Tēnā koutou katoa
Ngā mihi nui, kia koutou katoa - Warm greetings to you all.
It's great to be back, Term 4 is always action packed and this year will be no different. It's our last big academic push for the year and there are lots of ways you can help your child at home.
- Learning spelling lists (that are sent home each week) and practising basic facts are critical foundation skills across all year levels. Five to ten minutes each day will help your child learn and remember this essential knowledge.
- Providing your child with lots of time to talk with you, play, create and explore also helps with learning and general well being. As the weather improves and nights get longer it is a great opportunity to visit local parks and beaches. Did you know that the grip that children use to hold onto monkey bars (thumb gripping underneath the bar), is the same natural grip used to hold a pencil? Strengthening their grip will make it easier for them to write. Children who have well developed gross motor skills find it easier to learn to write, cut and colour.
In the holidays it was wonderful to receive confirmation of our successful application to Pub Charity Limited for our year 6 camp. Pub Charity Limited have donated $10,000 towards covering camp and bus costs. This will significantly reduce costs for our year 6 students who head away to camp in mid December.
Work completed over the holiday period:
- Fields have been aerated, fertilized and sprayed for clover and prickle weed
- Extensive painting and repair work on the junior site. Unfortunately, there has been some delays due to the weather and we are a little behind schedule
- New guttering and downpipes for Room 15
- New netball goal is under construction for the senior site
- Garden tidy ups - outside of Room 11 and 12. We have place turf in front of Room 12 while we devise some creative ideas for utilising this space
- General maintenance and school cleaning
- Repairs to the pool cover torn in the storms
BOT Update:
We are pleased to share that Sam Hartnett has joined our board as a parent and mana whenua representative. Sam brings with him a wealth of experience as a lawyer and builder and will be a tremendous asset to our board of trustees.
Hall Update:
Our hall is now officially on the Ministry of Education Weathertightness project list. We have now started the process to develop a remediation plan. In the meantime, a basic set up has been established and the hall will be ready to use again from Week 2.
Teacher Only Day:
Last reminder that on Tuesday the 29th of October we have our final Teacher Only Day for 2024 and school will be closed. On this day, your TPS staff will work with Dr Helen Walls growing our understanding and knowledge about effective writing instruction. Writing will be a significant professional learning area for TPS staff over the next few years. We are aiming to accelerate learning in writing and achieve equitable outcomes for all learners. In 2025 we will be working closely with the team from Learning Matters who we worked with to implement Structured Literacy across the school in 2021 and 2022.
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Robin in da Hood - School Production Term 4:
Preparation is underway for our year 2-6 school production of Robin in da Hood. This will be the core element in the ARTS focus for our school in Term 4.
We will present our production on the 3rd and 4th of December, 6:30pm, at the Bethlehem Performing Arts Centre. Please diary these dates in, as children will need to be dropped off and picked up for these evening performances.
Premier Sponsorship Opportunity:
We are offering ONE premier sponsorship opportunity to partner with TPS. Investing in this sponsorship package will enable your business to build a profile within the Tauranga Primary School community and it also ensures you have the best seats in the house for the evening performances.
Robin in da Hood Premier Sponsor (one only) $4000 + GST
- Naming rights to the production (Robin in da Hood in association with ….)
- Tickets and priority seating for 10 people at each evening performance
- Featured as a Premiere Sponsor in:
- Programme - including business logo, description of the business and contact details
- School Facebook recognition (1.5k followers)
- School Newsletter advertising in Term 4
- Space for signage and promotional material at all of the performances
- Space provided for promotional signage on the school fence line for Term 4 2024
- Certificate acknowledging sponsorship of our school production
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Class Placements for 2025:
Deciding class placements for the new school year is a complex task. As well as considering the number of children at each year level and the number of teachers we are allocated, we need to consider the individual learning needs of each child, gender balance, social skill development and peer relationships. We must ensure that all learners’ needs receive due consideration. Where necessary, staff will discuss with parents the placement of their children.
At this stage, we plan for most children in Year 3 to remain in the same learning hub they are in this year. The same applies to Year 5 students in SH1 and SH2. Wherever possible we aim for a two-year placement, in the middle and senior teams, with the same whānau teacher to maximise learning opportunities and reduce lost learning time as a result of transition. The teachers in each learning hub know their learners, their strengths and the next learning steps, and are able to continue with current learning goals from day one of 2025.
Please note that one or two teachers may change class or year level due to normal annual staffing changes e.g. career progression.
While we ask parents to allow us to exercise our professional judgement in placing all children fairly, we do appreciate some input from families where specific needs should be considered. It is not possible for senior staff to meet with all parents and listen to individual requests. However, if there are extenuating or special circumstances that we may not be aware of, please put these requests in writing and ensure they are sent to me by the end of Week 2 Term 4, 25th October. Send requests to principal@tauranga.school.nz
If there has been an issue in the past that we need to be reminded of, it is also worth sending an e-mail or talking to your child’s class teacher, as not all information is carried over from year to year.
Only requests made in writing will be considered
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A very warm welcome to students who have recently started at TPS: Kikiola Olaniyan, Paolo Bruni, Abhiram Bijja, Maisie Pinn, Viyaan Dinamani, Yuna Cho, Fareedah Hassan, Fletcher Williams, Primrose Preest, Elyssa Lee, Dezyre Kepa, Harnaaz Kaur, Mia Costello, Kian Meadowcroft, Vincent Crouch, and Basanta Chhetri. It is great to have you and your whānau joining our TPS team.
Hei kōnei rā
Fiona Hawes
Principal
principal@tauranga.school.nz
