Holiday Information

We have certainly had a trying Term 1, it is hard to believe we are all shut off from everyone and having to use digital technology to communicate with the outside world.

We would like to thank you all for supporting us as we develop online learning activities for your children.  The support and care we have received from our parent community make things so much easier.  

Lexia and MathsWhizz will still be available to you during the holidays. We want to remind you that the recommended Lexia and MathsWhizz time is only 10-15 minutes PER DAY! This adds up to a total of only an hour a week. We do not expect, nor want, the children to be on their device on these programmes too much. Please also note that MathsWhizz has a usage cap; once a child has reached 120minutes for the week they will be blocked from using MathsWhizz until the next week.

The second week of the school holidays is Holy Week, this is the week before Easter and signifies important days in the Church.

We have created a resource you could use to help explain Holy Week to your child. It also has some activities that you could do with your child throughout Holy week. Click here to access the Holy Week Resource.

Holy Week Activities

Pray	Bible Stories	Helping Hand	Art Activities	Treats	Games
Our Father	Palm Sunday	On Palm Sunday, the people waved palm branches and called “Hosanna”.  Today, you could go outside and help weed/sort out the garden.		Ice Cream Easter Eggs	Exploding Easter Eggs
Hail Mary	Washing of the Feet	On Holy Thursday, Jesus washed the feet of His disciples. Today, you could do a bit of extra cleaning at home to help prepare your home for Jesus.	Make a mosaic cross with coloured paper.	Easter Bunny Biscuit	Minute to win it games -
Glory Be	Good Friday	On Good Friday, Jesus was condemned to death. He died for our sins. Today you could do some random acts of kindness for your family.	Make/Buy hot cross buns to share. Chelsea Winter Recipe	Easter Biscuit decorating
The Jelly Bean Prayer	Easter	Easter Sunday is a day of celebration. Jesus rose from the dead. Today, your mission is to tell the people in your family how special they are. Say thank you for all the love they show you.	We made pancakes at the beginning of Lent - maybe you could make Easter Pancakes, too.		Use recycled materials to make an Easter golf game.

As we do every school holidays, the children can complete a Holiday Reading Log.  Once we are back at school, all children who have returned their reading log will get to enter the draw for some awesome prizes.  You can print off the Holiday Reading Log or fill it in digitally.

Again I thank you for your support and help over the past week. We are all learning and I am sure together we can iron our the glitches that we find. Please let me know if you have any concerns, troubles or if I am annoying you (LOL).

Keep safe these holidays, take time to enjoy your family, find new games to play, create memories together. I look forward to connecting with all the children the first week back of Term 2.

Keep safe and arohanui,

Sara (Mrs Mines)

Online Learning - what you need to know!

As we head into unchartered waters we want to let you know how your child’s learning journey will continue while they are learning online at home.

All of your child’s learning will be shared with you via Educa.  Please make sure you have access to this. If not you need to email your class teacher ASAP.

Weekly notices and information will be sent via our class blogs.

School Holidays:

Our Term 1 School Holidays have been brought forward to Monday the 30th of March.  We will be back online ready for distance learning on Wednesday the 15th of April.

Keeping in Touch:

You will receive a daily Google form via the class blog.  It will be wonderful if you can complete this with your child at least twice a week.  This form is a way to check-in and let us know what support you and your child require from their teacher.  If you need to contact the classroom teacher please send them an email and they will make contact with you, teachers will be available during normal school hours.  There will be more protocols being sent to parents around contacting teachers later today.

Reading:

In Kakano we run Guided reading sessions twice a week.   While your child is having to learn at home we will be providing audio links for books and activities for two books a week.  You will find the books needed in the pack each child brought home on Monday 23rd March. Remember reading to your child each day is a great way to relax and connect with your child.  There are lots of great books online that you can access. Upload a video to share a snippet of their reading each week - we would love to hear some reading, too.

Writing:

Teachers will provide Writing experiences and ideas twice a week.  When your child has completed a writing task please share with their teacher via Educa.  It could be a video of your child reading their work, a photo and/or a parent supported post straight on to Educa.  The teachers will be providing feedback to your child when their work is posted.

RE:

Each week we will share prayers that you can say with your child to start the day.  It is important we remember the Special Character of our school in this difficult time.  A lovely way to focus our thinking and ensure we are praying each day is to create a prayer table in our homes.  Ask your child what special items they would like to add their prayer table.

Maths:

The teachers will provide fun Maths challenges for your child to complete once a week.  Your child can share their responses with their teacher on Educa.

Lexia:

Every child in Kakano has access to Lexia which is an online Reading and Writing programme.  It is expected each child will spend 10 - 15mins a day on Lexia. Click here for parent information on Lexia.

Maths Whizz:

The Kakano children have just been given access to this online Maths programme.  Your child will need to complete a placement test before they can start their learning.  It is important you help your child with the technology but allow them to complete the maths tasks independently. Click here for parent information on Maths Whizz.  

Play:

The teachers will be creating a Bingo Board with fun activities for your child to complete while they are at home.  Your child can choose which activity they want to do. Remember to get outside and enjoy the fresh air.

Educa:

Over the next few days have a go at writing a parent story.  Click here to get instructions on how to write your own parent story.

Over the next few days:

Take time to be with your child, reassure them, play games, read books and have fun together.  To be the best Mum and Dad you have to take care of yourself too, go for a walk, have a bath and take deep breaths when needed.  Take this time to make sure your child can access both Lexia and Maths Whizz. If you need any support or help please email your class teacher, we are here to help both you and your child. Before the school holidays start we will be sending home a Holiday Reading Log and ideas for what you can do at home to pass the time.

Mrs Mines' email address:

saram@stmarysrotorua.school.nz

Week 8 Notices

WOW, what a week we had last week.  It has been pleasing to see so many of our children taking responsibility for washing their hands, covering their coughs and sneezes and making sure they blow their noses and dispose of their tissues.

Throughout the day the teachers are disinfecting tables, door handles and play equipment.  Can you please make sure you speak with your child about good hygiene as well as how we can safely greet our friends and teachers when we arrive at school.

It is very important for unwell children to stay at home.  If your child has a cough, runny nose or is generally feeling unwell PLEASE keep them at home to stop the spread of germs and bugs in our class.  If your child will be absent remember to let the school office know. You can do this via the School App.

Due to the Co-Vid19 outbreak, we will no longer be having school singing, liturgies or Masses.  We will still focus on our Special Character and have small class Liturgies. This week we will celebrate The Annunciation (where Mary was told she would be the Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ).

Our focus during play this week will be Music and Visual Art.  The children will be able to create, design and play in this learning area.  If you have any empty plastic bottles, cardboard boxes or a pile of rubber bands you no longer want could you please bring them to school.  We are going to create sweet music with the things we find around our homes!

We have been so impressed with the children as they practise their reading at home and at school.  You can support your child’s reading at home by reading with, and to them. You can also help them by encouraging them to identify letter sounds of different words, a great game to play is “I spy”.

The teachers have been providing the children with opportunities to solve Maths problems.  The children have enjoyed working together to add and subtract to solve different problems.  An easy way to support your child in maths at home is to get them to help set the dinner table, ask them to count the knives and then count the forks.  Can they add the knives and forks together to get a bigger number? Children love Maths when they can see a real-life connection.

Check out this website to find some cool ideas on how you can support your child in Maths at home.

Enjoy the rest of your Sunday and we look forward to seeing you all tomorrow,

Sara, Lorraine and Sany - Joy.

Week 7 Notices

Swimming:

Don’t forget this week we have swimming. We are very lucky to have a swimming pool at school and like to see all the children in the pool every day, so please remember togs and towels every day. The children love swimming and have made great progress in the pool. This week we will be practising floating on our back and floating on our front.

St Joseph Mass:

This Friday we will be heading to the church at 8.45am, so please make sure you have plenty of time to get morning jobs done before we need to head to the church.

Morning Jobs:

Please remember parents it is important for the children to carry their own school bags, mark their roll and put their Bookbag in the right box on their own.  It is great to see our tamariki becoming more independent each day.

Lent:

Tomorrow we will be sending some paper hearts home with the children. If they do something kind at home please help them write it on their heart then bring it back to school so we can make a kindness Lenten tree.

Pita Pit Fundraiser

Thank you to all those who supported the Pita Pit fundraiser. It was very successful for the school. It was great to see so many children enjoying a healthy lunch :-)

Hand Washing:

This week we for writing we will be doing a science experiment. The experiment will show children the importance of using soap when washing their hands. We will also look at the correct way to cough, sneeze and blow our nose. Please remember if your child is sick to keep them at home to avoid spreading bugs.

From the Prime Ministers speech at the weekend we will continue to remind our children of good hygiene practice:

Wash your hands

Dry your hands properly

If you sneeze, do it into your elbow

We will also be cleaning down our surfaces at least once a day such as tables, door handles etc.

We look forward to seeing everyone tomorrow.

Week 6 Notices

Firstly, thank you to all our whanau who supported our school Gala on Thursday.
This was a fabulous community event and fun for all involved.

Tomorrow we will be having a Kakano House sports event,
if you are able to help out please let me know.

Kakano House Sports Event

Date: Monday 9th March 2020

Time: 11:30 - 12:30

Place: St Mary’s school pool and field

What you need: togs, towel, PE gear OR house coloured sports gear.

On Wednesday we will be having Rice Day:

Caritas Fundraiser Wednesday 11th March.
Students will eat rice for lunch on this day.
Please send in a gold coin donation.
Ensure your child has a bowl/spoon to eat the rice.

Our new RE Leaders will be serving up lunch! 

Lunch is at 1:30pm

Thursday we are having a fundraiser as part of our Gala. Pita Pit are supporting us with this:

On Thursday 12th of March 2020 order your children a Healthy and Tasty Pita
for lunch and it will only cost $4.00!
For every lunch sold Pita Pit will contribute $2.00 to the Gala Fund.

To take part in this great deal and raise money for
the school you must order on the Lunchonline platform
before 9.00am on Thursday 12th of March 2020. No Promo code needed.

You can order from now!
The earlier you can order the better,
as the website experiences a lot of traffic just before 9.00am that day,
and we don’t want your child to miss out.

Parents, caregivers and students can order school lunches
using Lunchonline via the internet. 
Pita Pit Rotorua will provide your child’s food choices fresh to
the school in time for lunch.

It is simple all you need to do is visit

www.lunchonline.co.nz

Looks like we will be having a busy week filled with great experiences for the children.
Thank you for keeping up with all other routines during these weeks.
The students will get tired at these times and it is important to give them that routine
they need especially with healthy lunch boxes and early bedtimes.
When the warriors came to school they talked about the importance of water, healthy food, and sleep.
They recommended 10-12 hours of sleep for children.
It is great to hear our students saying that they know they go to bed at 7 o’clock.
They are taking responsibility for their bedtimes at an early age!

I look forward to seeing everybody tomorrow, have a great rest of the weekend

:)

Ills, Chills and Other Bugs

Strep throat is doing the rounds at the moment. 

Please, help us to prevent the spread by reminding children to...

1. cover nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing (covering with a tissue is best)

2. wash and dry hands frequently

3. stop sharing food and drink

Symptoms can include, headache, earache, chills, fever, sore throat or body aches. Strep throat is contagious virus! If your child has any of these symptoms please head to the doctor. The stand down period for strep throat is at least 24 hours from the first dose of antibiotics. 

Thanks heaps for your support,

The Kakano Team

Week 5 Notices

This week we see the first few days of Autumn.  The Autumn season is an exciting season and we can't wait to use our science skills to observe the changes in nature over the next few months.  

Sunhats:

Even though Summer has officially come to an end, we still need to wear our sunhats.  Please make sure your child has a NAMED sunhat with them each day at school. Those who do not have sunhats have to remain in the shade.

Swimming:

This week Kakano 4, 5 and 6 have swimming.  We are lucky to have a fabulous pool at our school and it is important all children learn to swim.  Please make sure your child has their swimming togs, towel and swim bag each day this week. Once again, please ensure your child’s belongings are named.

School times:

A reminder that school starts at 8:45.  The first part of the day is a great opportunity for children to meet and greet their friends and teachers.  We appreciate our wonderful parents spending time with their child in the morning but ask all parents to farewell their child by 8:45.  This allows all children to settle into their day without too much fuss.

Gala:

This week is our fabulous Gala.  The Gala is a great community event and will be taking place this Thursday 4pm - 7pm.  We thank all our wonderful parents and families who have been bringing items in for our Gala. 

Please see information below for items to bring in this week.

DAILY COUNTDOWN TO GALA DAY

Monday 2nd March	Grocery Day - Packet / Boxes day – Bring a packet or box of something e.g. biscuits, cereal, flour, crackers, chips, sultanas, cornflakes, breadcrumbs, Handee towels, jelly, pretzels etc.  Plastic bags appreciated
Tuesday 3th March	White Elephant  Day -Books, toys and Baby Elephant - Board games, children’s sporting equipment, CD's, DVD's, playstation games, jigsaws, homewares
Wednesday 4th March	Mystery Jar Day  A bit like a lucky dip, Fill an empty jar with anything new that children will  like. This could include party favours, bubbles, slime, lollies, chocolates, toy cars etc  Bring these in unwrapped so we can sort into boys and girls. Grocery, fresh fruit and vegetables day - Please bring to school any grocery items, tinned goods or fruit/vegetables from your garden e.g. tomatoes, feijoas, lettuce, zucchini etc
Thursday 5th March	GALA DAY!    HOMEMADE Cakes, biscuits, muffins, sweets, fudge, coconut ice, sweets, toffee apples and any fresh produce

All gala contributions to be taken to Hall foyer and placed in class boxes; 

PRIZES FOR 

Most goods donated

Most mystery jars 

Most cakes donated

 Lent Promises:

As we prepare for Easter during this Lent season we can give our children the opportunity to “Follow in the Footsteps” of Jesus.  Your child will be bringing home paper hearts, please write down any thing your child does that shows love, generosity, kindness or helpfulness for someone else.  These paper hearts can be returned to school where we will add them to our Lenten Promise Tree.

Message from Mr MacMillan:

CORONAVIRUS

All schools in New Zealand have been sent further information from the Secretary for Education, Iona Holsted, regarding a first confirmed case of Coronavirus in New Zealand. This confirmed case was announced by the Prime Minister on Friday.

Here are the key messages for our school:

- Be alert but not alarmed - there is no cause for panic or worry.

- Chances of any community outbreak remain very low.

- This doesn’t affect what we already are doing and the plans we and health authorities already have in place.

- Practising good hand and sneeze/cough hygiene is the best defence for any illness.

Travellers:

- Travellers coming from Mainland China and Iran are required to self-isolate for 14 days and report to Healthline's dedicated Coronavirus line on 08003585453.

- Travellers coming from Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Singapore and Thailand, who develop a fever, cough or shortness of breath should contact their GP's office or Healthline on 08003585453.

As always, contact your GP or Healthline 0800611116 (general advice line) if ever you are concerned about your own or others health.