Ngā mihi maioha ki a koutou (Warmest of greetings to you all)
I’ve been really enjoying mucking in and working with our Year 6’s on our leadership projects in the micro forest every Friday. You can see the native trees again, which is just what we want! Today I had Ben, Blake, Leo B and Leo S support us down there and they did a fantastic job of leading our teina (juniors) from Mataī and Pōhutukawa. We are so lucky to have many tuakana (seniors) who are so supportive and willing to step up and lead.
Ayla, Kyerin, Kazuri and Xavier, who are all members of the Palmerston North Athletics Club, competed at the Manawatū/Whanganui Athletics Championships last Sunday. They all did extremely well, each winning multiple medals. Ayla won gold in the 50m hurdles and silver in discus and shotput. Kyerin won gold in the 60m sprint and silver in the 100m, 200m and discus. Kazuri won gold in each event she participated in (Long Jump, Shot Put, Discus, 200m and 60m Hurdles). Xavier won gold in the 1200m walk, 1500m run and Shot Put and silver in 800m and 400m. The club also won the trophy for best overall club, which hasn’t been won in a very long time – Wananei koutou! (Awesome everyone)
How cool are the stick insects, pictured below that our ākonga in Rimu made as a response to their haerenga (trip) to Te Manawa last week? I love seeing the auahatanga (creativity) ‘dripping from the walls’ as each kaiako works super hard to ensure their spaces always look amazing!
March is certainly the month for birthdays with our kaimahi (staff) at Turitea. Yesterday we celebrated Mitzy’s 40th birthday, as you can see below. Last week we also celebrated Carly on Wednesday and Aimi on Thursday. Then to top it all off, Julie has hers this Sunday. Rā whānau ki a koutou (Happy birthday everyone!)
Year 5/6 Bike Safety Week:
Next week we have Erin and Phil from Sport Manawatū taking our Year 5/6 ākonga for their bike safety sessions. Communications went out via Hero earlier in the week. Our Year 5’s need their bikes at school on Monday, as they are doing their session here at kura on our new bike track. Year 6’s from Tōtara need them on Tuesday and Year 6’s from Kauri need them on Wednesday. They will be going down to Centennial Drive to do their session with Faye as the kaimahi with them. If you can’t get a bike to school on these days, it is important that you let the teachers know so that Erin and Phil can arrange one for them in their convoy.
Year 6 Mural Project:
Also next week, Carolyn is back in our kura working with our Year 6 students to create our new mural for 2025. You might remember we started this new tradition last year with the striking Te Ao Māori/Sport-based piece on our courts. Carolyn is pumped to be back again for another year continuing to beautify our spaces.
Junior School Athletics:
Now that swimming has finished, our Year 1-3 tamariki are starting to practise their athletics as part of hākinakina (physical education). We initially had a school event planned for next week, but we haven’t had time to learn the skills before our Cluster Athletics Event on Friday 4th April at Tokomaru School. This year, we will only take the overall top 5 boys and girls from each year level. More information on this to follow.
Swimming Pool:
This week our students have finished swimming sessions at school. Our fantastic team of Pool Parents; Lucain, Fraser, Wei, Shayna, Anne-Marie and Patrice are happy to keep it running for the next few weeks on the odd chance that we have some cracker days and people want to use it after school or on the weekends. If you no longer want to use the pool and you hired a key from the office, you can start to return those. This will give us an indication of how many people are still using it. Ngā mihi (Thanks)
Weetbix Tryathlon:
Well done to the 36 kids that took part in the Weetbix Tryathlon, they had a blast and luckily the weather held off in the morning for them to get their races completed before the rain. Congratulations to Ariki who won a brand new Evo bike as you can see below! Special thanks to Whaea Anneliese and all the parents who took the time to cart kids, bikes and all the other gear needed.
Giant Paukena (Pumpkin) Competition:
Please remember to bring these in at the start of Week 10 on Monday 31st March for the prize giving at the end of the week. Remember to check out the Facebook page that Meryl set up with advice and tips.
From the PTA:
- Thank you to those who have sold Easter Raffle Tickets. If you can’t sell them, bring them back as we have other whānau who want more. The proceeds go towards Shade Sails over our playground.
- Please send tickets/cash to the office by Wednesday 2nd April. We will also be having our Easter Dress Up day on this day too, where your child can wear anything that fits into the Easter theme.
- Ngā mihi to those who have brought in a Can, Bottle and Packet for our Easter Raffle. There are big tubs in the office for you or your child to come and drop these in.
- Don’t forget hoodie and umbrella orders are due next Wednesday 26th March.
From the Community:
- The Festival of Colours is at Te Marae o Hine (The Square) from 4-7pm tonight. There will be paint throws every hour starting at 4.30pm. Paint is available for purchase, so come ready to get colourful!
- Our neighbour to the school at 210 Old West Road is selling up and moving on (after 20+ years) and it went on the market earlier in the week. They held just the one mid week open home yesterday and then will do Saturday or Sunday sessions moving forward. Although the house isn’t listed by Nathan Mooney (Van’s Dad), get in touch with him if you are interested, as he is under the Property Brokers umbrella and supports our kura with every sale referral he gets as you can see with the ad above.
- Aokautere School is having their Country Fair on Saturday 29th March. If you want to check it out, head down there between 10am-2pm for fun activities, market stalls, yummy kai, and much more.
- Whether you’re just starting out, fluent, or somewhere in between, then Te Matoe o te Reo is for you! This is a wānanga for everyone who loves Te Reo Māori, no matter where you’re at. Join us at Fly Palmy Arena on Thursday 3rd April and be part of the kaupapa! It is free, and you can register here.
- Number Works ‘N Words provides English and Maths tuition for students helping every child reach their potential. They offer tailored lessons and are currently providing free assessments.
Holiday Programmes:
Seems a bit early to be giving you this information, but here it is. I will keep adding to this list for you as information comes in:
- Epic Music – Check out our website for more information.
- Badminton Manawatū – See the flyer here.
- Camp Wharerama – Week long camp information here, and day camps information here.
Next week myself and Whaea Anneliese are heading up to the far north to a MAC (Māori Achievement Collaborative) conference from Wednesday-Friday, which we are both really excited about. As you know, we both are extremely passionate about kaupapa Māori (All Things Māori) so we will look to bring some ‘pearls of wisdom’ back to our kura. The rest of the team will share out the gate duty at the end of each day for me. Cameron will be writing you next week’s pānui, so enjoy the quality yarns that he always brings.
Hei te Mane (See you on Monday)
Troy
principal@turitea.school.nz
PS Hope to see some of you at Relay for Life over the weekend, even if you don’t have a site, come down and walk or run a few laps around the course and get involved in the vibe.
PPS See previous post about our Easter Bunny Mini School Fundraiser and click here to order.