Sumner School Board Talk - Term 1, 2019
2019 winning Quiz Team
Tēnā koutou e te Whānau
Curriculum: Learn-Create-Share
The Curriculum kicked off in 2019 with a focus for Term 1 on ‘Identity’. All of our learning teams Awaroa (Year 7&8), Te Onepoto (Year 5&6), Tuawera (Year 3&4) and Rapanui (Year 0-2) took the opportunity to focus on Social Sciences and the new identities of the people within their teams, the identity and culture of Sumner School and then the cultural identity of New Zealand. Last week all the students got the opportunity to share with their parents, whanau and the rest of the school the awesome work they had created. When you arrived at Awaroa you were greeted by students offering ‘free compliments’ and a detailed explanation of each of the different areas of work they had all been involved in during the term. The wall was adorned with a huge ‘freestyle’ painting of Sumner and Taylors Mistake showing where we all live. Video presentations created by the students about their identities were playing and every student was eager to show you what they had built and its significance. The other year groups also had their work on display and were equally keen to show all their hard work.
Share is an important part of the learning model for our kids. If you can spare the time it’s a great opportunity to touch base with your child’s learning, see teachers and enjoy sharing in the excitement with your whanau. If you would like to find out more information about our Learn Create Share curriculum please click here.
Staffing
A big thank you to all staff for the amazing way in which they all dealt with the lockdown last month. We are extremely grateful to the team for their leadership during this time. A number of reviews of the process are underway including our own. The situation was very fluid, however, from our own review we see there are improvements we can make around communication with parents and whanau. We are looking to trial some new communication options during term 2.
Election Year - Board of Trustees
On 7 June the triannual Board of Trustees elections will take place. Every three years there is an election for both parent and staff representatives. Everyone with children at the school will get the opportunity to vote on which parent representatives you would like on the Board for the coming three-year term. The election will take place for most schools across the Country.
The Board had two members resign last year, Yvonne and Fleur. We are also aware that one or two other current members will not be standing for re-election. Therefore we need you!! Being on the Board is a great way to learn about governance, learn more about how the education system and our school operates and most importantly for you to give something back. The best qualifications to bring are enthusiasm, passion and some of your time.
The next three years are going to be an extremely interesting period for Sumner School and education across New Zealand. For our School we will be;
This re-visioning process will include looking at the roles of Positive Education, Cultural Responsiveness, Sustainability and Digital learning within Sumner School alongside input on all aspects of school life from our staff, students and whanau.
We are also aiming to develop and grow our International Student Programme. This is a great opportunity to enrich our cultural diversity at Sumner School and also brings in new revenue to fund extra learning opportunities for our children. On top of all of this it is supporting all the other great stuff already happening every day at Sumner!
At a wider educational level, New Zealand has just embarked on the biggest review of education within New Zealand since the Tomorrow’s School’s report was released in 1989. The review will potentially result in major changes to the education system in New Zealand and being on the Board will be a great opportunity to be more involved.
It is easy to stand for election and not as scary as it seems! A great place to start is to come to a Board Meeting (the next one is on Tuesday, 14 May at 7pm in the School Hall Foyer). Or, contact myself (Tim Lawrey), or any of the other Board Members or Anna Granger.
Potential Strike Action during Term 2
You may have read in the media that there is a chance of further Strike Action from primary schools across the country next term. Early next term the teachers will attend Paid Union Meetings (PUMs) to discuss next steps around the negotiation process including the potential for further strike action. These meetings will take place during school time, however, the school will remain open during these meetings to reduce disruption to our students and families. Once a decision is made on whether or not there will be further strike action during term 2 we will communicate with parents.
Property on Track
The new flexible learning spaces are really taking shape now. The project remains on track, which could mean moving into the spaces at the end of term 2! This will complete phase 2 of our re-build under the Christchurch Schools Renewal Plan, seeing Awaroa (Years 7 and 8) move to the top storey of the new build, Te Onepoto (Year 5 and 6) into the bottom floor and Rapanui (Years 0-2) into the area of the school currently inhabited by our senior students. After this has happened, Phase 3 will begin which will see Tuawera (Years 3 and 4) temporarily re-located to enable works to start on this block.
We will keep you updated on the progress of the build via the school newsletters and our dedicated Building Page on our school webpage. As I am sure you will have seen in the newsletters, Anna and her team have extended an open opportunity for you to arrange a time to visit the current Senior Hub where Rapanui will be moving at the end of Term 2. We urge you to do this if you have any questions or would just like to be nosey - Anna and Rebecca will happily make a time with you.
20/20 Vision
During Term 2 we will be launching the start of our 20/20 Vision. Our current vision is now ten years old and we want to revisit this vision and think about what we want it to be for the next five to ten years.
We plan to kick this off in Term 2 with an ‘Energiser’ - so watch this space and get ready to have some fun, get involved, do some learning (it's not just for the kids) and make plenty of input.
PTA Events
Thanks to the PTA for organising the Quiz Night during term 1. Thanks also to Anna Granger who took the microphone for her first time as ‘Quiz Mistress’. Congrats to the ‘Always the Bridesmaid’ team that this year did finally get to the alta in first place.
Hot dogs - after a term without hot dogs we are expecting a massive run on hotdogs in Term 2 when they go on sale. Thanks to Trudi and the team!
Have a great break over the School Holidays.
Tim Lawrey
Chairperson
Board Of Trustees - Sumner School
Curriculum: Learn-Create-Share
The Curriculum kicked off in 2019 with a focus for Term 1 on ‘Identity’. All of our learning teams Awaroa (Year 7&8), Te Onepoto (Year 5&6), Tuawera (Year 3&4) and Rapanui (Year 0-2) took the opportunity to focus on Social Sciences and the new identities of the people within their teams, the identity and culture of Sumner School and then the cultural identity of New Zealand. Last week all the students got the opportunity to share with their parents, whanau and the rest of the school the awesome work they had created. When you arrived at Awaroa you were greeted by students offering ‘free compliments’ and a detailed explanation of each of the different areas of work they had all been involved in during the term. The wall was adorned with a huge ‘freestyle’ painting of Sumner and Taylors Mistake showing where we all live. Video presentations created by the students about their identities were playing and every student was eager to show you what they had built and its significance. The other year groups also had their work on display and were equally keen to show all their hard work.
Share is an important part of the learning model for our kids. If you can spare the time it’s a great opportunity to touch base with your child’s learning, see teachers and enjoy sharing in the excitement with your whanau. If you would like to find out more information about our Learn Create Share curriculum please click here.
Staffing
A big thank you to all staff for the amazing way in which they all dealt with the lockdown last month. We are extremely grateful to the team for their leadership during this time. A number of reviews of the process are underway including our own. The situation was very fluid, however, from our own review we see there are improvements we can make around communication with parents and whanau. We are looking to trial some new communication options during term 2.
Election Year - Board of Trustees
On 7 June the triannual Board of Trustees elections will take place. Every three years there is an election for both parent and staff representatives. Everyone with children at the school will get the opportunity to vote on which parent representatives you would like on the Board for the coming three-year term. The election will take place for most schools across the Country.
The Board had two members resign last year, Yvonne and Fleur. We are also aware that one or two other current members will not be standing for re-election. Therefore we need you!! Being on the Board is a great way to learn about governance, learn more about how the education system and our school operates and most importantly for you to give something back. The best qualifications to bring are enthusiasm, passion and some of your time.
The next three years are going to be an extremely interesting period for Sumner School and education across New Zealand. For our School we will be;
- Completing a full rebuild of the school and the completion of our move to flexible learning spaces.
- Developing a new ‘playscape’ to complement our vision for teaching and learning.
- And we will be ‘re-visioning’ where we would like Sumner School to head within the next 10 years.
This re-visioning process will include looking at the roles of Positive Education, Cultural Responsiveness, Sustainability and Digital learning within Sumner School alongside input on all aspects of school life from our staff, students and whanau.
We are also aiming to develop and grow our International Student Programme. This is a great opportunity to enrich our cultural diversity at Sumner School and also brings in new revenue to fund extra learning opportunities for our children. On top of all of this it is supporting all the other great stuff already happening every day at Sumner!
At a wider educational level, New Zealand has just embarked on the biggest review of education within New Zealand since the Tomorrow’s School’s report was released in 1989. The review will potentially result in major changes to the education system in New Zealand and being on the Board will be a great opportunity to be more involved.
It is easy to stand for election and not as scary as it seems! A great place to start is to come to a Board Meeting (the next one is on Tuesday, 14 May at 7pm in the School Hall Foyer). Or, contact myself (Tim Lawrey), or any of the other Board Members or Anna Granger.
Potential Strike Action during Term 2
You may have read in the media that there is a chance of further Strike Action from primary schools across the country next term. Early next term the teachers will attend Paid Union Meetings (PUMs) to discuss next steps around the negotiation process including the potential for further strike action. These meetings will take place during school time, however, the school will remain open during these meetings to reduce disruption to our students and families. Once a decision is made on whether or not there will be further strike action during term 2 we will communicate with parents.
Property on Track
The new flexible learning spaces are really taking shape now. The project remains on track, which could mean moving into the spaces at the end of term 2! This will complete phase 2 of our re-build under the Christchurch Schools Renewal Plan, seeing Awaroa (Years 7 and 8) move to the top storey of the new build, Te Onepoto (Year 5 and 6) into the bottom floor and Rapanui (Years 0-2) into the area of the school currently inhabited by our senior students. After this has happened, Phase 3 will begin which will see Tuawera (Years 3 and 4) temporarily re-located to enable works to start on this block.
We will keep you updated on the progress of the build via the school newsletters and our dedicated Building Page on our school webpage. As I am sure you will have seen in the newsletters, Anna and her team have extended an open opportunity for you to arrange a time to visit the current Senior Hub where Rapanui will be moving at the end of Term 2. We urge you to do this if you have any questions or would just like to be nosey - Anna and Rebecca will happily make a time with you.
20/20 Vision
During Term 2 we will be launching the start of our 20/20 Vision. Our current vision is now ten years old and we want to revisit this vision and think about what we want it to be for the next five to ten years.
We plan to kick this off in Term 2 with an ‘Energiser’ - so watch this space and get ready to have some fun, get involved, do some learning (it's not just for the kids) and make plenty of input.
PTA Events
Thanks to the PTA for organising the Quiz Night during term 1. Thanks also to Anna Granger who took the microphone for her first time as ‘Quiz Mistress’. Congrats to the ‘Always the Bridesmaid’ team that this year did finally get to the alta in first place.
Hot dogs - after a term without hot dogs we are expecting a massive run on hotdogs in Term 2 when they go on sale. Thanks to Trudi and the team!
Have a great break over the School Holidays.
Tim Lawrey
Chairperson
Board Of Trustees - Sumner School
