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As we head next week into our electives, our students leave formal classroom activity behind and engage in other learning opportunities which will hopefully stay with them as both enjoyable and productive excursions and form long standing memories. With changing covid constraints we have had to amend programmes to meet requirements. Thank you to staff for working to resolve all the issues thrown at us. (further details on
from 3 December 2021
by RLHS
wardj@rotorualakes.school.nz
INFORMATION
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LAST DAY OF TERM
Please note that the last day of term is Tuesday 14 December. School closes at end of prizegiving approximately 1.30 pm at which time students collect reports from House Group and then they are released. Ministry buses will run as normal. Charter bus will leave at 1.45 pm.
ELECTIVES
Due to changes with the COVID-19 response system, we have had to change the arrangements for our Main Elective to balance what we can do as a large group and what is practicable with remaining staff to assist with. The following is the updated changes:
Thursday 9th Dec
Friday 10th Dec Normal school day
“Big Day In” Students will participate in a variety of activities throughout the day at school. A Sausage Sizzle will be provided for lunch. Students will also have Popcorn & Candy Floss provided in the afternoon. Students will be in mufti for the day, and will need the following items: • A towel and change of clothes if participating in water activities. • Sunblock and a hat • Snacks and water
This event will be FREE to students. Those that have previously paid $5.00 for the Main Elective: Nek Minnit, can either receive a refund or keep the money on their account as credit.
Thank you for your understanding and support of these adjustments. If you have any further questions, please contact one of the organising Heads of House below:
Helen Gainsford - Tarawera House gainsfordh@rotorualakes.school.nz Nikkola Hemana - Okareka House hemanan@rotorualakes.school.nz Senila Savage - Rotokākahi House savages@rotorualakes.school.nz
YEAR 13 LEAVERS DINNER
The Annual RLHS Year 13 Leavers Dinner will be held this year at the Holiday Inn, Tyrone Street on Tuesday 14 December 2021. The evening will begin with welcome drinks and canapes. A buffet to the table format for the meal will be followed by a celebration of the achievements of all Year 13 students.
Vaccine passports will be required by the venue for all attendees and this will be checked at the door.
We have incorporated elements of the ball this year due to enforced cancellation of our formal ball. In turn, this is a semi-formal occasion. A very tidy standard of dress is required (e.g. no jeans, t-shirts, jandals etc) and appropriate behavior is expected.
Students attending are under our normal school rules including no smoking and no alcohol. The only concession to these rules is those students who are with their parents or caregivers may have alcohol with their meal if purchased by their parents and are of legal age. No intoxicated persons will be admitted to the function.
The school regards this dinner as a family celebration. Students must be accompanied by their parents/caregivers and are unable to purchase individual tickets for themselves. It is possible for students to be accompanied by another Lakes High student’s parent/caregiver but permission must be sought and approved before such a ticket can be bought. See Ms Howard.
Doors open 6 pm.
For any other questions please contact Ms Howard howardh@rotorualakes.school.nz
SENIOR ENGLISH STUDENTS
All Senior English students who have been issued a novel need to return these by the 6th of December. Otherwise a lost novel charge will be placed on the students account.
These can be returned to front reception or in English classes. Thank you.
LOST PROPERTY
Please check with Ms D McLeod at student reception for any lost property. We will dispose of all items at the end of this term. Thank you.
LAST DAY FOR THE CANTEEN
Last day for the canteen will be Wednesday 8 December 2021.
SCHOOL BUS ARRANGEMENTS FOR 2022 – CHANGE IN PROVIDER
Next year our school bus operator is changing. Our new school bus operator is Go Bus. We are working closely with Go Bus and the Ministry of Education to ensure that the transition to our new school bus operator goes well. To make sure that the start of the school year goes as smoothly as possible, please familiarise yourself with the information below.
As always, please either stay with your children while they are waiting for their school transport in the morning or keep in contact with them to make sure that they are picked up safely.
School bus routes, timetables and bus stop information • Routes are in our newsletter and also on our website
Eligibility for school transport assistance We often get questions about whether students qualify for school transport assistance i.e., a place on a school bus.
The Ministry of Education has three criteria that students must meet in order to qualify for school transport assistance. They are: • The student must attend their closest state or state-integrated school • The student must live more than a certain distance from the school: • Years 1-8: at least 3.2 km • Years 9-13: at least 4.8 km • There must be no suitable public transport options
The Ministry of Education has a handy video on their website that helps explains the eligibility criteria for school transport assistance.
Responsibility of caregivers To ensure a safe environment for bus loading and unloading, caregivers should:
• not park in bus bays • adhere to the speed limit (20 km/h while passing a stationary school bus on either side of the road) • try to eliminate the need for children to cross the road • ensure that children get to and from the bus stop safely • teach children to not run across the road Please note: if you currently have a private arrangement with your bus operator, you will need to contact your bus operator to confirm that your arrangement will continue in 2022.
School transport queries If you have any queries about our school transport, please contact Lilian Gilbert. She can be contacted by emailing gilbertl@rotorualakes.school.nz.
The following policies are currently up for review. If you would like to view any of these policies, we invite you to come into the school where they are available at the Principal’s PA office. Alternatively, if you would like a copy emailed, please send an email to humphriesj@rotorualakes.school.nz • Finance Policy • Refunds to International Fee paying students • Health & Safety • Property Management • Protected Disclosures • Visitor Safety • Foreign Fee Paying Students • Timetabling Policy (new policy) • Staff Use of School Devices Policy (new policy)
NEW COVID 19 PROTECTION (TRAFFIC LIGHT) FRAMEWORK
You may have heard that everyone in Aotearoa will move to the new COVID-19 Traffic Light Framework on Friday 3 December. We will be moving to Red. Elimination and the alert levels have worked well, with New Zealand having the lowest numbers of cases and hospitalisations in the OECD. While controlled, Delta is in our communities and the strategy now focuses on minimising its impact.
With 85% of eligible New Zealanders now fully vaccinated, and by mid-December it is expected to be approximately 90%, this allows a careful reopening while continuing to protect New Zealanders. This means that we don’t have to change the way we are operating classes this year and everyone can continue to attend school onsite.
For next year, we can confirm that everyone will be back onsite for learning from the start of the school year, regardless of what setting under the new Traffic Light Framework we will be in (Red/Orange/Green). This is good news and means we can plan for a great 2022.
HEALTH MEASURES IN PLACE AT SCHOOL This year and next, health, safety and wellbeing will continue to be a priority for us and the same public health measures you are very familiar with will remain in place: • good hygiene and cleaning • contact tracing systems in place • vaccination requirements for workers (paid and unpaid) • if you are sick, you must stay home and get tested • good ventilation.
One change is that face coverings are encouraged to be worn when indoors for students and staff in years 9 – 13. Face coverings on school transport remain mandatory.
And if we are at Red at any stage next year: • face coverings will be required at school when indoors for students and staff in years 9 – 13 we will ask that only essential visitors come onsite.
With all these measures in place, public health has confirmed the risk of infection remains low when at school, with households continuing to be where COVID-19 is spreading the most. As noted by Dr Caroline McElnay, Director of
Public Health: Our experience in New Zealand and overseas with COVID-19 shows that it does not affect children and teens in the same way it does adults. Children and teens don't become as unwell if they do get infected, and they don't tend to pass the virus on so much as adults when in a classroom setting.
Compared to other places, schools and early learning services are not environments where we have seen significant spread of COVID-19. Household members and work colleagues who are in close contact with people with COVID-19, are the most common sources of transmission. However, if we do have someone confirmed with COVID-19 in our school, we have a plan in place to manage this and will contact you as soon as possible.
If you’d like to learn more about the framework visit COVID-19 Protection Framework.
SCHOOL TRANSPORT & CHARTER BUS ANNOUNCEMENT
As we have previously notified our community, it is mandatory for all students travelling on Ministry of Education Buses or Rotorua Lakes High Charter bus to wear face masks. As students board the bus they are being checked by staff to ensure masks are being worn. On the odd occasion we have found students have forgotten to have a mask and where possible have provided one with a clear warning that students who do not have masks may not be allowed on the bus.
With the increasing presence of COVID-19 in Rotorua we wish to make it clear that students who arrive at the bus without a mask will not be allowed onto the bus. From Monday 29th November, any student without a mask will be unable to travel on the school buses and will not be allowed onto the bus. They will need to find an alternative way home if this is the case. As a school we understand that from time to time students may forget to bring a mask with them. Over the last three weeks, when this has happened, the school, or bus drivers have been able to provide a mask, and note that the student had forgotten a mask on the register. However, it is now clear that some students are trying to travel without a mask on a frequent basis.
We will continue to support students who may have forgotten a mask by providing a replacement if they go to reception before trying to board a bus. From Monday 29th November onwards, if a student has shown that not bringing a mask is a habit rather than a one off, they will be unable to travel. If they try to board a bus without a mask they will be unable to travel.
We do not wish to prevent students from travelling, but do expect that all our students abide by the law, following a mandate that has been in place since 25th October. Thank you for your support to ensure our students remain in a safe environment.
CHANGES TO BUS SYSTEM FROM MON 29 NOVEMBER 2021
There is a slight change to bus systems as of Monday 29th November. All students will need to gather at the covered bus waiting area near the canteen. There, they will be marked off against a register to confirm they are on the bus. This also applies to the Charter bus, where students have often previously gone straight to the bus rather than the waiting area. As they register with the bus controller, they will be handed a laminated card which they will keep and return to a staff member as they board the bus. This system ensures that all students travelling are accounted for and meets Health & Safety requirements for having a register of which students are on our buses. A further reminder that all students mandatorily have to wear a face mask while travelling on school transport. These changes will not alter arrival or departure times. Thankyou, RLHS Bus Controller
CHANGES TO THE RETURN OF NZQA EXAM BOOKLETS
Changes to the way NZQA will return exam booklets in January:
Student access to marked answers • Students will access all their marked exam answers through their NZQA student login. Paperbased answer booklets will not be returned in the mail (except for Scholarship exams). • Students can view their marked answers online until June each year. This includes any scanned blank paper answer books, but not blank digital ones. • It is important that students create an NZQA Student Login account on the Login Options page if they don’t already have one.
