BOT Newsletter – April 2022

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

The 2022 school year is now well underway and we are pleased that our students are learning onsite after the disruptions of last year. In this first newsletter for 2022 we address student achievement, thank those that have paid their donation, acknowledge the centennial and provide updates on progress with school property.

It’s worth acknowledging both the challenge that COVID continues to present and also the response of our school community. The school Leadership Team has built resilience into school operations this year by planning for the use of relievers and the support of Learner Assistants and so preventing the need to close classes or parts of the school. Their proactive approach has minimised disruptions to our learners. At times this term up to 20% of our teaching staff have been isolating at home and despite this there have been no instances where an entire classroom has been closed.

Student Achievement

The board’s most important responsibility is for student achievement.

Our school measures academic performance and then directs resources to continuously improve the learning outcomes for our students. The disruptions caused by COVID have made it more challenging both because students were required to learn off site and we have less data on student achievement. The school Leadership Teams plan to improve student achievement through a range of initiatives including:

• Rebuilding student engagement and wellbeing at the start of Term 1 though a range of interactive activities. Learning through the year will build upon this platform.
• Undertaking formative assessments in Term 1 to confirm where students are operating against the curriculum. The Assessment Snapshot meetings will share the findings with you as this relates to your child(ren)
• Sustaining our high ratio of staff to learners which has become of hallmark of Kohimarama School. The school has increased the staff ratio in Kiri and Cowley to bolster the performance of those entering Year 4 when nationally recognised PAT testing commences.
• Continued development of the intervention and enrichment programmes led by specialist staff. Notably, work is being done to integrate the intervention and enrichment approach back into the classroom through coaching of Learner Assistants.

Further details are communicated through school newsletters.

Financials

Thank you to those that have paid your donations. Donations contribute primarily to the funding of additional teaching staff and  Learner Assistants  at the school. As noted above the additional teachers and Learner Assistants are fundamental to our approach to student achievement and this year have contributed to our ability to function and minimise classroom closures during the pandemic.

We are also grateful to those who have signed up to TaxGift (taxgift.co.nz) enabling the tax refundable component of your school donation to be reinvested in the school. All parent board members have signed up to TaxGift and it was great to see the first payment of over $6,000 to the school late last year. Please sign up now if you have not done so already.  Details of this are on the website and can be actioned via Kindo.

Centennial

Last year the school marked its’ 100^th year of operation. The centennial events that were planned were unfortunately unable to take place due to COVID restrictions. We would like to acknowledge the phenomenal efforts of Lynda and her team to plan the centennial celebrations. Thanks also to those who have contributed to the recent charity auction. A centennial tree will shortly be planted in the wooden garden box between Snell Team and the courts. A plaque to commemorate the centenary will be placed with the tree. 

Property

New learning hub – The year commenced with our new learning hub accommodating our Year 3 students on Kohimarama Road. These temporary classrooms are a great asset to the school and have enabled all students to resume use of the library for its intended purpose. We thank the Ministry of Education for making these rooms available as we address our larger roll.

Property Masterplan – The Ministry of Education has approved the commencement of masterplanning which will deliver longer term solutions to our current and future roll growth demands. This is a significant milestone for our school after a sustained period of dialogue with the Ministry. In March we contributed to this process by submitting a brief on our school operations. This information will be used to help Ministry of Education planners to understand the unique nature of our school and plan improvements accordingly.

Fencing – The school is engaging with Ministry of Education designers to finalise plans for improved perimeter fencing. The fencing will improve site security and we are working to incorporate elements that reflect our heritage.

Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees is a collection of representatives from the school community and we welcome engagement with you. The membership of the Board is determined by vote every three years. Elections will be held this year with nominations called in July and elections in September.