It has been an amazing couple of weeks at GMS. Last week was packed full of exciting news and events. Firstly, our incredible PTA held their annual AGM and reflected on the huge amount of work and success achieved over the past 12 months. What started as one simple request has turned into a massive fundraising effort by a dedicated group of people who care deeply about our school and tamariki. Because of their hard work, fundraising, sponsorship, and grant applications, we are now getting a brand-new playground.
That’s right whānau, the playground has officially been ordered and is on its way! This is a huge achievement for our school community and something our children will benefit from for many years to come.
A massive thank you to everyone involved, especially our PTA, for the time, effort, and commitment that has gone into making this happen. Please make sure you read the PTA section to find out more information about the project and what is coming next.
How good was last Friday!!! Our Mothers Day lunch and the Westpac Rescue Helicopter team popping in for a visit. The timing of the 2 events ended up clashing but I want to thank everyone for understanding and just rolling with it. The kids had a blast and you could see how much fun they were having with our visitors and how excited they were to see the helicopter. This is the first time that we have had the team visit us and I'm sure that they will be back.
Winter is nearly here, and we are definitely starting to feel the colder temperatures. This is a good time for a reminder about our winter uniform expectations.
Our school uniform does not change during winter; however, we strongly encourage children to wear their school jackets and, if preferred, black pants instead of shorts to help keep warm.
If you would like your child to wear something extra warm to and from school, such as a puffer jacket, that is absolutely fine. These jackets will just need to be removed once children are inside the classroom. Another good option is wearing polyprops or thermal layers underneath the school polo shirt for added warmth.
If you are new to GMS and would like to purchase a black school jacket, these are available from Southern Workwear on Mersey Street. We also have school merino tops available for $90—please pop in and see Jan in the office for more information.
GMS Reports - At the end of the term, most of our children will be bringing home their Mid-Year Report. Children who have been attending GMS for at least two full terms will receive a report.
The reports will focus on how your child is achieving in Reading, Writing, and Mathematics, along with a general comment from the classroom teacher. Below is a snapshot of what the inside of the report looks like.
Within each table, we are aiming for children to be achieving within the dark green box by the end of the year. A star will indicate where your child is currently achieving.
Later in the term, teachers will be carrying out a range of assessments and observations to help form their Overall Teacher Judgement (OTJ) about your child’s progress and achievement. These assessments, along with classroom learning and day-to-day observations, help give us a clear picture of how your child is progressing.
If you have any questions about your child’s report or how they are doing in class, please don’t hesitate to contact your classroom teacher. Early in Term 3, we will be holding Parent/Teacher Interviews. These interviews provide an opportunity for you to discuss your child’s report with their teacher, celebrate progress made so far this year, and talk about goals and next steps for the remainder of the year. Principal/School Council Award
This week’s Principal/School Council Award goes to two students who have been working incredibly hard and making fantastic progress in our Intervention Programme. Every day, they show a positive attitude towards learning, listen carefully to their teachers, and always give their best effort. Keep up the awesome work, boys!
This week’s Principal/School Council Award recipients are Ezra and Brock.
That's about it for now whānau. Have a great weekend and see you on Monday.
Kia pai te mutunga wiki - Have a great weekend.
Ngā mihi nui
Glenn Puna Tumuaki/Principal Te Kura Matua o Māruawai Gore Main School
PTA News
Trudie South
Kia ora
Big news from the PTA this week — together with the school, we’ve ordered a new playground!
Included are the playground design and a list of the generous sponsors who helped make this possible. We’d love our school community to support the businesses and individuals for supporting us.
A huge thank you as well to everyone who has contributed in some way towards this project. The project isn’t finished yet, and we’ll still need your help during the next exciting stages.
Each pupil will bring home a volunteer request form outlining upcoming tasks and ways you can help. You can also complete the online form if that’s easier. As the saying goes, “many hands make light work”!
At our recent AGM, the following office bearers were elected for 2026, we thank you all for stepping up and volunteering your time towards the PTA and Gore Main School.
Trudie South - President
Devon Milan - Vice President
Diana Reed - Secretary
Rachel Buchanan - Treasurer
Committee members - Mariska De Waal, Katie Warburton, Rebecca McCall, Sarah Raymond, Annabelle McPhail (Treacher rep), Glenn Puna (Principal)
The Cross Country will be held next Friday, 22nd May, 2026 with the first race planned to start at 12.30pm
Next Friday is also going to be our first House Group Competition so the kids can come to school in their house colours. Kiwi - Yellow, Takahē - Red, Kererū - Green and Tūī - Blue. Children know what house they are in or you can ask their classroom teacher. House Points for Cross Country - 1st place 100 points, 2nd place 75 points and 3rd place 50 points plus for Year 5-6 an etc 20 points if your qualify for Eastern.
Children will be running in age groups based on their age as of 31 December 2026.Please note this means some will be running in an age group older than they presently are.
Age group approx start times on race day:
Please note these are approximate times. We will begin at 12.30pm and then run through each age group as the one before them finishes.
12.30pm - 5 years: ½ lap (Reserve)
12.40pm - 6 years: ¾ lap (Reserve)
12.50pm - 7 years: 1 lap (Reserve)
1.00pm - 8 years: 1 ½ laps (Reserve)
1.15pm - 9 years: 2 laps (Reserve)
1.30pm - 10 years: 2km (Bannerman Park)
1.40pm - 11 years: 2km (Bannerman Park)
Students running the Bannerman Park course will need to wear their high-vis vest and please ensure all students have correct running footwear.
After each Junior race (5, 6 and 7 year olds) the children will be sent to a coned off area. This is where parents can pick them up if they plan to take them home. The remaining children will head back to class after their race.
The entry for Eastern Cross Country involves only the 10 and 11 year olds. These competitors are chosen from their placing in the Bannerman Park race. Eastern cross country will be held on Thursday 4th June 2026 at Waimumu.
Certificates will be presented to the first three placegetters in the next assembly after completion of the event.
The 10 and 11 year old students will be running the cross country no matter what the weather is doing on the day. The rest of the age groups may be postponed to another fine afternoon.
Please note there will be group photos shared on Facebook.
Ngā mihi
Lana Williams
Shooting Stars
Congratulations to the Shooting Stars. You have worked so hard over the last few weeks. Well Done!!!
Room 1 - Finn Van Loon - for working so hard on his letter and number formation - tino pai! Room 2 - Thomas Sanders - for practising carefully and improving your handwriting every day! Room 3 - Zayne Chand - gets on with his work quietly and stays focused on learning. Luka Tree - always shows respect to others and works hard in all she does. Room 4 - Mackenzie Walker - for making great progress with your reading and sound knowledge. Lola Buchanan - for quick and accurate basic facts. Room 5 - Bella Hodge - you are such a hard worker, never complaining and always putting in a great effort in all areas of learning. Richelle Chand - I love reading your narrative writing - you have such a great imagination. Room 6 - James Cumming - It's wonderful to see you enthusiastically researching endangered animals. Harlow Kerr - your inquisitive mind and sharp research skills are shown in our Endangered species topic. Room 7 - Indigo Middleton - you are an excellent writer with great ideas! It's always a pleasure to read your writing. O'Riley Murdoch - for consistently working hard, making excellent choices, and setting a great example to others. Room 8 - Rose Stevenson - advanced Year 5 writing skills. Your information reports have been outstanding! Lukah Quertier - excellent leadership this week. Your communication skills are very high. Room 9 - Mitchell Green - for showing great kindness and being a supportive classmate, helping your friend to persevere with getting fit for cross-country. Yuvraj Singh - for recognising when things are tricky in maths and asking for help so that you can master the concept. Keep up the great work!
Well done everyone, keep it up!!!
Values Certificate
Rose McKenzie
The following students have been working hard to display the schools values of Perseverance, Respect, Excellence, Kindness and Integrity. The value we are focusing on this term is kindness.
Congratulations to our Term 1 Badge Recipients!
Room 1 - Kyara Coffin - for always stiving for excellence and building confidence in her learning. Room 2 - Florence Warburton - for taking pride in producing your work to an excellent standard. Room 3 - Guntash Kaur - showing perseverance in writing by fitting a sensible amount of words on each line and using tidy handwriting. Room 4 - Amelia Jones - for showing perseverance with your handwriting. Room 5 - Amya Clement - showing great perseverance in your reading and striving to do your best. Room 6 - Shayna Fletcher - it is wonderful to see you persevering in your writing and completing it! Room 7 - Tessa Scott-Rowe: for showing dedication to your learning and working hard to reach your goals. Room 8 - Maaka Rangiuaia: you set goals, you work hard to improve and achieve your goals. Room 9 - Amber Reed - for showing great perseverance when faced with tricky new concepts in maths. You stick with it until you succeed.
Reo Rangatira
Whaea Cathy
Who has been leading the use of te reo Māori?
This term we are looking at extinct or endangered animals and our kupu is related to this topic.
Our kupu for the last 2 weeks has been - Kaihaumi - Poach, Whakapoke - Pollution
Next week the kupu is - Mokonui - Dinosaur and Takahē - Endemic Bird
Room 1 - Albert Room 2 - Peyton Takurua Room 3 - Theresa De Leon Room 4 - Lucy Smith Room 5 - Charlie Lowry Room 6 - Sadie Mackay Room 7 - Alexis Rowe Room 8 - Michael Hopkins Room 9 - Taria Aue This year our Inquiry topic is Animals so most of our Kupu for 2026 will based around kupu related to animals.
There are soooooooo many exciting things happening in the Junior Syndicate at the moment, especially when it comes to learning! We are all seeing amazing progress and success for each tamaiti, and thank you, whānau, for the support you provide at home.
It is awesome to have PMP - Mini Movers back up and running for Rūma Tahi. There are lots of fun physical challenges and activities. This term, we are also having some of the other classes in the Junior Syndicate join us during Marvellous Monday.
For the next couple of weeks, Rooms 1, 2, 6, and 3 are taking part in the Fire Wise programme, learning how to be safe around fire, having an escape plan for home if the fire alarm goes off, and also what to do if there ever was a real fire. The tamariki are very engaged with the amazing resources provided and the experiences they get to take part in. We are grateful to the local firefighters who also come with the fire truck and talk through their protective clothing.
We were grateful to all the mums and special people who came along for the Mother’s Day lunch, and the tamariki are still buzzing about getting to go inside a helicopter and cheer on the amazing cyclists.
This term, we are looking forward to preparing for our poetry recital later in the term, as well as Cross Country. We will keep you posted.
Take care, whānau, and a reminder that you are always welcome to pop in and have a kōrero with the teachers.
Kia pai te mutunga wiki,
Whaea Cathy
Senior Syndicate News
Mrs McColl
Kia ora from Rūma Whitu,
It has been an exciting and active time at school lately!
Last week, the whole school enjoyed a visit from the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Appeal, along with a group of bikers travelling from Queenstown to Invercargill. The visit was part of the Westpac Chopper Bike Ride, where riders cover over 200km in a single day to raise funds for the rescue helicopter service. A big thank you to all those who donated towards this very worthy cause.
The children loved watching the bikers arrive in the school grounds—it was quite a sight! A real highlight for the children was being able to look through the rescue helicopter and learn more about the important work these services do in our community. A real highlight for the teachers was meeting Paddy Gower!
On the same day, we also held our Mother’s Day lunch. Thank you to all the mums, families, and special people in our children’s lives who came along to share some kai and spend time with us. It was a lovely opportunity to connect and celebrate together.
Back in Room 7, we have been busy preparing for the upcoming cross country, now only a week away. We’ve been making the most of our training sessions at Bannerman Park, tackling the hills to build our fitness and stamina. It has been fantastic to see the children encouraging one another, showing perseverance, and giving their best effort each time we train.
Miss Downing has been working in Room 7 this term and has been supporting the art component of our learning around endangered and extinct animals. The children are creating detailed technical drawings of New Zealand animals, developing their observation skills and attention to fine detail. At this stage, the drawings are still in pencil as they are in the early stages of the process. They will then add watercolour to their artwork, and these pieces will come together to create a mural for our classroom, which we are very excited to display.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Ngā mihi Room 7
GMS Reminders
Things you need to remember!!!!
Attendance
If your child is sick and staying home or you have something on then please let Jan in the office know. Please don’t just email the teacher. If you let Jan know then she will pass it on. You can use your @school app, text the school phone (0274562495), ring or email Jan directly: office@goremain.school.nz.
Bible in Schools (Terms 2-3 Only) Bible in Schools is every Thursday at 2.30pm. Children not attending remain at school and will be working in the library until 3pm.
Heat Up Friday (Terms 2-3 Only)
Every Friday (only) children can bring an item of food that can go into our heat up oven so that it is nice and warm by lunch. All food should be pre-cooked and only require heating (No raw meat). Pies, mini pizzas, savouries, mac n cheese etc etc. All items must be clearly named (first and last name and class number). No plastic wrapping please. All items go straight to your classroom each morning and get placed into your class's heat up container.
Road Crossing Safety and role modeling is top priority. Please use the crossing at all times. We have seen a few parents crossing the road up by the middle gate. Other children see you and may follow you. It's only an extra 50 metres so please come to the crossing and cross there. Also please be at school before 8.50am as this is when road patrol finishes.
Lateness
This is a friendly reminder that school starts at 8.55am. Please ensure that children are at school before this time so that they are ready to start class at this time. Road Patrol also finishes at 8.50am so for safety reasons please make sure children are here before that time so that they can cross the road safely.
Bell Times
8.30am - Kids allowed in class
8.55am - Off to class
9.00am - Session 1 starts
11.00am - Morning tea
11.30am - Morning tea ends
12.30pm - Spelling time
1.00pm - Lunch time
1.45pm - Lunch time ends
3.00pm - Home time
School Docs Policies and Procedure Go to https://www.schooldocs.co.nz/ then search for Gore Main School. Enter the user name and password. Username: goremain Password: GMS39Ardwick
School Bank Account Please take note of the Gore Main School and PTA Bank Account numbers. These are 2 different account numbers. Please remember to add the child's first and last name as a reference.
SCHOOL
03 0915 0253014 00 - Gore Main School BOT. Please add the student's name as a reference - This account is for things like after school sports, camps, payment of school accounts etc.
PTA
03 0915 0255562 00 - Gore Main School PTA. Please add the student's name as a reference - This account is for all things related to the PTA, Xmas raffle money etc.
Merino Jerseys
Merino jerseys are available to order and will now be the black merino jersey. The price is $90.00 per jersey.
If you still have the blue merino or purchased a second hand one these are still able to be worn as part of the school uniform. There is a sample of the new jersey along with sizes for anyone to view at the office.
Sun hats Sun hats must be worn when outside during Term 1 and Term 4.
eTap @school App
Be sure to stay up to date with what is going on at Gore Main School by liking our Facebook
If you don’t have the @school eTap app setup then please contact the office asap!
Gore Main School Concerns and Complaints Procedure
From time to time you may have concerns about things happening at school. Discuss your concern with the class teacher. Most concerns can be addressed at this stage.
If you are still unhappy, contact the school principal to arrange a meeting to discuss your concerns.
We have secured a FULLY FUNDED Rural Mental Health Workshop in Gore on Wednesday, the 20th of May, morning and afternoon tea provided NB: The Invercargill workshop is already full,
Every pair donated has a chance to win a Kids Highlanders Kit, so we need a label tied to the boots you are donating with your name and contact number on each pair. Many thanks.
International Connect Group Event We are keen to invite families and any new immigrant families to the 'pool day' event. Look forward to seeing you there.
