Absences

It is in the interest of ākonga progress that they attend school every day, and the Education Act requires this by law.

The school/kura maintains an electronic attendance register. Please inform us when your child cannot attend school, advising your child’s name, room number and the reason for their absence. Either:

telephone the school on 389 9256 before 9.00 a.m.
send a message via another family member or neighbour
send an email to: office@linwoodave.school.nz
text–0274 373 674 with the child’s name, room number and reason for absence

A message can be left on the school’s answer phone 24 hours a day. The school will make contact with home if a child is unaccounted for. Please make sure we have your current home, work and cellphone number and that these along with your home address are kept up to date.

Children absent for more than 3 weeks at one time are required to be removed from the school roll unless there is written verification of a return to school date and an explanation for non-attendance e.g. medical certificate or travel details. When there are patterns of unjustified absence, this will be followed up with their parents/caregivers by the Deputy Principal or Principal.

Under the Education Act 1989, Principal’s approval is required for parents to take children out of school for 3 days or more. Please request this in writing by sending an e-mail to office@linwoodave.school.nz

Ako Hui

At the beginning of the year, this is an opportunity for you, your child and the class teacher to get to know each other and find out any important information to start the year off. We value the partnership that of working together to make a difference for each child. It also allows time to establish how you would like to be contacted.

Later in the year, this special time, will allow you to all meet again to discuss progress. Your child will be able to show you what they are learning and what there next steps are.

Access

Parents, by right, have access to their child(ren) when living apart, separated or divorced. Upon request, interviews and reports are available to both parents. Where access is denied by either parent, documentation is required to be seen by the Principal. Without proof, access must be allowed to both parents.

Accidents or Illness

Accidents of a minor nature are attended to at school in the sick bay. If they are more serious we contact you at home or at work so that you can take your child home or to the Doctor. All accidents are recorded in the sick bay notification book.

After School Care

Children must go straight home after school. If your child wishes to play with a friend, they should first obtain your permission.

Youthtown provides after school care at Te Waka Unua. A van picks up tamariki after school and transports them to Te Waka Unua.

ph: 027 513 2303 | linwood@youthtown.org.nz

Assemblies

We hold a full School Assembly every second Friday at 9:15am, where classes or groups may share aspects of classroom programmes. You are most welcome to come to these assemblies.

Before School

Children are allowed into the school and the classrooms from 8:30a.m. The gates are locked until 8:30am. Tamariki must go to their classes between 8:30 and 9am.

Bicycles

We believe that children must know the Road Code and have the skills for safe cycling. We remind parents that the New Zealand Transport Agency and The New Zealand Police recommended age for cycling to school is 10. We strongly recommend that children do not ride to school until they are in Year 5 or above. If parents allow their child to ride to school, they take responsibility for their cycling safety. Children who cycle to school must wear approved safety helmets. Bicycles can be left in the cycle stands during the school day at the risk of the owner. Bicycles must be walked within the school grounds unless children are participating in a supervised cycling activity.

Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees has the task of governing the school. Board of Trustee meetings are open to the public and parents are welcome to attend. A copy of the agenda for meetings is available at the office. Meetings are held on the last Wednesday of the month in the staff-room at 1:30pm.

Cell Phones

Children who bring cell phones to school do so at their own risk. The school does not accept responsibility for any loss or damage. Phones are not to be used to communicate with others or connect to social media during the school day and must be given to the class teacher for safe keeping.

Children's Progress

Teachers closely monitor the progress of all children every year. We know what the expected levels of achievement should be for different age levels across NZ. However, every child is different. They all develop and progress at their own rate, whether that's physical, emotional or intellectual change. Not all 5 or 10 year olds will grow at the same rate, and they certainly don't learn at the same rate. It is unwise to make comparisons between children, especially brothers or sisters. It is much more valid to look at what a child could do at the start of a year, and then look at how well they are making progress through the year, and across years.
It is important that home and school keep in regular contact on any concerns that arise about a child's learning, and how well they are progressing over years.

it is really important that you see your child's teacher first if you have any concerns.

Finally, encouragement and building on children's strengths are two key ways to help them build self-confidence and to face challenges that arise in their learning.

Choir

Children may join the choir in Years 5 and 6. Practices are held during the day and taking part in the Christchurch Schools’ Music festival is usually a major focus of the year.

Code of Conduct

Code of Conduct

Concerns and Complaints

Concerns or complaints can be raised by staff members, parents, caregivers, ākonga, the wider kura community, and members of the public. At Te Huarahi /Linwood Avenue School, we expect all parties involved to respect privacy and confidentiality.This includes not publicly sharing information about the matter (e.g. on social media).

Anyone who has a concern or complaint should raise it as soon as possible with an appropriate person e.g. the class teacher. This can be done verbally or in writing and, in the first instance, this is usually with a staff member directly involved. If this is not appropriate, concerns may be raised with another relevant staff member (e.g. a staff member in charge of a programme, a member of the management team, the principal).

The person who receives the concern or complaint may refer the matter to a more appropriate person if needed, or involve another person, including the principal.

There is a flow chart of the process at the end of this article.

Dental Care

Enrolment at school automatically means enrolment for free Dental Therapy. Parents wishing to make alternative arrangements are able to do so. Dental Therapists visit the school once a year to assess all children.

The Community Dental Service provides free dental care for eligible children living in Canterbury and South Canterbury. Children are eligible for free dental care if they are a:

New Zealand Citizen
Permanent Resident
Or have a parent or primary caregiver on a 2 year work visa (consecutive)

If you need to check eligibility, please visit the Ministry of Health website

The closest Community Dental Care facilities are located at

Emergencies

In the event of an emergency children will be cared for by staff until parents are able to collect them from school. It is essential that we have at least two (preferably more) emergency contacts recorded for your child. We will only release children to contacts identified in our database. Please keep emergency contact information up to date.

Enrolment

If it is possible please enrol your child at least three months prior to their fifth birthday. Ring the school to make an enrolment appointment and bring along your child's birth certificate and immunisation certificate . A decision about class placement will be made soon after enrolment and you will be contacted about pre-entry visits for you and your child.

Family Records

A file is kept at the office with details of your address and home telephone and work numbers; also other contact numbers are important in case of sickness or an emergency. It is most important that we have these up-to-date at all times. Please inform the office immediately there is a change.

Headlice/Kutu

From time to time there are outbreaks of headlice. Please don’t panic if your child has headlice. They are very easily caught and very easily treated. Please inform us if you discover signs of headlice in your child’s hair – chances are others may have them too. Generally, the school sends note home to all families in a class to alert them to the presence of headlice.

Helping your child at home

View information

Hours

School begins: 9.00 am daily
Morning break: 11:00am to 11:10 for eating, the 11:10 to 11:30 for playing.
Lunch break: 12:45 pm to 1:45 pm - 15 minutes eating time
School finishes: 3pm

The gates are locked until 8:30am and between 8:30 and 9am, children need to go to their classes where they will be supervised.

Home learning/ Homework

At Linwood Avenue School we believe learning happens everywhere and often the best learning is a result of shared experiences and conversations. We understand that families have busy lives and children are often involved in many out of school activities and sports.

Research shows homework does not work!

We do not want to send home busy work which does not relate to the classroom. If home learning becomes stressful with arguments or tears it turns children off learning and becomes ineffective and has a negative impact for families.

Research shows that while reading and learning basic facts is beneficial for learners, all other compulsory homework (in primary schools) is not proven to improve outcomes.

Reading with, and to your tamariki is one of the most important things you can do.

After school time should be a balance between play, socialising, family time, hobbies and interests, sport and a small amount of school work- e.g.reading.

Houses

Each year the children from Year 3 to Year 6 are put into one of four houses (Harris, Dravitski, Direen and Reece) named after the four most recent Principals.

Library

Our library is open at lunch times. Classes also go to the library during the week in class time.

Don't forget to join the Linwood library located upstairs at Eastgate.It is free to join.

Lost Property

We recommend that you name all your child’s clothing. You are welcome to check for any missing clothes etc. in the cloak bays, the classroom and in the Lost Property box which is in the entrance of the office.

Lunches

Lunches are provided to every child - if your child has a dietary need, please contact us so we can arrange a meal that will suit.

Newsletters

A newsletter link is emailed every second Thursdayis on facebook and is also available on our web page.

Outside Agency Support

View information.

Pacific Island Cultural Group

View information.

Parking

Angle parking is provided in the slipway for you to use when necessary. You are urged not to park on the opposite side of the slipway or to double park, for the safety and access of others, especially our children.

Personal Possessions

We discourage children from bringing toys or money to school. We are unable to take responsibility for personal belongings.

Public Health Nurse

Our nurse is Frances based at Burwood Hospital, Christchurch, phone 3836877. She is available to help provide advice and support for children’s health.

Reporting

Twice a year your child's school report will be able to be accessed on the Hero app.

Sickness

Children who are not well in the night or before school should not be sent to school. We do not have staff or facilities to give care to sick children. When children become ill or are injured during the school day, parents are contacted and are asked to take the child home or to their doctor. If your child has been vomiting or had diarrhoea, they need to be away from school for 48 hours from the time of their last symptom.

If a child becomes ill at school parents are contacted and suitable arrangements made. If both parents are working the name and telephone number of someone who can be called in an emergency should be made known. This is particularly necessary in the case of accidents.

Where contact cannot be made with you and it is an emergency, we will contacting the local doctor or hospital. We will call an ambulance to assist with first aid if needed. Our staff are trained in practical first aid.

If your child suffers from asthma, allergies, epilepsy etc please advise the school office so we can work out a procedure to deal with any situation that may arise.

If your child needs to take medication during the day, this will be administered at the office. If medication is to be administered, parents MUST sign an authorisation form at the office before medication can be given. Inhalers also need to be kept at the office and administered as per instruction from parents. While all care will be taken in administering medication and first aid, the final responsibility is the parents.

School Donations

The Board of Trustees has chosen to opt into the Government Donations Scheme for schools. This means that the school will receive additional funding of $150 per child for agreeing to stop asking families and whānau to pay a school donation. We believe that this will benefit everyone in our community.

Under this scheme, there are some costs that schools can still ask parents to contribute to:

Overnight school camps will be exempted from the Donations Scheme, which means that Boards will still be able to ask family/whānau for donations towards school camps that have an overnight component.
Parents can be asked to pay for visiting drama or music groups, weekend or after hours sports teams, and school dances or social events because participation in these types of activities is voluntary and that participation has a charge.
We will make sure that we communicate clearly if there are any costs that parents will be asked to contribute to.
We are conscious that payments can be a problem for some families. We operate a process where you can use a direct credit from your bank account for a set amount each week or fortnight or if you prefer in termly instalments. The parents who are using this service find it works well for them. If you are interested, please ask at the office.

Smoking/ Vaping Policy

All schools in New Zealand are non-smoking, non vaping areas.

Swimming

We run school swimming weeks during the year. Please read the newsletters and view the claendar for information regarding these.

Uniform

Our main concern is that your child is tidy, warm and comfortable in our school uniform.Our uniform colours are dark green and red. A good selection of second hand uniforms are available to buy at the school office.

Vision and Hearing Tests

The Health Department checks the vision and hearing of your child at age 5-6 years. They will check any other children we refer. This is done twice a year. Between those times the Health Nurse will make vision tests on request. If you are concerned about your child's hearing you can get it tested by making an appointment with your Doctor who will refer you to the Hospital.