Principal's Message

It was very pleasing to hear the news of a return to Alert Level 1 yesterday afternoon. We felt that we were just getting into routines for the year when, suddenly, so many events and activities came under threat of cancellation or postponement. Thankfully, we can now continue to plan for various retreats, sports, and athletic day activities. However, at the same time we keep in mind the students and staff of Papatoetoe High School who have been through a lot in three short days already this week. It is reassuring to know that the systems schools put in place last year are ready to go again very quickly should it be required, and this week gave us confidence that we too are well prepared for future events at short notice.

Our Athletics Day is scheduled for Monday – please feel welcome to join us. It is always a great community day of healthy competition. I recognise that athletics day can be a challenge for some students who don’t feel this is where their talents lie, but we are all part of a large family school community and it is important to be present to encourage and celebrate others who do excel in this environment. Please ensure your child is present to do this.

I have been congratulating our students on a positive and settled start to the year. Visible learning is happening, and break times have a great feel with plenty of happy young people enjoying old and new friendships. Uniforms are looking smart and, along with correct PE and sports gear being worn, it is great to see our students taking pride in their presentation; thank you parents for your part in this also.

I look forward to seeing many of you at the NCEA Information Evening tonight. This is open to everyone because NCEA can still be a bit of a mystery to those of us brought up on School Cert and UE accredited! Please feel free to pop along to learn a bit more.

“Striving to be the best versions of ourselves – Kia kaha” (Theme for 2021)

Ngā mihi