Year 4 Newsletter, Term 3 2017

Kia ora, malo e lelei, kia orana, fakalofa lahi atu, ni hao, bula vinaka, Salaam aleiˈkum. 

Welcome back to Term 3 and a special welcome to our new families at Elm Park School.  

We look forward to . 

Important dates this term:

Week 2              31 July                                     Youthtown starts (8 week programme)

                            3 August                                Student Led Conferences (4pm-8pm)

Week 4              14-18 August                        EPS Maths Week/Maths Olympiads

Week 6              1 September                          School Cross Country

Week 8              11-15 September                 Māori Language Week/Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori

Week 10            25 September                       Year 4 speeches (11am)    

                            29 September                       Term 3 ends (3pm)  

Our learning focus for the term:

Our learning focus this term will continue to be centred around the theme of celebrations and remembrances as we work our way towards preparing for Elm Park School’s jubilee celebrations in Term 4!

As part of our PE programme for the term, we will we have Youthtown back to teach our students winter sport skills.  We will also be improving our fitness by participating in cross country from week 1, working our way towards our school cross country race in Week 6!  We will also be putting our artistic hats on and preparing for the bi-annual art exhibition which will be part of our jubilee celebrations.

We will be continuing with e-Portfolios as a means of keeping you up to date with your child’s learning. It would be fantastic if you post comments on your child’s blog.

For your convenience, we can arrange for you to be emailed each time new work is uploaded.  If you would like this set up, please contact either the office or your class teacher.  We also encourage you to leave comments on the work that you view.  The students love to receive your feedback.  Student e-Portfolios can be accessed on the Class Pages via the school website.  

We recommend bookmarking this link for easy future access!

Nga Mihi Koutou,

Jessica Van Dort, Julie Prendergast, Alice Massey and Sara Melville (Year 4 Team Leader)


Useful information

Uniforms: 

Again, we ask for your support to help our students show pride in their Elm Park School uniform.  Please ensure that your child is in the correct school uniform and that all items of clothing are clearly named. All school shoes need to be plain BLACK.  Please do not buy shoes with coloured soles and laces.  No boots or heels.  No long sleeved T-shirts / skivvies to be worn under the school shirt.

Crosscountry: 

Cross country practise will be every Tuesday and Thursday.  Year 4 students may bring  trainers to school wear and  change into their EPS PE uniform (if they have it) or sports clothes for the practise.  Please note they must not wear these to school, they can change at morning tea time and they will change back into their uniform and school shoes after cross country.

Homework: 

In Year 4, we have reduced homework to the basics, as we understand that families have commitments outside of school time.  The expectations are as follows:

  • At least 20 minutes reading per day
  • Mathletics - aim to achieve a bronze certificate (should take approximately 30 minutes over the week)
  • Basic Facts - focus on quick recall for all addition, subtraction, multiplication and division facts
  • Word Mania to support spelling skills

These skills form the foundation of success in the senior school. Please support your child by ensuring that they are meeting these minimum expectations.  If access to computers is a concern, students may use computers before school in their classrooms - please ask their teachers.

Library:

Your child will visit the school library on every week. Please ensure that the borrowed book is returned promptly, before the next visit to the library. We trust that the library books that are taken home will be looked after.

R12 - Wednesday

R13 - Tuesday

R14 - Monday

R15 - Monday

Keeping Well:

There have been a number of nasty bugs going around this year.   Given that it is winter, if your child is unwell please keep them at home until they are well enough to come to school as we don’t want other children or staff to become infected. Please also remind your child to wash their hands regularly and thoroughly to avoid further spread of germs over the winter term. 

Keeping in contact

Contact with and from school

There are many ways we can contact you and you can contact the school.  

It is vital that school has your latest contact details in case of an emergency.

  • Website

www.elmpark.school.nz

  • Blog

http://elmparkschool.blogspot.co.nz/

  • Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/ElmParkSchool/

  • Smartphone App

Our smartphone app by Kindo Shop can be downloaded for free from iTunes & Google Play - just search for Elm Park School.

  • Year 3 & 4 Deputy Principal - Belinda Johnston

belinda@elmpark.school.nz or 09 5770194