From our Tumuaki / Principal

Kia ora koutou,

It has been fabulous having ākonga return to school this week, and there has been a positive and energised buzz around the school. Tamariki were clearly happy to be back reconnecting with friends again, and the sunny weather has helped with lots of time playing and socialising outside.

School cross country added an extra buzz to the week, and kaiako were all so impressed with the dedication and motivation ngā ākonga showed. It was fabulous seeing the different strengths and competencies that were shown through the event, from students showcasing their amazing running prowess and evident preparation and training, to students showing resilience and willingness to give things a go and just keep going to the finish line. There was a lot of evidence of tamariki showing grace when winning and also when not coming first. In particular, kaiako talked and shared a lot afterwards about a wide range of children showing significant personal growth in their approach to cross country. We heard a lot of children setting themselves personal goals around improvement in a particular area, and a lot of pride afterwards when goals were reached.

There was one student who particularly impressed me, and the learning I have taken from this person will stay with me. I spoke with this student the day before cross country. We were at the drop off zone, and another child was talking about how they were ‘super psyched’ for cross country. They had set themselves a personal goal, and they were determined to reach it - they couldn’t wait! The other student was much more circumspect, “Eh, I don’t like cross country at all, it really isn’t my thing.” They showed great animation when I asked them what their ‘thing’ was, and they spoke at length about the wonders of Swift coding. They then responded articulately when I looked blankly at them, and explained that Swift is an open-source coding language developed by Apple. "Coding is totally my thing”, they said excitedly.

With all of that in mind, I was hugely impressed when I saw this student at cross country the following day. They ran the whole way with resolute determination. Each time they passed me on their three laps they gave me a smile/grimace or a nod of acknowledgement. They didn't finish in the top five or stun everyone with their graceful running style. However, their finish was strong and deliberate - they were absolutely going to do this as well as they could. For someone who felt that cross country was not their thing at all, I was so impressed with the effort they gave it and the perseverance they showed. This student stayed on my mind all day. I loved that they clearly knew what their red threads were (red threads are the things that really speak to us and spark our interest). I also loved that they understood that there were other things in life that may not be our red threads, but they are still worthy of effort and attention. I figure that if we all approached everything we did, whether it was a red thread or not, with the same perseverance and determination as this ākonga, we would absolutely achieve success in whatever we did.

Kaua e mate wheke, me mate ururoa. Don’t die like an octopus, die like a hammerhead shark.

Kia pai tō rā whakatā. Enjoy your weekend and head into next week with the resolve of a hammerhead shark.

Ngā mihi nui, 

Urs Cunningham