NEWSLETTER TERM 1 WEEK 7 2020

Dear Parents, Caregivers and Families
Kia ora, kia orana, talofa, malo e lelei, fakaalofa atu, hello and greetings

From the Principal

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) is in the news and on the minds of many. As you no doubt are aware, the World Health Organisation has now declared COVID-19 to be a pandemic. As noted by the Minister of Health, this doesn’t change what New Zealand is doing to respond to coronavirus.

At this stage, according to experts, the likelihood of a wide-spread outbreak in New Zealand is deemed low, with continued vigilance the chance of a widespread community outbreak is expected to remain low, and it’s important for us all to keep calm and to make sure we are aware of the facts rather than being panicked by rumours. However, it’s also important for us to continue to closely monitor developments, and we are taking precautionary steps to keep our school community well.

The Ministry of Health has been working through its pandemic plan since January. You will also know the Government has already implemented a range of measures to minimise the impacts on New Zealand. This action includes border restrictions, a requirement to self-isolate on arrival in New Zealand from China, Iran, Italy, Australia and the Republic of Korea and immediate and detailed contact tracing of any confirmed cases. It is essential to note that those five countries account for more than 90% of cases globally, and China and the Republic of Korea have significantly declining numbers of new cases.

We have eight confirmed cases of COVID-19 in New Zealand. While we expect that more cases will arise, the Ministry of Health says that with continued vigilance the chance of a widespread community outbreak is expected to remain low in New Zealand. We all have a role to play in this. Minimising the spread of COVID-19 is important. Please follow the advice below….

If you have returned from overseas, or have visitors with you from overseas, since 1:00am on Monday 16th, please adhere to the current restrictions. Self-isolate! Practice good hygiene. To calm a nervous community, please consider voluntarily self-isolating even if you arrived back in NZ before 1:00am on Monday.
Practise good hygiene. This means:

cover your coughs or sneezes with tissues or your elbow
put your used tissue in the rubbish bin
wash hands regularly for at least 20 seconds, especially after coughing or sneezing, using a toilet, or before eating. Use soap or hand sanitiser, and dry your hands thoroughly.
try to keep your hands away from your face, especially the nose, mouth and eyes.
stay away from others if you’re unwell (fever, cough, cold, runny nose or shortness of breath)
refrain from sharing food, drink bottles, eating utensils, etc.
refrain, for the time being, from handshakes, high-fives, kisses, hongi, and other very personal forms of greeting

If you or your children develop symptoms of fever, cough, or shortness of breath, please stay at home and seek medical advice – phone Health-line’s dedicated COVID-19 number 0800 358 5453.
Avoid large gatherings, especially if you have symptoms.

As an extra precaution, the school is….

Receiving and acting on daily advice from the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education.
Teaching the children about the importance of personal hygiene (see the above list)
Providing Hand sanitizer for student and staff use
Stopping whole school assemblies, for the time being.
Being extra vigilant about new enrolments and families returning from overseas
Taking extra care to disinfectant clean any surface commonly touched by students and adults, e.g. toilet buttons, light switches, door handles, desks and tables.
Asking parents to keep children home from school if they have cold and flu-like symptoms. Even if it is unlikely to be the virus, this action will minimise community anxiety.

Despite all that I’ve said in this newsletter, I am also reassuring you that the school is following all the advice it receives. The school remains open. It is business as usual, just with a few extra precautions.

If you are talking to your children about this virus, please be mindful of their capacity to understand. Depending what you say and how you say it, they may become fearful or anxious. Please advise them on how to stay healthy, but try not to alarm them.

The health, safety and well being of our community is important to us, and we are continuing to monitor and follow through on the recommendations of the Ministry of Health.

Onto brighter and better things I would like to give a HUGE shout out of thanks to the following people who put in 110% at the working bee on Sunday:

Hayley & Wayne Hodgetts; Nick Cammel; James Andrews; Anne & Pete Richards; Jason Kerrisk; Chris Rhodes; Geoff & Sheila Russell; Susie Richards; Lucy Cowan; Jason Farmilo; Storm Baynes-Ryan & Tony Neels.

Your effort and persistence were outstanding and I cannot thank you enough for making headway on our Pump track & the orchard area. The Helping Hands supplied a yummy lunch and Janet Ashe went & bought the “liquid refreshments” for the end of the day. Speaking of the Helping Hands they are always looking out for new recruits. Please consider coming along to one of their meetings to find out how you could help the school.

I have a new system for our prizes at assemblies to celebrate our kids. The Helping Hands provided the funds for our first lot of goodies. If there is any company out there who wouldn’t mind donating prizes and/or funds for a shopping spree at K-Mart for more prizes please let me know. I am also wanting any spare brown Countdown bags that you may have lying around at home too.

Our PB4L focus for this week is about playground expectations. We will be talking about talking turns, sharing, playing safely and sensibly on equipment and having fun. It would be great to talk about these things at home, or when you are visiting playgrounds or places like MAZ. One of the issues that often come up in the playground, or with parents, is that of “bullying” . It is a phrase that is often bandied about, and one that can be used in the wrong context. For a person to be labelled a bully there are 4 indicators: the act of the bully is repeated consistently over a period of time; it is causing physical or mental harm; it is unwarranted ( meaning it is not an act of retaliation); it is unwanted ( the person didn’t deserve that to happen). ALL 4 INDICATORS need to be there for the word bully to be used. That is not to say that inappropriate actions will not have consequences- just that we have to be very sure before we say someone is a bully, or someone is being bullied.

As part of our re-visioning process we had 4 theme teams formed. Their job for the rest of the year is to come up with some questions around their themes ,that they will canvas the community about for answers to provide a future focus for the school. The theme teams are:

TEAM 1

WHANAUNGATANGA ( kinship/family)/Grow Learners

VALUE- Ownership of our actions

Members: Robyn Sibtsen; Betsy Tipping; Kirsty Clapham; Talia Watson-Walker; Dave Clapham (5)

Team 2

MANAAKITANGA (care, kindness,empathy,respect)/ Grow relationships

VALUE- Respect each other with empathy and understanding

Members: Nikki Kerrisk; Anne Richards; Andie McGuiness; Barbara Bartlett; Jo Tischik (5)

TEAM 3

KAITIAKITANGA (guardianship) Grow environments

VALUE- Working together harmoniously

Members:Jason Kerrisk; Chris Rhodes;Lorraine; Brendda Salt; Karen; Storm Baynes-Ryan (6)

TEAM 4

TU HAUORA (holistic achievement) Grow achievement

VALUE- Growth through learning from our mistakes

Members: Janet Ashe; Kirsten Forno-Watson; Brogan Cassidy; Jeanette Mabin; Sheila Russell (5)

So be prepared for questions in the next few months. Your answers and thoughts will be appreciated and invaluable.

REMINDER: new policies are being put on the website all the time. Please make sure you have a look, especially if you have any questions.

Room 2 & 3 had a very successful trip to Goat Island last Thursday. many thanks to the parents who provided transport and help on the day. Everyone came back exhausted but happy! Tabloid sports the next day (Friday) for our Year 1-3 students was also a fantastic day. Thanks to Mrs Salt, Mrs Bartlett, and Miss McGuinness for your organisation. The visiting schools really enjoyed themselves. Also a shout out to the Room 6 students who helped supervise and run the activities. You were great ambassadors for Tomarata School. The assembly on Friday was run by Room 6 as well as Room 7 was at Earle’s Bush Block. They did a great job and we all enjoyed the presentation from Room 5 on Growth Mindsets.

The ERO team of Richard Leilua, Pam Tucker and Kirsty Holland is with us for the next few days. They are looking at the school from where it is now to where it could go in the future. I welcome their advice for unlocking the potential of our awesome school. The powhiri on Monday was a first for us in the sense that it followed true protocol. I want to give congratulate Sara Nicoll who performed our first karanga to welcome the ERO team. She performed beautifully.

Lastly please have a look at the fabulous photos on the windows of the Rata Room. We have a competition running so caste your votes. Thanks to Mrs Ashe who took the photos and organised the competition. That’s all folks!!