Dear Parents, Caregivers and Children,

Welcome back to Term 4.  As is becoming more and more common, we started the first week of term in style with our annual Ag Day on Tuesday. While the weather was terrible, the effort, care and knowledge the children had of their animals was not. It was great to see the introduction of Chickens this year, they were a nice addition to the programme. I was super impressed with how our children managed themselves and proudly showcased their Lamb, Kid Goat or Chick. Well done to all children who participated in this event. Also, a big thank you to Laura, Rachael and Christine for their organising of the day. A lot of after hours meetings and time goes into bringing this day together, thank you for your support and commitment to ensuring the success of it. 

Over the break I was very fortunate to travel to China on a Relational Tour with NZTA (NZ Transit Agency). It was a privilege to travel with 7 other Principals from the Waikato to immerse myself in the Chinese Culture and primarily start the process of building a long term relationship with a sister school, Zhongshanlu Primary in the city of Shijiazhuang. The welcoming that I received from the school was overwhelming. They were hospitable and had a real pride in being able to showcase their place of learning. During the visit I gave an hour presentation on our school, who we are and the learning values that we are grounded by. I also had a Q and A session with their families, they have a real interest in building a long term relationship with us which I believe is an exciting opportunity. 

While I was in China our teaching team travelled to Rotorua for the National Educators 3 day Conference, Ulearn19. This conference attracts over 2000 educators from around NZ and Australia and brings with it internationally recognised speakers from around the globe as well as local educators sharing their expertise and current practice in their classrooms. This conference gave our teaching team an opportunity to engage in the exchange of ideas, discuss the future of education and connect with influences and innovators. It exposed them to current trends, new ideas, strategies and useful resources. From chatting with our team and reading through their reflections plenty of learning was gained from this conference. 

On the building front, our Board of Trustees have finalised the procurement process and have selected THL as our preferred contractor for the refurbishment of Ropu Kakano 2 and 9. THL will start their setting up next week and will remain onsite until the end of the year. This inevitably causes some disruption with which we have worked hard to minimise. A message to note is that our Sainsbury Road Entrance way will be moved from its current location to the old entrance way at the North End of our PAC. We will set up next week with cones to make it clear where to cross on Sainsbury Road. The Sainsbury Road Car Park will not be disrupted and families can park there as per normal. 

Finally, we look forward to another great term with you all as we welcome the summer months and all that they bring. 

Warm regards

Geoff