here to download the catalogue.
Click here to place orders.
Board News
Board of Trustees Policies
All school policies are available through School Docs - click here
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Contact Us
Email: info@pinehill.school.nz
Website: https://www.pinehill.school.nz
Location: 2 Hugh Green Drive, Pinehill, Auckland 0632, New Zealand
Phone: 09 4780301