SCHOOL NEWSLETTER: 7th March 2024

IMPORTANT DATES AND EVENTS

Torbay School Learning Powers – RIC

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

Tena Koutou e te whanāu

Thankyou for a great start to the year. Your support in preparing your children for school and supporting them through challenges such as new teachers, new routines and making new friends is really appreciated. Resilient children arriving at school confident and happy to meet new challenges head on makes our job a whole lot easier enabling us to provide effective learning opportunities for everyone.

While the beginning of the school year can be exciting for parents, children and our staff it can also be a challenge. We are aware that we ask a great deal of you financially at the start of the year, particularly in our senior school with camps and extracurricular activities such as waterwise.

It is important that we receive payment for these events so they can go ahead, and I ask that if you have not yet paid for camp you either do so just as soon as you can or you make contact with us to arrange a payment plan or give us the opportunity to find alternative funding streams. We want all children to attend camp and experience the benefits that these wonderful events provide and we will provide support wherever we can to ensure that this happens.

I would also like to thank you for your support of our Whānau Feedback evenings and our parent information picnic evenings. Attendance levels were very high with almost 90% attendance at our Whānau Feedback meetings.

Staff Changes

I would like to congratulate Cathie Wharemate on winning a new teaching position at Oteha Valley School. Cathie will be leaving Torbay School at the end of term 1. Cathie has contributed a great deal to Torbay School in the 2 years she has been with us and while we are sorry to see her move on we wish her all the very best with her future career. We will announce Cathie’s replacement in the coming weeks.

PTA / SKIDS Funday Friday – 15^th March

Our PTA have done a wonderful job of raising funds for our new gardens and we look forward to completing that project this year. At the last meeting our PTA indicated that they would like to hold a community funday for the school to celebrate with our community on achieving that goal.

The PTA have joined with Skids our new after school care providers to put together a fun afternoon at our school on Friday 15^th March. This is a free afternoon of fun with the swimming pool and waterslide in operation, facepainting a sausage sizzle and a whole range of other games for children. Thank you to Skids for their sponsorship of this afternoon and thank you to our PTA for their initiative and work to make this event happen. During the afternoon Skids will be holding an information and Q and A session in the hall for those that are interested in learning more about what they have to offer.

Other important dates coming up on our Calendar!

Staff Only Day: Thursday 28^th March

On Thursday the 28^th of March we will be holding the first of two allocated Teacher Only days mandated by the Ministry of Education for development of our refreshed curriculum. We will be attending a combined Professional Development Day held by our Kahui Ako. All schools from our Kahui Ako will be participating, including:

Torbay School, Long Bay School, Glamorgan School, Sherwood Primary, Oteha Valley Primary School, Northcross Intermediate, Long Bay College.

We ask that you make other arrangements for your children’s care on that day, our Out of School Care programme, Skids will be available.

Paid Union Meeting: Tuesday 26^th March

A reminder that on the 26^th of March the NZEI (Teachers Union) has called a Paid Union Meeting. We ask that, if you are able, you collect your children from school at 12.30pm to enable our staff to attend that meeting. Children that remain will be supervised by the remainder of our staff in an alternative programme for the afternoon.

Other Important dates for term 1 include:

Funday Friday 15^th March

Senior School Swimming Sports 21^st March

Year 3 EOTC Sleep Over 22^nd March

Paid Union Meeting 26^th March

Staff Only Day 28^th March

Easter Break Fri. April 29^th – Tues. April 2^nd.

Rakino Camp 3^rd – 5^th April

Waiheke Camp 8^th – 12^th April

End of Term 1 12^th April

Advanced Warning – Staff Only Day.

I would also like to provide you with advanced warning of our second and final staff only day for 2024 to be held on May 17^th in week 3 of term 2. This day will be spent doing PLD focused on the Teaching of Maths in our School. This is part of a series of workshops and PLD session we are doing on both Literacy and Maths this year as part of the curriculum refresh.

Thank you for your continued support of all we do at Torbay School. Please do not hesitate to contact me if there is anything you wish to discuss.

Nga mihi nui

Gary O’Brien

Principal

[email protected]

ACOMPLISHMENTS

CONGRATULATIONS to the following tamariki who received certificates from their class teachers: Indie T & Joe Rm3, Wolf & Harley Rm4, Andre & Latai Rm5, Asher & Brahmpreet Rm6, Grace & Oliver Rm 7, Sophie & Alex Rm 8, Ellen & Jackson Rm 9, Sophia & Austin Rm 10, Fife & Florence Rm 13, Sebastian, Amelia C Rm 14, Aoife & Zoey Rm 15, Tomi & Nicolandi Rm 16, Alex & Olivia P Rm 17, Lucas & Yolanda Rm 18, Ida & Cooper Rm 19, Charlie & Ray rm 20, Calum & Millie Rm 21, Lexie & Charl Rm 22, Shiyin & Emma Rm 23, Archer & Grace Rm 24, Alice & Dylan Rm 25, Jerry & Yixuan Rm 26, Austin & Lea Rm 27, Sophie & Elton Rm 28 Well done!!

KA PAI to the following students who have shared their fantastic learning with us this week: Cooper & Isla Rm10, Rory & Ellen Rm9, Charlie Rm7, Sophie Rm8, Jamie & Vedant Rm4, Kyron & Donovan Rm3, Delilah & Edith Rm 17/18 Keep up the good work!

RICC REWARDS, for displaying our C.A.R.E Values – Imogen Rm10, Rosie Rm 15, Mila Rm 26, Handre Rm 22 Ka pai!

GENERAL REMINDERS

SCHOOL ABSENCES – Please remember to contact the school office if your child is going to be absent from school.

You can do this by one of the following:

Phone: 473 8603 Ext 1
Email: [email protected]
Website: Report an Absence form. Click here

HATS & SUNBLOCK- Hats are now compulsory for students to play outside in the playground. Please ensure all hats are named. New school hats are available from NZ Uniforms and the school office. Please remember to sunblock your child/ren before school. Thank you for being SunSmart!