I hope you have all had an enjoyable time with friends and whānau during the summer break and found time to do all the things you love to do during this time. School is about to start again and we have some important information to share with you before then.

Our first day back to kura will start with a pōwhiri to welcome all new students and their whānau (as well as any new staff members) on Tuesday 30 January. This will begin at approximately 9:15am once we have all our students settled in their right places. We ask that if your child is new to the school, please wait with your child outside the school gates on Whitaker Street entrance nearest to the waharoa (Main gate) until we are ready to begin the pōwhiri. All other students will come to school at their normal time before 9am. All new students and whānau will not need to come in before 9am and can wait for the pōwhiri to begin,  If you need to find any information out prior to this, please come to the office only where our staff will help you with this.

Staff will be supporting those who are waiting for the pōwhiri to begin and will explain further details to you then. The weather will determine if we hold our pōwhiri outside or inside so please bare this in mind. After the pōwhiri we will take all manuhiri (those new to the school) for something to eat and drink. Once this has concluded then your child will be able to go to their new classroom to start their day. Please feel free to bring any whānau members with you in support. We look forward to seeing you all on the first day of Kura.

We have some changes in staffing this year to announce. Please have a look at our website for details regarding roles and responsibilities of staff this year. A formal introduction to new staff will be made in a seperate notice later this week.
 
Bell times have changed this year. We spent time last year analysing the behaviour data and looking at trends that influenced our decision to change the length of times our students are transitioning between activities. We learned that our students did well when they were able to enjoy tasks with fewer interruptions. They responded well with their behaviour to fewer transitions between activities which also resulted in better academic results at the end of the year. The details of the change of times is further along in this newsletter. School will still start at 9am and finish at 3pm each day.

Other details about stationery and uniform are also included here. Please reach out this week if you have any other questions either by email or through the messenger services available.

This year our focus will continue to be strengthening our partnerships with whānau in order to create more possibilities for you as whanau to join in with more activities throughout the year. We know that your child's journey at our kura works best when this is in partnership. If you haven't seen it already, Pat Newman (Principal from Horahora School) put up a beautifully worded post that I couldn't agree with more. It speaks about the role school and home plays on a child's learning and how each of these settings has a specific and unique role to play. Please check out their facebook post as this is absolutely on point! 

Volunteers for events, trips general activities are always needed at a school. We understand that there are many parents and whānau members who work during the day so can't always offer their assistance. If at any point you might be available to help out with trips or activities we would really love to know. Even if it is just a one off, then that would be amazing!! Programmes like the garden to table programme last year wouldn't have been possible if we didn't have volunteers along the way. Thank you to all those who gave some of their time to this, we are very grateful to you all. 

Until next week e te whāanu, we hope you have a great final week of summer break and look forward to seeing you all when we start. 
Mauri ora

Student stationery packs are now available to purchase from The Warehouse Stationery inside The Warehouse store on George Street, Te Awamutu.  These packs are made up for each classroom so please check which class your child is in if you are unsure before purchasing (this information was included on their end of year report).  Alternatively, packs can be ordered online at the link here.  Please bring your stationery pack ready for your first day of school.

 

Our school office will be open this week on Wednesday 24 January and Thursday 25 January between 8am and 1pm to purchase school uniform.  

From Tuesday 30th January, usual school office hours will resume from 8.30am to 3.15pm.

Polo Shirt | $38
Shorts | $35
Skort | $38
Fleece | $58
Jacket | $65
Sunhat | $10 (a full brimmed black sunhat is compulsory during term 1 while students are playing and learning outdoors.)  

We are a 'Kids Can' school so we are also able to provide FREE jackets, shoes and socks to those students who would like one. We may not have all our stock available in every size but this will be updated throughout the term. Please check with the office if you would like any of these products too. 

We are moving to 3 learning blocks instead of 4 with 2 play breaks during the day. Please note these times if you need to make any appointments or collect your children during the break times. They are as follows:
 
School grounds open: 8:15am (please do not send your children any earlier unless they arrive on the bus) 

First Learning Block: 9:00am - 10:45am
Eat then Play: 10:45am - 11:15am
Second Learning Block:  11.15am - 12.45pm
Eat then play: 12:45pm - 1:30pm
Third Learning Block: 1.30pm - 3:00pm

Students will start swimming from the beginning of term 1.  Please check the days that your child's classroom is going swimming and support them to remember to bring their togs and towel to school. 

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

If your child would like to play miniball or touch rugby during term one, please complete the registration forms at the links below.  Please consider if you are able to support your child's team as coach or manager.  We rely on volunteers for these teams and without them we will not be able to put teams forward.  This can be a very rewarding role and does not have to be done alone.

Miniball
Miniball will commence in week three.  The cost per player is $30.00.  Games will be played after school between the following times and venues:

Miniball Registration Form

Touch Rugby
Touch Rugby will commence from Thursday 22 February.  This is a six week competitive module.  The cost per player is $16.00.  This is available to all year groups.

Touch Rugby Registration Form

Kihikihi School is part of the government initiative - Ka Ora, Ka Ako - Healthy School Lunches Programme.

Our provider for school lunches is BiteLab.  You can check out their term 1 menu here.  Please remember to pack a small morning tea snack for your child also.  If your child does not like the lunches provided, they are welcome to bring their own from home.

Ka Ora, Ka Ako aims to reduce food insecurity by providing access to a nutritious lunch every day.  The name Ka Ora, Ka Ako is about being healthy and well in order to be in a good place to learn.

Research indicates that reducing food insecurity for children and young people:

You can read more about the programme here.