BREAM BAY COLLEGE
Newsletter

Edition
26 March 2024

EASTER WEEKEND DATES

FRIDAY 29 MARCH

MONDAY 1 APRIL

TUESDAY 2 APRIL

SCHOOL RE-OPENS AFTER THE EASTER BREAK

WEDNESDAY 3 APRIL

2024 Term Dates

TERM 1

FRIDAY 2 FEB - FRIDAY 12 APR

TERM 2

MONDAY 29 APR - FRIDAY 5 JUL

TERM 3

MONDAY 22 JUL- FRIDAY 27 SEPT

TERM 4

MONDAY 27 SEPT - FRIDAY 13 DEC

Upcoming Events

WEDNESDAY 10 APRIL - 6PM

Board of Trustees meeting

TUESDAY 7 MAY - 8.30am - 7.30pm

Parent/Student/Teacher meetings

(School Closed for tuition)

THURSDAY 24 MAY

School closing at 12.30pm due to a teaching staff union meeting
Buses will run at 12.30pm

Principal's Message

Kia ora koutou

In our community survey last year and through feedback from our staff, the content and design of school reports was identified as an area we need to make improvements. We have changed our school reports for 2024 with the goal of providing caregivers and students accessible and useful information. We are working closely with our SMS provider, FACTS, to have the new reports ready for the end of this term.

In 2024 we will be formally reporting to our caregivers four times. In Term 1 & Term 3 all students will get a Progress Report which is focused on five attributes that our parents and community have told us are important: Respect, Behaviour, Engagement in Learning, Working with Others and Effort. We believe that these attributes reflect our school focus on mana. We also believe that students consistently demonstrating these habits will have a great chance of success.

Each teacher will give feedback based on how frequently students are positively demonstrating the attributes as well as information about their attendance. These reports will also be a useful resource for Parent/Student/Teacher (PST) meetings in Week 2 of Term 2 which is a critical event in our school calendar. See the attributes table below for more information about the attributes.

In Terms 2 and Term 4 teachers will again be providing feedback about the attributes, as well as an additional written report and information about achievement. These reports will be supported by twice yearly PST meetings as well as an emphasis on communications with home to ensure that everyone has a clear picture about progress in key areas, strengths, and future directions for our young people. The reports have been tested on groups of parents and we always value your feedback so please let us know your thoughts when you receive the redesigned reports.

ATTRIBUTES: The characteristics that we are offering feedback on

Respect: Demonstrates respect to staff and students. Examples of students showing respect would be using appropriate titles and names of others, using appropriate language that upholds the mana of all people. Acknowledging when a mistake has been made for example apologising for being late to class.

Positive Behaviour: Demonstrates appropriate conduct in all settings. Examples of students showing positive behaviour could include following the established classroom routines, being compliant with instructions and appropriately changing the behaviour depending on the learning context for example quiet learning time or more discussion based or active learning.

Engagement in Learning: Demonstrates enthusiasm and good strategies for learning. This could include asking peers and teachers questions about the learning, reading and reflecting on feedback from the teacher about their work.

Working with Others: Demonstrates the ability to positively interact and collaborate with others. This could include being able to discuss their learning with other students who are not in their friendship group and encouraging others to contribute their ideas. Being comfortable working with a wide range of people.

Effort: Demonstrates commitment to learning and progress. This could include completing work in a timely manner, trying hard in learning tasks, improving work based on feedback.

Attendance remains 5% higher than this time last year which is really helping students form positive habits and stay engaged in their courses. Uniform continues to be significantly better than last year, and we still need your support to ensure that our rangatahi look sharp and uphold the mana of our community.

There are some great success stories from the term including our victory in the Northland Futsal competition and our Year 7 & 8 team taking out the Northland EPRO 8 robotics champs. There are also many students who have worked hard to improve their performance and habits from previous years, and they are experiencing the positive difference it can have by focusing on attending class and doing your best.

It was also great to see our Head Students and House Leaders representing our school in The Advocate recently. The photos look great and we should be proud of the caliber of these young people. Here is a link to the feature on student leaders in our rohe https://issuu.com/apn_mediaservices/docs/leaders_in_our_schools_2024?fr=sY2IyOTYyODg4NDY

Enjoy your easter.

Julian Cosgrove

Kia Ora! I am excited to be joining the Art department at Bream Bay College. I was really inspired by my art teacher during my high school years and went on to study at Elam School of Fine Arts then on to Post Grad teaching at Auckland University.

My career has been quite diverse, teaching in London then back to Auckland teaching in high schools in central Auckland and on the North Shore. 7 years ago, we made the move North to Waipu, where I have been busy raising my children, relief teaching and teaching art to our younger tamariki in our community.

I come from a rural background, having been brought up on a Northland dairy farm. I love everything our local environment has to offer and love getting out on the water. You will see me out and about keeping up with my 3 children and their sports within the Bream Bay area.

I have a passion for engaging and sparking creativity and getting students to look at things differently alongside having fun and feeling good. I have been enjoying getting to know my classes and students here at Bream Bay College. I have felt very welcomed and are looking forward to sharing my kete of knowledge and establishing relationships.

M People

The 2024 M-People have been selected and announced at assembly this week. The selection process involved application forms and video clips, student and staff voting as well as interviews. There were over 50 applications and we would like to thank all of those who expressed an interest. Our M-People range from Year 11 - 13. They are seen as students who interact across the school and are role models with the ability to mentor and meditate.

M-People attended camp at Waipu Cove last week where they were planning, learning leadership skills and forming a positive team culture.

School Surfing Champs

On Tuesday 19 March the Bream Bay College / Otamatea High School Surfing Champs were held in 2-3 foot waves at Waipu Cove.

Surfers battled it out in six divisions and was great preparation for the Northland scholastics series later in the term .

CAREERS ROADSHOW

Bream Bay College hosted the annual Careers Roadshow, welcoming a range of universities, trades and even the defense forces into our school. They were able to showcase possible pathways for our students and give them a very small taste of what is in offer when they decide to leave school.

Thank you to the Pathways Team, in particular Mrs Finlayson for helping to set this up, the providers for taking the time to set up and talk to the students and our senior Hospitality students, Mr Stuart and Mrs Ryland who catered.