Kia ora Whānau, It has been an interesting turn of events since the last Rāroan, where I was excited at the opportunities ahead for the term. Now, our main focus is on staying safe and doing our bit to eliminate this current outbreak. The local locations of interest have been significant in making us aware of the need to follow Covid guidelines and play it safe.

We are also focused on supporting families as best we can. I am hugely appreciative of the Rāroa staff who quickly jumped into action, with positivity and compassion for our students and community being top-of-mind. I am aware that there is such a wide range of home situations in our school community. Many families are coping comfortably and are well-equipped to adapt to the current situation. I am also aware that other families are managing more complex arrangements and the associated challenges these may bring. While the photo above shows one of the happy moments of my children playing happily together in a tree, I can honestly say that there are many other moments that aren’t so harmonious in the Eames household.

As you are aware, our current Alert Level situation has resulted in a few disruptions to the opportunities that your children usually have available to them. I know there will be a number of disappointed students who were looking forward to competing at AIMs Games, excited about the disco, or those who were in the middle of a DPE project. And of course, there will be students who are missing seeing their friends and teachers on a daily basis. What has been really fantastic over the last week has been seeing the students connecting with peers and teachers over Zoom, adapting to the circumstances and eager to share their bubble stories and home-learning experiences with others.

Thank you for the positive messages of support to the school and for the appreciative messages that the teachers have received directly. It really makes a difference to know that we are facing and adapting to these challenges as a united school community.