Issue 16: Week 6, Term 2 2025

Talofa lava!

This week we celebrate Vaiaso o le Gagana Samoa – Samoan Language Week, a wonderful opportunity to honour the language and culture of our Samoan whānau. We are especially proud of Leilani S and Tapaita T for heading to every class this Friday to teach a short sasa as part of a fun competition they came up with (also a great example of using their initiative as Cultural Leaders!). The winning class will be performing it at Assembly so we can all enjoy and celebrate together. Feel free to give a cheerful "Talofa!" this week as you see others around school!

I'm also able to share a few staffing updates with you as we look ahead to the start of Term 3:

• Mrs Fielder, our Year 3&4 Team Leader, will be returning from maternity leave at the start of Term 3. She’ll be heading into Kōkako space, with Mrs Dallimore continuing to teach on Thursdays and Fridays (covering Team Leader and classroom release time). Mrs Dallimore will also continue with her Wednesdays in Kōtare.

• We’re also really pleased that Mrs Jordan will remain in Mokomoko (alongside Mrs Fong) until the end of the year, providing wonderful consistency and support for the students in that space.

• A very special thank you to Mrs Collie, who has done a tremendous job stepping into the Acting Team Leader role during Mrs Fielder’s leave. Her calm, capable leadership has been a real asset to our team, and it’s been fantastic to watch her leadership capability grow over the past year – ka rawe!

Board Elections – September 2025
Karaka School Board elections will be held this coming September. We will have a couple of long-standing members stepping down, and we’re now looking ahead to welcoming new faces to the Board. If you're curious about what being a Board member involves or considering putting your name forward, I’d love to have a chat with you about the role and the commitment involved. You’re also welcome to speak to any of our current Board members about their experiences (Lisa Tate, Tyrone Riley, Hayley Govorko, Sarah Sutherland and Brad Harvey).
Our next Board meeting is on Monday, 16th June at 5.00pm – anyone interested is welcome to attend as a member of the public (with non-speaking rights) to get a sense of how our governance team works.

Our Year 7&8 Sports Camp squad is heading off to Totara Springs in Matamata on Monday. We’re proud of the effort and commitment the team has shown in preparing for this event. Huge thanks to Rob Batchelor and Renee Parlane for running boot camp sessions bright and early on Wednesdays at 7:30am this term – your mahi has been hugely appreciated.

Mid-Winter Quiz Night – This Saturday!
Just a final reminder that this Saturday is our PTA Mid-Winter Quiz Night – it’s shaping up to be a fun and laughter-filled evening. We can’t wait to see everyone there for what promises to be a fantastic community night out.

Fa’afetai lava,

Anna Powrie