Kia ora, Mālō e lelei, Talofa lava, Taloha ni, Kia orana, Fakaalofa lahi atu, Namaste, Ni sa bula and warm Pacific greetings to you all.

Last week we were fortunate to be part of the first ever public holiday celebrating Matariki. I hope you managed to spend some time with whanāu and friends – to enjoy kai, share and reflect on the year gone by, celebrate the present, and plan for the future. At Queen’s we held workshops on weaving, Kī-o-rahi and poetry followed by shared kai. We also held our first full school assembly for the year, where as a school we celebrated Matariki together.

The celebrations have continued on into this week, with it being Pasifika Week. Each day the students have held different activities to showcase their cultures. It has ended with an assembly, where our Pasifika Prefects spoke of the importance of their culture and being yourself.  Many of the Queen’s of the Pacific group performed for the whole school (pictured above). A highlight was the Food Stall, with many students enjoying food prepared by our Pasifika students and their families. Thank you to everyone who made this week such a success.  See more photos of the weeks activities below.

On a different matter, I wish to share the governments recently released Attendance and Engagement Strategy with you all. This was developed in response to declining attendance in schools across New Zealand since 2015. The latest figures show just 59.7% of student attending regularly (90% or more of the time) across New Zealand.

At Queen’s High School our overall attendance rate usually sits around 88% - 90%. At our recent Board meeting I reported that the overall attendance rate at Queen’s High School for this school year is 83.0% (which is not unexpected due to Covid-19 and influenza).

An attendance rate of 90% reads much better than it actually is. This level of attendance means that a student is missing, on average, one day of school each fortnight. Research has shown that your child's regular attendance at school, may be the greatest factor influencing her academic success. Alongside achievement, two other important benefits are opportunities and belonging. Opportunities and exposure to activities and learning that add to your daughter’s personal growth are not missed, just by being present at school. Your daughter is also learning how to contribute, learning valuable social skills and developing a broader world view by being part of the Queen’s community. There is no safe number of days for missing school. Every Day Counts. We need your support in ensuring your daughter gets to school every day and on time, unless, of course, she is unwell.

An effective way for self-management of attendance is for students to track their own attendance using the Parent Portal/Student Portal. Next week we will be sending letters to whānau of students whose attendance is a concern. Our aim is that we work together to raise attendance, achievement and engagement for all students.

With next week being the final week of the term, the break will be a welcome opportunity for students and staff alike to take some well-deserved time for themselves as well as prepare for Term 3.

Barbara Agnew

Principal