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Connect Communication
19 June 2024
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This week marks a special time in the Muslim calendar has families celebrate Eid. We wish these families a joyous Eid-ul-Adha filled with love, laughter, and blessings.
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It was lovely to see so many of you coming to learning conversations last week. The teaching team loved talking with you. If you were unable to make a time please email your child's kaiako | teacher and arrange an alternative time.
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Kaiako are currently completing learning comments for your children. By the end of the term you will have comments for caring, curious, capable, reading, writing, maths, protraits and their mihi. Progress charts will be turned back on in the last week as this allows us time to moderate our levels and consult others in the team. Like physical growth, academic progress looks different for all our learners as there are so many variables. Please take a read of this earlier parent update that talks about progress and reporting. We are still waiting on information from the Ministry as to how the curriculum levels will be replaced with phases of learning. This will have an implication on how historical progress will be curated.
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Tonight we wish Whaea Meeghan and her whānau all the best as they officially become NZ citizens. We had a kiwiana morning tea to celebrate with her and it is fitting that some of our Year 8 kapa haka students will perform at the ceremony. The big rainbow currently sitting over the school must be the universe sending warm wishes too.
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Matariki is the Māori name for the cluster of stars also known as the Pleiades. It rises in midwinter and for many Māori, it heralds the start of a new year.
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Year 8 Wellington Camp 2nd Stage Payment Now Due
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Second stage payment of $100 is now due. If you wish to set up an automatic payment straight to the school account to pay for this camp, you can do this by following the instructions below:
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Automatic Payments: You can set up automatic payments directly to the school account.
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Account Number: 12-3153-0100145-00
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Account Name: ARARIRA SPRINGS PRIMARY SCHOOLInstructions:
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Use your child’s First Name and Last Name as the reference.
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Use the reference "WELLINGTON".
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Benefits of automatic payment:
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You can set up weekly, fortnightly, or monthly payments.
Payment amounts are flexible - you choose how much to deposit.
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Please contact the office or Whaea Meegs if you need further assistance.
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Coaching is an important part of Ararira learning for our teachers and our older ākonga. We see coaching as an opportunity to sit with a colleague or support person and in the first instance, check in. Secondly, it provides the coachee with the chance to be listened to and supported. The coachee might share an issue, concern or goal. The coach gently but closely listens and questions to elicit a course of action.
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Teachers are coached by a colleague and students are coached by a teacher or a parent volunteer. We aim to meet every four weeks and the time varies. For students, a twenty-minute session is plenty, for teachers sessions are longer.
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As the school grows, providing our Year 7 and 8 with a coach becomes more challenging. In 2024 we are hoping to undertake group coaching with our Year 7 students and offer 1:1 coaching with our 42 Year 8 students. We need you! Teachers will coach some of our students, but we are looking for parents to help out with this process too. Do you have a spare 30 mins in your week? If so, you could coach four students. This would involve you meeting with one student each week in a four/five-week rotation. Full support will be given but it really is relatively easy.
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20-30 minutes per week, every week (5 students, twice per term) OR
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2x one-hour sessions (3 students, twice per term).
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Being able to tame your ‘advice monster’
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Asking questions (a template will be provided)
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Able to be fully ‘present’ for the session.
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Your coachee will come to you with an idea of something to work on. You use listening and questioning to help them design some action steps to move them towards their goal. We would like to run the sessions in Terms 3 and 4.
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We aim to run a short training session with our parent coaches in Week 9 or 10 of this term.
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Argyle Schoolwear Jackets - Argyle are currently out of stock in the soft shell size 6 jackets. More stock is expected to arrive in late September.
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Exciting News: The Enchanted Forest Initiative Has Come to Life!
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Friday 7 June marked a significant milestone for our school as the Enviro Leaders, joined by some of the Bee Awesome group, rolled up their sleeves and planted the main plants and trees in the Enchanted Forest. This initiative evolved from the Enviro Leaders asking all the students in the school what they wanted in terms of environmental improvements within our kura. There was a strong desire for more trees and natural areas to enjoy. The Enviro Leaders from last year and this year have worked tirelessly on landscaping, preparing the area, and planting. There are three main trees due to arrive next month. We are incredibly proud of the dedication and enthusiasm shown by all the Enviro Leaders. Thank you to everyone who has supported this initiative, from donating to participating in the Enviro Day dress-up last year. Special thanks to Brie for the daffodils, Brie with Te Ara Kākāriki Greenway Canterbury Trust for lending the shovels and David Bell daffodils for daffodils, Lesley at Bee Awesome He Pī Mīharo for donate some native bee friendly plants.
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We extend a very special and huge thank you to Thomas from Greenlinc Nursery and Landscaping for his invaluable advice and generous donations throughout the entire initiative, from marking and mulch to plants and trees. His time and resources have been instrumental in bringing this dream to fruition. Thomas spent time with the Enviro Leaders, guiding them through the process.
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Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to transform our vision into a living, breathing Enchanted Forest that will inspire and delight all who visit! We aim to open the forest at the end of Term 3 or Term 4, giving the plants time to establish.
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Coffee with Claire will generally be held on the first Tuesday of the month, but please check the school community calendar for exact dates as this may be subject to change.
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New Enrolments - If you know of families moving into the area or with preschoolers, please encourage them to fill out our online enrolment form soon as possible. This allows us to plan ahead and recruit the teachers we might need!
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IMPORTANT DATES 2024
- 19 June - THT Meeting, 7pm in Tahuna | Staffroom
- 20 June - Mana Ake Drop-in Session with Shannon, 8.30-9.15am
- 24 June - Quiz tickets go on sale at 12 noon
- 26 June - School Board Meeting, 6.30pm in Tahuna | Staffroom
- 27 June - Mana Ake Drop-in Session with Shannon, 8.30-9.15am
- 27 June - Huarapa 4/5/6 Hui, 9.15am in the hall
- 28 June - Matariki observed (school closed)
- 02 July - Coffee with Claire, 9am in Tahuna | Staffroom
- 04 July - Mana Ake Drop-in Session with Shannon, 8.30-9.15am
- 05 July - Matariki School Celebration, 5.30-7pm
- 05 July - Term 2 ends
- 22 July - Term 3 begins
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School Board
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Next meeting - 26 June, 6.30pm in Tahuna | Staffrooom
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Te Hapori Tautoko (THT)
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THT - Te Hapori Tautoko - providing opportunities to tautoko (support) and connect our school community and fundraising for school initiatives and resources.
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Next meeting 19 June, 7pm in Tahuna | Staffroom
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All welcome - we'd love to have some new faces join us!
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Matariki Celebration - Te Hapori Tautoko is excited to bring you a Matariki Celebration on Friday 5 July 2024. This whānau information booklet provides you with all of the information you need to know and ways you can support! It is set to be a wonderful evening and a highlight in the calendar for many.
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Second-Hand Uniforms - THT has a small selection of second-hand uniform items available for purchase. Click here to view a list of the items we currently have available. If you have uniform items to donate please contact Charlotte via charlotte.mcmenamin@ararira.school.nz
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Congratulations to Oscar, Harrison, Noah and Anna who are representing us at the Canterbury’s Cross Country next week. We wish them all the best!
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Zones Hockey and Football Tournament
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The Lincoln Zones Hockey and Football tournament took place yesterday. We would like to say a big thank you to our coaches Mike, Alan, Caleb, Gavin, Craig and Matua Michael for supporting our teams. We would also like to say a big congratulations to Gavin and the Year 7/8 Hockey team who have made it through to the Canterbury competition later this year. All the best to Seth, Thomas, Kean, Leon, Poppy, Cora and Catherine.
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Activation Spectacular (AKA Winter Sports) for Years 5-8
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Just a reminder that our Year 5-8 tamariki have been taking part in this wonderful 4 week sport rotation. Next week will be the last rotation. The Year 7/8 group will be attending their last rotation on Thursday due to the Friday being Matarikig public holiday.
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Lucy Fogarty recently attended South Island Champs for Artistic Swimming in Queenstown. She came home with a gold medal in her age group for figures and her team won gold for their Lion King Routine. Kai pai Lucy!
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Lucy belongs to the Selwyn Artistic Swimming Club and they are looking for more members.
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The Selwyn-based Artistic Swim club is grounded in values of hard work, teamwork, respect, and the sheer joy of swimming, the club prides itself on fostering a supportive and fun environment. Boasting a diverse range of athletes spanning from 6 to 17 years of age, Selwyn Artistic Swimming includes two talented swimmers who are proudly representing New Zealand on the world stage. This remarkable achievement showcases the club's dedication to success and the lively sense of sportsmanship that defines our community.
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If this is something you may be interested in, please click here.
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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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Learning through play is a key approach in education in today's world. While most common in early childhood education, it also benefits students throughout their school years. This blog post explores the importance of learning through play in a primary school context, drawing on extensive research to highlight its many advantages. The Concept of Learning Through Play Learning through play …
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During the last week of term 1 and into the term break I had the wonderful opportunity to be part of an Education Delegation to China. This was organised by Hangzhou University of Science and Technology (HUST), Wuhan and the Confucius Institute University Canterbury (CIUC). The delegation included professors from UC, leaders from High Schools in Christchurch and Dunedin, and …
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As part of the 100-day plan, the new National Government announced the change to mandate an hour of reading, writing and maths every day. In reality, this is not very different from what your child is already experiencing at Ararira. The teaching of reading, writing and maths is an average of one hour a day. It also includes reading, writing …
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Ararira Springs' Balanced Scorecard The Springboard Trust offers a suite of fantastic professional learning for school leaders and late in 2022 we took part in the Balanced Scorecard for Schools in Aotearoa programme. This asks schools to think long-term and develop 10-year objectives that will guide the school through the next phases of strategic planning. These objectives were established by …
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Expectations for Behaviour at Ararira Ararira is a wonderful place to learn and we guide our learners' behaviour with clear expectations that are linked to our values of being caring, curious and capable. These are short, sharp and memorable and might be good to refer to at home as well. Caring is our first value supported by aroha and manaakitanga. …
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School Carpark Expectations Behaviours we want to see: Park in designated car parks including on the road. Carparks have been designed and placed by qualified traffic engineers to optimize visibility for drivers. Always stick to the 10km/hr speed limit. Children come and go from school for a variety of reasons at all times of the day. Merge like a zip …
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