Newsletter 3 Term 2
Onerahi School Friday 08 July 2022
Te Karere o te Tumuaki/Principal's Message
Kia ora e te whānau,
I am still smiling behind the mask! As you know we are experiencing a new wave of Covid in the school, particularly in our staff this week. So we are ensuring we are keeping ourselves and others as safe as possible. Although we have had to postpone our Matariki event this week, we have enjoyed a very successful term . Over the next two weeks we all have an opportunity to reconnect with our whānau and friends. Enjoy spending time together, as well as taking some time to relax and recharge your batteries.
We are excited for new opportunities next term and you will read later in this newsletter about the change in our Healthy School Lunches provider. We are expecting this relationship to be more successful for our tamariki. I have tasted some of the food options and they really are delicious! Starting on Monday big renovations are happening in rooms 7-10. We are looking forward to modernising those classrooms to improve the learning environment for the tamariki in that block. There will be some disruption as classes will need to move out for a time, but I am sure our resilient tamariki and staff will cope well. The School Board of Trustee elections are coming up and I encourage you to consider putting your name forward for the elections. Being part of school governance is an opportunity to have a deeper understanding of what goes on at school for your tamariki. Keep an eye out for more about this.
I would like to extend my gratitude to our whānau and school community for your continued support and understanding during these Covid times, most importantly for your care and support of your own tamariki. I would also like to thank all of the staff for their mahi this term. It has been challenging again, but the care and compassion for our students and each other, along with their flexibility when things are changed at short notice, is fantastic. Lastly thanks to all our tamariki who continue to be the great people they are and contribute positively to our school daily. They make it a great place to be. Enjoy the holiday break, and we will see you all next term.
Nga mihi kia koutou
AnnMaree MacGregor
Tumuaki/Principal
Sports shed Superstars
Huge thanks must go to Rameka Para, Flynn Browning, and Maia Armstrong who worked tirelessly throughout the day last week, cleaning and clearing the PE shed to make it a more user-friendly space for all.
This was a coveted job and hotly contested by Room 16 as it involved almost the entire day out of class! It may not have been so enjoyable however if we hadn’t timed it so well, as the weather closed in the following day!
Thanks guys
Mrs Green
Kei te hea inainei - Where are they now?
Once again we bring you another installment in our stories of students past - Onerahi students who remember their time here, and impart some words of wisdom for the current generation.
This time we are pleased to bring you some memories from the mind of Brad Carter, founding member of kiwi rock band Steriogram. How many of you can sing along to "Walkie Talkie Man" (are you singing it in your head even now?). Brad shows us how far your dreams can take you, with some time and patience.
"I still have so many fond memories from Onerahi Primary. Mr Tuitubou, a gentle soul from Fiji was my teacher in Rm 18 (now Rm 24). He used to bring us sugar cane to reward finished work. Mr Curry, another favourite teacher taught us songs that I still sing in my head now..Tom Dooley, Country Roads… his guitar out under the trees was so magical. It was the 1980s so rubber chip in the playground was totally acceptable even with the sharp wiry bits that we’d quickly pull out of our feet before resuming playing. Mr Babe, our Principal then, wore his running shorts rain, hail or shine! He competed for New Zealand in the Commonwealth Games as a runner and even won a medal one time. If we were lucky he would sometimes bring it in to show us. Things were a little different back then, different but cool.
After OPS I went to Whangarei Intermediate and then Kamo High School, where I always participated in the Rock Quest. After leaving school I worked at a shop called Fast Signz on Lower Dent St, before moving to Auckland to get my band Steriogram going. A few years later we signed to Capitol Records in the USA and began to play shows all around the world. We got nominated for a Grammy, which felt pretty cool and I got to work personally with Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple on one of the first iPod commercials way back, with our song Walkie Talkie Man. I stayed in the USA and wrote songs and played music in a few more bands, most recently a band called NO. These days I live in a recording studio/house on a mountain by the Joshua Tree National Park in California, where it’s incredibly beautiful and inspiring. I’ve been working on some new music that’s about to come out under the name Faux Prix."
Farewell Mrs Pickford
Akonga/Students Corner
Room 22 had a Pirate Dress up day. We were reading the shared book called Pirate Polly by Jill Eggleton. We wrote stories about Pirates and we learnt that Pirates wear stripes to make them look rich to other pirates.
Room 2 has been researching the 9 main whetu of Matariki. They have created a collaborative slideshow sharing their knowledge as well as decorating collaborative pictures about their chosen star. We are excited to learn more about Puanga.
Ka Mau Te Wehi
Lilly Mills from Ruma 13 has done a great job of representing her gymnastics club (Fantastic Gymnastics) in regional competitions lately.
She won Gold for Vault - Step 2 in a Northland Championships (Auckland north) meet and her team also did great in a Northland regional teams event held at Fantastic Gymnastics .
Ka mau te wehi Lilly!
Amazing EOTC
Room 15's Hundertwasser Experience:
"We had done an inquiry on our local artist Frederick Hundertwasser. We did some art of his and then learnt who he was and what he did for Whangarei and other places around the world. Miss Elly and I then took the students to see the museum where they learned so much more thanks to our local tour guide Jacinda. An amazing experience and I would do it again. We also had the opportunity to make some clay creations that were inspired by Frederick Hundertwasser. Room 15 did an amazing job and displayed our school values while being out in the public". - Matua Kyle
Room 16's Trip to Hundertwasser
We thought a few choice quotes from our class nicely sum up the value of seeing the art we have been learning about up close and personal.
"I feel like I want to be a photographer - it's inspired me!"
"He loved rainy days because everything looks more bright and colourful"
"The sky's the limit but Hundertwasser didn't think like this..."
Kirsty's Corner/Kokonga ō Kirsty
Kia ora e te whānau,
We have had an amazing term in the library with reading dogs, author talks, Lego clubs and lots of reading.
A big thanks to authors Kyle Mewburn and Elena de Roo who came and spoke to our students - what a neat experience! Also a big thank you to Samantha with her dog Huni, and Christine with dogs Deborah and Tui for coming to visit each week.
National Library week is coming, as part of the celebrations on the 10th of August we will be having a book character day! Dressing up will be encouraged with spot prizes for amazing costumes.
Nga mihi,
Kirsty Oliver
Librarian and Resource Co-Ordinator
New Ka Ora Ka Ako/Lunches in Schools provider
Kia ora e te whānau,
Change is in the air. After starting our Ka Ora, Ka Ako / Healthy School Lunches journey with Lunch by Libelle last year, we have continued to provide feedback and seek the best possible meals for our tamariki. After going through this process for a year and not being able to get the meals to where we wanted them, we will be continuing on this journey with a new provider.
We have sampled their kai and it was fresh and delicious. We have discussed our expectations around the quality of the meals provided to tamariki and they have the same expectations. We feel we now have a partner that will ensure every child has a delicious and nutritious meal each day. Our new partner has this message to whanau, he has asked us to share below.
“Kia Ora,
My name is Dan Weaver and I am excited to be selected as the new Ka Ora, Ka Ako Healthy School Lunch supplier for Onerahi School. We operate a dedicated Subway “Dark Kitchen” in Whangarei providing fresh and nutritious lunches to students all over Northland. We have a range of Subway favourites, and we also supply hot meals such as Italian Chicken Pasta, Loaded Wedges and Meatball Boats. Our fantastic team get up in the wee small hours every day to slice, dice, bake and make food with passion and care. As a previous student of Onerahi School myself, I am excited to be partnering with Onerahi School from Term 3 onwards and look forward to being part of the school team!”
We are also very excited by this change. When we invited Dan to our Matariki Celebration (which we recently had to postpone to August the 4th), he immediately offered to support us by providing food items for our hangi. This kind of reciprocal relationship will help deliver the best meals to our tamariki. Take care.
Ngā manaakitanga,
Danny Hamilton
Deputy Principal
HELP WANTED - ROAD PATROL
From the BOT /Ngà Poari Kaitiaki ō te kura
Kia ora whānau
We are fast approaching the election of our new representatives for the Onerahi Primary School Board. The members of the board work with the Principal to help make the school a great place to learn for all students.
Nā tō rourou, nā taku rourou ka ora ai te iwi
With your food basket and my food basket the people will thrive
These elections take place once every three years, so if you want to have an opportunity to contribute to the school in this special way, now is the time to "Get on Board".
We are currently looking for nominations for 3 parent representatives to sit on the board. There is a notice from our Returning Officer below providing more details.
Ngā mihi nui
Richard Pollard
Parent Representative
ROAD SAFETY /HAUMARU RORI - IMPORTANT.
We also recommend that if you are walking to school and pass the Onerahi shops, that you head down Raumati Cres and enter the school through the rear gate. Crossing by the New World, where many cars turn in, has lead to some near misses lately.
Finally, if you are dropping students off, always encourage them to exit your vehicle curb-side rather than road-side. Also for safety, rather than performing a u-turn, a better option would be to turn into Pine Park Road, and use the end of the cul - de - sac to turn around. Please do not use, or block the school driveway.
Important Dates/Tino rā nui
- Friday 08 July - End of Term 2
- Monday 25 July - Start of Term 3
- Wednesday 03 and Thursday 04 August - Individual and Class Photos
- Thursday 04 August - Community Event at School (4-6pm)
- Friday 05 August - Nominations close for Board Elections
- Thursday 11 August - Planned senior cross country day
- Wednesday 10 August - Book Character Parade
- Monday 29 August - Mid Term Break
- Tuesday 30 August - Mid term Cohort entry
- Wednesday 07 September - Voting closes for Board Elections
- Friday 30 September - End of Term 3
Reminders/Ngā manatu
WINTER
Cooler days are here. We still have a large stock of 2nd hand jumpers available at a bargain price of $10 each. Come check them out at the office. We would like to remind you that for rainy days, the KidsCan jackets issued to each student can be used as part of the school uniform. It is also a good idea in wetter months to bring a change of clothes, just in case. Please can you ensure all items are named, as at times our "found property" is overflowing, or our second hand uniforms stocks get a large boost.
SCHOOL HOURS
8:15am School gates open to students and whanau
9:00am School begins
11:00-11:30am 1st Play Break
1:30-2:00pm 2nd Play Break
3:00pm School finishes
3:15pm School gates close 3
There are two eating breaks within the day, taken at times that suit each class. Please ask your child's teacher when their times are. We would like to remind all whanau that during school hours, your child is expected to be present and learning. Where possible, we ask that appointments be scheduled outside of school hours, so as not to impact on your child's learning. We also ask that every effort is made to arrive at school in time for learning at 9am.
IMPORTANT NOTICES/TINO PANUI NUI
Medication: If your child requires medication to be brought or kept at school, please be aware that due to health and safety concerns, this must be kept secure in the school sick bay. It is not to be kept in children’s schoolbags during the day. This is to protect the safety of not only the child requiring the medication but also all other students. All medication requires an accompanying permission/approval form signed by their parent or caregiver. This includes epi-pens for allergy management, inhalers for asthma or any other medication your child requires on a short-term or as needed basis.
Community Notices/Panui Hapori
Contact Us
Email: office@onerahi.school.nz
Website: https://www.onerahi.school.nz/
Location: Onerahi Primary School Church Street, Onerahi, Whangārei 0110, New Zealand
Phone: +64 9 436 0521
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/onerahischool