Dear Parents and Whānau

It is so good to have everyone back at school. In week one we had an attendance rate of 95%, thank you for having faith in your school and for preparing your children for a return to school.

We know that modelling suggests we will have more Covid cases over the next month or two, be assured we have a plan in place and we will do our best to keep the school open with all safety precautions in place.

Firstly, I would like to mention a special thank you to Jaxsen Zhu and his family for donating 2000 children's masks to the school. We have been able to put a box of these in every classroom in case students lose or misplace their own mask. A very generous gift to the school.

This week we will celebrate all new students who have begun at SPS. Traditionally, we welcome new students with a Shelly Park Certificate at our Friday afternoon assemblies. As we can't meet as a whole group just yet, we will be doing this in smaller Pod assemblies. These will be videoed and put up on the school website. I will send an alert via the new app when these are ready to view.

Next Wednesday, 16th of February, is our Pod Information Evening. This year, due to Covid restrictions we will be sending out the information to you via email and the school app. It is a real shame that we can't meet you onsite but we would rather be safe than sorry. Team leaders will send the information out to you on Wednesday evening and they will share their vision for the Pod with you.

On Monday, February 21st, we will be running our Aqua Fun Day. This is a highlight for our Pod 1 and 2 students as they learn and have fun with water play. This essentially is their swimming sports' day. Pod's 3 and 4 will be competing in the School Swimming Sports Day on Thursday 24th of February.

The first PTA meeting of the year will take place on Monday 14th of February. All parents are welcome, I mean where else would you rather be on Valentines Day!

Again, it has been a great start to the school year. The pool is being used daily and students are starting to remember what it's like to be back at school and are getting used to their routines again. Long may it continue.

Ngā mihi

Ed Roper

PTA News

Newsletter No.1 Wednesday 09 February 2022

Chair: Kieran Lewis Treasurer: Brent Batten Secretary: Katie Deller

Contact: pta@shellypark.school.nz

Next PTA Meeting date: Monday 14 February 2022 @ 7:30pm, Zoom

Zoom Video link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86739040200

Welcome to all current and new families to Shelly Park School! We hope you had a fantastic holiday break!

For those who aren’t currently aware, all Shelly Park families are part of the PTA - Parent Teacher Association. The purpose of the PTA is to raise funds for the school which can be used towards activities for our kids or improvements in school facilities. One example, the recent addition of our canopy space, would not have been possible without funds raised by the PTA.

We have meetings each month in the staffroom or via Zoom video conference, that parents & caregivers are very welcome to attend. These meetings are used to discuss what is happening in the school, fundraising, events and also a good opportunity to learn more about what happens behind the scenes! Please come along to listen or contribute, however much or as little as you like.

Dates are included in the newsletter and meetings are also advertised on the Facebook page & school App.

The major fundraiser for 2022 is the Shelly Park Fun Fest which was rescheduled from last year due to COVID restrictions. The new date is Sunday 25 September 2022 - fingers crossed! The school has a gala biannually and is always a great event. This event is only a success with help from our Shelly Park families. If you are available to help please email gala@shellypark.school.nz

This year the PTA has a few fundraisers organised to continue to raise funds for our school. COVID-19 with the traffic light system has given us a few more hurdles to jump but our main goal is to continue to raise funds for the school and support our students. More information will be sent out regarding these in due course.

We look forward to meeting you all.

Any questions or concerns please email pta@shellypark.school.nz

UPCOMING PTA AGM

Our annual Annual General Meeting is on Tuesday 15 March from 7.30pm. The location is to be confirmed (more information to follow).

Every two years the PTA Executive team, a new person is nominated into the three roles. This year we are in need of a new PTA Secretary. Our current Secretary, Katie Deller, (who is still operating in the background) has moved to New Plymouth and so we need to fill her spot!

Secretary

Current Secretary: Katie Deller

The Secretary is a fantastic role for any parent at Shelly Park, regardless of how long their child/ children have been at school. This role is an excellent way to really involve yourself in school life and give back to the school community. School families receive their information in multiple ways; the weekly school newsletter, website, facebook pages and parent teacher liaisons. The Secretary is responsible for distributing information through these channels. Information includes: upcoming events e.g., disco tickets, pizza lunches and Yellow deliveries; payments using Kindo, opening hours of the Secondhand Uniform shop and current fundraising opportunities.

If you have a passion for contributing to and improving our school for our children, this role could be for you. Being admin driven, organised and a great communicator are beneficial, as is familiarity with G Suite (Google drive, docs, gmail etc.). This role can be managed alongside working part or full time.

Secretary Role:

• Create PTA content in the weekly newsletter

• Create monthly meeting agendas, record and distribute minutes of meetings

• Communicating with parents, admin staff, coordinators, Board of Trustees and teacher liaisons

• Communicate information and updates to school families via school facebook pages*

• Managing and responding to communication within the PTA email address*.

*managed in conjunction with the Chair and Treasurer. We are open to the Secretary role being shared between 2 people.

To ensure the continuity of the PTA, it’s imperative that we fill the outgoing role soon and with a transition, so the wealth of invaluable PTA knowledge can continue. Please don’t hesitate to contact Kieran, Brent or Katie for more information about what the role entails, how much time it takes each month or with any other questions you may have via pta@shellypark.school.nz.

All nominations can be emailed to pta@shellypark.school.nz

UPCOMING KEY DATES:

• PTA Meeting

• Monday 14 February 2022, 7.30pm

• Zoom Video Conference https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86739040200

• PTA AGM & Meeting

• Tuesday 15 March 2022, 7.30pm

• Location to be confirmed (SPS Staffroom or Zoom)

SPS Branded Wellness Packs

For those parents who placed an order for masks, sunscreen or hand sanitiser, the order should arrive at school by Week 3. The orders will be sent home with your child/ren.

Yummy Stickers

Shelly Park has again registered to collect the Yummy Apple stickers. These stickers are converted into a winning share of the $200,000 sports prize pool from DG Sport. All you have to do is purchase ‘Yummy’ branded apples, save the stickers or cut out labels, place them on a sticker collection sheet and return them to your classroom teacher. The apples can be purchased from New World, Pak n Save and participating Four Square stores.

The Yummy Apple Sticker Promotion officially runs for Terms 2 and 3, however if you have been collecting since last year, these stickers still count too. If you need more Sticker Collection Sheets or Cut out label collection sheets they will be available at the Office or with your classroom teacher. Please return all completed Collection sheets to your classroom teacher or hold onto these sheets until the end of Term 3 for collection - we will let you know!

Entertainment Book

Thank you to those who have recently purchased an entertainment book. The PTA truly does appreciate the extra funds that the school gains from each purchase. All memberships last 12 months from the date of purchase.

Every membership sold gives 20% back to our school! Please support our school with this fundraiser, and share this link with family, friends and work colleagues. Use this link to find out more! https://nz.entdigital.net/orderbooks/954z61

PTA Fundraiser - Bakers Delight Howick

Mention Shelly Park School before payment at Bakers Delight Howick, and 10% of the amount spent will be donated back to our school. This is an ongoing promotion.

2022 Dates for PTA Meetings

Monday 14 February, Tuesday 15 March (AGM), Monday 11 April, Monday 09 May, Tuesday 07 June, Monday 04 July, Tuesday 16 August, Monday 05 September, Tuesday 25 October, Monday 14 November and Monday 05 December.

We will, however, be updating you on events that are taking place in school. This term we have the School Swimming Sports, School Triathlon and some end of term round robin activities planned. Keep and eye on this section for updates.

• PTA Meeting - Monday - February - 14th @ 7:30pm (via Zoom)
• Board of Trustees Meeting - Tuesday - February - 15th at 7pm (via Google Meets)
• Pod Information - Wednesday - February - 16th (Information sent home)
  
• Aqua Fun Day - Monday - February - 21st
• School Swimming Sports - Friday - February - 25th
  
• School Camp (Pod 3/4) - Monday - Thursday - March - 7th - 11th
• PTA Meeting - Tuesday - March - 15th
• School Picnic Evening - Thursday - March - 24th - 5:30pm - 7:30pm
• Teacher Only Day - Monday - March - 28th
• School Triathlon - Friday - April - 1st
• Two Way Parent/Teacher Conference - Tuesday - Wednesday - April - 12th and 13th
• Last day of Term 2 - Thursday - April - 14th