Greetings to one and all. If you are a parent or a member of the wider community, welcome to our 2nd Community newsletter for the year. 10 years ago my wife and I decided to leave the rat race that was (and still is) Auckland, for the healthier lifestyle you get living in the country. As with any big decision like that, we had to weigh up the pros and cons. Sure there were shops and restaurants and other amenities closer to where we lived, but on the minus side there was ridiculous housing costs (which 10 years ago had nothing on today!), traffic, self-absorbed neighbours, the list goes on. Choosing to educate your children at small country schools is also a little like that. There are pros and cons. The question is which outweighs the other? On the cons side, schools with only 50 students across 8 year levels are unlikely to field a range of school sports teams. It is unlikely they will have the luxury of specialist teachers for 2nd languages, music or cooking. Small schools may not have some of the flash of larger schools (I have seen schools with dedicated drama studios, school Productions with $5000 budgets, and even their own TV studios). HOWEVER, lets look at the pro side of the equation. In a small country school you are a real person and not just a number. Everyone in the school knows everyone else and at schools like Kaihere there is a real extended family feel. Our small size allows us to be transportable. We can easily (relatively) take the whole school on a trip and share the experience between us. Our younger students are cared for and supported by their older peers. Buddy teaching is a powerful method of learning and works well in a country school. At Kaihere, our children retain their innocence and our older students will still happily engage in imaginative play with younger students, without having issues of peer pressure from others who feel they have to conform to acting a certain way at a certain age (nearly a decade teaching at an Intermediate lets me say this is very true of most Year 7 & 8s). We have the flexibility to work with our students, tailor-ing their learning towards things that interest them. Gath-ering student opinion and voice is something we actively engage in at Kaihere school...not easily done in a school of 300+.

Week 3 Term 2 2015

So, would I trade my country life to go back to Auckland? You couldnt drag me back there with a Kenworth truck! Do I believe that quality education in a small country school out-weighs what bigger town schools can offer? Well the proof of the pudding to that question is where do my children go to school? Kaihere School! Ka kite ano Terry Casey The first couple of years at school are crucial. They are a time when young children develop a lot of their ideas about language and print conventions. Key to developing great reading and writing skills are developing excellent oral skills. We are trying to establish an oral language program for our Year 1 and some year 2 students. We need your help. Mrs Jensen-Gaiger has set up a program that requires some adult help. Could you spare an hour once or twice a week (after 1.30) to help make this program a reality? You would be playing games with a small group of children and just engaging them in talk about what they are doing. You dont have to be a parent, just anyone in the community who would like to help some lovely children as they begin their learning journey at school. If you think this is you, please call Terry on 02102675462 or at the school. Thank you.

J U N I O R O R A L

L A N G U A G E P R O G R A M

To be the best we can be

UPCOMING EVENTS:

15th MayHamilton Gardens Trip 21st MayYoung Leaders Day at Manukau 22nd May Quiz Night 1st June -Queens Birthday 9th-10th JuneLife Education caravan at school 18th-19th JuneMangawhero room at Kerepehi 19th JuneKi O Rahi tournament for Years 7 & 8 4th July - Cryptic Dinner-Wild West Theme

P R I N C I P A L S P I E C E( A . K . A . M Y S O A P B O X )

FUNDRAISER FOR KAIHERE SCHOOL

Please see the enclosed flyer for the Entertainment Book!!

The Entertainment Book gives you access to thousands of up to 50% off and 2-for-1 offers for the Waikato and Bay of Plentys best restaurants, cafes, attractions and the theme parks. Plus it

has best in market prices for over 1500 hotels and resorts that you can use whenever you like until 1st June 2016.

ALSO It now comes as a Digital Membership for your smartphone

Support Kaihere School and Order yours!!

S C H O O L A N D

C O M M U N I T Y N O T I C E S

REMINDER

Please support the school by paying your paper levies $10.00 per child per term.

Many thanks

HOME AND SCHOOL NEWS Events for 2015

22nd May Quiz Night (Raising funds for new school sport shirts)

4th July - Cryptic Dinner Wild West Theme Remember to calendar these events!

contact Rosie on 07 8878944/ 027 8108304.

The Home and School are wanting you all to clean out your wardrobes to make room for all those winter clothes. If you have any clothes from babies to adults that you do not want any more the Kaihere Home and School would love you to donate them to us so that they can be used for an up coming fundraiser. We also would love puzzles, books and any old toys. Any donations can be dropped off at the school office. Get your costumes ready. The Home and School Cryptic dinner on the 4th of July has a Wild West theme. So for all you Cowboys and Indians out there put the date in your diary and contact Ro-sie on 0274 965 786 to book your table. Would you like to sponsor the NEW Kaihere School sports uniform ?? Please contact the school office if you would like your business name on the new Kaihere school sports uniform. Lots of coverage throughout the year at different events around the Thames Valley area. What a great way to support your school and advertise.

WAIKATO CHIEFS TICKETS Reminder Waikato Chief Ticket orders must be in by

Monday the 18th May for the game: Vs Bulls Friday 22 May

Adult tickets $20, Child Tickets $9, Family Pass $55 Additional children $6

(Family pass 2 Adults & 2 Children/Child is aged 14 years and younger)

Contact Michelle Lange 0212379122

FREE EAR CLINIC SERVICE FOR CHIDLREN 9am-12 oclock

Thursday 18 June Plunket Rooms, Anderson St .

Scentsy Party Saturday 16th May

7pm Contact Amanda at mischewski91@gmail.com

S C H O O L A N D

C O M M U N I T Y N O T I C E S

A S S E M B L Y

A reminder that school assembly is every fortnight on odd weeks of the term, Thursdays at 2.15 in Mangawhero room. All welcome.

If you are new to the area, have a pre-school child or

T H I N K I N G A B O U T

C O M I N G T O K A I H E R E S C H O O L ?

S C H O O L P R O J E C T S

We have lots of ideas for developing property and learning experiences in the school. You might be able to help with them. Project #1Fitness trail / senior playground The Board would like to develop and build a fit-ness trail / senior playground. The aim is con-struct some challenging equipment for students to be active on. For this we need: Treated round post - Lengths of galvanised chain or wire rope Timber bolts and screws Heavy duty rope / netting (if anyone has an

old cargo net that would be awesome)

If you have anything like this that you could donate or per-haps provide to the school at a special rate please contact Terry at the school Project #2the Discovery room We want to set up our spare classroom as a place for students to construct and deconstruct objects, learning through discovery. We need your help to set this up. Do you have: Hand tools you could donate

screwdrivers, hammers, spanners etc

Old machinery suitable for de-construction(eg an engine, appliances, old computer)

Project #3creative play We have a range of objects in our playground that students use for creative play (tires, fence batons etc). We are really looking for a couple of wire coils (the sort of thing used by cable and pipe layers). Do you have one we can have or know where we can get one? Any help you can give us with these projects is greatly appreciated.

If you are new to the area, have a pre-school child or are just thinking about change, come and find out what Kaihere School has to offer. We have: Low student to teacher ratiosmeaning

your child gets much more focus and 1:1 time.

A well resourced and beautifully presented school, with modern rooms, access to technology and a range of modern learning resources

Quality teaching practices with a focus on numeracy and literacy.

Opportunities for leadership and individual-ised programs

Sporting and education outside the classroom opportunities. We focus on providing exciting and authentic experiences for students to learn from.

A true community minded school, where everyone looks out for each other and helps.

If you want to find out more about us, just check out our school Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/kaihereschool Or our website http://kaihereschool.weebly.com/ Call Mr Casey (Principal at the school or on 02102675462) Or come for a visit. .