Pānui (News)

Kia ora e te whānau, With Troy away, I’ve been entrusted with writing this week’s pānui. What a perfect week to be asked as it means I get to share the special news of a new arrival, I’ll happily take this one Troy! I’m delighted to share that Cameron and Olivia have officially become parents after welcoming Fletcher Alastair Schaw into the world yesterday. Cameron has shared some beautiful photos with us and stated he is ‘just perfect’. A huge thanks to Trish who stepped into Pōhutukawa this week and we look forward to welcoming Carwyn on Monday for the next three...

Kia ora e te whānau, Today is the last day for Cameron, as he starts his paternity leave for the next four weeks. He and his wife Olivia are heading down to Wellington Hospital on Monday to have their baby boy. Our amazing staff put on a surprise baby shower for him on Wednesday and this afternoon, his lovely Pōhutukawa whānau gave him a beautiful gift bag that they all put together. As you can tell he is feeling the aroha (love)! Trish (the reliever, not OG Trish) will be in Pōhutukawa next week for him and Carwyn will be...

Nau mai hoki mai ki te wāhanga tuarua, (Welcome back to Term 2) On Monday, we held our traditional mihi whakatau to welcome new whānau to our kura. I'm always proud of how natural and normal this process has become for our tamariki. Nau mai Haere mai (Welcome) to Ari, who has joined Cameron in Pōhutukawa, Finn, who has joined Carly in Rātā. Finn is the younger brother of Luca who was a Year 6 with us last year, and Tyde, who has joined Anna in Rimu. Tyde is Dani’s son, Julie’s grandson and Makenna’s little brother.  Over the break,...

Ka nui te mihi mahana ki a koutou, (Warmest greetings to you all)  Getting in to you all a day early on the pānui (newsletter) with tomorrow being Good Friday. Mihi atu ki a koutou (Thanks everyone) for what has been a busy, fun and enjoyable first term back at Turitea. From the start of this year, the Ministry of Education (MoE) has updated attendance requirements across Aotearoa, New Zealand. All schools are required to implement an Attendance Management Plan (AMP) and expect them to reach the target of having at least 80% of ākonga (students) attending school more than 90% of...

Tēnā koutou katoa (Hello Everyone) It’s hard to believe, but we have just finished the penultimate week of our first term for 2026. It has been a ‘busy, but brilliant’ term so far. We have certainly jam packed lots of awesomeness into it! Ngā mihi nui (Big thanks) to those who booked a Kōrero mai session on Wednesday evening. We had over 80% of the available slots filled! These are an important part of our Reporting to Whānau cycle. At the end of next term, you will receive a written Mid Year Report, followed by another round of Kōrero Mai...

Ngā mihi maioha ki a koutou, (Warmest greetings to you all) Monday marked the first day for Emelie who joined Whaea Anneliese and the ākonga (students) in Tōtara. Her and her whānau have joined us from Dannevirke. Nau mai haere mai (Welcome to you) Emelie! We had an absolute cracker of a day on Tuesday with Ariki, Marnie, Lachie, Archer, Evie, Eddie, Lachie, Matthew, Caleb, Kaia, Joe, Rory, Oliver and Jackson taking part in the Weetbix Tryathlon. Thanks to the parents/whānau who came and supported them. Here is a quick reel that we made to celebrate the day. Yesterday, we...

Tēnā koutou katoa, (Hello everyone) What a fantastic day we had last Saturday for our Turitea School Fest. It is always special to see the way our hāpori (community) comes together in such a positive way to support our kura. Mihi atu (thank you) to everyone who played a part in making the day such a success. Whether you were busy in the kitchen baking treats, running a stall, directing traffic, selling raffle tickets, or turning snags on the barbie, your tautoko (support) is what makes events like this possible. We appreciate our beloved PTA and their efforts to make events like this happen....

Tēnā koutou katoa, (Hello everyone) It has been all go here today hosting a Liz Kane Literacy conference here today in Tāne Mahuta for 37 kaiako from around the Manawatū rohe (region). Tammy from Roslyn ran the day, sharing ‘pearls of wisdom’ from her New Entrant classroom, hence all the cars at school this morning when you arrived. Don’t fret, they will be gone by pick up. Excitement is also brewing for our Turitea School Fest tomorrow from 10am-2pm. Mihi atu (thank you) to those who have sent in a can, bottle and a packet for the raffles, baked for...

Ngā mihi mahana e te whānau (Warmest of greetings to you all) We have certainly managed to squeeze a lot into this week! As you may have seen on our Facebook page and seen above, we had our Japanese visitors on Tuesday and shared a bit of their culture with us, while we reciprocated and shared ours with them. Also on Tuesday, Cameron took a group of ten Year 5/6 students to the Māori Culture Festival at PNBHS (below) along with 8 other local kura. It was a great day of culture, connection and a strong showcase of our uara...

Ngā mihi mahana e te whānau (Warmest of greetings to you all) Tuesday marked the start of Chinese New Year - 新年快乐 Xinnián kuàilè (Happy New Year). We wish all those celebrating a joyful and vibrant year ahead filled with good health, happiness, and prosperity. As we welcome the Year of the Horse, we hope 2026 brings energy, adventure, and success for our tamariki and whānau. It was great to share this by dressing up today to mark the occasion as you can see below. We also had Sue, Catie’s Pawpaw (Grandma), come and teach the kids how to make...