Week 3 Term 2, 2025

It is always nice to hear from your children, and Mother's Day provided my own children with a great opportunity to connect. I heard from my family on Sunday and caught up on what they are doing in their lives. Reconnecting is the key. I moved past the cold coffee and toast in the morning quite quickly as a young mum.

Staffing

I am very fortunate to announce five appointments for the school starting Term 3:

• Hannah Simpson and Tracey Venter will be joining the leadership team as Deputy Principals. Hannah will be acting principal when I am away from the school.

• Rachael Barr is coming as a team leader. For the rest of 2025, she will be in charge of the Year 0-1 team working alongside the current teachers.

• Karen Stockwell is joining us to take on the full-time Special Needs and Structured Literacy teacher role.

• Amy McLaughlin joins us permanently as a full-time teacher.

We are also saying farewell to Penny Fischbach on May 23, 2025, and to Fiona Griffin at the end of Term 2. Penny has been working at the school for many years—twenty-three, I believe. She has worn many hats and worked alongside multiple students in her role as teacher aide. Many of you will have seen her at the book fairs held in the school hall.

I am sure we will still see Penny around the school with her family as the next generation has started. We have a celebration of Penny's time here at Wairakei Primary planned for Friday, May 23, 2025, at the full school assembly at 9.15a.m. You are all invited to attend and celebrate Penny's time at school with us.

Fiona has been at the school for seven years. Those years did go quickly. A fantastic teacher with a passion for teaching and learning, Fiona has plans she wishes to achieve, and we wish her all the best.

Ministry Of Education Parent Portal

There is a new parent portal for you to explore: MoE Parent Portal

I have also attached the guidelines released from the Ministry of Education. Staff are still working our way through the portal and what it means, as it was a release we were unaware of. It would be interesting to hear what you think about it at the crossing over the next few weeks.

I have had a few questions from whānau about why we implemented 'Play First, Eat Later' for our students. It was started as a trial a few years ago for the following reasons:

• Enhanced classroom focus - After playing and then eating, students return to class in a more settled state with renewed energy, potentially improving afternoon learning outcomes.

• Better nutritional intake - When students eat after play without rushing, they typically consume more of their nutritious food, which supports cognitive function and learning.

• Reduced post-lunch energy crashes - This schedule helps prevent the energy spikes and drops that can occur when students eat first then immediately engage in vigorous activity.

• Decreased food waste - We see a significant reduction in food waste when students aren't rushing through meals to get to playtime.

• More efficient supervision - Staff can focus first on playground supervision, then on morning tea or lunch duty.

• Cleaner facilities - With less rushing, there's typically less spillage and better waste disposal, reducing cleaning demands.

• Fewer behaviour incidents - Students release their energy through play first, resulting in fewer disruptive behaviours during meal times.

• Smoother transitions - The natural progression from high-energy play to seated eating provides a built-in cooldown period before returning to academic work.

• Improved social dynamics - When not rushing, students have more opportunity for social interaction during meals, supporting social development in a calmer environment.

The teachers trialled it for a term and then met to discuss the intervention. We have recently reviewed this again with the new staff, and the vote was unanimous to keep the strategy going. We are aware that some students need to eat more often, and individual teachers are catering for this. I do have to say it would help if some students talked less and ate more during the eating time. It could be said that they are socialising––it can mean their lunch boxes come home looking like they have not been touched.

Sports and Cultural

Swimming Sports YearS 4 - 6

The school swimming competition for Years 4 to 6 is coming up quickly. We need parent volunteers to help at this event.

Contact Paul Morehu if you can help with recording race times at the AC Baths on Tuesday, May 27, from 9.30a.m. - 2.30p.m. We need one parent recorder per lane at the pool.

DANCENZ MADE YEARS 3 - 6

Wairakei Primary School will be entering one Year 3/4 team and one Year 5/6 team. To join, complete the Registration Form by Friday, May 16, 2025.

Upcoming Negotiations for Teachers and Principals

Teachers and principals have started to negotiate for their collective agreements. The change of policy stopping pay equity for women that was announced has been a major setback for teachers and how they may feel about their work. I am disappointed in the policy change as this affects the teaching shortage crisis in a significant way.

How many women do you see in schools versus how many men?
How many relievers do we currently have to cover classes when our teachers are unwell? Where are all the additional teachers coming from to work in schools just to keep them operating?

The teachers and I are going to need your support to ensure the messages are getting to the right people. Ensuring that teachers feel valued and supported is going to be needed.

Board Elections

It is time to start thinking about joining the Board of Wairakei Primary School. Elections for the board are happening in September. Every parent is able to be nominated and to vote. Come to a board meeting. Listen to what is being talked about and how you can contribute.

Ngā mihi nui

Paula