Middle of Term 2 Newsletter

Tēnā koe

It has been a busy week with the Common Assessment Activities (CAAs) this week. We are proud of the way students prepared for and performed in these important NZQA examinations. We are pleased with the rich conversations at the Pathway Meetings last week for students in Year 13, their whānau, and their form teachers. We are also proud of the many and varied successes students continue to experience in and out of the classroom.

Enormous congratulations to Year 13 band Estatica and Year 11 band Vandal who have made it through to the finals of Smokefree Rockquest 2026. Also, congratulations to our sportspeople who are playing with skill and heart; there are a number of teams sitting at the top of their table. 

We encourage you to stay connected and follow our social media for news of significant success in and out of the classroom.

https://facebook.com/northcotecollege

https://instagram.com/northcotecollege  

Instagram & Facebook: @NorthcoteCollegeSports 

Ministry of Education Teacher only Day: Friday 29 May

School will be closed for instruction on this day as teachers work collaboratively to respond to and implement latest changes to curriculum, assessment and reporting. Here is a link to the most recent announcement about changes to the national qualifications: https://tahurangi.education.govt.nz/senior-secondary-quals-finalised   

Education Review Office (ERO): Tuesday 2 June - Thursday 4 June

In Week 7, we will host a team of Education Review Officers. The ERO team will be on site for three days. They will observe classes and meet with students, teachers, leaders and board members. We look forward to discussing our work with ERO who work with us to evaluate the experience of students here.

Hautapu Ceremony for Matariki: Wednesday 1 July 5.30am 

We will celebrate the rising of Matariki, the Māori New Year with a traditional Hautapu ceremony on Wednesday 1 July. The Hautapu ceremony instils hope for a fruitful season ahead, followed by gathering, feasting, and celebration. Food from the sky, sea, forest, and gardens is cooked in an umu | earth oven. Before sunrise, the oven is uncovered, and the kohukohu | rising steam carries the essence of the food to the Matariki star cluster. Specific foods relate to the nine stars, such as Tupuānuku | food from the ground and Waitī | fresh water.

We warmly invite whānau and guests to join us at the front of K Block, near the library, between 5.30am and 6.00am for karakia. Following this, we will move to Level 3, the Rangitoto Room, for kai. We look forward to sharing this special morning with you.

Lumino The Dentists: 25 May - 26 June 

You will have received an email about Lumino The Dentists who are scheduled to have their mobile bus on site at Northcote College from the 25th May – 26th June. The online enrolment form is here. 

The Teachers’ Institute Webinar: Thursday 28 May 6-7pm

Have you thought of a career as a teacher? Teaching is a deeply fulfilling career. The Teachers’ Institute invite you to a Zoom webinar on Thursday 28 May to hear from current trainees on being based in a school for their year of training, recent TTI graduates on the highs and lows of their first year managing a classroom, and experienced teachers on what they’ve seen and learnt through their careers. More information is here. Northcote College is a host school for in-school teacher training. Please contact me at vb@northcote.school.nz if you are keen to know more.

Attendance is Important

We know that regular attendance at school supports academic success, strong connections and good wellbeing for young people. We continue to monitor attendance as a priority. It is essential that your child is at school on time and in every lesson ready to learn. If your child is absent, the Attendance Officer is to be notified with an explanation either by emailing attendance@northcote.school.nz, calling 09 481 0141 ext.750, or via Parent Portal. The Ministry of Education’s Stepped Attendance Response (STAR) system encourages regular student attendance. Our school plan management plan is available on our school website and here.

Road safety

This is another reminder to please urge your child to cross Onewa Road responsibly at the lights, to always triple check for cars before stepping out to cross Kauri Glen Road, and to never jaywalk. Kauri Glen Road becomes very congested before and after school particularly on rainy days. If you are dropping off or collecting your child from school, we strongly encourage you to use Gladstone Road. Please do not park on yellow lines or across our neighbours’ driveways.

School uniform

The Board approved a new optional rain jacket to be added to our uniform. This navy rain jacket is $55 and will be available at Yarnton’s in Birkenhead by the end of next week. 

Please support your child to wear the correct uniform which should all be named. In this colder weather, black shoes with black socks or tights are encouraged. White socks are not part of our uniform and should not be worn. Socks may not be worn with sandals. The school shell jackets and the wool jumpers are warm, as are the long pants and long skirts. 

School donations and sports fees

We are grateful to families who pay the school donation; without these payments we would not be able to offer the variety of learning opportunities our students currently enjoy. All payments to Northcote College can be made in one place with your myKindo account. Kindo allows partial payment so families can make the donation with the amount they are comfortable with at any time suitable for their situation. 33% of the value of the donations made to schools through Kindo can be claimed back from IRD. Kindo automatically generates IRD-approved donation receipts to make the process simple and efficient.

Summer and winter sports fees are due tomorrow, 22 May. You will have received email notification about this from the various teachers in charge of codes. 

There is a link to Kindo on the top bar of our school website: https://www.northcote.school.nz/our-school/kindo-payments

Kia Manawaroa and Matavai e-newsletters

Please see the links below for e-newsletters which are also linked on our school website under ‘Resources’. The monthly pānui have a range of interesting articles and useful information and resources.

Kia Manawaroa: Education pānui for whānau Māori

Matavai: News and information for Pacific families and caregivers

Thank you for your ongoing support of our school. We encourage you to stay in contact; if you have any queries, please contact your child’s Dean in the first instance.

 

Ngā manaakitanga

Vicki Barrie

Tumuaki | Principal

 

Key dates for the second half of Term 2

Week 6

Friday 30 May: Ministry of Education Teacher only Day - no students at school

Week 7

Monday 1 June: King’s Birthday - school closed

2 - 6 June: Samoa Language Week

2 - 4 June: ERO onsite

Week 8

Week 9

Monday 15 - Friday 19 June: Senior Assessment Week - schedule TBC

Week 10

Tuesday 23 June: Group photos

Thursday 25 June: Sports photos

Week 11

Wednesday 1 July: Matariki Hautapu

Friday 3 July: Last day of Term 2. Mid-year reports issued.

Term 3

Monday 20 July: First day of Term 3, Timetable Day 5