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Connect Communication
07 February 2024
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We have started the year full of vim and vigour. It is hard to believe how quickly the term break passes and it feels like you have never been away. During the break, the team took part in three days of professional learning. This included using the Clifton Strengths tool to deepen our relationships and knowledge of the teams we work with.
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We spent time thinking about our values and revisiting core understandings that drive teaching and learning at Ararira. We also worked with the Halberg Inclusive Trust and a Ministry psychologist on a model to use for children with challenging behaviours.
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Recently you may have heard about the new government's initiatives enacted in their first 100 days in office. At Ararira we already have 'no cell phones at school' practice so little will change. The Board will formalise this with a policy. However, children know that when they enter the gate cell phones are switched off and placed in their bags. If used throughout the day they will be taken and stored at the office until the end of the day. Should this happen again, they will need to be collected by an adult. We ask that parent controls be put in place on smartwatches. Other features are NOT to be used during the day. Like the phone, if they are used, they will be taken to the office.
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We will shortly share a more detailed response to the way we are implementing our hour a day of reading, writing and maths. We would first like to point out that this is ALL literacy and maths, including that which is integrated into other subjects. Friday maths is likely to take the form of problem-solving.
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We had a beautiful hui on Friday and welcomed 32 new children to Ararira. We took this time to chat with the children about our expectations for behaviour. These are simple and easy to remember. More details can be found in the blog post here and at the bottom of this newsletter.
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We would like to thank two generous donors; Springfree Trampolines replaced our net and mat in the break and Fulton Hogan supplied wet weather gear for the adults on road patrol. Ngā mihi nui to both of these companies!
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We invite you to save the date and pop down to school for dinner and some fun on Tuesday night. This will be a chance to meet the hapori | hubs and see how they will operate this year. Please ensure that preschoolers are supervised during the presentations so everyone can hear.
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- 5:30 - 6pm Teretere and Huarapa presentations
- 6:15 - 6:45 Kaunuku and Hikuwai presentations
Looking forward to seeing you then, if not before.
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Claire and the Ararira Team
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School Board
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As some in our community are already aware, Selwyn District Council have recently appointed a new Parking Officer. The council have proactively reached out to our school to understand any parking challenges we have and have recommended we focus on the following areas:
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- Too long in the kiss 'n’ go zone
- specific streets with persistent parking issues
- people parking on broken yellow lines
- parking too close to a crossing point
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The board will be liaising with the council to help raise community awareness among parents and guardians to encourage responsible parking behaviour. Council have indicated that there will be an initial focus on education and warnings rather than infringements, although infringements may be issued if undesirable behaviour continues.
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If you would like a refresher on our carpark expectations here is a link to a previous article posted last year. We thank you in advance for working with us to keep everyone safe whilst travelling to and from school.
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From the Office
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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 2023
- 09 February - Waitangi and Chinese New Year Hui, 10am in the Hall
- 13 February - School Picnic (see above for details/times)
- 16 February - Curiosity Clubs begin (11.45am-12.45pm)
- 21-23 February - Year 5/6 Camp at Living Springs
- 21 February - School Board Meeting, 6.30pm in the Staffrooom
- 26-28 March - Year 7 Camp at Glentui
- 27 March - School Board Meeting, 6.30pm in the Staffrooom
- 29 March-02 April - Easter Weekend (school closed)
- 12 April - Last day of term 1
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Ararira Springs New Building Request
Letter from Whanau
We are concerned about the delays in the timeframes for the new buildings at Ararira Springs Primary School | Te Puna o Ararira, so have written a letter that we plan to send to representatives of the Ministry of Education, the Selwyn District Council, and our local MP.
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We have written this letter independently as concerned whānau, but have shared it with school management, and it has the support of our Principal | Tumuaki, and our School Board.
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We are asking individuals and families who agree with the letter to please add their signatures through a google form (link here). The full text of the letter is included in the link above, followed by a space where you can add your name to the letter.
We will compile the list of signatures and will send the letter to the groups listed above by 12 February, so please add your name before then if you would like to sign on.
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Ngā mihi maioha,
Sara Kross & Stacey Nicholas (parents of current ASP students)
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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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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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Welcome to 2024! We hope that you all had an enjoyable break and are well rested and looking forward to the upcoming year.
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This year we start off with the WeetBix TRYathlon. If you are still wanting to sign up please click on the link below and join others from Ararira Springs competing in this race.
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Our next event is our ASP swim sports. We are awaiting confirmation on the venue and as soon as that is done we will forward the relevant information to those who would like to participate.
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Below is a table of events taking place in Term 1. If you have any questions or queries please do not hesitate to contact me or check out our ASP Sport Page on the school website or click on the link: ASP Sport. Don’t forget to check out the “What's on offer?” page for clubs advertising their sport.
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Upcoming Sports Events for Term 1
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PLEASE NOTE: these are Lincoln Zones (LZ) and Primary Schools Canterbury (PSC) tournaments and competitions.
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Dates for Ararira Springs Primary (ASP) sporting events are also included. Reminders will be sent out individually.
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Congratulations!
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We would like to congratulate Sam T who won the 2023 Chans Martial Arts Student of the Year. This is awarded to students that demonstrate consistency, excellence and leadership.
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In 2023 he graded up to an orange belt with green tip and also in June won the annual South Island tournament for his age group - for the second year in a row! Sam trains twice a week with his younger brother Josh.
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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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The Ministry of Education has refreshed the curriculum and updated how schools report on student progress. As previously mentioned by the MOE, the benchmark for achievement has increased with the new curriculum. You may see a change in your child’s progress or achievement compared to previous years because of this. At Ararira Springs Primary, our staff have been undergoing professional …
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Berry Street Education Model BSEM at Ararira - Nicky Harding and Claire Howison At Ararira Springs, we are committed to fostering a learning environment where every child feels safe, supported, and ready to thrive. To support this, our kura has adopted the Berry Street Education Model (BSEM) - a trauma-informed, strengths-based framework designed to boost student wellbeing, engagement, and academic …
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Attendance Monitoring at Ararira The government has publicly stated that it wishes to lift attendance rates at New Schools so 80% of all children are attending 90% of the time by 2030. We have set this as a target for our kura|school in 2026. All schools are required to have an attendance management plan (AMP) in place that follows stepped …
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2025 End of Year Progress Graphs The end-of-year progress graphs for students (English Year 0-6 and Maths Year 0-8) will be live on Friday, 12 December. English progress in Years 7-8 will be released in a statement at the bottom of Year 7-8 children's reading and writing comments. The Overall Teacher Judgements (OTJs) regarding progress that your child will receive …
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Te Mātaiaho | The New Zealand Curriculum Curriculum Update - English, Term 3, 2025 Kia ora, Earlier this year, we held a successful whānau hui regarding the refreshed Maths curriculum for Phases 1-3 (Year 0-8). We are unfortunately still waiting on Phase 3 (Year 7-8) of the English curriculum, which is due to be released in Term 4 of this …
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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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