Kia ora koutou,
Thanks to those who participated in our Learner Conferences last week. Having parents, students, and children sit together and talk about learning is valuable and worth the investment of time. We will make time to formally meet again towards the end of Term 2 when mid-year reports go home.
Getting Involved
We love seeing children get involved with the many activities available around the school. From Rest Home Reading to Choir, Sports and Recorder Karate, there is plenty to choose from. Sometimes children need an extra nudge to get involved, so if you’d like to know what’s on, check out the ARTS & CULTURE link on the school website.
School App Reminders
We continue to have people who haven’t taken the time to download and connect to the @School App, and then feel frustrated when important information is missed. Please contact the school office if you are not connected to the app or have trouble with notifications – we are happy to troubleshoot and support. The @School App can be used on either your phone or the computer if you’d prefer.
Sponsorship Opportunities
Matua School has a strong, active and engaged community. With 550 children and 370 families connected to the school, we would like to offer a limited number of sponsorship opportunities. You may have noticed on the @School App, and at the top of the newsletter a couple of digital spaces that are highly visible to our community. If you are interested in supporting our children and Matua School, please read the image below and contact me at marcusn@matua.school.nz
Teacher Only Day
As highlighted last week, you can see on the school calendars that we have a Kahui Ako Teacher Only Day on Friday, 17th March. The school will be closed on this day, and teachers will work with a Mathematics facilitator. This year, growing our Mathematics practice and learning more about the refreshed curriculum is a key focus area for staff. You may have spotted that this Teacher Only Day (TOD) is a week later than the TOD at Ōtūmoetai Intermediate and College. Our normal practice is to align these days as much as possible. However, on this occasion, we were restricted on the day we could access Mathematics professional learning. We appreciate that for some families, this might create some challenges. Please be assured that our intent is always to align TODs where possible. Thanks for your understanding.
Teacher Union (NZEI) Stop Work Meeting
Teachers across the country are currently in contract negotiations. The negotiations focus on pay keeping up with the cost of living and the conditions and resourcing we want to ensure a high-quality education for our children. As part of this process, our teachers need to attend a meeting during the afternoon of Thursday 2nd March. During this time, we will be running a skeleton programme at Matua School, with most of the afternoon being an assembly with opportunities for singing and other whole school activities.
We are very aware that this union meeting has come at a time when there have been public holidays and upcoming Teacher Only Days. We appreciate that these impact parents. Therefore, all children are welcome at school all day. However, you are most welcome if you can pick your children up from school at 12:30 pm on the day.
Ngā mihi nui
Marcus Norrish
Principal
JUMP JAM
ENTERPRISE DAY
SECOND HAND UNIFORM – HELP NEEDED
GARDEN TO TABLE
MATUA ANGELS
We have an amazing group of volunteers that come into school on a Monday morning. They help with anything from laminating, making resources for staff and all those jobs that help with the everyday running of school life.
It’s a great way to meet other parents and also support our wonderful staff.
If you would like to be involved, pop into the school office on Monday morning (9 -11am), have a cuppa and a biscuit, meet other parents and get involved. We really appreciate any help you are able to offer.
SCHOOL HOURS
A friendly reminder that school is not open until 8.30am. If you require childcare before these hours, please contact SKIDS either by email – matua@skids.co.nz, phone – 027 586 0408, or book online – www.skids.co.nz/Matua.
SCHOOL INFORMATION
SKIDS BEFORE & AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMME
“It’s time to book your Before & After School sessions with SKids, and join us for some fun in the sun at www.sKids.co.nz/Matua”
LUNCH ORDERS – EVERY FRIDAY
Lunch orders are available for delivery to Matua School each Friday.
SUBWAY
Simply order your SUBWAY lunch online through you myKindo account by CLICKING HERE
Order (or cancel) any time before 9:00am on the day or schedule in advance.
Help? Visit support.mykindo.co.nz or call 09-869 5200 Mon-Fri, 8:00am to 4:00pm.
TERM DATES 2023
Open Morning – Friday 27th January, 10:30am – 12:00pm
FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL 2023 – Tuesday 31st January
TERM 1 – Tuesday 31st January – Thursday 6th April.
Waitangi Day – Monday 6th February (school closed)
Parent/Child/Teacher Conferences – Friday 24th February (school closed)
Teacher Only Day – Friday 17th March (school closed)
TERM 2 – Wednesday 26th April – Friday 30th June.
Anzac Day – Tuesday 25th April
King’s Birthday – Monday 5th June
TERM 3 – Monday 17th July – Friday 22nd September.
Term 4 – Monday 9th October –
Labour Day – Monday 23rd October
Last Day of School – TBC
OUR SCHOOL APP
Our School App
We have a school app to keep you up to date with events and notifications. Click on the button below to check it out.
SETTING UP KINDO
Setting up with Kindo
Kindo is our prefered payments system. To help you learn how it works, we’ve added their new help sheet and video. We hope it helps.
KINDO VIDEO HELP
COMMUNITY NOTICES
NUMBER WORKS N WORDS
Maths and English after-school tuition – Boost your child’s confidence and results with NumberWorks’nWords. They provide fun, individualised lessons in maths and English for students who are struggling to keep up, and those bursting to race ahead.
Right now they are offering a free assessment and introductory lesson. Call Leanne or Kate on 07-578-5575 to book, or for more information visit www.numberworksnwords.co.nz
CHILDRENS DAY ON THE WATERFRONT
On Sunday, 5 March, from 11am-3pm, Tauranga’s waterfront will be a hive of activity with live music, face painting, craft activities, roving entertainment and more. There will be a free sausage sizzle on offer for those who are there early on the day.
Visit mytauranga.co.nz/summer for all the details.
