Address: 282 Victoria Avenue, Remuera, Auckland | Telephone: (09) 520 0602
E-mail: [email protected] | web: www.victoriaave.com
Dear Parents,
I am not sure about you, but waking up and finding it still dark outside is quite odd, given it is still summer. Every morning my diurnal clock tells me it is not yet morning, but my real clock tells me it is, so I drag myself out of bed. Conversely the evenings are still quite long, with sunset being around 8pm.
Now, add high night time temperatures into the mix and right now, getting enough sleep is a little bit of a struggle for many of us, including children.
The amount of sleep children need is well documented. Here is what the New Zealand Ministry of Health states:
How much sleep your child needs in 24 hours
The table below shows the recommended total hours of sleep per day for children and young people. Some children naturally sleep slightly less or more than these recommended hours.
Age | Recommended (hours) |
School age (5–13 years) | 9–11 |
Teenagers (14–17 years) | 8–10 |
Young adults (18–25 years) | 7–9 |
The Ministry of Health website also states:
Why sleep is important
Sleep is important for restoring energy and helping children grow and develop.
More and more evidence suggests that not enough or poor quality sleep can have a negative effect on a child’s behaviour, learning, health, wellbeing and weight.
For those of you who like evidence, here is an excerpt from:
Behavioral Sleep Problems and their Potential Impact on Developing Executive Function in Children
Kathryn Turnbull, MSc,1 Graham J. Reid, PhD,1,2,3,4 and J. Bruce Morton, PhD1
Correlational studies have found a relationship between parent-reported sleep problems and child psychosocial problems, including attention problems, hyperactivity, oppositional and aggressive behavior, mood problems, and anxiety.1,11,20–28 Poor school functioning and lower cognitive performance have also been associated with sleep problems in children, suggesting that sleep disruptions can impair cognitive processes.29–31 Experimental studies that have assigned school-age children to restricted versus extended sleep schedules have confirmed that even limited sleep deficits (e.g., 1 h/day for 3 days) cause measurable deficits in cognitive functioning measures32 and child behavior.33 Thus, research strongly suggests that healthy sleep plays an important role in children’s daytime functioning.
The short version of all the above is that there is ample research linking behaviour and attention problems in children to poor sleep quantity and quality. Inadequate sleep contributes to attention problems, hyperactivity, bullying and aggressive behaviour mood swings, and anxiety. If any of these ring true with you, perhaps your first intervention might be to ensure your child is getting quality sleep.
However, the good news is that this is all reversible once children are consistently getting enough sleep.
A Lesson about Security in the Home
One of our lovely parents had an awful experience a week ago and she has asked me to remind parents about home security. She had left a very small high up window open in her lounge, and the rest of the house was secure. They live on a corner under a street light. She had a home intrusion with the burglar surprised when she woke from sleep and saw him in her bedroom. She yelled and he escaped. The police caught four of them after she was able to ‘track my iPhone’ from another phone that wasn’t taken. She wanted to let the wider neighbourhood know that this is happening in the area, and to be vigilant at locking doors, windows and pulling curtains at night. It was a frightening experience.
Kind regards
Janice Adamson
DRAMA/SPEECH LESSONS: Click here for information
MUSIC LESSONS: Click here for information on Musiqhub music lessons
AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITIES:
FOR TERM 1 2020
Click here for details on these activities.
Also:
Click here for After School and Holiday Community Based Programmes and Activities for 202
What’s Ahead?
Please click here to view our online calendar
IMPORTANT DATES AND TIMES
School Times
School starts: 8.50am
Interval: 10.30-10.50am
Lunch: 12.30-1.25pm
School finishes: 3.00pm
Term Dates for 2020
Term 1: Tuesday 4 February to Thursday 9 April 2020
~ Waitangi Day Thursday 6 February ’20
~ Good Friday 10 April
~ Easter Monday 13 April
~ Easter Tuesday 14 April
~ ANZAC Day Monday 27 April
Term 2: Tuesday 28 April to Friday 3 July 2020
~ Queen’s Birthday Monday 1 June ’20
Term 3: Monday 20 July to Friday 25 Sept 2020
Term 4: Monday 12 October to Wednesday 16 December 2020
~ Labour Day Monday 26 October ’20
Stationery Sales
Tuesdays and Thursdays: 8.30-8.45am
Uniform Shop
– half way up dragon drive
OPEN FRIDAYS only: 8.15-8.45am
Orders and payments for uniform can be made online on our website ~ Click here
Lunch Orders
1. ‘Daily Lunch and Catering’ ordered through ezlunch: Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays – ONLINE ORDERS ONLY
Click here for ezlunch and Subway menus.
Join ezlunch today and Place an order Sushi is available through Daily Lunch and Catering
2. Subway: ordered through ezLUNCH: – ONLINE ORDERS ONLY
Click here for ezlunch and Subway menus.
Join ezlunch today and Place an order
School Dental Service
8b Ngaio St Orakei Ph 520 0603.
The dental team will be posting letters to all new entrants to our school as required.
Remember to ‘like’ Victoria Avenue School on Facebook.
NIT NIGHT TONIGHT!!
PLEASE, PLEASE CHECK FOR NITS – a number of classes have reported nits and if your infected child is not treated then many others will be!
Here is a link from NZ Health for info and treatment.
http://www.health.govt.nz/your-health/conditions-and-treatments/diseases-and-illnesses/head-lice
To download the app for free on iPhone or Android click this link:
http://victoriaave.apps.school.nz/share/
To download the app for free on iPhone or Android click this link:
http://victoriaave.apps.school.nz/share/
Register for TaxGift
VAS is working with TaxGift Limited to maximise the amounts that you generously donate to us. With one simple step, you can boost your donations to us without paying a cent more. If you are an individual NZ resident who has received taxable income then you are entitled to a 33% tax credit on the donations that you make to VAS. By filling in one form and opting in to TaxGift your donations, we will receive as a further gift of money the tax credit available on donations that you have made to us, boosting your original gift.
Please click on the link below to opt in to TaxGift your donations, or visit www.taxgift.co.nz for further information.
Link to webform:https://onboarding.taxgift.co.nz/register/5df00fba32ce8c18142778e9
Year 5 & 6 Swimming Sports
Monday 2 March 2020
Diocesan School Aquatic Centre
Our school swimming sports will take place at the Diocesan School Aquatic Centre next Monday 2 March. This involves all students in Years 5 & 6.
All students need to be at school by 8.30am as the first buses will be leaving VAS at 8.45am. They will need:
- Swimming togs – These can be worn underneath their sports uniforms so they are ready to swim soon after arriving at the pools (Please ensure they pack underwear to change into afterwards)
- Towel
- Goggles are optional – We do not provide these
- Morning tea, packed lunch and a drink
- Hat
All swimming event entries have now been finalised. Parents are most welcome to come along to view the swimming but there is no parking on the school grounds. The event programme is outlined below. Please note that the event times are approximate only. We will work through events in the order as outlined on the programme.
If you have any queries please contact your child’s teacher or Anne Bridgman [email protected].
There is a whole school Open Day at St Cuthbert’s College on Saturday 14 March from 10am-12pm.
Interested people can register at stcuthberts.school.nz