Russell Street School

Autumn 2017 It’s time to sign off. This week represents the end of an era for me, after fifteen years as Principal (and earlier, nine years as a Teacher/Senior Teacher) at Russell Street School. I found it really hard leaving the first time, and this time is no different. In total, 24 years of my career and life have been dedicated to this community and I have to say it has been an absolute pleasure. I have always considered this the best job within the sector and gladly got up each morning to be part of a positive, progressive team. So, why have I chosen to leave, as a very clever six year old girl asked me a couple of weeks ago? I have always been motivated by having as much influence on the outcomes for as many learners as possible –not just those in my class, or in our school, but those in other schools and in other contexts. My new job will give me an exciting opportunity to coach primarily first-time Principals, across a wider region, in that quest. So, it isn’t so much why I am leaving, but more what is motivating me to take on a new challenge. I want to thank the successive boards for supporting my own growth and development and also pay tribute to the innovative staff, past and present that continue to give these children the very best opportunities. I’ve loved working with and learning alongside you all. I’m not retiring so I won’t fill the rest of this page with reflections! I look forward to meeting up with some of you at the 100th jubilee (2029)! I offer the school, the community and the new Principal, the very best wishes for the future. Warm regards to you all, David Reardon Principal Above: Jump Rope action; Right: Senior boys, fun times on gym pole.

Community Newsletter

Term One Log: • New staff, families and students welcomed 9.00 am of the first day through powhiri; • Karen joins us as the school gardener; • Sarah from Swimming NZ provides staff with professional development on water safety and swim instruction. Large numbers participate in school sports at Lido; • Our team of eight gain great results at Northern Cluster Swimming; • Our ePro8 Technology Team wins through to semi-finals, after winning regional round one; • Patio blinds are added to part of Monarch deck, following letters from R8 students about their bags getting wet; • Soundworks relaunches its Music/Instrument lessons at RSS. Children can learn almost anything! • Thanks to Pub Charity, along with funds from our Supporters’ Club and Board, we have a wonderful new audio and sound system in the hall! • The whole school visits ‘Te Ahu a Turanga Marae’, with senior students staying overnight and walking the gorge track. • Several Vodafone Warriors visit as part of the school programme when they are playing in Palmy; • School sometimes starts at 8.30 (informally) as new entrants engage in play-based learning and all students try out ‘Morning Maths Busters’; • Our enjoyable weekly visits to Willard Home are re-started; • Good turnout to ‘Meet the Parent’, a chance for parents to tell teachers anything that might be important about their child (and therefore helpful in establishing a good relationship); • Charter workshop held, involving parents, board, supporters, staff and some student voice! • Freyberg High staff spends time in RSS classes, as part of our Community of Learning partnership.

Board of Trustees’ Window: The board has focused its time and energy on a number of critical matters –developing annual plans in key areas; further developing the framework for our new strategic plan and charter; initiating and completing a number of property projects; and working towards the appointment of a new Principal. The front fence and gate is almost complete and very soon the new, more functional front entrance will be too. Our cameras are being upgraded and extended to a higher resolution/quality. The full repaint of the school is about to be started over the break; games are being repainted on the rear courtyard surface; and trees are to be planted along the eastern boundary of the scooter park. And in a year of property development, the outside toilets and Rooms 6/7 will be remodeled/ renovated as part of the capital works programme. We’re delighted that we have been able to secure additional resourcing this year to support learners that might not yet be reaching the maths standards. The ‘Maths Support Teacher’ role gives us resourcing to provide additional small group learning, on top of regular classroom instruction, throughout 2017. This complements the reading recovery literacy intervention beautifully. The board is currently working through a thorough process of recruiting and appointing a new Principal, following the resignation of our longstanding and highly respected Principal, David. Applications close just after Anzac Day, so we should have the full process complete by mid/end of May.

Left: Basketball with Miles Pearce; Below: A Willard Home resident enjoying two students reading to her!

Student Leadership: We value the place of children learning to be leaders. In the case of year 6s it is an expectation that they assume one of the formal roles. This includes such things as: road patrol, office angels, hub helpers, peer mediators, moo crew, sports crew, art fairies, CLICK helpers, garden gnomes, radio station reps …the list goes on. In some cases, children already have many of the dispositions and skills required to perform these roles with success, but it is our belief that even if they haven’t (got these skills yet) they should still get the benefit of learning through these roles i.e. to develop leadership. Of course in the case of road patrol, where stakes are higher, there does need to be some pre-requisite skills. Class Reports: One of the best ways of keeping in the learning loop is to visit class blogs. Every class has a blog and these are linked from the school website. Many parents view these several times per week. They often show learning using images, video, audio recordings, text or a mix of some/all of them. We welcome anyone who is an audience to view and leave comments that are helpful to the learner –either affirmation of a job well done, a question prompting further thought, or an idea for how it could be further improved. Below is a very good example, from Tohora Nui: Kelly Club (Out of School Care and Holiday Programmes): Kelly Club operates out of Russell Street School! No down time travelling to another provider and really convenient for the end of day pick up. Right now they are taking registrations for the school holiday programme and term two registrations. Visit www.kellyclub.co.nz The feedback from RSS students and families has been incredibly positive! Join up now. Enrolment at RSS: An updated copy of the enrolment scheme can be found by visiting the following website page: http://russellst.school.nz/wp-content/ uploads/2013/11/EnrolmentScheme4.pdf or by contacting the office.

The RSS student roll continues to be full, with a waiting list. If you’re new to the area and have pre-school age children it is very likely we’ll meet soon. To assist us with planning, and to avoid over-crowding, it is very helpful to know a.s.a.p. of any in-zone children that are likely to attend Russell Street in coming years. Please ring Ag or Rachelle in the office and make sure your child/ren are on this list at your earliest convenience. If your child’s usual place of residence is in-zone and not temporary, then enrolment is assured!

Please note the date of the next ballot (for families seeking an out of zone enrolment in term 3, 2017) is May 12. Jumpstart Class: If your son/daughter is joining us then you’ll want to know about our four year old class held on a Friday morning (for students in the three months prior to their enrolment). ‘Jumpstart’ is one way that students get a ‘taster’ of school, getting to know some of the faces that will support them in their learning, taking out a

library book and engaging in some emergent literacy and numeracy skills. It is also a valuable time to become familiar with some other children of the same age who will be making the transition to school with them. If you want to know more about this please ring Ag or Rachelle in the office.