Ao Tawhiti Newsletter August 2025

Upcoming Events

Contents

Senior Camp – Monday 18th – Wednesday 20th August – Living Springs
Celebration of Learning – Thursday 21st August 3pm-6pm
Staff Only Day – Friday 22nd August – School Closed for Instruction
RAMs Training – Friday 29th August 8:30am
NCEA Co-Req Exam – Reading – Monday 1st September
NCEA Co-Req Exam – Numeracy – Wednesday 3rd September
NCEA Co-Req Exam – Writing – Thursday 4th September
Student Production – Lady Windermere’s Fan – Wednesday 10th – Friday 12th September
NCEA Practice Exams – Monday 15th – Thursday 18th September
IEMs – Friday 19th September – School Closed for Instruction
School Holidays – Saturday 20th September – Sunday 5th October
IEMs – Monday 6th October
First Day of Timetabled Classes Term 4 – Tuesday 7th October
School Formal at Addington Raceway – Saturday 11th October
Homebase Photos – Monday 13th – Tuesday 14th October
Melva & Jenny HBs Camp – Wednesday 15th – Friday 17th October – Mt Hutt Retreat
Mel & Nicole HBs Camp – Wednesday 22nd – Friday 24th October – Mt Hutt Retreat
Labour Day – Monday 27th October – School Closed
NCEA Levels 2 & 3 Last Day of Classes – Wednesday 29th October
NCEA Levels 2 & 3 Exams Start – Tuesday 4th November
NCEA Level 1 Last Day of Classes – Friday 7th November
NCEA Level 1 Exams Start – Monday 10th November
Staff Only Day – Thursday 13th November – School Closed for Instruction
Show Day – Friday 14th November – School Closed
Transition Day New Students – Wednesday 26th November
Last day of School 2025 – Friday 12th December

Message From Anita

Kia ora ki te whānau,

Thank you everyone who recently contributed to the phone consultation. It was fascinating working through the 160 caregiver responses, as well as the student and staff responses. Common themes from the community consultation are listed below.

Social Media is concerning, as increasing evidence reinforces the harm social media can have on children and teenagers, particularly students 14 years and younger.
Cell phone use during directed learning time is a distraction.
Blanket bans don’t sit comfortably within our Special Character. This is in terms of how we operate our curriculum, and within our focus on developing dispositional qualities around self-management and students making choices around their learning.
Education is key – not legislation or compliance.
Caregivers and neurodiverse students and students struggling with mental / physical health like to contact one another during the day. Access to a phone can give struggling students the confidence to come to school.
A number of caregivers spoke about avoiding a blanket ban, however voiced strong concerns around their children having access to social media during the school day. Access to social media is limited on the school’s wifi, however students with cell phones and data can access social media whenever they like.
A lot of the community spoke about the potential negative impact on relational practice and our high trust model – if policing cell phone use becomes the norm within our school.
We have variability within our students, with some students addicted to their phones, while other students can manage them beautifully – so why are we potentially penalising all students?
There is a lack of enforcement at present around our school policy.
Research was shared by caregivers that ranged from showing data that proved that blanket bans don’t work, through to the positive impact blanket bans can have on students.
Use of cell phones is symptomatic of a lack of engagement; therefore, this energy should be put into engaging students.

We also considered the legislation that states that students shouldn’t have their phones in school. The exemptions to this legislation are for health reasons, disabilities and specific educational reasons, which includes elements of our Special Character, such as Arotahi and Trust Licenses.

We are slowly building up our supply of laptops – thanks in part to Anne-Marie Hampton and her Recycle – A – Device class, so the equity issue of all students accessing a device is diminishing through our ability to increase access to iPads and laptops.

In summary, the majority of caregivers, staff and students don’t want a blanket ban. Instead, they want students to access phones for Trust License trips, medical reasons, organisation and learning how to manage themselves and technology. They don’t want the high trust and relational culture to change, however, they do want support for students to have a break from social media and to avoid distraction in classes.

As such, we have come up with school policy that encompasses the above, while, at the same time giving the students, most vulnerable to the negative impact of phone use, the support to be phone free during the school day.

Here is a link to the policy.

We are going to use the Yondr program for our students in Years 7 – 10. Phones are still banned for students in Years 1- 6.

The YONDR system was developed originally for phone free concerts. It is now used globally in over 2000 schools, as well as concerts and shows. The YONDR program employs a simple, lockable pouch that stores a mobile phone. Students will secure their phone in their YONDR pouch when they arrive at school in the morning. They maintain possession of their phone and unlock them at the end of the day. If students need to access their phone during the day, then there will be unlocking stations throughout the school. In an emergency we will take portable unlocking stations to our evacuation zone, so students can access their phones. If students require the use of their phone for medical reasons, e.g. Diabetes monitoring, then YONDR pouches with Velcro are available. There is a visual diagram below that shows you how the YONDR pouches work.

The YONDR pouches will be compulsory for students in Years 7 – 10 from the beginning of the 4.2 timetable, when seniors go on study leave. This will give our students time to prepare for the shift from access to their phones to other activities during the school day. We will support this shift.

In the meantime, if you, or your child, would like to use a YONDR pouch as soon as possible then you are welcome to have one assigned to you. Email office@aotawhiti.school.nz.

We would also like to invite our senior students to use the YONDR pouches. If you, or your child thinks that their phone use is detrimental to their learning, then we can assign them a YONDR pouch as a tool to support them to become less dependent, or addicted to their phone and social media.

The YONDR pouches cost $22 per student, and we will ask caregivers for a voluntary payment of $22 to pay for the YONDR pouches. This will be added to school accounts. Email accounts@aotawhiti.school.nz if you would like us to remove this charge from your child’s school account. If your child damages or loses the YONDR pouch then the replacement cost will be $22.

Thank you in advance for your support of this school policy. We understand the range of opinion and feeling, but ultimately, we have made a decision based on the needs of the students in our school. The pouches aren’t meant as a punishment, instead they are a tool to support students to manage their phone use, while still being able to engage in independent learning and relational practice that makes our school special.

Email through any questions you might have about this. Home Base Learning Advisors will talk through this in more detail during IEMs, including identifying any students who will need access to Velcro locking pouches for medical reasons. We will also talk this through with students over the rest of the term.

Thank you for your continued support.

Anita

Messages from Senior Leaders

From Niki

Kia ora e te whānau,

PINs

We are delighted to be offering PINs (Passions, Interests, Needs) workshops again this term on the afternoon of Thursday 19 September. PINs workshops are unique to our designated character. They are a chance for whānau to be truly involved, and live our Guiding Principle of ‘Everyone is a learner and everyone is a teacher’, providing such wonderful opportunities for our children and young people.

If you would like to offer a workshop for PINs in term 3, please complete this form by Monday 8 September.

If you have any questions, please get in touch with niki.stephenson@aotawhiti.school.nz.

Kapa haka performance

Tēna Rā Tātou katoa ,

To celebrate Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, on Wednesday the 17th of September, our junior and senior kapa haka rōpu will join five other schools in celebrating the Māori dance form of kapa haka at the Art Gallery.

We will be leaving the kura at 9:30 a.m. and returning at 1 p.m. Our kura will be performing around 10 am. All whānau are welcome to come and watch and support our performers.

We ask that all juniors wear black tops and bottoms so they can all match together as a rōpū and as a whānau.

If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact me directly or your child’s HBLA.

pippa.bailey@aotawhiti.school.nz

Bunnings sausage sizzle

A massive thank you to the Brown Whānau who organised and ran a sausage sizzle at Shirley Bunnings earlier this month. Jeremy was not expecting Bluey to be visiting the store that day and the team ran out of supplies really early on in the day! Huge thanks to those parents and caregivers who helped get more supplies and who supported on the day. The crew made over $1200, a huge step towards our playground fundraising.

Playground update

One of our amazing parents, Heather Locke, is busy applying for grants so that we can get our playground off the ground this year, fingers crossed. We have raised over $50k ourselves through our fundraising and grants, and need at least another $100k to get the playground built and open. If you have any ideas about how we can get the funds to make this happen as quickly as possible, please be in touch.Useful resourceA parent recently shared this great podcast. It is The Baffling Behavior Show {Parenting after Trauma}by children’s mental health expert Robyn Gobbel. Robyn decodes the most baffling behaviours for parents of kids with vulnerable nervous systems. She is quite easy to listen to (if a bit waffly at times) and has some great ideas about managing behaviour responses in some of our most awesome kids who can find the world tough to navigate.

Niki Stephenson

News/Notices

RAD (Recycle a Device) Class

Our RAD (Recycle a Device) class students are refurbishing donated laptops.

To date we have gifted 11 laptops to students at Ao Tawhiti, 6 laptops to The Garage, so students can access software for TECH classes (which takes the pressure off school laptop use) and 5 laptops to community. The community organisations then disseminate them to people in need. Our latest donation to community elicited this response:

“I wanted to take a moment to share some positive feedback about the impact of your mahi.
On Friday, I received a call from a youth employment navigator who has been working closely with a young person eager to start a course that would help build their skills and improve their employment pathway. This young person was very excited to begin on Monday but unfortunately had to withdraw at the last minute on Friday, as a laptop was a course requirement—and they didn’t have access to one.

Thanks to your amazing RAD mahi, we were able to get one of your refurbished laptops to the navigator. The navigator was also able to support the young person and help them to re-enrol in the course so they could start on Monday.

Your commitment through the RAD club is genuinely life-changing. The laptops you refurbish are more than just devices—they are keys to opportunity, participation, and equity. You’re removing barriers to education and employment, helping bridge the digital divide, and empowering individuals to step confidently into their futures.

A big thank you to you all for the incredible impact you’re making, both to the community receiving laptops but also the environment. We hope you are learning lots of new skills and are enjoying this kaupapa.”

Should you know of a family and/or student in need who has not received a laptop to date then please contact Anne-Marie. Once a laptop becomes available, caregivers will be contacted to ensure they are happy to receive one and are in need.

Anne-Marie Hampton

Arotahi for your young person!

So here you are at a kura that celebrates and designs for arotahi (student-led learning), and this is one of the key reasons you wanted to be here. The next part of your continued journey is what can arotahi look like for my young person now and next term?

How about checking out our great Arotahi, Designing Learning Pathways website for families, students and LAs on our school website. It’s under the page titled Learning Resources, and includes ideas, inspiration and support for students from year 1- 13. There are also links to Gateway, Careers and other helpful people here, and out in the community who are all keen to resource you on your learning pathway. Chat more with your LA in your next 1-1 or IEM about some of the ideas and what you could tackle next.

Ngā mihi nui,

Melva Gill

Spring Market at the Climate Action Campus

The Climate Action Campus is still taking stall bookings for students. Remember there are zero stall fees for students.

To book your stall please email Sandi at sandi.bobkova@climateaction.school.nz

Sandi Bobkova

We Need Fabulous People Like You to Build Our Learning Kete for our Ākonga across the school

We need people like you to help make the learning of our tamariki a reality. We are looking for people to contribute to our Community Resources Bank, with a passion area, a skill, a place of employment or an opportunity that they would like to share with our learners.

If this sounds like you, here is a link to add yourself to our resources kete so our ākonga and LAs can touch base with you and connect with like-minded individuals. This isn’t just for experts. If you have an area of interest and you would like the opportunity to share it with a young person, or a group of young people in an; interview, a workshop, a series of workshops, or even a business opportunity, we want to hear from you.

Thank you for taking the time to link our student community with the opportunities our whānau and the wider community can provide to build new learning.

Melva Gill

Student Poem

THE ICE POEM

Slippery and wet,

Freezing and cold,

Flat and smooth,

This ice is as clear as a new panel of glass!

Sharp and pointy,

Satisfying and crunchy,

Broken and jagged.

This ice is melting in our mouths!

Written by Nathan and Alex

Cultural Calendar

The Ao Tawhiti Film Festival is at Lumiere Theatre on October 20th at 5pm.

All types of genres are welcome. Please include titles and credits. This year, we potentially plan to have some prizes, guest speakers (film directors) and once again the post screening Q and A session.

Film Festival Submission Form

Jenny Ward

Dual Enrolments are open for 2026 with the National Trade Academy

Applications for 2026 are open. Any interested students should get in touch with Kelly or Kirsty to discuss and fill in enrolment forms. We will be arranging visits for the National Trade Academy for any interested students as this is a requirement of the enrolment process.

2026 Dual Enrolment Courses:

Apiculture (Bee keeping)
Agriculture
Animal Care
Equine
Horticulture
Transport, Logistics & Warehousing
Welding & Light Engineering
Automotive Studies – Avon City Ford
Psychology – Vision College

If you have any questions please reach out to Kirsty or Kelly.

Medications at Kura

Please register any personal student medications with the school office.

We have a secure medication administration process in place. When your student needs medication, at school, please chat with us. We will complete a medication form and create a plan to ensure safe storage, communication, and administration.

While it might be convenient for students to carry medications including over-the-counter medications like ibuprofen and antihistamines, we require all medications to be securely stored in the first aid room. This helps prevent accidental medication ingestion or misuse.

By following this policy, we can create a safer and healthier learning environment for all students. Thank you for your support.

If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact office@aotawhiti.school.nz

Ao Tawhiti Ski Trips to Mount Hutt 2025 – Sign up now for number three

We have pencilled in our third Ski Trip to Mount Hutt for Ao Tawhiti this year. The package includes travel, ski pass, 1-2hr lesson, boots and skis / board. It does not include clothing. The trip is booked for Friday 5th September. The cost for a student package and travel is $150 or travel only $50.

We are pencilling in ski trips one at a time this year so please don’t wait to sign up if you want to come along. Once we have reached enough students signed up you will be sent another email confirming your place and the charge will be applied to your account. This must then be paid to secure your place.

Booking Details:

Group 1

Date of Visit: Friday 5th September 2025
Arrival Time: 10am
Lesson Time: 11am
Number of Students: 30 Students

Trips will only go ahead if we have enough students to make them financially viable. This means spaces are limited to 40 students and parents per trip.

Ski trips are open to all students. Younger students in year 1-6 will need to have a responsible adult attend too. Accompanying adults do not qualify for any school rates or packages and they will need to pay for the travel costs. Adults can make their own arrangements to ski on the mountain and will need to pay Mount Hutt directly on the day.

This year Mount Hutt have added a number of penalties and charges in their Terms and Conditions which I need to make you aware of in advance.

Schools need to confirm numbers well in advance, At least 14 days or more. This means we will need confirmation before then. No changes can be made after this date without incurring a minimum $40 charge per change.
Changes or cancellations after confirmation will incur a penalty
If a student is sick they will need to provide a medical certificate within a week of the trip.
Students must stick with the ability level lesson they signed up to or this will incur a change fee of $40
Students must sign up to ski or snowboard and stick to this or a change fee of $40 will be charged
Schools can not cancel or postpone a trip within 5 days of the planned trip.

What does this mean for those signing up?

This year there is a non refundable deposit of $80.
Students will need to sign up early and not leave it to the last minute.
Trips will go ahead as long as Mount Hutt is open. Sometimes this may mean some parts of the mountain are closed. This could be due to the weather or other operational matters.
The ski package is an all or nothing deal. This means there is no reduction if students have their own gear or don’t want a lesson for example.
Once a student is confirmed they can not change between skiing to boarding or change the level of their lesson.
Students $80 deposits are NON REFUNDABLE. This is due to the school being charged a cancellation fee by Mount Hutt and the bus company.
Travel costs are NON REFUNDABLE.
If your child is sick or injured and can not attend a trip, families will need to provide a medical certificate within 5 days if they wish to claim the charges back from Mount Hutt.

If you have any questions please email me on kay.hayes@aotawhiti.school.nz

Please sign up using the form below.

Ski Trip Number 3 Friday 5th September

Kay Hayes

Ara Dual Enrolments

Information for Dual Enrolments at Ara in 2026 is now available. Copies of the Study Options and Enrolment form can be picked up from Kirsty or Kelly. Once completed please return these to school.

Application Window
• Opens: Monday 25 August
• Closes: Friday 12 September

Dual Enrolment 2026 Whānau Information Evenings; Christchurch
Whānau Information Evenings in:
• Christchurch: Thursday 21 August

Register for Christchurch information session here

These info evenings are a great opportunity for learners and their whānau to visit Ara and learn more about Dual Enrolment. Teaching staff from each programme will be available to answer questions and provide insights into what each course involves.

Kelly Odering

Students at the NZIS Sports Coaching Course

Our Sports Coaching/Leadership course run by the NZ Institute of Sport has started every Wednesdays for this term!

Students get to create coaching sessions, make ethical decisions, and develop and apply strategies for coach and athlete protection. They also get to learn to demonstrate and apply knowledge of rules and regulations as a coach in a selected sport.

Through this Coaching and Leadership course we believe that students will have the opportunity to:

focus on aspects of fitness, character, leadership and personal development
gain a better understanding of themselves and their unique strengths and character at a pivotal time in their personal development

Students gain credits towards NCEA on this course.

Anne-Marie & John

Student Volunteer Army Awards

Any student who engages in service or volunteering can sign up to SVA Awards and have their efforts acknowledged. I am really keen to support ALL students at Ao Tawhiti to become Members of the SVA by doing just 5hrs of service.

We have set up a number of staff ready to support students to sign up and enter their service. These include Jess Dewhurst, Suze Lambert, Bridget Scott as well as myself Kay Hayes.

I am reaching out to parents to encourage students to get involved and to come and see one of us to sign up.

Kay Hayes

Girl Boss Trailblazer Award

Our very own Ruby-Grace has been awarded the Girl Boss trailblazer award and won $1000. She was also interviewed by Woman’s Weekly about her start-up business FIX and her literacy mission. https://www.instagram.com/p/DL9LDugx58B/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Emily Marck

Celebration of Learning Term 3 2025

Greetings Parents and Caregivers

Next week, on Thursday 21 August, is a whole school Celebration Of Learning.

From 3:00pm to 4:30pm we will be celebrating the learning of the whole school, and it’s sure to be an exciting event!!

There is to be Performances, Exhibits, Presentations, a Mini Market, Student led Workshops and more, all displays of Students learning.

The event is even being catered by (Insert level) hospo!!

If you are free in this timeframe, it is my request that you attend the 2025 Celebration Of Learning, so you can see what has been happening at Ao Tawhiti.

Remember to talk to your students about what they might be sharing!!

Benjamin Sevier

Ice Cream Containers! Cereal Boxes!

Students in 1.3 would love your ice cream containers, especially with lids, and we would also like un-squashed cereal boxes, please! These can be left in 1.3 or in the office. Thanks HB Mokomoko

Melva Gill

ProActive Physio at Ao Tawhiti

We have a physiotherapist on-site at kura every Thursday morning. Not only convenient; appointments with him will save each student/staff member $43.00 at the initial assessment and $35.50 per follow up visit.

Contact the office to book. office@aotawhiti.school.nz

Maths Enrichment with Sam

We had a breakthrough in Maths Enrichment this term. We were very stuck on the following problem, until Eric Newstead ran a computer programme and identified his solution as relating to One Seventh (n=142857). There was a collective blowing of minds at the beauty and simplicity of this solution. (Problem courtesy of Nrich.maths.org)

Sam Buchanan

Knuckle Bones, Elastics and Second Hand Chess Sets

The kids would love more of each of these, please. Not only is online chess sweeping the HBs, so is using the sets we already have, and they are in high demand – any shape and any second-hand condition is very welcome! Just drop them into Melva in 1.3 or leave them at the office – thank you!

The tamariki would also love more knuckle bones as they master this warrior’s game in tournaments before school, morning tea and lunchtime nonstop.

We also have a clamouring for more elastics too, so if you have a nana who can make some, that would be appreciated as well!

Year 1-6 Community

4Sci Boat Competition

In our science class, we have been looking at navigation and boat design. Last week, we took our boats down to the river to time them over a 10 metre distance. Please note that Micah (front) is holding Ed and Marlowe’s boat as they were away.

Kate Armour

Student Absences

Thank you for always keeping the school informed if your student is off sick, learning from home, or not attending for any other reason.

There are multiple ways you can record an absence;

send a message through SchoolApps – an App available on Apple or Android. Simply subscribe to Ao Tawhiti via the app.
leave a voicemail or speak to us directly on 03 377 7773
send an email to office@aotawhiti.school.nz

Please make sure you notify the office via one of the above options in order to prevent being sent an absence message, regardless of whether or not your student’s LA is aware of their absence.

Arotahi in HB Pūrerehua

What do making doll houses, riding on trains, growing seeds and exploring bee hives and practicing ninja kicks all have in common? Have you guessed? They are all ways that we have been exploring Arotahi in HB Pūrerehua. Our HB is made up of 5 and 6 year olds that all have just started school. Children this age naturally bring their love of learning, enthusiasm and big questions about the world around them to school. How are mountains made? Where did the first people come from? How do plants return after devastation from a natural disaster? How do birds fly? These are all questions our youngest learners want answers to!

We go about exploring these topics through group and whole HB learning experiences. We take regular trips to Tūranga, plan trips based on their interests, bring “experts” into the HB, plan our learning weekly from the CAC and learn collaboratively how to source information we need to answer our questions. By the end of the term, we have a rich array of collaborative experiences that have been explored and collectively enjoyed through our tamariki’s individual arotahi goals.

Some of our whānau offer wonderful experiences for their children outside the HB as well. From making costumes, to organising trips, making presentations, offering an extra set of hands for a HB learning experience and bringing in resources, we are very fortunate to have so many supportive whānau in our HB. Come and visit us at the celebration of learning and see for yourself some of what we get up to!

Charis Huhta

Maatangi Whenua Geography competition

At the end of last month, Archie, Nathan and Jayden represented our kura at the Canterbury Regional Round of the Maatangi Whenua Geography competition. This is a geography based competition that happens all around New Zealand where teams of students compete in rounds of challenges such as topographical map interpretation, play-dough sculptures, solving hidden puzzles in images and other classic Geography and current events topics.

While the team did not make it through the the National competition, they performed really well, enjoyed the free pizza, had fun and represented Ao Tawhiti and the values we hold as a school. It was a fun evening to attend and my gratitude goes to the team for their enthusiasm and effort and their whānau that helped it to happen.

Craig Perry

CAC Māori Art Class

The CAC Maori Art class on Mondays is humming along. Jon Jeet, a well known artist in Ōtautahi Christchurch, is leading the students on a journey where they are learning about stone carving, painting and lashing. They are a great team and their work is outstanding.

Paula Green

Families Exploring Digital Wellbeing

I’m beginning a participatory action research project, Through Our Eyes – Families Exploring Digital Wellbeing, using a method called photovoice. Over several weeks, we will explore our everyday digital lives together, capturing moments, both joyful and challenging, and reflecting on what they mean. From there, we’ll identify patterns and co-create practical strategies for a healthier digital balance. Parents, children, and other family members are all welcome to take part, and we’ll most likely meet on Thursday evenings, approximately fortnightly. If you’re curious, would like to be involved, or just want to know more, I’d love to hear from you: megan.woods@aotawhiti.school.nz

Megan Woods

Bowenvale Planting

We were at the Bowenvale Valley site, planting native saplings at an old pine plantation that got cut down, and is now undergoing regeneration to help the ecosystem. This is for our assessment we are working on for EFS, taking an action against a problem in our local community, so Leo and I went to this planting day. We planted a lot of native saplings that would’ve populated the Bowenvale Site before colonization of the Maori and Europeans.