Wednesday 18th May 2022 No. 7

Term 2 : ‘WHANAUNGATANGA’ – ‘Culture & Identity’

‘We are proud of who we are’

Te Kura o Tōtara Grove

Tōtara Grove School

Rāapa 18 ō Haratua, 2022

Kia Ora e te Whānau,

Kamusta, Bula Vinaka, Suostei, Goeie dag, Hallo, Kia orana, Fakalofa lahi atu, Sawubona, Talofa lava, Namaste, Xin chāo, G’day & hello.

Greetings everyone and I hope this newsletter finds you all safe and well in your households.

Colder weather is on its way, but luckily we’ve had some beautiful pockets of sunshine lately.

We have had a lot of new enrolments this term and I would like to welcome all the new whānau to our kura, it is great to have you part of our Tōtara Grove Whānau, nau mai, haere mai.

I would also like to welcome a new staff member to our kura, Matua Arama (Arama Keefe) who is a new addition to our Kaiwhina roopu (Teacher Aide) . Nau mai, haere mai Matua Arama! Your presence is appreciated around our kura, the tamariki are enjoying you and all that you bring. Nga mihi.

It has been a busy term already and I look forward to sharing with you the few things in this newsletter.

Have a great week everyone,
It takes a village!
Mā te poipoi a te papakāinga te tamaiti e whakatupuria ai !

Mauri Ora,
Whaea Vanessa

TUPU TAHI – GROWING TOGETHER. STANDING STRONG. REACHING HIGH.

Caught Being Good

Winners of books for the previous two weeks were:

Rm 3: Kane, Chloe

Rm 7: Connor

Rm 10: Lorelai, Jimmy

Rm 13: Ava-Leigh

Rm 14: Lorde

Ngā Mātāpono Awards

Rm 3: Ita’lee, Rylee, Ariki, Brandon

Rm 7: Tayla, Kauri

Rm 8: Spencer, Suave

Rm 10: Ariska, Yalaena, Te Iwa, Ayden

Rm 13: Skyla

Rm 14: Odessa, Eru

Staff Pepeha

Ko wai mātou ? Who are we as a staff at Tōtara Grove School.

Introducing four more staff members this week and their pepeha.

Whānau Fun Day Celebration

A couple of weeks ago we celebrated as a kura to say “THANK YOU “ to each and everyone of our tamariki for their resilience during a very turbulent, busy and challenging term 1.
Last term was a very hectic term with students, teachers and whānau having to isolate at home with Covid. We were so proud how our tamariki just soldiered on with their learning while at kura or at home. We managed to keep our school open with relievers, creative planning with classrooms and an awesome staff who just helped out where needed.
We wanted to say thank you to our awesome tamariki for being great examples of Tōtara Grove School.
As a staff, we decided to put on a Whānau FUN day with fun games and a surprise arrival of three bouncy castles to say we appreciate you all and thank you. They absolutely loved this day and it was full of FUN & LAUGHTER!
I hope your child came home and told you all about their fun day. I would like to thank all the kai mahi, staff, who made this possible also, he piki mihi ki a koutou!
Below are a few photos that say it all about our day, even the staff joined in on all the fun.
“He Kura, He Tōtara!”

Matariki

Te Kura o Tōtara Grove – Matariki Celebration of Learning

SAVE THE DATE!!!!!!! – Thursday 23rd June

A celebration of Matariki, Puanga and a time to welcome in the Māori New Year. We would like to invite you to come and celebrate Matariki and your child’s learning on this day. For now, lock this date in your calendar and more details will be sent out in the coming weeks.
We are going to start the day with a dawn celebration, star gazing before the sun comes up, kai parakuihi (breakfast) , kapa haka, students sharing their learning and interactive activities in classrooms.
Lock in this date, more details to come in the next few weeks. – Thursday 23rd June!!!

Winter Sports

Thank you to all the volunteers who have put their hands up to coach and manage a number of our school winter sports teams. Your support has helped create an opportunity for our tamaiki and we are grateful for you and your time.
We have a good number of netball teams representing our kura along with soccer teams also.
Can I also remind you that when supporting your child from the sideline, that we do this in a positive and respectful manner.
All coaches, managers and referees/umpires are all volunteers and for many, this is their first time coaching or managing a team. Please be respectful and positive at all sports grounds and towards other schools, clubs and teams as we are representing Tōtara Grove School.
Keep up the great work teams and most of all enjoy your games.

Buzz about bees

The senior syndicate are currently inquiring about bees, as part of the Buzz about Bees kaupapa.
Fortunately for us, Whaea Amber had come across some bee printing at the printer and decided to ask who was doing bees, then graciously brought in her beehive frames and honey gear she had at home, to share with the senior syndicate.

Much to our appreciation, we used these awesome resources to support the wonderings of our students, proving to be a fantastic form of provocation that got the kids hooked, intrigued and question filled. Room 12 was fortunate enough to have Whaea Laura and Te Kakano cherubs perusing our neck of the woods, so we pulled them in and Dimarni gave a little presentation about some facts about bees, honey and wax.

Thanks again Amber for your amazing resources and quick thinking.

Cold weather, warm clothing and the sniffles

The cold weather is on its way and along with that comes the cold and sniffles.

Just a reminder, when the cold snap starts, please send your child with warm clothing. Also, if your child displays cold, flu symptoms, please keep your child at home until they are well enough for school.

Teachers reading around the school

This week teachers swapped classes to read a favourite book or a chapter book to a different class across the school. The purpose of this reading swap is to model the love of reading and whanaungatanga across the kura.
This will happen one day a week for 15 mins, just before lunchtime.
Ask your child what teacher read to them this week? What book was read ? What was it about ?

ScholasticBook Club

Any orders for the current scholastic book club brochure (issue #3, 2022) need to be back in to school by Friday, 27th May. Please return the order form with the child’s name, room number, selected books and the correct money owing. Orders past this date can be made directly online, however they won’t be delivered through the school and postage costs will be added to your order.

https://www.scholastic.co.nz/parents/lucky-book-club/

Free school lunch programme

Please see attached the menu for the next fortnight. A detailed ingredients list is published on the lunch by libelle website: www.lunchbylibelle.co.nz/current-menu.html (click here).

This Fortnights lunch menu:

Nga Maramara O Totara

Kia ora School Whanau,

Totara Grove School has established a group of boys that we take out on experiential trips. This is a fluid group so we get to take a large number out. So far we have been down to the Waitaua awa to feed the tuna (eels). The boys were brave enough to have a swim as well. The trips out of school give the boys an opportunity to spent time with kids they might not normally. We have seen relationships grow, social skills develop with confidence.

At The Waka on The Loop

On May 11 Whaea Vanessa decided the boys would get a treat and spend the day exploring the Whangarei loop. We were lucky with great weather and a low level of traffic. The group were very excited and their behaviour was perfect. We are very proud of how the boys represented themselves and the people who care about them.

We are looking forward to our next trip out.

Te Manawa Tahi Timetable

If you have a concern about your child’s language development, learning progress, social and emotional wellbeing, or behaviour, TeManawa Tahi have specialists available so you can discuss your concerns directly with them.
This is a free service and each site will be identified by a Te Manawa Tahi flag. Drop into a hub or make an appointment by phoning 0800 5248 4256 or emailing TT.Support@education.govt.nz.