St Benedict's School Pānui ā-rorohiko (Online Newsletter) Term 1, Week 10, 2024

Upcoming Events from our Calendar

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Sports Uniform Days   Kōwhai and Kāuri Tuesday 
                                                Mānuka  Thursday 

Week 10 Term 1 
Friday 5 April Year 6 return from camp
Sunday 7 April HoK Picnic 1-3pm @ Nairnville Park

Week 11 Term 1 
Monday 8 April Mission Fair 11:15-12:15 (for new whānau an explanation of Mission Fair is in Principal section) 
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

Term 2 2024

Week 2- 9 Swimming Days       Rooms 8,9, 12 and 13 (Year 6-8) Tuesday 7 May-25 June
                                                               Mānuka +  Rooms 6 and 7   Thursday 9 May-27 May 

Week 1 Term 2 
Monday 29 April St Mary's and St Patrick's Colleges visiting Year 8 tamariki
Thursday 2 May Strike Percussion Shows

Week 2 Term 2 
Monday 6 May HoK Mother's Day Shop Room 1
Tuesday 7 May Swimming for Rooms 8,9, 12 and 13 (Year 6-8) (last session Week 9)
Thursday 8 May Swimming for  Mānuka +  Rooms 6 and 7  (last session Week 9)

Items found in the School APP
School Notices
Teacher Messages

Documents Section
Syndicate Newsletter 
2024 School Dates
Winter Uniform Order form
St Ben's Handbook
Road Patrol Roster 

Widget link
Newsletter
SchoolDocs (Board Policies) 
Account information
Absences notification and rate of absences. 
School Calendar
MyKindo for lunch orders
HoK Facebook and Instagram

Catholic Character Our Easter Liturgy

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Thank you  to our  tamariki and kaiako who assisted at the Easter services in St Francis of Assisi Ohariu Parish 
Miss Simson - Holy Thursday 
Isabella - Cross bearer at Good Friday
Lucia  - Passion Reading Good Friday
Aedan - Alter Server Easter Sunday (pictured below following presentation of Easter necklace for serving at Easter Sunday Mass.)

Tumuaki Korero

Tēnā koutou e te whānau,

As we approach the end of our first term for 2024, we want to take a moment to express our gratitude for your ongoing support and collaboration in your tamaiti educational journey. It's been a term filled with growth, learning, and memorable experiences, and we're thrilled to have shared it with each of your tamariki.

We thoroughly enjoyed hearing about your whānau Easter adventures – from egg hunts in the backyard, crafting delightful Easter-themed artworks to taking part in Easter Masses. It's heartwarming to witness the joy and excitement that this liturgical season brings to our students. Thank you for sharing these wonderful moments with us.

As we gear up for the final week of term, we have exciting events underway and coming up: 

Camp
Our Year 6 campers are having a fabulous time at El Rancho. I am looking forward to visiting them this evening and hearing about the activities they have enjoyed. Highlights from Wednesday were the water slide, glow in the dark dodgeball and rock climbing. 

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Mission Fair Monday!
Our Mission Fair is a by tamariki for tamariki event to raise money for the Cartitas Lenten Appeal. The Year 6-8 tamariki make items, games or food/drink to sell to the rest of the school. Items will range between 50c to $2.00. We thank you for supporting our Caritas fundraiser by sending your child/tamaiti with gold coins to spend. 

Cross Country Tuesday!!
Lace up those running shoes! Our annual cross-country event is coming up on Thursday. This year it is a whole school event. Further details in the sports section. 

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.  

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.

Te Reo Study
Six of our staff are undertaking further study in Te Reo over the next two terms strengthening their understanding and teaching of Te Reo at our school. This course is taught in the evenings and also involves weekend commitments. 

Diploma of Positive Psychology and Wellbeing
This year I will be undertaking a new challenge  as I begin the Diploma of Postive Psychology and Wellbeing. The course starts with a six day intensive Wednesday-Friday in the  last week of the school term and the Monday to Wednesday the  first week of the school holidays. Followed by nine months of further study and assignments. I am very excited for the opportunity to undergo this study to further support our own schools Wellbeing focus. 

As I will not be on site from Wednesday next week I wish you all a happy and safe holidays and look forward to seeing you all again in term 2. 

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

2024 Construction St Ben's

Update 4  April

The new retaining wall excavation is continuing  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 Zara and Mary who competed at the Smash Dance competition with their Intermediate Troupe team and came 1st place in the lyrical section.  This was the first time they had performed the dance this year after only learning it this term so a great result.  In the team were also some ex st Ben’s girls, Sophie, Posy and Charlotte . 

Congratulations to Kennedy who received the Batting award for the Year 4 Everest Onslow Cricket team. 

Congratulations to Sammie, who had the following results at the Smash Dance Competition recently:

• 1st Place Overall Highest Scoring Junior, Top 5 Dancers
• Most Promising Dancer Award
• 1st Place Jazz Solo
• 1st Place Lyrical Solo
• 1st Place Musical Theatre
• 1st Place Modern Jazz Duo
• 3rd Place Classical Ballet
• 3rd Place Modern Barefoot

P.E. Uniform & Winter order forms

The school is currently taking orders for PE Uniform and winter items.  Ordering will be open until Friday 12th April.  Items will be delivered at the beginning of Term 2, 2024.

Please go to this link below to order

Sports Update

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 9th April (PP Thursday 11th 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. 

Girls Futsal Tournament

Well done to the students who competed in the Year 3 - 8 Girls Futsal Tournament.  The Year 7/8 girls referreed the Year 3 - 6 games throughout the day, showing great leadership skills. 

A special thanks to the parents who came along to help on the day!  It was great having you along and we couldn't have done it without your support.  

Touch Rugby

Congratulations to all the St Ben's touch teams on another fantastic season of touch rugby. It was great to have so many enthusiastic players this term with two teams entered in the Year 1/2 grade as well as a Year 3/4 team and a Year 5/6 team. The teams all showed huge improvement as the season went on with a lot of impressive teamwork and skills on display.

Extra congratulations to the Year 5/6 team for placing third overall in their grade - taking out the bronze spot. This was in a final match taking out a 6-4 win over a team they had lost to earlier in the season. A team that has largely played together since Year 1 is showing incredible promise as players and importantly as a team. A great season by all, congratulations to all players for leveling up into this grade and continuing to develop skills.

Season awards went to - Most impressive: Kennedy  and Most valuable: Lazarus 
A big thanks to all the parents coaching, managing and helping out on the sidelines and at trainings.

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

REMINDER: Miniball and Basketball registrations for Term 2 will close tomorrow.  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

We hope you enjoyed the HOK newsletter that was sent out in March. We are aiming to do a quarterly newsletter to keep you up to date with our latest fundraising and community events. 

Family picnic (7 April): We look forward to seeing you and your whānau on Sunday at 'Picnic in the Park' - details below.

Uniform sale (Sat 27 April)

Winter uniform sale – second-hand and new items for sale Saturday 27^th April, 2 – 3.30pm

• Term 2 marks the start of the winter term and a changeover of uniform for our tamariki.
• Second-hand items will be available for purchase via the HOK team onsite in the school library on Saturday 27^th April from 2 – 3.30pm. Coralie & Emma will also be onsite for purchases of new items.
• We have a good supply of winter stock – there are HEAPs of long-sleeved winter polos and winter shorts for Y 1- 6 alongside winter tunics, skirts and other items.

Thank you for donations received - please note we are not taking any donations of woollen jerseys, or the old PE uniforms so please do not include these in donations as space is very limited to store stock.  

Mother's day shop (6 May):

With Mother's Day just around the corner, we're calling on all you wonderful folks to contribute any quality second-hand items to our Mother's Day Shop (such as candles, books, costume jewellery, trinkets, mugs, chocolates etc). Help us make this event a roaring success by sending in your donations to the school office by May 3rd. Let's spread some joy and love!
HOK welcomes any feedback, please contact: sarah.garty@hotmail.com 

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