"Keeping Ourselves Safe" Programme

Keeping Ourselves Safe

Year 0-3 Programme

Wednesday 2 March 2016

Dear Parent/Caregiver(s),

Over the next few weeks, we are teaching the unit ‘Knowing What To Do - Mohio Kia Pehea’ to all Year 0 - 3 students, as part of the personal safety programme Keeping Ourselves Safe.

This programme will begin next week.

Keeping Ourselves Safe has been designed to give students the skills to cope in situations involving abuse and potentially unsafe situations.  It has three overall aims:

• to develop and strengthen children’s skills to keep themselves safe with other people;
• to support and encourage abused children to get help from caring adults;
• to make teachers and parents/caregivers more aware of the need to keep children safe from abuse by adults or other children.

‘Knowing What To Do - Me Mohio Kia Pehea’ will be taught by your child’s POD teachers.

Some of the content that will be discussed includes:

• How we are unique - He Tino Taonga Koe
• My body is my own - Kei a Koe te Mana Tinana
• Dealing with unwanted behaviour or touch - Tau e Aha ai ki te Whanonga me te Pa Kino
• Adults who can help - Nga Kaiawhina Pakeke
• how/why/who to report unsafe situations or abuse, or their concerns about situations that may potentially be unsafe

This is an important part of the health curriculum and we appreciate your support in this.  We would encourage you to talk to your child about what they have been learning to further support their understanding.  If you have questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Please contact your child’s homeroom teacher if you would like any more information about the programme.

Yours sincerely,

Lesley Jeffrey

Deputy Principal

Whakarongo School