Te Panui - 25 November 2022
Western Heights High School
PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
As you may well be aware through the reports in the media, Covid is on the rise in many communities across the country. The school will continue to operate with our current health measures and systems to reduce any spread of Covid-19. These include ensuring our indoor spaces are well-ventilated, maintaining good hand hygiene and cough and sneeze etiquette, appropriate physical distancing whenever we can and, most importantly, reinforcing and promoting staying home if we are sick. I would like to thank you all for your cooperation with this.
We would like to congratulate our junior volleyball teams who recently played in the Bay of Plenty Championship. A special congratulations to our Junior Girls A Team who took first place for the second year in a row. A huge thank you to our coaches and managers for your dedication and support of our teams. We look forward to the results from the national competition currently being played where we have 5 teams competing.
We look forward to celebrating the achievements of our Year 9 and 10 students on Friday December 9. We hope you can join us for the Year 10 Prize giving at 9:30 am and the Year 9 Prizegiving is at 11:00 am.
As this will be the last panui for the year. We wish everyone a safe and restful holiday break and we look forward to seeing everyone back next year.
Ngā mihi
James Bracefield
Principal
SCHOOL NOTICES
Teacher Only Days - NEXT WEEK
As previously advised in Te Panui, we have two teacher only days, as well as a Paid Union meeting coming up, and unfortunately they all fall in the same week:
Accord Days (Teacher only Days) - Monday 28 November and Friday 2 December. Students are not required at school on these days.
Paid Union Meeting - the PPTA has called members to a meeting on the afternoon of Tuesday 29 November. Consequently:
we will work a short day, finishing at 12.20 pm
free school lunches will still be delivered but the canteen will be closed
buses will do the morning run at the normal time. The Springfield/East-side bus will depart school at 12.30 but all other buses will depart at their normal time. Supervision will be provided for bus students who have to remain at school.
Junior Prizegiving and Last Day of Term
Year 10 Prize giving at 9:30 am
Year 9 Prizegiving is at 11:00 am
The prizegiving ceremonies will be live streamed for those who would like to watch remotely, the links will be available on our facebook page closer to the time.
Yearbook 2022
#heightsproud
#taumatarau
Opening Hours - School Office
Opening Hours - Uniform Shop
See the below link for full opening hours and uniform regulations
Commencement Dates 2023
Tuesday 31 January
8.40am - Year 9 students and Year 13 peer mentor leaders
4.00pm - Parent/House group tutor meeting
Wednesday 1 February
8.40am - Year 9 and Year 10 students
Thursday 2 February
8.40am - Year 11, 12 and 13 students (Years 9 and 10 not required)
8.40am - First day Te Maru unit
Friday 3 February
8.40am - Year 9 - 13, full school attendance.
Monday 6 February - Public Holiday, Waitangi Day
CURRICULUM NEWS
Year 9 French
CO CURRICULAR NEWS
Heights Board Riders
A group of our students had their inaugural Surf session as part of HBR!
This is a new co-curricular activity offered at WHHS that was inspired by the success and engagement of the Surfing programme offered in Year 12 and 13 Outdoor Recreation and Sport.
This activity offers our students the unique opportunity to not only develop their surfing and ocean safety skills, but also their resilience and self-confidence.
This activity takes place during terms one and four, on Wednesday afternoons (pending weather and ocean conditions)
Although in its infancy, we are excited for the future.
FROM THE NURSE
The health and wellbeing of our children, staff and community is a top priority so we are closely following the Ministry of Health guidance for schools.
Stay home if sick/get tested: A child must stay at home if they appear unwell or if they develop any of the below symptoms:
Symptoms of COVID-19
A new or worsening cough.
Sneezing and runny nose.
A fever.
Temporary loss of smell or altered sense of taste.
Sore throat.
Shortness of breath.
Less common symptoms include diarrhoea, headache, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting, malaise, chest pain, abdominal pain, joint pain, or confusion/irritability.
If a child becomes increasingly unwell and/or you are concerned about them, call your GP or Healthline on 0800 611 116. A child who is refusing to drink anything is likely to be very unwell. Call your doctor or Healthline on 0800 358 5453 for advice about getting tested for COVID-19.
For more information, go to the Unite Against COVID-19 website.
If you or someone in your whānau tests positive for COVID-19
If you or your child receives a positive test result the positive case must isolate for seven days.
Household contacts should remain vigilant and test for 5 days, but are not required to self-isolate.
Returning to school after COVID-19
Students who test positive for COVID-19 are not required to self-isolate past seven days, but they shouldn’t return to school if they are still feeling unwell.
Many children will have long lasting runny nose and cough after viral infections. If it is over 10 days since the onset of the COVID infection and they are no longer feeling unwell, they are unlikely to be transmitting any active COVID infection and can return to school.
However, if they are continuing to feel unwell or their symptoms are worsening after 10 days then it is recommended you contact your GP.
Other respiratory illnesses
If a child has been unwell with a respiratory illness other than COVID-19, they can return to their school 24 hours after they have significantly improved and are behaving/eating normally. Hay fever and other allergies can show similar symptoms to the common cold such as sneezing, a runny or stuffy nose and coughing. If a child has a history of allergic symptoms may be allowed to stay at school if this appears to be the cause.
Vomiting or diarrhoea: Following vomiting or diarrhoea, a child should be symptom free for 48 hours before they can return.
ALUMNI - PAST STUDENT SUCCESS
Junior Taia
Congratulations to past Heights student - Junior Taia; who will be captaining the Cook Islands Sevens Rugby team in the much anticipated Oceania Sevens on the 19-20 November, held at the Hugh Courtney Oval in Brisbane.
Junior said: “I’ve been a part of the team for a few years and am proud to be leading this group for the first time as captain and our first outing since 2019."
“It is the first tournament for most of the boys so they are pumped and proud to represent the Cook Islands. “it would be a big step up for Rugby for the Cook Islands to qualify to the Challenger Series, we are here to put our best foot forward and make that happen”, Taia added.
You can read the remainder of the article below
COMMUNITY NOTICES
CAREERS DEPARTMENT
University Scholarships
MoneyHub, a consumer finance website, has published a guide to hundreds of scholarships for any student planning to start university in 2023. The comprehensive list includes scholarships offered by every university as well as those specifically available to local students. A list of privately-funded, Maori, Pacific and international university scholarships completes the list. Applications close throughout the year, with tens of millions of dollars available. MoneyHub has also published a list of tips for scholarship success.
For more details and to find suitable scholarships, visit https://www.moneyhub.co.nz/Studylink
Contact Us
Email: info@whhs.school.nz
Website: https://whhs.school.nz
Location: Western Heights High School Old Quarry Road, Western Heights, Rotorua, New Zealand
Phone: +64 (0)7 349 5940
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whhsrotorua