OUR TERM VALUES

Tolerance            Trust              Fun            Creativity & Innovation

TERM 1, 2012 DIARY DATES

All current Year 7 students received a small pack of information sheets about 2012 on Monday. This included the Annual Calendar, School Charges, Training Camp and Stationery requirements. Please keep all that information in a safe place. For now please see again the Term 1 calendar.

* = “Parent/Whanau – Principal Coffee Chats” (before assembly at 9.30am; on the first Friday of the month)

Prize Giving – as mentioned at the beginning of this newsletter, this morning we had our Prize Giving ceremony and it was an incredibly special, enjoyable and successful occasion – just unfortunate that not all children receive an award but I know all deserve one for something they have done or achieved throughout the year and so we congratulate them as well; with a special congratulations to the children beloW

CLASS AWARDS

SUBJECT AWARDS

MAJOR AWARDS

2012 School Councillors – over the past three weeks prospective 2012 School Councillors, made up of Year 7 students have been busy writing letters, speeches, and being interviewed for the eight School Councillor positions for 2012. We are running our School Council and Councillor system differently next year and we congratulate the following students who were successful in achieving this role. A special thank you however to all students who were short listed. Congratulations: Jayamont Upoko-Rino Rm 21, Carlos Tuala Rm 74, Aaliyah Tuhua Rm 15, Mallory Ireland Rm20, Kava Patrick Rm 74, Anjali Karan Rm 3, Sau Fatuleai Rm 23 and Philip Alesana Rm 20.

THANK YOU SO MUCH

To all parents and caregivers – for taking an interest in your children and by association our school – for all the things you do to support your child and the activities you have been involved in the throughout the year. We realize everyone is busy, so therefore appreciate any involvement that you have been able to offer. Any institution or business will never satisfy everybody and nor do I believe that we should be attempting to satisfy everyone’s individual wishes or desires. This would be impossibility with 750 families, and 1500 parents/ caregivers but I assure you we do try. We go out of our way to do what we believe is the right thing and your support, encouragement, suggestions, positive feedback and involvement is appreciated and indeed wanted. We look forward to this continuing in 2012.

On behalf of all the staff and Board I wish you and your families and friends a very Merry Christmas, a happy and safe holiday period, a successful and exciting New Year and all the staff look forward to Tuesday 7th February 2012 with eager anticipation. Best wishes.

To Board of Trustees Members – for your time, encouragement, commitment and in allowing the staff to get on and do the job without petty interference – which does occur in many schools, incapacitating them to do anything of use for their kids. We appreciate your support.

The General Community – I would like to pay a special thanks to all the people who have no direct ties with our school – the feedback and involvement from community members has been incredibly positive this year and this is a vital link for any school and one we want to develop even moreso. Thank you!

To All Staff – there is a philosophy that states any school or business is only as good as its leader – this may well be true and of course I have to believe this, but seriously I also believe that a school is only as good as staff who get in behind things, who lead things, who create excitement and fun and learning for our kids and who do a job, whatever that may be, to enable things to happen and I believe we are very fortunate here at Manurewa Intermediate School to have a growing number of committed, talented, interested, enthusiastic and hard working staff who are starting to provide a wealth of opportunities and experiences for our kids, who are giving their own time freely and who possess huge reserves of energy. They deserve all the gratitude and thanks for all that they have done throughout 2011 and for all that they will continue to do.

FAREWELL

a)    To our Year 8 students – following is a summary from my prize giving speech farewelling our current        Year 8 students: “And so to our Year 8 students who head off to your next educational adventures at, I believe, 9 or so different secondary school providers – thank you for being such wonderful ambassadors for Manurewa over the past 2 years, continue to get fully involved in all that is on offer at secondary school and for those who may not have been hugely involved in other activities here, make sure you endeavour to next year, as it is the extra things that you get involved in that will make your secondary schooling experience so rewarding, successful and challenging. So if I was to offer one piece of advice for secondary school it would be to grab life by the scruff of the neck, to take a risk and go for it! Put in the effort, cultivate the right attitude and maintain the constructive energy that we have been endeavouring to foster over the last two years at Manurewa Intermediate. Enjoy Year 9 and let us know how it goes! On behalf of our entire school we wish you well. You will always be special to me as you were ‘my kids’…the first kids starting with me, and I thank you for all your efforts and forbearance as we have trialled and changed things, and fixed and built things and generally done so much around you as you have continued learning!”.

b)    To Staff leaving – this is also the time of year where we farewell permanent or fixed term staff so we wish these leavers well and thank them for all the work they have done and the time and aroha they have given to our children over the varying amount of time they have been here Farewell to:

 Fixed Term Staff:

Victoria Henderson – who is off to St Ignatius School in St Heliers.

 Permanent Staff:

·        Deb Brett – who is off to Australia to live

·        Maria Veronese – who is off to teach at a secondary school

·        Rachel Lynch – who is off to live on the “other side” of the bridge and to teach at Glenfield Intermediate School

·        Cindy Taylor – who is off on a similar, but different career path – managing an Early Childhood Centre.

 GOOD LUCK TO YOU ALL!!!