Kia ora koutou,

We have had another busy week with a number of events happening: electives, Northern Zone cross country, junior swimming, and an external speaker at school running sessions around 'Space' (for our inquiry).

We were very proud of our tamariki (children) attending Northern Zone Cross Country, who represented our school really well at the event. We have two students who qualified for InterZone Cross Country, Sofia C and Declan - well done! A separate article with more details is included with this Digest.

School Attendance Term 1

We have completed our analysis of school attendance for the first term of the year across the school. On the whole, our attendance levels are looking good for the first quarter of the year. So far this year, 72% of our students are achieving the targeted attendance rate of 96%. This is the highest level to date, and we are hoping this pattern will continue. We also have 31% of students across the school with an attendance rate of 100% for the term, which is very pleasing to note.

We are noticing several attendance patterns which are worth bringing to people’s attention. Firstly, we have an increasing and noticeable number of students who are having time away from school due to travelling with parents who are going away for work. A significant number of families have done this at some point during term 1, and we are urging parents to look for other options, wherever possible, if they need to travel for work. Travelling for work is not a justifiable reason for your tamariki to miss school.

A second pattern we are noticing is a higher absence rate for younger ākonga in Koru Hub than our other hubs. We do appreciate that there can be understandable reasons for this, such as a specific transition plan for a new entrant student, or new students becoming very tired as they transition to school. However, it is also important to note that attendance habits form early on. Students with high absenteeism are less likely to succeed in their learning. If a child misses five school days each term, they will have missed the equivalent of one year of learning over the course of ten years. Where possible, establishing an early and consistent pattern of regular school attendance is key in creating habits that will set tamariki up for their schooling and their lives in general.

Here is the summary of attendance across the school in term 1. At the start of terms 3 and 4 we will complete further analysis of attendance, and send out communications to parents of ākonga (students) who have attendance rates below 90%. This is done to draw parents’ attention to potential patterns that are forming around attendance, and also to ensure that parents are able to make informed decisions about their children’s school attendance.

Overall, we have made a pleasing start to the year as a school in terms of regular, consistent attendance for ngā ākonga (our students), and we are keen to see this continue through the rest of the year. Please keep an eye on the patterns of your child/ren’s attendance via the report page on HERO (scroll to the bottom of your child’s main learning page), as patterns of absence can sneak up on you. If you have any concerns about your child’s attendance, or you would like some support assisting your child to attend school regularly, please do not hesitate to contact myself or your child’s whānau teacher.

Events coming up

There are a number of events coming up, so please keep an eye on the school calendar over the next few weeks.

Please note this this Friday is a staff only day - school is closed on this day. 

• Thursday 3rd June: Junior Invitational Cross Country. Year 1-3 students. Held at Amesbury School

• Friday 4th June: Staff Only Day - school closed for instruction

• Monday 7th June: School Closed - Queen’s Birthday public holiday

• Tuesday 15th June: School photos (catch up day if needed on Thursday 17th June)

• Tuesday 15th June: InterZone Cross Country (postponement day Thursday 17th June)

Kia pai tō wiki - have a good week.

Ngā mihi nui,

Urs Cunningham