week 2 term 3 2024
Principal's Newsletter - Term 3
Kia ora koutou,
I hope this message finds our students well-rested and rejuvenated after a well-deserved break. I enthusiastically welcome you all back for Term 3 at Maeroa Intermediate. I trust everyone had a wonderful holiday and is ready for another exciting and productive term ahead.
Reflecting on Term 2 Achievements
Term 2 was a remarkable period filled with achievements and milestones. Our students displayed exceptional talent and dedication in various academic and extracurricular activities. Highlights included our successful cultural festival, our school production, and the outstanding performances at the Waikato Intermediate sports events. We are immensely proud of our students' hard work and the unwavering support from our teachers and parents.
Focus for Term 3
As we embark on Term 3, we focus on fostering a supportive and enriching learning environment for all our students. Here are some key areas we will be emphasizing:
- Curriculum Enhancement: Building on our ongoing efforts, we aim to further enhance our curriculum to ensure it is engaging, relevant, and challenging for our students. Teachers will continue to receive professional development to strengthen their curriculum knowledge and pedagogical skills.
- Student Wellbeing: The wellbeing of our students is paramount. We will continue providing various support services and programmes to promote mental health and resilience. Our wellbeing team is always available to assist students who may need additional support.
- Community Engagement: We believe a strong partnership between the school and the community is vital for our students' success. Your involvement in your child’s learning and support with our sports teams and other events makes a significant difference.
Upcoming Events
Please mark your calendars for these important dates:
- In week 3, our Sports Camp team heads to Matamata for a week of sports competitions and lots of fun.
- 6 August - WIMS Boys’ 7s Rugby
- 8 & 9 August National Monitoring Team in our school working with a group of our students.
- Week 4 - Marae visits for the whole school
- 13 August - WIMS Cross Country
- 13 August - Maeroa Open Evening for all parents and students interested in coming to Maeroa in 2025
- 20 August - WIMS Netball Competition for 8A & 7A
- 22 August - Regional Gymnastics Competition
- Week 8 - AIMS Games
- Weeks 9 & 10 - Japan trip, exchange with Makuhari Junior High School
- 27 September - end of term 3
Farewell to Francie Grey
It is with a heavy heart that we acknowledge the passing of Francie Grey, a beloved learning assistant at our school. Francie's dedication, kindness, and unwavering support for our students over the years have left an indelible mark on our community. A group of staff members attended a memorial service for Francie earlier this week, which was a wonderful celebration of her life.
Final Thoughts
As we move forward into Term 3, let us embrace the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead with optimism and determination. Together, we can continue to create a nurturing and dynamic learning environment where every student can thrive.
Thank you for your ongoing support and commitment to Maeroa Intermediate. Let’s make Term 3 an outstanding and memorable term for all.
Ngā mihi nui,
Susan Wood - Principal
Student Conferences
Thank you to all parents/caregivers who attended our Student Conferences last week.
Our student-led conferences are an opportunity for students to share with their parents their growth as learners. They accept accountability and responsibility for their progress and achievement and demonstrate a growing understanding of their development as independent learners. Parents are an integral part of this process, and we appreciate you coming into our school to share in your child's learning.
If you could not come in last week then please contact your child's teacher to arrange another appointment. If you would like to follow up with your child's teacher without your child then you can also contact the teacher to organise a time.
Well done Mr Tudreu
Congratulations to our teacher, Newton Tudreu, who has been called in to play for the Waikato Rugby team this weekend. Hopefully, he won't be dressed like he was for our Colour Run last year.
Talent Time
Talent Time has begun for term 3. I have noticed how much better students are at making better choices about what they are doing, requesting less change, persevering with the choices they have made, developing new skills, working with different people and having fun.
See photos below from a couple of groups.
Talent Time term 3 2024
Marae Visits
In week 4, our whole school will visit our local Marae at Whatawhata.
We have planned a trip to the Oomaero Marae for our Kapa Haka Festival and Te Ao Maaori Learning, which we did last term. This is an excellent learning opportunity for students to learn about marae protocol, powhiri, waiata and haka, crafts and games. It is also an opportunity for students to strengthen relationships with their classmates and teachers.
The school is fully committed to providing the best learning opportunities for our students. That's why we cover the transport and facility hire costs for this trip. It's an essential part of learning the New Zealand Curriculum, and we want to ensure every student can be involved.
Teachers have emailed all whaanau the link to the consent form which needs to be filled in online and submitted back to our school. Please get this done asap so we can confirm the buses.
Morning Routine
- 9.00 - Bus leaves
- 9.30- Powhiri
- 10.00 - Rotation 1
- 10.35 - Rotation 2
- 11.05 - Rotation 3
- 11.40 - Leave on Bus back to School
- School Lunch when you are back
Afternoon Routine
- 11.15- Bus leaves
- Arrive 11.45
- 12.00- Powhiri
- 12.30 - Rotation 1
- 1.05 - Rotation 2
- 1.40 - Rotation 3
- 2.15 - Leave on the Bus back to School
- School Lunch before you go
Tuesday 13 August | Wednesday 14 August | Thursday 15th August | |
AM | Kauri | Tawa | Maanuka |
PM | Rimu | Tanekaha | Mataii |
From the Ministry of Education
Health, Safety and Wellbeing
Measles – what you need to know
Not enough New Zealanders are immunised against measles, which means there is a very high risk of an outbreak.
- The best protection against measles is two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine – free for all young people aged 18 and under in New Zealand and all adults over the age of 18 who are eligible for free New Zealand healthcare.
- The first symptoms of measles are fever, cough, runny nose and sore red eyes, followed by a red or dark pink rash typically starting on the face or behind the ears three days after the first symptoms before moving down the body.
- If you observe these symptoms, encourage parents and/or caregivers to contact their healthcare provider or Healthline on 0800 611 116 immediately.
Online Safety Child Safety - from NZ Police
The Internet is an important source of knowledge, a research tool and a means of social interaction for children, but it can also expose them to dangers and inappropriate material. That’s why it is important to know how to keep your children safe online.
Some things you can do to help your children stay safe online include:
- install software on your computer which either blocks restricted content so your children cannot access certain sites, or monitors activity so that you can review online behaviour
- know who your children are making contact with online. If they are not your children’s actual friends then question their cyber friendship
- know which social networking sites your child is on and what information they are posting
- check that your children understand the dangers of posting personal information on social networking sites
- do not allow your children to use the computer in private areas of your home
- if you or your child becomes suspicious about a person online, stop contact immediately.
NetSafe
Netsafe promotes confident and responsible use of the Internet and electronic devices. It offers plenty of advice on staying safe online, with specific information and advice for parents and young people. For more information, visit the NetSafe website
Online child exploitation
The Online Child Exploitation Across New Zealand (OCEANZ) team is a specialist Police unit. It works as part of an international taskforce, the Virtual Global Taskforce, to protect children from online child abuse.
OCEANZ:
- coordinates international investigations into online paedophile networks
- identifies child sexual offenders by monitoring social network websites
- targets New Zealand child exploitation sites, including those producing images and abuse for financial gain, in an effort to identify and rescue victims.
- gathers intelligence for sharing with District-based child exploitation squads, the Department of Internal Affairs, Customs and international partners.
Online child exploitation is a crime. New Zealand Police have multiple ways in which reports of this serious offending can be received. In an emergency, call 111. Alternatively, you can call 105 or complete a report online.
More information -
- see the Personal and Community Advice section of this website for tips on Child Safety
- the Department of Internal Affairs investigates the possession of, and trading in, child exploitation material. For more information visit the Department of Internal Affairs website Child safety online(link is external).
- Raise your awareness of cyber security and ways to protect yourself online with information from the CERT website(link is external).
- read the Staying safe online guides from Netsafe(link is external).
- visit ThinkUKnow, Australia's crime prevention program. ThinkUKnow has a site in Australia(link is external) and in the UK(link is external).