St Benedict's School Pānui ā-rorohiko (Online Newsletter) Term 1, Week 8, 2024

Upcoming Events from our Calendar

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Sports Uniform Days   Kōwhai and Kāuri Tuesday 
                                                Mānuka  Thursday 

Week 8 Term 1
Thursday 21 March N4L are replacing switches - Internet down for periods of the day. 

Week 9 Term 1 Holy Week 
Monday 25 March Girls Futsal Tournament Year 3 - 8  
Tuesday 26 March Earthquake Drill
Wednesday 27 March Paid Union Meeting 27th March 1:30pm Please complete this Google Form to let us know your needs. 
Thursday 28 March Stations of the cross on the turf - 1.45pm

School Closed 
Friday 29 March -Tuesday 2nd April 

Week 10 Term 1 
Wednesday 3 April Easter Prayer service 9:15am Library 
                                          Year 6 Camp El Rancho
Friday 5 April Year 6 return from camp

Week 11 Term 1 
Monday 8 April Mission Fair 11:15-12:15
Tuesday 9 April Whole School Cross Country  (PP Thursday 10th April) See notice in Sports section
Friday 12 April Last day of term 1 classes finish at 2:50pm

Items found in the School APP
School Notices
Safe crossing message
Phones away for the day update

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. 

Catholic Character - Invitation to Baptisim

We will soon be preparing several tamariki/children to become baptised in the Catholic Church during our St Benedict's Day Mass on the 4th of July. These tamariki/children will also be able to enrol in the sacramental programme and complete the initiation sacrament with the St Francis of Assis Ohariu Parish and their peers at St Ben's.

We would like to offer this opportunity to join the baptism preparation programme for  all tamariki who are not currently baptised. If your tamaiti/child is in Year 4-8 they will also be able to join the parish sacramental programme. Please get in contact if you would like your child/tamaiti to  prepare for baptism with us.

Easter Liturgy at St Benedict's School 

Thursday 28 March, 1:45pm. 

Holy Week Timetable St Francis of Assisi Ohariu Parish
Palm Sunday Weekend - 23rd / 24th March
5.00pm - Saturday Vigil Mass
10.00am - Sunday Mass
Holy Thursday - 28th March
7.00pm Mass
Good Friday - 29th March
10.00am Stations of the Cross
11.00am Ecumenical Walk
3.00pm The Passion of Our Lord
Easter Vigil - 30th March
7.00pm Mass
Easter Sunday - 31st March
10.00am Mass

Tumuaki Korero

Tēnā koutou e te whānau,

It is hard to believe that this Sunday we start our Easter journey with Palm Sunday. Walking in the steps of Jesus as we remember the challenges he faced to reset our relationship with God. Jesus love for humanity is shown throughout his actions.

As a Catholic School our mission is to grow our tamariki/children into people who can contribute to making society more just and more compassionate. Developing our Children’s minds and Guiding our Children’s hearts.

We are privileged to work in a community of whānau/families that also want their children to learn through our EPIC values. To aim for excellence in education, be strong in their catholic character and experience a wonderful school climate. Our School Board and Teachers have developed a Strategic Plan that focuses on just that. 

From time to time, you might be involved in conversations with your tamariki/children or another community member about an event that may have occurred that you were unaware of. You may feel you require more information. If you ever have a concern or have heard something that causes concern please come and see me or one of our capable leadership team Anne, Rebecca and Cheryl. 

Phones away for the day smart watch consultation
The government has introduced  Phones Away For The Day regulations which come in to force at the beginning of Term 2.

For St Benedict’s School this will mean minimal changes to our current practice. Phones are already required to be switched off and in school bags from 8:30am to 2:50pm. Should a tamaiti/child require a phone to support learning or health needs during the school day this will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Our tamariki/children usually adhere to this rule without reminder. If a phone is being used during the day they are confiscated and held at the office for the tamaiti/child to pick up at the end of the day.

There has been a noticeable rise in the use of smart watches which are also communication devices and can distract our tamariki/children through messages and games. We are proposing to update our policy to reflect that these must be set to ensure messages cannot be sent or received from 8:30am-2:50pm. If the smart watch is unable to be restricted like this, it must also be placed in the bag for the day.

You can review our proposed new policy on SchoolDocs through the APP link, username st-benedicts password 3000stbens. Feedback on the smart watch changes can be given through the message button at the top right-hand side of the policy prior to its implementation in Term 2.

Can you help a whānau/family seeking rental accommodation in our community?
Requirements are 2-3 bedroom, near our school, $800 per week. Please get in touch with the office if you have a property that is available to rent for a St Benedict’s whānau.  

Review of processes regarding head knocks at school 

In the event of a child/tamaiti suffering a head knock we complete an incident report, inform their classroom teacher and contact whānau/family.  In mild cases child/tamaiti  are able to stay at school and be monitored by their classroom teacher. 

We have now introduced 'Head Knock' wristbands, this notifies all staff that may come in to contact with the  child/tamaiti who has suffered a head knock. Reminding them to monitor the child/tamaiti carefully and restrict their activities if necessary.   Of course, you as parents will always make the call of collecting or leaving your student at school.

Promotional Photos
Please note that in week 10 and 11 one of our amazing parents will be taking photos of our kura/ school in action for the update of our promotional images.  If you would not like your child/tamaiti  to be included in any of these photos please contact the school office beforehand.  No photos of students currenly on our no photos list will be taken.

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

2024 Construction St Ben's

Update 7 March

The  furniture has been removed from Room 10 and 9 for offsite storage. The new retaining wall excavation is underway and vehicles are accessing school at restricted times to remove dirt. 

Stage three will start Mid Term 2 and include work on our Library, with the skylights coming out and the side wall facing Room 6 being recladed. We are still working through how we will adapt to this change with the teachers and others who use that space such as our HoK committee.

We do know that:
After School Care will operate out of one of our classrooms on the middle floor.
There will only be enough space to check books out – not for library visits. That will be out of action until mid-Term 3. We will explore visiting Khandallah Library as an alternative.
Assemblies are likely to go on hold while the library is out of action.

We hope to have fully operational library by the beginning of Term 4 at the latest.

Student Celebrations

Congratulations to the children who received certificates at Assembly

Congratulations to the following students who participated  in the Weet-bix TRYathlon and Splash and Dash last week. Alex, Caleb, Harry, Flynn, Henry C, Cohen, Shaun, Ellie, Charlotte & Isla McG, Charlotte A and Henry H.

Weetbix TRYathlon

Congratulations to Sammie, who at the Southward Museum last weekend competed in the Novice-a-holic competition held by a charity association called Dance-a-holic.  Sammie placed 1st in Musical Theatre, 1st in Classical Ballet and 1st in Barefoot.  Well done Sammie

Sports Update - Week 8

There are a few upcoming opportunities for our Year 3 - 8 students to compete against other schools in sporting events.  

Girls Futsal Tournament - Year 3 - 8 - Monday 25th March - Akau Tangi (Kilbirnie).  Registrations Closed. 

Whole School Cross Country 

Mark your calendars to come down and support the school during the Whole School (Year 0 - 8 ) Cross Country event.  This will be held on Tuesday 8th April (PP Thursday 10th April) at Nairnville.  We will be starting the races around 9:30am with the Year 0/1 students.  We are hoping to be finished by 1:30pm.  Students will need: Sunhats, sunscreen, large morning tea/lunch, sports gear (uniform for Years 3 - 8), running shoes, warm clothes to wear between races. 

Please email molly.kelly@st-benedicts.school.nz if you are able to come and help on the day.  We need at least eight field marshalls to ensure the smooth and safe running of this event. We will not be able to run this event if we do not have enough volunteers.

Students have been training at school with their classes/syndicates for this event.  The top qualifiers will go to the Amesbury Invitational (Years 0 - 3) and Northern Zones (Years 4 - 8).  More information to come early in Term 2. 

Zespri AIMS Games - 2024 - 7th - 13th September

The Zespri AIMS Games registration is open for our Year 7/8's.  Please see the attached information and let me know if you would like to register your tamariki for any event(s).  There will not be a representative from school attending the games.  The cost, travel and tournament is organised by individual families.  

2024 Event Information Booklet and Eligibility Criteria can be accessed below. Please email molly.kelly@st-benedicts.school.nz if you would like to register.  Entries close 5th June 2024. 

St Ben's Netball 2024

Netball registrations are now closed.

Season details
Years 3-4 - Saturday afternoons terms 2-3
Year 5-8 Saturday mornings terms 2-3
Year 1-2 Saturday afternoons term 2

We will be running our pre season warm up sessions again this year on Saturday 6th and 13th of April.  Coaches are welcome to attend to pick up new ideas for drills and activities. Please note on the registration form if you are able to attend.     
Year 3-4 1-2pm         
Year 5-6 2-3pm         
Year 7-8 3-4pm
If you have any questions please contact Sarah and Camilla (netball@St-benedicts.school.nz)

Northern Suburbs netball have also asked for support filling the following roles
Northern Suburbs Netball (NSN) is looking for enthusiastic and organised volunteers for two crucial roles:

• Chairperson – NSN is run by a committee of volunteers and representatives from our participating schools. Together, the volunteer committee oversees the running and management of the club. The role is a rewarding one, and would be ideal for anyone wanting to step up and show some leadership in a very safe and supportive environment. The main time commitments are during terms two and three, and there is an amazing committee working beside them every step of the way. Generally, committee meetings are held once a month. And, most other business is done via email.
  Please do consider whether you have the passion, energy and time for this vital role. If we do not have a Chair, we do not have a club and cannot run our netball programme.
  
  
• Years 1 & 2 Programme Co-ordinator role. Years 1 & 2 participate in FutureFERNS Programme. The focus for this age group is on ‘exploring’ netball. It allows players to catch, pass, and shoot from day one, providing a fun introduction to netball. They have a 25-minute skill season, followed by a 2 x 10 min game, with a 3-minute half time break. They play on Saturday afternoon.
  As the co-ordinator you would manage the administration, communication, and run the eight sessions.
  
  For further information, or to apply for either of these vital roles, please email Lisa at
  secretary@nsnetball.co.nz

Miniball/Basketball Registration

We are now taking Miniball and Basketball registrations for Term 2, please complete the google form link: https://forms.gle/jU4CWnji1yZEfQUHA .  Please read the guidelines below. 

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 hesitate, contact Donna for more information TODAY-  asc@st-benedicts.school.nz 

Join the fun at ASC

Helping Our Kids

Please read the HOK Newsletter sent out today via the Parent App.

HOK events calendar – 2024

HOK are excited to share an outline of the events and fundraisers we are planning for 2024. These are a mix of fundraisers, community connection and kid fun events. These events will also be added to the school calendar. There may be some adjustments to dates so please watch out for further communications about specific events. Our major fundraiser in 2023 was the Colour Run, which was a huge success and we will run again in early 2025.

Please contact Sarah: sarah.garty@hotmail.com on anything HOK related.

Feedback welcome!

We encourage and welcome feedback on these events, the associated spending of fundraising and anything else you think we could be doing to add value to St Ben’s and our amazing community.

Please contact Sarah: sarah.garty@hotmail.com on anything HOK related.

Entertainment Book

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