Week 1 done 
Kia ora 
Welcome to 2024 at our kura.
Iβm really looking forward to working with you and your precious tamariki this year.
Your child/ren are the most important people in our school and I canβt wait to get to know them and you, as we work together to help them thrive!
Reminder- book your βHead Start Huiβ to meet your childβs teacher on Wednesday 31 January and we look forward to seeing all our tamariki together back at school on Thursday 1 February.
NgΔ mihi,
Katherine Pascoe
Principal
Puketapu School
Welcome Back to 2024!
OFFICE HOURS:
The school office will be open the below days between 10am-2pm:
Thursday 25 Jan
Friday 26 Jan
Monday 29 Jan
Closed Tuesday 30 Jan
Normal office hours resuming Wednesday 31 January: 8.30am-3.30pm
Check out this mural designed by one of our Year 8βs Iona Den-McKay and painted by Iona and her friends Gretta Keith, Lydia Walthew, Adelle Robinson and Kylah Neilson.
In Ionaβs words the mural represents:
The Poutama represents the pursuit of knowledge, progression and growth.
The school logos are circled by the Matawhero-shark which protects our school and the land.
The sharks are red because they represent the chief's (in the school narrative) red dreadlocks. The blue represents the sea surrounding Puketapu and Bell Block.
The colours on the poutama and logo are the school colours.
Farewell to a legend... 
We all know Mr Walker loves a good dad joke:
Why did the scarecrow win an award?
Because he was outstanding in his field!
From one job where we often find him out standing in a field, to another where he will still be out standing in a field. From Tumuaki to coach, we celebrate and farewell our principal, Ngatai Walker.
Seven and a half years ago Ngatai came to Puketapu School from Inglewood with a vision and passion for education, and in that 7Β½ years he has donned many costumes, cracked plenty of jokes and encouraged untold numbers of students and teachers.
He brought our school values of Kia Manawanui, Kia Kaha, Kia MΔia, and more recently, Kia Ora into the fabric of Puketapu. We see these values embedded into the very beings of all of us at Puketapu, and we are better people for living them.
The physical spaces in the school have changed and then some colours have changed again in that time. The list of songs played at the gate in the morning and the number of high fives given are countless.
A Principalβs job is varied, from crossing duty at Mangati, to property, to strategic planning, to human resources, to contracts, to planning inspiring staff hui, and the list goes on.
Many people wouldnβt understand the scope of the mahi. Itβs often unseen, but makes all the difference to the culture, strategy and direction of a school.
There is a whakatauki that says: MΔ mua ka kite a muri, mΔ muri ka ora a mua Those who lead give sight to those who follow, those who follow give life to those who lead.
There have been many ups and downs through these years, big challenges faced, growth from lessons learned and joy that you spread around. Itβs not easy being the person who looks to fill everyoneβs buckets every day but you do it and that
inspires us all to do the same.
Every leader we have builds on the success and foundations the previous leaders have laid and Puketapu is undoubtedly a better place for the layer that Ngatai has
built and added.
We thank Mr. Walker for the leadership, energy and care he has given to Puketapu School.
We wish him well on his next adventure.
Kia MΔia, Kia Manawanui, Kia Kaha, Kia Ora 
We have made it to the end of 2023!
Please see link below for our end of year Newsletter:
Happy reading and happy holidays.
To make the week fun and go out with a BANG, our staff dressed up for the week.
Starting the week dressing like a year 8, we saw crocs, socks & scuffs, You Know & White Fox along with Hoodies, Oodies and peace signs.
We began singing our national anthem as a school, setting the tone for an incredible assembly. Our Kapa Haka Whakataetae group's performance was outstanding! 
Mr. Walker let us know that our Kai Tiaki Tama and Kai Tiaki Kotiro will be announced in Term 1 of 2024 - stay tuned for that! 
Following this, we dived into our Values Awards, first with Rimu, TΕtara, KΕwhai, and then Kauri. 
The complete list of winners will be in our End of Year newsletter tomorrow!
A very special Values Award was presented to the Judd family for their remarkable display of our school values throughout. 
TΕtara Kapa Haka graced us with their beautiful waiata performances before we proudly awarded our 2023 school trophies! 
Stay tuned for the winners' list in tomorrow's newsletter!
Today was also about farewells as we bid goodbye to some incredible staff members - Nicole Perry, Jay Lane, Shaina Moratti, Elle Johns, and Principal Ngatai Walker. They were sent off with a powerful Haka! 
And for the big reveal... 
KΔkΔpΕ took home the win for the Term 4 Student of the Day tickets! Congratulations! 
Tomorrow, we'll be awarding our Student of the Day prizes at our final school get together in the quad.
What a fantastic way to close the year! 
Stay tuned for our End of Year newsletter for the complete roundup of today's happenings. 
Tuesday night was a special one as we celebrated the graduation of our fantastic Year 8 students! 
A huge thank you to Smokn Comrades for treating us to their incredible food - it was amazing as always! 
We also want to express our gratitude to Cora Creative for the stunning balloon setup that added so much joy and color to the event! 
A heartfelt thanks to Northpoint Baptist Church - NZ for allowing us to use their venue. And let's not forget our dedicated Home and School team - your ongoing support and voluntary efforts made this night even more special. 
To our Year 8 graduates, you've been an exceptional part of our school community, and we'll miss you dearly. We're excited to see all the incredible things the future holds for each and every one of you! 
Congratulations once again, and best wishes on your new journey!
SOMADD 2023 - What a night!
SOMADD 2023 was held last Friday and was an absolute blast! Check out this short video capturing some of the incredible moments. It was an amazing feeling to see our community reunited on the school grounds after the challenges posed by COVID and weather disruptions over the last couple of years. Our tamariki were outstanding as always - huge applause to them!
A massive thank you goes out to our fantastic Home and School Committee for their efforts in organising raffles and ensuring there was delicious food available on the night. Home & School raised over $3500. Without a doubt, this year was one of the best yet, and it's all thanks to the dedication and hard work of everyone involved.
Special recognition to our incredible teachers who worked with their classes to put together an outstanding show for all of us to enjoy. Thank you for making the SOMADD concert an unforgettable experience.