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Connect Communication
06 August 2025
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It was lovely to return from sabbatical last week to a warm welcome from students and staff. I was grateful that the team delayed celebrating 'principal week' and I was included in the acknowledgement. I would like to extend my thanks to Emma and the team for the wonderful job they did while I was away.
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Much of the last five - seven weeks has been spent delving into research, reading books, attending professional learning and interviewing principals at other schools about how they provide support to children with complex behaviour. I will be sharing my findings with the team on Monday afternoon as part of our teacher-only day. This will have an impact on our behaviour procedures.
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Reminder - Teacher Only Day on Monday, 11th August
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Staff will be taking part in professional learning at Lincoln High School on Monday morning and returning to school for further learning in the afternoon.
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Education announcements are being made quite frequently at the moment. We are finding out about these proposed changes as the same time as the public so we are often waiting for details and clarification. Most recent were proposed changes to NCEA and the move away from very open, modern learning environments. Our stage two design will be continuing as planned. It had already been designed for consent when the build process was halted. We anticipate building to start before the end of the year. With the additional Pūrei classes, our capacity is 550 and we currently have just over 500 ākonga.
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NZEI Paid Union Meeting 28th August
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We have recently been advised of paid union meetings on the afternoon of Thursday 28th August. We will be sending information about this in a separate community post via Hero. We will be able to provide supervision from a skeleton staff. However, it will help us greatly if you can pick your children up at 12:45pm. Please mark this in your calendars now and a link to register pick up (or stay at school) information will be provided next week.
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Finally, thank you to the 17 very brave parents who have put themselves forward to stand for our school board. Voting will open shortly, and we encourage you to exercise your right to vote and choose our Board. We will remind you of this over the voting period.
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Have a fabulous fortnight and I look forward to catching up with you soon,
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The Education Review Office is carrying out some research to learn more about how ‘Phones away for the day’ is going. They want to hear your thoughts on what’s working, what’s not working, and what could make it better.
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Take 5–10 minutes to share your thoughts in this quick survey — your input really makes a difference. You can find the survey here: whānau / parent /caregiver survey
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IMPORTANT DATES
- 06 August - School Board Meeting, 6.30pm in the Staffroom
- 07 August - Ararira's Got Talent, 12.45pm in the Hall
- 08 August - Non-Uniform Day for Quiz Hampers (see below)
- 08 August - Ararira's Got Talent, 12.45pm in the Hall
- 11 August - Teacher Only Day (school closed)
- 14 August - Ararira's Got Talent, 12.45pm in the Hall
- 15 August - Hui (Hikuwai 4-6), 9.15am in the Hall
- 15 August - Curiosity Clubs 11.45-12.45pm
- 19 August - Whanau Hui (Cultural Narrative), 5.30pm
- 22 August - Curiosity Clubs. 11.45-12.45pm
- 22 August - ASP Quiz Night
- 19 September - Last Day of Term 3
- 02 February - First day of Term 1, 2026
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School Board
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Next meeting 06 August, 6.30pm in Tahuna | Staffroom
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Te Hapori Tautoko (THT)
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Next meeting 04 September, 7-8pm in Tahuna | Staffroom (all welcome)
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Emails have gone out to team captains this week with all the details about the evening. Please check your spam folder if you have not received it, and please forward on to your teams.
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Here are the basics: Doors open at 6:30pm and the Quiz starts at 7pm, with a Disco to follow. There are lots of raffle prizes to be won, plus a live auction. Beer, wine and RTDs are available for pre-order now on Kindo (please ensure you enter your team name/team captain upon ordering). Don't forget to bring your own glass!
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Please bring along some cash, though we will have EFTPOS and credit facilities. Make sure you have a plan to get home safely - we suggest you walk or have a designated sober driver. And don't forget your costumes - Best Dressed team wins a prize!
If you wonder what kinds of things our fundraising goes towards, recently THT has fully funded the purchase of Athletics gear for our school. This includes everything from high jump and long jump equipment to shot put and discus gear, relay batons, stopwatches, measuring tapes, markers, and even a dedicated storage container to keep it all safe. As Whaea Meeghan said: "These new resources will make a huge impact on our physical education programme and school sports. Our tamariki are excited for the chance to train with proper gear, which will help them build skills and confidence in a safe environment. Plus, it’s a fantastic way to boost teamwork, discipline, and school spirit. Having this equipment at school also means we can host our athletics days right here, making these events more accessible for parents and encouraging better student participation since we won't have to travel and rely on bookings of fields and equipment."
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So please get behind our fundraising efforts as these funds go back to the school to provide the things our tamariki need to thrive.
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Football and Hockey Competition
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Well done to all the children and coaches who took part in and volunteered their time for the football and hockey tournament held at Foster Park in week two. Congratulations to our Year 7/8 hockey team and coach Jonny, who came 2nd overall on the day.
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Netball and Rugby Competition
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Our Zones Netball Rugby Competition will take place next Thursday, August 14th, at the Lincoln Domain. I am still looking for people to umpire the Year 5/6 and Year 7 teams games. All teams have managers for the day, but if you can help umpire that would be great! Please contact Whaea Meeghan.
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**Important Change of Date**
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Our First Ararira Springs Athletics Day!!
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We have had to change the date of our Athletics Day due to equipment that is yet to arrive. Our Athletics Day will now be held on Thursday, 18th September 2025. This is the second to last day of Term 3. Our postponement day will be the 31st of October 2025 (Term 4).
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Keep an eye out for new sports or events on our What’s Coming Up page on the sports website. Different sporting codes often send us information about their activities throughout the year. There are girls’ rugby days, and softball have a go days on offer at the moment!
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The closing date for Issue 5 is 12 September 2025.
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All orders will be delivered to school in batches and distributed to the classrooms as they arrive. Any orders marked as gifts, we will put to one side and contact you when they are ready to be collected.
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Katrina Robinson has been teaching guitar and ukulele now for a number of years at schools and also from her home. She loves to sing too and is a professional musician playing in wineries and cafés as well as weddings and private functions. Katrina likes to make her lessons fun and really enjoys teaching. You can read more information on Katrina at www.thesingingdiva.co.nz
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Spaces are available for 2025!
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Singing Stars Musical Theatre and Drama Classes
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Attendance at Ararira
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The Importance of Attendance We all recognise that education is the pathway to the future. The key to educational success relies on being present at school. Consistent routines and practice are a big component of learning. Neurological pathways in our brains require repetitive exposure to strengthen and cement learning and develop mastery. We also create these neural pathways for resilience, …
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New Parent Portal Released The Ministry of Education has released a parent portal to help whānau partner with schools to support their child's education. From Minister Stanford: "Education is a partnership of what happens in the classroom and what happens at home. Parents, caregivers, and whānau play an important role in supporting their child’s learning and development. The new webspace …
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2025 Reporting Update - What it means for your child As 2025 marks the transition to the refreshed English and Maths curricula, both Ararira Springs and the Ministry of Education (MOE) are closely monitoring student progress to ensure a smooth and effective change. Thanks to our ongoing professional development and early use of structured literacy and maths practices, we are …
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At Ararira we hold mihi whakatau to welcome new staff and students at the beginning of each term. Our mihi whakatau are run according to the guidelines of Te Taumutu Rūnanga. These are outlined in this document, and adapted according to our needs, in collaboration with the Taumutu education team. What is a Mihi Whakatau? - link to slideshow of …
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