Term 2 - Week 4
From the Principal
Welcome to the first of our newsletters that we will be sending out every second Friday to celebrate the great things happening around our school. We will also share with you upcoming dates to help you and your wh膩nau keep on top of what is happening here at EC.
This week I would like to celebrate the significant rise in Attendance that we have seen over the past year. For term one our percentage of students with over 90% attendance rose to 62%. This is a great increase on 47% from 2024 – and means we are now in the top half of schools nationwide. (The average regular attendance rate for NZ schools is 58%). This achievement is very much thanks to the teamwork between parents and caregivers, our teaching and support staff as well as our students.
Our goal remains to increase this percentage to over 80% of students attending more than 90% of the time. To achieve this we continue to appreciate your support:
- Working with your child to ensure they attend ‘5 out of 5’ sessions each day.
- Helping ensure your child is on time each day (9 am Monday to Thursday and 9.30 am Friday).
- Minimising any time away from school – ensuring that there is a maximum of 5 days in any one term for any reason.
- Keeping in contact with your child’s Mentor and / or Dean about any absences and anything we can do as a school to support your child in being here for learning each day.
- Ensuring your child remains at school for all 4 teaching sessions as well Shared Kai time, please avoid arranging for your child to leave earlier in the day except in emergency situations.
Regular attendance is the best predictor of outstanding results in the NCEA so we know that this initiative will also have a positive impact on student achievement as well.
This week has also been Support Staff Appreciation Week – so I also want to take the opportunity to sincerely thank our awesome support staff – starting from the front of our school: our Reception and Attendance staff, Principal’s PA, Database manager, Business manager, Accounts officer, Board secretary, Digital and media officer, Nurses, Counsellors, Social worker, Youth workers, Learning assistants, Librarian, Computer technician, Science technician, Caretaker, Grounds staff, Sports Director, School lunch assistants, Resource Officer, Food Technology assistant, Staffroom assistant… You all do a fantastic job and our school genuinely could not run without you!
Ng膩 mihi maioha
Louise Addison | Tumuaki
Student Leaders
Kia ora – we are the student leaders’ team for 最新杏吧原创 for 2025. Here we are in action supporting the ‘strive for five’ campaign with prizes for students that are regular attenders (90%+).
To be a regular attender students need to have a maximum of 5 days absent in any one term. All regular attenders go in the draw to win a range of great prizes each term (see some examples in the photo!).
We are also currently running a Mentor class competition with a pizza lunch for the class with the best attendance for the first half of this term. Students – you need to be here to win!
Mothers Day
"We love our mums!"鈥煡扳�疶he students of 最新杏吧原创 created a range of heartfelt gifts鈥煉� for their mothers / those who are like mums to them, as well as for staff members to celebrate Mother’s Day last Friday.鈥�
From our Teaching and Learning team
K艒whiri 膧konga takes place during Session 4 on Wednesdays and provides students with the opportunity to explore activities outside the traditional curriculum. This session allows students to engage with peers from across the school in a range of student-selected experiences. These can include sports like futsal or netball, cultural groups such as the Cook Islands or Filipino groups, arts and crafts like t-shirt printing or weaving, and special interest activities such as chess and dance.
K艒whiri 膧konga is a great example of our EC values in action, as students embrace new challenges and experiences while interacting with teachers and classmates they may not have met before. Each term, students choose a new activity to explore, promoting continuous learning and connection across our school community. Student choices are shown on students’ Graduate Profiles at the end of the year and are a great way for our 膩konga to show community involvement and leadership. This can be especially useful for students completing university or scholarship applications, as well as for student CVs.
From our Pastoral team
As a Mentor and Deans’ team we want to work with our students and their parents to support our school’s goal of 80%+ students attending regularly.
In the graphic you can see more information about the school year. Each year students have 180 days at school, and students and families then have 185 days per year not at school. For this reason, we ask you to please prioritise those 180 school days to ensure that your child is able to access the teaching and learning that will help them succeed. As you can see a student with 85% attendance will miss 180 hours of learning each year. This means they will attend an entire year less of school than a student with 100% attendance over their 5 years at high school.
Your support in ensuring that holidays and appointments take place during the non-school time is very much appreciated.
Being on time to school is also very important for your child’s learning. When students arrive on time, are ready to start the day in a positive way and don’t miss important learning time. It helps them build good habits, stay focused, and learn self-discipline. Punctuality also helps create a calm and respectful classroom for all students involved.
Our calculations show that students who arrive 5 minutes late each day lose 3 whole days of learning each year, and students who arrive 15 minutes late each day lose nearly two weeks’ worth of learning. This is why both attendance and punctuality are key priorities for us at 最新杏吧原创.
Your support in letting us know promptly about any absences and the reasons for them is appreciated. Please see below for how to contact us about attendance each day:
Email: [email protected]
Call our Attendance Officer Ruth Wilson on 09 576 9039
Winter uniform reminder
As the weather gets colder, it’s important that all students wear the correct winter uniform to keep warm. This includes an 最新杏吧原创 jersey, jacket or hooded sweatshirt. Please ensure that your child does not cut off the sleeves of their school jersey to turn it into a vest. These will not be accepted as school uniform items.
Footwear must be plain black leather or canvas lace-up shoes. Students can wear black or white socks or tights. Flat sandals with a back strap are also allowed, but they must be plain black or brown and must be worn without socks. Shoes with white soles or visible branding are not part of the uniform.
If a student comes to school in incorrect uniform, they must bring a note from home and see the Dean on duty (Room A09) or a senior leader to get a uniform pass.
Thank you for helping us keep our students warm and in the correct school uniform this winter term.
SCHOOL EVENTS
High court visit
Last week, our Year 11 CSI class and Year 12 Changemakers class had the unique opportunity to visit the High Court.
The trips offered valuable insight into New Zealand’s legal system, allowing students to observe real court proceedings and engage with legal professionals. Many were fascinated by the courtroom process and the seriousness of legal work. It deepened their understanding of justice, law, and civic responsibility.
The visit was both educational and inspiring, sparking interest in legal careers and helping students connect classroom learning with real-world applications.
Maths Olympiad
On Saturday 10 May, 最新杏吧原创 students took part in the University of Auckland Mathematics Olympiad for the first time!
These maths questions were not for the faint-hearted but two junior and four senior students stepped up to the challenge, headed into the lecture theatres and spent two hours working through these math problems. We were excited to hear that all of our students managed to score points.
A massive well done to the students below and special thanks to Ms Isha Singh and Ms Anye Blignaut for their support with this event. We look forward to going back next year to build on these results.鈥�
- Keon Bahithige
- Suyash Maitra
- Nicko Bulanadi
- Princess Kaithlyn Canasa
- Hezekiah Carza
- Alyza Lein Nartea
SPORT
What a great start to the winter sport season last week, with most of our teams kicking off their first games. We saw a mix of wins and losses across the board, but most importantly, it was fantastic to see students out there enjoying themselves, representing the school with enthusiasm and great spirit.
Many teams have been training hard throughout the preseason, and it's already showing in their effort and teamwork on the field. Well done to all our players for their commitment and positive attitude.
A huge thank you goes out to all our coaches, team managers, officials, and drivers — your support is invaluable, and we couldn’t run our sports program without you.
Fixtures & Weekly Draws
As is often the case at the start of the season, there have been a number of changes to the draws. While things are still being finalised, please use the following links to stay up-to-date with fixtures:
Boys Basketball, Girls Basketball and Boys Football
Badminton
Rugby
Once the draws become more consistent, we’ll begin posting game times and locations in the weekly newsletter.
We’re looking forward to another exciting round this week — good luck to all our teams!
