Starting again, again.

I posted a while back that coming back after the quake was like starting the year again well here we go again!. Heading into this term I am not sure which of our families we picked up after February 22 will be staying and how the numbers will look. It also may mean we have more families who have chosen t move to a more geologically stable environment.
Day one back we have two classes heading off on camp. That in itself brings with it the worry that some parents will be away from their children and dealing with these issues as a family can be daunting.
Having Technology on the Monday back means now that the school ,on the first day back will be shy of 80 pupils. It will be different.
Winter is upon us though, two good frosts let me realise that the mower probably doesn't need to come out again this year at least for a while.

The national standards debate continues to rage even though now they are in place and we need to be reporting against them.
My own personal belief is that they issued far to quickly and we ,as a school have not had enough education in the use of them. Yes there is a lot of emotional speak out there about the damage they will do to children and also from the other side the effect they will have if not implemented.( One MOE spokes person telling a Board of Trustees that they were breaking the law by not implementing them. The Board responded with one member suggested that just because its law doesn't make it right. Apartheid was law wasn't it. (okay that was a bit too emotional)
As a school we have always measured our students against many different tests. Reading , maths and spelling. We have established a school set of bench marks that work for our community. I also believe , the staff at Ashley School talk to parents with children who need help and the children who need to be exploring a different style of teaching and learning.

Parents and teachers need to be realistic and honest about the children they have in their care!