This time last week our Year 5/6 learners, staff and a group of awesome parents were away at Living Springs Camp.

The children had an amazing time and tested themselves with lots of risk-taking skills and new adventures. The food was very popular and our children enjoyed three hearty meals [+ some] each day. Special thanks to our parents and staff who made this great opportunity for our children happen.

It's interesting the difference a week can make. As we are now working in Stage 2 of our Pandemic Plan Mrs Megan Murray and I  had to make the very difficult decision to postpone our Year 7/8 camp scheduled for later next week. It was a gutting decision to make but with new advice from the Ministry of Education and information changing daily it was the right decision. We are planning some fun 'un-camp' activities for those learners affected.

At times like these we have to be very mindful of the mental health and well-being of our children; something I learned as a Principal during the 2011 and subsequent Canterbury Earthquakes. Our children won't be participating in their normal sporting routines and activities so here are some tips I picked up along the way as a parent and educator:

* try to remain hopeful and pop little things into your weekly calendar e.g. a local 'autumn' picnic, a family walk, your child preparing a paper menu and cooking dinner for the family

* try to limit how much we talk about the virus and reduce the amount of time the TV/Computer is playing the news

* try to keep ourselves happy and healthy as adults - our children learn a lot from us

Yesterday the lead principals and our Early Childhood Representative from our Kāhui Ako, met with our Senior Advisor from the Ministry of Education. We are working hard to ensure our communication is stream-lined and our messages are similar across our special community. It is great to have the support of other schools and centres.

On that note you may be aware that Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has advised that anyone who has been overseas in the last two weeks should self-isolate, even if they got back before the official deadline of March 16th.
"If you arrived before those border restrictions, seeing out the balance of your 14 days of self-isolation is the sensible, safest and best thing you can do for the community around you."
If you do decide to self-isolate please let the school know so we can be in the best position to support you and your child. And please do not send your children to school if they are unwell.

Onto other news...our children were all delighted to receive an ice-block with their lunch on Tuesday thanks to Jo Burnett and Inspired Delights. Jo donates ice-blocks every year and we decided to coincide this with our milestone of surpassing 600+ learners. We are planning a yummy morning tea and coffee van visit for our 'fab' staff. Welcome to Anne Farrington who has joined us as a teaching assistant.

Thanks to the families who popped along for our Māori Whānau Hui dinner last evening. It was great to have our learners starting with their mihi. If you missed this event but would like to come along in the future please talk to Miss Leigh Thrupp, Miss Katie Talbot or Miss Bec Lambert.

Finally, with assembly now cancelled this week we have brought forward the timing of our parent morning tea in which we will share our school's hauora/wellbeing model with any interested parents and whānau. All welcome at 9am in the staff-lounge.

Take care

Sylvia