Term 3 2020

The Mana Ake service – is contracted to support children and their whanau with emotional wellbeing and mental health issues. Craig Sage is our new liaison person and he would like to continue the “drop in” times if you want to come along and chat to him about any concerns you might have about your child in these areas. His drop in day will be Thursday from 8.30 – 9.30 (please note change of day). This will start again in Week 2 for 3 weeks.  These chat times do not necessarily lead to a referral to the service but it is a time to ask if the service can help your child. If you wish to make a time to see Craig, please contact Felicity at the office or email wellbeing@dunsandel.school.nz.

The Mana Ake website is also now live and has some great tips and ideas and resources on the ‘supporting your child’ page – https//manaake.health.nz

Monday 8 June 2020

Nau mai, haere mai

Nga mihi nui kia koutou katoa

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

YAY!!!!  I am sure you were as pleased as I was to hear the Prime Minister’s announcement this afternoon about moving to Alert Level 1.  For us, there will be no major changes to what we are doing and our school continues to be safe to attend, including any staff and children who are considered more vulnerable to COVID. We have a good cleaning routine in place, people who are sick are staying at home and we continue to encourage good hygiene practices.

At Alert Level One we warmly welcome you back onto the school site as it was pre-lockdown.  Signs will be down and gates open as we move closer to normality.  I thank you for your understanding and respect while we were open during Alert Levels 2 and 3.  

We are supporting contact tracing by having QR code posters at our entrances – so if you haven’t already downloaded the NZ COVID Tracer app the Ministry of Health’s NZ-COVID Tracer app page has information to help you do that.

The key changes for schools at Alert Level 1 are:

  • Physical distancing is not a requirement but where possible or practicable is encouraged.
  • There are no specific public health requirements.
  • There are no restrictions on personal movement so all students, children and staff continue to be safe to go to school / early learning, and all students must attend school.
  • We are no longer required to keep a contact tracing register but will continue with the usual practice of having a visitor and an attendance register (and will need to work with local health authorities to identify close contacts, should there be a case connected with the school).
  • There are no restrictions on numbers at gatherings or on physical activities including cultural and sporting activities, practices and events.

There are key public health measures – Golden Rules – for everyone in New Zealand to follow. For schools and early learning services this means:

  • If people are sick, they should stay home (phone Healthline or their GP and get tested if they have cold or flu symptoms).
  • Continue to regularly wash and dry hands, sneeze and cough into elbows.
  • Soap, water and the ability to dry hands should be provided in bathrooms.
  • Regularly disinfect shared surfaces.
  • Support contact tracing efforts by displaying QR Code posters for the NZ COVID Tracer App
  • Stringent self-isolation of those who display relevant symptoms of COVID-19, test positive for COVID-19, have been in close contact with someone who tests positive for COVID-19, or have been overseas in the last 14 days – Ministry of Health information for self-isolation.

Ngā mihi nui

Dave Robinson

Principal

Tuesday 28 April 2020

Some families within our school communities will experience difficult and uncertain times due to the Covid-19 virus and periods of self-isolation. Below are a few links to provide information to assist parents and careers on how to access various levels of support.

Covid-19

https://covid19.govt.nz/

Ministry of Education provided links

The links below, from the MoE, cover several well-being related posts:

Three new tip sheets from the Ministry of Education  

Medical Centres

With some medical centres closed, and you need medical support, please contact the Medical Centre you are registered at for advice.

Selwyn Parenting Network  ***  follow on Facebook

https://www.spn.org.nz/

Everything Selwyn

https://www.everythingselwyn.co.nz/category/view?id=16

Selwyn District Council

https://www.selwyn.govt.nz/

Christchurch City Council

https://ccc.govt.nz/

Canterbury District Health Board

https://www.cdhb.health.nz/

Work and Income New Zealand

https://www.workandincome.govt.nz/

School Community Dentistry

Due to recommendations from the Dental Council and the Ministry of Health we will be suspending delivery of our service to the Community for the foreseeable future.  We will be removing our mobile dental vans and clinics from schools that currently have one on-site over the next few days.We will be providing relief of pain clinics from tomorrow and to access these appointments please call our Contact Centre on 0800 846 983.

For any dental advice please call the Contact Centre on 0800 846 983.

WellBeing

Try the free mindfulness app. Practice your daily meditation and mindfulness exercises from any device. Smiling Mind is a unique tool developed by psychologists and educators to help bring balance to your life.

https://sparklers.org.nz/parenting/

https://allright.org.nz/

Parent Helpsheet for students online

https://www.thinkuknow.co.uk/professionals/our-views/parents-helpsheets/

Information on Facebook

  • Manaaki Ellesmere
  • Selwyn Parenting Network
  • Selwyn Sports Trust

Wednesday 15 April 2020

Wellbeing for all

Alongside priorities for learning, the wellbeing of our children and families is paramount at this time. The Ministry of Education have plenty of information also focused on supporting a child’s learning at home for parents, caregivers and families.  The resource link below adds to the information they have previously provided supporting conversations with children about COVID-19.  It’s well worth a look.  Click here

Monday 6 April 2020

Mana Ake – Stronger for Tomorrow provides mental health and wellbeing support for children in primary school years 1-8 across Canterbury. They have launched their own website that you can find at https://manaake.health.nz/

Information and resources to support wellbeing and support learning at home

Wednesday 25 March 2020

A good message from Nathan Wallis for  these first few days – click here

Monday 23 March 2020

Selwyn District Council Update
All Selwyn District Council community facilities will be closed until further notice, from Monday morning (23 March).
This includes all Selwyn Libraries and service centres (Darfield, Leeston, Lincoln, Rolleston) Selwyn Aquatic Centre, Lincoln Event Centre, Rolleston Community Centre, West Melton Community and Recreation Centre, Tai Tapu, Community Centre and Dunsandel Community Centre, and all other council-owned community centres.  The Council’s Rolleston headquarters will remain open from 8.30am Monday, but some services may be restricted or unavailable.

Friday 20 March 2020

Selwyn District Council COVID-19 page click here 

Thursday 20 February 2020

John Parsons Workshop – Key Points Handout