Issue 2 – 14 February 2019

PRINCIPAL

Tena koe, greetings, As I write this I am sitting in our improvised staffroom/office at Hope Community Church. By the time you receive this newsletter I hope your life and ours has returned to some better kind of normal. We have been through a lot as a community this past week, we are pulling together well with the

support of many people, too many to thank here, but we still have quite a journey ahead of us to get our lives back running smoothly. Please keep a close eye on your and your children’s well-being over the next weeks - you will be surprised at times about how fast your emotions can

change; you may feel totally on top of things one moment and in the dumps the next. That’s okay, it’s part of the process. The important things are to recognise and accept your feelings and

get help, wherever you can find it. Evacuation Plan for Wakefield School Today (Wednesday 13 Feb) we met with most of the agencies managing the fire response and came up with an evacuation plan for when we return to Wakefield. The plan is:

• Nelson Coachlines will station buses and drivers sufficient to evacuate all children and staff on or near the school grounds during normal school hours.

• In the event of an evacuation all children will travel by bus to Hope Community Church to be collected from that point by their parents

• Parents must not collect their children from school, even if they are in the village at

the time. • Staff who live in the village will be released to manage their own evacuation. Other

staff will travel on buses with the children and remain to supervise them at the collection point.

• Staff will carpool to ensure staff vehicles are not left at school.

• Families will be informed that we will be given ‘more than adequate time’ by emergency services to conduct a safe and orderly evacuation.

This plan will remain in place until the risk of evacuation has passed. We will review it daily with fire and emergency services and be guided by them. Thanks to all the agencies and the superb

response from our bus company for enabling this plan to happen. Note: at this stage we intend to return to Wakefield on Monday 18 February. I will

confirm this on Sunday 17th. We are here to help your children and you so don’t be shy or too proud to ask for it. We are keeping a close eye on our children and we will talk to you if we notice your child is struggling.

We have access to a lot of good help services for children and families and will help at all times. If in doubt, phone or text me: 021 047 1092.

Please note these changes to our planned programme over the next little while:

1. Learning conferences are postponed until further notice.

2. Year 5-6 camp has been shifted to 20-22 March, still at Bridge Valley Camp. Karearea teachers will keep in touch with year 5-6 families about camp planning.

3. Music lessons will resume as soon as we return to our school site.

If you are continuing to live away from home, please tell Olivia or Allison at the office. We are very aware that the fire and drought are causing financial strain for some of our families, and that this may continue for some time. We can help you access financial support so speak to us if you need to. Thank you for your patience and care. Peter

MATAI SYNDICATE

Discovery We look forward to resuming Discovery afternoons after the ‘Prepare to Evacuate’ restriction had been lifted. Sorry for any inconvenience. We look forward to seeing our 4 year old visitors and their whanau again soon. Kind regards Piwakawaka Teachers Junior Syndicate - Choir Help The Junior Syndicate teachers are looking for a keen helper to support our junior children with singing. We’re wondering if there’s a parent, grandparent or community member, with a passion for singing, keen to help us on Monday afternoons from 1:20pm – 2:15pm. Please email Loren Watts on loren.watts@wakefield.school.nz if you’d like to know more.

MUSIC

2019 In-School Music Programme

Our 2019 music lessons will again be running on Wednesdays and Thursdays throughout the year, with children attending their lessons during class time. Tom Watson will be teaching guitar,

ukulele and bass guitar, Katrina Hylkema will be teaching piano, keyboard and group vocals and Sam Edmonds teaching drums.

On offer is individual tuition in guitar, bass guitar, keyboard, piano and drums while group lessons will be offered for vocals, guitar and ukulele. Lessons are open to children year three and upwards.

If you are interested, please fill in the form below and return to the school office as soon as possible to be included in term one’s timetable. All fees for the in-school music programme are

payable at the commencement of each term and are paid directly online to your tutor – each tutor will invoice you personally.

Thank you

Katrina Hylkema, Tom Watson and Sam Edmonds

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Wakefield In-School Music Programme Enrolment Form 2019

Child’s name: ____________________________________________________________________

Year: ______________________ Room Number: ______________________

Email:

____________________________________________________________________

Phone Number:

____________________________________________________________________

Tick the box for the lessons you would like to enrol for:

□ Individual guitar 15 minutes @ $125 per term

□ Individual guitar 30 minutes @ $250 per term

□ Individual bass guitar 20 minutes @ $175 per term

□ Individual keyboard 20 minutes @ $175 per term

□ Individual piano 20 minutes @ $175 per term

□ Group vocal lessons @ $60 per term

□ Group guitar lessons @ $60 per term

□ Group ukulele lessons @60 per term

□ Individual drum 15 minutes @ $125.00 per term

□ Individual drum 30 minutes @ $250.00 per term

SPORTS

It is not too late to register for summer sports and Weetbix Tryathlon. Please click on the link

below to fill in the google form to register your child for Term 1.

Please click on this link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1bRs57sw_eabua5xdTwj7-3yEl5-8p7XJrXlyf6poLfk/edit

If you have any queries regarding any of the information in the form please contact Kathy Ameen in the library or send an email to kathy.ameen@wakefield.school.nz

Kind regards

Kathy Ameen

OFFICE

Absentees Just a reminder that if your child is absent from school, please let the office know. You can do

this by sending a text to 027 541 8021, email to absentees@wakefield.school.nz, or phone 541 8332 and leave a message.

Please ensure your child reports to the office if they arrive at school late. If you are required to pick your child up during the school day, please notify the office. Please also check that your

contact details are up to date with the office.

SUN SMART

A reminder that term 1 requires all students to be sun smart. This means wearing a bucket style hat that shades ears, neck and nose and wearing clothing that covers shoulders. All classrooms

have sunscreen available.

IMPORTANT DATES

27th February BOT Meeting

6th March Wakefield School Swimming Sports – 9:00 – 12:30pm

14th March Waimea Cluster Swimming Sports – 9:00 – 12:30pm

20-22nd March Karearea Bridge Valley Camp

27th March BOT Meeting

27th March Junior Kiwi Sports – Wakefield School 9:00 – 12:30pm

7th April Regional Swimming Sports – 8:30 – 1pm – ASB Aquatic Centre

12th April End of Term 1

29th April Start of Term 2