St Benedict's School Pānui ā-rorohiko (Online Newsletter) Term 4, Week 6, 2024
- Upcoming Events from our Calendar
- School Board Update
- Tumuaki Korero
- Assembly Award recipients and Cultural Celebration
- Book Character Week
- ASC Holiday Programme
- Berry Whānau Give a little
- St Benedict’s Speech Competition
- Student Celebrations
- School dates 2025
- Production Video now live
- Giving Tree - Challenge 2000
- Going overseas this summer?
- Sports Updates
- FWFC
- Parent Road Patrol Roster
- Yummy Sticker Promotion
- Wider Community Notices
Upcoming Events from our Calendar
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Term 4, 2024
Week 6
Friday 22 November Frosty Friday
Staff vs Year 8 Netballers 1:30pm
Week 7
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.
Week 8
Monday 2 December Year 6/7 retreat Home of Compassion
Tuesday 3 December Year 8 retreat with St Brigid’s
Year 7 Sailing
Room 2 going to Malvina Major
SNAG Golf Room 6-9
Thursday 5 December SNAG Golf Room 12 -13
Get set, Go! Mānuka
Year 8 Fundraising bake sale
Friday 6 December Parent thank you morning tea
Cake making Year 7/8
Choir performing Carols 12pm in Khandallah Village
Mariachi Band 2pm
Sunday 8 December Khandallah Rotary fair (12:15pm - 12:45 on stage) Kapa Haka
6:30 for 7pm start - Onslow Community Carols (Choir)
Week 9
Monday 9 December House Captain Voting 1:45pm
Reports go home
Tuesday 10 December SNAG Golf Room 6-9
Wednesday 11 December Annual Parent Meeting @ 6:30pm (Library)
Thursday 12 December SNAG Golf Room 12 -13
Get set, Go! Mānuka
Friday 13 December End of Year Mass @ Church 11 am leave on bus
Sunday 15 December Year 8 Leavers dinner
Week 10
Monday 16 December Big Day Out
Classes for 2025 shared
Tuesday 17 December Morning in New Class
Whole School Christmas Carols and Year 8 Prizegiving @ 6:00pm St Francis of Assisi Parish Church
Wednesday 18 December House Carols / Poroporoaki @ 12 noon (Top Field)
School finishes 1pm
Term 1, 2025
30 & 31 January - Whānau meetings
30 January - FWFC second hand uniform sale / New items also available
Monday 03 February - Term 1 begins
Items found in the School APP
School Notices
Teacher Messages
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
School Board Update
The board warmly welcomes Michelle Bowmaker who has joined the board, we are grateful to have Michelle's input.
Tania and the teaching staff put in a lot of hard work to support the recent ERO (Education Review Office) review and the board thanks them all for their efforts. Initial feedback from ERO has been very positive and shows how well the school is delivering to its strategic plan.
The school does need to adhere to new attendance reporting requirements and the board are monitoring attendance rates. The specified target is 80% of children attending school 90% of the time. St Ben's, as a whole, is currently at 55%. There will be a focus on supporting attendance rates lifting.
Progress is being made on the new school website and we hope to see this live before the end of the year.
A reminder at this busy time of year to keep the safety of our kids front of mind - please use the drop off parks for drop off and pick up only, if you need to get out of your car to assist your child then you need to find a nearby street park. Please don't stop on yellow lines and please turn up morning and afternoon for road patrol duty on your allocated day.
The board looks forward to seeing everyone at the annual parents meeting: 6.30pm Wednesday 11 December.
Tumuaki Korero
Tēnā koutou e te whānau ō Hato Penetika,
Congratulations
While we are sad to farewell Miss Simson and Mrs Speirs we are thrilled that they have confirmed new roles in their new kainga/home for 2025. Miss Simson will be joining the staff of St Mary’s School in Blenheim and Mrs Speirs will be joining the staff of Tauranga Primary School.
An extra special congratulations to Mrs Speirs who has completed her Provisionally Certificated Teacher journey and is now a fully registered teacher. We hope you enjoy your celebration this evening Mrs Speirs! Thank you to Mrs Short, who was Mrs Speirs mentor teacher, and Mrs Grice, who hosted Mrs Speirs as a student teacher. Your support and guidance have helped Mrs Spiers to thrive.
New teachers 2025
I am delighted to announce we have appointed Freda Amoafo in the Kauri Syndicate and Tyler Stevens in the Kōwhai Syndicate for 2025. Freda is joining us from Tawa Intermediate and Tyler from St Mark's School. Both teachers will be joining us on the 17 of December for the morning in new classes.
Mrs Amoafo
Freda is excited to embark on this incredible learning journey and is thrilled to join us.
She returned to teaching eight months ago, providing relief teaching services in the southern region of Wellington. Freda is currently reaching at Tawa Intermediate School.
Originally from Ghana, Freda has lived in New Zealand for over 25 years. Her journey has taken her from Christchurch to Wellington, then back to Christchurch, and finally returning to Wellington—a move she hopes will be her last.
Freda’s whānau is incredibly important to her, including her husband and two adult daughters. She is passionate about education, teaching young people, and fostering the success of her learners. Freda is committed to mentoring, encouraging, and supporting students at every stage of their learning.
“I am available to mentor, encourage, and support my students. I look forward to a collaboration that will involve mutual learning and give and take. Every learner has something to offer. Together, we will unlock potential, discover new horizons, and make our time together memorable.”
Mrs Stevens
Tyler has worked in several schools in the Wellington region and enjoyed working across a variety of age groups before coming to St Benedict's. Tyler is currently teaching at St Marks School. She is excited to be a part of St Benedict’s teaching staff for 2025
Tyler graduated with a Bachelor in Teaching and Learning (Primary) from the University of Canterbury. She is currently working towards completing her masters in education with a focus on inclusive and special education.
Tyler has two young children at home and is often out exploring the region with her family. In her spare time Tyler enjoys all things crafty and creative and is always completing a new project.
“I am passionate about nurturing young minds and assisting them on their journey to self-discovery. I believe that creating a safe space for learning, where every student feels seen, and comfortable to take chances is a vital step towards student success.”
Class organisation 2025
With the information we have about our enrolments for 2025 we have confirmed the following class organisation.
Mānuka – Phase 1 of the revised curriculum
Year 0/year 1 class
Year 1 class
Year 2 class
Year 3 Class
Kōwhai- Phase 2 of the revised curriculum
Year 4 class
Year 4/5 class
Year 5/6 class
Kauri- Phase 3 of the revised curriculum
Three Year 7/8 classes
Report Changes
To ensure whānau have enough time to discuss and respond to our end of year reports we will be giving these out on the 9th of December, a week earlier than last year.
The reports will not include your child’s teacher for 2025. This will instead be sent out on the 16th of December via our student management system. Visit to new classes will happen on the 17th of December.
Thank you to St Catherine's College
Three of their amazing wahine toa have been completing service in our school over the past two days. Thank you Glenys, Ake and Eterei who have supported some of our Year 8 leaders to refresh our House and values murals.
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.
Mā te Atua koutou e manaaki,
May God bless and care for you.
Tania Savage - Principal
Library Stocktake 2024
Our annual stocktake will take place between the 2nd and 6th December and we need volunteers to help with this mammoth task.. If you are able to assist please email Donna at librarian@st-benedicts.school.nz If your tamariki have any books at home could you please ensure they return them to the library asap.
Assembly Award recipients and Cultural Celebration
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Book Character Week
Last week we celebrated our 2024 Book Week. What a wonderful time we had in the library with our annual bookmark competition, scavenger hunt, the book character parade followed by the award winning author, Juliette Maclver’s presentations.
Juliette Macliver tailored her presentations to the Manuka syndicate followed by the Kowhai and Kauri syndicates. Juliette talked about her life as an author, how she writes, and the publication process. She had no trouble entertaining our tamariki so they could associate books with fun and hilarity, while at the same time sneaking in some useful concepts and encouraging them to come up with their own ideas. Our Manuka syndicate also enjoyed some singing to Juliette’s ukulele and participated in some action songs. All of our tamariki enjoyed listening to her stories.
Our bookmark competition winners were: Violet Featherstone, Luna Fernandez, Matilda Goodger, Isla Olsen, Eleanor Southee, Siobhan Fouhy, Lily Li and Briona Mudalige.
Our book character winners were:
Best Overall: Yr 1 /2 - Georgia.
Best Group: Yr 3/4 - Charlotte, Alice & Isla. Yr 5/6 - Ellie, Alex, Elliana, Haidy, Rosa & Oscar. Yr 7/8 - Dominic, Hosea & George.
Most Creative: Yr 1/2 - Finn. Yr 3/4 - Leon. Yr 5/6 - Kennedy. Yr 7/8 - Immy
Most Original: Yr 1/2 - Clemmie. Yr 3/4 - Benji. Yr 5/6 - Jonathan. Yr 7/8 - Isla & Kenzie
Best Duo: Yr 1/2 - Annabelle & Chantelise. Yr 3/4 - Maddy & Tilda. Yr 5/6 - Tallulah & Esther. Yr 7/8 - Grace & Saxon.
ASC Holiday Programme
Kia ora e te whānau,
We’re excited to announce our upcoming holiday programme, crafted to keep our tamariki engaged, active, and learning over the break! This year, we’ll have a blend of on-site activities and trip days, creating special memories each week.
Spaces are limited to 20 tamariki, so please see the brochure and complete the attached registration form to secure a spot for your child/children.
To register, scan the QR code on the brochure or click this link below:
https://forms.gle/
Berry Whānau Give a little
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.
Student Celebrations
Congratulations to Samantha who received her Grade 4 Royal Academy of Dance Ballet results recently and received High Distinction (highest category of scoring). Samantha also achieved Distinction with Honors for both her Jazz and Contemporary exams earlier this year which is also the highest scoring category for the exams.
Congratulations to Jina who performed her first Violin and Piano Solo Recital last weekend. Including violin pieces by A. Corelli, A. Vivaldi and piano pieces by L.V. Beethoven, Jisoo Lee, F, Choplin and A.Kachaturian and all from memory!
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)
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.
Giving Tree - Challenge 2000
Going overseas this summer?
New Zealand Traveller Declaration
Going overseas this summer? Everyone travelling into, or returning to, New Zealand must complete a New Zealand Traveller Declaration.
The New Zealand Traveller Declaration collects travel, customs, immigration and biosecurity information and aims to improve the safety and security of New Zealand. It replaces the paper card you used to fill out on the plane.
To make your arrival easier, do your digital declaration before your flight to New Zealand. It’s free to complete.
If you’re travelling as a family or group and completing multiple declarations, the NZTD app allows you to copy your travel details into another declaration, making it easier to complete multiple declarations for the same journey. The submitted declarations are then all easy to see within the app.
Head to travellerdeclaration.govt.nz today!
Sports Updates
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.
Interzone Athletics
Congratulations to the students who represented St Benedict's at the InterZone athletics this week. 28 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.
Good luck to the below students who have qualified to represent Primary Sport Wellington (PSW) in the upcoming Regional Athletic event. This is taking place on Tuesday 26th November (PP 28th November) at Newtown Park.
Oscar - Quoit, Long Jump, 60m Sprint, 100m Sprint - Year 6 Boys AWS
Peyton - Vortex - Year 4 Girls
Harrison - Vortex - Year 6 Boys
This is a huge achievement and we are very proud of your tamariki for qualifying to represent St Ben's (under PSW).
FWFC
Kia ora e te whānau ō Hato Penetika,
Friends and Whānau Fundraising Committee update:
Frosty Friday is this week on 22 November. We will be selling iceblocks - $1 and sausages in bread - $2. We also have a limited number of Proper Crisps for sale for $1. All money raised will go towards the school canopy project. Huge thanks to our sponsors for this: Gipps St Butchery in Karori, Real Time Survey and Proper Crisps. Thanks also to the team doing the mahi on the day led by the amazing Jacinta Schultz.
Join us! We have an exciting year of events planned for 2025 and we can't do it without the support of our amazing community. With a number of committee members stepping down at the end of the year, we would love for you to join! Please get in touch with any committee member or email: sarah.garty@hotmail.com
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/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/St.
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
| Term 4, 2024 | ||
| Thursday | 21 November | Molloy family |
| Friday | 22 November | Morales family |
Monday | 25 November | Morris family |
| Tuesday | 26 November | Mostert family |
| Wednesday | 27 November | Mudalige family |
| Thursday | 28 November | Muir-Manttan family |
| Friday | 29 November | Munn family |
Monday | 02 December | Murphy family |
Tuesday | 03 December | Narag family |
Wednesday | 04 December | Naylor family |
Thursday | 05 December | Newby family |
Friday | 06 December | Nguyen family |
Calling all children/teens/students of the 90s! On Friday 29 and Saturday 30 November, Supertonic choir will present three performances of 'It’s All Coming Back': A Supertonic 90s Mix-Tape, including a matinee on the Saturday afternoon - perfect for introducing the kids to your favourite 90s bangers!
This show will be a throw-back to the time when you just had to hope you’d catch your favourite song on the radio in time to tape it. Mix-tapes were random, but always made with love. Were you a fan of the pop princess or the boy band? Perhaps rock or emo was more your thing. This concert has something for everyone - from Boyz II Men to the Smashing Pumpkins, Britney Spears to Radiohead. You’ll also hear music from closer to home with the likes of Crowded House and of course the queen of divas herself - Celine Dion.
So dig out your double denim, and your hypercolor t-shirt and get yourself and your friends ready for a night of all-out nostalgia! Supported by a full rock band and string quartet, for the final concert series of the year Supertonic is ready to party like it’s 1999 (and 1998, and 1997, and… you get the picture!).
Get your tickets from supertonic.org.nz. But get in quick, as they are selling fast and will likely sell out!
Yummy Sticker Promotion
Thank you to our wonderful families for collecting 'Yummy' stickers during their annual promotion. Ms Kelly is very happy to be spending the $407 you have helped us earn on new sports equipment. Hopefully this promotion will be run again in 2025 so keep saving those stickers.