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Connect Communication
29 November 2023
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The silly season is fast approaching and we quickly get caught up in all the end of year and Christmas madness. It is tricky time at schools as we complete the end of the year but also need to start thinking about the year ahead.
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Teachers are busy writing learning comments for you about your children. Please make sure you take time to read and share these with your children as much thought and time goes into them. We are aware that the move to structured literacy doesn't align well with current achievement levels in the curriculum. We decided not to worry about that too much for now as the literacy and mathematics curriculum areas are currently being rewritten to align to phases of learning. Instead, it is better to focus on the trajectory of the child's learning journey and them trending in the right direction. We will be providing more information about the changes in the new year. All reports, graphs and classes will be posted by the end of day on Friday 8th December.
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Our staffroom was bursting this afternoon as Nicky, Donna and I welcomed new families to Ararira and shared with them information about starting the school journey. I reflected on being at the end of my children's school journey but reminded them that school is a place to meet people and make friends. I am still friends with the parents I met when my son started school 15 years ago!
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We have recently met with the Ministry of Education and are waiting for communication from them about the delay in our build to share with you. This is very frustrating to all concerned. The first casualty of this delay was music lessons. After a recent think tank, we believe we can accommodate music lessons next year. So, until the pre-fab buildings arrive, we will host music lessons in Kaunuku on a Wednesday morning while the Year 7 and 8 learners are at technology. The drum lessons will operate out of the garage by the hall for term 1.
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I look forward to catching up with many of you as you pop into school on Friday to attend and support learning activities that are happening across the school.
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Claire and the Ararira Team
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School Board
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NEXT MEETING - 06 December, 6.30 pm in the Staffroom
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Would you like a coffee/tea/water?
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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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Coffee Van
The coffee van will be at school from 8.30-9am on Tuesdays.
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In addition to this, the Tallyho Espresso coffee van will be at school from 9am until 12pm on 01 December for Run Jump Throw Day/shared parent morning tea, and the Teretere Sustainability Market.
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Opportunities to 'Give Back'
We have two opportunities for families who would like to give back to their community and help others as Christmas approaches.
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Lincoln Rotary’s 'Love Your Locals’ are having a Community Hero day on 1st December and are collecting food donations for Greenpark Foodbank and Lincoln Community Care. If you would like to donate something we will have a box in the office this week.
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We also have our 'Giving Tree' for Women's Refuge for unwrapped presents which we will deliver end of next week.
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A huge thanks to those who have donated already.
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IMPORTANT DATES 2023
- 29 November - THT meeting, 7pm at The Laboratory (tonight)
- 30 November - Children's University Graduation evening
- 01 December - Run, Jump, Throw, years 1-4 (see below)
- 01 December - THT sausage sizzle (see below)
- 01 December - Teretere Sustainability Market, 11.15am-12.45pm
- 05 December - Year 8 Leavers Day
- 06 December - Tough Kids Challenge (afternoon), Hikuwai/Teretere
- 06 December - Board meeting, 6.30pm in the staffroom
- 12 December - Orientation/Class Swap, 9.10-10.30am
- 12 December - Sausage sizzle (order via Kindo)
- 13 December - Year 8 Leavers Dinner
- 14 December - Monster Music Concert, 11.30am-12.15pm (all welcome)
- 15 December - Last day of term (school closes 1pm)
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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 - 29 November (tonight), 7.00pm at The Laboratory. All welcome.
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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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Rediscover Refuse Visit
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Huarapa's recent adventure to the waste centre and Rediscover hub was exciting! Riding the bus was a bit bumpy, adding a touch of excitement to our journey.
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The trip opened our eyes to the various types of waste we generate. Interestingly, in the past, people created much less waste. Small changes, as we learned, can make a BIG difference!
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We learned that Aotearoa produces 17 million tonnes of waste annually – that's equivalent to the weight of 125 blue whales! We spotted recycle signs, observed different types of waste, and even identified items that don't belong in landfills.
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Our little explorers marveled at dump trucks, bulldozers, and diggers! Plus, the highlight: crafting reusable beeswax wraps. From choosing designs to brushing with beeswax and waving them dry, the kids had a blast.
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The best part? They get to use their handmade wraps in their lunchboxes! Together, we learned that by reducing, reusing, and recycling, we can take steps to care for our precious planet.
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Enviro and the Enchanted Forest
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Enviro this year has been productive, with plenty of learning about our local environment, and our whole school enquiry has focused on sustainability starts with me’. There have been many trips to our local awa and wetlands with different environmental agents: Nature Agent: water testing and investigating invertebrates with Eco Ecology; plant monitoring and planting 300 seedlings of native trees and shrubs with Te Ara Kākāriki Greenway Canterbury Trust. The environmental leaders have been amazing. They have presented to two groups on different occasions about why they value our local awa (stream/Ararira Lll), the long-fin tuna (eels), and how the awa has a connection to our school. This was in partnership with Eco Ecology, Nature Agent, Department of Conversation, and Fonterra (Living Water Project).
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The Enviro leaders have been working on refreshing our Enviro school vision and new initiatives. The environmental leaders have collaborated and gathered information and ideas from all the students and staff. From the students and staff perspective, the Enviro Leaders worked with Matt, our Enviro School facilitator, and myself to create new initiatives. This, in turn, evolved the enchanted sensory forest. The environmental leaders used all their ideas and resources to design and landscape the enchanted forest. We have had many helpers, Brie (parent) and Stephanie (grandparent) for your knowledge and Stephanie for drawing the ideas into a landscape design. Currently, we have two working plans and have planted hedging donated by Sam (parent).
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A huge thank you to all the whānau that have donated trees for the enchanted forest. These will be planted next year, when the timing is right, currently it is too dry. We will probably have working bees to lay mulch and steps over the little hill. It is a work in progress over the following year or so.
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Thank you to all our wonderful Enviro Leaders this year. Amelia, Claire, Amelia, An, Antonia, Charlotte, Chloe, Cian, Clarissa, Ella, Emily, Freya, Henry, Janie, Lacey, Liam, Evie, Madilynn, Micaiah, Seth, Sienna-Rose, Skye, Tiffany. Ka mau te wehi (awesome) learning and rangatira (leadership).
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On Wednesday, 29th of November 5 or our tamariki attended the Canterbury Athletics Day. We would like to congratulate them all on making it this far and wish them all the best for their next events. Ka rawe team!
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Sarah Year 5 Girls discus
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We have 3 teams attending the Ki-O-Rahi festival in this first year of the festival taking place. We would like to wish all our teams well and say a very big thank you to Brandon (Year 7/8 coach) and Jamie (Year 5/6 coach) for supporting our teams on the day. Ngā mihi nui whanau!
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Run, Jump, Throw and Market Day
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On Friday our junior tamariki from Year 1-4 will be hosting their run, jump, throw tournament. Parents are welcome to come and support their children. After the tournament parents are invited to visit their older children in Years 5 and 6 in their classrooms and see what they are currently working on. The Year 7/8 hub will be hosting their sustainable market day and we look forward to seeing what they have to offer. We wish all our juniors all the best for their run, jump, throw tournament.
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Tough Kids - South New Brighton Domain
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On Wednesday, 6th December, our Year 4-8 learners will take part in the Mash Tough Kid activity at South New Brighton Domain. It involves climbing over, under or through obstacles, getting muddy and wet and generally just having a fun time. If you would like some more information please click on the link below:
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We are looking for a couple of parents from each hub to come along and help manage the day. If you are able to assist please contact Whaea Meeghan.
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See below for next week's Kelly Club planner.
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Kelly Club will also be running a Holiday Programme over the summer break (18-22 December and from 8 January until school starts back).
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Jump on the Kelly Club Website to book now!
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Please note there is no guarantee orders placed now will be dispatched to you before the end of Term 4.
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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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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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Digital Complications and Applications What is digital addiction? Digital addiction among students in New Zealand is a growing concern in the modern era, as technology and digital devices have become an integral part of daily life. While technology offers numerous benefits, excessive and uncontrolled use can lead to addiction and negatively impact students' academic performance, mental health, and overall well-being. …
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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 …
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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 mileage is a big component of learning. Neurological pathways in our brains require repetitive exposure to strengthen and cement learning and develop mastery. We also develop these neural pathways for resilience, …
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Neurodiverse Learners Neurodiversity is a term used to describe the range of neurological differences among individuals, including conditions such as autism, dyslexia, ADHD, and others. From a school's perspective, it is essential to acknowledge the diversity in the learning abilities within students and provide support which is reflective of their needs. Children who are neurodivergent can face a number of …
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Peer Mediation Ararira Springs has adopted the peer mediation programme as it fits so strongly with our values of being caring, curious and capable. Peer mediators, selected from Year 7/8 classes, undergo a period of training based on the 'Cool Schools Peer Mediation Programme' prior to being on duty in the playground. Peer mediation is an approach to conflict resolution …
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