“The heart of our community, together we thrive”
At Geraldine Primary, our aim as a kura (school) is to keep class sizes to a manageable level so we can maximise learning potential, and allow our kaiako (teachers) to build strong, positive, and lasting relationships with both tamariki (children) and whānau (family). We believe tamariki are at the centre of everything we do, and our goal is to give them many opportunities to thrive.
Our school vision and strategic direction have been shaped through community voice, collaboration, and careful data collection. While we know that academic success is important, we believe our vision needs to be more than that — wholesome, natural, and holistic. A vision that reflects all of us and something we can achieve together.
We hope that when you walk through our doors, our vision can be seen, felt, and heard. To bring this vision to life, we have created a new logo that is modern and captures the essence of our kura. Alongside this, our strategic direction works hand in hand with our vision — designed to grow student outcomes, strengthen teacher capabilities, and building authentic partnerships between students, whānau and community.
Our new logo highlights the tree and four pou as dynamic, interwoven figures, representing our whānau groups. The pou also symbolise our tamariki (children) — reinforcing the ideas of community, togetherness, and growth. The tree shape anchors the design, while the heart is subtly formed by the flowing lines and placement of elements.
But our logo is more than just a picture — it is us
So, what do these words mean, and how do we use them with our tamariki and whānau?
For a vision to truly work, we must use it strategically and purposefully. This means weaving the words into our daily learning, our conversations, our celebrations, and our decision-making. Over time, this helps everyone — tamariki (children), kaiako (teachers), and whānau (family) — to build a shared understanding of how these values can guide us toward a successful, connected, and fruitful life.
School Structure 2026
Who is Geraldine Primary School - Ko wai tātou?At Geraldine Primary, we are more than just a school — we are a community. Our kura is built on strong relationships, shared values, and a sense of belonging.
We have four whānau groups: Kōwhai (Yellow), Kākāriki (Green), Kahurangi (Blue), and Whero (Red).
Every tamaiti (child) belongs to one of these groups, giving them a place to connect, contribute, and shine.
Throughout the year, tamariki earn whānau points by:
At the end of each term, and again at the end of the year, the points are tallied to see which whānau will be crowned the most successful.
Our whānau system helps create a spirit of teamwork, pride, and fun, while strengthening connections across the whole school.
At Geraldine Primary, student voice and leadership are highly valued. Our tamariki are given many opportunities to take on leadership roles such as Head Students, Whānau Leaders, Librarians, PALS, Road Patrol, Student Council, Enviro Leaders, and more. These roles help our students grow in confidence, responsibility, and service.
Our tamariki also take part in a wide range of cultural, sporting, and academic opportunities, both within school and in the wider community. Some highlights include:
… and many more!
Our teaching team works hard to deliver a relevant, up-to-date and localised curriculum that encourages tamariki to see learning beyond the classroom walls. Structured Literacy and Structured Maths are particular strengths, and we continue to develop our priority learner profiles to ensure every child and whānau receive equitable opportunities and outcomes.
Geraldine Primary is fortunate to have a Learning Support Coordinator working four days a week. This role is very special, creating a strong connection between whānau and kaiako. Our coordinator works closely with teachers and families, offering guidance and advice on next steps to ensure every tamaiti is supported — both academically and socially.
We are fortunate to have a strong support team at Geraldine Primary, including seven teacher aides, a family support worker, outstanding caretaker, and friendly office staff. Together, they make sure our kura is welcoming, inclusive, and well supported.
Geraldine Primary has created our own social emotional programme called Te Āiotanga, tranquility, calm and peace. Our students are explicitly taught about emotions, self and peer regulation, te whare tapa whā, and how the brain responds to internal and external environments. Each classroom has a brain ladder that kaiako uses to help understand and explain children’s changing emotional state.
There are many ways to support your child’s learning at home. These may include: listening to your child read to you, playing a literacy game, helping your child with any homework they may bring home, encouraging your child to practice number concepts dependent on their level, e.g. forwards and backwards number sequences, practising basic facts, rote learning times tables, etc.
Stationery differs from each year group. Please see the office for a more detailed stationery list.
We ask for an activity fee of $40 per child per year. The activity fee will allow your child to experience 4 different external visiting performers over the year.
The school has opted into the government's donation scheme.
The school has a very active and supportive home and school and new members are always welcome to join. This is a great way to form connections with other whānau. They normally meet twice a term on a Tuesday from 7pm in the staff room. Recent fundraisers have included: Dancing with the stars, trailrides and scholastics book fair.
The Geraldine Primary School Board takes great pride in maintaining a beautiful school site and inspiring learning spaces. Each classroom has been modernised to create warm, welcoming, and bright environments where tamariki can thrive.
8:20am – School doors open. Tamariki can unpack their own bags to foster independence and then:
If tamariki arrive before 8:20am, they can wait outside their classroom and connect with friends. If it’s too cold or wet, teachers will happily open classrooms early so everyone can stay warm and dry.
8:50am – Bell rings, kaiako takes the roll.
8:50am – 10:40am – First learning block.
10:40am – 11:00am – Morning tea and play.
11:00am – 12:30pm – Second learning block.
12:30pm – 12:45pm – Lunch eating time.
12:45pm – 1:25pm – Lunch play.
1:25pm – 2:45pm – Third learning block.
2:45pm - End of School.
We communicate to whānau through our SMS provider called Edge, fortnightly newsletter, school Facebook page and Skool Loop.
Our website is: https://www.geraldineprimary.school.nz/
“My favourite part is doing all the topics.”
“School makes me feel very comfortable and happy.”
“I like going to GPS because of all the sporting events we can join, especially the Rippa and Dodgeball tournament”
“I like GPS because I like going to the Library”
“I like that we have monkey bars and that there's heaps of friendly people”
“We like learning about letters and numbers. We have Lego in our class and lots of Barbies. All the teachers are super nice.”
“The Teachers help you if you don't understand something”
“I like learning things that we didn't know in the past.”
“At GPS I have improved at listening and I'm proud that I have new friends. I've learnt to be a team player.”
Published October 2025
Education in Geraldine began in 1862 with a private school in a private home. The first public school was established in 1867, occupying the Bark Hut that Samuel Hewlings had used from 1854 as his home and survey office. This was the beginning of Geraldine’s District School. In 1872 the first public school was built in Cox Street, but was unfortunately destroyed by fire in 1907. It was replaced, which saw the development of our existing primary school.
1963 saw the formation of two separate schools – Geraldine Primary School, for New Entrants – Standard 4 (now known as Years 1 – 6), and Geraldine High School for Forms 1 – 7 (now known as Years 7 – 13).
Since then, a number of new buildings have been erected at Geraldine Primary School. In 2005, the school was merged with Orari and Hilton Schools, after these two schools were closed. A new hall, which is a wonderful asset for both the school and community, was opened in 2006, with a new administration building opened in December 2007.
Two new teaching spaces, known as Rooms 15 and 16, were completed in December 2009. Five year olds that start during the year will typically begin their time at Geraldine Primary in these rooms. A new playground was constructed in November 2014. This was a project funded by the Geraldine Primary School Home and School and the Southern Trust. The Geraldine Lions provided the labour to assemble the new playground.
The junior block of Rooms 6, 7, 8 and 9, along with the adjacent toilet area was redeveloped in 2016. New breakout, resource and meeting spaces have been included in this project, along with modernised classroom spaces.
Further development work was undertaken in 2019, the first of which was the modernisation of Rooms 1 and 2. Following this, the Board embarked on a major project which saw Room 13 being removed and a new classroom block constructed. This is now known as Rooms 10 and 11. The latter room was funded by the Board, local businesses and community grants and is connected to Room 10 by a shared break out space and art area. Room 3 and the adjacent toilet areas were upgraded in 2020 / 2021, with some toilet areas being repurposed into additional work / meeting spaces. In 2023 Rooms 12 and 13 were upgraded.
Geraldine is a vibrant rural town with a population of around 3000. It is situated on the edge of the Canterbury Plains, in the South Island of New Zealand. Geraldine is 35 km north of Timaru, 50km south of Ashburton and 140km south of Christchurch. The town is a base for the local farming community and has a number of cafes, shops, boutiques and services on and around the main street.
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