Our Purpose: To prepare students to be active participants who will contribute to their community.

Tēnā koutou katoa, Malo e lelei, Talofa lava, Bula vinaka

Welcome back to Term 2! I was very grateful for an opportunity to recharge and spend time with my family over the last two weeks.

As we settle into a new term at O.I.S, it is timely to remind our school community of our attendance expectations. Our goal for every pupil is to be at school on time and ready to learn and on a regular basis. We know that student attendance, along with effective teaching, has the greatest influence on student engagement and achievement. Regular attendance at school ensures that students keep up-to-date with their learning, maintain motivation to succeed and keep connections with others. It is also important for students to be at school to socialise and form positive relationships with their peers and particularly important in creating the students' sense of belonging to OIS.

You would have heard the teaching of our New Zealand Mathematics Curriculum has been in the media this week. Across OIS, our teachers draw on a range of teaching strategies which allow our learners to experience maths in many different and authentic ways, and to be challenged and supported in the ways that meet their individual needs. These may include small group learning with the teacher, whole class instruction, independent activities to consolidate newly learned skills, rich tasks, problem solving, project based learning, to name some. During the year, your child will also learn across the multiple strands of mathematics: number, but also measurement, geometry, algebra, probability and statistics.

Our teachers differentiate their teaching in mathematics to cater for their individual learners, and so the way maths looks is slightly different across different classes and even across year levels as we adjust what we do for the needs of different learning cohorts.

We constantly review our teaching programmes and moderate learning judgements that we make. We also participate in professional development so we develop our teacher capabilities.

In week 6 you will have an opportunity to meet with your child’s teacher to discuss their current learning goals. You will get your first written report for the year which will have an overall teacher judgement for Reading, Writing and Mathematics. It will also have your child’s attendance percentage.

We are in full spring with the new timetable and we will be doing a review at the end of this term. It has been great to see our community embracing change with such a positive attitude. The canteen is open in Break 1 and Break 3 (Lunch). During Break 3 we still have 15 minutes to sit down and eat.

• Block 1: 8.55 am - 10.15 am

• Block 2: 10.35 am -11.45 am

• Block 3: 12.05 pm - 1.05 pm

• Block 4: 1.40 pm - 3.00 pm

Winter Sport

On Tuesday night I had the pleasure of meeting with our Winter Sport/Interschool Coaches. A huge thank you to our coaches, manages and teachers in charge of sports who are supporting our students to participate in winter sports teams. This year we are able to field 9 boys basketball teams, 4 girls basketball teams, 3 hockey 6 a-side teams and 8 netball teams.

Each student, parent and coach has signed a fair play promise. We all have a part to play to ensure that the winter sports season runs smoothly and each game is a positive experience for all. Below is the expectations for parents/caregivers/supporters.

• Respect that people are involved in sport for fun and enjoyment.
• Support good play and applaud good performance from all competitors.
• Know the difference between supportive and abusive comments and rule out the latter. 
• Accept the decisions of officials and coaches.
• Display self-control on the sideline. Always be positive.
• Remember that we are all capable of making mistakes.
• Encourage your child, and other people’s children, in their efforts in sport.
• Insist that your child plays within the rules and by the principles of Fair Play. 
• Respect your child’s efforts, regardless of whether s/he has won or lost.
• Watch your child play and let him/her enjoy the game.
• Show your appreciation and value the people who volunteer their time so your child can play and practice.
• Remember your child plays sport for his/her reasons, not yours.
• Be a positive role model for your child.
• Never place undue pressure on your child to play or perform.
• Make an effort to understand the rules of the game.

Uniform

We have changed over to our winter uniform for boys. This means that they can wear grey long dress pants (same as WBHS) and for girls Navy knee high socks or Navy tights.

This week we have noticed a number of jewellery items being worn by students. Jewellery is not acceptable, except for a watch and a small plain stud in each ear. Nail polish, makeup and obvious dyed hair are not permitted. Long hair needs to be tied back with a plain band – red, navy, black or brown.

If your child is out of uniform for any reason they require a uniform pass from the office.

We are super proud of our uniform and how we look. We appreciate your support in ensuring students are wearing the correct school uniform.

Safety

A huge thank you for your support with our pupils biking and scootering to school. Please continue to have conversations with your child about their safety on the way to and from school.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Rebecca Meek

He waka eke noa - We are in this together