Week 10 NEWSLETTER

from the principal

Our Vision: Together we Nurture, Explore and Create for a Better Future

I have been writing about the ‘Learning Pit’ this term - an awesome visual way to describe the process of learning something new, a way to help explain all the feelings that come with the challenge of something different.

The Pit relates nicely to our value of Wawata (Daring to Dream). The ‘D’ part of PRIDE is all about tackling new situations, taking a risk, trying something new. At school we believe this is something that can be taught…teaching children that it is OK to make mistakes, or to feel anxious about something new. These things are natural and normal, but having the value of Daring to Dream coupled with the Learning Pit idea…this helps children believe that they can try something new, and see a path through the challenge, the mistakes through to success.

I got a lovely txt yesterday from a parent. Her son will be playing tackle rugby this year for the first time, and he has been quite worried about this and not wanting to do it. However…in his teaching team this week they have been talking/teaching about Wawata, and he has gone home saying he would like to give the rugby team a go. When asked what has made him change his mind…it was the message from school that it is OK to try new things, and we just need to give it a go. This is the first step to getting in the Learning Pit…but without that Daring to Dream value, we won’t get ourselves in the Pit to begin with.

Learning Conversations - Next Week!

Bookings are open in HERO for your child's learning conversation next week. Monday and Tuesday, a range of times available. Staff will reach out to you over the next couple of days to help book you in if you need it. The children have been preparing what they would like to share with you, and I know that they are always proud once done of how they have been able to report their learning to you. It is no small thing…kind of like if you have to have a sit down, performance review with your boss. It can be nervous in the leadup, but you always have some great things to share about how you are going, and always walk away with new ideas to carry on with.

Just a reminder (again) that due to the change in curriculum, and a lack of information as yet from the Ministry of Education, we are unable to say how your child is achieving against the new curriculum. Teachers will speak to you about what your child has been working on, but this time around the HERO graphs and dials have been turned off.

Education Outside the Classroom (EOTC)

As the term gets close to finishing, so does our EOTC programme for Term 1. We try super hard to provide these experiences across the year, and have built a system so across the 6 years at DPS your child gets to engage in a wide variety of activities, engage in a wide variety of local places, hear a wide range of local stories…and get out of the region to camp and our Tararua Challenge sports exchange in their final years at DPS.

This term we have had our Rimu students to Pukaha Mt Bruce, our Year 4’s walked Rangitumau, Kōwhai tramped in to Hidden Lakes…and the Year 5 & 6’s were meant to have river safety today/tomorrow, but the weather has meant a postponement there. This is all alongside the ‘other’ sorts of EOTC…we have had Constable Julie in running scooter safety lessons for Kōwhai, and the awesome Pedal Ready guys were in to do cycle safety with the two senior teams…and, of course we always have children engaged in the various sporting activities available across the town.

5 lots of thanks are needed here:

Thanks to my awesome staff for arranging these experiences. There is mahi behind the scenes that whānau won’t see, but this mahi means the trips/events run smoothly
Thanks to the Friends of DPS (FODPS). These guys chip away at fundraising across the year, and annually put 1000’s of dollars into our EOTC fund. This contribution helps enormously with cost, meaning we can do these things
Thanks to our awesome parent volunteers…giving up work/plans to volunteer your time to come on trips. We can do the mahi planning, completing the paperwork…but without the mums/dads/aunties/uncles/grandparents who come along as parent helpers, the trips couldn’t go ahead. Thanks
Speaking of paperwork…massive thanks to Shaun Harkness, our EOTC coordinator. Phone calls, emails, pre-trip visits, forms, letters…Shaun carries a large load making sure our trips get off the ground, and are done in a safe manner.
And lastly thanks to our kids…some of our trips/events can be a real challenge for students, taking them to new places, taking them out of their comfort zones…daring to dream in action! Thanks for doing it all with a smile

Out of Zone Enrolments for Terms 3 & 4

The process for Out of Zone enrolments for Term 3 and 4 this year will start soon. In the last week of term applications will open, closing in the first week of Term 2. If you live out of zone, and have a child starting later this year…are we aware? The application process is very easy, but if we do not know about your 4 year old…they may miss out on a place. Flick an email to office@douglaspark.school.nz

Stationery - Thank you to everyone who has already paid.

We are very lucky to have the BOT subsidise our stationery for the year. This really keeps costs down and once again we ask that all learners pay $15 as soon as possible. The easiest way to pay is online, our bank details are ASB 12-3290-0064275-00 please put your child's name as a reference. You can also call into the office and pay by eftpos or send cash to the office in a named envelope if you prefer. Please pay promptly as it saves us following up but any problems at all please see the office.