‘E ako ana, ā, e tipu tahi ana tātou’ - Learning and growing together.

Kia ora koutou

Students really enjoyed their sessions with Pip and Harold in the Life Education Trust Bus last week, with a range of topics covered, including Decisions and Feelings, Empathy, Friendships, Emotions and Being an Upstander. These topics tie in well with Bullying Free Week this week.

 With the term having started with several days with no covid cases reported at school I will just give a weekly update in the newsletter from now on.

A reminder that we have postponed Grandparents' Day for this term. This special day has been held in conjunction with our cultural assembly which brings a few hundred of our school community together in the Owhiro Centre. We felt that this was very unwise in the present situation, so we will livestream our cultural assembly and look at a date next term to hold our Grandparents' Day.

This week is Bullying-Free NZ Week which aims to raise awareness of how to prevent and respond to bullying in schools. The week provides an opportunity for schools to highlight their everyday work and focus on bullying prevention and awareness with students, staff, parents and whānau, and the whole school community.

Schools that encourage respect, value opinions, celebrate difference, and promote positive relationships make it difficult for bullying behaviour to thrive or be tolerated. To achieve this, it needs everyone – school staff, students, trustees, parents, whānau and communities – talking about the issue and working together. 

We would like to support the Mental Health Foundation's Pink Shirt Day which works to create schools, workplaces, communities and whānau where everyone feels safe, valued and respected. 

Because of our Outdoor Education Day at Tirohanga on Friday, we are holding our Pink Shirt Day this Thursday. Could children wear a pink shirt or something pink and bring a gold coin donation to go towards supporting the Mental Health Foundation.

We are hoping for fine weather for our outdoor education day at Tirohanga on Friday.

Enjoy the week ahead.

Ngā mihi nui

Jennifer