I have been thinking about you all a great deal over the past few days; wondering how you’re all getting on, wondering who is in your bubble and hoping  and praying that you reach out if you need help or support in any way.

I have also been reflecting on the acts of kindness I have seen or am hearing about, as well as the wonderfully creative ideas people are coming up with to help navigate these challenging times.  This really is a time to think about the powerful school vision we hold:

ACHIEVING MORE THAN WE EVER DREAMED POSSIBLE

We can and we will get through this. 

So, I’m here in my bubble with my niece, Jessica.  Jessica usually lives in Auckland but regularly comes to stay for a week in two; back to her home town of Wellington. 

As with many of you I’m sure, I’m learning a great deal about Zoom - my five sisters and I had our first Zoom gathering last night; it really is a wonderful way to connect.

I’m going to be set up in my lounge, reading through any information coming through and sharing what I think will be of most help and support for you and your whanau. I will, of course be checking my emails regularly also. 

We are very aware of the huge amount of information being shared by many different groups and agencies  and whilst this can be helpful, we know it can also be overwhelming at times, so we will continue to work on achieving a balance - not too much, not too little but hopefully enough to meet everyone’s needs. 

Remember please contact me if there is anything we can do to support you, it doesn’t have to relate to school specifically, if you need support in any area we will try to put you in contact with the right people.

I would like to conclude this message by sharing the words of Dame Whina Cooper

‘Take care of our children. Take care of what they hear, take care of what they see, take care of what they feel. For how the children grow, so will the shape of Aotearoa’. 

“They showed us unusual kindness” (Acts 28:2). 

In these challenging times we still have the chance “to show unusual kindness.” These unusual times call us to respond with unusual kindness, to go out of our way to be kind to those who are isolated, anxious, lonely, ill or suffering in any way.  It is important to look after those immediately around us as well as people in our street, workmates, extended family and especially those who are struggling-  all need “unusual kindness”.  

It is also important that we look after ourselves- this is vital if we are to support those around us.  This morning the teachers had a zoom meeting to check in with each other. Each teacher was invited to share ways they are practicing the five ways to Wellbeing- outlined below.

Practising the Five Ways to Wellbeing these are for everyone 

• Connect
• Be active
• Take notice
• Keep learning
• Give

I would like to add a sixth practice 

• Pray.  Each one of us will have preferred prayer styles but let’s set aside a time for quiet personal and family reflection at the same time each day. 

Praying as a faith community

 Whilst we  cannot pray in our own faith communities at this time,  we can pray in our homes. Cardinal John has invited us to pause twice a day over these weeks, at mid-morning (10.30am) and mid-afternoon (3pm) -morning and afternoon tea time, to pause and pray. 

“I am not asking for any special prayer, but I will be pausing at those times to respond to the invitation of Jesus to “remain in my love.” This can be an act of solidarity for all of us as we reflect on the unbelievable fact that we are already filled with the Holy Spirit and we have the chance to show “unusual kindness”. “  Cardinal John Dew 27 March 2020

Key dates reminder

26 March        Alert Level 4 commenced

28 March        School holidays begin

10 – 14 April  Easter including the Tuesday after Easter

15 April           Term 2 begins (through distance learning)

22 April           Current date for ending of lockdown period

27 April           ANZAC Day observed

As you are aware the dates for school holidays have changed.  Today is officially the last day of Term 1. We are now on holiday which means we can all enjoy some much needed down time!  

We have no expectation that children will complete assignments during this time (except one which is detailed below) but encourage you to enjoy  fun, creative times together. We have had some people send through some great photos and ideas and would love more of these. 

 If you have a great photo or idea to share please email this to your child’s teacher- we can’t guarantee we’ll be able to publish them all but we’ll look for ways to share them.  

Setting Up For Home Learning from 15 April 

Over the past week the following home learning supports have been put in place:

• A workbook for every student with many ideas and support that will support home learning without the need of digital devices.
• Information on our school website www.hcm.school.nz  about what we consider to be the best activities and websites to support your child’s learning

NOTE: We are currently finalising the easiest, safest and most effective ways of communicating with the students in our classes, considering the protocols and rules we need to establish to make this happen. We will be working on this over the next two weeks so we are ready to launch at the start of term 2, 15 April.  

All teachers have now set up a ‘google classroom’ for their classes. There are a variety of ways for students to find their classroom google account - one way is to:

1. Make sure they have already logged into their school email account
2. Go to https://classroom.google.com/ and it should take you to their classroom page. Some students are yet to join their classroom and we encourage them to email their teacher for help with this.

Being A Good Digital Citizen

One essential  holiday task:  As many of the students will be using digital technologies during the holidays we want to support you to ensure they are safe.  This is the one task we ask that you complete with your child at this time. We know most of you signed this agreement at the start of the year, but as we are about to enter into a whole new experience for us all we would like each child and their family to complete a review of this document as well as to practice using google classroom.

To find this assignment, your child will need to be logged into their school email account and go to their google classroom and use the ‘Classwork’ heading.

Please don’t hesitate to contact Mr Carson tim.carson@hcm.school.nz or Susie Sumner susie.sumner@hcm.school.nz weekdays between 1-3pm which is when they will be responding to any requests for help or support with google classroom and their first assignment.

• Key COVID-19 information in multiple languages

The Office of Ethnic Communities (OEC) has put together some short videos in a number of languages (currently Arabic, Cantonese, French, Hindi, Mandarin, Persian/Farsi, Spanish and Urdu) so that those in our ethnic communities whose communities are supported  to access key COVID19 information in their own language. Here is the link to these resources-  

https://www.ethniccommunities.govt.nz/news/covid-19-growing-in-new-zealand/

• Update on providing Internet and Devices for Students

Thank you for completing the google form that helped us gather information about your family’s access to internet and devices for your children. We were able to release a number of school owned devices before the school closed and we are able to access further support for the start of term 2; further information will be shared once we find out the details of this support from the Ministry. 

• Removing data caps for internet

Spark, Vodafone, Vocus/Slingshot, and 2Degrees, Trustpower has now also advised they have removed their data caps and the possibility of any extra charges based on usage. Please contact your provider to discuss details with them. 

• For our Pacific families

The Ministry for Pacific Peoples’ has been working to ensure useful information is available to Pacific peoples. A one-hour special will be aired on Tagata Pasifika’s segment on Saturday at 9am; and on Sunday at 7.35am, Tagata Pasifika will share messages from community leaders. 

The Ministry is asking you to reach out to all your family members, community groups, friends and group chats to ensure our Pacific community groups are watching the programming on both days.

• Provision of home-based supervision and care for the children (aged 0-14 years) of essential workers

 Essential workers should still continue to contact one of the following three providers if they have been unable to make their own arrangements:

• Barnardos - covid19enquiries@barnardos.org.nz
• Edubase - Home Grown Kids & Kids at Home 0508 44 54 37 or info@hgk.co.nz
• PORSE 0800 023 456

Being active and moving around your house or local environment is going to make you and your family feel good. Keeping your physical distance but sharing a smile with other people is going to make things a little easier for everyone over the next few weeks. Here is an update of the ongoing competitions and ways you can keep active at this time.

WOW Passport competition:

Our school will be sending in all our WOW passports to the Movin’March team by Monday 11 th May. The 12 prize winners for the $400 My Ride vouchers will be drawn and schools notified in May of any winners.

Parent photo competition: We know being active lifts spirits and keeps us well, so feel free to continue posting your photos on how you’re movin’ at home on our Facebook page. Photos will need to be posted publicly on Facebook or Instagram with #movinmarch Daily prize/scooter winners will be notified by email as normal. Competition ends 31st March.

Share your Story: You can continue to post photos remotely and share your experiences of Movin’around home and getting outdoors as a family. Prize winners will be notified by email. Competition ends Fri 3rd April.

Movin’Minds: Year 4-8 students can take part in the mini-movie/slideshow competition from home. They will need to use an email address of a parent/guardian or teacher to submit their entry by Friday 3 rd April. This guardian/teacher will be notified early May if they are a winner.