Week 6 NEWSLETTER

What is important is the effort that goes into making progress, and developing perseverance when things get hard. If we think about the process of learning a skill (playing guitar, reading, drawing, 3D design) and the phases you might move through…beginner, novice, proficient, advanced, expert for example…society is primed to celebrate the people at the advanced/expert stage and the progress to those stages. But the shift a person makes from beginner to novice is just as hard, although the end result isn’t as celebrated. We want opportunities at school for all children to make progress, and to feel like their progress is valued…no matter if they are a beginner or an expert.

At DPS we try to do this in two ways:

• By providing an environment where learning is hard but fun. We want children to be challenged, we want them to make mistakes, we want them to learn from their failures and we want them to enjoy it along the way. This is super evident in the children's play and making, but is also a key part of academic learning, for example the way we teach maths. 

• By celebrating the progress children make…celebration time certificates, mini-celebrations in class, displays of work, learning posts in HERO, Learning Conversations with parents twice a year…all opportunities for us to share and celebrate the progress your children make (no matter how ‘beginner’ or how ‘expert’ they are at a skill). 

I’m not sure if it is still there, but the Makoura College gym used to have a powerful message on its walls…and if we combine Ed Sheeran's message with what we are trying to achieve here at DPS…the gym message rings very true: 

Hard work will beat talent every time, if talent doesn’t work hard. 

Paid Union Meeting - Thanks

Thanks for your support yesterday when we closed at 12.30pm, we know that it was an inconvenience with short notice. After further urgent negotiations last week the government presented a new offer on Tuesday night. Teachers had the chance yesterday at the meeting to discuss the offer, and consider if they will vote to accept or reject. Teachers have until Tuesday to vote on the offer from the government, and depending on how that goes we will keep you updated if there is further industrial action. It is a challenging time for teachers, these negotiations having been ongoing for almost 12 months, media and political parties have taken potshots at the profession and there is a general feeling of being under-appreciated by the government. While this new offer is an improvement…the core question still remains…is it enough to attract the very best into the profession, and to keep them there?

Lucky Book Club Orders…here is some information so you can plan out your orders over the year.  When each edition arrives - students are offered the magazine but taking one home is not compulsory! We encourage parents to enstall the LOOP app on their devices to make ordering easy.  Please have your orders submitted by the closing date to avoid postage costs to yourselves.  

Any problems please contact Gemma McPhail at gemmamcphail@douglaspark.school.nz or you can find me in room Kōwhai.  Or you can talk to Meryl in the office and she may be able to help you. 

Scholastic Website for all of your Q&A