Newsletter No. 5, April 1 2022
April 1 2022
Tena koutou e te Whānau,
As part of our virtual assembly this morning Rapanui shared what their learning about our school value of Whanaungatanga meant to them. Have a look at this learning here.
Huge thanks for your continued support and understanding as we continue to navigate the changes we are facing due to Covid. At the start of this term I shared that our plan was to try to maintain business as usual for as long as possible and, so far, we are managing this pretty well. Over this week we have seen our highest case numbers to date, with a significant number of families isolating. Today we had nearly 90 children away. At the moment we are managing to keep normal programmes running as much as possible and have been able to use a number of relieving teachers to support us in achieving this. HUGE thanks goes to you all for your incredible continued support and understanding and to our amazing team of staff who are doing everything in their power to ensure school remains as normal as possible for our children, while ensuring we continue to have necessary mitigations in place.
I know there may be questions regarding what the recent changes announced by the Government mean for our school. With case numbers continuing to rise within our community, our plan at the moment is to maintain our current systems under our Covid Protection Framework Red Settings until the end of term, pending the Government review of settings on 4 April. Over the holidays, the Board and I will work to review any new announcements and communicate any changes to you. My overarching message though is that we will navigate the weeks and months ahead together as a community, at a pace that we can practically and safely manage.
Rapanui Acorn Art - Week 9
Spotlight on end of term gratitude…
The first thank you has to go to our children - they have been absolutely incredible this term and have taken any changes that have come their way in their stride and have shown their kindness and self regulation Character Strengths on a regular basis. I am always proud to be the Principal of such a fantastic group of ākonga, but this term they have surpassed my expectations.
The next thank you is to you all, our fantastic school whānau. Thank you so much for your continued support this term as we have navigated new health and safety measures and worked to keep our school community safe. I know there has been A LOT of communication coming your way via the app, so thank you for doing your best to keep up to date with this! Thank you also for your support in keeping all the additional sickness bugs out of school by keeping your children at home when they’ve been unwell. We appreciate that this isn’t always easy, but it is so appreciated!
And finally, a HUGE thank you to our amazing team of staff at school. It has been a massive term for them as they have worked to continue normal routines and programmes at school while managing Covid mitigations and large absences within their learning spaces. I’m sure you will join me in wishing them a well-deserved break.
Spotlight on reporting
Spotlight on Teacher Only Day…
A reminder that school will be closed to students on Thursday 14 April for a Teacher Only Day. This day is one of the eight additional Teacher-Only Days that were allocated in an Accord between the Ministry of Education and the NZEI Te Riu Roa Union to address teacher workload as part of the last round of negotiations. This day will be used by teachers to plan ahead to Term 2.
Have a wonderful weekend with your whānau.
Take care.
Ngā mihi nui,
Anna Granger
Principal
Te Onepoto Top Town event at Heathcote Valley - Week 9
Message from PhotoLife
Keycodes for online ordering class photos as well as individuals were emailed to you last week. Contact www.photolife.co.nz or phone 0800 501 040 with any further questions or if you didn't receive the codes.
Scholastic Book
Your child's book order should have been given to them last week. Any queries please contact Stana on: stanaj@yahoo.com
Awaroa Students - Technology
Mana Ake is available to Support families/Whānau
Parent Drop-ins to see a Mana Ake counsellor/Kaimahi are up and running. Due to Covid Red Setting these will be organised via Zoom or a phone call.
If you would like to meet with one of the Mana Ake team please talk to your child's teacher and they will book in a time for you.
Mana Ake encourage parents to visit https://manaake.health.nz/supporting-your-child/ and the Free Parent Helpline 0800 568 856. This is available from 9am to 9pm Monday to Sunday.
The Mana Ake website has a section on Big Worries - Mana Ake which is particularly relevant with what’s going on in the world currently.
Parents going to this site can be assured of finding up-to-date and quality information on wellbeing and parenting skills. Another useful link for families and parents. https://realparents.org/
Rapanui Writing
School Docs Term 2 Policy Review
Instructions for reviewers:
1. Visit www.schooldocs.co.nz
2. Search for Sumner School (Username: Sumner, Password: Wakefield).
3. Search for the above policies in the search bar.
4. Read the policy.
5. Check the red Policy Review icon at the right-hand top corner of the page. a new screen will appear.
6. Select your role (Board member, staff member, or parent/caregiver) from the drop-down list.
7. Enter your name (optional).
8. Submit your ratings and comments.