If you missed it or were unable to attend our Information Evening on Wednesday, here is what we talked about...

Lisa DR welcomed all the parents and explained about the evening. All the Year 4 - 8 teachers were introduced.

Prime Maths  

Shane Barr introduced the new Prime maths programme that is going to be implemented into the school for Years 4-8. Maths is a universal language and there is one version that is used across the world and is based on the Singapore Curriculum. Prime maths is the number one achieving mathematics programme in the world. Prime will be cheap to implement. 

There are two books: The course book and the Practice book. There is Part A and B of the practise book - a small cost of $7 each for the book. The book will be kept at school. There are still parts of the numeracy project that will operate in the school especially the knowledge part.

To find out more, go to the Scholastic website: http://www.scholastic.co.nz/schools/education/prime-maths-information/

STEAM 

Francis’ passion is Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths also known at STEM. We prefer to call it STEAM at Merrin because we like to include The Arts.

STEAM is about looking at ways we can develop issues that are important for the students and will be for the rest of their lives. It is about building on knowledge especially around the environment.

This is also about including the community and there is a number of events coming up for you to be involved in. Beach clean up out at Sumner, a snorkeling programme and an opportunity to take part in a field trip out to Ellesmere. We look forward to having your involvement. Information for these events will be coming home to you as the come up. They are also on the Merrin events calendar.

Library 

We have implemented the ePlatform as our online site for the Merrin library. This allows the students to log in at any time/ anywhere and they are able to go on and see what they have on loan, what they can borrow, new books etc. We are also excited to share that we now have ebooks online which are exciting and new and there is a huge number the students can choose from for free.

Values 

This year the school is embarking on a few new directions which are all coming together and one of those things is the new School Values. They are a work in progress as they continue to be developed. All students throughout the years have been working on them at school. Parent voice will be thread through these values and you will continue to have your say as it is very important.

Home learning 

The expectations for home learning are outlined. 

Reading is expected to be done at home and hopefully you are asking some questions about your child's reading. Once the programme is up and running, we will let you know what to ask and give you some information around this.

IXL complements the maths your child will be doing at school. The expectation is an hour a week and it is up to you how and when you do this. We will be able to give you an idea of what areas to be practising once our programme is running fully.

Te Kōtiritiri Challenges are getting revised currently to align with the new school values however the Reading and IXL that you do currently is still getting monitored and your child will get credited for the work they do.

BYOD 

In Year 4 we are introducing the students to our Digital Citizen License. Information will come home for you to read and sign with your child. Once they are ready for a full license, we will contact you. 

There is more information on BYOD on the Merrin School website. If you look under the menu and going into Digital Learning you will find information regarding devices, expectations and how they are used in the classroom to enhance student learning. If you still have further questions you can click on the Merrin Community blog and write down your questions. The staff will get back to you and answer your questions within a week of receiving them.

Collaborative learning 

We work collaboratively as the Middle Stars Team. In Pataitai we work collaboratively in a team of three. If you haven't had a chance to come in and see us, please feel free to email.

Communication

The first point of call about your child is their Whānau Teacher. They are the best people to answer your questions and we want to develop relationships with you.

Communication is a big thing and is very important to us. Most of our information will come out through Hail once a week. This will have reminders, things that are happening over the next few weeks in our pod and things that are happening within the school. It will also explain what your child is focussing on in maths and how you can support it through IXL. It is really important to read the Hail articles. The only paper notices that come home now are ones that need to be signed.

Parent Involvement

There are several ways to be involved your children's education. We have had focus groups in the past and we will continue to run these. Your opinions and thoughts are very vital in these groups. This term will be looking at the best way to Report to you as parents so please come along and share your ideas. 

You can also be involved in the PTA. The first meeting will be on Monday the 7th March at 7 pm at the staff room. You are all welcome. Please let your child's Whānau teacher know if you would like to be involved. 

A lot of parents/caregivers/Whānau last year were also involved as Tutor Readers and we need you. You are very important to us and have many strengths and skills. Please let your child's Whānau Teacher know if you can help out.

We understand that there is a lot of information in this article, but it is important for you to know. We have an open door policy and welcome you to make contact with us if you have questions.

Week 3

This week we will be continuing with our learning around the ocean for our Big Idea while beginning to implement some more routines. We will also be completing some final assessments to inform our programme from week 4 onwards.

Thanks

Tania, Nicky and Vanessa