Tūngia te ururua kia tupu whakaritorito te tupu o te harakeke

Burn off the brushwood so the new shoots of flax grow

In all the time I have been in education, change has been a constant. Changes in the way we approach the teaching of literacy and maths, changes in the way we interact with children when delivering, changes in the types of learning that are valued.

All these changes are aiming for improvement in outcomes for children. As such, there have definitely been elements of what happens at school that have needed to change. Corporal punishment was an element of our school system that needed to be removed as it had a lasting impact on some children's experience of school.

Right now there is a lot of burning in the education sector. There are plenty of media reports of politicians talking about changes to the education system. This is not the first time, or the last time, that education will be a social and political issue. Throughout recent history there have always been changes made and new philosophies to adhere to.

What we need to remember through all of this is that we will continue to offer an experience of school that helps grow good people. Right now, we are helping to grow the next doctors, entrepenuers, public servants, lawyers, truck drivers, mechanics and all the other multitude of professions our children will take up in the future. The big picture is that once the current fires die down the new shoots of our education system will stay focussed on what it always has, growing great human beings who can contribute to our country and our economy.

As long as we keep that in focus, Ladbrooks School will continue to be a wonderful place for our children to learn.

Important Dates

Term 3 Ends - Friday 27th September

Term 4 Begins - Monday 14th October

Monday 21st October - PALS Meeting, 7pmstart

Labour Day - Monday 28th October

Friday 1st November - PALS Spooky Halloween Disco

Teacher Only Day - Thursday 14th November

Canterbury Anniversary Day - Friday 15th November

Prize Giving - Thursday 12th December

Ham Night - Tuesday 17th December

Last Day for Term 4 - Wednesday 18th December

Whanau Hui - Monday 3rd February

Term 1 Begins - Tuesday 4th February

Contractors at School

Over the term break we are having a number of contractors in school doing work while the children are not here. As they will be using machinery and powertools, we will be locking the boundary gates during the day while they are on site to ensure children don't accidently end up in their work space. We are not entirely sure what day they will be finished (as it is weather dependent) but it will be all of the first week and likely some of the next week.

New Entrant Enrolments

If you are aware of an in zone whānau who have a four year old who is intending to enrol at our school, it would be great if you could pass on to them contact details for our school.

They can access the enrolment form at this web address - https://ladbrooks.school.nz/a/Pyx8gRu

Alternatively they can contact Dot, office@ladbrooks.school.nz, 033296885

for more information on enrollment.

Koru Games

Our Year 7&8 children had a fantastic 3 days at the recent Koru Games held at Lincoln and Rolleston. We had children competing in badminton, ki-o-rahi, lawn bowls, pickle ball and table tennis.

We are fortunate that this local tournament gives our children to compete against children from around Canterbury and across the South Island. It is also a fantastic way for children to take part in sports that are outside the regular ones.

Our children were amazing and represented our school well. We did pick up some medals for top 3 finishes but the real reward was for our RLC children to connect with others their same age.

We look forward to taking part again in 2025.

School Pool

Over the next few weeks we will be getting th pool up and running for the Summer season.

Keys will be available next term. Keep a lookout for further information about this on Hero. Keys will be $95. This gives access to the pool in Term 4 and Term 1 and right through the Christmas break. The opening date for the pool will be advertised next term also. It is likely to be Canterbury Anniversary weekend.

Thank you to Emma Cooper and Michaela McLeod for again taking on the duties of managing the pool over the times when school is not open.

Teacher Only Days

There is 1 more teacher only day this year.

The date is Thursday 14th November (The day before Show Day. Government mandated curriculum day)

The Government has mandated that schools take 2 days in 2026 for teacher only days to assist with the implementation of the Maths curriculum. We are currently liaising with other local schools on dates. We will give at least one term's notice before any of these days.

Winter Clothing

Spring is upon us it is great to see the warmer days returning. So that children could get outside on the wetter and colder days during Winter, some children were wearing very sensible swandris and waterproof jackets that were not uniform. This was acceptable during this time.

From the beginning of Term 4 we will be asking that these items stay home and children return to wearing school polar fleece, Ladbrooks School Jackets and sweatshirts instead.

We are also expecting to see children wearing their hats next term.

Being Sunsmart

A reminder that as a sunsmart school, children are expected to slip, slop, slap and wrap in Term 1 and Term 4.

This means we want children wearing a broad brimmed hat, wearing a shirt that covers the shoulders, sunscreen on and sunglasses.

We have sunscreen available in each learning community. Children are welcome to bring sunglasses to wear at break times. Our uniform shirts and hats are perfectly fine protection.

We will also have our sunshades back up to offer protection during the day.

Pet Day

This is appraoching next term. If you haven't seen anything about it or let Dot know which animal your child is bringing, please contact your child's teacher for more information.

Turou Hawiiki

Sean