School Newsletter Term 1, Week 11
Friday 14th April 2024
Kia Ora,
As we approach the end of this bustling term, it's evident that our community has been buzzing with activity both in and outside the classroom. From captivating lessons to the new extracurricular events, it's been a whirlwind of learning and growth.
One highlight worth mentioning is the new Smash Cricket tournament that took place this week. The sound of bats cracking against balls echoed across Ongley Park as teams competed showcasing their skills and sportsmanship. It was a fantastic display of teamwork, determination, and camaraderie, reminding us of the importance of healthy competition and staying active.
Amidst the excitement of Smash Cricket, let's not forget the incredible achievements and milestones reached within our curriculum. From groundbreaking science experiments to thought-provoking discussions in literacy lessons, our students have continuously impressed us with their intellect and creativity.
As we work towards the end of this term, we extend our warmest wishes to the entire community for a restful break. May it be filled with laughter, relaxation, and cherished moments with loved ones. We express our gratitude to students, teachers, staff, and parents for their unwavering support and dedication throughout the term.
As part of keeping our school safe, we need to be able to respond safely and quickly to a range of emergency situations. For all scenarios - Earthquake, Accident, Flooding, Lockdown, Fire, Landslide, Storm Event, Swarm of Bees, Tsunami and Volcano, we work alongside an independent company, Harrison Tew®. Harrison Tew specialises in emergency management planning for schools, and their procedures have been successfully implemented in hundreds of schools throughout New Zealand. We integrate their expertise with our systems so that we can be best prepared for the unlikely events that may occur.
We must roll out 2 drills a term to ensure that we are meeting our legal obligations under our Audits and Assurances documentation to the MOE and ERO. These drills are so that our children and staff know how to respond in any given situation. We have already completed a Fire Drill in the first half of term one, and will complete our Lockdown Drill today.
The children will be well prepped for this, and they will be taken through each step of the process; as will our new staff. Lockdowns can happen for a variety of reasons, and we will be explaining to the children that we are pretending a couple of stray dogs have come onto the property and we need to locate them. The scenario is to test our newly implemented technological systems that are now newly integrated with our existing plans. Therefore, there will be no surprise drill. All members on site will be aware of the timings and processes to ensure our preparedness.
Looking ahead, we're eagerly anticipating the start of the new term, filled with fresh opportunities and adventures. We can't wait to welcome everyone back with open arms and embark on another enriching journey together. Until then, enjoy the break, recharge your batteries, and we'll see you bright and early next term!
Ngā mihi nui,
Sport at West End
West End Goal Stars
Well done to our Year 3 + 4 West End Goal Stars who took out the Manawatu regional Netball competition. They were undefeated all season and thrashed the opposing team in their final 17-0. We thank Keran Wenman and Connor Willis for their commitment to coaching the team, being a coach helps provide pivotal training and continual guidance to the students throughout the season. In winning this competition the students have been invited to compete in the Fielding competition on Saturday. To do so they are after a few more team members; if this is something you are interested in doing please contact gblack@westend.school.nz
As well as our great Netballers, we have had a cohort of boys playing in the local Futsal competition. On Wednesday evening they played off in the final and came away with second place in the regional competition. We are proud of the whakamana these students have shown this term and look forward to seeing what they will continue to achieve over the year.
Term 2 Sports
We still have space in some of our winter sports teams, please keep updated via the app. Finalised teams will be released the last week of the holidays. A reminder that if you would like to coach a sports team, your child's sports fees will be refunded. Coaching involves both running a training session once a week and being present at competitions. We are happy to support coaches in learning rules of the game and the training sessions where applicable.
RUN CLUB WEDNESDAYS West End run club looks to start up early next term in preparation for Cross Country and to help the fitness of those participating in winter sports codes. Please keep an eye out on the app for upcoming details. Run Club will be held Wednesdays.
Swimming Timetable
Swimming will continue into Term 2 due to our late start this term. Our last week of swimming will be in Week 3 next term.
Clubs at West End School
Term 2 Clubs
Next term we will be starting up some new clubs for our tamariki to try out and explore. Our Student Council have been asking their classes what kinds of clubs they would like to have and our awesome kaiako are going to be sharing their knowledge and passion with children that are interested and are committed to turning up to this club every week.
More information will be given to children in Week 1 of next term about signing up, but these are some of the clubs we will be offering. Sign Language, Rugby, Football, Media, Robotics, Art, Drama, and Karanga Club. Lego Club, Guitar Club and Minecraft Club will continue.
Guitar Club Performance at the VIBE yesterday
Whaea Vicky has been working with a lot of our tamariki to learn the guitar during lunchtime practices on Tuesday and Wednesday. Yesterday they showed off what they were learning in the VIBE. Thank you to Whaea for sharing your talents and passion with our tamariki!
Lego Club
This week Lego Club had the pleasure of having Charlie (who competed in Lego Masters NZ with Oli and won!) come and join us for a fun lunchtime of building and showing off his awesome Mega Mouse remote control vehicle he had made completely out of lego! Lots of questions were asked and the kids had a blast showing off their creativity using Mana Aoturoa.
Thank you to Tobey who is the reason we have a Lego Club. He worked hard on creating the slides and themes, helping with tidying up and encouraging other students to come along (:
Principal Awards
Charlie Ah Koy
Showing kotahitanga to friends in our playground by helping them settle into West End school lunchtime activities while also taking risks to try new things .
Marwa Imran
For showing great Whakamana and Mana Aotūroa by representing the School Council in a hui with me regarding the School council plans for the year ahead.
Olivia Cousins
For showing amazing Manaakitanga by always saying ‘Kia ora’ with a confident, welcoming smile.
Isaiah Le
For showing great Manaakitanga with his friends during break times and when representing our kura.
Our West End Team
Deana Garstang
Tēnā koutou katoa.
Ko Tararua nga pae maunga
Ko Manawatu te awa
Nō Papaioea ahau
Ko Garstang toku ingoa mārena, a, ko Collis toku ingoa whānau
Ko Deana tōku ingoa
Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.
Kia Ora,
My name is Deana Garstang and I am one of the Year 5&6 teachers in Te Wao Nui o Tāne this year.
In my spare time, I enjoy going tramping, to the beach and reading. I am loving being a part of the West End School team this year.
Amy Burch
My name is Amy Burch and I am lucky enough to be the teacher in Room 13, with the most enthusiastic Year 1 and 2 learners. I love doing anything outdoors, from kayaking, to fishing, to gardening. Most days after school I’ll be outside on a beanbag with my 2 kittens, and my nose in a book.
Amanda Borren-Lean
Kia Ora.
My name is Amanda Borren-Lean. You will find me in the West End School office.
Outside of work I am kept busy with my 2 primary aged children and their extra curricular activities. I enjoy mountain bike riding and exploring new places.
Super Smash Cricket
I te Rāapa, Isaiah, Bill, Isaac, Connor, Benjamin, Jake, Felix and Bashir took part in the smash backyard kirikiti (cricket) tournament at Ongley Park. Our kupu for the day was haukuru, meaning smash, which they certainly did! The tamariki had 3 games and a heap of fun batting, bowling and fielding. In the lunch break there was a biggest hit competition which Benjamin took out and won a super bouncy ball! All of the tamariki had lots of fun and said they would all do it again.
Pihipihingā Assembly
An amazing VIBE Assembly yesterday by Pihipihingā! It was fantastic to see so many of our whānau come to see the amazing mahi our classes are doing - as well as celebrating our sports teams and tamariki showing our school values. Our VIBE Assemblies will move to Friday afternoons from now on from 1.45pm. Our first Assembly will be presented by Puāwaitanga in Week 3.
Tipuranga
In room 15 we have been learning about addition and subtraction using a numberline. We used Mana Ao Tūroa to create a human numberline, with one class member being the counter. Miss Burden gives us an equation and our counter hops along the numberline. We love doing our learning out in the fresh air!
Puāwaitanga
Here is the wall display that Room 7 have on the feelings they have been learning.
Te Wao Nui o Tāne
In Room 4, we've been immersed in a unit focused on ANZAC, which will extend into next term. The students have been honing their skills in summarising, text annotation, and creating flowcharts. They've also crafted wonderful pieces of art to complement their written work. It's truly inspiring to hear the students speak with such passion about the ANZACs and connect their learning to past lessons. When students find joy in learning, their engagement soars.
Upcoming Events
WEEK 11 -
- Last Day of Term 1 - Friday 12th April
TERM 2 - WEEK 1
- First Day of Term 2 - Monday 29th April
- Swimming for Room 2, 3, 4, 5 - Monday 29th April
- Swimming for Room 1, 6, 7, 10, 11 - Tuesday 30th April
- Swimming for Rooms 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 - Wednesday 1st May
- EPIC Music - Wednesday 1st May
- Sci-Fri - Friday 3rd May
WEEK 2
- Whakatau (to welcome new students and staff) - Monday 6th May
- Swimming for Room 2, 3, 4, 5 - Monday 7th May
- Swimming for Room 1, 6, 7, 10, 11 - Tuesday 8th May
- Swimming for Rooms 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 - Wednesday 9th May
- EPIC Music - Wednesday 9th May
- Ki o Rahi training - Thursday 10th May
- Sci-Fri - Friday 10th May
- Kapa Haka practice (whole school) - Friday 10th May
WEEK 3
- Swimming for Room 2, 3, 4, 5 - Monday 13th May
- Swimming for Room 1, 6, 7, 10, 11 - Tuesday 14th May
- Tipuranga Riverdale Exchange - Tuesday 14th May
- Swimming for Rooms 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 - Wednesday 15th May
- EPIC Music - Wednesday 15th May
- Ki o Rahi training - Thursday 16th May
- Sci-Fri - Friday 17th May
- VIBE Assembly (Puāwaitanga) - Friday 17th May
Term Dates 2024
Term 1: Monday 29 Jan - Friday 12 April
Term 2: Monday 29 April - Friday 5 July
Term 3: Monday 22 July - Friday 27 Sept
Term 4: Monday 14 Oct - Friday 13 Dec
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It is really important under the current circumstances you notify the school if your child is absent.
PLEASE DO NOT TXT OR EMAIL THE CLASSROOM TEACHER.
ALL ABSENCES SHOULD BE ADVISED VIA THE OFFICE.
Please remember to advise the office by 8.30am if your child is not attending school.
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Thank you.
Kindo Online Shop
It is very important that families register with Kindo, as this is now the only way to register your child for school sports, and ordering PTA lunches.
Below are the links to register.
If you require help please call the Kindo helpdesk on
0508 454 636
New users need this link
Existing users need this link
Location: West End School, 196 College Street, Palmerston North
Phone: 06 358 2465