NOTICE
03 February 2015
Upcoming Events:
Friday 06 February
Waitangi Day – School Closed
Tuesday 10 February
Meet the Teacher—Year 1, 3 and 4 classes
Wednesday 11 February
Meet the Teacher—Year 2, 5 and 6 classes
Saturday 14 March
FOTS Fishing Gala
Dear Parents and Caregivers
Kia Ora and Greetings for 2015
Welcome back to all parents and children for the 2015 school year. We trust you had an enjoyable holiday break and
we look forward to another successful year. A very special welcome to all of those children and their families who
are new to our school this year. We hope that you find being part of the Browns Bay School community a rewarding
experience. I would like to welcome the new staff members Mrs Kellie Shimmin (Year 2 Room 4), Mrs Sarah
Patterson (Year 2/3 Room 2) and the return of Mrs Marilyn Bridger (Year 5 Room 17) from her year on leave.
This Notice is to inform you of the start of year details. The information will also be on our School website
www.brownsbay.school.nz Next week I will be sending out our first newsletter of the year. Newsletters are sent out
electronically via email so please advise us of any change to your email address since December 2014 to
suem@brownsbay.school.nz with Newsletter in the Subject to receive the first newsletter next week.
Along with this Notice each student will be bringing home forms for:
School Donations
Lunchroom Menu
Uniform Orders
FOTS Information
Medical Information
Stationery
Buddy System and
School Helper
MEET THE TEACHER EVENING
Teaching staff will be available on Tuesday 10 February and Wednesday 11 February for the Meet the Teacher
evening. On this night parents are asked to go directly to the classroom for a presentation by the teacher. There are
no set interview times – it is just a chance to meet your child’s teacher and fellow class-mates families.
Tuesday 10 February
Year 1
6 pm
Meet in your child’s classroom
Year 3 / 4
6.45 pm
Meet in your child’s classroom
Wednesday 11 February
Year 2
6pm
Meet in your child’s classroom
BYOD Guidelines Info.
6.30pm
Hall – for Year 5 and 6 parents
Year 5 / 6
7pm
Meet in your child’s classroom
eLearning and BYOD
Next week all students will receive an Internet User agreement document for parents to sign. This agreement will
form the basis of our Cyber Safety Programme. Late last year the BOT purchased a number of mobile devices for
classes own use and for sharing across the school. The increase in devices means more student access to ICT tools.
This year we have enabled our network to allow the Year 5 and 6 students to bring their own digital devices. On
Wednesday 11 February at 6:30pm in the Hall (before the Year 5/6 Meet the Teacher) we will share the documents
required around this initiative. Until we have shared these documents we would ask that the devices stay at home.
2015 Camp Dates
Year 0, Year 1, Year 2 – Outdoor Education - 6 March 2015
Year 3 – Outdoor Education – 18 March 2015
Year 4 Camp – 16 and 17 March 2015 and 19 and 20 March 2015
Year 5 Camp – 23, 24 and 25 March 2015
Year 6 Camp – 2, 3 and 4 March 2015
Room 26
The new Room 26 relocatable classroom will be in action today – it still needs the wall coverings and some bag area
yet Miss Ollerenshaw has set up in readiness for her Year 4 students.
Stationery for Students
Class lists of stationery requirements have been sent home with all children today. All stationery is available for
purchase from school tomorrow (Wednesday) and we hope that parents will support the school in this way.
Purchasing stationery items through school allows for consistency in the items being used and provides a minor
income stream for the school. In the initial stages all orders and payments will be handled through your child’s class,
not through the school office. Any payment should be forwarded to the class teacher in a named envelope.
Lunchroom
The lunchroom will open on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays commencing on Monday 9th February. Children
need to bring their lunch order in a named envelope and put it in the lunchbox in their classroom. Ezilunch will
continue to operate on those days and Subway orders will also continue on a Wednesday.
Uniforms
The school uniform supplier is Uniformity and uniforms are ordered directly through Uniformity. Information on
ordering is on the Uniform Order Form. I would like to ask parents ensure students wear the appropriate Uniform or
supply a note for the class teacher. At our School Assembly I will be discussing with the students what ‘suitable
footwear’ is – this will be shoes that are safe for sport and movement, they will not involve boots with heels or shoes
with wheels. Please name all parts of the uniform clearly.
Hats
The Board of Trustees has a school policy that requires all students to wear a hat for the period from Labour
weekend till Easter. We are asking that all students wear a school hat rather than any hat they may bring from
home. A cap and a brimmed hat are part of the school uniform items (the brimmed hat offers better sun protection
but we understand that the cap can be more acceptable for some students).
Food Allergies
We have a group of children who can react seriously to various foods. NUTS and EGGS are two such foods. Severe
allergies present a considerable challenge to schools, children and families alike. Symptoms can cause significant
health problems for allergic students, leading to absences from school, non-participation in school activities, and
increased levels of anxiety.
We encourage parents to please monitor the food that is placed in your child’s lunchbox. We would appreciate you
not including these items if at all possible yet if your child does bring food that is likely to cause an allergic reaction
to another child, please educate your child to not leave the food lying around and take wrappers home in their
lunchbox.
Reminder – if your email has changed since December 2014 please send an email to suem@brownsbay.school.nz
with Newsletter in the Subject to receive the first newsletter next week.
Regards
Peter Mulcahy
PRINCIPAL