Principal's Message
Kia ora koutou
Our PBS year has started very
smoothly. I’m loving seeing all the kids back in their element and happily interacting at school.
In today’s newsletter you can read about:
- Dogs in school
- Parent Course – free Mindfulness and Emotional Regulation
- Parent education evening – “Keeping our kids safe online” Rob Cope
A new Government means changes for education. Whilst some of the new education policy has been announced, which will actually result in little change for PBS, the bulk of the changes regarding assessment and curriculum remain unknown to us at this stage. We hope that these changes will not cause too much disruption or upheaval to teaching programmes or assessment processes, however I will keep you updated as we learn more.
One policy you will already be aware of is “Phones away for the day”. This fits well with our current school policy at PBS; this mandate gives more weight to school processes which we are grateful for.
Have a great week everyone.
Ngā mihi nui,
Jess Ward
Principal ~ Tumuaki
Upcoming dates for your awareness:
- School Picnic – Friday, 23 February – we hope to see you there! Bring your picnic dinner, or enjoy a sausage sizzle, iceblock or coffee from our fundraising stands
PRINCIPAL’S GREAT NEWS CORNER:
Sharing good news spreads positivity, changes attitudes and ultimately leads to more people feeling encouraged and happy
Summer makes it so easy to enjoy the outdoors, which is an essential part of growing up Kiwi. This morning I enjoyed watching the junior classes navigate our large playground as a fitness course to start their day. What a fun way to stay fit and activate the brain for learning; Ka Rawe!
Welcome to Our Recent New Students
Dream – Rm 10
Have You Checked Out Our Community Notices Directory?
Do you need to advertise your business, an upcoming event, need child care, or looking for a gift or new club to join? Check out the PBS Community Directory on our website https://kapiti.pbs.school.nz/
Parent Evening Mindfulness & Emotional Regulation - Wednesday, 6 March (FREE)
Overview and Purpose:
Sara Watchorn is passionate about teaching children how to notice and regulate the range of emotions that we all experience. By learning to manage these emotions it can help students as they navigate their way through their schooling and their lives. Mindfulness plays a big role in emotional regulation and helps us to really be in the present moment. Sara’s workshops explain how mindfulness works both at school and home. She provides practical tips and activities for both parents and teachers.
Presenter: Sara Watchorn
Facilitator: Sara Speight
Venue: Paraparaumu College Staffroom
Time: 7pm – 8pm
Registration Link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfI0kwNywHMclr95kNhZ4PakbYVNv708efQVmktCz_KuOWZTA/viewform?usp=sf_link
Using Māori Language at Home
Learning another language provides many benefits including greater academic achievement, greater cognitive development, and more positive attitudes towards other languages and cultures. So, let’s give it a go and help to revitalise this unique language to Aotearoa for our tamariki. Each week our newsletter will include words or phrases that you might like to try out at your kāinga/home.
Here are some essential kupu that you may hear ia ra (everyday)
Tikina – get
Horoia – wash
Katia – close
Whakapaitia – tidy up/pack away
Āwhinatia – help
Tikina tō pōtae – get your hat
Horoia ō ringaringa – wash your hands
Katia te tatau – close the door
Whakapaitia tēnei ruma – tidy this room
Āwhinatia ēnei tamariki – help these children
Dogs in School - Authorised Dogs Only
If you are new to PBS, you may have noticed that some staff bring dogs or puppies to school from time to time. A few of our teachers foster puppies, which has led to a number of our colleagues falling in love and adopting these pups (now fully grown dogs).
As a result, a few years back, we developed school procedures to enable staff to bring their dogs to school if they adhered to certain expectations. Staff need to ask permission to bring their dogs to school, so this is not an open invitation for all dogs in the community.
To be clear, puppies and dogs do not wander around classrooms all day distracting learning. Most of the time they are asleep and kids know not to wake them. Knowing you need to have a calm and quiet environment for animals is a great classroom management strategy. Furthermore, caring for these animals, when they are awake, reinforces responsibility, reliability, kindness and compassion. Understanding that many of these animals have been rescued from neglect and other circumstances also helps students develop empathy.
If you have any queries on this front please get in touch.
Kid's Quote
One of our 7 year old kids informed me that “PBS is an ACE PLACE!”
Digi Corner - Being a Good Digital Citizen at PBS
Students are responsible for ensuring their own behaviour is safe, friendly and fair. This means following our school’s values when online or using digital tools. We have 7 key student responsibilities as part of our being a good digital citizen at PBS. We started sharing these with you last week, but they can be found on our school website and are displayed in our classrooms. The final 4 are listed below:
● Keep it real – Not everything you see online is real. It might look or sound real, but some things are made up or fake, so be careful to check or ask an adult if you’re not sure
● Keep it honest – When we copy or use words, pictures and ideas from the internet, we need to make sure we share these things in the right way and follow the rules for sharing things that don’t belong to us
● Keep it fair – Make sure you check with others if it is okay to record them, or share photos or videos they are in. They should have a say in what happens to things which include them
● Keep it responsible – If you bring your own device or use a school device, use it in ways and at the times that your teacher says it is okay to. If you bring your own device, make sure you have charged it at home.
@ School App
I will regularly highlight a button on the @school app. This week it is:
This button takes you to a page which enables you to see the personal information that we have on our School management system relating to your child.
If any of the information is incorrect you can ring the school office to correct it.
Touch Rugby
Touch rugby restarts this week. Make sure you have checked in with your coaches for the draw. Have fun.
Future Student Achievements
If your child has an achievement you would like us to share in our newsletter, then please send details (and a picture if you would like) to mbarfoote@pbs.school.nz
Kapiti Kids Sports Shoe Bank
The Kapiti Kids Sports Shoe Bank is now up and running for 2024! We ask for donations of great quality second hand sports shoes (general sports shoes or code specific) and we redistribute them at no charge/no questions asked, to primary and secondary school students who can use them.
Drop off points are Paraparaumu Primary School Office, Ruapehu Street; 2 Fincham Road, Raumati or 16 Hookway Grove, Paraparaumu. Waikanae drop off point is Waikanae Baptist Church, Te Moana Road, Waikanae on Tues-Fri mornings (mark donations c/-Thursday Craft Angels).
Check out our Facebook page for more info or email kkshoebank@gmail.com Thanks for your help with keeping Kapiti Kids in shoes and in sports!
Parents Cybersafety Evening
Tuesday, 5 March 2024 7pm at Te Raukura Ki Kāpiti, Kāpiti College.
Filmmaker, Author and Speaker Rob Cope, producer of the documentary “Our Kids Online” will come and give what promises to be a humorous and eye-opening evening talk to our parent community.
Tickets can be purchased online at Eventfinder. The $10 ticket includes a glass of bubbles upon arrival. This is for adults only – please don’t bring students.
