He mihi mahana ki a koutou katoa - Warm greetings to all.

Next Friday school is closed as we attend the Kahukura Teachers Conference. The theme  of our conference is ‘Whakapuāwai through Creativity’. As you know we have employed a creatives teacher this year who is working with our classes on music, drama and dance. Year 1-3 will have some performances to share later this term and in Term 3 it is the turn of Year 4-6. We are lucky to have an national and international speaker (zooming in) for our conference. Schools will also spend some time sharing practice.

There is significant evidence that when people participate in creative pursuits it improve their wellbeing. We also know that wellbeing is vital for our tamariki success and is strongly linked to learning. Being a successful learner also impacts on wellbeing. We are conscious of all these factors for our learners. We promote wellbeing at all times but at times we have to respond to issues as life is complicated for some.

At Somerfield Te Kura Wairepo we want our tamariki to be successful , safe and secure as we know this lifts confidence to try new challenges and strengthens their resilience.

Congratulations to Kirsten Kotoul who is now a fully registered teacher. As well as three to four years training at University teachers must then completed two years extra training at their school before becoming fully registered. Welcome to the profession Kirsten!

Nga Toi Athon

Please get all cards and money back tomorrow. So far we have had over $4300 which is amazing and the class competition is still up for grabs! Congratulations to all our tamariki for all their wonderful creations. We have some work to share further in the newsletter.

Important Changes to the School uniform

Our school uniform has been updated to give clear guidelines on what is acceptable for hijab, leggings, long sleeved tops and hair accessories. They now must be in school colours of white, red or navy blue.

Please check the policy on our website. https://www.somerfield.school.nz/uniforms/

Alert Level 1

Under Alert Level 1 tamariki and staff MUST stay at home if they are sick. If everyone does this we can cut down the amount of illness by not spreading it. We are moving into cold and flu season. I encourage you and your whānau to consider getting the flu vaccination. We will be reminding our tamariki about the usual health messages:

- cough and sneeze into arms

- washing hands thoroughly and using sanitiser.