Rātā Street School Pānui

Kia ora whānau

There are a lot of wonderful learning activities happening across the school at the moment, both inside and outside of the classroom. Children are engaged in these rich learning experiences and I have enjoyed the spontaneous conversations that I’ve had with a number of children in the playground about these recently.

Class trips are always a highlight for everyone, and I know how much the akōnga in Te Whānau Puāwai enjoyed visiting the Rocky Shore a couple of weeks ago. The weather played its part on the day and I know the children enjoyed the practical side of touching and feeling the things that they had been learning about. Nothing quite beats the hand-on experience. Te Whānau Pihinga are off to the zoo today, and I know that Te Whānau Kākano have something special planned for Term 3. It has been refreshing to re-establish this area of school life and to have the children learning out in the community again.

We’ve had a number of visitors to the school recently. The latest of these was the team from the Duffy Theatre. Tuesday afternoon was spent together in the hall being entertained and having fun with the talented actors who took the children on a journey to outer space.

Enjoy the rest of your week. Be safe and happy.

Ngā mihi

Hamish Regan

We warmly welcome our new students and their whānau to Rātā Street School. They are: J.C, Nala and Liam.

Congratulations to the following tamariki from Te Whānau Puāwai for being awarded a Values Award on Friday 12 May.

L.A. for being Pakari - Resilient

Arya for being Pakari - Resilient

Estaria for being Pakari - Resilient

Clara for showing Aroha - Heart

Mason for being Pakari - Resilient

Toni for showing Aroha - Heart

Chap Ma for being Pakari - Resilient

Maceson for showing Mahi tahi - Teamwork

Kahu for showing Whakauru - Inclusive

Alexis for showing Whakauru - Inclusive

Next week is Samoan Language Week and on Thursday of next week it will be Samoan Independence Day. This year’s theme for Vaiaso o le Gagana Samoa - Samoan Language Week is ‘Mitamita i lau gagana, maua’a lou fa’asinomaga’ which means ‘Be proud of your language and grounded in your identity’.

Don’t forget to get your Sapasui and Panikeke orders in by 3pm on Tuesday.

Talofa lava - ia manuia le vaiaso o le gagana Samoa! Happy Samoan Language Week!

It has been brought to my attention that some parents/caregivers and whānau are choosing not to use the crossing with their children when crossing the road. This was particularly evident last Friday afternoon when there was a near miss between a child and a car on Rātā Street. I would like to take this opportunity to remind whānau to please use the crossings in the mornings and afternoons, as I would hate for there to be another near miss or even worse, a child being hit and seriously injured by a car.

Last week the weather played its part and we were able to hold our annual school cross country. It was wonderful to have the children and staff dressed in their House colours on the day to support one another. This certainly added extra vibrancy to the occasion and helped to make it a special day for all. There were lots of whānau supporting each of the children throughout the races and I would like to say a big thank you to all of those who were able to make it. I would also like to thank Mr Irwin for doing a fabulous job of organising the races, and to all the teachers and teacher aides who had jobs on the day. Photos from each race have been posted to our school Facebook page, so please check them out.

The newly formed PTA is looking to hold a sausage sizzle at an upcoming school event, and although the school has a rather large barbeque that they can use, there is a need for an additional barbeque to cook different types of sausages on. If you have a portable barbeque that you don’t mind lending to the school in the last week of the term would you, please make contact with Hamish. We are more than happy to pick it up and drop it off if needed.

Badminton lessons continue this week for the children in Te Whānau Puāwai. These lessons are a great opportunity for the children to be introduced to a sport that they may not generally have access to, learn new skills, and of course have fun.

We are looking to remove the brick wall at the front of the school over the remainder of the year. This is because the wall has been damaged over time, and parts of it are now a health and safety issue. I have been approached by a couple of people who are interested in using the bricks at home. Over the coming weeks we will be looking to remove the wall in sections and store the bricks, which will be made available to whānau, free of charge, to collect. If you are interested in getting hold of some of the bricks, please see Hamish.

We continue to receive new entrant enrolments and Ako 2 is filling up quickly. If you have a child or know of a child who is turning 5 soon, and they will be enrolling at Rātā Street, please make contact with the school as soon as possible.

Newsletters are emailed to whānau every fortnight, usually on a Wednesday. If you don’t have an email address and you would like to receive a paper copy of the newsletter, please contact Jean-Mari in the office.

After 27 years of working at Rātā Street School, Eddie Forster will finish up at the end of the term.

Eddie has been a wonderful asset to the school over the years and it goes without saying that he is going to be greatly missed by everyone here. His connections to the Naenae community run deep and I know that there are a lot of whānau within the community, including past students, who know him well.

Eddie is passionate about the students that he works with and he cares deeply about the ‘whole’ child. He has been instrumental in providing a range of sporting opportunities to the children here over a number of years, and he is well known for his love of hockey.

Eddie has also had a significant impact culturally at Rātā Street. His Te Ao Māori lens as a classroom teacher, as well as the school-wide initiatives that he has implemented over the years have been instrumental in supporting our ākonga and will be felt for years to come.

We wish Eddie all the best for the future. An appropriate farewell will be held soon, in line with Eddie’s wishes.

If your child is absent, please ring and leave a clear message on the school phone line before 8.50am. You need to leave your child’s name, room number and the reason they are absent. The school phone number is 567 0096.

The following policy is open for review via School Docs.

1. Education Outside the Classroom (EOTC)

- Go to www.schooldocs.co.nz/

- Click Search for your school

- Start typing the school’s name and then select it from the dropdown list

- Enter the username (ratastreet) and password (naenae)

Instructions for Reviewers

1. Log in as above
2. Click on the current review tab
3. Follow the link to each policy in the table
4. Read the policy
5. Click the red Policy Review icon at the right-hand top corner of the page. A new screen will appear
6. Select your role (parent/caregiver) from the drop-down list
7. Enter your name (optional)
8. Submit your ratings and comments