Pouhere
Pou hīhiri
Pou rārama
Tenei te pou o te whare mātauranga, te kaupapa e tū nei
Ū te pou, kia hui te ora ki runga i a tātou
Kia puta ki te whai ao
Ki te ao mārama
Tihei Mauriora……
What an outstanding start to 2025 for Te Kāpehu Whetū.
Massive powhiri for our new ākonga, whanau and staff on Monday. Tēnā koutou katoa!!
Paenuku straight into hākinakina, haka, reo, tikanga….
Paetawhiti and Paerangi left for Mokau on Tuesday and spent the week in the rohe o Ngāti Wai enjoying their hospitality, learning more about our Moana and the Taiao…
“Ko Au Te Taiao….Ko Te Taiao Ko Au”
Then on Wednesday morning Paetata left to take part in the Māngūngū Commemorations at Horeke, Hokianga, where 70 chiefs signed Te Tiriti on 12 February 1840. Again, our waka Whakaruru Te Hau was on the water.
Finally on Friday morning we held another powhiri for the return of Whakaruru Te Hau. Thank you Joelene Busby, waka builders and waka kaihoe for having her repaired and getting her back in the water at both Waitangi and Māngungu. From here we will develop a programme with Joelene for our ākonga to be imbued in waka culture as matua Hec Busby had envisioned; from making hoe, learning to be kaihoe and of course Karakia and Waerea to keep us safe. Later Friday our Tuakana went to the pools to cool down!! Great start 2025
Whaea Rae
POUHERE
Paenuku – See the Panui PDF for this section
Tuakana
Nau mai, hoki mai, e te whanau ki TKW Tuakana, We hope you have all had a relaxing and enjoyable holiday break and our tamaiti are set and ready for another full-on year of learning and discovering with us. We would like to welcome all our new whanau and ākonga and look forward to meeting with you soon. We would also like to welcome back Matua Jade Tipene to our kura whanau. Matua Jade has been appointed as Pou Arataki Tuakana, and will oversee and lead our tuakana site. We are privileged to have his wealth of knowledge and skills to help continue to steer our waka forward. With the current governments focus on literacy and numeracy, these continue to be core elements in our day-to-day programmes. Pouako are engaging in professional learning and preparing resources to ensure our tamariki excel in these areas. We have many exciting kaupapa this year including waka, te taiao moana projects, the 50th Te Tai Tokerau Kapa Haka Festival in Opononi, Secondary regionals for Kapa Haka, Nga Manu Korero and Pu Korero, sports and IronMaori, as well as the always fiercely fought platoon challenges. As always Paerangi have their NCEA achievements to focus on and this year there is an extra drive for ākonga to push themselves for the higher grades and apply themselves to their studies. They all have the ability to be high achievers in their areas of interest…. Let’s do it! A big congratulations to all our 2024 Paerangi ākonga who gained their NCEA levels last year. A special mention to Ngākupenga Tautari-Herrick, our head girl, for gaining NCEA Level 2 endorsed with Merit.
Week 1 Haerenga
Paetata
We are starting our year with a hikoi to Māngungu on the 12th of Feb (Wednesday)
Back in 1840, at the Māngungu Mission House, 64 rangatira chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi on the 12th of February. It was the second signing of the treaty (after the initial signing at Waitangi) and the largest.
Paetata/Paetawhiti/Paerangi
Term 1 Pānui
Tēnā tātou e te whānau. Our first week back at school was a very busy but productive return. Paetata ventured up north to Horeke, to take part in the Māngūgū Mission House Celebrations. Tauira got to take part in the pōwhiri as well as wānanga about the importance of this historical site.
Māngūngū
Māngūngū is a historic site in the Hokianga, Northland, New Zealand. It is most well-known for being the location where the largest signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi (the Treaty of Waitangi) took place on 12 February 1840. Around 70 Rangatira signed the treaty there, making it a significant place in Aotearoa history.
Heritage Site
Māngūngū Mission House, originally built in 1838, was a Wesleyan (Methodist) mission station. It offers insights into early interactions between Māori and missionaries and remains an important heritage site today.
Paetawhiti Ki Mokau
Day 1
Ngā mihi to Te Whare Rongomaraeroa and the Whangaruru region. Strengthening our bond with the Taiao deepens our understanding of who we are and our responsibilities. A powerful hikoi to Te tihi of Huruiki set the tone for our journey.
Day 2
Navigating Māori futures, Kia Māori, Kia Matau, Kia Tū Rangatira ai! Huge thanks to Moana Futures Ltd, Jury Greenland, and his incredible team for guiding us in embracing our identity and leadership. Tū ki te Marae, Tū ki te Ao!
Day 3
Ko au te Taiao ki au our connection to the environment reflects who we are. Understanding and respecting our surroundings strengthens our place in the world. Ngā mihi nui to all who contributed to this enriching experience!
Friday morning the kura held a powhiri for the return of Whakaruru Te Hau. She has been out of the water for over 8 years needing repairs. Mihi nui Whaea Jolene Busby for your aroha and skill in repairing her so a new generation of Te Kāpehu Whetū ākonga can embrace and learn waka skills. We are so excited for this kaupapa.
To finish our week of whanaungatanga, we spent the afternoon at the Whangarei pools with a fun swim, relax in the spas and of course what visit to the pools would be complete without a few manus!
Reminders
We have a few reminders for whanau and ākonga
Cellphones and Other Personal Digital Devices
At Te Kāpehu Whetū, we advocate, promote and support ākonga engagement, achievement and hauora.
Cellphones and other personal digital devices are detrimental to this approach. In addition, we know that there is an increasing number of problems associated with social media and addiction to the stimulus
This is why at our Kura we concur with Governments regulation that:
‘Ākonga do not use cellphones during kura hours, including break times’.
Te Kāpehu Whetū advise that ākonga not bring personal digital devices to Kura. These are not necessary to have during the day as we have more than enough digital devices to use.
However, we understand that some parents like their tamariki to have a device to communicate with them after Kura. If this is the case, ākonga must hand the phone in to the tari before 9am and can collect it after 3pm.
If they do not do this and the phone is visible during the day, it will be confiscated.
If an ākonga is seen with a personal digital device in their possession during the school day the ākonga must hand it to a staff member immediately when asked. The device will be kept in the tari and can be collected by whanau at the end of the day.
If an ākonga refuses to hand over the device whanau will be notified to collect them and keep them at home for the rest of the day due to breaching our behaviour management processes and personal digital devices policy.
WE ASK THAT WHANAU SUPPORT US ON THIS!
Kura Uniform and PE Gear Expectations
At Te Kāpehu Whetū, we take great pride in our school uniform and expect it to be cleaned, ideally ironed and worn correctly every day, including for physical education (PE) lessons.
Why? Simply when ākonga present well at Kura, their overall demeanour lifts. When they feel good about themselves it shows across their mahi. We encourage our whanau to insist/encourage that their tamaiti to come every day looking good.
We note, that once substandard or non-uniform or partial uniforms are worn, behaviour tends to drop as well.
Our Kura does not support gang insignia or colours being worn over or under uniform at any time
Uniform Expectations: Ākonga are required to wear the correct Kura uniform. If an ākonga arrives at kura wearing non-uniform items, they will need to remove them before entering the whare. The non-uniform item will either be handed in or stored in their bag for the day.
In cases where an ākonga is unable to remove non-uniform items, such as incorrect shorts or skirt, they will be sent to the office to contact home for the correct item to be brought in.
PE Gear: For PE, students must wear the designated Kura PE top and full black bottoms (such as shorts, leggings, or running pants). Please note that plain black tops are no longer acceptable as part of the PE uniform. We also encourage ākonga to wear appropriate sports shoes (of any colour) for better support during physical activities.
Uniform Support: We understand that it can sometimes be difficult to have uniforms washed and dried in time, especially during the colder winter months. To support our students, we have a washing machine and dryer available. Under special circumstances, we can assist with washing and drying uniforms to ensure ākonga are dressed appropriately for Kura.
In addition, we are setting up a Swap Shop, so whanau can drop off previously used uniforms and swap them out for a larger size. We will keep you updated.
Thank you for your continued support in helping ākonga maintain pride in our Kura and themselves
Healthy Kai
Good nutrition is essential for the healthy growth and development of children and young people…..actually for all of us! Nutrition affects students’ behaviour, learning, concentration and energy, as well as their physical health. When students eat a nutritious diet, they find it easier to learn. We want to embed good eating habits in our ākonga so they can live healthy lives and develop healthy habits.
Please do not send junk food to school with your tamaiti…or allow them to buy such food before Kura
Eg: Items such as sweets, lollies, potato chips, fried food, fast foods, soft drinks, energy drinks McDonalds/KFC/Burger King are not acceptable food at our Kura.
These will be confiscated and either disposed of or returned at the end of the day.
NOTE: We are still receiving Ka Ora Ka Ako Healthy lunches for now.
Wai Maori
Fresh filtered water is provided in every whare, ākonga just need their own drink bottle. In this hot weather it is important we are all drinking enough water throughout the day, so please remind them to bring their water bottle!
We see too many ākonga arriving at Kura in the morning drinking sodas and/or energy drinks. These may taste nice but are detrimental to their health. (More on that in future panui)
Unhealthy drinks will also be confiscated during the school day.
Please help us encourage healthy habits
Whanau remember our kaupapa
“Launching Māori Futures”
“Charting Māori Futures”
“Navigating Māori Futures”
That requires us all to be navigators for better futures
Attendance
PLEASE NOTE:
Along with disallowing cell phones and IT devices from being used in Kura (unless part of a lesson and allowed for learning by Pouako) another Government policy being measured is Student Attendance. See below:
The Government has set a target of 70% regular attendance for every student each term for 2024
Attendance is linked to both student wellbeing and to attainment. Ministry of Education insights studies show that attending Kura regularly is, on average, associated with more positive wellbeing outcomes. Attendance is also linked to student attainment, especially in secondary students.
Although we have a good attendance rate across the Kura, it can be better. Our attendance across both sites is usually around mid-high 70s.
We understand that there are valid and important reasons for ākonga to be out of school at times and this is ok but please let the tari know when and why your child is absent.
Tari Year 7-13 ring Whaea Jackie: (09) 955 9996
Tari Year 1-6 ring Whaea Sam: (09) 438 8033
Automated text notification of absence
We have reinitiated our automated text message system for absences starting next week. If your child is marked with an unknown absence in the morning on an automatic text message will be sent to the primary caregiver(s) to notify them.
Thank you very much to all whanau who have responded to these texts either by replying or contacting the office. This has made a significant difference to the number of unjustified absences we have.
Policies
Te Kāpehu Whetū has worked with SchoolDocs to create a website for our policies and procedures.
The school works on a subscription basis with SchoolDocs to maintain, update, and review our policies. SchoolDocs provides us with a comprehensive core set of policies, which have been well-researched and align with the National Education and Learning Priorities. The policies and procedures are tailored to our school, and the school supplies specific information such as our charter, and procedures for behavior management, reporting to parents, etc.
SchoolDocs updates, modifies, or creates policies in response to changes in legislation or Ministry guidelines, significant events, reviews/requests from schools, and regular reviewing from the SchoolDocs team. Our school board has the opportunity to view changes/additions and comment on them before they are implemented.
We invite you to visit the site at School Docs
Kaupapa
We believe passionately in our culture, our people, our ākonga, and we know that through hard work, commitment, and focused support they will achieve within the Kura and beyond. We do this hereby acknowledging the 28 Māori Battalion and the price paid for citizenship, so that ‘we’ can “Navigate Māori Futures”.
To do this we commit to success in all its forms:
Kia Māori – Be Māori – Be
An education that validates Māori knowledge and ways of learning.
Kia Mātau – Be Knowledgeable – Know
Encouraging innovation, inquiry, the development of specialised knowledge and skills.
Kia Tū Rangatira Ai – Be Rangatira – Do
Development of strong character and personal excellence, living with mana.
Nā
Raewyn Tipene
POUHERE
Important Dates
See Calendar for Key Events