16th June 2022, Term 2, Week 7
School Newsletter
Principal's Message
Kia ora koutou katoa,
What a wild week of weather it has been! We hope everyone has been keeping warm, dry and safe over the last week. Due to the winter chills and bugs going around, we have been experiencing many absences of both students and staff. Because there are a range of illnesses circulating around the wider community, there is a very limited supply of relief staff available. Thank you for your understanding and your patience, and for keeping your children home to recuperate if they are not feeling well. The good news is that we have extremely low cases of Covid (2 cases) in our community. Students and staff have been showing a lot of Whakamana when normal programs may have been altered, but is still great to see some wonderful learning happening in our classes.
A reminder that Mid-Year reports will go home on our Friday 1 July. These reports will provide parents and caregivers with important information about the progress and achievement of your child.
Our kura has been preparing for our Whānau Day and Matariki celebrations which will be held next week. Please continue reading our newsletter to find out more information and timings. A reminder also, that Mrs. Audrey Larsen who is currently our ESOL Teacher and release teacher stepped back from her role of Deputy Principal at the end of last year to have more time with family. Due to Covid 19 restrictions we were unable to celebrate Audrey's long service (14 years) and contribution to West End School as Acting Principal, Deputy Principal/SECNO, and Team Leader. We are looking forward to celebrating Audrey's work as part of whānau day.
We have completed our first week of Kickstart Breakfast. It was great to see our tamariki making the most out of coming to have breakfast before school to start our day of learning off well. If you would like your child to have breakfast, please ask them to come to the hall before school. Our Breakfast Club goes from 8.15-8.45. See you there!
A huge congratulations to our Chess Club who travelled to Lytton Street School on Wednesday to compete against other schools! West End School came 1st and 2nd in their divisions and we had many individual awards for fantastic Chess skills! Well done team!
As mentioned in our last newsletter, our Board of Trustees community consultation session will be held on Wednesday 29 June at 6pm at Heather Todd (Board Co-Presiding Member's house). If you are interested in attending please RSVP by clicking on the link. This is a great chance to build Kotahitanga, and is a chance to hear from our West End Whānau to support our Strategic planning for the future.
Please remember if you have any questions about school events, how to get involved with school life, or your child's progress please make contact with your child's class classroom teacher in the first instance. As always, we are very keen to continue to strengthen our partnerships between home and school.
We look forward to seeing you next Thursday for our Whānau Day.
Have a great end to the week, and I wish you all a safe and happy weekend.
Ngā mihi nui
Matthew Kennedy
Principal
West End School
Te Kura o Urumutu
Upcoming Events
- Whanau Day - Thursday 23rd June
- Matariki Public Holiday - Friday 24th June
- Staff Only Day - Monday 27th June
- Community Consultation Session - Wednesday 29th June
- VIBE Assembly - Thursday 30th June
Matariki Public Holiday next Friday
Next Friday 24th of June is our first Matariki public holiday! School will be closed on this day, so please enjoy an extended weekend holiday and celebrate Maori New Year!
Staff Only Day 27th June
A reminder that there will be a Staff Only Day on Monday 27th June so school will be closed to our tamariki on this day. This follows our first Matariki public holiday on Friday 24th June.
This means that school will not be open on Friday 24th June and Monday 27th June. Classes will resume on Tuesday 28th June.
Communication about after school pickup
Please remember to let your child know where you will be picking them up after school. Because of the unpredictable nature of our weather at the moment, please also make a plan with your child as to where you will pick them up if it is raining. Please refrain from sending messages or emails to teachers regarding where you will pick them up, as many emails and messages in an afternoon when teachers are busy teaching is an added challenge. Please also be aware that the office also is very busy, and having to visit different classes to let children know where parents will pick them up can be very time consuming. Letting your child know where you will pick them up when it is fine, or raining would be much appreciated. You are most welcome to come into school to pick them up outside their classroom.
If your child is absent from school.
It is really important under the current circumstances you notify the school if your child is absent.
PLEASE DO NOT TXT OR EMAIL THE CLASSROOM TEACHER.
ALL ABSENCES SHOULD BE ADVISED VIA THE OFFICE.
Please remember to advise the office by 8.30am if your child is not attending school.
You can telephone 358-2465 and leave a message or txt 021 118 0156.
ABSENCES CAN ALSO BE SENT EASILY THROUGH OUR SCHOOL APP
In both cases please give a reason for absence.
Thank you.
Breakfast Club has started!
West End Kick Start Breakfast is in the school hall for any West End student who would like to have breakfast to start their day of learning! Breakfast Club will start at 8.15am and finish at 8.45am.
Whānau Day next week!
Next Thursday 23rd June West End School will be holding our Whānau Day where our school community is welcome to join us for day of Vibe Assemblies, Matariki celebrations, shared kai and finishing with our popular colour run event in the afternoon. All welcome! Please feel free to come and go through out the day if you have other obligations, but it would be great to see as many of our community to share in our celebrations, fun and learning. Below is a rundown of the day for your planning!
9.00 Vibe Assembly
During this Vibe Assembly our junior, middle and senior kapa haka groups will be performing. We will also be celebrating the time Audrey Larsen has been at West End School. We will also be talking and sharing our learning about Matariki.
10.20: Morning Tea
You are welcome to stay in our hall and staffroom for tea/coffee.
10.45: Matariki Activities in class
Whanau are welcome in your child's class where we will be carrying out a range of Matariki activities; including art work, games, waiata and stories. Please come and join in and work with your child and check out the great things going on in our classes.
12.00: Lunch/shared kai
Our kura has been preparing soup and fried bread throughout the week. This will be available in the school hall and Room 5 for students and adults. Children can get changed into their colour run clothes at this time!
12.40: Jump Jam
West End School will meet in the quad area to do some warm up dances with some jump jam songs.
1pm: West End School Colour run.
The colour run will begin and be run around our school. There will be a number of stations around the school where children will have colour run paint splattered on them.
You are welcome to take your child home at the conclusion of the colour run (if you are at school). Otherwise, children will be heading back to classes.
WHAT TO BRING:
Change of clothes to run in (and you don't mind them getting messy!)
Towel to dry off
Lunch
Water
Matariki/Puanga Week 20-23rd June
This year Te Kura O Urumutu (West End School) will be celebrating Matariki/Puanga throughout week 8. We have a few things planned that we would love some parent help with.
On the Wednesday (22nd June) we will need some volunteers to prepare and cook Matariki/Puanga Soup. We are intending this to be made on Wednesday 22 June, ready for Whānau Day the next day. Soup will be prepared, refrigerated and then put into crock-pots (in classrooms) on Thursday.
If you have a crockpot that you could loan to your classroom teacher, please let them know.
Could you please send a vegetable with each of your children next week, for making soup with. Preferably a root vegetable e.g. potato, kumara, carrot, parsnip or pumpkin. If you are sending vegetables on Wednesday (22nd June), can you please peel and cut it into 2cm chunks. This would make our helpers job much easier.
On Whānau Day (Thursday 23rd June), each class will be making fried bread. If you would like to help in your child’s classroom, please let the teacher know. The more hands (and eyes) during this process, the better.
Children will be having their fried bread with the Matariki/Puanga Soup. You are welcome to join them, whilst the kai lasts.
If you have flour, cooking oil, noodles or any other ingredients for making soup or fried bread that you would like to donate, please leave this with your classroom teacher. Everything/anything is greatly appreciated.
If you have anything that you would like to share throughout the week, read to a class, waiata, weaving, kite making . . . please let your classroom teacher know asap and they will arrange a time and day with you.
We LOVE having whānau in our classes and there is never a better time than over Matariki/Puanga time. Coming together to share this special time in the Māori calendar, playing games, sharing stories, learning new skills, singing waiata and sharing kai, is precious. We look forward to seeing you there! Please fill out the google form to let us know if you are able to help us out throughout the week.
VIBE ASSEMBLY FEEDBACK
Manaakitanga Shield
For the rest of the term West End School will be working on our manaakitanga by thinking about ways we can look after ourselves, our school, and other people. We have introduced the Manaakitanga Shield which will be awarded to the team who shows amazing manaakitanga by showing kindness to ourselves, our school and others. Our focus this term is looking after our belongings, and taking pride in our kura. Our shield will be awarded at the end of each week to the team consistently showing all the attributes of manaakitanga.
Congratuations to our Manaakitanga Shield winners for this week - PUAWAITANGA!
2D, or not 2D..? That is the question!
In Room 14 we are learning how to sort shapes. We learnt about the attributes of 2D shapes and sorted them into groups using the hula hoops. We used the value Whakamana to think about the group our shape would belong in.
Help needed! Can we borrow a mulcher for our school gardens please?
HELP! We have a lot of branches that have come down during our wild weather that we would love to mulch. Does anyone in our school community have a commercial mulcher that would be willing to lend, or even better help us to put this resource back into our school gardens? Please contact me: Ms Louise Ellis or email me at lellis@westend.school.nz
What's happening in our orchard?
This week has been a really productive week in our orchard. In between the crazy weather, Room 10 seized the opportunity to get down to the orchard when it wasn't raining. We got our hats, scarves and jackets as Tawhirimatea (kaitiaki of wind and weather) was still making himself felt.
We worked with Whaea Georgie to harvest the kumara that had been planted at the end of Term 4 last year. Ngā mihi to Bronny Ferry and her husband for gifting us the kumara slips and advice to Whaea Georgie on how to plant them. Did you know that you should plant them so their feet (roots) point to the sunset and their heads (leaves) point to the sunrise? They should be in an L position, like they are sitting up. We discovered that this was very good advice.
We were in awe of how many kumara were hidden under the dirt and the size of some of them were impressive. Room 10 showed their amazing team work as they collected and cleaned the kumara, as well as tidying up by collecting all the kumara vine in the wool fadge. Ngā mihi nui Rongomatāne (kaitiaki of Cultivated food) me Tupuanuku (The star representing food grown on the ground).
Sports at West End School
Draw:
Basketball:
16th June – West End Bulls vs Russell Street Piwakawaka, 4:15pm at CET Arena Court 1
16th June – West End Lakers vs Cornerstone Red, 4:15pm at CET Arena Court 9
Hockey:
19th June – West End Funsticks vs Opiki Funsticks, 9:15am on HMI Turf 2E
19th June – West End Ministicks vs St James Silver, 12:15pm on HMI Turf 2D
19th June – West End Goldsticks vs St James Gold, 12:15pm on HMI Turf 1B
Netball:
18th June – West End Pulse vs St Marys Red, 10:30am at CET Arena Court 7
Table Tennis:
21st June – West End A&B, 3:45-4:45/5pm at Waldegrave Hall
Practices:
A reminder of the days/times for sports practices:
Basketball:
West End Bulls – Monday 3-3:30pm on West End Court
West End Lakers – Wednesday 3-3:30pm on West End Court
Hockey:
West End Funsticks – Friday 3-3:30pm on West End Turf
West End Ministicks – Thursday 3-3:30pm on West End Turf
West End Goldsticks – Wednesday 3-3:45pm on West End Turf
Netball:
West End Pulse – Friday 3-3:45pm on West End Court
Table Tennis:
West End A&B – Monday 3-3:30pm in Room 5
West End School App
All school notices are now being sent out via our school app.
If you haven't downloaded the app, please do so. If you haven't been receiving the email link to download the app, or if you are having problems with the app, please email Dan Minchin dminchin@westend.school.nz. If you haven't set up the app on your device, there will be an easy to download process and quick set up so you can join our new communication platform. If you've downloaded the app already, please just follow the quick username/password set up and for the app users, choose Parent. Once you have set it up, you won't be asked about passwords on that device again. These links do expire, so we will continue to send them out every couple of days to those who haven't logged in.
This free mobile app allows parents to receive pop-up reminders and instant messages. These can run on smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices and are designed to help whanau keep up to date on school happenings.
SchoolApps also allows parents to report absences online, receive instant alerts, check the calendar for upcoming events, view newsletters, log into Seesaw and this will also be a way to use Kindo.
You will be able to personalise what information you wanted to subscribe to, such as notices from specific area teams, sports news, or groups such as Student Council or kapa haka.
Remember to go to Alert Subscriptions (through the main menu - the three lines at the top left hand corner of the app) so you get specific alerts to our different groups within the school. You would only receive information directly relevant to those groups, but you will however receive whole school notifications when they are sent out.
Contact Information
Please inform the office of any change of address or phone numbers.
It is really important that we are able to contact you at any time of the day.
Thank you.
West End School Communication Platforms
West End is enhancing our communication so it is easy for our community to know what's happening at our kura. Below is a table outlining the different forms of communication we use at West End to share a variety of things ranging from classwork to whole school notices.
Bikes and Scooters to school
For the safety of our children all children biking or scootering to school MUST wear a helmet. Please also remind your children about road safety - including the safest way to travel to school if on a bike and scooter. While students are on the footpath outside the school , we ask if they can walk their bike or scooter. This is for the safety of themselves and others sharing the footpath, as students are travelling very fast and going past 2 of our school driveways where vehicles are coming in and out of.
West End School Home Learning Hub and team slides
Start and end of day procedures
It is great to have our West End community back on school grounds under Orange settings. Here is a reminder of start and end of day procedures.
- If your child is at school before the 8.30 bell, they will need to come through the wharenui gate and wait in the area next to the turf.
- Students need to wait here until the bell goes at 8.30am.
- Please remind your child to walk sensibly to class. We have had a few accidents with students running and tripping over each other in the excitement of getting to class.
- At the end of the day, students will be let go from class. Please let your child know if you are picking them up and therefore will need to wait outside the classroom or meet you in the designated spot you told them to go.
- If siblings are going home together, please make a plan of where your children will meet each other so they aren't walking around school trying to find each other.
DRINK BOTTLES & SPARE CLOTHES
As there are no drinking fountains at school please make sure your child brings a drink bottle to school.
With Winter approaching and the grounds getting wet please put a spare set of clothes in your child's bag. This includes all West End students - as we'v
Thank you.
The lost property will be laid out every Friday afternoon. Please make sure to come and check to see if anything might belong to you or your family.
CAR PARKING- ADMINISTRATION BLOCK CLOSED TO EVERYONE
Please do not do not be tempted to use the staff car park when dropping off and collecting your children from school. The administration block is closed for building work.
It becomes very busy and dangerous for children. We encourage parents to park on the street and use the walkways coming into school. Please remember to abide by the road markings on Botanical road and park only in designated spaces (not on the yellow lines). This is for the safety of our children and community members.
Thank you for your co-operation.
TERM DATES 2022
Masks
Parents of children who wear masks please remind your child to bring them to school.
Kindo Online Shop
It is very important that families register with Kindo, as this is now the only way to register your child for school sports, and ordering PTA lunches.
Below are the links to register.
If you require help please call the Kindo helpdesk on
0508 454 636
New users need this link
Existing users need this link
Location: West End School, 196 College Street, Palmerston North
Phone: 06 358 2465