St Benedict's School Pānui ā-rorohiko (Online Newsletter) Term 1, Week 2, 2024

Upcoming Events from our Calendar

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Sports Uniform Days   Kōwhai and Kāuri Tuesday 
                                                Mānuka  Thursday 

Week 3 Term 1
Monday 12 February  7:30pm Helping Our Kids meeting  
Wednesday 15 February 9.15am  Ash Wednesday Liturgy in Library.
Thursday 15 February  Rescheduled parent meeting from Term 4. 
Friday 16 February  School Picnic and Sandcastle competion in Eastbourne.

Week 4 Term 1|
Friday 23 February  POSTPONEMENT DATE School Picnic and Sandcastle competion in Eastbourne.

Week 5 Term 1 
Tuesday 27 February Primary Sport Wellington Cricket Tournament. 
Thursday 29 February Rooms 3 and 5 trip to the City Art Gallery. 
Friday 1 March Rooms 2 and 4 trip to the City Art Gallery. 
                                New Mandarin Language Teacher starts Rooms 6-13

Items found in the School APP
Teacher Messages

Documents Section
Syndicate Newsletter (NEW)
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.

@SchoolApp Phone Notifications and Email 
IN  YOUR PHONE open Settings. Click on Notifications.  Find the @school app.  Turn on “Allow Notifications”
IN THE APP click on Settings. Tick enable notifications. Tick enable email notifications for  APP to send emails as well as/instead of phone notifcations. 

Tumuaki Korero - A word from our Principal

Tēnā koutou e te whānau,

Welcome back to another exciting year at St Benedict’s School. We hope you've had a fantastic first few days back, settling into the rhythm of the school routine. We extend our heartfelt thanks to those vigilant members of our community who reported the slippery caterpillar hazard in the playground. Your keen eyes and quick action contribute to creating a safe and enjoyable environment for our students. As shared through our school app, we are investigating options for improving the traction on the paint; supported by our HoK team.  As we work on this solution, please remind your tamariki that walking up and down the drive will help to mitigate this risk.  

Waitangi Day
We trust that you had a wonderful time celebrating Waitangi Day. Catholic missionaries played a crucial role in New Zealand's early history, arriving in the early 19th century to spread Christianity and engage with the Māori population. These missionaries, such as Bishop Pompallier and the Marist Brothers, established schools, hospitals, and churches, contributing to the education and well-being of both Māori and European settlers. 

The Catholic Church's teachings about justice, equality, and human dignity align with the principles embedded in the Treaty of Waitangi. Over time, the Church has actively supported efforts to recognize and address historical injustices faced by the Māori people. Today, both Catholic Churches and Schools in New Zealand continue to engage in conversations about the Treaty, social justice, and the reconciliation process, promoting unity and understanding among diverse communities.

In 2024 our Kura continues this commitment through our engagement in the Kura Ahurea programme with Te Ati Awa Taranaki Whānau. Several of our staff will continue their extramural study in Te Reo and we are delighted to welcome back both Whaea Adrianne and Matua Hemi for 2024. 

Our efforts in this area were displayed with pride as we celebrated our first day of school with a Mihi Whakatau to welcome our new members of our Kura whānau. 

I wanted to drop you a short note to say how much I enjoyed witnessing and participating in the wonderful opening of the school year this morning.

It was a real blessing to be a part of such a great moment.  Congratulations to you and all involved.

                                                                            Tim 

I wanted to reach out to acknowledge what an absolutely beautiful, heartfelt, spiritual and warm welcome to the school year you created. 

I had tears in my eyes when you, Coralie and Mrs Short, were doing your beautiful calling in of the new families - what an absolutely beautiful first impression for those families, and it was so moving and special!

The entire morning was just perfect, lots of us "old mums" who have had multiple kids through the school commented on how gorgeous it was at the end.  Beautiful words, lovely te reo spoken, gorgeous singing and actions - absolutely wonderful, all of it.

                                                                                                   Paula

Driveway and Building Work
As part of our commitment to providing a top-notch learning environment, we have some exciting updates on our school improvements. 

The leek remediation of Room 10, the library, Room 9 and the redesigned external stairway building work will begin in the first week of March. This works is expected to be completed at the end of Term 3. After our next site meeting, I will be able to update you further as to how this will impact daily life at school. 

Courts
The three-month delay to the current works will have a knock-on affect to the court works planned. It is likely that this will now start in 2025, which gives us plenty of time to fundraise for a canopy to cover the new court. We appreciate your patience and cooperation as we strive to make St Ben’s an even better place for everyone.

Repeat of message shared through @School App:
On Wednesday a Portaloo for our contractors was delivered to the school and placed on top of the area that did have the sinkhole, fencing has been placed around it. Today the vehicle access of the driveway will be closed for at least a fortnight as the bottom of the driveway is made wider. This will involve diggers and work will continue Saturdays. The first line of trees directly above the sign will be removed, as will the sign. The driveway works should take a month.  

Communication Pathways: Stay Informed, Stay Connected

Effective communication is crucial for a thriving school community. We are working on streamlining our communication pathways to keep you informed about important updates, events, and school news. 

This year we will be utilising the @School App, SchoolZine newsletter and St Ben's google calendar as our main communication streams. At the top of this newsletter we highlight where information can be found. 

Class and syndicate messages will be sent through teacher messages within the @SchoolApp. Time sensitive Whole School information will be shared through Notices @SchoolApp or via text message from the school mobile phone.  Whole School information and celebration of our tamariki will be in our fortnightly School Newsletter.

Dates for diaries will be kept in our Calendar St Bens so you can add these to your own calendar.   Be sure to check the @School App and School Newsletter for the latest information. All of these communciation channels, including HoK Social Media accounts, can be found in the @School App. 

We understand your desire to support your children at home and align that support with what is happening in their classrooms. Communication levels vary across different school levels as we work towards fostering independence in our students throughout their journey at our school.

Our teachers are in the process of determining the frequency of class updates that you will receive through the @School App or via the sharing of Google Classroom for older students. Striking the right balance between keeping you informed and avoiding repetition of shared information is important to us.

We also take into consideration the workload of our teachers, as we all share the goal of ensuring their efforts are focused on facilitating learning and connection, in a manner that is sustainable given their already full workload. Your understanding and co-operation in this endeavour are greatly appreciated.

Ways You Can Help: Community Engagement Matters

We believe in the power of community involvement, and there are various ways you can contribute to the success of St Benedict’s. Whether it's volunteering for events, joining HoK association, coaching or managing sports teams, your support makes a significant impact. Classroom reps are a great partnership between HoK and our school to support our whānau to make connections with other classroom parents and highlight the ways you can support HoK and our schools efforts to build the community.  Look out for upcoming opportunities and let's work together to create a positive and enriching environment for our tamariki.

Thank you for being an integral part of the St Ben’s community. Here's to a successful and fulfilling school year ahead!

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

Thank You Khandallah Garage

We are very grateful to Kevin at Khandallah Garage Ltd who fixed our broken basketball stand which was kept outside Rooms 3 and 4.   Please support Khandallah Garage, 4 Dekka Street, open from Monday to Friday from 7:30am - 5pm.

After School Care Vacancies

We currenly have vacancies at our After School Care on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday.  If you require After School Care for your child/ren please contact Donna Wilson.  Spots will fill up quickly so don't hessitate, contact Donna for more information TODAY-  asc@st-benedicts.school.nz 

Join the fun at ASC

Touch Rugby

Final Call for Touch Rugby in Term 1
A new 6 week season of touch rugby starts in term 1 in the local schools competition run by Total Touch.  Games are on a Monday afternoon/evening at Alex Moore Park, Johnsonville, with the first game on the 19th of February. Teams can be registered in the following grades:
- Year 1/2 open

- Year 3/4 boys

- Year 3/4 mixed

- Year 5/6 boys

- Year 5/6 mixed

- Year 5/6 girls

- Year 7/8 boys

- Year 7/8 girls
If your child is interested in playing for St Benedict's and/or you would like further details please email Lizzie Hunter at lizziemid@gmail.com by no later than Friday, 9th February.  It is a great team sport for all and new players are very welcome! With a growing number of players we also need more parents to help with coaching/managing so please also let us know if you are able to help.

Scholastic Book Orders

Scholastic brochures were distributed last week and all orders are now due at the school office by Friday 9 February.
This year we would prefer if people paid online with a credit card, although IF NEEDED you can still order with cash (correct change, please).  Return any cash orders to the school office.
To order and pay with a credit card, go to mybookclub.scholastic.co.nz; books ordered online before February 9 will be collated and arrive at school and be distributed. Books ordered online after that date will go to your home and incur a delivery fee.
All orders earn rewards which buy books for the school library. 

Helping Our Kids

HOK AGM will be 7:30pm Monday 12 February 2024 in the school library, some refreshments will be provided. We welcome anyone to attend to hear about what HOK does and the upcoming year of events/fundraising activities. 

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 or support the work the committee does.

Papers for the AGM on request - please contact: sarah.garty@hotmail.com - or we will see you on Mon 12 Feb! 

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