Kia ora koutou,

With our transition into autumn and with Term Two just around the corner, a reminder that regular attendance at school is important for students' learning, well-being and their futures.

The key measure of attendance is the proportion of students who attend regularly, that is, the percentage of students who have attended more than 90% of the term or year-to-date. A more simplistic take on this is that students who attend regularly still miss up to one day a fortnight, and even that adds up to one week of school time across a term and one month off school each year.

As parents, caregivers, and whānau, you play the most important role in helping our students regularly attend school. We encourage parents, caregivers, and whānau to play their part by:

Not taking your son/daughter out of school for holidays or special events during term time. Please avoid this.
Communicating with us if you are having difficulties with your son/daughter attending school. Don't let them have the day off just because they would rather be at home. Whether it’s mental health, bullying, overwhelm about workload, anxiety about assessments, or something else that they won’t disclose details of, talk to them about why they don’t want to go. Contact the school as whatever the reason, we have good advice, experience and insight - we’ll be able to work together to help your child. Please reach out to your student's teacher in the first instance if you are having a challenging time getting your son or daughter to attend school.
Not sending your son/daughter to school if they are sick. We know that winter colds and illnesses usually peak in the second and third terms of the school year, so ‘Stay well’. The symptoms of the common cold and flu can be the same as, or similar to, the symptoms of Covid-19. If your son/daughter starts to feel any of the symptoms of Covid or the flu, it is really important that they stay home and take a Covid-19 test. These include headache, sore throat, cough, runny nose, muscle ache, and high temperature. Also, ensure they stay home for 24 hours after their symptoms have resolved.
On the preventative side of things, colds and flu spread very easily, but there are things you can do to protect yourself and your whānau. Keep your immune system strong; be active by exercising regularly; eat healthy food, drink plenty of water, wrap up nice and warm, and get plenty of sleep.

Please note that medical certificates are important to justify absences from school due to extended illness. We may require medical certificates for any absence longer than three days or more than 10 cumulative days during a school term. The exception to this is when a student has Covid-19. This is a reminder that we have our free and confidential Public Health Nurse service available.

Note that if your child misses a lot of school because of a serious illness, you may be able to get help from the Southern Health School. Please contact me if you want to know more about this service.

We hope the upcoming holidays give everyone a rest and a chance to recharge their batteries for the term ahead.

All in for Learning,

Kia kotahi te ū ki te ako

Justine Lock,

Deputy Principal