Kia ora Papanui Primary school whānau

I hope you are all doing well.

The term 1 school holidays are upon us. Eleven weeks have flown by and somehow we find ourselves in the middle of April already. The break is a chance for both our tamariki and our staff to get some rest and recharge their batteries for the term ahead. It's fair to say that the majority of our kids are pretty tired by this time of the term and need lots of downtime and time to connect with whānau. A massive shoutout to our staff for a fantastic term. We are extremely lucky to have such a dedicated, enthusiastic and skilled staff who turn up everyday to make a positive difference. Thanks team!

What a term we have had! There have been so many highlights over the term. Here are just a few.

• Our meet the teacher picnic dinner
• The Big Day Out trip to Jellie park
• Children's university getting underway
• Touch and Basketball teams competing
• Staff structured literacy professional development
• International day
• Launching our new Hero app
• Our welcome to new families at our mihi whakatau
• Senior school top team
• Watching the mural being created
• Athletics day
• The continuation of our impressive kapa haka group
• The Garden to table cooking club
• Junior and senior school hui - welcoming back whānau
• And the fantastic teaching and learning going on each and every day.

We have got lots coming up next term as well. 

• An exciting term of science and developing our kids science capabilities.
• Senior school visits to Rāpaki marae
• Book fair
• Grandparents and whānau day
• Matariki celebration event ...just to name a few....

If you are looking for some fun things to do with your tamariki over the break, here is a link published on the Christchurch city libraries website with loads of fun things you could do.

It is ANZAC day in the holidays as well. We will be focussing on that as a school in the first week with a small ceremony on the first Tuesday. Here is a great clip to watch with your tamariki that talks about what Anzac day is all about. Here is a recipe for Anzac biscuits which are always fun to make with the kids as well.

Finally I hope you have a great couple of weeks with your tamariki. Make the most of the time and even if you are working make sure you take some time to hang out with them. Sharing some special time together can be great for you too – it’s your chance to be a kid again and just have fun.

See you in a couple of weeks ready for a fantastic term 2.

Noho ora mai (stay well and look after yourselves)

Ben 

Tumuaki/Principal