A warm welcome to winter

Talofa lava! We have been in welcoming mode this week as we throw open the doors to visitors from across our Kāhui Ako. Our visitors have been fellow principals, teachers, parents, school groups and teams. It has been a busy, if short, week.

We have been visited by students from lots of different schools playing sport against our teams too. They are our opponents on the field, but fellow footballers, basketballers, and netballers once the game is over. It is great to be able to welcome competitors, rivals and friends to our school.

We also had a visit from local primary and intermediate staff interested to see where their charges will one day come as they move through the education system. Being able to show off our school is always a pleasure and it is a real treat for teachers to visit the other sectors of the profession. It is also essential for us to know “how it all fits together” so that we can remember that our students and their families are on that educational journey before they come to us and after they leave us too.

Our hui this week were excellent events that gave us some time to build deeper connections with our community and I really appreciate the time that people took to come in and talk with us. Part celebration, part conversation, we enjoyed the opportunity to share where we would like to go as a school and put great value in what was shared back with us. It is that togetherness, that dialogue that allows us to confidently be part of the community that we serve. From tangata whenua to recently arrived migrants, our diversity is our strength and we all belong. Next week we will host our Pasifika families at Wednesday’s fono and hear from this aspect of our community. (A quick plug - if you have not done so already, please respond to the Strategic Plan survey HERE to share your thoughts on the direction of the school over the next few years).

Our language students did not quite get to go all the way to Europe, however, they are having an excellent experience on their Spanish immersion camp, and the German Hundertwasser trip. Allowing themselves to be fully invested in their language development gives the students who took part the chance to ‘feel’, as well as talk, their way into a different culture. To start to realise how things are from a different set of viewpoints is a rich part of the language learning experience as language deeply reflects culture

This awareness of the importance of the visibility of culture and language is reflected in our school’s recognising and supporting Sāmoa Language Week and will be on full display again next week with our “Cultural Week”, where we will continue our drive to draw students into both celebrating their own unique value, and also recognising and supporting others to do the same. The richness in the school comes from each member of our community knowing that who they are is valued and respected. The key is always for students to be the best version of themselves - and to value that in the diverse skills, talents, personalities and abilities of others.

Finally, our school’s support for inclusion and diversity is ongoing. We are a school that accepts our students for who they are and values them as individuals within the school. This week was Schools’ Pride Week and we are proud of our students’ efforts with their in-house events. We will continue to strive to make Green Bay High School a place that is an inclusive, safe, happy and healthy environment for all our students.

Manuia le aso - Have a great day!

Chris Woodward
Acting Principal