Parent Information

I would like to welcome Macy, Lily and Ethan from Timaru, they joined us today in the senior classes and will be with us for the next few weeks. I know everyone here will make them feel welcome and also learn from them as well.

Tomorrow morning 8:45 – 9:15 there is a parent information session to be held in the staffroom. The topic is ‘Students taking responsibility for their own learning.’  The world has changed since we were at school and it is important to understand that schooling has changed too.  The idea of students having any responsibility for their learning when I was at school was unheard of. These days learning is something done with the children, not to them.  If you’d like to know more, please come along and ask any questions you have or just listen and find out what it’s all about.

I recently heard from the Ministry of Education that our school charter has been approved for the year.  Our charter is the guiding document for our school and it is pleasing to know that the Ministry support our direction and the goals we have set.  These goals are as follows:

- To grow the roll to 78

- To enable the use of hand-held devices in the school

- To develop an environmental consciousness across the school

- To develop an understanding of what at Governors Bay School supports Maori learning

- To communicate and collaborate with other schools locally, nationally and internationally to develop an understanding of people who don’t live in our community.

These goals are, of course, over and above the basic academic rigour of everyday teaching and learning.

Over the course of the year I will keep you up to date with how these are progressing, but in the meantime if you have any questions about them, or indeed feel you could offer your ideas or support to any of them, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Our Yr 8s hosted Pieta and Luke this afternoon as part of a new initiative to have the community more involved with the school, and everyone had a wonderful time. It is great leadership experience for the Yr 8s and a lot of fun for the pre-school children as well as a chance for them to get to know the school.