Whāia te mātauranga hei oranga mō koutou
Learning for Life and Making it Count

Kia ora e te whānau,

Welcome back for 2023!
We are excited to be back for another great school year.
Our swimming pool is back in action and we are planning daily swimming for at least the first five weeks... that's 20-25 lessons (depending on weather) without buses or tuition fees!
Our topic studies from our local curriculum will start with learning about Waitangi Day... what is it all about? We are planning a whole school trip to Maukatere/Mount Grey (our mountain in our school pepeha). Then we will be learning about early pākehā settlement in Christchurch and Canterbury, before we embark on science topics about Planet Earth: what causes earthquakes and volcanoes?
Expect lots of questions and fabulous "Did you know...?" comments from your children!

See our latest newsletter here

School zone change
In 2021there was a slight change to our school zone. It now runs up Lower Styx Road all the way to Brooklands, including parts of Spencerville previously excluded. For details see here.

Looking forward to seeing you all again soon,

Ngā mihi,
Mark

COVID updates - from the Ministry of Education
see www.covid19.govt.nz

Key Points to Note:
"Traffic light" settings were removed from 13 September 2022.
The two key changes impacting education providers are:

• The removal of the requirement for household contacts to isolate. Instead, they will be asked to test for COVID-19 for five days. 

• Masks are no longer required on public transport or school transport and in line with other mask changes, they are no longer strongly recommended in school settings.

 
Positive cases remain legally required to isolate for seven days. Anyone who is symptomatic, including household contacts, should stay at home and get tested for COVID-19.
 
We will continue to keep our indoor spaces well-ventilated, maintaining good hand hygiene and cough and sneeze etiquette, appropriate physical distancing whenever we can and, most importantly, staying home if we are sick. 

See here for general reminders and information for parents.
For urgent queries, email principal@ouruhia.school.nz or text 0273039670

Take care,
Mark Ashmore-Smith
Principal

 
Tō tātou kura - Our School, Ouruhia

E ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā hau e whā.
Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.
 
Welcome, everybody, and let me introduce Ouruhia School.
We are your local school…a traditional family-friendly country school, modern and forward-thinking, with a rich and varied curriculum based in our community: Our People; Our Place; Our Future

We want Ouruhia to be fun, memorable, and relevant. One of our mottos is “Learning for Life and Making it Count.” We want kids to love learning, be curious, and having lots of "Wow!" moments. Kids with those attitudes and experiences will be motivated and engaged, and keen to make every step count on the road ahead… the road to a successful and positive future.

At Ouruhia our children grow to be strong in the personal qualities we emphasise: being Thinkers and Independent learners, who are Caring & Sharing and have a Can-Do Attitude.

​We welcome enquiries about enrolments for children from New Entrants to Year 8. We would love to meet you and show you around our school.
Please email Mark Ashmore-Smith at principal@ouruhia.school.nz for more information, or phone 03 323 8855.

See us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/ouruhiaschool

---

2023 Term Dates:
Term 1: Wed 1st Feb – Thur 6th April
Public holidays:          Waitangi Day:  Mon 6 Feb
                                    Good Friday 7 April
In term break:            Easter Monday 10 April
 
Term 2: *Mon 24th April (Wed 26 April) – Fri 30th June
 *NB Mon 24 April is likely to be a Teacher Only Day for Curriculum Refresh work. School  will therefore resume for Term 2 after ANZAC Day on Wed 26 April
                                   ANZAC Tues 25 April
                                   King's Birthday Monday 5th June
In term break:           Matariki Friday 14th July
 
Term 3: Mon 17th July – Fri 22nd Sept
 
Term 4: Mon 9th Oct – Fri 15th Dec
                                   Labour Day Monday 23rd October
                                   Canterbury Show Day Friday 17th November


School Office Hours:
Monday, Wednesday, Friday - 8.30am - 3.00pm
Tuesday, Thursday - 8.30am - 2.00pm
School Secretary - Raewyn Willocks