Office Hours

8.30am-4pm

Hours of Instruction

8.40am - 3.00pm

Email: office@coastaltaranaki.school.nz
Website: https://sites.google.com/coastaltaranaki.school.nz/coastaltaranakischool/home
Location: 92 Carthew Street, Ōkato, New Zealand
Phone: (06)7524022 - 027 320 1267
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coastaltaranakischool

Times of Transition – Honouring Goodbyes and Welcoming the New

In Aotearoa, the changing of seasons is more than just a shift in weather—it's a time of movement, reflection, and renewal. Nowhere is this more visible than in our rural communities, where Moving Day (June 1st) marks the moment when many farming families pack up their lives and relocate—sometimes just down the road, sometimes far across the island.

For schools, these transitions ripple through classrooms and friendships. We farewell students who have become part of our whānau and open our doors and hearts to new ones. It’s a bittersweet time—rich with emotion, stories, and the quiet strength that comes from beginning again.

This season also aligns with Puanga and Matariki, our Māori New Year—a time to remember those who have passed, celebrate what has been, and set intentions for what lies ahead. It’s a moment to pause, to acknowledge the changes that shape us, and to look forward with hope.

A student who recently transitioned to a new school reflected on her experience with these powerful words:

This is the power of kindness in transition—what may seem like a small gesture can transform a student’s whole experience. As we head into this season of change, let’s honour those we farewell, warmly welcome those who arrive, and remember that it is often the smallest actions that make the biggest difference.

Thank you to those who have updated and got the new App for HELIX - a prize will be announced in assembly next Friday for two people to win a voucher for 4Square - you must have got the app downloaded by then to be in with a chance of winning.

Any issues, please contact us.

Haere rā to those moving on. Nau mai, haere mai to those just beginning.

Ngā manaakitanga,

Gemma Chambers

Acting Principal

On Tuesday 24th of June we will be holding whãnau hui for Year 1 – 11 students. All Year 1-8 hui will run for 10 minutes. Year 9-11 hui will run for 20 minutes. Please consider these time frames when booking multiple hui.

Each hui will have nominated booking times. Bookings can be made on-line by following these simple steps

Step 1. Go to the website: www.schoolinterviews.co.nz

Step 2. Enter our School code: dkcv7 and press GO

You will be guided through three simple steps, and a few moments later you will get an email confirming your interviews.

All whãnau are encouraged to leave 10 minutes between sibling hui/interviews to allow for late running appointments.

If you do not have internet access or would prefer the school office to make the bookings on your behalf, please contact the office directly.

If you are unable to attend on the scheduled hui day, please get in touch with your child’s teacher to arrange an alternative date and time. We will do our best to accommodate your request. For students in Years 9–11, if you require a different day or time, please contact Sarah Oke at sarah.oke@coastaltaranaki.school.nz.

Please Note: School will close at 1pm. Buses WILL pick students up at 1pm to deliver them home.

Buses 2,3 & 4 will pickup at 1pm - Bus 1 students will be supervised on site until 3pm.

Our annual CTS Puanga Celebration is coming up!

On Thursday the 19th June we are inviting you and your whānau to join us in celebrating Puanga from 6.45am on the front lawn of our school around a bonfire followed by a complimentary pancake breakfast for our school community. This special event marks the Māori New Year and is a wonderful opportunity for our community to come together in reflection and renewal.

For catering purposes, please complete this form by Monday 9th June.

We look forward to sharing this meaningful occasion with you and your tamariki.

Kia ora! Term Two has been off to a busy start in Room 17. We have been enjoying choir, kapa haka, the library, gardening club and more - especially pink shirt day and our school disco. We have also been working alongside Room 16 (new entrants) on Monday mornings by showing them our awesome reading skills. This is an awesome opportunity for us to practice our tuakana teina approach and our reading skills. We are looking forward to the rest of term - learning about matariki, doing our science fair, and figuring out more about measurement.

Reading Club on Monday mornings…

In Pouakai Toru, we spent Pink Shirt Day creating a wall display in our classroom that highlighted all the ways we can be good friends to each other. We had a lot of discussions about what friendship looks like, sounds like and feels like. We gave examples of how people have been good friends to us and how it made us feel, as well as how it feels when people are not treating us so kindly. We talked about what an upstander is and how we can look out for people.

Lucy and Evie took some of our wall display ideas and turned them into posters to share. Come and check out the rest of our wall display in Room 18!

The Pouakai team—Rooms 3, 20, and 18—came together in week 11 of term 1 for an exciting science challenge that really got our problem-solving brains buzzing! Working in teams of four or five, we had just 30 minutes to design and build a bridge using only a small selection of materials. It was a true test of teamwork, creativity, and engineering skills. The challenge was organised by our awesome class teachers along with Ms Bound, our school science teacher.

There were lots of different strategies and designs, and it was great to see so much collaboration and determination. The winning teams earned tickets to attend the Science Roadshow in New Plymouth.

If you got to take part in this challenge and got to have another go, what would you change or do differently? If this was a new challenge to you, what’s the first thing you would do to create the bridge?

Keep an eye out for the upcoming Science Fair projects that will be on display in the school hall on Tuesday 24th June during the Whānau Hui event.

Common Assessment Activities (CAAs)

We are incredibly proud of our ākonga and the way they approached their CAA exams last week. Their focus and maturity were truly commendable.

Waiting for results can be nerve-wracking. The results for the May co-requisite Common Assessment Activities (CAAs) — Literacy (Reading), Literacy (Writing), and Numeracy — are expected to be released around 25 June and 14 July.

Once results are released, we’ll work together to identify what support may be needed to give each student the best possible chance of success. It often takes a few experiences to become familiar with the format of these assessments.

Our dedicated kaiako will continue to provide ākonga with the skills and knowledge they need to thrive.

Upcoming events:

Sexwise is coming to Coastal Taranaki School on Tuesday 15th of July.

The Sexwise programme enables youth to gain current, accurate information about sexuality and healthy relationships in an engaging workshop environment.

Who is it for? The youth of Aotearoa in Years 9-13

The way the day will run:

8.40am - 9.40am - Performance, all students Years 9-13

• Breaks down barriers

• Identifies real sexual health and relationship issues and negative behaviours

• References current & accurate information

9.40am - 10.40am - Workshop #1 (Yr 9/10)

11am - 11.50am - Workshop #2 (Year 11)

11.50am - 1pm - Workshop #3 (Year 12/13)

• Opens discussion of issues which arise in the performance

• Further explores sexual health ideas, facts, statistics and corrects misinformation

• Reflects on behaviours that can impact sexual health & well being

• Uses peer to peer problem solving to build the confidence of the class

If you would prefer your child does not attend these sessions please email sarah.oke@coastaltaranaki.school.nz.

Careers Expo

On Monday August 12th our Year 9-13 learners will be attending the Careers Expo held in New Plymouth. The expo plays an important role in helping the Taranaki Community to "Get informed and Get ahead" in their careers.

This is a fantastic opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals exploring their career options. Our ākonga will meet numerous employers, education and training providers, including universities, institutes of technology, polytechnics, private training establishments, and support services to assist in their career journey.

We will be travelling by bus to the new Plymouth TSB Stadium on Monday 12th August at 9am and will plan to leave the stadium at 10.30am to return back to kura.

In the Social Science Space:

This term, the year 9 and 10s are studying Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi) and diving into some Aotearoa history. We have started out by looking into the events that led up to 1840, the signing of the treaty, and what relevance the treaty and its principles have on our life today. For the second half of the term, students will be investigating some of the events that have taken place after the signing of Te Tirti, as well as the role of it in Aotearoa's future.

Our year 11 students have been researching the positives and negatives of social media. This has involved them looking at case studies of different viral trends, campaigns, and movements while thinking about how it impacts and changes cultures. This learning is leading into an internal assessment where they will demonstrate understanding of findings of a social inquiry.

In the year 12/13 space, students are building an understanding of a geographic topic that will lead into an internal assessment. The topic for this term is population and urbanisation. Students are understanding spatial distributions of where people live, the factors and processes that lead to the phenomenon of where people live, and the impacts this can have on both society and our natural environments.

Mr. Bruckner

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There will be 2 themes incorporated into our sessions for this term:

Friday 23rd May - Teddy Bears Picnic

Friday 13th June - Matariki, celebrating the stars

Kia ora whānau,

Physical Education : We’re well into the term now and it’s been encouraging to see students making strong progress across movement, health and sports. Many are doing particularly well with their NCEA assessments, showing commitment and focus toward achieving their academic goals. At the same time, there’s been noticeable growth in fitness levels as we prepare for the winter season, along with continued development of communication skills across the board.

Health: There has been a big emphasis on building awareness of others’ differences and encouraging students to look after each other - antibullying action is part of curriculum learning this term highlighting the value of manaakitanga in our kura. In the secondary year levels, students have also been working on personal choices learning about effects of dangerous substances and making choices for mental health and mindfulness. These are important aspects of increasing students self worth and emotional resilience.

Some good news—our gym roof is being replaced, which is a new improvement for our physical education and school-wide activities! Ka pai to all tamariki for looking after sports equipment, it means we can create more opportunities for movement and funding.

Ngā mihi nui,

Sports

Events/opportunities coming up for the term :

Year 5 and 6 Inter School Term 2

Year 7 and 8 Inter School Term 3

Winter Netball league - Ōpunakē Coastline Sports

Volleyball league - Started - Sundays year 9-13s TSB Stadium

Football/soccer - Kaitake Football Club

TSSSA badminton June 5th (Register with Casey) Y9-13

TSSSA 3 x 3 Jnr Basketball June 12th (Register with Casey) Y 9/10s

TSSSA 3 x 3 Snr Basketball June 24th (Register with Casey) Y11-13s

Students vs Staff Basketball - Friday lunchtime 1-2pm Week 9 Term 2

Just dance - Lunchtimes in the hall - Rainy wet days 1-1.55pm

Wednesdays - Whole school targetted lunchtime movement / Tuakana Teina

Lunchtime secondary chess Club - Yes chess is a sport!

Achievements - Congratulations!

Volleyball team - 4 weeks into the secondary season Yrs 9-13 they have won all games! Ka pai!

Basketball - Clyde Hart Yates - Taranaki Basketball off season programme. Friday skills sessions.

Soccer - Please contact Kaitake for signups and opportunities. Follow the Kaitake community sports hub for updates and school holiday opportunities!

Year 9/10 Surfers programme - Students had the opportunity to surf early weeks of this term. Thank you to Charl and his team at Fitzroy for providing our students with this opportunity. Some have progressed on and been donated surfboards or wetsuits by Charl and other members of the community. Thank you whānau!

Year 8 girls - Chancefit - Thank you to Chance running weekly fitness and wellness sessions for our young females. There is a nationwide trend of 10-12 year old female drop out in sport however at CTS we are combating this and our learners are choosing movement regularly.

Kōtuitui Football skills programme will begin in Term 3 for 6 weeks for Year 4 to 8 students. Watch this space for more information.

Gymnastics club - Primary students - In the hall Tuesday lunchtimes - Signup sheet on hall door.

Looking to join a team or coach a new sport?

Between newsletters - Follow us at the CTS facebook sports page. Keep an eye out for updates on our new app “Helix” - Download instructions at the main office. We know we have some very skilled parents out there who can give different opportunities in movement. Balls/whistles/code of conduct and team uniform all provided. Secondary students can coach too!

Kia neke Koutou (lets keep moving). It is great to see so much movement across the school and classrooms lately. Lecturers from Waikato university in the education department quote “When the school sports are humming, the school is humming in learning”. Research supports movement of all kinds and healthy choices are vital for our students' sense of self and positive brain activity.

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Casey Stevens

Health and Physical Education Teacher

Head over to our school sports facebook page CTS Sports and follow for all our school sports news, results and updates.

CAPE EGMONT HALF MARATHON 2025

Early Bird Half Marathon price of $50.00 close's midnight 31st May.

CAPE EGMONT VIRTUAL HALF MARATHON 2025

Want to walk or run in your own time, but also be part of a fantastic event? Then we would love you to join us.

The Cape Egmont Virtual Half Marathon offers three distance options - 5 km, 10 km and 21 km. Which can be completed any time anywhere from the 1st to the 31st of July 2025. Simply record your time via Strava, Map my run, Fit Bit or screenshot and upload through our website. Every finisher receives a medal and all money raised goes to the Taranaki Cancer Society and the Taranaki Men Can Exercise Group. To help those in our province affected by cancer.

ENTER AT: www.capeegmonthalf.com ENQUIRES capeegmonthalf@gmail.com

Kia ora koutou,

Whaea Annie, our new entrant teacher, is planning ahead. If you know of any preschoolers in our community, who may be turning five in the next year or two please share this Pre-enrolment at CTS with their families. Even if you have a child at the school already please fill the form out. It only takes a few minutes to do, but it is really important that we have an idea of student numbers so that we can plan ahead. This also ensures that all new families have all the information they need around Transition to School visits.

For more information about transition to school, click this link - Transition to School CTS 2025

If you’d like to contact me directly, my email is annie.harris@coastaltaranaki.school.nz

Ngā mihi nui

Annie

Transition to school/New entrant teacher

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Annie Harris

Transition to School and New Entrant Teacher

COASTAL TARANAKI SCHOOL

Gemma Chambers Acting Principal

Sarah Oke Acting Deputy Principal, Food Technology, Careers/Pathways, Tech on 45

David Cripps SENCO

Viola Fung English

Andrea Dingle Maths

Steve Leppard Hard Materials Technology, Tech on 45

Kelly Waugh Visual/ Performing Arts

Natalie Bound Science

Casey Stevens P.E & Health

Keegan Bruckner Social Sciences

Liana Roberts Pouakai Team Leader, Year 7/8 Teacher

Rebecca Connolly Year 6/7 Teacher

Emily Finey Year 5/6 Teacher

Renee Leathley Kaitake Team Leader, Year 4/5 Teacher

Heather Jull Year 4/5 Teacher

Annie Harris NE Transition Teacher

Jemma Moorby Year 1/2 Teacher

Philippa Hofmans Pukeiti Team Leader, Year 1/2 Teacher

Johannah Poutini Year 2/3 Teacher

Sarah Warren/Tara Ross Year 2/3 Teachers

Justine Francis Release Teacher

Margaret Normanton Release Teacher

Delwyn Pearce School Librarian

Kirsty Koboski Publicity Officer

Jacky Kopu Office Manager

Nicky Phillips Office, Funding & Sports Administrator

Ole Bucka Grounds & Maintenance

Learning Assistants

Darryl Levett

Kirsty Koboski

Paula Fleming

Dee Heath

Jess Harfield

Ruth Barron

Ian Robinson

Nicole Whittle

Kaycee Cresswell

Fon Julian

Marcus Wade

Student Support

Ida Staunstrup-Moore

Lisa Schrader