Dear Parents and Caregivers
Principal’s Summary
- Book Week
- Canterbury Block Opening
- Preliminary Design Survey
- Aupaki Kāhui Ako
- Health & Physical Education Community Consultation
- Resignations
Tenei te mihi atu kia koutou. Welcome to Chelsea M who has started school this week. We have certainly had an action-packed last two weeks at Sumner School. One of the real highlights was Book week and in particular Friday’s book character parade with some truly amazing Vile Villains, Humble Historians and Hallowed Heroes costumes on display. I would like to acknowledge the efforts of our Librarian Susan Osteen and Literacy Leaders Kim Ristrom and Karise Zaalberg for organising the week of exciting activities.
Opening of Canterbury Block
We are a little over one week away from the opening of the refurbished Canterbury Block. This is a really exciting time for our school and I know that the teachers and students can’t wait to move into their new spaces. A reminder that the opening ceremony will take place at 9am on Monday 21 August. If you would like to attend the opening, please assemble in front of the new deck area just before 9 o’clock. The whole school will have the opportunity to have look through the building as part of the opening ceremony. This will be followed by a cup of tea in the staffroom for parents and invited guests at 9.30am.
Preliminary Design Feedback
Thank you to the people who have submitted feedback on the preliminary designs for the next phase of our building programme. This online survey will remain open until 9am on Friday 18 August. Now is the chance for you to have your say! As the project is still in the design phase, the Board of Trustees are looking for your comments and suggestions as they will help to finalise the plans and make decisions about what our priorities will be moving forward.
If you haven’t already done so, please take the opportunity to have a look at the plans here and upload your feedback. Hard copies of the plans are available for viewing in the Office.
Aupaki Kāhui Ako
In April, the Minister of Education announced the formation of a new Kāhui Ako (Community of Learning) in our area comprising of Heathcote Valley School, Our Lady Star of the Sea School, Sumner School, Linwood College, Mount Pleasant School and Redcliffs Schools. This new collaboration replaces the Bays Cluster.
We are very pleased to announce that our Kāhui Ako will be known as Aupaki. This beautiful ingoa (name) has been gifted to us by mana whenua and has the approval of local rūnanga. Aupaki translates to ‘sloping hillside’ which is a geographical feature that all of the schools in our Kāhui Ako have a natural affinity for. The words Au (meaning wave) and Paki (meaning crashing) also recognise the importance of the ocean and inland waterways that connect our kura.
We are very excited about the rich opportunities that lay ahead for the Aupaki Kāhui Ako. At the heart of this will be the development of a strong educational pathway for our tamariki from early childhood through to secondary school and beyond. We very much look forward to collaborating with our staff, whānau and learners for many years to come.
Health & Physical Education Community Consultation
The Health and Physical Education consultation has now closed. Thank you to the people who submitted feedback. This will be taken into account before we finalise the Health and Physical Education curriculum at Sumner School for the next four years.
To finish this week’s newsletter I would like to inform you that the Board has recently received resignation letters from both Anne Blackmore-Smith and Dale Wright. Anne and Dale will be retiring at the end of the year after decades of service to education. It is with sadness that we accept their resignations but also acknowledge the amazing contribution they have made to our school particularly in the area of learning support.
Rest assured that plans are underway to celebrate their careers at the end of the year. I’m sure you would like to join us in these celebrations. Watch this space.
Have a great weekend.
Ngā mihi
Stuart Cameron
Principal
Term 3 Accounts
Please note that our Student Manager System is now able to send the accounts to both parents. Please let the Office know if you do not want this to occur.
Term 3 activities have been loaded onto the students' accounts. We would be grateful if these could be paid promptly please. As advised in the previous newsletter your child's details can be viewed via the Caregiver Portal at https://parent.musac.school.nz/loginpage_caregiver.aspx
Sickness
This winter we have had large numbers of children absent with various flu, stomach and cold viruses. Please ensure you keep your child at home for the duration of their illness to avoid spreading these bugs. A reminder that if your child has had a stomach bug they need to be kept at home at least 48 hours since the last instance of vomiting or diarrhoea. Your cooperation is appreciated by staff.
Spotlight on Excellence
Congratulations to the following students who received Surfer Awards at the assembly on Monday:
Empathy: Matthew B for displaying empathy by encouraging a football team member after they missed a goal.
Sincerity: Kaia R for consistently demonstrating sincerity when working alongside others by volunteering support to classmates when needed, and listening to the opinions of others.
Respect: Paddy L for showing respect to all his classmates and teachers with his honesty and kindness.
Sincerity: Tessa L for always demonstrating a love of learning across the curriculum, and taking on every task at hand with enthusiasm and her best effort.
Respect: Holly S for being an outstanding role model both in and out of the classroom. You are a respectful listener and diligent worker.
Empathy: Ella M for always going out of your way to help and support others inside and outside the classroom.
Unity: Luke B for consistently showing excellent teamwork skills when working on group tasks. He listens carefully to others and ensures that his group stays on track. Well done!
Resilience: Poppy D for showing a 'can-do' attitude towards school work and having a growth mindset when faced with tricky tasks.
Resilience: Harvey C for exhibiting a positive and resilient attitude recently, despite facing setbacks.
Caregiver Portal for our Student Management System
The Caregiver Portal for our new Student Management System, Edge, has now been activated. This enables you to view your child’s contact details, attendance and payment details.
The portal address is: https://parent.musac.school.nz/loginpage_caregiver.aspx. Login using your existing account and password at Google+, Yahoo, Facebook or Windows Live. Alternatively click on ‘manually enter your login details’ using the email address you have supplied to school and request a password via the ‘forgotten password’ option.
Your contact details are listed on the Edge Caregiver home page. If any of these details require updating please email the changes required to admin@sumner.school.nz. The school no longer forwards requests to parents to update their details. There are many occasions when school needs to quickly contact parents during the school day so it is important that caregivers are proactive regarding keeping contact details current.
Click on your child’s name to access the Summary, Attendance and Payment tabs. There are currently no reports loaded onto this site, but the school is looking at working towards this area.
Payments cannot be made via this portal, but you are able to see if there is unallocated credit on your account, the details of unpaid items and the balance.
Policy Review
A reminder that this term we are reviewing the Students with Special Needs Policy. If you would like to take part in this review, please follow the instructions below:
- Log on to the Sumner School SchoolDocs site by clicking here
- Enter the user name sumner and the password wakefield
- Follow the link to each policy
- Read the policy
- Click the red Policy Review icon at the right-hand top corner of the page. A new screen will appear.
- Select your role (board member, staff member, or parent/caregiver) from the drop-down list.
- Enter your name (optional).
- Submit your ratings and comments.
Vile Villains, Humble Historians and Hallowed Heroes
We had an amazing week full of events promoting literacy and our love of reading here at Sumner School. A few highlights this year were a visit by author/illustrator Stu Duval who combined his skill in drama, visual arts, and storytelling to captivate the entire school. Also, grandparents and special friends reading with the Years 0-4 students, librarians volunteering at the Kindy and of course the fabulous book parade on Friday. The costumes were so creative!
Book week competition prize winners:
Kaia R - was the lucky winner of 2 tickets to Horrible Histories at the Isaac Theatre for the high quality and consistency in her reading journal. Thank you to Tanya Jephson for the generous donation.
Book mark competition
Charlie W, Maya N, Isabella R, Jack M, Isabella H, Isla W, India H.
Window decorating competition
Room 13 - A-Z heroes
Room 19&20 - Stu Duval style Vile Villains
Te Manawa - We are all superheroes
You're all invited to a Wine and Cheese Evening
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Come and join us for some Wine and Cheese and hear all about what the PTA are up to for the rest of the year. A great chance to put your hand up and help us out, especially with our Garden Tour fast approaching. DON’T MISS OUT!! Monday 4 September 7-8pm in the School Staffroom Any questions please contact Amanda Price 027 4888117 or email pta@sumner.school.nz |
Board of Trustees Meeting
Please note that there has been a change of date for our next Board of Trustees meeting. It will now take place in the staffroom at 7pm on Tuesday 26 September.
School Disco
The PTA and School Council are in the process of organising our next disco for Friday 25 August. The theme for the disco is 'Fluro' so start digging out your brightest and most colourful clothes! Tickets will go on sale in the office on Monday 21 August and cost $5.
Scouts
The Mt Pleasant / Sumner Scouts now have a Kea section up and running with a new keen Kea Leader for children aged 6 to 8 years.
Keas runs on Tuesdays from 4 - 5pm each week of the term at the Scout Den at the Old Mt Pleasant School Reserve on Major Hornbrook Road.
For more information, contact Roger Horton (Group Leader) on roger.horton@paradise.net.nz or phone / text to 021 051 6160.
Sumner Tennis Junior Registration Day
August 20 from 10am – 12pm at the Sumner Tennis Club, Heberden Ave. For ALL interclub players, and Saturday morning HotShots coaching.
Any queries please contact Jane Robertson 021 888730 or Heather Boomer 021 757673.
Download the junior registration form.
If you're planning to join up adults or the whole family, download the senior registration form.
Payment is due on the day and can be made by eftpos, internet banking, cheque or cash.
Visit https://www.sumnertennisandsquash.co.nz for more information.
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