The Connection Week 5 Term 4

The sound of raindrops on the roof.

The sight of a freshly mown lawn.

The smell of freshly baked bread (or for me, fresh tomatoes on the vine).

These are things that for many people evoke emotions of happiness and comfort. For those in the educational field, it’s the sound of children laughing! This is a sound that has been music to our ears these last few days.

While there may still be a journey ahead, our children, our staff and our families have certainly been in a marathon. This week we acknowledged the efforts of everyone by presenting them with medals which are sponsored by our community. For those children who are not returning yet, we will find a way to get the medals to you.

As we continue to navigate new rules and regulations, we are so thankful to you for the support you show us. Together we can do it!

Thank you,

Maree Lloyd

• Friday 3rd December - Equipment Collection Day (more details below)
• Wednesday 15th December - Last Day Of School

Aiden (Year 5) says: "I am so happy to be back at school. It is great to finally see my friends again. I love art and playing with my friends. Huapai school has lots of joy and fun!."

NO HAT = NO PLAY

A reminder that hats are compulsory for Terms 1 & 4. If a child does not wear a hat, they cannot play outside. Please check your child’s bag for a sun hat.

Each classroom has a supply of sunscreen for the children to use. Please consider sunscreening your child before school and encourage them to reapply this themselves during the day.

Thank you for your cooperation with our pick up and drop off procedures. Parents are welcome on our school driveway but must remain here. We are not able to have children on the school grounds before 8:30am. Please do not send your child before this time. To limit the time spent around other bubbles, we suggest closer to 9am.

At pick up time, we thank you for not congregating on school grounds.

We have had a great couple of days with our Year 0-3 Online Class, learning about each other's holiday traditions! It has been a smooth transition as we continue to use Seesaw as our learning platform. To access the Online Class on Seesaw, simply:

• Log into your child’s Seesaw account

• Click on your child’s name in the top left corner

• Select “Online Class” to see the announcements and projects

If your child is in Year 0-3 and not yet part of our Online Class on Seesaw, please email Emily Soong emily.soong@hds.school.nz

Families that have decided to support their child/children with their learning at home have been able to collect a pack from our office. A reminder that learning happens all the time and should be enjoyable and interesting for everyone. Pace the learning and acknowledge everything you and your family have achieved so far, just by getting through this lockdown! We appreciate your continued efforts in supporting the education of our tamariki.

During lockdown, we arranged a special project to recognise the marathon efforts of our families during the last few months. With huge thanks to wonderful sponsors within our community, we are able to recognise every single Huapai student with a Lockdown 2021 medal. This special medal is for YOU as much as it is for our children. It has been a long road and a mammoth effort. We feel it is an effort worth acknowledging! We are so proud of the way our Huapai students and their families showed grit and determination throughout lockdown! That’s the Huapai Way! For those children currently not at school, this is just as much for them. We will find a way of connecting the medal and certificate with those children and families also.

If your child is not returning to school this year, we would like to offer you a time to collect their books, return any computers, sports shirts or library books. This will happen on Friday December 3rd 3:30-5pm. Senior Leadership will be on site to assist with this. More details about the process closer to the time.

We are noticing that many children back at school are very tired in the afternoon. Being around other people, talking and interacting all day can be exhausting. It is fine if you would like to collect your child at lunch time during this period, but please call into the office to sign your child out. Your child will be brought up to the office for you.

All year 4-8 children must wear a mask when inside. When the weather is inclement, the indoor time is greatly increased. Please consider this when sending your child to school on a rainy day. We are crossing all our fingers and toes for sunshine each day!

The last day of school for 2021 will be Wednesday 15th December. The school will close at 12pm on this day.

Our 2022 Term dates are:

Term 1 - Thursday 3rd February - Friday 14th April

Term 2 - Monday 2nd May - Friday 8th July

Term 3 - Monday 25th July - Friday 30th September

Term 4 - Monday 17th October - Friday 16th December

Additional to this there are two planned Teacher only days:

• Friday 4th March

• Friday 3rd June (making Queens Birthday a 4 day option)

We use HERO to send classroom updates and to share regular learning posts. 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:

1. Click on your profile image

2. Select EDIT PROFILE

3. Scroll down to My Devices and select your preferences.
   

Or please see the full instructions linked below.

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