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Tena koutou e te Whānau,
Tēnei te mihi nui atu ki a koutou katoa. He wiki whakahira ki a mātou, na te mea Te Wiki o te Reo Māori nei. Ka nui te tautoko e pā ana ki tēnei kaupapa, Kia Kaha Te Reo Māori.
Kia ora! Welcome to Māori Language Week! This is an important week for us as a school as we work to fully embrace and celebrate the kaupapa (work/topic) of keeping Te Reo alive within Aotearoa New Zealand. It’s incredibly special to be part of a Bi-Cultural Nation, and as a school we are working hard to ensure that we are able to reflect this in all that we do; through celebrating our Turangawaewae (our standing place) within Sumner by bringing our Cultural Narrative to life, the work of our School Vision and Values, the opportunities available for our ākonga (learners) within kapa haka and Whānau Hui and through the daily work our staff do within our teaching Teams to integrate Te Reo Māori and Tikanga Māori (Māori protocols) into our everyday programmes. If you would like to know a little more about what this looks like for us as a school, please have a read of our Cultural Narrative and our School Curriculum.
As part of Te Wiki o te Reo Māori (Maori Language Week) our ākonga have been involved in a variety of activities including Te Wā Tuku Reo Māori, Māori Language Moment, on Monday at midday where over one million people were speaking Te Reo. This moment marked the day and the hour in 1972 when a group of Māori language champions presented a petition on the steps of parliament calling for te reo to be taught in our schools. Earlier today our 100 strong kapa haka group performed outside for the school while they ate their lunch. They were amazing, and while it is hugely disappointing that we have had to cancel the Aupaki Cultural Festival due to Covid-19 Level 2 restrictions, it was great to be able to share in this small performance with them.
Clips from their performance can be found here:
Waiata 1
Waiata 2
Haka
Spotlight on reporting to parents… A reminder that Hero access has now been turned off for parents so that we are able to load report comments. Later next week teachers will be sharing updated progress and achievement information and report comments for reading, writing and maths via Hero. A notification will be sent via our school App when you are able to login to view your child(ren)’s reports. If you still haven't logged into Hero, please let the Office know and they will be happy to help.
Spotlight on Teacher Professional Development… A reminder that School will be closed to students tomorrow (Friday 18 September) for a Teacher Only Day. Tomorrow we will be working together as a staff alongside the University of Canterbury to begin a programme of Professional Development for staff in Maths that will run into 2021.
As I mentioned in my last newsletter, the additional Teacher Only Days that have occurred this year are part of 8 Teacher Only Days that were gifted to schools by the Ministry of Education (MOE) as part of the Union negotiations with MOE last year. These were given to teachers in acknowledgement of teacher workload and are to be used over the course of 3 years, and, unlike other Teacher Only Days we can take, do not affect the length of the school year. As a school we will have used 3 of these days this year.
A reminder that Mash will be operating tomorrow for any families that need them. Please contact Mash directly to organise this.
Spotlight on looking ahead to 2021… As a school we are beginning our planning for the 2021 school year. As part of this I am working with the Board and Leadership Team to gain an accurate picture of what class compositions look like for 2021 so that we are able to staff our school appropriately. If you have children turning 5 next year who you would like to join our school but who you have not yet officially enrolled, we would appreciate you popping into the School Office and grabbing an Enrolment Form. Equally, we appreciate that from time to time families move away or parents make different choices about their child’s education, so if you know that your child(ren) will not be returning to us in 2021, we would really appreciate the advanced notice via email to the School Office: admin@sumner.school.nz. I know it seems early, but this information significantly impacts our staffing, class compositions and the wider school organisation. If you have any questions about this, please contact your child’s teacher or the School Office.
And finally… As this is the last newsletter for Term 3, I think it is timely for a bit of gratitude and some thank you’s! Term 3 has been another tricky one as we have worked to navigate our Level 2 restrictions. This has meant a lot of re-organised and cancelled events that have been beyond our control. Thank you all for your ongoing support of the school and our staff as we have worked through these. It’s never easy or a nice feeling to be letting our children down by cancelling events that they have worked hard towards and are looking forward to, but it is made all the easier knowing we have a school whānau who are supporting us.
Another BIG THANK YOU goes to our amazing PTA who are doing their very best to support the school through a tricky year. The raffle last week was incredibly successful and raised a whopping $5854, so thank you all for supporting this. All the money raised from PTA events goes straight back into our children and the support and opportunities we are able to offer them. Keep your eyes peeled in Term 4 for the rescheduled PTA Quiz on 20 November and the opportunity to purchase Cards and Calendars, including a very special Sumner School Christmas Card.
Finally a huge thank you to the staff and students at our school for the flexibility, resilience, hard work and determination that they are throwing at 2020! It’s certainly a ‘character building’ year to date, but hopefully the planned return to Level One next week will give us a little return to normality over the holidays when they arrive next Friday.
Have a wonderful longer weekend away from school,
Ngā mihi nui
Anna Granger
Principal
Spotlight on Excellence
Calendars and Cards
Order forms for ordering your child's calendars and cards will be sent home early next week with children. The first orders close off on Wednesday 30 September.
That important time of the year is coming up again – BOOK WEEK!
In Week 2 of Term 4, the school will be buzzing with all things books and reading! There will be lots of activities in the library and around the school including Grandparents’ Day as well as a school-wide visit from a New Zealand author. The week culminates in our annual Book Parade on Friday October 23rd from 9:15am in the School Hall.
This year’s theme is ‘ONE WORLD MANY STORIES: CELEBRATING GREAT STORIES FROM AROUND THE WORLD’. Students come dressed as a character from their favourite book set in Aotearoa or anywhere around the globe. This can be a picture book, novel, fairytale, traditional story, myth or legend. Please do not think that a lot of money needs to be spent on the costume – it is about having fun and sharing great stories. It’s a chance to get creative with your kids; re-purpose your dress-ups or make use of the $2 Warehouse in Ferrymead.
Monday 2 November in the Well Being Centre, 7-8pm.
All parents are welcome. A great way to meet new parents and be actively involved in your children’s school. Like and join our Facebook page - Sumner School PTA OR email pta@sumner.school.nz with any questions. |
Raffle Draw Results
Congratulations to the following raffle prize winners who have all been contacted:
Room 1 basket - Jenny #4024
Room 2&3 basket - Tim #1782
Room 4 basket - Charlotte #0206
Room 5 basket - Rachel #2741
Room 6 basket - Lesley #0145
Room 9 basket - Anna #1453
Room 10 basket - Kaitlyn #4031
Room 11 basket - June #2226
Room 12 basket - Gill #0009
Room 13 basket - Faye #1965
Room 14 basket - Rachel #3964
Room 15 basket - Kate #2943
Room 16 basket - Nita #3952
Room 17 basket - Tamas #1694
Room 18 basket - Rice #0421
Room 19 basket - Anna #1455
Room 20 basket - Olivia #1923
A huge thank you goes to the PTA for organising this great fundraiser and to all the families that donated so generously to the gift baskets and ticket purchases. The raffle raised $5854 for our students.

Mana Ake will be visiting on Wednesdays of odd weeks again in Term 4, 8.30-9.30am in the Waiora - Wellbeing Centre. Please drop by if you have any concerns for your child's wellbeing or speak to your child's teacher about getting a referral.
Situations Vacant
Jobs are available at the upcoming election. Please go to elections.nz/jobs for more information.
Sumner Tennis Club
Spring is fast approaching and bringing with it the new tennis season. The first week of Junior Interclub coaching and competition commences on the week of 12 October 2020 (the first week of Term 4) and registration is now open for those wanting to play Inter-club tennis for Sumner. Beginners can also register for Hotshots (group coaching for players aged 6 (as at 31 December 2020) and older on Saturday mornings from 9am or Thursdays from 4.30pm).
If your child would like to play this year, go to Junior Tennis on https://clubspark.kiwi/SumnerTennisSquashClub and register for Interclub or Hotshots. On registration, you will be asked to pay the fees online. If you need any further information or you would like to discuss the options available for your child, please contact our Junior Administrator for Interclub, Carla Kearney, 021 567558 or our Hotshots Administrator, Annie Tainui 021 02331650. All registrations must be complete by 7 September 2020.
Sunday 1 November 2020 Heathcote Community Centre
Term 4 After School Surfing and Skating Lessons
If you're interested in getting your child or friend into Surfing/Skating we have some awesome opportunities for them in Term 4 at the local Sumner beach.
Here is a google form with all the information. Times, prices and more.
Any questions email hello@stokedsurfschool.co.nz
Thank you to our newsletter sponsors