Week 3 Term 4 Panui

Email: office@witherlea.school.nz
Website: https://witherlea.school.nz
Location: 214-216 Weld Street, Witherlea, Blenheim 7201, New Zealand
Phone: 64 (03) 578 5568
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/witherleablenheim

Bank Account Details: 12-3167-0133327-00

Kia ora te whanau,

I hope you had an enjoyable long weekend and have something nice lined up for this one coming!

We have another Year 5-6 camp away this week at St Arnaud with an array of challenges planned that will require them to demonstrate our values of compassion, courage and resilience. I hope the weather is kind and look forward to hearing about their camp experience.

A huge thank you to the Friends of Witherlea for running such an awesome Halloween themed disco last Friday - the kids loved it!

I want to acknowledge the huge amount of effort the Witherlea Golden Girls and their coaches Dan Stephens and Hayley Christie are putting into their practices ahead of Jump Jam nationals next weekend in Christchurch. On Monday Brett Fairweather, creator of Jump Jam, will be visiting school to support the team in polishing their performance ahead of the competition. I congratulate the team on getting to this point and wish them all the best for next weekend.

Last Friday, a team of 26 students represented Witherlea at the 2023 Marlborough Primary Schools Mountain Bike Champs at Richmond Brook Station. All 26 completed the course successfully - Year 4 riders completing 2.5km of farm tracks, hills and even river crossings, and Year 5-6 riders completing 5km. Our stand out riders this year were Sophie B who came second in the Year 3-4 girls race, Gus M who was second in the Year 3-4 boys race, Ryan B who was second in the Year 6 boys race and Harry N who was the first Year 5 boy over the finish line. Witherlea School placed second overall in the coveted overall schools standings. Thank you to all the parents who provided transport and supported us on the day, and to Amy Lucas for coordinating this event.

Earlier this year, the student council reviewed a design proposal to build a scooter track around the top field using fundraising proceeds. After consultation with their classes and a revision of costs by the board, the decision was made to scrap this proposal and focus instead on upgrades to our playgrounds. The board commissioned an independent safety report on both the junior and senior playgrounds which highlighted the need to replace the junior playground. The board, staff and students have been involved in shaping a proposal to enhance play spaces for all students. The proposal has been approved and funding secured through community funders and the Friends of Witherlea. The scope of works includes:

• A new junior playground on the same site with enhanced play value and safety.

• Repairs to the tyre swing and timer.

• Refurbishment and redirection of the big slide on the senior playground.

• Installation of a rock climbing wall on the southern side of the south wooden tower in the senior playground.

• Installation of Tiger Turf to create a dodgeball arena or mini football pitch on the old miniball court adjacent to Room 19.

Works are scheduled to take place over the summer holidays ready for the start of 2024. We need to have the old junior playground removed by Christmas and are offering this to the community via a tender process on Facebook Marketplace which closes on Friday 3 November at 12.00pm. If a successful tender isn’t secured a second process will offer it as individual components.

Coming up we have Athletics next Tuesday along with the coffee cart and bake sale generously provided by the Friends of Witherlea - let's hope for sunshine! The pool is now open for our swimming programme and your child's class schedule will be notified via Seesaw. Invitations will be sent out this week to invite our Māori whanau to a meeting on Wednesday 8 November to discuss:

• Student Data - engagement and achievement

• Ngā Kawatau - local iwi aspirations and expectations.

• Opportunities for enhancing experiences and opportunities for students.

Thanks for the multitude of ways you continue to support our school to provide rich learning experiences for our students.

Ngā manaakitanga,

Symon Beattie

Principal

We wish to welcome these new students and their families and whānau to our school and community;

Cindy S

Welcome to School Certificates are given out at our assembly on a Monday morning at 9am.

Be Kind, Be Safe, Be Fair Shoutouts

Congratulations to these students who have displayed one or all of our school behaviour expectations and are a model to others;

FERNS TEAM

Aanaya D - being so kind to our visitors and such a caring friend in our Pukeko Room. We are lucky to have you in our class.

KOWHAI TEAM

Rosa I - being such a kind and considerate friend. You are extremely thoughtful, warm hearted and have a wonderful caring nature. Keep being you!

KAURI TEAM

Kenzie F - consistently showing our school values. You're always kind, safe and fair and being an excellent friend to all. Lastly, well done on becoming a Witherlea way ambassador.

The awards are for recognition in displaying and modelling our school motto and values; Be Kind, Be Safe, Be Fair.

Our junior playground will be offered via tender. At this stage, we are offering the playground as a whole. (Please note the Blue Slide, Parallel Bars and Flying Fox are not included)
The playground will need to be removed at ground level by the successful buyer between 16-22 December.

The playground is available for viewing outside of school hours. Please email your tender to accounts@witherlea.school.nz by Friday 3 November at 12.00pm.

Please view the listing below.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1011909843363029/

Monday the 13th of November is a Teacher only Day and school will be closed.

We ask that kids wear their gumboots, give a gold coin donation and help support the I Am Hope foundation.

Witherlea School athletics day will be on the 31st of October. There will be a Coffee Cart and bakesale run by our amazing Friends of Witherlea School.

All parents/caregivers are invited to join Friends of Witherlea – a volunteer group of parents/caregivers who wish to better the connection between whanau and school through involvement in extracurricular activities, special events and fundraising which promote a well-resourced and thriving school community.

As we are approaching the end of the year we will be training our current year 4 & 5 students who wish to be considered as next years road patrollers. The training will be taking place on the 2nd and 3rd of November. We rely on parent supervision to ensure that road patrol happens every morning and afternoon. If you are able to supervise next year and are able to come along to either of the training sessions, please contact Amber in the office.

Thank you everyone who donated to Bella's mini food drive for the Marlborough Community Foodbank.

George T competed in the TUNZ Top of the South Championship on Saturday in Taekwondo.

Congratulations George who was awarded Bronze in Kyorugi/Fightling.

School Start First Impressions Marlborough is a local charity that works to provide new entrant students in Marlborough with all the supplies they need for their schooling career, along with providing everything they need to celebrate their fifth birthdays without placing undue financial strain on their whānau. This reduces the impact and stigma of childhood poverty in our local community, meaning all students in Marlborough can begin their schooling career happy and confident.

FREE classes for Witherlea School Students

Monday 6:00pm to 7:30pm

Wednesday 6:00pm to 7:30pm

Witherlea School Hall

Contact Instructor Aaron Falvey 027 380 5814 or contact us through our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/witherleatkd

Want to learn new skills, get outdoors, and have fun? The skills you learn in athletics are the perfect
foundation for almost any sport.
Every student can give athletics a go. Our local athletics club is
welcoming new members now and we encourage students to get involved and get active.
Contact details for all athletics clubs nationwide are available here https://athletics.org.nz/clubs/find-a-club/ and
become a member.