Newsletter:
Term 2, Week 4

Principal's Pānui

Kia ora koutou,

As we work our way into the middle third of the term, it's a good time to talk about changes in the pipeline to how schools and parents can work together around student achievement and a better understanding of where our young people are at in their learning.

The parent portal has been launched by the Ministry of Education, which can be a useful go-to point for parents and caregivers wondering what children of their age and stage can be expected to be doing in classrooms and how they can support learning at home. This resource can be found here: Parent Portal

During our learning conferences, held on Tuesday 10th June, and Wednesday 11th June, our teachers will be sharing some more resources with you to support our home and school partnership with learning. We will be closing school at 1.30 pm on both of these days to enable time for these (an option for at-school supervision will be available).

There are also changes coming with how we measure student progress and achievement in line with an updated New Zealand curriculum. You won't notice much difference at the mid-year point, and we will communicate with you when these are in place ready for the end of the year reporting.

A big thanks to those of you who were able to attend our parent evening on our digital framework to support safety, confidence, and creativity with Emma Planicka. These form the three pillars of the framework for our teaching practice and systems at kura. We are holding our digital safety week next week in line with what was discussed at the parent night. Monique Stevenson has shared some info with you below.

Likewise, our cross-country event last week. We are so fortunate to be situated near such an awesome place to run, McCormack’s Bay, looking sparkly clean thanks to a big school clean-up the week before in our Mother of All Clean Ups. Special thanks to Mandy Monteith (Mother of all clean-ups coordinator) and Susie Murphy (Cross Country) for their efforts in organising these big school-wide efforts.

We are sending out attendance letters this week as part of the NZ education priority in ensuring better school attendance. If you receive one of these letters, it is most likely that your whānau has been on a holiday during term time. We operate this check every three weeks as part of our attendance protocols, which you can read more about here: Te Raekura Attendance Procedures

This term is flying past, be sure to get the following dates in the calendar:

Book Week dress-up day - Tuesday 10th June
Learning Conferences - Tuesday 10th June, Wednesday 11th June
School Discos - Friday 13th June
End of term celebration assembly - Wednesday 25th June
Community Matariki Hāngi night - Thursday 26th June

Finally, good luck to our Waipātiki students representing our kura at Hagley Sports today and every Thursday this term. A great next step in showing our competitive spirit, joy of being active, and demonstrating our school values on a wider sporting stage.

Noho ora mai,
Nick Leith

Student Achievements to Celebrate

Congratulations to the following students who have received values certificates:

Manaakitanga: Isaac

Excellence: Nico, Angus, Beck, Leo P., Tilly, Toa and Barnaby

Responsibility: Oliver, Harley, Gael, Alex and Toby

Resilience: Arvia, Jack W., Lucas, Ngaio, Benji, Micah and Isla

Values Badge: Beck and Lucas

CLASSROOM HAPPENINGS

Digital Safety Week

In Week 5 we are taking part in Digital Safety Week using the Digital Learners programme by Emma Planicka. Many of you will have attended Emma’s parent evening a few weeks ago, where she introduced the programme and shared practical tips for supporting children online. We hope you’ve found some of the information and resources helpful in continuing those conversations at home.

Across all classes, students are learning how to stay safe, respectful, and responsible in the digital world. They’re exploring topics such as:

Keeping personal information private and creating strong passwords
Asking permission before taking or sharing photos and videos
Being kind and respectful online
Identifying fake news and online scams
Managing screen time and knowing who their trusted “safe person” is
Sharing digital learning safely

Students are also being introduced to the Navington family—a group of characters who help guide these important lessons. You might like to ask your child which Navington family member they met this week and what they learned from them!

Let’s continue working together to help our tamariki become confident and safe digital citizens—both at school and at home.

Monique Stevenson

Deputy Principal

Maija - Principal for a Day

Miss Maija here. I wanted to share something about my great day as Principal on Tuesday. My favourite thing was a trip to the sushi shop for a Principal lunch. I had three assistants during the day and we organised a joke competition and went around classrooms giving some juicie vouchers to hard working kids. I also had a special announcement to make and had a trumpet theme song to introduce me when I talked. I gave the kids an extra play at morning tea and everyone liked that. I realised how hard people try in our school to do their best. I loved being a Principal and would love to do it again one day.

Thanks,

Maija

Policies for review this term

We have a number of policies up for review this term for community input.
They are:

Emergency Management
Disaster Management
Crisis Management

Please follow these instructions to review the policies:
· Visit the policies and procedures page on our website
· Enter the username (redcliffs) and password (beach).
· Click on the review button (blue)
· Click on the policies being reviewed (ones listed above)
· Select "Whānau / Parent".
· Enter your name (optional).
· Submit your comments
Our Board of Trustees also reviews our policies each term.

Sports Update

What a beautiful day we had for our Cross Country. We were so proud of all our runners and admired how they each did their best on the day! Thank you so much to our parents who helped marshal on the day and kept our seniors safe on their epic course!

CLICK HERE FOR THE RESULTS

Susie Murphy

Sports Coordinator

Office Request

The school office would like to receive clean bread bags for in our sickbay. We will use those for when small accidents happen. We appreciate your contributions in advance.

Ymke Blok

School Administrator

Library Notices

PTA second hand uniform sale

PTA will have their second-hand uniform sale on the same days as the Student Learning Conferences - 10th and 11th June. We are raising the prices a little this year but no items will be more than $5. Uniform will be on display in the office for purchase during learning conferences.

Yoga at Te Raekura Redcliffs

Jane Acland is continuing her offer of yoga classes to our community throughout the term, with all proceeds donated to support Creative Arts Therapy at Te Raekura.

The goal is to ensure this therapy receives funding so it can continue to support the mental health of our kids.

Classes will be focused on developing strength, flexibility and restoring a sense of calm. No experience necessary; it will be suitable for beginners.

Feel free to invite your friends from outside the Te Raekura Redcliffs School community too!

Jane is a certified, experienced yoga teacher and mum to Angus (7, Te Urunga), Isla (6, Te Awa) and Sophie (3).

When: Weekly at 6.30 - 7.30pm on Tuesdays.

Where: School hall

Cost: $90 for the nine week term. Or $15 per casual class.

Bring: A yoga mat, a firm blanket to sit on. If you have yoga blocks and/or strap please bring those along.

Wear: Clothes you feel comfortable moving in, bare feet.

Please deposit funds into J & G Acland 12-3148-0196007-02 (ref code: Yoga Redcliffs) and email Jane at aclandjane@gmail.com to confirm your spot.