Beckenham Update Thursday 18 March 2020

Posted on by

Principal's Patch

Kia ora e te whānau

Another short newsletter, to keep you up-to-date with the information we are getting from the Ministry of Education, and with what is happening at school. There is an important notice further down this newsletter about the PTA Fair Container Sale happening TODAY from 1-4pm in the staff carpark.

Based on Ministry advice, we are cancelling assemblies and whole school, indoor gatherings until further notice. This means that students will work mostly within their team and hub, rather than in close-contact events with the whole school. We will still run house games on Fridays, and the games will be focused on non-contact activities that are outside.

Hand-washing routines are a big part of each day, as are regular reminders about coughing and sneezing.

There are currently no requirements for mass closures of schools. Saying that, we are preparing for closures, should they be required. We will keep you closely informed about this. Until that happens, we are determined to carry on as much as normal as we can!

Thank you to the 256 whānau who completed the 'how connected is your household' survey - this has given us a pretty good picture of how connected many of you are, and will allow us to plan accordingly. Should school close, we will be putting learning options up on our website, and these will try to cater for the range of differently connected situations that you are all in. We also recognise that many of you do not want children at home on devices all day, and we are looking at a range of different options.

Are you and your children members of the Christchurch City Libraries? 

We strongly urge you to join your children up to the library - and learn how to use the online library facilities. We are aware that libraries in other jurisdictions have closed, and so accessing books online may be an important option to consider.

Do you have the phone numbers/contact details of your children's friends' caregivers? 

Connect up online now, with your child's friend's caregivers!
If we do go into school closures, supporting children to stay connected through parent supervised platforms may be helpful for some families.

Reminders from the Ministry of Education

The Ministry of Education page containing the most up-to-the-minute information for schools and whānau in relation to Covid-19

Deputy Secretary of Education - Katrina Casey - speaks to Radio NZ on Monday about Covid-19: Ministry's advice on whether to send kids to school

Who needs to self-isolate?

The Government announcement at the weekend requires anyone who has arrived from overseas after 1am on Monday 16 March to self-isolate for 14 days, and to register with Healthline (0800 358 5453). The exception is people arriving from specified Pacific countries (“Category 2” countries as listed here), who do not need to self-isolate if they are not unwell.
People who arrived from overseas before 1am on Monday 16 March are not required to self-isolate, unless they have travelled from South Korea or Iran. Travellers from those countries need to self-isolate for 14 days from the date of their departure and register with Healthline.
People living in the same house as travellers that are required to self-isolate, need to minimise contact with them (avoiding being closer than 2 metres apart for more than 15 minutes). However, they are not required to self-isolate themselves.

Encouraging student attendance

We know that some parents have concerns about their children attending school at the moment, some of which may be due to what they are seeing in the media about other countries.
There’s a simple rule here – if students are unwell (whether or not their illness relates to COVID-19) they should stay at home. Students who are not unwell should continue to attend school.
While we are seeing large-scale school shutdowns elsewhere in the world, in New Zealand we still have no community transmission. Consequently, any decisions about school closures will be made on a case by case basis. In the meantime, unless students are unwell themselves, then parents should keep sending them to schools and early learning centres as these environments continue to be safe and the best place for them to continue their learning.
Schools will continue to be provided with the latest information and guidance from the Ministries of Education and Health so that Principals and Boards can make well-informed decisions based on their particular circumstances.

Kia kaha koutou!

Sandy and the team.

PTA Update


The Beckenham Te Kura o Puroto Twilight Fair might be cancelled but you still have a chance to win one of the amazing prizes at the RAFFLE. Buy a $2 ticket at the Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto grounds every morning before school starts and when it ends or tomorrow and Wednesday at New World St Martins from 3.30 to 6pm. Sale END on 20th of March at 3.30pm.


Remember all proceeds raised go towards sports uniforms & digital technology for the Children of Beckenham Te Kura o Pūroto! We are so grateful to you all, and to the generous donors who provided $1400 worth prizes for this event:

#1 Great Journeys of New Zealand – Cross Cook Strait with Interislander and truly experience our two beautiful islands. The 92km, three-hour journey between Wellington and Picton is one of New Zealand’s most iconic tourist experiences and acknowledged as one of the most spectacular cruises in the world. VALUE: $500.00

#2 SHELF home+gifts Voucher & Soy Melts, Green tea Blend (Novel Cafe South Library), Shits about to get dainty Crockery Coffee Mug, Nadia Lim’s Fresh Start Cookbook from My Food Bag, Handmade Peg Apron & Wooden Pegs. VALUE: $170.00

#3 Dinner voucher for 4 people. Courtesy of The Coffee Club Spitfire Square. VALUE: $150.00

#4 St Martins Pharmacy Gift Basket. Courtesy of St Martins Pharmacy. VALUE: $100.00

#5-7 Gift Baskets. Courtesy of FreshChoice Barrington. VALUE: $100.00 each

#8 Family pass to Hanmer Springs Thermal Pools. Courtesy of Hanmer Springs - Thermal Pools & Spa VALUE: $89.00

#9 Family pass to Willowbank Wildlife Reserve. Courtesy of Willowbank Wildlife Reserve.
VALUE: $81.00

#10 Voucher from HAPA & 2 x Admit One for Deluxe Cinemas. Courtesy of Hapa at the Tannery/BNZ Centre & Deluxe Cinemas (The Tannery). VALUE: $66.00

#11 Large Gift Basket from the Fudge Cottage. Courtesy of The Fudge Cottage, New Zealand. VALUE: $59.90

#12 The Birdwood & Industria Store Cuppa Coffee Cup. Courtesy of ‘The Birdwood’ & Industria Design & Gift Store (The Colombo). VALUE: $50.00

#13 Voucher from Banfield’s Butchery. Courtesy of Beckenham Butchery. VALUE: $25.00



Term One Week Seven in Pōhutukawa

Posted on by
Kia ora whānau,

What a busy term we have had so far!

A huge congratulations to all of the children who took part in our Duathlon on Friday.  The Year 5 and 6 children made up 70% of all entrants in the race - we were so proud to see so many of our learners taking part and living our Beckenham te Kura o Pūroto value "We Love Challenge."

COVID-19
We are in unprecedented times with the COVID-19 global pandemic. Our focus at school remains on learning, keeping life as normal as possible for our learners, and ensuring good hygiene practices across the hub.

For our school, our pandemic plan is ready to be implemented if needed. In the mean time we will continue to focus on good hygiene practices. Hand washing and good cough etiquette are very important tools in preventing the spread of illness including colds, flu and COVID-19. We will be supervising the children as they wash their hands prior to eating at morning tea and lunch times.

With that, there is a good video clip from Nanogirl that will help your children to better understand the virus - YouTube clip - Nanogirl https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPsY-jLqaXM

You may have also seen the Prime Minister sat down with Dr Michelle Dickinson (aka Nanogirl) and the Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor, Juliet Gerrard, to talk about coronavirus:
Watch on the PM’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=615164082657847
Read and watch on the Newshub website: https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/03/watch-health-experts-join-jacinda-ardern-to-dispel-some-coronavirus-covid-19-myths.html

One other action we can all take is to be vigilant about our own health and the health of our children. Sandy is encouraging staff to stay away from school if they are showing signs of illness such as coughs and colds. We ask that you please do the same with your children. Colds and flus are common in schools and by staying away, seeking medical attention and practicing good hygiene, we can all keep any spread of illness to a minimum.

Fair Cancellation

Thanks so much for your support and understanding around the difficult yet necessary decision to cancel the school fair.  Our wonderful PTA are using the Komanawa space to display the art works created by our learners for the fair. These will be available for auction - please feel free to pop in and have a look at them after school any day this week. There are also many mystery bottles for sale, and the silent auctions and raffle are still running.










Beckenham Update: Monday 16 March 2020

Posted on by

Beckenham Update: Monday 16th March 2020

Kia ora koutou

We are working on a day-to-day basis at the moment, as the nation prepares itself to make significant changes to the way we move around, in order to stem the spread of Covid-19. The situation we find ourselves in is unique and unprecedented in our lifetimes.

At school, we see our role as being first and foremost to maintain normal routines, to reassure our children and our community, and to enable caregivers to get on with their working lives where this continues to be possible.

We are also very aware that the situation is changing rapidly, and we are trying to be proactive in our planning to be able to be prepared for future scenarios.

Preparing for the possibility of school closure

As you will have seen in other countries, closures of schools have happened and it is certainly now a possibility that we need to consider may happen here. Currently, whilst the expectation is that we will stay open, we do need to be prepared that this may change. The Ministry of Education has today asked every school in New Zealand to give the Ministry an indication of how 'connected' their school community is.

To help us prepare for the possibility of closure, we would appreciate if EVERYONE would please take a moment to complete this brief questionnaire about your online capability at home.  Please do this as soon as possible. This information will support us as we try to plan for how teaching and learning 'online' might look, and we can also give the Ministry of Education a picture of how connected our community is.

Hygiene Education

We have a programme of education in place that is continuously reminding children about handwashing, and of coughing or sneezing into their elbow, rather than their hands.
We are adopting the 'no hugs, no handshakes and no hongi' approach.
Ask your child tomorrow to tell you about the East Coast wave!
We would really appreciate you reiterating these messages at home.

Absences from School

Thank you to everyone for keeping sick children at home. This is an important part of keeping our whole community as well as possible during this uncertain time. 
Please ensure that you contact the office if your child is going to be away and include the reason why.
If you do not contact us, your child's absence is marked as 'Truant'. If you let us know they are going to be away, but don't leave a reason, the absence is marked as 'Explained but Unjustified'.

Year 7/8 Camp

At this stage - the situation is too uncertain for us to try and rebook this camp later in the year. We will consider alternative options such as day trips etc, once we have a better picture of what the next few months will hold. If you have paid for camp already, please make contact with Sandra Rauch, our finance officer, regarding if you would like to apply this to your donation or have it returned back to you.

School Photos will be taken this Wednesday morning!

Please ensure that children are all in full uniform on Wednesday, ready for their class and individual photos.

Updating Contact Details

Please ensure that you let Jacky in the office know if any of your contact details have changed. This includes email addresses, caregiver contact numbers and names and numbers of emergency contacts.

Update from the PTA

The Twilight Fair may be cancelled but we still have a great Art exhibition running this week in Komanawa along with our Pumpkin competition, silent auction / prizes, raffle tickets and Mystery bottles. Come along to Kōmanawa (near the Eastern Terrace entrance to school, before or after school every day this week.



Kahikatea Week 6-7 Term 1 News

Posted on by
Kia ora koutou,

We have centered much of our learning this week around the construction that is happening outside of our hub. It has been very exciting to see the landscape change over the past six weeks.

Maths
Children worked with their learning buddies to discuss the story, choose a strategy, and use materials to solve the problem together.

Writing


We have been writing about the playground construction site. Here are some photo's of our brainstorming...





At school there is a construction site. I can't wait until it is finished because it will be such fun to play in. The workers are doing a good job. I love it!

By Hannah





Plea for materials

One of the most popular choices during Discovery Time is 'making'. For this, we require a range of recyclable materials. At the moment we need...


  • milk bottle tops
  • cardboard boxes (small, e.g., cereal or muesli bar boxes)
  • tubes 
  • newspaper (for painting and art)
Board games provide opportunities for tamariki to practice taking turns and working together. If you have any board games or puzzles that you no longer require, we would gratefully receive these, particularly as we are heading into the cooler months.

That's all for now!
Amber, Charlotte, Jules, Lisa and Katie

Important update re Covid-19 and implications for the Fair and Y7/8 Camp

Posted on by

Kia ora e te whānau

The changing landscape with regard to our country's efforts to keep Covid-19 at bay has required us to re-examine two important school events that are on our calendar over the next three weeks - the PTA Twilight Fair this coming Friday, and our Year 7/8 camp to Dunedin in Week 9.

In light of the announcements made yesterday by our Prime Minister around the measures that we all need to be taking to promote community health and wellbeing, and the signalling of further measures that are likely to be put in place around events where large numbers of people are gathering, we have made the decision to cancel the Twilight Fair and the Year 7/8 Camp.

Calling off both the Fair and the Y7/8 Camp now is a proactive response to minimise any possible effect of Covid-19 could have on our community.

Both decisions have been made early to give everyone involved as much warning as possible in this changing landscape. The PTA were about to embark on the busiest week of lead-up to the fair and this decision will give them better time-frames to cancel in. We appreciate that a number of parents had booked leave to attend the camp, and needed as much warning as possible about this cancellation also.

We understand that there will be huge disappointment, particularly from our children, around both of these decisions and we will support them to understand the bigger picture of 'We get there together', as we are sure you will too.

We will be reviewing our school procedures and upcoming events again over the next two days, and waiting for further direction as it comes from the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health. 

As we get futher information, we will ensure that this is passed on to you. 

Until that happens, school is on as normal, and we look forward to seeing everyone tomorrow.

Ngā mhi nui
Sandy Hastings - Principal/Tumuaki, on behalf of the staff, the Board of Trustees and the PTA