NEWSLETTER No. 4 – 17th March 2022

by Barbara Ferregel | Mar 16, 2022

PAPATOETOE INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL NEWSLETTER
No. 4 – 17th March 2022

Our main focus is to keep all children safe and happy at school. Please contact us immediately if you have any concerns.

THANK YOU to Donna Young who has been Acting [very effectively] as Principal since the start of the 2022 school year. Her care and leadership has ensured all possible steps to ensure the safety of students and staff has remained at the forefront of decision making. Our Board is grateful to her and the supporting leadership team for the excellent start we have made in 2022.

Term One – important dates

Monday 28th March
6.00 p.m BoT Meeting in the Principal’s Office.

Wednesday 6th April
School Leaders out today – in the City

Thursday 14th April
Final day of Term 1 – school closes at 3.00 p.m.

School Holidays
Friday 15th April to Friday 29th April

Monday 2nd May
Term 2

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE – from Pauline Cornwell

Over the past two years the current pandemic has made us re-evaluate what is important and how we can support one another to maintain priorities. We know that the most important thing is to keep our students and staff and wider community safe – so we learn what we can do and follow the recommendations. We know it’s best to maintain routines and so we strive to keep schools open and classes continuing. We also know it’s important to look out for one another so we ‘keep in touch’ and check that our friends, family and neighbours are OK, and if they need help – we help them.

At Papatoetoe Intermediate we are trying to maintain ‘normalcy’ despite the pandemic. This week a group of students and staff went on the Blake’s Trust Leadership Camp. Although many staff and students have tested positive we have managed to keep the school safely open and classes running. We have provided learning both in hard copy packs and online…we continue to do what we know is important. If you need support please let us know and we will find a way to support you.

We want to thank you all for the support you have given to our staff to help them do what they need to do. We also thank each of you (students and whanau) for the support you have given one another… because every kind act, every time we reach out we make life easier for those around us.

The pandemic will soon be ‘over’ and our lives will return to ‘normal’. The needs will continue and we will all still need to both give and receive support for a while yet. Let us all agree to make that our priority too.

BLAKE EXPLORERS CAMP 9th – 11th March

Last week 12 students went on a Blake Explorer Camp.

These students travelled to the Warkworth/Leigh area and participated in a range of environmental activities with a focus on conservation and protection of our natural resources and coastal marine environment.

They went snorkeling at Mathesons Bay and Goat Island where they saw the huge difference between an unprotected marine environment and a Marine Reserve.

They explored concepts around how humans impact our environment, both the positive and the negative, by investigating an estuary, walking through a predator free forest and learnt about how we can make a difference to ensure the future of our planet can be cared for by making small changes to what we do everyday. We explored the concepts of Kaitiakitanga / Guardianship and Protection for managing our environment, our role in this and how we can have a positive impact now for the future.

The students also went on an Ecology walk where they saw lots of native birds, insects and tree life, they also did a night walk and some of them spotted a Kiwi!

We finished the week with a yum lunch at a local cafe before heading home to sleep!

We want to thank the Blake Trust for choosing our school to participate in this awesome camp and look forward to a continued relationship moving forward.

We have another group of students going to this camp in April, and there are some very excited students looking forward to it!

Thank you to Gareth Fletcher and Tracy Prout for organising this with Blake Trust and for accompanying the students on this wonderful 3 days away.

THANK YOU TO FO GUANG SHAN TEMPLE

Our special thanks go to the staff at Fo Guang Shan Temple in Manukau for their extremely generous donation of Rapid Antigen Tests. These will be gratefully used by our school.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES ELECTIONS

Board Elections are in September 2022, for a three year term. Please consider if you have the talents, experience and commitment which would contribute to the governance of Papatoetoe Intermediate School. Board members have a significant and very important role, including employment of staff, property and finance, health and safety, strategic direction, accountability and representation.

If you are interested in finding out more about being a Board member please contact our Board Secretary – Barbara Ferregel (barbaraf@papint.school.nz) or one of our Board members who will be happy to answer questions. Information about our Board can be found on our school website.

Interested community members are welcome at meetings. If you would like to know about attending meetings also contact the Board Secretary.

THANK YOU TO ROOM 16 for their articles for Newsletter No. 4

With the science laboratory being closed under the current Red Covid Level Setting, we have been unable to experience the practical aspects of laboratory science. However, we have been able to bring some parts of the laboratory to the classroom. We have learnt to identify and name (and handle) many of the equipment found in a laboratory. It was fun handling the equipment. Pieces of equipment, like a microscope, test tubes, mortar and pestle, Bunsen burner and different types of flasks were identified.
Also covered has been the international hazard signs and most importantly, safety in the laboratory

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