SCHOOL NEWSLETTER: 17th October 2024

 

 

Torbay School Learning Powers – RIC

PRINCIPALS MESSAGE

Tena Koutou e te whānau

Welcome back to term 4. The children have settled well into their programmes this term. Term 4 is a very busy term as we head toward the end of the school year and with the improving weather I look forward to more outdoor activities. Please make sure your children come to school with hats to wear at break times and during any outdoor activities, we are expecting a long hot summer and protection from the sun is essential. It is also good practice to apply sunscreen daily, our classrooms will be supplied with sunscreen as a backup but an initial application just before coming to school is advised.

This term gets very busy, particularly towards the end of the year. Please look at our calendar and the dates listed later in the newsletter.

Our term starts with a bang with a visit, on Friday by Dame Lisa Carrington. This visit comes as a result of our Olympic Variety Show and has been arranged by one of our parents who works with Dame Lisa. We will be having a special assembly on Friday morning to welcome her. I am afraid it will be restricted to children and staff.

Class Placements

We are moving ahead with class placements for 2025. Now is your opportunity to provide us with information around class placements for next year.

These requests should be based around our ability to meet any specific needs your child may have whether they be learning, health or well-being issues. While we are aware of many of our children’s needs there may be something you consider important that we may not be aware of.

I would like to emphasise this is not an opportunity to choose your child’s teacher or classroom, or to ensure children stay with their friends, but to inform us of important issues that we should consider when placing your child. Do not just rely on a discussion with our teachers please put your thoughts in writing so they are not overlooked.

Please send these requests direct to me via my Email address by Wednesday the 1st of November. gobrien@torbay.school.nz

Digital Learning at Torbay School

Our annual BYOC (Bring Your Own Chromebook) meeting is designed for year 3 parents whose children are transitioning into year 4. At this meeting, we will share our usual information to help facilitate that transition. We will also cover the various components of Linewize including the Parent Hub. And this could be of interest to parents at other levels, please feel free to attend. We look forward to seeing you at that meeting on Thursday 7th of November.

PTA

Fundraising for funds to heat our school pool is going very well with the success of our recent events including the Quiz Night our fundraising is progressing well towards our goal.

Congratulations to our PTA on this wonderful achievement. We are hoping to have the pool heating system completed by the end of the year.  Our next PTA meeting takes place next Tuesday evening the 22nd of November in the staffroom at school all are welcome. Our next major event is the Colour Run that will be held on Saturday 23rd of November. Information and entry forms will come home to you over the next two weeks.

Our PTA will be organizing working bees to erect a greenhouse and a garden shed in our garden area, if you have any skills in this area and are able to help please let the office know or send an email direct to me.

Thank you once again to our fabulous PTA who just keep turning up for the school.

Drop off and Pick up Protocols

I thank you for acknowledging and sticking to our drop off and pick up protocols, while they may seem pedantic, they are important to us and the smooth running of the school.

Reminders:

• Please make sure you do not enter the school until 2.55pm in the afternoon
• “See you later Alligator” When you hear our little snippet of this song at 8.50am it is your signal to leave the school premises, please do! It is surprisingly disruptive to have parents standing outside classes and delays the smooth start to the day that we as teachers like
• And if you arrive after 8.50am please allow your children to walk into school alone.

By adhering to these rules you will help us maximise your children’s learning time!

Donations

Our school relies heavily on caregiver donations to fund our activities. Our new classrooms have been funded in part from school funds and without a high level of donations and our International fee payers income we would not have been able to deliver this project. Our high level of staffing including extra teachers and learning assistants is also funded to some extent by these income streams. Thank you to all those who have been able to contribute this year and we urge you to contribute prior to the end of the year if you are in a position to do so!

We have had a busy holiday period at Torbay School 

New Toilets

I am very pleased with the arrival of our new toilet block which has been designed to fit in between room 8 and 9 in our newest block of classrooms. The toilets will be operational next week and make a big difference to whānau Kawau.

Field

Before the holidays we had our top field aerated, fertilized and under sewn. The grass on the field has been growing rapidly and the work we did on it appears to have paid off. The field will remain out of bounds until next week just to give the new grass time to establish itself.

Lighting

You will notice that the school is a lot “brighter” this term. We have had in excess of 150 light fittings replaced with LED lighting. The school is now completely fitted out with LED lights bringing about cost savings through less electricity consumption and less bulb outages. 

Bag Hooks

You will also notice that the Mansion has been fitted out with Bag Hooks in the same way the Kawau block is. There are enough hooks for all children in the Mansion and we will get rid of all the Bins. Children will keep their lunches and drink bottles in their bags and will return them to their bags after lunch eating. This we hope will keep our rooms and outdoor areas tidier and more manageable.

Planting

We have also planted 15 new Pittosporum Trees along the boundary of Alexander Ave to give the playground and our Skids room some privacy from the Road.

Gardens

The development of our gardens continues with the arrival of our greenhouse. The new garden shed arrives next week and the PTA will be looking for a skilled hard-working group of volunteers to erect the buildings. If you have any skills and wish to help, please contact the school office or send an email direct to me.

Thank you for your continued support of everything we do here at Torbay School. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you wish to talk about any issue.

Nga mihi nui

Gary O’Brien Principal

gobrien@torbay.school.nz