Week 5, Term 1, 2024
Kia ora koutou,
Kia ora koutou,
I hope this newsletter finds you well and that the start of Term 1 has been smooth and productive for everyone. As we approach the end of Week 5, I would like to take this opportunity to share some important updates and highlights from our school.
Teachers have been working with their classes to establish great learning relationships, routines for learning and behaviour, and assessing where students are at with their learning. The beginning of the year is always hectic, with 350 new students beginning at our school.
A reminder that if you have any concerns or questions please get in touch with us.
Extra-Curricular Activities:
Our extra-curricular activities are in full swing, with students actively participating in sports, arts, and cultural activities. We also have a group of students arriving from Japan next week and our students will have many opportunities to learn about another culture. We encourage students to explore their interests beyond the classroom and participate in school activities.
Open Evening:
Thank you to all the parents and whaanau who came along to our Open Evening last Wednesday evening. It was so good to see so many of you here, along with your children.
If you did not make it that night but would like to meet with your child’s teacher, please do not hesitate to contact them to make a time.
Gully Working-Bee
Thank you to everyone who supported the gully working bee last Saturday. Our school is working on this fantastic project under the guidance of Mrs Julie Yeoman, one of our teachers. Another working bee will be coming up in March, and we would love to see as many people as possible attending.
Waikato Intermediate and Middle Schools Sports (WIMS)
This programme is designed so our multi-talented students can participate in many sporting and cultural events. This exciting program provides students exceptional skills and qualities in the sporting and cultural arenas.
This term, we have the following events in which our school will participate:
- 5 March - Volleyball
- 11 March - Swimming
- 19 March - Touch
- 26 March - Drama
Health and Safety:
We continue to have a small wave of COVID-19 moving through our school, affecting teachers and students. Please keep your child at home if they are unwell.
Head lice - we have had several students right across our school with head lice. Head lice, nits, or kutis, are common in kids and easily spread around schools. They can be annoying but are treatable. They shouldn't affect your child's education. If you have trouble accessing treatment, we have some available at school.
Please do not send your child with medicine (apart from asthma inhalers and diabetes meds) to keep in their bags. This includes Panadol or similar, cold medications etc. It is not safe for medication to be kept in student bags. If your child needs to take medication at school, then there is a form at the office that needs to be filled out and handed in along with the medication.
Trackpants
NZ Uniforms will be stocking school regulation track pants for next term. Please ensure if your child wears track pants in terms 2 & 3, they are our school regulation ones. Non-regulation will not be permitted.
Reminders:
Uniform Policy: A friendly reminder to parents and students to adhere to the school uniform policy.
- One pair of studs in the ears
- No socks and sandals - just sandals
- Shoes must be completely black, with no white soles.
- Black or navy socks
Attendance: Regular attendance is crucial for learning success. Attendance is essential for achievement, well-being, and lifelong outcomes. Aotearoa, New Zealand, has worrying attendance levels, and attendance levels continue to drop.
Each day of absence is a missed opportunity for your child to learn something they will need to understand more complex material later. Students who miss more than 18 school days are less proficient in reading, writing and math than their peers with good attendance.
If your child is not at school, call/text our absence line, or you will be contacted. Students who are absent a lot from school will be referred to school attendance services. We will also notify parents about lateness. It is essential for your child’s learning for them to be here by 8:45 am each day.
Thank you for your ongoing support and involvement in our school community. We look forward to a successful and enriching remainder of Term 1.
Ngaa mihi nui
Susan Wood - Principal
Gully Working Bee February 2024
School Swimming Sports
On Thursday, 29 February, we held our school swimming sports. We are so fortunate to have our amazing pool as an excellent facility for our students. In the first block, we held our heats, and then after morning tea, we held the finals, relays and fun events. Students who joined in had a great time.
There was a teachers' team in the relay, and they won the event - well done, teachers!
Our pool is a great facility; we expect all students to participate in our swimming programme. This is especially important for students who can not swim so we can help build their confidence and water survival skills at school.
A small team of swimmers have qualified to go to the WIMS Swimming Competition on 11 March. Students who are going will get a notice to take home in the next few days.
My New Gallery
NZEI Paid Union Meeting
Wednesday 27th March
These are paid union meetings as set out in the Employment Relations Act. NZEI Te Riu Roa members covered by the primary and area school teachers collective agreements are entitled to be released to attend.
This will be held at 1:30 pm on 27 March. Our students will be going home at 1 pm that day.
If you want your child to be supervised at school rather than go home at 1:30 pm, please email their teacher. We will supervise students who stay behind in our auditorium.
Easter break
A reminder that our school will be closed on
- Good Friday 29 March, and
- Easter Monday 1 April and
- Tuesday 2 April 2024.
The school will reopen on Wednesday, 3 April.
Bike Training
Hamilton City Council Bike Instructors are coming to our school to support students who want to learn how to ride a bike or who want to extend their skills to gain more confidence biking to school. The instructors will deliver bike skills sessions at school and the surrounding streets.
Registration forms/consent forms are available at our school office. Once you have filled it in - send it back to Ms Wood at the school office and they will be sent to Tracey Grayson from HCC.
Mobile phones/smart watches etc
New government regulations direct all State Schools to prohibit mobile phone access (unless they have an exemption for health reasons). As per our policy, Maeroa Intermediate School does not recommend that students bring personal digital devices to the school (such as mobile phones or smart watches). These are not necessary to have during the day. However, we understand that some parents like their children to have a device to communicate with them after school. All phones brought to school must be handed in and they will be stored in their class box at the school office and handed back at 3 pm.
Call the office if you need to contact your child urgently during the day. If your child feels unwell, they must follow our school processes (get a note from their teacher and go to the sick bay). If your child needs to go home, the school will contact you directly. Students should not contact their caregivers directly to make arrangements to go home.
If a student brings a personal digital device to our school, the following guidelines apply:
- The school does not accept responsibility for lost, damaged, or stolen personal digital devices brought to the school but investigates any issues as appropriate. Students must hand in their device in the class box at the beginning of the day, and can collect the device at the end of the day.
- Any student who chooses to keep their mobile phone through the day will have their phone confiscated and a parent will need to come in to collect it.
School Term Dates 2024
Term 1: Tuesday 30 January to Friday 12 April
Term 2: Monday 29 April to Friday 5 July
Term 3: Monday 22 July to Friday 27 September
Term 4: Monday 14 October to Friday 13 December