Auckland Regional Public Health Service – 04 March 2020
COVID-19 Information for parents
While a parent of secondary school students has been confirmed as the second COVID-19 case in Auckland, please be assured there has been no exposure from this case at these schools or any other schools. There will be concern in school and wider communities, and misinformation circulating through social media.
Here are the facts: The students did not travel with their parents. The students have been to school since their parents returned, but they were not infectious. They did not have, and do not have, any symptoms. All of the family is in isolation, but the students are well and are at home as a precaution. Credible, evidence-based information about COVID-19 can be found at the following places: The Ministry of Health COVID-19 webpage. The Auckland Regional Public Health Service COVID-19 webpage. The World Health Organization’s COVID-19 site. Anyone seeking health-related advice about COVID-19 can also free call Healthline’s dedicated 0800 number: 0800 358 5453.
There are so many different opinions offered on how best to parent. New parents will often have firm beliefs about how they wish to balance love and discipline, but this ideal often goes out the window when a toddler throws their first tantrum in the supermarket!
Raising children can bring parents and caregivers great joy despite many learning ‘on the job’ and growing into the role through experience and understanding. Children will always flourish in a warm and loving environment, supported by clear guidance.
In this Special Report, parents and caregivers can gain a greater understanding of the four defined parenting styles by taking part in the quiz. It can guide parents towards deciding which style they wish to adopt and the effects it may have on their children.
We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this Special Report, and as always, we welcome your feedback. If you do have any concerns about the wellbeing of your child, please contact the school for further information or seek medical or professional help.
Today parents face a multitude of modern day challenges in raising happy, well and resilient young people. Whilst there is a great deal of information available, this can often be confusing and overwhelming for parents looking for guidance.
SchoolTV addresses this as a new online resource designed to empower you as parents with credible and sound information with realistic, practical ongoing support strategies.
Following advice from the Ministry of Education and the identification of the first case of the virus in New Zealand, the same advice remains for our students. Risk remains low of the spread of the virus and we remind the community to take normal precautions – practising good hand and sneeze/cough hygiene is the best defence:
– wash your hands often with soap and water before and after eating as well as after attending the toilet,
– cover coughs and sneezes with clean tissues or your elbow,
We have enrolled our first international students who started this term. I thank our team including Mrs Dada and Mrs Clansey (International Student Coordinator) who worked hard to gain accreditation. This builds on the growing international connections which started with our annual attendance of the Hwa Chong Student Congress in Singapore and our reciprocal visit to our sister school in Nanching, China.
This reinforces the mantra “think global, act local” and helps our students to appreciate and understand other cultures and perspectives.
Today marks the 80th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi – Te Tiriti o Waitangi. This important document helped to establish a formal relationship between the crown (Britain) and Māori. While there are still differences as to how the treaty can be interpreted and questions surrounding the legitimacy of those who signed it, the people of New Zealand/Aotearoa continue to work together to build a nation we can be proud of today.
MHJC is embarking on a journey this year to improve our collective understanding of the Māori world view which we feel aligns closely with the spirit of the treaty – “we are one people”.
A quick example of how we can learn is the urgent need for the world to respect, honour and be guardians of the land. The Māori phrase kaitiakitanga captures this perfectly and illustrates that we ignore lessons of the past at our peril. MHJC is fortunate to have a valuable resource, Tāne forest on our doorstep which we use to promote kaitiakitanga to each new generation of students which will extend to other areas of their lives. Making the world a better place.
An email has been sent to all families about the virus following guidelines from the Ministries of Health and Education. As the situation is changing daily we will email updates or post to this web site.
In essence, we have no reported cases but we advise anyone who has travelled through China to remain at home for two weeks as a precaution, particularly if symptoms are shown. Please notify the school if this is the case.
