Elm Park School Newsletter - Term 1

6 April 2023

Dear Parents/Caregivers and Whānau of Elm Park School

Greetings, Kia ora, Fakaalofa Lahi atu, Bula vinaka, Malo e lelei, Talofa lava, Taloha, Kia orana, Ni hao

After a bumpy start to the school year, we have had a very successful term 1. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all of our teachers for providing excellent learning programmes and also for the professional learning and development they are undertaking themselves. Kia kaha teachers!

Of course, our completed playground has been a highlight and now we move on to the refurbishment of Room's 28 - 30. This will take until at least October I am predicting but to have 3 new modern classrooms will be so good for our students and our teachers. You will have noticed the grounds are much improved! A very big thank you to Mr Biddick our property manager and Mr Koks the groundsman, they have done an immense amount of work and I'd like to personally thank them for all their work and positive attitude with what at times seems an insurmountable job.

Our students have not only had exciting classroom programmes but as a school, we have committed to providing lots of sporting opportunities. This term we have had rugby, tennis, cricket, and Kelly Sports. Bringing these external providers in has been very deliberately done as we value exposure to opportunities for all students. We know they have been very well received by the students and teachers. Thank you to Mrs Harmse and Miss Thomas for all the organisation around these events.

Last, but certainly not least! We were treated to outstanding performances by our Indian Dance Group and our Pasifikia Group last week when they performed at the HPPA cultural festival. Both groups were outstanding and I was proud to be the principal of Elm Park School as the groups represented and showcased EPS very proudly.

Finally, thank you to all the parents, family, and whānau who continue to support us, from our BOT members to the encouraging words at the gate we receive. We hope you have a lovely Easter and break! We will see you all on Wednesday 26 April, remembering Monday 24 is a staff-only day and Tuesday 25 is ANZAC day.

Thank you for your support of our school
Kind regards
Ngā mihi nui
Sarah Baleicakau

An opportunity of a lifetime! 10 of our Senior students spent their day learning through Minecraft Education. We started the day with a tour of Microsoft, setting up for multiplayer and understanding the task at hand. We were provided with some building challenges about local landmarks.

After morning tea, we spent time building a world to showcase our chosen challenge. We had specific roles for each team member like team leader, researcher, timekeeper and recorder. We then went on to create our own roles like designer.

After a leisurely lunch with a great view of the Viaduct Harbour, we continued building. Soon it was time to share our worlds with two other schools, which was a challenge in itself because we could not stop giggling with excitement!

Thank you to Mrs Dreyer for making this day happen!

Shout out to Mrs Van Rensburg and Mrs Kumar for chauffeuring us to the city. Both our teachers helped us collaborate for better results ... and provided very mild tech support :)

This is what our students had to say about their exciting day :)

And our team name was called Kool beans kool with a k. We set our world on a sustainable city which is a futuristic city and a hobition. From The Hobbit . We started the city with a mountain that was about 3 or 4 blocks high and too many blocks to count wide. We finally finished the mountain with a lot of team work although it did take an hour or so. We decided to have a waterfall that was attached to the mountain and we tried to make a secret room inside but it didn't really work out so we rick rolled everyone hehehe. Once we finished the waterfall and the amazing rick roll sign we started to make some buildings . We tried and tried to make them look as realistic as we could but we couldn’t so we just built random buildings. We didn't finish it but it was still fun to present it . Oh and by the way they weren't happy that we rick rolled everyone. I must say we all had a great time and it was a great opportunity to play Minecraft hehehe.