Newletter – 22 July 2024

Dear Parents and Whānau

Welcome to Term 3, which is already off to a very settled and positive start. It was great to see our students’ enthusiasm and energy as they returned to their classrooms today. Teachers have been working to be organised and well planned for the term. We have a full calendar of events, filled with exciting educational activities for students. There continues to be opportunities for you to connect with our school community and be actively involved in your child’s/children’s education and our active Parent/Teacher Network support us in this. We are all looking forward to a busy and rewarding term ahead. 

An especially warm welcome goes out to all our new children and their families, joining our Cockle Bay School community for the first time or here for a few weeks as international students. We are confident your association with our school will be both enjoyable and successful. Our strong home/school partnership is invaluable and together we can make your children’s education the best it can be.

We are excited to extend a special welcome to new/familiar members of the staff team, joining us in Term 3:

Mrs Bridget Bear Science Y2 – 6  

Mrs Tash Barber  Dance  Y0 – 1

Room 31 Mrs Vanessa Short and Mrs Lisa Burns

Room 32: Mrs Laura Edgar and Mrs Bronwyn Harrison

Office: Mrs Nicole De Beer 

Reports and Conferences

Written reports on students’ progress will be sent home this Friday 26 July.  An important invitation is extended to all parents to join us for our upcoming Parent-Teacher Conferences next week, Thursday 1 August. These meetings are an invaluable opportunity for us to come together, share insights, and collaborate in supporting your child’s growth and development. Your participation is essential to help foster the strong partnership between home and school, which plays a pivotal role in your child’s/children’s educational success.

All students are asked to go home on Thursday 1 August at 12.30pm (the school can supervise those who absolutely have no alternative).

Conference Bookings and arrangements for your children are made via  School Interviews 

Uniform Expectations

At Cockle Bay School we have a smart, comfortable uniform that is compulsory and which we wear with pride. Details are on the school website. Thanks to parents who have sent children back after the holidays, looking great in their correct school uniform. There will be a blitz on school uniforms in the next few weeks. You may be contacted by a staff member or receive a written note asking for non-uniform items to be kept for weekend wear. Thanks for your anticipated understanding and cooperation in helping us keep up our high standards of uniform. In situations of hardship, please contact me or the school office for support.

Change of Times: Morning Tea and Lunch

As a trial this term, students are eating morning tea and lunch at the END of breaks, rather than at the beginning. They will be supervised as usual, and given the same amount of time to eat. Lunch orders delivery times have been adjusted.  We are trialling this to see if it impacts positively on children’s social interactions. Other schools and the P.B.4.L. facilitators report that eating at the end of playtimes fosters settled behaviour and increased concentration.

Teachers can programme a grazing snack and brain break into learning time, at 9.45am if children who have breakfast early become hungry. You are welcome to provide fruit/veg/cheese and cracker for a grazing snack if you think this is needed for your child. However, younger children are sometimes loaded up with far more food than they can eat during the day, so please use some commonsense over what you send to school. A snack of leftover food at 3pm can be a good idea and saves wastage.

Property Improvements

Over the holidays regular cleaning and grounds maintenance have been carried out. You will notice the staff car park near the roundabout is now close to being operational again, now that the portacoms have gone. Line markings are still to come. 

The fencing project is almost completed, so please keep the gates closed during the day and use the reception entrance if you need to come into school. No adults are allowed within the school grounds from 8.45am to 3pm without first signing in at the office. 

The Board has funded a concreted entrance at reception. We will all need to get used to the new layout, which is designed with students’ safety as the priority. Students, parents and staff  can no longer walk through the carpark to get into reception. Access from the road is via a new gate by the hall/cherry tree. (The big gate from the reception staff car park  is for deliveries and emergency access, not for pedestrians, so please don’t ask the office staff to open it for you!)

The Board has also funded a new path from the Trelawn walkway into school. This will assist us evacuate from the school grounds quickly, should the situation arise. Students are welcome to use this new entrance/exit  on a regular basis if they live that way. It will be safer and possibly quicker than using the entrance close to the roundabout.

Nature Trail Planting and Lasting Legacy

Please keep Tuesday 6 August all day, and the morning of Friday 9 August free, if you are a keen gardener and would like to assist with the planting of 230 natives in our Nature Trail. Families who would like to donate a native tree, or who have already done so, can come along and plant their tree together on this day.

Further details will be shared in a separate email later this week.

 

Best wishes to everyone for a successful, enjoyable term.

Ngā Mihi

 

Dorothy Bigwood