Oratia District School Newsletter
Week 7 - 16 June 2022
Message from Ms Linda
Tēnā koutou katoa. Nau mai ki te whānau o te Ōrātia. Zdravo. Talofa lava. Ni hao. Kia orana. Namaste.
Greetings Ōrātia whānau. Our first national celebration of the Maori New Year, Matariki, is being held on Friday 24 June so school will be closed on that Friday for the public holiday. This means we will have a long weekend to commemorate the inaugural celebration. We hope that you will be able to find time to think about loved ones who may have passed, things you are holding onto that you may want to put down and release, and hopes and dreams for the coming year that you are wishing for.
We have been exploring different aspects of Matariki in classrooms, and have a day of celebration lined up on Thursday 23 June for our students, including an early morning ceremony at school, fun activities through the day, and a shared lunch for everyone. If you could please send a small plate of food suitable for lunch eating to school with your child next Thursday for our whole school shared lunch it would be most appreciated. More detailed information will be coming home soon, but we wanted to ask you to save the date so that if you are able to come in to school that day you could mingle with your children and be a part of the activities and celebrations. We would love to see you here.
On a similar note we are delighted with the number of whānau who are able to attend our fortnightly assemblies, and share in the fun and certificates. Thank you for coming.
As you will be aware, the housing development at the end of Glengarry Rd (Selo) is taking shape. The Ministry of Education is reviewing every school zone in the country, and has made a proposed change to our zone to include the homes in the Selo estate. It is proposed by the boards of both schools that families living at Selo will be in a shared zone between Prospect School and Ōrātia School. We are the closest school to that address and it makes sense to have those children come to us if they wish to. It will also boost our in-zone numbers and help protect our staffing entitlement as we are in a dropping roll situation at the moment. More information is below and on our school website with a link to a survey so that you can give your response to this proposal. The Ministry wishes to provide opportunity for consultation so please have your say if you desire to.
Our wave of Covid related illness seems to be slowing, though there are still plenty of winter bugs affecting attendance.
We wish you and your families good health and well being.
Kia kaha, kia atawhai.
Ngā mihi nui, Ms Linda
Friday lunch schedule
Thursday 23 June - Jesters Pie Day
Friday 1 July - Subway
Friday 8 July - Pita Pit
Friday lunches can be ordered on Kindo and will be delivered to your child's classroom at the beginning of lunchtime. Order cut off times: Sushi- Wednesday night, Jesters Pies-12noon the Thursday prior, Subway and Pita Pit Thursday night.
Please contact the office to make arrangements to collect lunch orders if your child is absent on the day.
Celebrating Matariki next Thursday
To celebrate Matariki and help our tamariki deepen their understanding of the essence of Matariki and connect with whānau, we have a full day of fun Matariki inspired activies planned for next Thursday. Whānau are invited to join us for the whole day or part of, depending on you commitments. Please see the schedule below - we would love to see you here!
Oratia School zone proposed amendment consultation
The Ministry of Education is currently reviewing a proposal to change our enrolment zone to include the new Selo development on the corner of West Coast Road and Glengarry Road. The Silo development would become a shared zone with Prospect Primary School. That is the only change to the zone.
We have been asked to post these documents on our website and to inform people of the changes and their right to comment. The Ministry is seeking consultation around these changes and invite our community to have their say.
Consultation process and timeline -
The Ministry of Education is currently undertaking consultation about the proposed changes and new enrolment schemes. You can have your say by:
Completing the survey at: https://consultation.education.govt.nz/education/henderson-primaries-enrolment-schemes
Emailing auckland.enrolmentschemes@education.govt.nz if you have further questions or comments. The Ministry will consider all feedback and liaise with the Board before making a final decision. The new schemes and changes will come into effect for the beginning of Term 3 2022.
Please click below to view the relevant documents
School Photos - update
Order forms for school photos will be delivered to the school at the start of next term and distributed to come home to parents and caregivers to order online.
Thank you to the Parent network
Thank you very much to our Oratia School Parent Network for their kind donation of our new Flag Poles and Flags. It is lovely to be able to celebrate and acknowledge the different cultures within our school by flying their national flags. If you would like to be part of our Oratia School Parent Network please contact the chairperson Susan at susan@susangiles.co.nz
PB4L
Next week's PB4L lesson is about winter at Oratia School. Please help support us with this by making sure your child has a named change of clothes in their school bags and also reminding them that occasionally throughout winter our fields are closed due to it being too wet and muddy to play on and that we have many other places for them to play while we wait for our field to dry out.
SPORTS CORNER
Brand New Portable Netball posts for sale!
We have two new portable netball posts for sale at $100 each. They are like the one pictured here but unused/unopened and still in the box with instructions. The posts extend to different heights so suitable for all ages and are on wheels for easy manouvering. If you would like to purchase one of these netball posts, please email janinem@oratia.school.nz
Netball News
Netball season is well underway and our six netball teams have been enjoying some nail biting matches. Thank you to our Coaches and Managers for all your efforts and organisation so far, we really appreciate your help!
Kiwi Competitions
Testing for the Kiwi Competitions is fast approaching and will run from Monday 20th June to Friday 29th July. Dates have been scheduled for each of the tests and we will run extra sessions for students absent on the initial dates. These tests are for those Year 5 and 6 students who have registered earlier in the year.
English - Monday 20th June
Maths - Wednesday 22nd June
Science - Tuesday 28th June
There are no past papers available due to prizes being awarded to top scorers and some questions may be used in subsequent years.
Results should be available before the end of Term 3.
All students receive a certificate and also an ‘Individual Student Report’ outlining performance overall and for each section and their level of completion and accuracy. These reports are made available for the school to download for you on request.
PARENT CORNER
Collection for 'Give a kid a blanket' charity
One of our Lone Kauri families is a collection point for the 'Give a kid a blanket' charity this year.
Give a Kid a Blanket’s mission is to relieve the effects of poverty and offer practical help to those in need. They do this by gifting objects of warmth including blankets, duvets, bedding, clothing and self-care essentials to those who need them in our community. They want the people they support to feel valued by the community so only gift quality new, handmade and excellent quality pre-loved items.
If you would like to donate an item please drop it in to the school office.
COMMUNITY NOTICES
Bruce McLaren Intermediate School - Open Night
Information Evening for families of Year 6 Students
Wednesday, 22 June 2022, 6.30pm - 7.30pm
Come along and meet our Principal and talk to staff about why Bruce McLaren Intermediate School should be your school of choice for 2023.
Meet in the school hall at 6.30pm. Light refreshments will be provided.
Contact Us
Email: principal@oratia.school.nz
Website: https://www.oratia.school.nz
Location: Shaw Road & West Coast Road, Oratia, Auckland 0604, Auckland, New Zealand
Phone: +64 9 818-6216
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OratiaSchool/