St Benedict's School Pānui ā-rorohiko (Online Newsletter) Term 4, Week 4, 2024

Upcoming Events from our Calendar

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Term 4, 2024

Week 5 BOOK WEEK
Monday 11 November -  Parent meeting Recap PB4L6-6:30pm  and KiVa 6:30-7pm 
Tuesday 12 November - House Challenge Book quiz
                                                - SNAG Golf Room 6-9
Thursday 14 November- SNAG Golf Room 12 -13
                                                  - Get set, Go! Mānuka
Friday 15 November- Dress up Day Book Week
                                           - Visiting author

Week 6
Monday 18 November Road Patrol Training 
Tuesday 19 November IZ Athletics - Years 4 - 8
                                               SNAG Golf Room 6-9
Thursday 21 November Year 8 Transition day St Pat's and St Mary’s
                                                  SNAG Golf Room 12 -13
                                                  Get set, Go! Mānuka
Friday 22 November  Frosty Friday 
                                            Staff vrs Year 8 Netballers 1:30pm

Week 7
Monday 25 November NE visits for 2025
Tuesday 26 November Regional Athletics - Years 4 - 8
                                                 SNAG Golf Room 6-9
Thursday 28 November House Captain Catholic Character Applications Final Day
                                                   SNAG Golf Room 12 -13
                                                   Get set, Go! Mānuka
Friday 29 November School Speech Competition 9-12:30 - please note it is impossible to put timings out for                                                    this event  as we often will run fast or slow on the day. 

Term 1, 2025

30 & 31 January - Whānau meetings

Monday 03 February - Term 1 begins

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School Notices
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Documents Section
Syndicate Newsletter  Term 1 and 2 
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

All Saints Liturgy

In buddy classes, we focussed on six Saints, St Therese of the child Jesus (Lisieux), St Mary MacKillop, St Martin De Porres, St Francis of Assisi and St Benedict and St Brigid.  The senior classes created a portrait/sketch and decorated a photo of their saint, the junior classes dressed up as their saint.

Saints are those who listened to and answered God’s call, showing us that the most important part of life is loving God, others and ourselves. By following God’s call, they lived His Word. May their example inspire us today to follow God’s call in our own lives.

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Tumuaki Korero - Welcome to Term 4

Tēnā koutou e te whānau ō Hato Penetika,

ICAS Results
We were thrilled to receive and celebrate the wonderful academic results of the tamariki who took part in the ICAS exam. 

The final ICAS University of NSW examinations results have now been received.
Congratulations to all of the tamariki for their efforts. The following students received Merit, Credit,
Distinction or High Distinction.

Mathematics

Writing

Former Students Success  We are delighted to congratulate Sam Glynan (St Patrick’s College) and Lucille Johnson (St Mary’s College) for their achievement of Dux at their respective colleges in their final year of college. Lucille’s brother also placed in the speech competition at St Patrick’s College. 

The following students Olivia Peet, Sara Howard and Annabelle Tuck have been named as part of the Student Leadership Team at Wellington Girls College. 

Current Students Success Eliasz Zych was awarded the academic scholarship for St Patricks College for 2025. 

Book Character Dress Up Day 15 November  NEXT FRIDAY! Our Book Character day is next Friday. We begin the day with the roll in class then we all gather on the turf  for our book character parade.  Whānau members are very welcome to be our audience for the parade. 

Education Review Office (ERO) Visit finished last Thursday and we were delighted with the oral feedback they presented to our board and staff.  Our report is unlikely to be live before the summer holidays.  I would like to acknowledge our wonderful Board and staff who shared their practice with our ERO team. 

Pōwhiri we were delighted to welcome our new whānau to St Ben's through pōwhiri.  The  tamariki sung beautifully, bringing our ERO team to happy tears and our new whānau shared with us why they chose our school. 

Whānau Hui we will be  rerunning  the meeting run earlier this year of our PB4L6-6:30pm  and KiVa 6:30-7pm on the 11th of November. Please let us know if you are attending. 

Prayers for the Berry Whānau Thank you to all those who have contributed to the Give a little for Jake. It is a small way our community can give back to a family who have given so much to us. 

Enrolments for 2025 Please ensure that you have completed enrolment papers for your pre-school  tamariki who are joining us in 2025. This allows us to plan a great transition from Early Childhood Education to School through a series of visits. Equally if you have whānau or friends who are considering enrolling their tamariki, please encourage them to make appointments so we can accommodate these new enrolments. 

Class Organisation for 2025
Our teachers will be involved in the placement of students into classrooms for next year as they bring knowledge of who works well together, who might benefit from being in a separate grouping etc. Much time and effort is dedicated to getting a good mix for everyone as we look for:

• A mix of students’ learning abilities, behaviours and dispositions
• A good gender balance
• The age range of students
• Specific needs of students
• Friendship groupings

Occasionally parents may email me with a specific need they would like us to take into consideration when making these placements. We will always take this into account but cannot guarantee they will be reflected in the final decision as this must take into account the balance and needs of all students. For example, it is not possible to accommodate specific requests for individual teachers you or your child might like to have. We aim for a consistency of learning programmes and behaviour management across the school which provides an assurance to parents of a unified approach and quality experience for all students. 

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

Year 8 Students leave for camp Kaitoke

Assembly Award recipients 

Operation Christmas Card

The Kōwhai syndicate kicked off the Christmas spirit this week by participating in Operation Christmas Card. Rooms 6, 7, 8 and 9 created Christmas cards to be distributed by the New Zealand Defence Force for personnel across the army, navy, airforce and peacekeeping roles who are currently serving overseas. This activity allows the tamariki to acknowledge the service our defence personnel provide to New Zealand and the rest of the world, by creating a Christmas card for them over this period. The creativity was high with beautiful cards put together that included prayers and words of thanks for the recipient. You can check out some of the creations in the pictures below. 

Berry Whānau Give a little

The Berry family’s world was turned upside down on October 5th when Jake suffered a VERY rare spinal stroke, leaving him paralysed from the waist down. Jake is a bright, kind-hearted 16 year old lad who loves skiing, mountain biking, and hanging with his mates. His resilience and humour during this challenging time have been nothing short of inspiring. Despite the huge changes in his life, Jake is taking it all in stride, with the unwavering support of Mads and Dave by his side.

As Jake begins his rehabilitation journey at Burwood in Christchurch, the Berry whānau is navigating the various complexities of living between Wanaka and Christchurch.

Many have been asking how they can help Jake, so we've created this page to offer a way for those who wish to contribute. Whether big or small, every koha will go toward supporting Jake’s recovery and helping to improve his quality of life.

Thank you for your kindness and support in helping Jake recover and get back to enjoying life again.

St Benedict’s Speech Competition

The St Benedict’s Speech Competition takes place on Friday 29th November.  Students are selected
after presenting to their peers to go into this competition. This competition is judged by members of Toastmaster Wellington. The Year 8 winner has their name entered onto the trophy and receives a gift card.

• At Year 1 and 2 the students are encouraged to learn a poem and recite it to their class.
• At Year 3 and 4 write and present a speech which is 1-2 minutes long.
• At Year 5 and 6 write and present a speech which is 2-3 minutes long.
• At Year 7 and 8 write and present a speech which is 3-4 minutes long.

The speech can be on a topic of their choice and can be to persuade, entertain or inform their
audience. Props can be used but no slides or power-point displays.

We encourage students to finish writing their speeches this week.

Student Celebrations

Congratulations to Ru.  Over Labour weekend, Ru was part of the Junior Wellington golf team that competed at the 64^th Booth Shield at Lake View Golf Club in Rotorua. This is 54-hole event played over two days, and against other provinces including Bay of Plenty, Waikato, Hawkes Bay and Taranaki.

 In 2023, Ru was part of the team that won the Booth Shield for Wellington for the first time in 30 years and this year, they were the first Wellington team to win two years in a row in 54 years. The shield on the right (as you look at the photo) is the Booth Shield and the shield on the left is the Webber Shield, which is for the average lowest round per team after the second round.

School dates 2025

We have finalised our dates for 2025. The downloadable PDF  below will give you a printable calendar for your fridge.

Since the Board set the dates, the Ministry of Education has announced there will be two mandated teacher only days to support the new curriculum during the year. Schools will be able to choose when those days occur and need to give a term's notice to their communities.

We have not yet set these dates, as we are still waiting for information on the official providers we can work with for structured literacy in Years 4-6 and the new mathematics and statistics curriculum for Years 0-8, as well as their availability.

Finalised school dates for 2025 are
Professional learning – Leading by Learning 28th January with Geoff Childs
Staff Retreat 29th January with Pa Gerry Burns

30 and 31 of January Whanaungatanga meetings and Staff meeting days 

Term 1   Monday 3 February –11 April ( Easter and Anzac Day in holidays)
Term 2  28 April- 27 June (Includes Matariki and Kings Birthday)
Staff call back day in school holidays Friday 11 July
Term 3 s 14 July – 19 September Kāhui Ako Teacher only day  1st August
Staff call back day in school holidays Friday 3 October
Term 4  6 October- Wednesday 17 December (Includes Labour Day)

Community Consultation - Health and Physical Education

Health and Physical Education Curriculum Survey

We’d love for you to take part in our Health and PE curriculum survey! Your input helps us make sure what we teach in areas like physical activity, nutrition, mental health, and sexuality fits with the values and needs of our school community.

By sharing your thoughts, you help us shape a curriculum that supports our students’ well-being and reflects what’s important to you. 

The survey has been emailed directly to you and can also be found here: https://forms.gle/KVdzX6QbNvjuzfCp8

Production Video now live

Thank  you to Aneta and Jason Naylor for the fantastic video taken during the production.  The link has a time delay so please view and download them as soon as you can.

Sports Updates/Northern Zones

Sports Uniform/Sportswear 

Mānuka Syndicate (Rooms 2-5) to wear sportswear on Thursday.

Kōwhai Syndicate (Rooms 6-9) to wear PE uniform on Tuesday.

Kauri Syndicate: (Rooms 12 & 13) to wear PE uniform on a Thursday. 

Northern Zone Athletics 

Congratulations to the students who represented St Benedict's at Northern Zone athletics this week.  61 students attended this event and everyone did an amazing job at their selected event(s).  A HUGE 'Thank you' to the parents and family members who volunteered to help out at this event.  We can only participate in these competitions if we have the support we need and it was great to have so many along to run the boys vortex.

28 students have qualified to move on to Interzone Athletics which will be held on 19th November at Athletic Park.  An email has been sent to those families who have qualified for Interzones. 

Year 5/6 boys touch team open with a win
Our Year 5/6 boys touch team opened their season with a 8-2 win against Cashmere Ave School on Monday. They showed great teamwork and it was good to see them get a win under their belt at the start of the season. Congratulations to the Player of the Day - Winston and Awhi Award winner - Kennedy.

FWFC

Kia ora e te whānau ō Hato Penetika,

Friends and Whānau Fundraising Committee update:

Frosty Friday is coming up on 22 November and is our final fundraiser for the year. We will be selling ice blocks - $1 and sausages in bread - $2.  All money raised will go towards the school canopy project.

FWFC on your socials: follow us on social media for all the latest info on upcoming events and key dates:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stbens_fwfc?igsh=MXBuaDhtdWFoNDJvZQ==Our username is: stbens_fwfc
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/St.Bens.School.FWFC?mibextid=LQQJ4dOur FB page name is: St Bens Friends & Whānau Fundraising Committee

Any comments or questions on FWFC, please get in touch: sarah.garty@hotmail.com  

Entertainment Book

active High Performance sunscreen 

We have the popular Johnson & Wilkins Ltd SPF30 sunscreen available at the office.

100ml - $20 & 500ml - $65  www.activesunscreen.co.nz 

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

Homestays needed - St Mary's College

We are keen to hear from families who would like to  host students coming from Japan to study at St Mary’s College. We need places for Term 1, 2025. The girls are here to improve their English language skills and to experience life in New Zealand.

The host family needs to offer a warm comfortable room, lots of chat and outings to showcase our beautiful city and surroundings. The fee paid to families is $350 per week, Payment is made fortnightly.

 It can be a  rewarding , educational and  fun experience  for all the family.

If you think your household would like to be a part of our school's  International family please get in touch with Philly Smyth, HomeStay Coordinator, 044735554, philippa.smyth@stmw.school.nz.

She will send out the Guide to Homestay booklet for you to see if your family and lifestyle  would be a good fit for our international students.

Wider Community Notices