2025 Teacher Only Days:

Kia ora koutou, 
We were pleased to welcome a new cohort of 5 year olds to our school this week. We are also hosting 2 students and a professor from University of Yamanashi this week. We currently host 3 University of Waikato student teachers every Tuesday and Matua Keiki from Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.  
It was wonderful for teachers to connect with whanau at Kānohi ki te kānohi last week. Thank you for taking the time to attend.

Thank you to all of our school whānau that took the time to complete our community survey at the end of last year. The Board discussed the survey results at our first meeting of the year, and we have taken on board both the positive feedback as well as the areas for our school work on. Overall, it seems that we have a lot of children who look forward to arriving at school each day, and we are grateful to our teachers who provide such an inclusive and safe environment in which to learn.

For those that are new to our school, the Board is made up of a mixture of parent and staff representatives. We meet once a month to discuss and review matters that impact the overall direction of the school, and will keep you updated from time to time through Hero and the Board section on the school website.

Georgia Read
Presiding Member

Tēnā Koutou e te whānau,

Nau mai, Haere mai to the next cohort of Year Ones that joined our Kōwhai team this week. We are so glad to see you and your whānau here bright and early to start your first day of kura!

We had a Mihi Whakatau (welcome) for these students with the Kiwi whanau and some of the Kapa Haka group.

We are halfway through the term, and I can’t believe how fast it has gone.  This is the last week of swimming, and the tamariki have enjoyed their time in the pool.  In the Junior school we focus on water safety and feeling comfortable in the water!

Classrooms are open from 8.30 am. 

We wear our school hats for all of this term.

You can now use the Hero App to record absences.

Kia Ora Whānau,

We can’t believe it is week 6! Thank you whānau for coming to our Kanohi ki te Kanohi. It was a fantastic chance to talk about your tamariki and ways to support their growth. 

In class this week Room 17 had a blast during our "Play, Make, Create" sessions, where they worked together or independently on creative projects and activities. 

We have also enjoyed going out and appreciating Papatūānuku and writing about our beautiful school and environment.  

Kia ora,

Welcome to week 6!  Thank you to the whānau who met teachers last week and shared about their child at Kanohi ki te kanohi, it was great to see so many families here. This week Kauri students who are interested in being a Manu Rere (student leader) are filling in applications. It was so good to see so many tamariki eager to be a leader within our school. I have enjoyed walking through the classes and seeing the portrait art, the creativity is amazing. Below are some examples from Room 9. 

Kauri - Room 9 - Self Portraits
As part of our Tūrangawaewae unit, Room 9 drew inspiration from New Zealand artist Robyn Kahukiwa. We were inspired by her use of bold colours and strong features. Robyn's paintings often address important issues such as the oppression of Māori women and the evolution of Māori traditions, emphasising the importance of preserving Māori identity. Through exploring her artwork, we've developed a deeper appreciation for the role of art in expressing identity and cultural heritage. 

Here are some of our completed portraits.

Kia ora, 

Wa Manaakitanga Programme

The ākonga/students who attend this afternoon programme have been busy finding out about minibeasts / insects over the last few weeks. They have been looking around our school finding insects, thinking about their habitats and what they might eat. They also looked at how insects can help our environment. The ākonga especially enjoyed learning about spiders, wetas and the cicada. To complete their learning they made ‘bug-hotels’. These were placed in the kitchen garden, for insects and bugs to live in. We also picked some peaches off the tree to do some baking with this week. 
Claire and Meg

Insect Art

Download the Hero app today. 
Here you will be able to see:

To see how to report an absence refer to the pictures below. 

Sport Waikato is partnering with Hamilton East School for the ‘Voice of Tamariki Survey’, which will take place this term. The survey is run by Sport Waikato and seeks to understand the sport and physical activity experiences of tamariki within the school setting.

Please read the information in the letter below. 

Registrations for hockey and netball are now open until the 28th of March.

Please read the form carefully and keep in mind that by registering, you're committing your child to participate for the entire season.

We are always beyond grateful for any offers to coach, manage, or umpire games. Without your support, we wouldn't be able to enter competitions.

Hockey Registrations - Link here

If your child is interested in joining other winter sports, please visit our school website and look under ‘School Information - Sports' for local club sign-up opportunities.

Any questions please contact us on sporthes@hameast.school.nz

Ngā mihi!
Emily and Laura