Hi All,
We had wonderful prize-giving ceremonies yesterday in a very packed Settlers Hall. Thank you to all those families that attended. At the senior school ceremony our New Head Students for 2017 were announced. We are very proud to tell everyone that Jenny MacKinnon and Troy Barnett will be our Head Students next year. They received the "Rose Cup", donated by the Rose family to be shared by the head students of each year.
Congratulations to Troy and Jenny. Being chosen as Head Students is a huge accolade and there are large responsibilities attached to this role. We know you are highly capable of carrying out your roles as Head Students and we look forward to all you will achieve next year.
Principal's Address:
Kia ora koutou katoa, Talofa Lava, Malo e lelei, Ni Hao, Anyoung haseyo, Konichi wa, Gruetzi, Guten tag, Bonjour, Ola, hello
At our annual prize-giving it is always a pleasure to speak to you all about highlights of the school year and aspects of what the future holds for Tauriko School.
In speaking to staff and a range of parents recently it is apparent that there are many strengths of Tauriko School and these are the reason that staff choose to work here and parents choose to bring their children to learn here. Having also spoken to students, what is common to all these groups is the wide range of opportunities that our students have each term to explore learning in different ways and to showcase their learning quite publicly at times.
Having these opportunities is quite deliberate and planned in order that the New Zealand curriculum comes alive for students and is meaningful. Many opportunities are now on a regular annual or bi-annual cycle in order that students can revisit their learning and progressively build on this over the eight years they are at Tauriko School. School camps, a range of trips out of school and whole school sporting events happen each year. This year we introduced the WOW wearable arts, this or an art exhibition, will happen every two years now with the alternate year being our whole school production. This whole school production is already planned for Term 2 next year and will be "Maui The Magnificent”. Our Marae trip was a highlight in Term 2 this year and next year in the alternate year we will again have a Hangi and children will have this experience. These experiences and our developing bi-cultural curriculum enable students to explore who they are as New Zealanders/ tangata whenua in a bi-cultural context first and foremost. The need to build this strength of strong identity in our students was identified by our whanau group and by ERO in their visit last year. It is part of the school Charter.
As part of this Charter the school also has a strategic focus to ensure our students are prepared for and able to participate fully in a global world both now and in the future. Languages are part of this focus and as well as Te Reo Maori and English our students learn Mandarin from Year 3 and have continued to pick up French in Year 7 and 8.
This year we introduced International students to our school, who study with us long term. This, along with our families who have immigrated from other countries, means our students have wonderful opportunities to learn in a diverse environment. This has created a natural and normal curiosity amongst our students to learn about the different ways that different cultures live and their languages and this learning was celebrated this year for the first time in an International Day. We are proud of the way our students enjoy, respect and value each other’s unique make up. This breeds tolerance, a value that enhances our school and that our children will take out into the local and global community beyond our gates.
This year, after about two years of discussion across a range of organisations, I was able to announce that NZTA will reduce the speed limit outside our school to 40km per hour at busy pick up and drop off times of the school day. There is also work being done by the Ministry of Education and the Tauranga City Council to discuss leasing land for a carpark with our wonderful neighbours, the Hopping whanau. It is hoped that this will be in place for the beginning of the school year.
Recent discussions with NZTA tell me the variable speed limit is on track and I know the Council are working with the MOE to prepare a plan to discuss the lease for the carpark. There has been a huge amount of work that has gone into this and I would like to thank the previous and present Board for their support in making this a reality. To those of you out there who emailed and made phone calls to these organisations, to support me and to express your concern for our very real safety issue, thank you very much. This pressure has helped.
The community involvement in and support of Tauriko School is a very real strength of this place. It is special and something we can all be very proud of. In so many ways throughout the year it is evident in classrooms, on trips, on the side of the sports field and in supporting major events to happen. Most recently I commented at our WOW exhibition as to how clearly this was visible when people waited outside our packed community hall and only saw part of the show in order that all parents could see their particular children. This was community in action, caring for each other.
Our school is operating in a time of great change due to the growth of Tauranga. Most of you will have heard from your children or noticed as you walk through the school the building that is finally happening, Three new classrooms are being constructed, a fourth is being renovated, a new toilet block is being built and we will have an upgraded drainage and sewage system, all in place for the beginning of the school year. This will mean we can get our PAC, music suite and library back. It will also mean that finally the money raised by the PTA and community a couple of years ago to renovate the library will be spent. The library will be freshened up next year. This will also mean we have enough classrooms for our current numbers and a new New Entrant class during the year. We will have no spare classroom space beyond this and as further growth occurs the Ministry will supply roll growth classrooms for in-zone students.
The Board and I are aware that there are plans to put a four lane state highway outside the school. It has also been announced that land behind the school and down to the Wairoa River is Tauriko West and is the next land for sub-division development. At this time there is no definite timeframe for this. This means both the Board and I are working in a difficult planning environment which can make decision making challenging. We will endeavour to keep the community as informed as we can about implications for the school as this happens. There is a strong wish by the Board and myself that the history, traditions and strengths of Tauriko School and its community are kept firmly in mind as change happens.
I want to thank our new Board this year for standing in the BOT election and being to prepared to give of their time and talents for the benefit of the school. I so appreciate your support. Many Board members are new to the Board and I know they are learning a lot about good governance in their roles.
Thanks too must of course go to the PTA who have raised approximately $23,000 this year. This has gone towards kapahaka costumes, reducing costs for ARGOS Gym visits for all students this year, library books and classroom headsets to use alongside ICT equipment. Money will also be spent on putting air conditioning units in as many classrooms as possible for the beginning of the school year.
The work that goes into fundraising events is much appreciated by the whole school community and so much by the staff and I. Several long standing members of the PTA are stepping down this year and I would like to encourage you all to consider becoming involved in the PTA and carrying on the great work that happens here. This work has very real and practical impacts in the school for all students.
At this stage of the year I wish to again thank my amazing staff (teachers, admin staff and teacher aides) for their passion and commitment to our students and the school as a whole. They too have been challenged by the growth of the school with many working in adhoc spaces with children and just getting on and ensuring that quality learning continues to happen for their students. All have worked with little space for meetings and release time and have just got on and made it work. I want to thank them for this as I know how lucky I am that they have acted with a positive attitude in this environment. I thank them all for their support, it is much valued and I enjoy working with you all each and every day.
To the students here today also I wish to say a big thank you. This year some of you have learnt in challenging spaces and at the moment you are playing in a smaller space. Next year we won’t know ourselves with more classrooms and our playground back! I want to thank all the many students who have lead in a range of different ways throughout the year. Your contributions to the school for other students support our school to be the great place it is. The skills you learn in this service for others you will take with you into the future, contributing to the communities you belong to.
All of us, using our skills and talents, have created success this year and all of us have learnt more about ourselves, each other and the world around us along the way.
There is a Maori proverb that reminds us that we can all use our own abilities and resources to create success where ever we are:
He kai kei aku ringa
There is food at the end of my hands
