ORATIA DISTRICT SCHOOL - NEWSLETTER

Tēnā koutou katoa. Nau mai ki te whānau o te Oratia. Talofa lava. Malo e lelei. Zdravo. Ni hao. Namaste. Kamusta. Greetings Oratia whānau and families.

Thank you thank you for all you have done to honour and celebrate our teachers last week for World Teacher's Day. I saw many lovely cards and notes of thanks being carried in by students who were so excited at being able to give them to their teacher. Thank you for the other tokens of appreciation that you may have given - it made such a difference to our staff and made them feel valued and loved. We had some staff who felt a bit embarrassed about being the recipients of such a focus, but as their principal I was so happy to be able to give us all the chance to cheer each other on and celebrate the wonderful job we do for our tamariki. Thank you for your part in that.

We are hard at work at this time of the term writing end of year reports. Teachers are writing student reports to send home at the end of the term. The leadership are writing end of year summary reports for the Board of Trustees and the Ministry of Education, and we are also planning for next year too. We are planning to send home school reports on the Friday of Week 9 (Dec 13) so keep an eye out for them. As well as report writing the senior school are busy planning all the assemblies and ceremonies for their school leavers. These will probably take place in the Settlers Hall across the road, as our school hall is due to be wrapped and fenced very soon for refurbishment. However, delays seem to be a regular part of this timeline, so we will keep you posted about venues for the end of year events once we have them confirmed.

This is an exciting and busy time of year - and we have made it a priority to enjoy everything rather than focusing on the stress of it all. Thank you for your support to help us maintain this attitude. Christmas is coming!

Take care and stay safe.

Kia kaha, kia atawhai.

Ngā mihi nui, Ms Linda

If your child will be enrolling at Oratia School in 2025, please let us know. This will help us with our planning for next year. Please email deborahd@oratia.school.nz with your child's name, address, date of birth, and your contact details

Thank you.

The Beach - Poetry by Kioko Cattermoul, Room 12

Hey dolphins!

Your bright blue tail splashes and squirts to be a comedian

I like that!

Hey ocean!

your tough greeny water tumbles people over and picks them back up

I like that!

Hey surfers!

Your surfing skills out on the deep make you look like tiny specs from far away

I like that!

Hey sun!

your soft golden rays warm up the land making us joyful

I like that!

Hey fish!

Your shimmery bright scales and fins make you so good at swimming but makes us so good at fishing

I like that!

Hey sand!

Your phoenix coloured streaks are like a warm blanket

I like that!

Hey rockpools!

your giant rocks make a spa pool holding salty hot water that helps me calm down.

I like that!

Hey shells!

Your white, brown and green bits slice my feet making them bleed

I like that!

The Beach - Poetry by Dylan Mairs, Room 12

Hey crabs!

Your long pinching claws crush your prey to get food for you

I like that!

Hey waves!

your avalanches of water say hello to passing swimmers lapping at ones who leave

I like that!

Hey sand dunes!

Your grass covers mountains of sand keeping the dunes secure by spreading over slopes of sand

I like that!

Hey rock caves!

your twising tunnels echoing my tone and ringing back at me

I like that!

Yesterday, our Garden to Table team held a Seedling and Bake sale with all sorts of goodies available. The sale was a huge success so thank you to everyone who supported our Garden to Table programme by coming along and buying plants, dumplings or sweet treats. A special thank you to our Garden to Table team, whaea Kelly, Juleen and Tanya.

A wheke is an octopus. Muturangi did not want to train Te wheke to stay on his side of the island because Te wheke would eat all his food.

Hine-Te-Aparangi, Kupe’s children, Kupes dog, and some warriors were on Kupe’s waka. Kupe chanted an incantation to keep Te wheke on the surface of the water. The land that Kupe first reached was the east coast of Aotearoa.

The emotions Kupe felt in the story were anger and strong. Kupe felt angry because Muturangi’s pet octopus was eating all the fish and Kupe felt strong because he defeated Te wheke.

The word grim means frustrated, annoyed, and worried. The adjectives that you can find on page 11 are Octopus, big, pet,thick, selfish, unkind, grim, clever, and giant.Wily means with some tricks (escaped).

The words Aotearoa was the words Hine-Te-Aparangi said when she saw land the words mean “land of the long white cloud” Many Maori believe that Kupe was the first to spot Aotearoa.

Some places that were named after Kupe were:Te whanganui-a-tara, Nga-ra-o-kupe, Te Umu wheke,and Te Taonui-o-kupe. Te wheke stopped at the ship and tried to flip it over but Kupe threw a rope and one of the warriors grabbed it. The octopus grabbed him but then he took out his spear.Te wheke was frightened he let go of the warrior and Kupe hit him with his mere. Finally the octopus was dead.

By Georgia Hunkin

Calendar art can be ordered online until 18 November at www.kidsartworks.com

Enter the school code KZ954 and follow the prompts to view and order your child's artwork.

SCHOLASTIC Issue #7 ORDERS - We are still waiting for these to be delivered, as soon as they arrive they will be organised and delivered to the children's classes.

LIBRARY BOOK RECALL - The library is starting a recall of ALL library books as of Friday the 15th November, this is to ensure that all books are accounted for before the annual stocktake.

If you have any library books at home please bring them in as soon as possible, if you know you have books that are lost please get hold of Jess - jessicak@oratia.school.nz and a replacement cost can be paid at the office to clear your child's account.

Earlier this week we held a diabetes disco on the junior tiger turf. This was an opportunity to have some fun and also to talk about and learn about what it means to have diabetes.

Sadly, one of our school families recently lost their home and all of their belongings in a devastating house fire on Glengarry Road. To support them during this challenging time, our school office is collecting supermarket and department store vouchers to help them replace some of what they've lost. If you have household items you’d like to donate, please email details of these offers to danielleandlucy@oratia.school.nz We’ll record these and share them with the family so they can decide what will be helpful once they're more established. Thank you for your generosity and compassion in helping our school community.

Thanks heaps,

Danielle and Lucy

6 students from Oratia School competed in the Auckland Scholastics Primary and Intermediate School Surf Champs last Saturday at Te Arai Beach. They all surfed really well and Oratia School came 3rd overall.

The Oratia School students who competed were Lily Bradshaw, Manaia Hart-Watson, Lenny Paewai, Blake Rebolledo-Withers, Vinnie Emerson and Gene Emerson.

Well done everyone!

Taylor Moore, an ex pupil of our school, was recently nominated in the Rangatahi Leadership Category at the Tamaki Makaurau Zero Waste awards and came away with the highly commended! This award recognises the voluntary work she has done at West Auckland Resource Centre

Rangatahi Leadership Award - Taylor Moore

As a representative of future generations, Taylor embodies the values of environmental stewardship and sustainability. Her commitment to the zero waste movement is evident through her consistent participation at the West Auckland Resource Centre (WARC) She understands the long-term impact of waste on our planet and is passionate about creating a better future for all.

At Lopdell House on Wednesday 20th November at 7.30pm, there will be a screening of the classic film 'Singin' in the Rain', a musical from 1952 starring Gene Kelly. The new digitally re-mastered version will be screening and as it is certificate 'G' it is suitable for all ages. This is a rare chance to see the film on the big screen at FLICKS CINEMA Lodpell Theatre, Titirangi. The film will be introduced by Sir Bob Harvey , the ex-mayor of Waitakere.

Tickets $15 (Senior/student $12) Children under 14yrs $10 Text bookings to 02102225558 www.flickscinema.weebly.com Robin Kewell (Co-ordinator Flicks Cinema)

Email: principal@oratia.school.nz
Website: https://www.oratia.school.nz
Location: 1 Shaw Road, Oratia, Auckland 0604, Auckland, New Zealand
Phone: +64 9 818-6216
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OratiaSchool/