Freaky Friday

This is our Freaky Friday dress up community event and is usually held on a Friday after school around Halloween. Children and adults are encouraged to dress up. There are stalls for children to play games and win prizes. This is a fun event for the whole family.

Tickets go on sale at the school office and posters will be put up closer to the date. Parents are asked through Westmere School Supporters to volunteer and to assist with the event.

Hats

Our school hats are compulsory and must be worn in Terms 1 and 4 as part of our sun safety policy. School hats are available to purchase from the School Office.  If a child is not wearing a hat they are required to stay in shaded areas.

Head Lice - check and treat

This is a perennial problem in schools. If we notice a problem in a class we will send home a "Head Lice Information Sheet". The Health Department recommends regularly brushing long hair, for it to be tied up and a weekly application of conditioner. Use a lice comb whilst the conditioner is on the hair, to eliminate any live lice.

• Please check and treat all family members daily for at least three weeks

• It is important after each treatment to comb hair thoroughly with a fine toothed comb to remove eggs and to break the cycle

• Success is likely if treated and regular checks are made

• Machine wash and dry clothing, bed linen, and other items that the infested person wore or used during the 2 days before treatment using a hot water (50 degrees C or 130°F) laundry cycle and a high heat drying cycle. Clothing and items that are not washable can be dry-cleaned OR sealed in a plastic bag and stored for 2 weeks.

• Soak combs and brushes in hot water (at least 50 degrees C or 130°F) for 5-10 minutes.

• There is an olive oil treatment plan on www.headliceinfo.com

TO BREAK THE CYCLE IT IS IMPORTANT TO GET THE EGGS!!!

Kylie’s top tip is: On the same night each week, use a lot of conditioner and comb your child’s hair, then run a nit comb through the hair to double check. It is sometimes very hard to see the nits unless there are a lot of them. The comb kills the eggs and breaks the legs of any adult lice making them unable to feed and lay eggs.

Health and Safety
As part of creating a healthy and safe environment, it is important that there are good systems and processes in place for hazard and risk management.  In the interests of monitoring and reporting hazards we ask our parents and visitors to the school to contact the office or email office@westmere.school.nz if you notice anything that is unsafe or could cause harm. 

Holidays During Term Time

Children are required by law to attend school when school is open during term time. Any request to take children on a trip during Term time needs to be put in writing and emailed to Teresa Burn (Principal) with the dates and the reasons for taking the trip. In most occasions, your child’s absence will be coded as an unjustified absence. There will be no homework provided by the home teacher for children who are taken out of school during term time. Please keep a diary and you can get reading books from the Grey Lynn Library. Please check with the class teacher to see which books would be best.

Holiday Programmes

SKIDs (Safe Kids in Daycare) currently run a holiday programme at Westmere. They use our school hall and arrange trips. You can make a booking on their website and details are also advertised in our newsletter.

Home Learning (Homework)

Any home learning should complement the work being taught in classroom programmes and help to establish study habits. All students are encouraged to read at home every night. For children still on the colour wheel (magenta - gold) the teacher provides a home reader. As children become more proficient, we encourage them to select reading material from home/libraries or class choosing boxes. Each Studio has a system for the collection of homework and reading books. Please ask your child’s home group teacher if you are unsure.

We are aware that many children are involved in extracurricular activities after school, therefore we aim to keep homework commitments to a minimum to work in with these other interests.

Home Time

Home time is 3:00pm. If you are late for pick up, please call the school office. As teachers do attend meetings after school, any child not collected by 3:10 pm will be taken to the office to wait for their parent or carer. We are unable to leave children unsupervised in a classroom.

At the end of the day, please wait outside your child’s classroom but leave space for the children to come out safely and collect their belongings. As your child becomes more independent or if they are older you may arrange to meet them somewhere on the school grounds.

Inclusive schools

At Westmere we aim to be an inclusive school where all children are welcomed, engaged and able to participate in all aspects of school life.

Children bring a diversity of experiences to school. They learn in different ways and at different paces. We work hard to identify barriers to children’s learning and to build partnerships with you as families to support us to really know and understand your child.

Kaitiaki Teacher

While you as the parent are getting to know a new Studio and/or new teachers, we have assigned each child a Kaitiaki Teacher. The Kaitiaki Teacher will be your point of contact. They will answer any of your queries or direct you to one of the other teachers if they are better placed to help you. We find that as the year develops so do the relationships and most parents get to know all of the teachers in the Studio and are comfortable going to any of them.