Friday 3 February 2017 Term 1 - Week 1
From The Principal
Kia ora tatou katoa, Annyong Haseyo, Talofa, Malo e lelei, Bula vi naka, Kia orana Nga mihi nui ki a koutou, Namaste, Nihao, Greetings to you all.
Welcome back to all returning students and their families and welcome to all those who are joining our school community for the first time. Our first day was busy, particularly in the office with 50 new children arriving. We are grateful to our wonderful office staff for remaining calm throughout. By 9.15 am everyone was in their room. The children have settled down into the school routine quickly and are participating in the classroom programme with enthusiasm, in spite of the heat. The Year 1-3 children are in luck having the privilege of using the swimming pool to cool off in this term.
A warm welcome to our new staff this year:
Room 2 Y1- Miss Phoebe Lee
Room 5 Y1- Mrs Kerry Tetupu/ Mrs Anna Howell
Room 6 Y1- Miss Shintika Lal
Room 26 Y2 - Miss Tara Moston
Room 30 Y2 - Miss Rae Green
Room 18 Y3 - Ms Cherie Lister
Room 17 Y3 - Miss Rebecca Armiger
Room 23 Y5 - Mrs Rochelle Bezuidenhout
Room 22 Y5 - Ms Irene Jack
Room 21 Y6 - Mr Paul Park
Reporting to Parents
Parent Information Evenings (PIES) will be held in Term 1 Week 3. This will be an opportunity to be introduced to all the staff and your child/children’s teacher/s. The teachers will outline what they have planned for the classes for this year and their expectations. Parents, Whanau and caregivers are cordially invited to attend Parent Information Evenings initially in the Auditorium.
Wednesday 15 February Years 1-3 at 6.30 pm (To be advised where you will be meeting)
Thursday 16 February Years 4-6 at 6.30 pm (To be advised where you will be meeting)
We look forward to meeting with you. Please assembly in the Auditorium by 6.30 pm.
e-Portfolios
We will continue to use e-Portfolio blogs and sites at Elm Park School as a method of communication with parents/caregivers. This is an ongoing electronic form of collating information regarding the children, their progress and next learning steps in Literacy, Mathematics and other learning areas. This form of data collection is aligning our school with the 21st Century and the methods of reporting that are fast becoming the norm. Students are active participants in their own learning journey. They are aware of where they are at in their learning, what the gaps are and where they need to go next.
The e-Portfolio site takes the place of the written report throughout the year. You are able to print off a copy of the Interim report to use for Intermediate enrolment later in the year.
Cybersafety guidelines are adhered to closely. All students are now assumed to have permission to use our school equipment and to upload their work online unless we are notified otherwise in writing. This includes publishing work and uploading images online into their e-Portfolio blog using their first name only. Please be assured that we do not use surnames or any other personal information online. Please contact Belinda Johnston if you have any questions or concerns (5770194 or belinda@elmpark.school.nz).
If you have any queries during the year please feel free to make an appointment with the class teacher.
Cultural Activities /Annual Trips Payment $100.00 per year ($25.00 per term)
Parent Contribution & Annual Trips and Cultural Activities Payment - Thank you to all the parents/caregivers who have paid the school donation, activity fee and purchased the stationery pack so promptly. This assists us in getting the learning programmes underway as quickly as possible and enables the routines to be established early. Elm Park School strives to provide a quality education with a wide variety of opportunities for all students to participate, not just trips. This payment is very important to the school as many of our activities rely on this money. Enrichment groups such as Maths, Art, PE, Music, Chess, Swimming activities, Digikids (ICT). Please support the school by making this payment as soon as you are able to.
Parent Contribution Child $160.00
If you pay this before the 31 March you only need to pay $130.
Payment can be made through the school office during school hours, on the website using Wrap It Up online payments, or by internet banking. EFTPOS is available, and alternative payment options may be discussed with our Executive Officer, Ann-Marie Kawana.
Last year we introduced Wrap it Up, an online payment system for all school related payments in 2017. The benefits to the school include a more efficient way to manage and reconcile parent payments along with cost savings due to reduced paper and money handling. The benefits to you are a quicker and easier way to pay - 24/7, and no more paper permission slips to contend with! It makes everyone's lives much easier and we will be encouraging everyone to use Wrap it Up this year. If you've not already set up a Wrap it Up account, you will receive an email shortly inviting you to activate an account. If we don’t have your current email address you will need to contact the office. Please also contact the office if you have any further questions about this.
Donation Receipts
Did you know that families with an annual income of $70,000 or less, may be eligible for a childcare subsidy. If you would like to apply, you can find an application form at your local WINZ office, or visit www.workingforfamilies.govt.nz If you require any replacement or duplicate donation receipts for tax purposes please request them at the front office before the end of the year. Our financial software cannot issue duplicates after the start of the new year.
Stationery can be purchased online from Office Max or collected in person at the Office Max Store Ronwood Ave, Manukau. Prices will vary for different Year Levels – please check your child’s year level before ordering.
Uniform Shop Hours
Monday – Friday mornings 8.15 – 9.00 am and afternoons 2.30 - 3.00pm (Libby Douglas is in charge of the uniform shop).
All children are expected to wear the correct uniform at all times.
· All shirts must be the school uniform blue short sleeved shirt.
· Headbands should be black, white, or blue.
· Long hair should be tied back.
· Only stud earrings are acceptable.
· No nail polish.
· Sensible black sandals, NOT coloured shoe laces etc. No canvas shoes.
· Sun hats to be worn Term 1 and Term 4
· Sports uniform for Years 5 & 6
Year 6 Camp
The Year 6 children will be attending Camp MERC at Long Bay on the North Shore in Term 1, Week 5, Wednesday 1 March – Friday 3 March 2017
This is an extremely valuable experience for everyone and we encourage all children to take part in this Camp. There is a focus around water safety skills and activities and team co-operation and collaboration. Further Camp information will be available from the Year 6 teachers and Mr Dave Borcher, Deputy Principal Year 5 & 6.
BYOD Programme
A reminder that as part of the BYOD programme, students in Years 3-6 have the option to bring their own Chromebook to school to support their learning. The device is restricted to Chromebooks only sorry - not iPads, tablets or laptops. More information can be found on this slideshow and in this booklet. Please contact Ms Belinda Johnston for any questions about the BYOD programme (belinda@elmpark.school.nz or 5770194).
Headstart is a pre-school programme for four year olds who will be attending Elm Park School. The purpose of this programme is to familiarise children with the school learning environment. This programme day and time has changed and begins Week 5, Thursday 2 March, 9.00 - 10.30 am. This will be run by Mrs Kerry Tetupu. Please contact to the office for further information. 09 5770070
Road Safety Thank you to Mrs Karen Allen for co-ordinating the Road Safety timetable. We encourage parents to help us by not parking on the yellow lines, making sure that the children walk safely across the crossing and up the path, not on the back driveway as it is a busy access to the school and not abusing our staff who are doing this job on top of all the other things they do. If you have any spare time we would love your help to monitor the Road crossing. Please contact Mrs Karen Allen (09 577 0191)
Kids Korner (Before school & After school care).
Just to remind you that we have this facility available. Please contact Kirstie Miller (5770198)
Before school 7.00 am – 8.30 am
After school 3.00 pm – 6.00 pm
NEWSLETTERS - School newsletters are published once a fortnight. These are available on our website www.elmpark.school.nz The school newsletter is often our only means of communication with you at home so it is imperative that you read every issue to ensure you know what is going on within the school.
Looking forward to a wonderful new year.
Term Dates for 2017
Term 1 Tuesday 31January to Thursday 13 April 2017 (11 weeks)
Term 2 Monday 1 May to Friday 7July 2017 (10 weeks)
Term 3 Monday 24 July to Friday 29 September (10 weeks)
Term 4 Monday 16 October to Thursday 14 December (9 weeks)
Holidays
Term 1 Waitangi Day - Monday 6 February 2017
Term 1 Easter (Good Friday) 14 April 2017
Term 2 Queen’s Birthday - Monday 5 June 2017
Term 4 Labour Day - Monday 23 October 2017
PTA AGM
20 February 2017 at 7 pm in the staffroom. Tea and coffee available. Everyone welcome!
