Newsletter 1 Term 4

Kia ora e te whānau,

It's been a great start to an exciting term. The weather is warming up, the sun is shining more often and our tamariki are outside laughing, learning and looking after each other. Teachers are currently writing end of year reports with their learners and capturing the progress that your tamariki have made this year. We are looking forward to some trips and camps coming up and there is a buzz of excitement about that. We are also excited about hosting the Te Whanga festival where the local schools will perform their Kapa Haka sets. It will be a great day and we would love to see you all here. We will soon be planning for the year 6 graduation and the end of year assembly. How wonderful it will be to have everyone in attendance again and not have to worry about the weather with our lovely canopy to provide shelter. There is still a bit of sickness about so look after yourselves and stay well.

Ngā manaakitanga

AnnMaree MacGregor

Tumuaki/Principal

Once again we thought we would bring you something a little bit different in our "where are they now" feature.

5 years ago, the Savvy magazine did a feature article on the 4 sets of twins attending Onerahi Kindergarten at the same time. 5 years on, all 8 children are now students at Onerahi Primary school. We thought it might be a bit of fun to recreate the photos of the twins aged 3 or 4, (see the photos of Jorja and Amelia to the right, and the other three below) and ask them what they thought of being akonga at Onerahi Primary School and what their hopes for the future hold.

“I hate Math, but I am doing well at it. I love art, it makes me feel good about my self and helps me keep calm. I love reading. Literacy makes me happy when skies are gray. I love seeing all my friends. I do not want to lose any of my friends. I enjoy swimming but not the cold! I am a material queen. And I love seeing Lana. In the future I would like to work in ECE or be a Primary School teacher. I also hope to coach gymnastics, which I have been doing since I was 5 years old”. - Abigael Wilson, Yr 5

“I like doing arts, hanging out with my friends, playing on the playground, reading & science and creating stories about Aliens. I hate maths! I have good friends in Lucy, Taimania, Harper and Abigael and Maria and Aria. I am a queen too! In the future I hope to work locally or do business accounts” - Jorja Morris, yr 4

“I like greeting my teacher every morning. I love Math. I like making new friends and coming to school and saying hello to everyone in my class makes me happy. I like writing also.” - Amelia Morris, Yr 4

“I like art and I enjoy swimming. I like seeing my friends (such as Jorja and Amelia and Abigael. Chloe and I are still great friends.) I like reading, learning, and I hate maths. I also like writing. I like doing spelling when it's rainy outside. I like my teachers – seeing Whaea Phoebe makes me smile. I like seeing Lana. I like making new friends. I enjoy science. I like hanging out at OPS. Sometimes I don’t want to leave! I am a real queen. When I grow up I want to work locally, start a childcare service or work at schools with younger students. Or possibly be a lifeguard at the pools, or assist the local vets” - Lucy Abraham, Yr 3

Along with all these twins, we have another 9 sets at our school - a total of 13 sets of twins. That's a lot of double delights! And with several being identical, they keep our staff on their toes! Luckily for us, personalities always shine through.

At the beginning of Term 4 we welcomed Conor Flood to our teaching team. Conor started a brand new New Entrants class in Ruma Tekau. We are delighted to have both Conor and the new students of Rm 10 join the Onerahi Primary school whānau.

Kia ora e te whānau,

I am excited to invite you to our Scholastic Book Fair!

Our Book Fair will be running on:
Friday the 25th,
Monday the 28th
& Tuesday the 29th of November
from 8:15am to 3:15pm

Come and stock up on Christmas presents while supporting the school library!
Eftpos is our preferred payment method.

Kirsty Oliver

Librarian/Resource Co-Ordinator

Aria Kilgour from Ruma Tekau ma Ono recently competed in the Whangarei inter schools' speech competition held at Whangarei Intermediate School on Wednesday 3rd of November. Her topic for the speech was "What if we had no music", and her cool and confident delivery and well researched topic secured her the win. Ka rawe Aria!

Here is her reflection on the event.

"I entered the year 6 speech competition without being quite sure how I was going to exceed the audience, judges and family’s expectations and most importantly mine. I was so nervous. Getting to the finals exceeded my expectations by far! And winning… I’m still taking it in. But still I will admit despite the trembling and shaking, I did honestly enjoy doing it" - Aria Kilgour, Yr 6.

In our previous newsletter we notified you all that there was a remaining vacancy to fill on our school board as there were less nominations in the last election than vacant positions. Our boards intention was to fill this vacancy by selection. An invitation was extended to request a by-election if this was preferred. As there was no by-election called for, the board are continuing in the selection process of a new member. We look forward to introducing them in the near future.

URGENT!! Could we please have all trophies from 2021 returned to the school next week. This is to allow time for engraving for this years recipients.

if your child will not be returning to Onerahi Primary School l in 2023 (other than transitioning to Intermediate) and you have not let us know, please get in touch asap.

If you have a child who will be starting at Onerahi Primary in term 1 of 2023 and you have not yet completed an enrolment form, please pop in to collect one from the friendly staff at the office or phone to let us know.

Kia Ora Whanau, we are on the lookout for more balance bikes for our younger students. If your child has outgrown theirs, and it is getting lonely in your shed, we would be happy to offer it a new loving home. Contact Whaea Jade on jade.g@onerahi.school.nz or through the office.

We would like to request that any after school plans are discussed with your children before they arrive at school.

We cannot guarantee that any messages received after 2:30pm will reach your children, as they could be outside the classroom and difficult to reach.

We would also like to remind all our whānau, that our school day - runs 9am to 3pm. We ask that you take all reasonable steps to ensure your children arrive promptly each day, ready to learn when the bell goes. Additionally early pickups should only happen in special circumstances or for appointments that could not occur outside of school hours. Reduced time in class can impact children's learning.

On Church Street, we have a dedicated pedestrian crossing, patrolled each day before and after school by our responsible road patrollers and their adult support. The speed limit in this area is 40km/hr and cars should not exceed this speed and also be prepared to stop when approaching the crossing. When at a pedestrian crossing controlled by signs, it is not mandatory to stop unless the sign is out. Our students are trained to put the sign out when there is a gap in traffic or when people choose to stop.

https://education.nzta.govt.nz/teacher-resources/school-policy-and-practices/school-traffic-safety-teams/legislation-school-patrols-school-wardens-and-school-crossing-points/

It is also very important that if you are collecting your child from our Church St entrance you do not park on the yellow lines. Our road patrollers are unlikely to be able to see past your vehicle to check if the road is clear if you have parked over these.

Lets all work together to keep our tamariki safe on their way to and from our kura.

• Monday 21 November - Mid Term cohort entry date
• Thursday 24 November - Te Whanga Festival
• Friday 25 November-Tuesday 29 November - Book Fair
• Wednesday 30 November - Friday 2 December - Rm 5 and 13 Camp
• Monday 5 - Wednesday 7 December - Yr 6 Camp
• Monday 19 December - Final day of term 4

SPRING

The sun is making a welcome return after a long, wet, winter. A reminder to all parents that in Term 4 as well as Term 1, it is compulsory for our students to wear a hat when outdoors. As with all other items, we ask that this is named. We also strongly encourage the use of sunblock in these terms.

SCHOOL HOURS

8:15am School gates open to students and whanau

9:00am School begins

11:00-11:30am 1st Play Break

1:30-2:00pm 2nd Play Break

3:00pm School finishes

3:15pm School gates close

There are two eating breaks within the day, taken at times that suit each class. Please ask your child's teacher when their times are. We would like to remind all whanau that during school hours, your child is expected to be present and learning. Where possible, we ask that appointments be scheduled outside of school hours, so as not to impact on your child's learning. We also ask that every effort is made to arrive at school in time for learning at 9am.

Medication: If your child requires medication to be brought or kept at school, please be aware that due to health and safety concerns, this must be kept secure in the school sick bay. It is not to be kept in children’s schoolbags during the day. This is to protect the safety of not only the child requiring the medication but also all other students. All medication requires an accompanying permission/approval form signed by their parent or caregiver. This includes epi-pens for allergy management, inhalers for asthma or any other medication your child requires on a short-term or as needed basis.

Email: office@onerahi.school.nz
Website: https://www.onerahi.school.nz/
Location: Onerahi Primary School Church Street, Onerahi, Whangārei 0110, New Zealand
Phone: +64 9 436 0521
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/onerahischool