PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
Welcome back to school for 2024!
It was lovely to welcome children and whānau back to school this morning along with our new families this year. There were lots of smiles and excitement as the day began. Our staff have been busy creating classroom spaces, planning and organising resources for term 1 as well as taking a little time to spend with their whānau and refresh for the year ahead.
Some areas of professional learning our staff will be focussing on this year are PR1ME mathematics, Pause Breathe Smile (wellbeing), PlayLab (using movement/hands on activities to support the learning of literacy and mathematics) and we will continue to imbed Structured Literacy across the school.
This year we did not start with a Mihi Whakatau as some staff and Board members will be going to Puketeraki Marae in March to learn about local tikaka and how to apply this within our kura. Our partnership with Kāi Tahu and Puketeraki Marae allows us to develop expertise alongside Mana Whenua. We will also be inviting a number of children to be Kaihautu (Navigators) who will work with Mana Whenua to support teachers and children with what te ao Māori looks like at Palmerston School.
A reminder that school starts at 8.30am at which time children will have access to their classrooms and breakfast club. Before 8.30am teachers are busy in meetings, organising resources, planning and getting their own children to school. As a small school we do not have the capacity to have staff available to monitor children outside of school hours.
As many of you arrived this morning you would have noticed the fence which has been started. A huge thank you goes to Mr G and the staff who worked throughout 2022/2023 to get the Ministry of Education to agree to fence the school. How lucky are we!
Ngā mihi nui
Kerry Forse
Principal/Tumuaki
