Kia ora koutou,
Welcome to Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori – this is Māori Language Week!
As part of our celebration of all things Te Reo, our Kura took part in our annual pōwhiri at the Ōtūmoetai Pā on Levers Road.
Ōtūmoetai Pā was the most significantly populated site in the Western Bay of Plenty between 1600 and 1865. It was considered the ‘main stronghold’ of Tauranga Māori with early estimates of Ngāi Te Rangi at Ōtūmoetai Pā put at around 2,000 warriors, women, children and older people in 1827. Sea-going vessels ranged from large waka to fishing canoes. Like all pā, by 1844 Ōtūmoetai had undergone modifications to cope with the advent of muskets into warfare. As it was situated on land confiscated by the government after the New Zealand Wars of 1864, the people who lived at Ōtūmoetai Pā were forced to leave their ancestral home. This Pā is a special place in our community that is now available to us due to the goodwill of Alister Matheson who ensured the Tauranga City Council were able to take ownership of the 5-acre block in 2004, rather than it being developed into housing.
Our pōwhiri was a wonderful opportunity to welcome new children and whānau who are new to Matua School. Below is a short video that captures the event.
Matua School Board
Thank you to all those who were nominated for the Matua School Board. We appreciate your willingness to contribute to the success of our school in this way. Matua School operates a staggered election cycle and so those elected most recently make up part of the full Board. The full results of the election were sent out to parents on Thursday 15th September. Please see our complete list of current Board members below:
| NAME: | POSITION: | ELECTED: |
|---|---|---|
| Mrs Fiona Lavin | Chairperson | Sept 22 |
| Ms Anushiya Ponniah | Co-opted | Jan 21 |
| Dr Melissa Derby | Dec 20 | |
| Mr Craig Williams | June 22 | |
| Mr Kim Bevins | Sept 22 | |
| Mr Nicholas Smith | Sept 22 | |
| Mr Joe Hull | Staff Representative | Sept 22 |
| Mr Marcus Norrish | Principal |
I also want to make special mention of those who have finished their time on the Matua School Board. Ross Mosley, Kate Ferris and Lindsay Crisp have served our community well, providing quality support and governance over a number of years. Ngā mihi.
Class Placements 2023
In early Term 4, we will be planning classrooms for 2023. The process of placing children in classrooms is something we take very seriously and there are many factors to consider. While we cannot accommodate requests for placements with teachers or specific friends, we do understand that there are times when parents have information that needs to be considered. PLEASE DO NOT MAKE REQUESTS DIRECTLY TO TEACHERS. If you have a comment or information regarding classroom placement that you feel needs to be considered, please email: principal@matua.school.nz
Team Organisation 2023
Due to the potential for large classroom numbers next year, we are making a small change to the way teams are organised in 2023. These will be as noted in the table below:
| YEAR GROUP: | NO.of CLASSES: |
|---|---|
| Year 1 Students | 4 Classes |
| Year 2 and 3 Students Composite | 6 Classes |
| Year 4 Students | 4 Classes |
| Year 5 and 6 Students Composite | 6 Classes |
If you have any queries regarding this, please let me know.
Nga mihi,
Marcus Norrish
Principal
WBOP Speech Competition
Tuesday 20th September
PTA Disco
Thursday 22nd September
Queen Elizabeth II - Memorial Day
Monday 26th September
(School CLOSED)
Last Day of Term 3
Friday 30th September
First Day of Term 4
Monday 17th October
Labour Day - Public Holiday
Monday 24th October
(School Closed)
PTA Quiz Night
Saturday 29th October
GILRS RUGBY
WIG WEDNESDAY
On Wednesday the 7th of September Matua School took part in Wig Wednesday. Our students had the opportunity to wear a wig, scarf or hat to school, or create a wacky hairdo in support of this day.
We were overwhelmed by our donations and managed raise a massive $666.
This will go straight to the child cancer society. Thank you very much for your generosity.
SCHOOL HOURS
A friendly reminder that school is not open until 8.30am. If you require childcare before these hours, please contact SKIDS either by email – matua@skids.co.nz, phone – 027 586 0408, or book online – www.skids.co.nz/Matua.
FUN FIRST FOOTBALL
Fun First Football are back with their awesome Programme at Matua Primary in Term 4 every Thursday after school on our School Field for kids aged 4-9yrs old! To join, or for a Free Trial, go to https://funfirstfootball.co.nz
SCHOOL INFORMATION
LUNCH ORDERS – EVERY FRIDAY
Lunch orders are available for delivery to Matua School each Friday.
We have two options available – The Matua Cafe and Subway
SUBWAY
Simply order your SUBWAY lunch online through you myKindo account by CLICKING HERE
Order (or cancel) any time before 9:00am on the day or schedule in advance.
Help? Visit support.mykindo.co.nz or call 09-869 5200 Mon-Fri, 8:00am to 4:00pm.
MATUA CAFE & EATERY
For Friday lunches from the Matua Cafe, place your order at the Cafe before 9:30am. Orders will be delivered to school and handed out at the hall entrance at lunchtime.
To view the Matua Cafe & Eatery MENU, follow THIS LINK
TERM DATES 2022
Term 1, 2022 – Tuesday 1st February 2022 – Wednesday 13th April
Term 2, 2022 – Monday 2nd May – Friday 8th July
Term 3, 2022 – Monday 25th July – Friday 30th September
Term 4, 2022 – Monday 17th October – Thursday 15th December (12:30pm finish)
First Day of School 2023 – Tuesday 31st January
OUR SCHOOL APP
Our School App
We have a school app to keep you up to date with events and notifications. Click on the button below to check it out.
SETTING UP KINDO
Setting up with Kindo
Kindo is our prefered payments system. To help you learn how it works, we’ve added their new help sheet and video. We hope it helps.
