LBP Newsletter – Term 1, Week 8

Term 1, Week 8 – Friday 24 March 2023

Principal’s Chat

Kia ora Parents/Caregivers

One of my son’s most loved TV shows is called Community. I say TV show loosely, I have no idea the last time he actually watched TV in the ‘normal’ sense of the word, however that is how we roll these days. Community is set in a Community College in the USA, is not suitable for a pre teen audience (please do not flick it on for family viewing because I have mentioned it here) but does have some great messages. Friendship is one, no matter what happens real friends will stick together. The value of education is another one, even if something gets in your way, and no matter your age, getting the best education you can will set you up for the future.

When I think about community I think about events like the one this afternoon. The Family Friday Picnic is designed to promote the idea of community. After years of COVID-19 disruption one of the big things that was lost in this time was the ability for our community to be on the school grounds. Friendship between our students is one of the key things they talk about when asked what they enjoy about school. Just like the Community TV show, schools provide opportunities for friendships to develop, not just for our students, but families as well. When starting at school the opportunity to make new friends also exists for our adult community members just as much as our students. 

If you are coming along tonight please make sure you catch up with people you already know and connect with them. I challenge you to take a risk (just like we often ask your children to do) and strike up a conversation with someone new. You never know, you might both be Warriors or Black Caps fans, or failing that at least you will have someone else to talk to the next time you come to school. You might even make a new friend – time will tell.

Rob Hutton
Tumuaki/Principal

2023 Term Dates and What’s On

Welcome New Students

A warm welcome to our new students who have started at Long Bay Primary since our last Newsletter:

Greyson, Kayla and Layla

Important School Reminders – Please Read

Absences

We are seeing an increasing amount of unexplained absences lately. If your child/children are going to be absent from school, then you must let the Office and class teacher know. This is to avoid your child/children being marked as truant.

Absences can be reported by calling the school on 09 473 6077, select option 1. Emailing the class teacher or admin@longbayprimary.ac.nz or through the school website ‘Report an Absence’.

All absences from school must have a reason so your child/children can be coded accordingly on their student record. Thank you for your co-operation.

Late Passes

We give out late passes at the school date each day to students who arrive at school after the bell has rung. This is because by the time these students get to class it is likely the teacher will have already marked the roll for the day. The late pass indicates to the teacher that we know your child is at school and it means we do not call you because they have been marked as absent on the roll.

Permission Slips

We are making a move towards asking your permission for events and activities online rather than on a piece of paper. This means no more looking in the bottom of school bags for permission slips. You will receive an email with a link to click and follow to give us the information we are after. 

Arrival at School

Our doors at school open at 8:30am. The time until then is invaluable for our staff to prepare for the day. While we appreciate the closure of Glenvar Road has increased travel times and traffic in general at the moment is rather appalling, the closer to 8:30 that students can arrive at school makes it easier for us to deliver the best we can for your children. Any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated.  

Kindness

Following on from the last newsletter we have placed a strong emphasis on being kind to others. This means do not say unkind things to others, do not hurt other people and do not take anything that does not belong to you. Along with the ‘do not’ list we have a group of Year 5 and 6 students who are patrolling the playground during breaks looking for people being kind. They get a ticket with their name on to enter into a prize draw each Friday. We would much rather be promoting the positive, however at times the ‘do not’ message can be effective as well.

Hats

There is an expectation that everyone at Long Bay Primary will wear a hat when outside during Term 1 and 4.

Trading Cards

All trading cards are banned at school, as they have been for a number of years. Please do not bring them to school.

Contact Details

If your personal contact or emergency contact details need updating, please email admin@longbayprimary.ac.nz It is very important that we have correct details on our student records.

Access Via Ashley Reserve Walkway

For any students who would like easy access to the Ashley Reserve carpark please meet the duty teacher at the playground sandpit when the 2.55pm bell goes and be escorted through our new track. We hope this will assist to alleviate the traffic issues in Ralph Eagles Place. The gate is also open in the morning for students to arrive to school this way. The route is currently not pram friendly however, we hope to develop this further as part of the Masterplan process with the Ministry of Education over the next few months.

Māori and Pasifika Whānau Hui

Māori and Pasifika Whānau Hui Tuesday 28 March 6.30pm in Room 23. All welcome! Please register by clicking on this link

Rooms 2 and 3

Kōwhai has been learning how to be scientists by making observations with their senses. We visited Long Bay Regional Park where we went on a scavenger hunt for items that felt slimy, spikey, smooth and hard. We used our eyes to notice different colours in our environment and observed different things we found in nature. In the classroom, we have continued to investigate using our senses. We have made potions using different smells and we used our sense of smell to make predictions of what we thought were in the bottles.

Born To Move 2023

Our Born to Move crew for 2023 are ready to go! A massive thank you to Cam, Grace and Peg for their support in training up our awesome leaders. We will be holding our launch on Friday 31 March at lunch time outside the hall starting at 1:25pm. Come along and support our awesome crew.

Matariki Art Competition

Mathletics

We are still accepting registrations for Mathletics and will continue to do so throughout the year. So far we have had 56 students pay the $40 for a year of Mathletics registration. We really need at least 60 to make this financially viable for our school.

Sports Buzz – Term 1, Week 8

PTA News

Order via LBP Shop/Kindo – one hot cross bun per student

Kelly Club

Community Notices and Events