Kia ora, 

I am so proud of our tamariki and the staff for the incredible display of artwork in the hall. It takes my breath away - the colour, the energy and pride that is evident in the exhibition.  Arts education values young children’s experiences and builds on these with increasing sophistication and complexity as their knowledge and skills develop. Through the use of creative and intuitive thought and action, learners in the arts are able to view their world from new perspectives. Through the development of art literacies, students, as creators, presenters, viewers, and listeners, are able to participate in, interpret, value, and enjoy the arts throughout their lives. We can see evidence of all of this at Toi Te Kura Kōaka exhibition.

Involvement with a rich variety of art materials instills confidence and pride. Through art children use their creativity to plan, design and construct an idea. They experiment with form, line, movement, shapes and spatial relationships. Art is good for the heart.

And when adults view children’s art we are reminded of the unique perspective that children have, and what is important to them. It is a reminder to us to protect childhood - let children play, explore and develop at their own pace.

Thanks so much to the teachers, particularly the ARTS team leader, Lynda Peterson, for co-ordinating the event. It is awesome and keeps getting bigger and more vibrant. Our teachers are awesome! They take great pride in showcasing what your children have done. The putting together of the displays takes some time - so thank you everyone.

It was wonderful to be able to share the exhibition with grandparents. It is so special to see the interactions and the genuine pleasure that the children have sharing their work with people they love.

While our staff do their best to minimise the cost for all the additional materials required, there is a financial cost to provide such a show. Whilst the koha covers some of this, the school donation helps us to cover these extra special things that we do. We do really appreciate receiving your school donation and your updated accounts will be emailed out this week. We would greatly appreciate if you would please consider paying all of your donation.

As we start to plan for next year, can you please let us know if your child won't be returning to Hoon Hay next year, as this helps us to plan more effectively. Also, please see the separate article regarding anything special we need to know about your child for their class placement in 2020.

Our thoughts are with Russley School. We can imagine how we would feel if it happened to us and, like us, their classrooms were full of artwork ready for their exhibition week! We have joined in with the many other schools who have offered to help out.

Ngā mihi

Lee McArthur
Principal - Tumuaki