ORATIA DISTRICT SCHOOL - NEWSLETTER

Week 10 - Thursday 26 September 2024

MESSAGE FROM MS LINDA

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.

I am feeling the cold after the sunny climes of Bali where I have been celebrating my son's wedding. I am very grateful to the board for allowing me the leave to attend the event. It was very special to be present with my whole family, some of whom had travelled from the UK, and to spend time together at such a joyous time. The look on my grandson's face when he saw his mother walking down the aisle towards him and his dad was a memory to treasure. My thanks to Kath Goldsmith and Matt Moncur for their leadership while I was absent, and also to our senior teachers Mrs Lewis, Mr Coenradi and Mrs Hartnell for their cover while the DPs were also away at the principal's conference. Now I am back to regular business and looking forward to the Talent Show that is happening to end our term.

Ms Mackinnon has been working with her team of supporters to create an exciting event for a huge number of our students. They are all very excited and can't wait to perform. My deepest thanks to Kerensa and her team for the hard work that has gone into the Talent Show. It is a massive undertaking and has required flexibility and management from all our staff to pull off. We hope that you love seeing your children perform as much as we do.

The school holidays start on Friday, and our first day back for Term 4 is Monday October 14 startinjg at 8.55am. I trust that your break time will be a time of connection for your families, and that your children get the chance to rest and relax. I know our staff are ready for some non-contact time to do the same. There is a Staff Only Day on the Tuesday after Labour Weekend(Tuesday, October 29) which the Ministry of Education has set aside for schools to use for working on the refreshed curriculum. We will be doing further professional learning around Structured Literacy on this day. Please make arrangements for the care of your children for this day.

Take care and stay safe.

Kia kaha, kia atawhai.

Ngā mihi nui, Ms Linda

ORATIA SCHOOL TALENT SHOW

Last night was the opening night for our Oratia School Talent Show and what a great night it was. The performances were outstanding and the children looked well rehearsed and polished as they took to the stage. A huge THANK YOU to Ms Kerensa MacKinnon for producing, directing and writing the show and giving the opportunity for our students to shine.

Thank you also to Pania Williamson, Francene McIlroy and Peter and Glenys Taylor for giving so much of their time to help make the show happen. Thank you also to the many other show helpers who helped out in various ways. We appreciate your support of our school.

LONE KAURI TRIP TO WAYGOOD

On Tuesday 24th September, Lone Kauri School went to Waygood in Piha. The Waygood Foundation is a permaculture garden, arts, community outreach, and educational centre located in North Piha.

We planted hue seeds and also had a hue race, with grown hue on the Marawhara Stream. We made camouflage costumes out of boxes, leaves and branches. We played hide and seek. The best camouflage costume was Rosa's. She was very hard to find!

2025 OUT OF ZONE ENROLMENT

The Oratia School Board of Trustees invites out of zone applications from parents or caregivers who wish to enrol their children at Oratia School for 2025.

The Oratia School Board has determined that 30 out of zone places will be available for Year 1-4 students at Oratia School and 8 out of zone places will be available for Year 1-4 students at Lone Kauri School. This means that if your child will be starting school in 2025 as a Year 1,2,3 or 4 student, you will be eligible to apply. Children must start school by the end of February 2025.

BALLOT PRIORITIES

Will be given to applicants who are siblings of current students.
Will be given to applicants who are siblings of former students.
Will be given to any applicant who is a child of a former student of the school.
Will be given to applicants who are children of board employees or board members.
All other applicants.

For further information on how to apply for an out of zone enrolment, please go to our school website and complete the application form.