April 2019

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Term 1 has seen Aupaki schools involved in a number of events and initiatives linked to our shared vision: We build and share our strengths so that our ākonga, whānau, kaiako and community, experience being engaged, inspired and culturally confident.

Farewell Kate
 Very warm congratulations to Kate McClelland for accepting a secondment to Ōhoka School as Acting principal for the next 3 terms of 2019. Kate has given a tremendous amount of work and energy to Aupaki Schools in her pathway support role and we will all miss her. A new process to fill this Aupaki position is underway and we hope to be able to announce this early in the new term.

Communications
Aupaki is looking forward to launching its new website early in the new term and being able to share up to the minute visual snapshots, stories and current Aupaki news with our communities. This is an exciting development for Aupaki as it works to achieve shared goals. Behind the scenes Aupaki leaders are working to strengthen the connections between schools and networks of teachers through establishment of shared team drives. This is an important step in supporting our schools as we identify and share strengths, weaknesses, resources and expertise to learn with, and from, each other.

Combined Staff Hui
Week 4 of term 1 kicked off the first combined staff hui held at Heathcote Valley School. Being the first full Aupaki get together for the year we took the opportunity to welcome new staff, introduce the new lead principal and then assemble staff across year levels. The focus for our first hui was the sharing of best practice especially in relation to boys writing particularly evidence and examples of writing teaching and learning that has had high impact. Staff led and shared professional discussions around writing with clear links to engagement, culturally responsive practice, accelerated learning and conversations around “what made the difference”. Feedback from this hui included examples of where staff from different kura had leveraged each others ideas for their own practice in their own schools or made professional connections.

Teacher Only Day Rāpaki Marae
Our combined teacher only day on Monday 18th March became vital following the tragic events of 15 March. Principals met on Saturday morning and through the weekend working collaboratively to support our children and school communities. Despite the circumstances, the Teacher only day at Rāpaki Marae was very successful and we appreciated the opportunity to be together to help process the events and plan for next steps together. Our shared connections with Rāpaki are a strength for Aupaki especially in regards to Cultural Responsive understanding. Aupaki is working hard to provide strategic and deliberate professional development to strengthen and sustain effective teaching and learning in a culturally sustaining way.

Early Childhood Education
We are pleased to have a number of Aupaki early childhood centres approach to formally join Aupaki. Our early childhood centres have a depth of professional expertise to contribute to strengthening Aupaki with effective and seamless transition to primary school. This is an exciting development and we are looking forward to working with ECE in this new and developing capacity.

Aupaki School Council
The 2019 Aupaki school council met early in Term 1 to reconnect after the holidays, think about our purpose and plan for the Top Team event being held in Week 6. Our first task was to get to know each other through asking and answering a random selection of questions. There were a lot of laughs as we shared stories and ideas. One thoughtful question was about the whakatauki the 2018 council chose, Whiria te tangata, Weave the people together, and asking if we could consider some other options that may have more meaning for the new council. The planning for Top Team then began in earnest, as we had to decide on the format and allocation of team names and colours. Their mahi extended back into their schools, sharing the information about the upcoming event and helping put students into teams. They laid the groundwork for a successful Top Team event. Our next project is to plan for the Aupaki student magazine, an idea from 2018 that the new council are keen to carry on with. We will meet again in Week 6 at Heathcote Valley School.

Top Team
The two days of top team activity involving fun team building games for our students in year 7 to 9 was held again at Redcliffs School with the assistance of Sport Canterbury. Feedback from students included that they enjoyed the opportunity to meet and interact with students from across Aupaki to participate in team games.

Enrichment at Linwood College
Linwood College has provided another outstanding opportunity for Aupaki children this term through a debating enrichment programme held on Wednesday mornings for our tamariki. An integral part of building trusting relationships with iwi, whanau, ECEs and primary schools is also fostering and developing connection we have with Linwood College. Linwood College has recently appointed Nicole Kilbride to co-ordinate future enrichment programmes. Next term the focus is on media studies and information has been sent to kura about this.

Aupaki TechFest
Tech Fest in Term 2 is looking to be another fantastic opportunity for children, with 12 workshops being offered for the two-day technology conference. Stay tuned for more details from your school. We are looking forward to Aupaki staff also having the opportunity to experience a teacher version of TechFest this year at our combined staff hui in Week 4.

Sports Coordinator
A sports coordinator role is currently in process for appointment. The sports coordinator role has a tremendous impact of pe programmes across schools and we look forward to having this start again.

Collaborative Inquiry
Across school and within school leads are working together with CORE Education over term 2 to undertake additional inquiry into individual school needs and the Aupaki shared achievement challenge. Although schools are already well underway with their own professional learning and development plans this year, Aupaki continues to work on a strategic and collaborative approach to shared professional learning in areas of collective need.

Ngā mihi nui

Brendan Wright

Aupaki Lead Principal