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Newsletter Issue 1
Term 2 - 8 May 2024
Principal’s Update
Kia ora, Nameste, Talofa, Konnichiwa, Guten Tag, Gidday, Vannakkam, ni Hao, Kia orana, Hola, Salam, Sa wat deekha, Dia Dhuit, Goeie Dag, Bonjour, Καλημέρα, Mālō e lelei, Greetings everyone
Welcome back to Term 2! We hope you had the opportunity to enjoy the lovely weather through the term break and enjoyed some time together away from the school routine. It is great to see all our tamariki so well settled back into their learning programmes after enjoying connecting with their friends and teachers.
New Zealand Sign Language Week
This week is New Zealand Sign Language Week - a chance to recognise and celebrate one of our three official languages. If you haven’t already, you may like to check out the website resources - https://nzslweek.org.nz/
Or take a look at the NZSL online dictionary: https://www.nzsl.nz/ to challenge yourself to try a little with your children.
Staff Update
We are delighted to welcome Alice Potts, our new Office Manager from the start of this term. Lots of you have popped in to introduce yourself and Alice has just slotted effortlessly into the role. We feel very lucky to have her as part of our team.
In other staff news we are thrilled to share that Cassie Woodhouse and her husband have welcomed a beautiful baby boy to their family. We are all looking forward to meeting him when Cassie comes to visit.
A reminder that Rene Senekal, has taken on the role of Sports Leadership in Cassie’s absence and our Deputy Principals have the overview of Hubs 3 and 4. If your child is in Hub 4 and you have concerns during Term 2-3 that you are unable to resolve with your child’s whānau teacher, then please contact Deeann (DP Year 4-6) for year 4 students and Anne Smith (DP Year 0-3) for Year 3 students.
Student Learning
This week there has been great excitement about our long awaited visit from Harold the Giraffe and the Life Education Van. There is more information about the focus for each hub later in the newsletter.
It is also exciting to see the increased use of te reo and tikanga Māori across the school after a term’s engagement with the Te Puna Reo (previously Te Reo Tuatahi) programme (more information below). The children (and teachers!) are taking more risks with their use of the language and there are some exciting displays supporting this.
Do remember to take a look at your child’s Seesaw page for more information about the learning taking place in Hubs across the school this term and remember that this is our main channel of communication for ‘all things learning’ between teachers and families.
A reminder that Term 2 marks the second term of our trial of a new way of reporting to families. For this to be effective, it is essential that each family is connected to their child’s learning portfolio. If you need help with this, please contact your child's whānau teacher. At the end of this term, you will have a picture of the reporting you can expect from our team in EACH term for Term 3, 4 and beyond. As indicated in the outline of our new reporting processes, in the final week of this term we will hold our Three Way Conferences - an opportunity to hear from your child’s teacher about their progress against the New Zealand Curriculum, their next steps and how you can help at home.
Keep an eye out for more information about the structure of these meetings in our coming newsletters as well as our request for your feedback on the six month reporting trial. This will be used to inform our approach to reporting for the remainder of the year.
A note about Seesaw
We would like to thank all those families who have posted feedback to their child on their Seesaw posts. This is hugely motivating for our students and the opportunity for students to receive timely responses from families on their learning is one of the main advantages of this type of online portfolio.
As collaboration is one of our Bellevue Learning Dispositions and something we see great value in, there are times when photographs of your child may be of them working as part of a group, meaning that your child may be in posts visible to other families. This makes safe and responsible engagement with the Seesaw platform imperative for the safety of our learners. We have two requests:
Please consider the safety and privacy of other children/families and do not download or share photographs of any child other than your own.
If you do not wish for your child to be in posts visible to other families, please contact your child’s whānau teacher to let them know.
Thank you for your assistance with this.
Staff Professional Learning
On Wednesday last week we were joined by Anita Gill (director of the Te Reo Tuatahi Programme) and the staff from Cashmere Avenue School for a joint professional learning session to prepare us for the teaching and learning we will be doing leading up to Matariki. Our Matariki Community Celebration is on Wednesday 26 June and you will be able to see what the children have been up to. This is always a special time to connect, reflect and look to the future so we hope you will be able to join us. You will note that this event is scheduled earlier in the term this year. This is to allow time for our Three Way Conferences (part of our new processes as described above) in the last week of term.
No doubt you will have seen in the news the Minister of Education identifying structured literacy as a priority for schools. We continue to establish the Better Start Literacy approach, underpinned by the Science of Reading at Bellevue so we were excited to hear that there are resources allocated to support this. Today, all of our Year 0-2 kaiako are attending a BSLA session focused on supporting our learners for whom Literacy is more of a struggle. For our Year 3-6 teachers we are working through a series of modules about the Science of Reading - the approach to literacy acquisition that underpins the BSLA.
Several of our teachers and teacher aides have also attended learning sessions around how to support our increasing number of students for whom English is a second language.
Evaluation Review Office (ERO) - Work in Progress
This week our leadership team had the first in depth meeting with our Evaluation Partner - one of several steps towards our Bellevue School Evaluation Report being published. This process begins with a checking of the school’s processes, policies and compliance before moving into a specific focus on evaluating a key priority for the school’s teaching and learning. We intend to focus on effective practice in Literacy as per the actions outlined in initiatives 2.2 and 2.3 of our Annual Plan. The exact evaluation question is currently being defined.
Property Update
After a quiet Term 1 on the property front, there is lots going on for Bellevue! This week we installed additional blinds across all our Hub 3-6 classrooms both to improve the learning environment on sunny days and for student safety should we need to have an invacuation/lockdown. This is as a result of our termly emergency drills and the review process we work through with staff to ensure our school continues to be a safe place for our children.
During the term break, major improvement work began on our accessible bathroom in Hub 5, this includes increasing the size to provide for equipment required to assist students with mobility difficulties.
We have two major projects about to begin. The first of these will improve the internal environment of our junior classrooms, which will involve some workshops being taught in the school hall for a (we hope) short period. This will be followed by roofing and cladding work to all blocks of the school which will be carefully staged to minimise the impact to our students. During this children should be able to remain in their classes.
Also due to start in the next month or so is the excavation work on the steep bank between the main school and the senior block to prepare for the installation of a long accessible walkway which should significantly open up our school.
During all the upcoming work some of our car parks will be taken by contractors, so please consider our staff and safety in the car park and try to drop off/pick up from school or Kapai Kidz from outside the school gate where possible between the hours of 7.30 - 5pm.
We will keep you informed of the stages of these projects through the newsletter as usual.
Hei konā mai
Annette
Remember to take a look at the Bellevue Website for longer term information (Parent Portal) or follow our closed group Facebook Page for quick updates or reminders.To assist our families with locating our Attendance Procedures, please note that the below link now takes you to a 'quick link' on our website to the Attendance Procedures in PDF form.
Please do always contact the office (office@bellevue-newlands.school.nz), or call and leave a message for absences. Do not reply to this newsletter as your message may not be seen.
Welcome
Haere mai ki te kura o Bellevue. Welcome to the following students and their whānau. It is great to have you in our Bellevue Learning Community.
Room 2 - Kotahi, Braxton and Maddison
Room 3 - Nina, Issac
Room 9 - Aaliyah, Yazhini
Room 10 - Avery
Thank You
- A big thank you to Michele Clark (our now-retired wonderful office manager) who generously donated towards our garden and library, and provided us with a yummy hamper of treats! They were all very much appreciated.
Username bellevue-newlands, password 'grow'
Pink Shirt Day is coming…Friday 17 May
We celebrate Pink Shirt Day as part of Friendship Week taking place 13-17 May. Pink Shirt Day is a global day that celebrates diversity and promotes school environments where students and staff feel safe, valued and respected. Pink Shirt Day began in Canada more than thirteen years ago when two students took a stand against bullying after their friend was bullied for wearing a pink shirt. Bellevue School will be taking part with other New Zealanders to end bullying and spread kindness, so wear something pink on Friday 17 May to celebrate Friendship Week with us. Children are invited to come to school in pink - wear a pink shirt, scarf, socks, hat, ribbon, badge or any item at all!
Te Puna Reo
In Term 2 our Te Puna Reo (formerly Te Reo Tuatahi) learning is about Matariki. We begin our learning by exploring creation narratives. These are an important part of understanding different cultural worldviews. While there are many different ways of looking at the world, creation narratives from every culture actually have a lot in common – there are even many links with Western scientific theory as well!
We listen to the pūrākau (story) of creation from te tīmatanga (the beginning) through to the creation of the stars in the Matariki cluster – te kāhui o Matariki. This narrative sets the scene for our learning over the next few weeks as we connect with different Atua (Gods), stars and the elements of our physical world they connect with and represent.
Life Education Visit
This week and next, Harold and Kyra are visiting Bellevue in the Life Education Truck. Each class will visit the truck twice. Visits to the Life Education Truck cost $6 per student. This is covered by the termly Trips and Performances fee.
Life Education helps children
develop life skills relating to their health and wellbeing
understand how to make healthy choices
gain knowledge about health and their bodies
develop self esteem and a positive understanding of themselves
develop strategies for relating to others
Each Hub has chosen focus questions to guide the learning during the visits to the Life Education Truck.
Scholastic Book Club!
Scholastic Book Club brochures have been handed out to students last week. Orders are due in to the office by Thursday 16 May. Payment is by cash via school or online by credit card (details on the book club order form). Please bring your cash order to the school office in a sealed envelope or plastic bag, with your child’s name, room number and Scholastic Book Club written on the outside.
Cross Country - update
Junior Invitational Cross Country: Unfortunately there was a small typo in the newsletter that went home. To confirm, the date for this event is Thursday 23rd May and the postponement date is Tuesday 28th May. Sorry for the confusion.
Northern Zone Cross Country:
Tuesday 14 May, postponement date is Thursday 16 May.
Good luck to those children from Years 4-6 who will be running this race.
We are aware that some of our runners will be attending the National Young Leaders Day on the 14th of May. Please note that if the Cross Country is postponed on the 14th, these children will still be able to run the race on the 16th. Please keep an eye on our Facebook page for updates.
Disco
The annual Bellevue School Disco will be held on Thursday 30th May 2024. Students in Year 1-3 will have their disco from 6.30 - 7.15pm and students in Years 4 - 6 will be from 7.30 - 8.30pm. Please keep an eye out for more information on how to purchase tickets.
Whakawhanaungatanga Fridays
This next Whakawhanaungatanga is Friday 17th May.
During Whakawhanaungatanga Fridays children are:
1. Learning in rich and authentic contexts, relevant to their own experiences and interests.
2. Developing dispositional skills, such as collaboration, risk taking, and leadership.
3. Living values that we hold dear at Bellevue School, such as empathy, integrity, resilience, and creativity.
We warmly invite whānau to come along and play, explore and learn alongside your child/ren during any of the sessions this year. There is no need to commit in advance and you are welcome to stay for as little or as long as you are able. We would love to see you. Sessions will run this year from 11:50am - 1:05pm on any of these days. On arrival, please head to the office and you will be able to find where your child/ren will be for the afternoon.
Library News
We are celebrating! Congratulations to the following students who have been working hard on their awards.
Savinaya, Emily, Maddison, Harley, Nithika, Amelia and Nuvini
Librarian's Bronze Awards
Camilla
Librarian's Bronze Award
Milan
Librarian's Silver Award
Joshua
Librarian's Bronze Award
AA Insurance Big Little Sponsor
If you would like to nominate our school to win $10,000 worth of sports equipment, please click on the link below. The more nominations we get the greater the chance of us winning!
Reflecting on Aroha
We continue to share a whakatauaki (proverb or significant saying) from the beautiful book of ‘Aroha - Māori wisdom for a contented life in harmony with our planet’ by Dr Hinemoa Elder in each newsletter to provoke reflection and build a deeper understanding in our school community of what we are talking about when we refer to Aroha as our guiding concept. This week we celebrate the strength we share, when we band together as a community.
Sports News
Cross country:
Junior Invitational Cross Country:
Unfortunately there was a small typo in the newsletter that went home. To confirm, the date for this event is Thursday 23rd May and the postponement date is Tuesday 28th May. Sorry for the confusion.
Northern Zone Cross Country:
Tuesday 14 May, postponement date is Thursday 16 May.
Good luck to those children from Years 4-6 who will be running this race.
We are aware that some of our runners will be attending the National Young Leaders Day on the 14th of May. Please note that if the Cross Country is postponed on the 14th, these children will still be able to run the race on the 16th. Please keep an eye on our Facebook page for updates.
Miniball and Netball:
The Miniball and Netball season has started. Letters to join have gone home and practice is well under way. Good luck to all that is giving it a go. Please let your whānau teacher know if you are interested and have not received a letter.
This is our platform to publish great writing from students across the school.
Please pop onto our website here to view a collection of great writing from our students.
Welcome to Term 2 Bellevue Whānau!
Your FUNdraisers Committee have kicked off the term with our first meeting in Week 1.
We welcomed two new parents to our meeting, Katherine and Elizabeth, it was lovely to have you
with us!
The upcoming events for Term 2 were discussed, which included distribution of the Spring Bulbs
Fundraiser, planning for the Matariki family evening at school, the End of Term pizza lunch, and
kick off for the Kids Art Works (Calendars etc), which the students will undertake this term, with
orders due in Term 3.
In Term 1 of 2024, our FUNdraisers team raised a total of $1533.
We have a long-term goal of putting these funds towards shade sails for the senior school area.
Upcoming FUNdraiser events:
Matariki Evening
In 2022/2023 the FUNdraisers team offered a Hangi meal option at the Matariki event.
This year we may be unable to offer the same again, however we are looking into alternative
options that may suit this event and our school whanau. We will update as soon as we have
locked something in!
Kids Art Work
Annually our students complete an artwork which can then be ordered to be made up into a
calendar, cards, a journal, diary or a mousepad.
The tamariki do this art work as part of the ‘arts’ portion of their classroom learning, and will be
starting this soon, with the intention of displaying it at the Matariki Evening. Orders will be collated
in Term 3 for this FUNdraiser.
End of Term Pizza
Our classic End of Term Pizza lunch will be happening on the last Friday of term.
FUNdraisers Video
We will be recording some fresh content or our FUNdraisers promo video… Our current one
features “that spicy cough” information that we do NOT need to highlight any longer!
If you have a child who is keen on being in front of the camera, please let Rebecca know on the
below email address and we will do our best to include them if we can!
FUNdraisers Committee Meetings
Meetings will now be held at 6.15pm (in the school staff room when possible) in week 2 and also
week 7 of each term.
We are actively looking for additional committee members, as at the end of 2024, the Year 6
children of three of our stalwart committee members will be leaving Bellevue School.
If you have capacity to take on being an incredibly valued member of our community and
committee, please join us! You can contact Rebecca by email for information at
Community Notices
We will be operating from the school hall from 29 April - 5 July. All enquiries to linda@kapaikidz.co.nz or 021 409641.
The Winter Wonder Project
Important Dates
Monday 6 May to Monday 13 May
Life Education van visit
Tuesday 14 May
NZ Cross Country - pp Thursday 16 May
Year 6 National Young Leaders Day
Friday 17 May
Pink Shirt Day
Whakawhanaungatanga Friday 11.50am - 1.05pm
Thursday 23 May
Junior Invitational Cross Country (pp date Tuesday 28th May)
Bellevue Board Meeting 6.30 - 8.30pm
Thursday 23 May - Friday 24 May
Hearing/Vision Technician at school
Thursday 30 May
School Disco 6.30 - 8.30pm
Monday 3 June
Kings Birthday - School closed
Tuesday 4 June
Staff only day - School closed
Thursday 13 June
FUNdraisers Meeting 6:15 - 7:15pm
Tuesday 18 June
Inter-Zone Cross Country, pp Thursday 20 June
Thursday 20 June
Bellevue Board Meeting 6:30 - 8:30pm
Tuesday 25 June
School Photo Day
NZ Hockey, pp Thursday 27 June
Wednesday 26 June
School-wide Matariki Celebration Evening (time TBC)
Friday 28 June
Matariki Public Holiday - School closed
Tuesday 2 July
3-Way Conferences 3:15 - 8pm
Wednesday 3 July
3-Way Conferences 3:15 - 6:30pm
Friday 5 July
Last day of Term 2
Newsletter proudly sponsored by
Email: office@bellevue-newlands.school.nz
Phone: 04 4787037