From our Tumuaki / Principal

Ngā mihi nui kia koutou katoa, warm greetings to you all.

Firstly, I would like to begin my editorial this week by acknowledging the passing of Kīngi Tuheitia, who was laid to rest on Thursday at Taupiri Maunga. Te Arikinui Kuīni Nga Wai Hono i te Po has now become the new monarch. She is the second woman to lead the Kīngitanga movement.

Dr. Emma Woodward

Last week our kāhui ako cluster of local schools welcomed Dr. Emma Woodward as she presented about how to support ngā tamariki (our children) to flourish in a complex world. Dr. Woodward spoke to our kaiako (teachers) in one session, followed by a parent and whānau session. She was fabulous to listen to, and across both talks, here are some key points from her:

• The two things we need as human beings are basic stability and authentic connection.

• Be mindful of weaponizing the term ‘resilience’. The issue for ngā tamariki, from Dr. Woodward’s perspective, is not a lack of resilience, but a lack of hope. Hope is the impetus to get back up when something knocks you down. Resilience is the action of actually doing something. Our children are naturally resilient, but in these complex times what ngā tamariki often lack is the hope that taking action will make any difference. We need to give our children that hope. 

• We are feeling creatures who think, rather than thinking creatures who feel. You can either spend a reasonable amount of time dealing with feelings, or an unreasonable amount of time dealing with behaviour. To help ngā tamariki to develop, we need to help them get in touch with their feelings, not their thoughts. 

• A lot of focus is put on ensuring tamariki have strong self esteem. Dr. Woodward feels that even more important is strong self compassion. Self esteem can emphasise you needing to feel better than others in order to feel self worth. Self compassion is about being kind and understanding to yourself and recognising your own value. 

• As parents these days, are we over protecting ngā tamariki (our children) in the real world, and under protecting them in the online world? 

• Ngā tamariki need to be given the space to experience boredom, frustration, disappointment, loss, and challenge, in order to be able to develop the strategies to manage it themselves. Protecting them from it does not allow this learning to happen. Focus on coaching and supporting them through these feelings, rather than preventing them from experiencing the feelings in the first place.

• There is a lot of good that can come from the digital world, but be aware of the downsides. Platforms such as TikTok allow significant access to things that are happening in the world, which can be overwhelming to young people who don’t yet have the skills and brain development to process this. 

*Extra note from Urs - the minimum age use for TikTok is 13, so none of our tamariki should have their own accounts. However, if your tamariki do have accounts, TikTok offers a Family Pairing function, allowing parents to link their TikTok account to their teen’s account to ensure appropriate safety settings are in place. Follow this link for a Netsafe guide to TikTok. 

Dr. Woodward has some online resources here. She will send through her slides from the parenting session, and I will share them with you once this happens. She has an online TedX talk about 'parenting in a messed up world' here. 

Staffing update

For the final two weeks of this week, both Rupert and Angela will be on leave. They will both be back for the start of Term 4. 

Rupert’s father is, sadly, very unwell, and Rupert and his whānau are returning to the UK to visit him. Our thoughts and best wishes are with both Rupert and his dad. While Rupert is away, a relieving teacher, Leila Morad, will be in the hub for part of both weeks, with Jenny King also doing some teaching in the hub, to provide additional support and a familiar face for ngā ākonga (our students). While Rupert is away, please contact Jenny for any needs: jenny@amesbury.school.nz

Angela is returning to Poland, where her husband, Kris, is from. They will be reconnecting with whānau and friends over there. While Angela is away, a relieving kaiako (teacher), Jenny Lowe, will be in Māwhero. Jenny was a regular relieving kaiako for us last year, and is known to some teachers and students in Koru Hub. We are very happy to have Jenny back with us. While Angela is away, please contact Amaria, as team leader, for any needs: amaria@amesbury.school.nz

Huge well done to our Mathswell team of Aanya, John, Adaline, Adam, Ronan, and Yiqi, who placed third overall in the recent Wellington Maths competition held at Victoria University. They did amazingly well and we are very proud of them. Me poho kererū - be puffed up like a kererū about your success, team!

And finally, a huge plea to please ensure ngā tamariki all have their seatbelts safely in place before you drive away in the pick up area (or anywhere else!). We are noticing a significant number of tamariki not safely strapped in before cars move off, which is not good at all. 

Have a fabulous and safe weekend. Enjoy the dry weather we have been promised, after all of the rain. 

Hei tērā wiki, see you next week.

Ngā mihi nui

Urs