[Marie P]

Cyber hugs needed please ......

Just taken all my kids to school ,Don't know who was worrying the most .

Little Louise cried [she used to cry at school at home ],So I had to just kiss her and walk away ,I feel terrible but I know its for the best .

Joe seemed ok ,his teacher talked rugby with him ,so he will be fine .

Took Ellen to her High school ,had a big ceremony on the front lawn ,with Maori songs and prayers .Ellen was chatting with a group of girls so I left her with them .

So now I'm home ,all alone in the quiet , :raebanana

I'll let you know of their impressions of their first day.

Marie x

[jubjub]

Poor Lou, hope she has a good day after a rocky start, the other two sounds as if they had a good start.

[Smiler]

Oh (((((((((((((((((huge hugs Marie))))))))))))))))))).

I'm sure they'll be fine but it must be difficult on their first day, especially after being on holiday and with their Mum (and Dad)

I hope you aren't too bored today either. ;) Let us know how they all got on please.

Did you see this today? http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3564029a11,00.html interesting read on prices etc. Although I'm sure you just found that out? :wah:wah

Hope your day gets better

Deborah x

[jo b]

Hye Marie

cyber hugs on their way ((((((((((HUGS)))))))))))

My 2 also have had their first day. Beth has already made a friend before she started school so she wasn't too bad. Little Kurt looked lost in the playground so I stayed for the first assembly. The went with him to his class at which point Kurtis sadi "It's OK mum, I'll be OK."

My little boy has grown into a little man.

Jo

[Marie P]

House back to normal ...noisy and messy .....

Ellen kind of enjoyed it ,spoke with a few girls ,her form teacher is English ,spent some of the day learning the Waiata ,I think the whole school takes part singing and dancing with the best house winning .

She only had to do 10 till 2 today ,all day tomorrow ,we are puzzled she has a six day timetable [DO THEY HAVE TO GO SCHOOL ON SATURDAY TOO ]

Joe was ok ,I'm sure as the day goes on I'll find out what he was upto .

Louise loved it [big sigh of relief] she has 10 friends ,saw a WETA ,told her class about the indoor jungle golf that we went to at the weekend .

I was ok too ,after a little crying session ,hey I even did housewifey stuff :roll

Hope everyone else's kids had good days too and you Carol .

Marie x

ps you like my ticker

[Smiler]

Phew! Glad to hear it all went ok (ish). Well done Ellen, Joe and Louise :clap

Probably by the end of the week it will be as if they have been there forever.

Hugs Marie, I cry when I do housewifey stuff too.;)

Deborah

[jubjub]

hey I even did housewifey stuff :roll



Did that include a cake?? :p :laugh

Glad they were all OK, dunno about 6 days of school though? Is one just sports? cos maybe thats Saturday activities? We see so many kids about here on Sat lunchtime, all have been doing some kind of sport by the looks of them.

[Kim39]

Well our two had their first day also. Hayley was looking forward to it but Nicola was very unsure. Hayley went in as if she had been a pupil for a year or two, but Nicola stood out. Anyway they have both returned and it wasn't a problem. Nicola has managed to get involved with a couple of girls, but i think the one thing that did help her was the fact that she was sat next to an english lad in her class who has been here for 12 months.

Well tomorrow is another day and who know's what it will bring, but one things for sure is that the apprehension will be downsized considerably.

Glad to hear it went well for Marie's children as well as Jo's and here's a couple of dancing banana's for the stars of today:raebanana :raebanana :raebanana http://www.nearlygood.com/smilies/spuit.gif (http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/javascript<b></b>://)

Kim

[Carol]

I'm exhausted already!!!
Just got home.......yes at 6pm

:(


First staff meeting of the year to contend with after school.


But....the good news is I just LOVE my big kids!
It is so cool teaching at this level.

Don't know how I'll feel on Friday mind you...two of them were getting pretty friendly today!
:roll

[Kim39]

two of them were getting pretty friendly today!
watch for that apple on the table Carol;)

Kim

[Smiler]

watch for that apple on the table Carol;)

Kim

Carol will have an orchard..............................:laugh:clap



How old are they Carol?

Deborah

[Carol]

11 - 13 yrs Deb.....



I was absolutely SHOCKING at 13 :o - that's my worry!
:laugh

Seriously - they have started already - logging onto our website for homework tasks (I've checked to see who has been online:nice1 )



Say what you like - I love teaching here!
:yes

[Smiler]

I didn't mean anything other than you deserved a whole orchard.

How brilliant that you can check who is asking for homework, don't they get given it during lessons like the olden days, or is it voluntary?


D x

[katandbob]

House back to normal ...noisy and messy .....


I was ok too ,after a little crying session ,hey I even did housewifey stuff


ps you like my ticker


:laugh I wonder if I will enjoy doing housewify stuff after not doing any for 7months ;)

and yes I liked your ticker so I got one too :-)))

Glad that ALL the forum Kids had a good first day :raebanana .....Anyone out there got College + kids out there ??? or am I just the only old 'Granny' out here??? :laugh

[Simon & Emily]

Glad to hear that they all enjoyed their first days - long may it last :yes

The article on the price of schooling shocked me though - $1000 each?????

Can anyone say if this is just secondary schools, 11 /12 onwards, or is it as much for primary schools, 5 / 6 onwards as well?

I don't begrudge paying for the education, whichever way it's packaged up, but they seem huge costs. Although they wear a uniform here, its all available from local Tescos/ Sainsbury's so it's very cheap, and other 'donations' are small, although very regular.

It's just another thing to factor into the budget, geting ready to get out there.

Thanks,

Emily

[gil]

Thank you for posting Marie, Jo and Kim, I'm so glad your youngsters had a good first day :clap:clap, that must be one of the trickiest moments to handle...

Gil
x

[veronica]

Hope all the newbie kids have got the school thing going right for them, it makes their life so much more comfortable when they enjoy school, so good luck to them all. (and to the parents).

What does the donation cover, do they have to buy text books too or does the school supply them.

when I was a kid in Australia we had to buy the text books as well as the exercise books. It did mean that the books were looked after as they could be sold 2nd hand at the school market at the end of the year. that was one of the things that used to really annoy me working at a school in the UK and it was the blatent lack of care for the school books, they could be new but the kids would still chuck them about and deface them.

[Marie P]

The stationery pack as it is called for Ellen's high school ,cost $30 it contained files ,exercise books ,paper ,maths books ,pencils ,ruler ,eraser ,and a couple of pens .
Her school fees [donation ] was $55 ,she is in a very low decile area her uniform was $175 that was skirt ,blouse and PE tshirt ,you could also get sweaters ,caps and jackets .
Luckily Joe and Lou don't need uniform ,no school fees and their stationery packs are $17.There is another primary school near by those children need uniform .

No tears from Louise today :clap

Marie x

[Kim39]

Some schools will provide you with a stationary pack, for a cost, and others let you buy your own, but you have to provide all the workbooks as well, i.e homework books, which start at about $12 each.

Nicola is at Te Awamutu college and her uniform cost $345 for 3 blouses, 2 skirts, 1 jumper, 1 pe top and a pair of shorts, her stationary pack and work books cost $120 and her school fees are $55.
Hayley is in primary school and her uniform cost $145 for 3 polo tops, 2 pairs of 3/4 trousers and a sun hat, her stationary pack cost $45 and school fees are between $60 and $120 you chose what you want to pay.

Plus they both need a jacket for winter, Nic's is $129 and Hayley's is $32. Then you have the socks on top, starting at $5 a pair.

Must admit we got a shock when we added it all up.

Elaine (Kim 39 OH)

[StevieD]

really annoy me working at a school in the UK and it was the blatent lack of care for the school books, they could be new but the kids would still chuck them about and deface them

The sad thing is, I see it all the time, it isn't just the school property but their own as well! But it is the throw away society isn't it. If you can't respect your own stuff how can you be expected to respect others?
I just don't understand the parents who see bags coming home wrecked, football boots missing (usually dangling off a telephone line on the route home)...

[GeorgeM]

Whilst it comes as a shock to see the cost of providing school uniforms (as they are mostly bought together at the start of the school year) it shouldn't be considered as a fee for going to school.

Kids need to wear something to school regardless, and in the majority of cases a school uniform provides a cost effective option for serviceable clothes suitable to the activities that are going to be performed. WIthout uniforms then labels/fashion etc would rear their very ugly heads and most parents would be much worse off.

Many schools run a second hand uniform shop which provides a very cost effective alternative for a lot of items. For all the schools our children have attended (most of them private) we've purchased a good deal of their uniform second hand, and where we've bought new have frequently recouped some of the cost by selling it when the child moved on or grew out of it. No stigma attached to this at all - in fact visiting the second hand shop before the official suppliers was seen as the normal route for almost all parents!

Uniforms often help the neediest families in society whose kids would otherwise be the butt of jokes as a result of being kitted out from the Warehouse etc rather than Billabong/Canterbury or whoever else is in vogue at the moment.

[jo b]

I have always said in the UK if schooling wasn't free kids and parents would value it more. Maybe even stop some truancy. Same can be said for health care i.e. missed doctors appointments etc.


The things is the more things that are given to certain people the more they abuse it.

Jo

[K&CS]

George

Thanks for that. I've got the price list for Sumner school and have been worrying about the cost (at home, we get most of it from Asda etc). With 3 kids, that's a lot of money. I'll check out the cost of buying it second hand. The kids had better like the school because we're not moving them!!

Kate

[wilson182]

George is correct, most schools have a second hand uniform shop, usually run by the PTA. I think also in most cases you can put the uniform on "layby" and just pay as you can afford it. (quite handy if you have more than one child to buy for)

[annaerb]

Also try www.tradme.co.nz