Friday 18th September 2026 Newsletter
Friday 18th September 2026
PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE
Kia Ora Parents & Whānau,
What a week it has been at Balfour School! With Māori Language Week underway, the classrooms have been full of activity. The students really enjoyed working with Nate Wairau, who brought great energy and some very cool word games to his sessions. We had hoped to run two afternoons with him, but the sudden early pick‑up due to snow meant we could only complete one. These things happen, and we appreciate your flexibility around the change.
Thank you as well to everyone who came along to parent–teacher interviews. We hope the conversations were useful and gave you a clear picture of how your child is progressing.
A huge well done to Piwakawaka class for their assembly today. They shared their learning beautifully and should be very proud of themselves.
I’m delighted to share that Jill Robb and Sarah McLean will continue teaching Tui class next term. They have both made a real difference to the class and to the wider school, and I am very grateful for the dedication they bring each day.
Next week, I’ll be able to update you on staffing for 2027. If anything comes to mind before then, please feel free to get in touch.
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend.
Mihi mahana,
Andrea Holt
PRINCIPALS AWARD
Robbie - Growth in your independent work and all-round maturity- improving your resilience and the way you interact with others.
Katie - For showing our school values through her kind and respectful actions.
Thinuli- Trying hard to use kind words and taking turns when playing with classmates.
CLASS CERTIFICATES
Lennox - It has been great to watch your confidence grow with reading. With a positive mindset and determination - you can do it!
Flynn - For honesty.
Charlie W - For showing maturity, self-control, and a positive attitude.
Jay - I really admire the way you try so hard in class. There is a wee saying.... "when the going gets tough, the tough get going". This is you Jay. You keep going.
Isuli - For showing excellent focus and effort in your learning this week.
Waelyn - Setting some great goals and working with improving determination.
BALFOUR SCHOOL VALUES AWARD
The Balfour School Values Award is presented to Ayaansh Krishna.
Ayaansh, you are such a superstar! 🌟
Ayaansh shows our school values with remarkable consistency and maturity. He is deeply honest — with others and with himself — and can always be relied upon to do the right thing. He never takes shortcuts; instead, he approaches every task properly, carefully, and with pride in doing things well.
He is studious and focused, always giving his best effort and showing respect to everyone around him. His trustworthy nature and strong sense of responsibility make him a positive role model in our school community.
We are proud to recognise Ayaansh for living our values every day through his honesty, effort, and respectful attitude.
Ayaansh displays all the Balfour School Values:
-Be Respectful / kia whakaute
-Be Positive / kia pai
-Be Honest / kai pono
-Be in Control / keite whakahaere
Thank you, Ayaansh, for everything you bring to Balfour School.
CALENDAR OF COMING EVENTS - TERM 4
Monday 12th October- Teacher Only Day
Tuesday 13th October- School reopens/Fiji Day
20th- 23rd October - Scholastic book fair in school
Wednesday 21st October - Swimming starts
Thursday 22nd October - Science roadshow - Korimako class
Monday 26th October - School closed - Labour Day
2nd - 5th November - Year 5/6 camp - Dunedin
Tuesday 24th November - Production 1pm and 5.30pm
Tuesday 1st December - Production reserve date
2nd - 4th December - Y3/4 camp - Omaui
Monday 14th December - Leavers ceremony
Monday 14th December - School closes 12.15pm
TERM DATES 2026
Monday 12th October. - Teacher Only Day
Tuesday 13th October. - first day term 4
Monday 14th December - last day of Term 4
Tuesday 2nd February 2027 - Beginning of term 1
BOARD MEETING DATES FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR
TERM 4. - 28th October - 7.00pm. 2nd December - 7.00pm
COMMUNITY CONSULTATION
A couple of weeks ago, we sent out a questionnaire to support the development of our next two‑year strategic plan. So far, we’ve received only ten responses. We would really appreciate it if you could take a few moments to complete it, via the link below, as your feedback directly shapes the direction of our school and supports the best outcomes for your children.
POOL ATTENDANT
We are still working to recruit a pool attendant for the summer season. At this stage, we have one parent who may be willing to job‑share, so if anyone else is able to help, please let us know. Having this role filled supports the whole school community.
ASSEMBLY
Assembly is held on Friday mornings at 9.00am. Next Friday Korimako will be presenting assembly. Everyone is welcome. You will receive a text message if your child is receiving a certificate.
TEACHER ONLY DAY (TOD)
Friendly reminder that there will be a TOD on the first day of the next term, Monday 12th October. School will reopen on Tuesday 13th October.
BALFOUR PRODUCTION
Calling all creative parents and whānau — we need your help. Our school production is coming up, and we’re looking for support with costumes and props. If you can sew, build, paint, or design, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact us, if you’re able to lend a hand.
HEAD LICE
We have had no reports of headlice but just a reminder to check your child's hair regularly.
KORIMAKO
With the end of Term 3 approaching, Week 9 has given us a chance to continue our classroom learning while also celebrating Te Wiki o te Reo Māori – Māori Language Week.
In English, our regular Reading and Writing programmes continued, with students working on developing their literacy skills and completing their set learning activities.
In Mathematics, we continued exploring Probability. Students worked in pairs on practical activities involving dice and spinners, discussing possible outcomes and calculating the probability of different events.
To celebrate Māori Language Week, students completed research and prepared short presentations to share their learning with the class. They also enjoyed completing some Māori-inspired artwork. A special thank you to Nate for spending time with our class and leading a session to help us recognise and celebrate this important week.
We also held our Parent–Teacher Interviews on Wednesday. A big thank you to all the parents and caregivers who braved the challenging weather to attend. It was valuable to have the opportunity to discuss your child’s progress, achievements, and next steps in learning.
Coming Up – Class Assembly: Next week, Korimako will be leading the school assembly. Students are looking forward to sharing and presenting some of the learning they have completed throughout the term.
As we head into the final week of Term 3, we are looking forward to celebrating what the students have achieved and finishing the term on a positive note.
Ngā mihi,
Anish Krishna
Korimako Class Teacher
PIWAKAWAKA Kia ora,
This week in Piwakawaka, we have been reading more Wind in the Willows and preparing for assembly. There has been lots of preparation of props for today's play and toward our production.
Yesterday, Mrs Hailes was here teaching us about polygons and geometry terms. Nate Wairau came and played a game where we were using Te Reo.
Year 3 have also been learning about the ea and ee spellings of the long e sound, and Year 4 have been extending their knowledge about words which use y to spell the long i sound. We have finished our character descriptions and are learning to structure information into paragraphs about a topic of our choice.
Nga Mihi,
Judy Finlayson and Piwakawaka students.
TUI
Kia ora Whanau
Hi everyone
What a mixed bag of weather that has been dished up this week!
Thank you to those of you who were able to come along to parent teacher interviews. It was lovely to spend some time chatting about your children. To those of you impacted by the weather and/or unable to attend, please feel free to make contact and I am happy to arrange another time that suits.
We have been busy writing this week with our inspiration coming from Dr Seuss. We have read throughout the week a number of Dr Seuss books and had some great discussions around rhyming words, sound words and using our wild imaginations!
Maths has seen us continue to explore 2D shapes and their attributes. Next week we will be moving onto 3D shapes for some children and consolidating 2D shapes for others.
The children have been very excited (for some) to be on books. Still doing a little bit of tweaking to make sure they have an appropriate levelled book.
Sarah McLean & Jill Robb
Room Tui
HOT CHOCOLATE RECIPIENTS
Due to Mrs Holt being on a meeting today the Principal's award recipients will have their Hot Chocolate on Monday.
JUNIOR TENNIS
The season is fast approaching and we are asking for you to make contact if your child is keen to play either B or C grade tennis. Coaching will also available. Beginners most welcome.
Contact: Helen McFelin 021 0279 5269
