PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
There’s a simmering unrest - certainly in me and I’m pretty confident I can see it across the school. I’m finding I am going back to my roots of education at the moment. Mainly out of frustration of living and managing in the now, when I really want to get our collective school teeth into the why. I'm tired of “playing school” and want to get back into “living school”. Right now we are managing, reacting and doing everything we can to keep things stable, safe and secure. The future of education (and certainly our vision), is about building into authenticity of learning, seeing a rise in creativity and building strong connections - what we call deep learning.
I feel we are doing well in spite of, but I’m wanting to see the shift to seeing kids doing well because of…
Because the collaborative culture within the class brings out the best.
Because the focus on individuality produces innovative practice.
Because the passions of the teacher are undeniable and totally evident.
Because learning is real we see colour and magic.
Don’t get me wrong, there’s great things happening, which is a credit to the calibre of our staff - I’m just restless to see the colour, the magic and the noise of great learning. This is where our vision points.
Thanks for being on the team!
John Petrie
Principal
Getting To Know...
Katie Lean
Hi, I’m Katie Lean and I’ve been teaching here at Huapai for the past four years. I mainly teach in the junior school but I do also relieve in many other classes here. It’s great to be able to get to know children across the whole school. I love learning new things and I love the collaborative environments here at Huapai. I have four children, three of whom are at Huapai District School and one who is in kindy. She’ll be joining school at the end of next year. I love to play lots of sports and keep fit. I try to bring this into my teaching.
Masks Are Still Required
Years 4 - 8 students are still required to wear a mask while at school. Please ensure your child(ren) are coming to school each day with their own mask.
Please also remember that all adults are required to wear a mask while on school grounds. Unless of course, you or your child has a mask exemption.
St John In School Program
Each year, as part of our PE and Health curriculum, each class has the opportunity to have a First Aid session with a St John officer. We are pleased to say that these sessions will happen next week. The provider is double vaccinated and boosted, and will wear a mask at all times. The sessions are in class groupings. A summary of what will be covered can be found at the link below.
We have chosen the “emergency response” sessions this year. There is NO COST to the sessions, however we will hold a non-uniform day at a later date to raise funds for a koha to give to St John, in order to keep this program as an option for us each year.
School Donations
Thank you again for your support through paying the school donation. This week we added a further $3560.00 to our funds (24.74% support rate). We have a long way to go but are ahead at the moment. Please be aware you can claim back 30% of this as a donation in your tax claims (end of March). We have sent statements out today as a further reminder. Please note donations are voluntary and really appreciated.
Is Your Child Keen To Play Netball This Winter?
Registrations are now open for Huapai winter netball teams. Each year we have several teams in the Kaipaira Netball Competition. The games are held on a Saturday morning at Helensville Netball centre.
This year, Kaipara has opened registrations DIRECTLY with them. Parents, please use the link below to register your child. Registrations close Friday 1st April. The club will then send the school a spreadsheet with names and teams are created from this. Games begin Saturday 7th May.
Fees are set at $45 by the club. The club also sets a fee of $140 per team for Years 5&6 teams and Year 7&8 teams. This is to pay a club umpire if needed.
A $5 uniform levy will be added to the account of all Huapai District School players.
A breakdown of cost is illustrated below for clarity.
Year 7&8 Science Start Right Workbooks
As a strongly encouraged and highly beneficial supplementary resource to our Year 7&8 science programme, a Start Right Science Workbook is available, payable through HERO ($17.50) with collection from your child's teacher.
The units in these workbooks cover the New Zealand Science curriculum in preparation for Year 9&10 science and fit in nicely with the topics covered in science at school as a pre or post-learning revision/consolidation. Though not compulsory, we will reference, mark and use this resource to supplement the school-based programme. As this book is an optional resource, it is, however, encouraged for our Year 7&8 students to have a copy.
HERO Notifications
We use HERO to send classroom updates, to share regular learning posts and now for payment on all in-school costs. HERO sends push notifications or emails. You can now choose how you receive HERO notifications as well as manage devices that receive them.
To set your own notification preferences:
Click on your profile image
Select EDIT PROFILE
Scroll down to My Devices and select your preferences.
Or please see the full instructions linked below.
Contact Us
Email: office@hds.school.nz
Website: https://www.huapaidistrict.school.nz/
Location: Huapai District School 40 Station Rd, Kumeū, New Zealand
Phone: +64 09 412 5042
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/huapaidistrictschool