Week 4, Term 2, 2019

Kia Ora, Talofa Lava and warm greetings,

A big congratulations to the 89 students who represented Cobham at the Stage Challenge on Monday night at the Town Hall. This is the first time a Cobham group has represented our school at the newly furnished Town Hall and they did not let us down. I thought the Cobham performance was outstanding. The theme was clearly age appropriate, I thought it was particularly well choreographed and it was very well received by the audience.

A big thank you to all the parents who supported the group and a special thank you to our teachers - Sophie Crawford, Holly Smitheram, Meagan Mckinney and Katie Washington for their time, diligence and efforts in bringing the group together. I know the teachers are a little disappointed with the lack of acknowledgement from the judges however the messages of support from Cobham families and others with no association with Cobham have been reassuring.

Thank you to those Year 7 parents who completed our recent Transition to Cobham Survey. Your views are important to us. We had over 150 respondents who gave us insights about the transition process from primary school to Cobham. We wanted to seek information around our communication processes, how well students have settled and asked for feedback on the process. The information gathered endorses our transition processes and has given us one or two minor tweaks for next year’s cohort. Thanks again.

As you will know winter sport started last Tuesday. For those involved in competitive sports, I know there is a grading element that takes place initially meaning the chances of lopsided games are high at the beginning of the season. For those students who were not in competitive options, I do hope they found their activities enjoyable. A big thank you to Courtney Ross for organising 700 hundred students, 15 buses, 36 teachers and 10 parent helpers to their respective destinations. And to our parent helpers, your time is greatly appreciated and allows us to provide a wide range of activities for students.

This year we have allowed students to wear their P.E uniform to and from school on a Tuesday. Feedback from students has been resoundingly positive and we have continued this for term 2. Obviously the temperatures in term 2 drop considerably, therefore we have informed the students of the following regarding uniform expectations for Tuesdays:

• Students can wear polar fleece and shell jackets with their P.E uniforms.

• Students can wear a non-uniform jacket to and from school but they are not to be worn while at school.

• Students are not permitted to wear track pants to school.

• Students can wear thermals under their uniform but they must not extend below the sleeves of shirts and blouses or shorts.

Having the students arrive in their P.E uniform is most helpful, particularly around the logistics of having 700 students getting changed at similar times on a Tuesday. Obviously, those playing competitive sports still need to get changed, but for the majority, they need not try and navigate the limited changing room spaces during the first part of lunch on a Tuesday.

On the uniform theme, the second uniform shop are desperately short of clothing. If you have any donations or items that you would like sold on your behalf, please drop your items to the office.

You may have noted media coverage about a pending strike and an email from the Board of Trustees regarding the school closure on Wednesday 29 May. Unless a resolution is found before next Wednesday the school will have to close.

Experience Cobham - most of our current students have been part of our successful “Experience Cobham” mornings. The 2019 iteration will run from 17 - 24 June. Details are available on our website and have been shared via Facebook. Please feel free to share this information with friends and family.

Open Night is scheduled for Tuesday, July 23, the first Tuesday of Term 3. Again we would appreciate you sharing this information with friends and family. Enrolment forms for 2020 can be completed online from now, just follow this link - https://forms.linc-ed.com/?school_id=3323. Online enrolments are preferred or hard copies of enrolment forms and our prospectus will be available from the office from mid-June. Enrolments close on August 30th. Please adhere to this date to avoid disappointment.

The election process for the school Board of Trustees is underway and all parents should have received nomination forms. We have five positions available for appointment this year, with nominations closing tomorrow, at 12 pm. Voting papers will be posted out by Wednesday 29 May and voting closes at noon on Friday 7 June. Voting papers must be returned in the envelope provided, either hand-delivered to the school office or by post. Any questions about the process can be directed to our Returning Officer - Christine Lambie christine.lambie@cobham.school.nz.

Our school disco is next Thursday, 30th May. The disco will be held in the school hall from 7.00pm - 9.00pm. The cost is $5.00. Like always, there will be food and drinks available to purchase.

We are almost there with the PTA chocolate fundraiser. Please help us to return these final boxes and/or money. The PTA have, over the past few years, sold Entertainment Books. If you do buy these, please consider buying them through our school as the money they raise helps our PTA greatly. They are $70 and can be purchased online www.entertainmentbook.co.nz or from the school office. Please support Cobham. Any questions email julie.lindsay@cobham.school.nz or phone 027 270 2521.

Thank you for your continued support of Cobham Intermediate. Please do not hesitate to contact us, we are here to help.

Ngā mihi nui,