End of Term 4 Pānui

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Ka nui te mihi mahana kia koutou, (Very warm greetings to you all)

This will be my final pānui for the year as I’m getting in a day early ahead of our last day tomorrow as it will be ‘all go!’ Tomorrow marks the end of my third year being your tumuaki (principal) here at Turitea and everyday I still wake up excited to come to work. They say “If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life” and that is the feeling currently. Our kura has a beautiful vibe with so many wonderful children and supportive parents. I’ve been feeling spoiled with so many whānau writing me heartfelt cards and giving me thoughtful gifts. I appreciate you all and am lucky to have such an amazing and engaged community. This afternoon will be a great way to finish the school year, with our Xmas Pool Party happening from 12.30pm today! Huge thanks to our amazing PTA team who help to put that on.

Last night we officially farewelled our group of Year 6 students as they go off to intermediate school next year. Whakamihi nui ki a koutou (Congratulations) to Ada, Alexa, Antonio, Asher, Billy, Carmen, Cassius, Charlee, Charlotte, Cooper, Elias, Emily, Ezekiel, Harper, Henry, Indi, Kérian, Milana, Natalie, Neve, Olivia, Ryleigh, Sophia, Tahu, Travis and Wid. We also had their leavers celebration at the Lido on Tuesday where they had a day of fun in the pools, waterslides and diving boards as you can see above. For some of these kids, they are the last of a long whānau line of older siblings, ending their connection with Turitea over quite a few years. Haere rā (Farewell) to the McBride, Beals, James, Filitchev, Kitchen, Te Huki, Murray, Ray, Procter, Crisford and Sharpe whānau. We value all that you have brought to our school culture and we hope you leave here with fond memories and know the door here is always open for a return visit. All the best to you and your whānau for the next stage of your journey.

Saying goodbye is never easy, but circumstances change for some whānau as they change schools. We regretfully are losing Bufton and Greer to One School Global. We are also losing Lea as she will be homeschooled next year. You will all be missed by us all here at Turitea, as you have your last day with us tomorrow. 

We also say farewell to Heather, our keyboard teacher of the last 12 years who tutored some of our tamariki every Monday. She is also grandmother to Cooper, who is finishing with us at the end of the year, ending a long running connection with our school. We wish her all the best with her ‘semi’ retirement.

Wildbase Fundraiser:

On Monday, our tuakana (seniors) ran their annual Wildbase Fundraiser. It was a great market day, pictured above, with lots of activities to do and things to buy. Our tuakana always look after our teina (juniors) in such a beautiful way. It really does embody our school uara (values) of manaakitanga and whanaungatanga. We thank you for your generous contributions as we raised $500 to donate to them.

End of Year Reports/Class Placement:

Yesterday you should have received a notification to view your child’s End of Year report in Hero. I have included a slideshow here to explain this. This can also be viewed in Hero by clicking the About This Page section on the 2024 report. It gives you information about reading the graphs, how to print and ways you can help at home etc. If your child started in Rimu in 2024, they would have brought home a printed report instead of the Hero report (It might pay to check their bag if you haven’t seen it). To see which class your child is in next year, click on the 3 lines in Hero up in the top left hand corner, then click the down arrow next to your child’s name and then My 2025 Class. The tamariki all met their next year’s teacher and classmates before morning tea today, so they can leave school tomorrow knowing what next year will look like for them.

Puna Kōrero: 

‘A puna is a spring of water and kōrero means both voices and stories. Puna Kōrero is a metaphor for the many voices of parents and whānau members who, when sought and listened to, provide clarity about what can most help their tamariki to be successful in education.’ Today I opened bookings in Hero for our Puna Kōrero at the start of next year which will be Wednesday 29th January 2025 from 9-5pm. You should have received a notification on Hero informing you of this. Click on the School Bookings icon on your dashboard and follow the easy instructions. We urge you to book in a slot to connect with your child’s kaiako for 2025, even if you already know them. Just make sure you choose their next year’s class. (Hero has rectified this issue from last year, if you remember that we had problems with it) Please get your child to bring an artefact to share with the kaiako, this can be a creation they’ve made, something special to them or a favourite item for them to talk to.

School Stationery for 2025:

We are continuing the services of OfficeMax for our back to school stationery. You may have even received an email from them if you purchased your stationery from them at the start of the year. You will be able to purchase your child’s stationery directly from them as a complete pack and have it sent to your house. Each class has a slightly different pack that you order through their MySchool page, click start and then enter your child’s details, choose your child’s class for next year and the rest is pretty self explanatory.

Team Turitea for 2025:

Here is the list of the wonderful people who make our school the amazing place that it is. I’ve also included their email address if you need to get in touch with any of us.

From the PTA:

We have booked in Lotteria (Mexican Bingo) for Wednesday 5th February 2025 as our first back to school whanaungatanga (community) event for the adults. It is a fun night where you can have yummy cocktails, enjoy some Mexican cuisine and have some laughs. I’ll warn you it does get a bit competitive, but it just adds to the spiciness – Caliente! Make sure you follow the Turitea PTA Facebook Page for more information.

Turitea Sports Uniforms:

If you are the parent/caregiver of a Year 6 student or know that you are leaving Turitea School at the end of the year, can you please return your child’s sports uniform to the office tomorrow. If you are staying here, there is no need to return anything, unless your child has gone through a growth spurt and needs a bigger size.

Sports Coaches:

As our sports for 2024 wrap up this week, I want to say whakawhetai (thank you) to all our coaches and managers. Out-of-School sport relies heavily on parents/whānau stepping up to help take a team. I know it is hard to juggle this around work/home life, but just know you are appreciated. If you have assisted in any way over the year with any sports team, thank you so much! If you have one of our gear bags, please can you send it back to the office tomorrow. Love this picture above of the Turitea Tornadoes after their last match!

Fancy Nails:

Today, my office was transformed by Jeannah (Katara’s Mum) into a nail salon for the teachers as a little treat. Anna looked very happy as you can see, as they all chose pretty colours and enjoyed their pamper session. If you want to get your nails looking beautiful for the festive season, hit her up.

Hoping you all have a safe and happy festive season. Remember that school closes tomorrow at 1pm, but we hope to see you at our End of Year Prizegiving at 12pm in the Quad.

School starts back in 2025 on Thursday 30th January with our usual mihi whakatau to welcome Carly and our new whānau members to our Turitea community.

Ngā mihi o te Kirihimete me te Tau Hou (Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year)
Troy
principal@turitea.school.nz