Growing Excellence Together Piki ake te tihi ngātahi Newsletter 19 February 2015 Important Notes Nau mai haere mai, Talofa lava, Malo e lelei, Bula Vinaka! Kia ora, Kia orana, Talofa lava, Malo e lelei, Ni sa bula vanaka, Kam na mauri Happy Chinese New Year! The year of the sheep! Things to note… ► Feb 25— Yr 5-8 Swimming Sports, Cant Swim School. 9.30-11.30 & 12.30-2.30pm. ►Feb 26 Maths Symposium Russley School. ►March 10 Zones swimming. ►March 27 Jnr Cross Country, PP Day 1 April. ►March 30 Centrals swimming. ►April 2, Thurs, last Day of term 1. Please remember to 笑口常開 (xiào kǒu cháng kāi): “Be happy and carry laughter all the time” (Chinese) “Sae hae bok mani baduseyo” (새해 복 많이 받으세요) “Good fortune to you” (Korean) We have started school this year with great excitement. Our new Y7/8 classroom block was blessed by our very own Maaka Tau and the seniors moved in on Wednesday, 11th February. It is a great building and although we have taken over our existing furniture, we have a budget for some brand new furniture which is going to offer a choice to our learners as to how they might learn in the classroom. If you haven’t already had a look through the classrooms and you are interested, please feel free to pop in. Swimming is a big part of the PE programme at the moment. As a school and looking at the number of drownings through the holidays, we are more resolved to ensure all of our children can swim confidently and competently. We are one of the few schools who are still maintaining a swimming pool, so we are lucky to have it and the specialised tuition that children get from the swim schools is very important to building the confidence of our swimmers. We had a great ‘meet the teacher’ evening on Thursday 12th. Sorry that it clashed with the opening of the Cricket World Cup but fortunately everyone got home in plenty of time to see the opening ceremony. We talked about ‘navigating our NEW LOOK’ Ultranet website. Mandy Dempsey has put together a small video, explaining how to use the updated version. The link for this video is: give your child a spoon 896+ http://www.avonhead.school.nz/WebSpace/270/ if they have something Remember...on the very day that the newsletter is emailed to parents, we place a copy on our website. Do have a look at our site’s front page as it has a comprehensive calendar of all the events going on at the school. If there are any urgent or important messages, we will place information on the front page. spoonable in their lunchbox. The office gets cutlery requests daily and while we are happy to pass out spoons for one-offs we do see a lot of repeat customers! Contact Us With our new student management system in place more staff will be able to email parents with important notices so we hope you are checking your emails on a reasonably regular basis for any notes we may need to send. Please make sure that you remember that the 3 minute drop-off car park outside the school is a 3 minute time zone. Sue Rose used to call it ‘Kiss and drop’. Thank you for your support of our ‘protected’ or uninterrupted time at the school from 8.55am-10.55 am. Teachers are already reporting that it is working well….not without its hitches but thank you for your support on this. We know it is going to make a difference to children’s learning. We are a great school, we have great ‘kids’, great teachers, great parents and a great community. What a lucky school we are! Now we are getting a lot of great working environments to work in! I can’t ask for more than that! Address:Charles 55 Avonhead Road, Christchurch 8042 Phone: 03 348-7361 E-Mail: admin@avonhead.school.nz Website: http://avonhead.school.nz Awards Students These are our awesome students who were awarded 'Excellence' awards for having the Avonhead Attitude. A photo of the blessing for the new hub. Maaka Tau blessed the new hub before the students had their first look around their new learning environment. They officially moved in on Wednesday 11th February and are thoroughly enjoying their new environment. We look forward to see the developments as the new furniture arrives. Celebrations! ▼ ▲Raghav (top dais, on the right in blue) participated in South Island Colgate games for athletics that were held in Dunedin, held from 16 - 18 Jan, 2015. Raghav represented his club, Christchurch Avon. He has won 2 golds at that event, for discus & relay after participating in 5 events. Congratulations Raghav! COME AND HEAR AN INSPIRING SPEAKER WHO IS A WORLD RENOWNED EXPERT ON SUPPORTING CHILDREN WITH LEARNING DIFFICULTIES;Parent Evening being held in Christchurch on the 12th May at 7pm - Commodore Hotel. This is designed for parents and children, to give parents and children the tools to help children cope with learning difficulties. Cost: $30 per head or $50 per couple children free.Bookings Essential as there are limited spaces - if you are interested please contact:peter@aquillabooks.co.nz or Ph: 07 8821447▼ SPORT HELP NEEDED So we can give the children @ Avonhead School the very best sporting opportunities possible could you please contact Shirley-Anne Collins -sa.collins@avonhead.school.nz I would like to be involved in the followingFRIDAY WINTER SPORT ( tick) SPORT Rugby Netball Football Hockey Basketball YEAR5/6 YEAR 7/8 COACHING MANAGER OTHER SPORTS FRIDAY WINTER SPORT ( tick) SPORT Basketball Volleyball –summer sport/tournament T Ball-summer sport Rippa rugby-summer sport Rugby fun day-24 April Aerobics Hip hop Cricket -boys Cricket-girls other YEAR5/6 YEAR 7/8 COACHING Our Road Patrol Team does an amazing job to ensure our children are safe crossing the road. We just want to remind you of the calls you will hear , so you know when it is safe to cross. "Signs out" - means the road patrol team are ensuring cars stop"Check" - means each road patroller is checking to ensure cars have stopped"Clear" - means each road patroller has checked and the road is safe"CROSS NOW" - this is when you are able to cross the road after the Lead Patroller says 'Cross Now'. Thank you for supporting our amazing team of road patrollers and being safe on our crossings. MANAGER Community Notices Act2 Drama Stars Course It’s that time of the year to register your child aged 6-13, or yourself aged 13 and over for our 2015 Drama Stars Program. This course (formally known as Junior Drama run by Harlequin Players) commences Tuesday 10th February. To enrol, or for more information on any of our programs, please email us at act2dramagroup@gmail.com, or phone/text Fay on 021 043 1108. Find us on facebook : https://www.facebook.com/groups/1544567815827308/ Girl’s Cricket Please call Barry on 021 336 837 or email barry@denver.co.nz if your daughter (year 4-8) is interested in playing girls cricket this year in a girls only competition. St Albans Cricket Club has a large number of girls playing cricket in an all girls’ grade on Saturday morning (9-12). The season (re) starts in Feb but we accept new players at any time. More information available on http://www.sportsground.co.nz/girlscricket Art classes 5 - 8 year olds. Mondays 4 -5:30 please contact tutor Kate Morrison.3517049 / 00221007644. Classes begin 23 Feb. CHILDREN'S DAY Sunday 1st March 2015 -10am - 3pm Come along and celebrate Children's Day a FREE community event at Air Force Museum at Wigram. Entry to the park is FREE and all 50 fun filled activities are FREE. Please bring your own drinking water. For more information contact 941 8999 or check the Be There website 'Culture Galore', held on Saturday 7th March at Ray Blank Park on Maidstone Road, running from 12-4pm . This event allows you to experience the world and celebrate cultural diversity. Be entertained by over 50 cultural performance and demonstrations, sample some of the appetising ethnic cuisines or get involved in some arts and crafts. There are also plenty of activities for all ages to enjoy. Community Notices Burnside Rugby Football Club Junior Registration for the 2015 season will be held at the BRFC Clubrooms on Sundays Tuesday 15th February 22nd February 24th February 10am to 2pm 10am to 2pm 4pm to 6.30pm NEW PLAYERS PLEASE BRING PROOF OF AGE The Burnside Club Junior Section caters for all school age children and we welcome new and returning players for the 2015 season. Details on our website at www.burnsiderugby.co.nz Enquiries to: Secretary: Jo Glynn Ph 027 2008569 Junior Chairman: Darron Stackhouse Ph 021 713551 Do you enjoy Gymnastics, Dance and Ballet? Are you a girl aged 5 - 10 years?? RHYTHMIC GYMNASTICS COULD BE FOR YOU! Rhythmic Gymnastics is a sport that combines elements of dance, gymnastics and co-ordination. It also builds confidence and body awareness. You are invited to come along and observe or ‘have a go’ in our warm and friendly environment. We are situated at Middleton Grange Primary school Hall, 50 Acacia Ave, Upper Riccarton. Ring now to book your place! Call Sarah on 354-5552 Diva Rhythmic Gymnastics Rhythmic Gymnastics is a combination of ballet, dance and gymnastics that uses handheld apparatus like the ribbon and ball. It is great for confidence, strength and flexibility. We emphasise fun and fitness and it is fantastic for developing co-ordination. Classes are for girls aged 4 and above for recreational and competitive classes. We are based at The NZ Institute of Sport, 66b Wharenui Road, Riccarton in the main gymnasium. Please contact Bianca for more information at divargc@gmail.com or call 027 521 7220. Spaces are limited to ensure a good ratio of teachers and children.