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Connect Communication
23 September 2026
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Last week I had the absolute pleasure of hosting Piper as the Principal for the day. Piper was ably assisted by her Deputies, Maya and Rose. The following is their account of the day.
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Hi everybody, we were the Principal & Deputies on Friday 18th of September, and it was really fun!
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We got to do things like…
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Go to Robert Harris with Whaea Claire for a meeting.
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At Robert Harris we got a brownie, lolly cake and a cheese scone because there was morning tea at the meeting.
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Stand up in hui and announce five minutes to first connect.
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Write this newsletter for you guys.
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Eat in the staff room with lots of teachers.
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Work in Whaea Claire’s office.
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In Curiosity Clubs and Whaea Jamie let us run karaoke.
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Take photos for an A-Z of Ararira.
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Overall it was loads of fun; we reckon you should bid on being the principal for your child. They will love it!
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On Friday, we will say farewell to Matua Matt and Whaea Kayla. Matt and Kayla are both lucky enough to be foundation staff at the new school, Te Maitaitihi, in Halswell. We know that they will be an asset to their new kura and wish them well. We have loved having them with us at Ararira.
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Thank you to all of you who completed the consultation for us. Our next step is to analyse these for key trends. Another outcome will be the formation of a graduate profile for an Ararira ākonga | learner. Both will feed into the strategic and annual plans that are developed by the Board.
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Make sure you put your clocks forward on the weekend as we welcome spring and daylight saving. I am sure you have lots of fun family activities planned. I will be celebrating my youngest child's 21st birthday. See you all next term!
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Claire and the Ararira Team
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Important Dates
- 24 September - THT Jam Fundraiser Order Cut-off (see below)
- 25 September - THT Jam Delivered to Classrooms
- 25 September - Last day of Term 3
- 12 October - First day of Term 4
- 16 October - Mihi Whakatau, 9.15am in the Hall
- 22 October - THT Meeting, 7pm in Tāhuna | Staffroom & Online
- 26 October - Labour Day - School Closed
- 27 October - Teacher Only Day - School Closed
- 04 November - School Board Meeting, 6.30pm in Tāhuna | Staffroom
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School Board
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Next meeting Wednesday 04 November, 6.30pm in Tāhuna | Staffroom
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Te Hapori Tautoko (THT)
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Next meeting - 22 October
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7pm in Tāhuna | Staffroom
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What a great term it’s been for THT! A huge thank you to everyone who has supported our fundraisers and events, from Movie Night and our Country Quiz Night through to our latest Money for Jam fundraiser. Your support makes a real difference and helps us continue to put funds towards great things for our school.
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A quick reminder that Money for Jam orders close at midnight on Thursday 24 September. Orders will be delivered to classrooms on Friday 25 September, ready for children to take home on the last day of term.
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We’ve got plenty more ideas in the works, so we’re looking forward to bringing some new fundraising incentives your way next term. Our next THT meeting is Thursday 22 October at 7pm, and as always, everyone is welcome to come along and get involved — even if you’re not ready to join the committee!
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Thanks again for all your support this term, and we hope everyone has a fantastic break.
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Have a fundraising idea?
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You don't have to formally join THT to get involved. If you have a fundraising idea or would like to help make something happen for our school, we'd love to hear from you! Email us at THT@ararira.school.nz
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Well done to our Year 5/6 A netball team who represented us at Canterbury Zones on Friday, 18th of September. After a long day and stiff competition, we finished the day holding our heads high. Thank you to Sherryn, Amelia, Grace, and Emily, who coached and umpired the team on the day. A special thank you to Lexi, who umpired for the Year 5/6 Lincoln Primary team.
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We would also like to thank Lincoln Primary for allowing us to share a bus with them. We can’t wait to see this team again next year in the Year 7/8 league.
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We would like to wish our Year 7/8 students all the best for the Koru Games, which take place this week. Thank you to all the parents who have volunteered to take time out of work to support our learners.
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Next term we will be holding our annual Year 4-8 athletics day on Friday the 23rd of October in preparation for our Zones competition. If you are interested in volunteering on the day please contact Whaea Meeghan and let her know what event you would feel comfortable managing.
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Sports Outside of Ararira Springs
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Many of our tamariki have completed their winter sports, and prize-giving has not taken place. If your child received a trophy or commendation for their achievements in their chosen sport, please could you send Whaea Meeghan a photo of your child with their certificate/trophy/commendation so she can include it in our first newsletter for next term. You can email her at meeghan.herbert@ararira.school.nz.
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School Holiday Dental Care
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The Community Dental Service will be providing dental care for children enrolled with our service during the upcoming school holidays. The clinics will offer treatment and relief of pain sessions by appointment only. To make an appointment please call/email our Contact Centre which operates between the hours of 8am and 4.30pm, Monday to Friday throughout the holidays (28 September to 05 October). If your child requires urgent dental care during the time we are closed, please contact your family dentist.
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The following local dental clinics will be open during these school holidays:
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- Rolleston Clinic, Selwyn Health Hub, Rolleston - 28 September to 02 October
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Hornby Clinic, 2 Hei Hei Road, Hornby - 05 October to 09 October
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The clinics will offer appointments between 8.15am and 4.45pm for school-age and preschool children. If your child has dental pain because of an accident, please contact your dentist in the first instance.
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To book an appointment at one of our clinics please:
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The closing date for Issue 6 is 25 September 2026.
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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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Mid-Year Reports: Live in Week 11 Reports will contain the following information in Reading, Writing and Maths: A narrative about your child’s learning (what they can do) Next steps How you can help at home A progress descriptor describing your child’s current ability to work within their year level content. Sliders for each element of Reading and Writing, and each …
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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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