Amesbury Digest - 8th July 2022

Kia ora tātou,

Well, it has been a busy and eventful term, with a steady move towards opening up as a country and the chance for us to begin running some events, and for our community to be able to come back onsite at school. We have been able to hold events such as our mihi whakatau, school cross country, school discos, a very successful learning celebration, and our school talent show. We’ve been able to celebrate, cheer, share, and dance our way through the term, and we’ve enjoyed it all.

As I’m sure many of you can tell from your own tamariki, the constant changes and readjusting brought about by Covid had taken a toll, and many of us (staff, students and whānau) are understandably tired. I would like to say a heartfelt thank you to you all for keeping going, staying positive and rolling with the tough times. Our staff have been incredible, managing to support each other and remain flexible enough to help all teams when staffing issues hit. Our key word this year so far has been ‘pivot’, and we’ve certainly done a lot of that! Thanks to the teachers for being so supportive of each other and willing to adapt to ensure all ākonga across the school get what they need. Huge thanks to our fabulous support staff, who keep trucking along and keep all of our systems running smoothly, and our school grounds clean and safe. Our ākonga - they are fabulous, and they make it all worthwhile. And to our parents and whānau - you are amazing. Thank you for your ongoing support, encouragement, and understanding. We have had to make necessary changes along the way and you have all been so understanding about this, and so appreciative of what staff do.

It’s now definitely time for a well deserved break for everyone. Slow down, sleep in, get out and visit some of the fabulous sites around Wellington and the wider country. I’m off to Australia to visit my family again, just because I can. I have been informed by my whānau that it is a chilly 19 degrees today on the Gold Coast - I don’t know how I’ll cope! I hope you all have a lovely time with your whānau, and we’ll see you back with us next term. For those families who are leaving at the end of this term, haere rā. It has been lovely having you as part of our school whānau, and we wish you all the very best.

Lots of exciting things planned for next term - ASB Centre sports coaching sessions, swimming sports, Kapa Haka festival, junior invitational cross country, learning celebration number 2, more discos, futsal, and more. Our tamariki will need a good rest for the energetic term ahead!

Kia pai tō hararei - enjoy your holiday break.

Ngā mihi nui,

Urs Cunningham