St Benedict's School Pānui ā-rorohiko (Online Newsletter) Term 1, 2024

Upcoming Events from our Calendar

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2024

Monday 29 January    Teacher Retreat and Professional Development day 
Tuesday 30 January Begining of year whanaungatanga/relationship building meetings (booking & goal setting form link below) 
Wednesday 31 January  Continued meetings and school set up
Thursday 1 February    Term One begins
                                               Pōwhiri to welcome new students followed by Blessing liturgy
Friday 2 February          Usual school day

Dates to diarise
Friday 16 February School Picnic and Sandcastle competion in Eastbourne
Thursday 15 February  Rescheduled parent meeting from Term 4. 

Items found in the School APP
Teacher Messages

Documents Section
2024 School Dates
Summer Uniform Order form
St Ben's Handbook
Widget link
Newsletter
SchoolDocs (Board Policies) 
Account information
Absences notification and rate of absences. 
School Calendar
MyKindo for lunch orders
HoK Facebook and Instagram
Coming Soon: Road Patrol Roster 

@School App Access on Work phones
We have recently been made aware that some whānau are unable to download the @School APP due to work phone security settings. If this affects you, you can access the @School APP through safari or chrome browsers using the same log on details we have provided. We encourage use of our @School APP as we regularly send out communication through this.

Tumuaki Korero - A word from our Principal

Tēnā koutou e te whānau,

Welcome back, St Ben's Whānau! We hope you've had a lovely summer break filled with relaxation and joy. As we gear up for the new school year, we are eagerly preparing for your return. Below, you'll find some additional information to ensure a smooth start to the school year. 

Begining of year whanaungatanga/relationship building meetings 
Please use the above link to book a meeting for your whānau with your kaiako/teacher. These meetings are for the whole family, including students, to attend. During the meeting, you will share the information and goal-setting sheet that was included in the end-of-year reports. You can download the form above or pick up a new copy from the school office.

Invitation to Pōwhiri  and Beginning of year blessing
On Thursday, the 1st of February, school will reopen with a Pōwhiri to welcome the 23 new tamariki, followed by a Blessing liturgy to commence our school year. We anticipate that this event will take place outdoors, with the Powhiri scheduled on the Turf at 8:50am, followed by the blessing in the amphitheater.

New family Buddies
While there is a strong new entrant contingent, we also have new tamariki joining us across the school. I will be shoulder tapping current families to be our new family buddies for those whānau who are joining us in the Year 2-8 classes. This role is a vital one in helping new whānau to feel part of St Benedict's School Community.

Uniform
We expect all our tamariki/students to be in their summer uniform from the first day of school. The uniform shop is now open and the second-hand uniform sale will run on the 30th of January; see below for more information. Of particular importance is that each child has a hat and that all items are labeled in several places so we can reunite the uniform with its owner.

Property Upgrades Delay
Lower driveway
Unfortunately, the Wellington City Council holiday shutdown stopped the approval of the traffic plan for the works to go ahead on Nicholson Road. This now means that the work will begin during Term 1 and will impact vehicle access to the school. Pedestrian access should not be greatly affected. The entranceway is being made larger to allow for a bigger turning bay when entering from Everest Street.

Watertightness remedial work
The start date for this project was reliant on the driveway access being completed. This work will now begin in Term 1. The remedial work involves a significant and complex upgrade of the external staircase shared by Rooms 9 and 7, the cladding of Rooms 9 and 10, and the removal of cladding and skylight from the library. The work will be carried out in stages, with the first part including soil removal and the installation of a temporary staircase.

Our site restrictions plus Wellington City Council Building, Fire and Water regulations make this a tricky project. These restrictions have limited options for the staircase which has meant the current design is unable to be replicated due to the stormwater drain that runs between the buildings. It is so important that our buildings are made water tight, Freear Philips will be completing this work. The site complexity also means that sections of our lower court will again be restricted to store equipment.

KiVa Implementation
As part of our positive behaviour for learning data review, we have identified that whānau and tamariki do not always have the tools they need to advocate for themselves when relationships between tamariki involve behaviour they do not like. Often whānau try to deal with this themselves and do not involve the school until they lose patience with all parties. In 2024 we are implementing the KiVa bullying prevention programme. Our staff will be trained in this new approach on Teacher Only Day. 

Kiva's point of difference is that it very deliberately singles out bullying behaviour from other negative and undesirable behaviours within the school community. In this way it can work effectively alongside our schools existing behaviour management processes (PB4L) and provide clarity for all involved as to what is and what is not bullying and what to do when bullying occurs.
KiVa is a long term preventative approach that works to change the group culture around recognising and not tolerating bullying behaviour. The programme provides students and the wider school community with knowledge and skills to identify and respond to bullying situations.

We hope that having clearer expectations and systems for seeking help will allow St Benedict's to build on the inclusive and caring community that we have. You can find out more about the KiVa bullying prevention programme here: https://newzealand.kivaprogram.net/why-choose-kiva/ 

Mā te Atua koutou e manaaki,
May God bless and care for you. 
Tania Savage - Principal

Helping Our Kids

SECONDHAND SUMMER UNIFORM SALE

- Tuesday 30 January

HOK will be holding the second-hand uniform sale on the same day as the Whānau Conference Day on Tuesday 30 January.

Items will be available to purchase from 0900 – 1200.  Put a reminder in your diary now if you want to grab some quality second-hand items for Term 1. 

Eftpos available and new uniform items will also be available to purchase.

HOK AGM will be 7:30pm Monday 12 February 2024 in the school library. More information to follow in early February.

HOK is a committee of parents and caregivers.  We fundraise for the extras that help make St Ben's a great place to learn, often though fun events for our children and their families. We're always on the lookout for fresh ideas and new people to join the committee. 

Entertainment Book

Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon

The Wellington event will be held on Sunday 17th March at Kilbirnie Park and Wellington Regional Aquatic Centre. If you would like to register your tamariki for this event, please click HERE.  This will take you to the link for the St Benedict's School team.  Please visit the website: https://tryathlon.co.nz/info/ for more details and information. 

Parent Road Patrol Roster

NICHOLSON ROAD
(Mornings and Afternoons)
Parents: Please be present from 8:25am - 9:00am and again from 2:45am - 3:15pm

Wider Community Notices