Kia ora te whānau, Mālō e lei lei and warm greetings from Kākāriki House.

As we move well into Week 8 of Term 3, there is some uncertainty for us as we navigate Covid-19 and getting back to school in a safe and sensible way.

Term 3’s focus has been on academic learning and tracking particularly with senior students. Earlier this term we held a Year 10 Assembly about whakaute - respect, wellbeing and learning.

A highlight for me this year was seeing the Philippine Community celebrate Philippines Independence with some kākāriki students; Leif Cusi, Precious Oliveria, Vince Aballa and others being involved in helping Mr Ruiz and Ms Martins set up an incredibly ‘feel good’ event.

Tongan Language week was last week ( 5th September - 11th September), and its theme was “Fakakoloa 'o Aotearoa 'aki 'a e Ako Lelei” - which means enriching Aotearoa with holistic education. This resonates with me as we all learn so differently, and are getting better at celebrating this!

One personal goal I have is to try and learn a Tongan proverb to help celebrate the culture and language over 2,000 Tongan people in Ōtautahi Christchurch.

I want to acknowledge and celebrate the amount of success our learners have had this year in a range of interests, sporting, cultural activities and academically.

Badminton, Netball, Hockey, Tennis, U15 Rugby, Basketball - and more, it is great to see so many keen young people getting involved in sports and carry themselves with pride in what they do and show commitment to their sport. Mr Smith took kākāriki students Devon Cootes and Connor Armstrong to the Model EU in Canterbury earlier this year, which prompted great opportunities to think about problem solving and the world. Mr Russell and music students participated in fundraising for the Southern Jam, well done to kākāriki students and all involved in the leading up to this; to name a few: Caitlin and David Templeton, Lucas Niewenhuize, Becky Bennett, Hamish McNabb, Stella Derham, Athalia Harrell...The list is huge.

Thank you all for your hard work and representing Linwood College so well, you have shown school values of Excellence and Service. It is humbling to see your passion.

This term Kākāriki house has been lucky to have two new staff members to our house, Mr Nick Colville ( Yr 11-13 Kākāriki Dean), and Mr Andy Parr ( Kākāriki Yr 9 and 10, Pastoral Assistant). They bring a wealth of experience, skills and knowledge to us and I’m very grateful to have them working with us.

We’ve had some brilliant house events; tabloid sports, ‘Pink Day’ parade, spelling bee and more. Our senior Kākāriki students have worked hard with their learning and to date we have 5 learners who have already passed NCEA level 2 - Shania Martin, Jamie Tuari, Hunter Walters, Caitlin Templeton, Skyla Waller. An amazing effort and congratulations.

Phoenix Evans and other members of the student leadership team have been generous with their time and energy by promoting Linwood College to communities in Lyttelton and others for next year. Thank you for this.

I am personally happy and reassured to be back on-site for learning and connecting with learners, families and other teachers in person. We have additional learning time next term for our seniors which will definitely come in use as we prepare for finishing off any final internals, or prepare for NZQA exams.

For the remainder of the term I expect that it will be a bit of a ‘reset’ for us all as we readjust to routine on-site, with basics like punctuality and attendance being vital for success.

All students have access to an online platform called CareerCentral which helps guide them for option selection for 2022 and I encourage Year 11-13 students to talk through these with whānau and their teachers as they examine pathway options.

During this week, and the previous, we have been engaging in over the phone academic tracking conversations with kaiārahi or one of Kākāriki’s deaning team.

Exam preparation, continued school lunches, trips and house competitions will no doubt come up in the next few weeks and given Kākāriki’s track record - I predict we will do well and rise to these challenges and do well!

All the best, and hope to see you all soon

I’ll finish on a Tongan proverb and value which seems fitting for our context :

Tauhi vaha’a - Keep relationships alive and well

Ngā manaakitanga,

Kate Munro, Assistant Dean: kmu@linwoodcollege.school.nz

Andy Parr, Junior Pastarol Assisstant: par@linwoodcollege.school.nz

Nick Colville, Senior Dean: col@linwoodcollege.school.nz