Newsletter – 26 July 2021 – Pakuranga Heights School

Dear Parents

Welcome back and a very warm welcome to all our new families. We also welcome back Mrs. Lisa Stafford who will be opening a new entrant class in Room 10 as well as Mrs. Monique Browne, our new Deputy Principal and Mrs. Roshilla Naicker, our new Team Leader for the middle school.

Property Update
Our values now displayed at the main entrance

Safe and colourful pathway

Teacher Only Day Reminder
This will take place on Friday August 27th which means there is no school for students on this day. School will be closed but the Pukeko After School Care Programme will be operating. During the last pay negotiations, the Government allocated eight Teacher Only Days for schools over 2 years. These days were negotiated by the teachers union, we appreciate they can be disruptive when parents are working. In order to minimise disruption where possible these are before or after a weekend.

Staying Home If Sick – RSV
In the media we are hearing that hospitals and medical centres are flat out dealing with RSV.

What is RSV, should you be concerned and what part we can play to reduce and stop the spread of this virus?
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common respiratory virus that causes lung and respiratory tract infections. It is highly contagious. A person infected with RSV spreads the virus in droplets when they cough, sneeze or talk. RSV outbreaks are more common in the winter months. Almost all children will have had a RSV infection by their second birthday. However, immunity is not complete, and reinfection is common.

RSV is a common respiratory virus that causes respiratory tract infections, including the common cold. Most adults and older children with RSV will experience symptoms similar to the common cold.

However, very young children and premature babies can become very sick and may require hospitalisation. In this age group, RSV can cause bronchiolitis (inflammation of the small breathing tubes of the lung) and pneumonia (infection of the lung). Many children will be able to recover from this illness at home, but some are admitted to hospital to support their feeding and to be given additional oxygen when that is needed.

Antibiotics are not usually helpful as it is a viral infection.

Older adults, people with compromised immune systems and those with heart or lungs conditions are also more at risk from RSV.

RSV and COVID-19 are both respiratory illnesses. If you have respiratory symptoms such as a cough, sore throat, shortness of breath, head cold or loss of smell, with or without fever, stay at home and call your doctor or Healthline (for free) on 0800 358 5453 to see if you need a test for COVID-19.

RSV can spread easily from person to person through droplets from a sneeze or cough. People can be infected by touching their nose or eyes after touching a person with RSV or contaminated items.

A person is usually infectious for up to 10 days after symptoms begin.

The best way to prevent spread of the infection is to practice good respiratory hygiene, especially people with symptoms that might be due to RSV (or other respiratory viruses).

RSV and COVID-19 are both respiratory illnesses, so the same advice applies for both.

As RSV is highly contagious, it is important to:

stay home and stay away from toddlers and babies if you are sick
if your child, toddler or baby is sick, please keep them away from childcare centres or school until their symptoms have resolved
continue to use good hand hygiene – regularly wash and dry your hands
cough and sneeze into your elbows, carefully discard dirty tissues
do not share eating and drinking utensils
practice physical distancing
toys which are shared among children should be washed in warm water and detergent at the end of the day, or if they are sneezed on or mouthed.

There is no vaccine against RSV. (Further information is available on the Ministry of Health Website)

Lego Space
We have invested in numerous sets of second hand Lego over the holidays so this will be set up in the next few weeks by one of our student leaders Connor Hart and his team. Connor and his team will work with me to set up the space and guidelines.

What is Lego?

LEGOs are nothing but simple, colourful, interlocking plastic bricks that often come with matching gears and other small figurines creating a whole lot of possibilities to construct buildings, machines or even vehicles. LEGOs have been around for decades, sparking curiosity nerves of little children and adults alike. The very fact that you can create almost anything from them is what makes them so unique, simple yet fun. Designed by a Danish company, the term LEGO derived from the words “Leg Godt” which simply translate to “Play Well”.

Why are LEGOs good for the brain?
They are building their spatial abilities — the ability to visualize and plan three-dimensional objects. Numerous studies have shown that kids show improvement on spatial reasoning tests after spending time with LEGO Bricks and other kinds of construction play. There is an enormous amount of research and information available online. This is a new initiative so we will keep you informed of our progress and any future plans.

Student Coaching Students
Students Coaching Students is proving to be a very successful way for schools to equip students with the skills to work together, to reflect on their learning goals, expand, refine, and build new skills, share ideas, teach one another and solve problems in their school community.

Last term our student coaches visited Auckland Normal Intermediate to listen to their coaching story and then coached by the ANI students. In Week 5 we will host Auckland Normal Intermediate Student Coaches and our students will coach them

Girls’ Self Defence Project for Year 3 and 4
During Week two this term our Year 3 and 4 students who have their parents’ permission will be participating in this opportunity. There course is free for the students. More information and permission slip will come home this week, any students not participating will have classes as normal.

Outline
The Girls’ Self Defence Programme designed to teach the girls basic physical and verbal techniques, reinforce assertion and boundary setting skills, and offer age-appropriate information. Games and stories used throughout the course to reinforce discussion and the effectiveness of the skills learnt. The Project originated in 1996 as a new initiatives package from the Crime Prevention Unit of the Prime Minister’s Department. It is now funded by Family and Community Services in the Ministry of Social Development.

Reminder – Good Hygiene Practices Will Continue
Another Covid- 19 outbreak is still a real risk as evidenced by the outbreaks in Australia and around the world. It is extremely important we ensure good hygiene practices continue at Alert Level 1 as it is the best way to minimise potential spread of COVID-19 and other illnesses such as colds and flu. The COVID-19.govt.nz and Ministry of Health websites are a good source of information including:

Unfortunately, with the outbreak of RSV we now have to be even more vigilant to stop these serious viruses spreading. If your child is in our sickbay, our first aid qualified office staff will probably call you to gather information and/or arrange for a member of your family to collect your child.

School Zone Update
Next week we are attending a meeting facilitated by the Ministry with Principals and representatives of Board of Trustees from Anchorage Park School, Elm Park School, Riverina School, Riverhills School and Pakuranga Heights School. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss management of growth across the Pakuranga network and develop proposed draft school zones.

The process after this meeting involves Board of Trustees consideration and consultation with our communities so we expect that a zone will be in place sometime next year. Once the timeline is available by the Ministry we will share that with you.

Main Events This Term

Week 1
Friday 30 July Interschool Cross Country Team Trials

Week 2
Samoan Language Week

August 2nd, 3rd and 4th Girls Self Defence Course

August 6th Interschool Rugby

Week 3
August 10th Board of Trustees Meeting
August 13th Interschool Rugby and Full School Assembly

Week 4
August 17th Interschool Cross Country Team Trials
August 20th Senior School Assembly

Week 5
August 23rd & 24th Interschool Dance Festival
August 25th ANI students visiting
August 26th Middle School Assembly
August 27th Teacher Only Day School closed for students

Week 6
August 30th Start of Book Week
September 1st Junior Poetry Festival
September 2nd Senior School Speeches
September 3rd Book Parade

Week 7
Tongan Language Week

Week 8
September 14 Interschool Speech Competition
September 15 School Fun Obstacle Afternoon
September 17th New Parent Session and Junior School Assembly

Week 10
September 28th Board of Trustees Meeting
October 1st Full School Assembly and Last Day of Term 3

A reminder, please do not hesitate to contact your child’s teacher or one of the senior team should you have any questions, concerns or bouquets.

Fintan Kelly

Need to Know

Don’t forget our Friday lunches are changing this term. Please ensure you are signed up and able to log in to Kindo to make your orders. If you require any assistance, please contact Kindo on 0800EZLUNCH or 098695200