Kia ora koutou

Welcome to Term 1, 2022. If you are new to our kura, it is wonderful to have you and your child(ren) as part of our Heaton community.

I have just been walking around watching students participate in Fun Day activities. It is very hot and the water activities are particularly popular today. I love seeing all the house colours and the students relaxing and enjoying themselves after 2 weeks into a new year.

Each house team and the specialist team have provided a pen picture of the teaching and learning and their areas.

We are very excited about our te reo Māori names for each of our 6 houses. These colours and names connect to the pre European and European heritage of the Merivale, Papanui and Central City that surrounds our kura.

We have 4 new staff members this year. Amber Osborn, Room 19, Olivia Pearce, Room 10, Martine Ribotton, Room 14 and Jackie Hawthorn our Executive Officer. We are all really enjoying getting to know each other and each of them is proving to be a fantastic addition to our team already.

Aine Elliott, our IT Coordinator, is taking leave for the remainder of the year to return to Ireland for family reasons. Aine teaches Digital Technologies to Year 8 students who opt into her programme and manages the IT infrastructure of the school. We are also supported by Cyclone, our IT service providers. I am working through how we will be covering Aine’s role this year. I am hoping to appoint an experienced Digital Technologies teacher. I will keep you posted. In the meantime, Year 8 students who have opted for Digital Technologies have been placed in a different specialist subject.

Welcome back to Whaea Chrissy who is our Kaiārahi. She is supporting our students, staff and our community in our understanding and application of Te Ao Māori to our kura.

It is my great pleasure to introduce our 4 Heads of School for 2022.

“Kia ora. I’m Melissa, the 2022 Head Girl at Heaton.  I hope everyone is excited for the new school year.  I'm excited for all of our school wide opportunities, especially all of the arts, because for me this is a perfect place to have creative fun.  I've been in the kapa haka, orchestra, production, and Scape arts programmes.  I love how everyone can join in and no one needs to be left out of the fun.  I hope everyone is willing to give everything a go!"

"Hi my name is Kingston and I am proud to be the Head Boy of Heaton Normal Intermediate.  I enjoy playing rugby and swimming because they are one of my favourite things to do at school.  If you have any questions come ask Nolan, Melissa, Harman or myself."

"My name is Harman.  I'm from Raukawa House and I'm in Room 1 and I'm the Deputy Head Girl.  I come from India, Haryana.  I moved from India to New Zealand 6 years ago.  I can fluently speak Hindi, Punjabi, English and I'm currently learning Mandarin.  I enjoy playing cricket and hockey."

"Kia ora, my name is Nolan and I am the Deputy Head Boy for this school year.  I have been at Heaton since the end of Term 3 and have recently moved from the United States of America.  I enjoy playing football and the Build-Up board game with my mates all around the school.  You can find me in Room 1 or anywhere around the school."

My very best wishes for a fantastic 2022. It is going to be an exciting one.

Ngā mihi nui

Andrea Knight, Tumuaki/Principal