Week Seven News

  

Kaurihohore School Week Seven, Term Four 2023

Manaaki te katoa - be kind to all. 

Respect - Empathy - Kindness 

He aroha whakatō, he aroha ka puta mai

“If kindness is sown, then kindness is what you shall receive”

Kia ora e te whānau,

Time is flying by now and teachers are currently working hard to get assessment reports out to you via seesaw and to complete reports for your children.  

We put a lot of effort into the reporting comments that we send out via seesaw and into the reports, please take the time to read them and let us know you have, by liking the post (even if you are not a fan of what is said.)  

We know there is a lot of information to digest, but we feel that it is important you know how your child is progressing and how you can help them further at home.  We feel very strongly that learning should be a partnership and that school and whānau have a very important role to play in a child’s success.  

Today is our empty classroom day, again we are lucky with the weather.  Sadly I have been stuck in my office completing strategic plans and annual reports, but it has been lovely to listen to all of the excited voices engaging in their own self-directed play.  

Tomorrow children will all have their first short visit to their new class for 2024.  They will visit again on the 28th and then for a final time on the 4th.  We do this to ensure that children have time to get to know their new teacher, their new class and to alleviate any concerns or worries that they may have.  We put a lot of effort into the planning of classes and it is a whole staff effort, the current list has been in place since early in Term Three.  When we make these classes, we consider social and academic needs, we also consider any clashes with other children that may impinge on a child’s learning and wellbeing at school.  We are a small school and in most cases there are only a couple of options.  While we do our best to grant any requests that are made for a valid reason, sometimes it is just not possible.  What is possible is that each and every teacher will do their best to ensure they know, see and understand the children in their class.  It is normal for a child to be anxious about the change and this will settle over time, while their friends may be in another class, these friendships will still continue during break times.

We only have three and a half weeks left of school and this is bound to speed by.  On the 7th of December at 2pm we have our junior awards and on the 11th at 1.30pm we have our senior awards.  We try to keep these as informal and quick as possible as we don’t want anyone to have to sit around for too long.   I will send home more information about these soon.

Our last day of school is on the 15th of December and we finish for the day at 12.00, all children need to be picked up by 12.30pm on this day at the latest.

Don’t forget this Friday (24th) is teacher only day.

Leslee Allen

Using the Crossing

Please don’t walk across the car park or along the driveways.  We have had many near misses, with children not being seen and nearly hit by cars.  We need you to be role models and use the crossing, even when it does not seem like you need to.

Fencing The School

The fencing project has been approved.  This is in response to the need to keep children safe on site.  It is likely the work will start over the holidays.  This will change the aesthetic of our school, however it will give us peace of mind when it comes to our youngest children staying on site.

Using the Pick Up System

Please don’t block the entrance area of the school if at all possible.  People are still wanting to drive in to secure a park.  If your child is slow to get in the car by themselves, it is often easier to park, so that the line is not slowed down. 

Out of Zone Positions

We still have a few positions across the school for out of zone children.  We have a few places for children that will be Year 5, 6 and 2 next year.  If you know of anyone thinking of changing schools, encourage them to email Chelsea kaurienrolments@gmail.com and come for a look around.  Out of zone positions don’t come up often, so this is a great opportunity.  

Sponsorship

We are currently sitting down to work out our budget for 2024.  Unfortunately for us, 2024 and 2025 are going to see us relying very again very heavily on fundraising and sponsorship.  We've predicted this for the last five years with a massive group of Year 6 children leaving.  Schools are funded on their roll, and of course a massive group going out, means a drop in funding.  Technically we should be running eight classrooms next year, but we choose to operate nine, this is where the shortfall comes in.

We have set a target of $35 000 to raise through fundraising, which is a massive ask! 

Currently our budget, even with this fundraising hoped for, is sitting at a $50 000 deficit, and that is being conservative.  We prioritise people over things and so direct the money we raise goes towards learning and wellbeing support inside and outside of classrooms and towards keeping our class rolls as small as possible.

Sponsorship of businesses is something we have considered in the past, but now it is something the school desperately needs to ensure we can keep it running the way it currently is. 

 There are some items in our budget that really work well for sponsorship, so I am putting it out there, in case you know of a business that may currently be thinking about 2024 sponsorship and like something concrete to support. 

If you know a business that may just like to contribute a small amount towards a specific area, then that would also be fabulous!  We will make sure they are acknowledged and promoted.

*Learning support - this includes the purchase of the Nessy application children currently work on $2000

*Wellbeing support - ensuring we can provide wrap around services for our children that need it. $2000

*Seesaw - the way we communicate and celebrate learning $2500

*Life Education - $850

*Kindo - the app that makes online payments possible $500

*Bike repairs to ensure children can make use of the bikes - $1000

*PE equipment to ensure what we have is up to day and in working order - $1500

*Art supplies - ensuring our classrooms can continue to be creative places, helping to fund murals that reflect our school identity. $2000

*Environmental learning - ensuring children have access to resources that help them be active participants in helping make our environment healthier. $1000

*Chapter books for classrooms to use as whole class readers. $500

*Donations of chrome books for class use

We will of course keep applying for grants, but if you do know of any business interested in sponsorship, please let us know.  We know that many already support Halloween and the raffles and don’t expect them to be giving again unless in the position to do so.

We are very grateful for the support of our school community and we will work together to get through the next couple of lean financial years.

Contacting Us

You can find all staff emails on our blog page under the tab  ‘our staff,’ however the best way to contact your child’s teacher is via seesaw message.  Teachers will endeavour to answer when they have  time during the day, however please don’t expect replies to messages or emails after 5pm.  We will respond the next day as soon as we can.  Please refrain from using Facebook messenger, or our personal phone numbers to contact us.

Our school blog is kaurihohoreschool.blogspot.com

Office emails are: 

Chrissie - admin@kaurihohoreschool.co.nz

Dianne - reception@kaurihohoreschool.co.nz

Chelsea/Enrolments - kaurienrolments@gmail.com

Leslee - principal@kaurihohoreschool.co.nz

Reporting Absence - kauriabsences@gmail.com

Raffle

Please sell your tickets that have been sent home, there are some awesome prizes!  If you are unable to sell the tickets, please return these as we have families that may be able to sell more.  Donations of grocery items would be awesome!

Dates For 2024

School starts back on the 5th of February and the year will end on the 18th of December.

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Term Four - Known Dates

23rd of November - Class swap 9am-9.30 (children visit their class for 2024)

24th of November - Teacher only day

28th of November - Class swap 9am-9.30am (children to visit their class for 2024)

4th of December -  Class swap 11.30-12.30 (children visit their class for 2024)

7th of December - Junior Award Picnic 2pm Year 1-3

11th of December - Year 4-6 Senior prizegiving 1.30pm

15th of December - Last Day (12.00pm finish)

First Day Back 2024 - 5th of February 

School Bank Account Details - 

All payments now go through the one account.

Account 12-3093-0200709-00

Kaurihohore school board of Trustees

Food for thought… 

Noho ora mai -

Leslee Allen