Russell Street School

Thank you to all those who attended the Wine n Cheese Information Evening at Roslyn School tonight. Staff and Board members in attendance were able to get a brief outline of the background of the Ministry of Education’s ICTPD cluster programme, the nature or intent of our own proposal and an insight into the driving forces behind it.

Te Apiti is a very powerful, positive partnership between six leading schools in Manawatu. We look forward to building capacity together in the true spirit of collaboration ….. for the combined benefit of all students. Click here for a copy of the proposal (final draft).

OPEN AFTERNOON – Wednesday 2^nd December

Ross Intermediate is holding an open afternoon for all students who are enrolled to start in 2010.  We will be taking all of our Year 6 students who will be going to Ross next year.  We will be traveling to Ross by bus. Timings for the afternoon are 1:00pm – 2:30pm.

Whaea Maryanne

First time, Great News, 2009, Raffle for a Ride,. I WIN A RIDE TO SCHOOL IN A RALLY CAR. Not just a rally car - Kerry Harvey’s Rally Car and here is how it started.

I was playing my violin and suddenly I smelled race car gas and tasted freedom. I heard a car doing burn outs and I saw a rally car come up the drive. Of course I ran up the wall, across the roof and jumped back because I was excited. When I got in I felt like I was already going and what woke me up from that feeling was a BIG VROOM VROOM! I was so frightened I nearly fell out of the car, but I didn’t because I was going round the Square.

Then I went to Russell Street School, up their driveway, onto the field, then walked down the RED CARPET.

IT WAS A GREAT DAY!

Over summer, the City Library will once again be running their very popular Summer Reading programme. This is a free, incentive based reading programme, that promotes books and reading. It’s a great way to help avoid the “summer slide“!

The registration date for this year’s programme (for both primary and intermediate aged children) is Sunday 29th November. Registration will be in the Welcome Lounge on the mezzanine floor of the Central Library (opposite the cafe).

Doors open at 12:30 sharp, and places are limited, so if you’re keen to be part of this wonderful programme, mark the date on your calendar and don’t be late!

THIS IS IT! An exciting leadership position in a progressive school with a fantastic staff and community culture…. is this your next position? We welcome applications from highly motivated, visionary educators who are energetic and have strong interpersonal skills. If appointed you will benefit from a high level of within- and across-school collaboration and be well supported to develop professionally. The Principal, David Reardon welcomes any inquiries. Position commences Term 1 2010.

Click here to be taken to full information on the Deputy Principal Vacancy

In recent weeks we have begun planning for 2010 giving priority consideration to important matters such as staffing.  It’s now time for us to turn our minds to organisation and class placement and in doing so also discuss how best we can

achieve goals specific to e-learning.

Our Board of Trustees will very shortly be giving consideration to the steps required in 2010 towards meeting our goals.  As part of this process we wish to find out how much interest there is for the digitally enhanced classrooms in the next school year.

Principals of the six participating schools welcome all Staff and Board of Trustees Members to a ‘Wine ‘n’ Cheese’ Information Evening on Tuesday, November 17 at 6.00 in the Roslyn School hall. Find out about the benefits of working collaboratively, the focus of the programme, how it will affect you and how it will enrich the outcomes for students.

It is important that you RSVP to your own school office by Thursday, November 12 for catering purposes. You might also like to inform your own office of any particular questions you might like a response to.

A copy of the original (draft) strategic proposal is attached here for more information. Click here.

Here is just one of the very effective animations created by a group of Year 3/4 students in R6 (The Circus). The students were engaged in a wide range of competencies as each group worked through a planning stage, responded to problems, created detailed imagery, worked constructively in a group, reflected on (and modified) actions, and managed the technology for success. The language and level of enthusiasm generated was amazing. Well done The Circus. Your retelling of these tales is a pleasure for us all to enjoy, and is something no doubt that you will remember for some time.

Thank you to the small number of families who returned the ‘Portfolio Feedback’ form. Your response, along with the National Government’s instructions around ‘plain english reporting’ (in particular on national standards) will assist our thinking as we begin to consider the future of assessment and reporting. This is no small task and indeed could be considered one of the most vitally important reviews we have undertaken in recent years.

In re-shaping our reporting, foremost in our minds will be questions such as: Which model (of reporting) drives better learning? What are our own school’s expectations, and how do they compare with that of the national standards? (Note –our levels of achievement have been consistently above the NZ norms available in maths, reading and writing) What is required to ensure Parents have the ‘language of learning’ and fully understand reporting procedures? What mode of reporting provides the best evidence of today’s learning? How can all of the expectations be managed for success?

This term we will be attending information workshops on the national standards and reporting, which will inform our planning. This, coupled with the most recent research, as well as your feedback will help shape our direction. Please note we will be seeking further feedback from you as we review/revise our programme of reporting.

Congratulations to Joy Kitt, who has been awarded a prestigious science fellowship for terms one and two of 2010. This award is designed to further develop science leaders in the education sector, especially in Primary Schools. It involves a placement in a scientific organisation learning how science is applied out of schools, intensive curriculum support, and leadership training. This is exciting news.