Ora Kio Kio Whānau,

It's a pleasure to connect with you as we enter the final half of Term 4 next week! This last leg is crucial, and it’s an important time to remind ourselves of the value of finishing strong and finishing well. We encourage all students to continue embodying our POWER values in every aspect of school life, thriving and striving to be the best they can be.

As we look forward to the next few weeks, I want to acknowledge our dedicated staff. They are working hard under pressure to finalise student assessments, analyse the data, and cross-check book work to ensure a comprehensive and accurate understanding of each student’s progress. Teachers will use all of this information to report on each student's achievement on the end-of-year reports.

🏃‍♀️ Athletics Success and Sportsmanship

Our Athletics Day was a huge success! Every student ran, jumped, and threw to the best of their abilities. I was incredibly proud to witness our school values shine through, particularly perseverance, as students had to dig deep to push past their limits in every event. Unfortunately, the weather didn't entirely cooperate, but regardless of this, our students showed resilience, and we powered on to complete all the events. I would like to send out a huge thank you to Miss Kirsten Beck and Mrs Emma Telfer, who organised and ran the day seamlessly.

Yesterday, 39 students proudly represented Kio Kio School at the COPS (Combined Otorohanga Primary Schools) Inter-Schools Athletics held at Otorohanga South School. The competition was fierce, but our students competed incredibly well, securing many wins and top-three placings. Beyond their athletic achievements, I would like to applaud our students for their exceptional sportsmanship that truly shone through. During the high jump, one of our students was the final two competitors, coming in an admirable 2nd place. Our student headed straight over to the winner, shook their hand, and offered genuine congratulations—a moment of maturity and respect that made me incredibly proud to witness. This was only one example of the many times throughout the day our students showed their exceptional sportsmanship. The day finished with an exciting sprint relay, with Kio Kio taking 2nd place overall!

💚 Gumboot Friday Support

Tomorrow, Friday, November 7th, Kio Kio School will be supporting Gumboot Friday. This is a fantastic initiative that provides free counselling services for young people in New Zealand aged 25 and under. With public mental health services facing long wait times, Gumboot Friday offers timely access to qualified counsellors. We encourage students to wear their gumboots and bring a gold coin donation to show their support. You can find more information about their vital work at https://www.gumbootfriday.org.nz/. Check out the rest of the newsletter for more information.

⚕️ Health Reminders: Measles and Head Lice

Measles remains a concern, and we ask for your vigilance. It is crucial to remember that if an unimmunized child is exposed to a confirmed case of measles, they must be isolated at home for up to two weeks to prevent the spread, as directed by Public Health officials. Please ensure you contact the school if your child or your family has been exposed to measles.

We have had a couple of cases of head lice reported in our school. Please take the time to check your child’s hair and treat it immediately if you find any signs.

📚 New Curriculum Update

As you may have heard through the media, the final content for the English and Mathematics & Statistics Curricula has just been released. Teachers are required to begin teaching from these revised documents from 2026 onwards. I would like to applaud our staff for enthusiastically embracing these changes and working professionally to continually upskill their curriculum knowledge.

Next year, we will have two more Teacher Only Days specifically dedicated to enhancing our curriculum understanding and knowledge. We are committed to excellence, but please bear with us this year as we navigate these significant changes; we are all learning and working through the new requirements as they are presented to us.

🚨 Practice Lockdown Drill

Last week, we finished the week with a practice lockdown drill. These emergency drills are important for ensuring students are aware of what they need to do and where they need to go should a real emergency occur, reinforcing a calm and safe response.

🎉 Celebration Assembly

Tomorrow, Friday, November 7th, is our Celebration Assembly, starting at 2:00 PM. We will come together to celebrate our students' achievements. I hope to see you there to share in their success!

Nga mihi nui,

Pip Were

Principal, Kio Kio School

STUDENT LUNCHES

Just a reminder, can we please not have sent to school food that needs heating or cooking for children school lunches. Our teachers are having their well deserved lunch break themselves, therefore are unavailable or on duty. Your assistance with this would be very much appreciated.

SUN SMART- HATS

All students are to wear a hat when playing outstide. NO HAT- NO PLAY! Those students without a hat are asked to sit under the large tree on our Cobham Lawn. Please name your child/ren's hats.

LOST PROPERTY

Please check the Lost Property rack that is on the front deck at the moment and encourage your children to take a look too. Named items will be returned to students, but unnamed gear is starting to pile up.

STUDENT ABSENCES

If your child is going to be absent from school, please advise the office by phone (078731816), email (admin@kiokio.school.nz) or the absent tab on the @School Parent APP with the reason so the absence can be marked correctly for the Ministry of Education. If the school is not notified, the child is deemed TRUANT and marked accordingly. If your child is late to school, they must come to the office and sign in on the electronic register.

STUDENTS ENTERING & LEAVING SCHOOL

Please make sure that your child/ren are dropped off and collected from the bus shelter each day.
We are enforcing safety rules at school pick-up and drop-off. Children are NOT to open our school gates. Parents are required to drop off inside the gate and come into the school grounds to collect their children. This is a safety measure. Our carpark is very busy at the end of the day and we need to do everything we can to keep everyone safe.

BUS BOOK REMINDER

Please ensure that the school office is informed early if your child won't be on the school bus in the afternoon. We also need to be contacted if your child/ren are getting off at another stop. You can do this by phoning the school office on 07 8731816 or emailing admin@kiokio.school.nz

PEANUT ALLERGY

We have a student in Kahikatea class with a severe peanut allergy who cannot come into contact with peanuts or products with peanuts in them. We ask that parents do not send peanuts or any peanut related products to school, so that we can keep this student safe. Thank you for your understanding.