St Benedict's School Pānui ā-rorohiko (Online Newsletter) Week 3, Term 4

Catholic Character message from our Board

Kia ora e te whānau,

The Board have recently received our excellent Catholic Character Review report which was carried out by Zita Smith (Archdiocese of Wellington) and Kay Tester (Principal of Ss Peter and Paul School, Lower Hutt) on August of this year. We wanted to highlight some of the aspects within the report that reiterates what a wonderfully Catholic school we have. The full report is available to read below.

Firstly, and this will come as no surprise to you all, the CCR acknowledges the wonderful Staff, Board Parish and Community we belong to.

“There is strong and positive communication between school and Parish….The culture of the school is characterised by warm relationships at all levels, friendly  communications, active listening, and a sense that all are treated with respect. The staff, committed to the Catholic ethos of the school, work tirelessly and diligently to model Gospel values to tamariki, whānau and one another, and as a result, the school is a welcoming environment where all are treated with hospitality, aroha and courtesy. There is no doubt that this is a Catholic school. Icons, artwork and posters in the foyer and in all classrooms and hallways, as well as the EPIC Values up the driveway, make a visual statement of the school’s commitment to its special Catholic character”

“Staff feel affirmed and appreciated, and their well-being is prioritised by the leadership team as well as the Board… The leadership team and the Board are appreciated for their active concern about the well-being of staff and tamariki. There is a very positive, collegial atmosphere among the staff who support one another both professionally and personally”

“A parent initiative through HOK (Help Our Kids), The Angel Food Network, provides meals for families who are identified as having a particular need or are going through a difficult time.”

The Review acknowledges the wonderful journey our school has undertaken to strengthen our commitment to te Tiriti o Waitangi. The growth in this area has also been highlighted by many in our community throughout the year.

“The school, as an authentic Catholic community, demonstrates a strong commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and a bi-cultural partnership. Mātauranga Māori Kaupapa (the school’s Māori Education Plan) was written in 2021 in consultation with Māori whānau. As a result of this plan, all tamariki take part in Kapa Haka for the first six months of each year and a te reo Māori tutor works in every class once a fortnight, funded by the Board. This is followed up by kaiako who continue to practice te reo Māori with their students during the day. The Board supports the participation of five teachers in Te Ahu o te Reo (MOE Language Development Course). Taking advice to adopt appropriate kawa, the school introduced pōwhiri and poroporoaki in 2019 for formal welcomes and farewells. The school has begun its journey with the Māori Achievement Collaborative (MAC) and will work with the team for the next 5 years.”

We are very proud of the acknowledgment of the prayerful atmosphere we have created at our school and the strength of the Catholic Character Team made up of our Year 8 leaders who are often supported by our House leaders and wider Year 8 group.

Kaiako modelling their faith to one another, to tamariki and to whānau is evidence of authentic encounters with Christ in the daily life of the school. Ākonga, all of whom experience daily prayer in a variety of different forms, know how to pray and use opportunities during the day to include an individual’s or class’s special intentions. They are able to recite traditional prayers like the Rosary and the parts of the Mass confidently. The  effect of the annual retreats for both students and staff is indicative of the priority to grow personal spirituality in all. It also demonstrates the commitment of the school to providing students and staff with an opportunity to encounter with Christ in this way.

As a result of their leadership roles, the Catholic Character Leadership Team members are becoming confident and competent in developing liturgies and organising Masses because they are being guided by the DRS to understand the purpose and depth of what they are doing.”

The school recognises and acknowledges the service efforts of tamariki and creates opportunities for students to serve in school and in the community, particularly before Covid restrictions interrupted this. There are many leadership opportunities especially through Year 7 and 8 leadership roles that include the Catholic Character Team, House Captains, Librarians and First Aid Monitors.  All ākonga are encouraged to practise service in their classrooms and in the playground in the way they support and help others, and carry out various duties, e.g. having turns at picking up rubbish in the playground. At times, events or trips are organised that allow outreach to community, e.g. visits to rest homes, making and selling food to fundraise for specific causes and the annual Mission Fair…. The effect of this on ākonga is that when spoken to, they identified service and outreach as core to what it means to be a Catholic Christian. Whānau spoken to agreed that teaching their tamariki to look beyond themselves in order to serve others, especially those in need, was an important Gospel value. Whānau appreciate that this is embedded in the culture of St. Benedict’s School.”

The CCR reflects our Staff and Board commitment to maintain our rich educational history and focus on areas we can continue to develop to ensure St Benedict’s and our wider community continue to thrive. The Board would particularly like to acknowledge the leadership of Cheryl Taylor (DP) and Jacqui Miranda (DRS) who worked closely with the CCR team to capture our school journey.

Ngā mihi,

Daniel Marks                                                                             Tania Savage

Presiding Member                                                                    Principal

Production 2022 “Rock Bottom” by Craig Hawes

We are very excited to finally reaching the time for our school production “Rock Bottom”.  The students and teachers have been working very hard to prepare and we are now pleased to be performing for you next week. 

On Tuesday 8th of October the whole school will travel by bus to Aotea College for our dress rehearsal.  We will be at the college all day and return for the end of school at 2:50pm. Please ensure that your child/children have plenty of food and water to keep them going.  The evening shows begin at 6pm on Tuesday 8th and Wednesday 9th November.

The show will run for approx. 90 minutes.  Classes will start late on Wednesday 9th and Thursday 10th November to allow the students a bit of a sleep in if needed.  Classes will begin at 10:00am however teachers will be on site from 8:30am as usual for any students who arrive from then on.  Thank you to everyone who has supported us in so many ways with preparing the students, costumes, dances and props. A special shout out for the Fabric Warehouse in Thorndon who provided fabric for costumes at a discounted price.  Children should arrive at the theatre by 5:30pm for the evening performances and can be picked up directly after the show from their classroom teachers.

Tumuaki Korero - A word from our Principal

Tena koutou e te whānau,

There is a lot of information in this newsletter as we try to capture everything you need to know as we move towards the end of year. Some of the information also covers 2023 beginning of school year. Please take time to review the Production notice above and Term events below. 

Rise of illnesses

We are noticing a rise in a variety of illnesses across the school. Currently we have a few cases of chickenpox and a vomiting bug.  The classes that have been affected have been notified via email. We continue to increase cleaning and encourage sanitising when a class is affected. 

We are also starting to be notified of a rise in COVID cases within our community. As you are aware, it is only necessary to isolate when receiving a positive test, the rest of the household can continue with normal life. We do hope though that, if there is a case in your whānau, you let us know and continue to monitor closely the rest of the household for symptoms through testing. We still have testing packs at school if you require them. As we have proven throughout this year keeping tamariki at home who have cold and flu symptoms enables us to keep our school running. 

Over the next few months, it would be a great idea to check your tamariki are all up to date with their vaccination schedule. Both chickenpox and measles can be life altering viruses for young children, those who have vulnerable immunity and those who are pregnant. They are easily prevented with free vaccination. 

Roofing replacement

Tomorrow, after 3pm, we are having safety fencing installed for the roofing replacement of the main block. The fenced area, like how our driveway crew have used to store gear, will be on the school building end of the basketball court. The other half of the basketball court and the three extra hoops will still be able to be accessed.

Over the weekend we will have scaffolding equipment delivered to prepare for the roofing replacement. The building of the scaffolding will take up to 8 weeks to complete. During the install of scaffolding and replacement of roofing access to the back of our school will not be available. This is a massive piece of work that has been commissioned by the Archdiocese of Wellington and will not be completed until the end of term one.

Road Patrol

Now that our driveway work is nearly complete, I would like to draw your attention to the parking outside our school. It is crucial that you inform any whānau who are picking up your tamariki where they can and cannot park. The drop off zone is designed to align with Everest Street. If your tamariki have not made it down the hill you are able to quickly drive around the block and pull in to pick up your tamariki. This space is not available for parking at the end of the day.  

It is extremely unsafe to park on the yellow lines on Nicholson Road. This blocks the view of our road patrollers and causes a bottle neck that affects the traffic flow from Everest and Nicholson. 

Finally, if you are not able to do your rostered Road Patrol please ensure you have organised replacement. 

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

Term 4 Events

Last week and this week we have had a couple of miscommunications about events. Generally all events are in our St Bens calendar which you can add to your own Google Calendar through this link. 

We are introducing some changes to the end of year events due to the very crowded nature of this term and the response we have to attendance at these events historically. The Annual Parent Meeting is being retired with parts of this meeting being added to our end of year Carol Service. Information about school organisation and academic achievement, usually shared within the meeting, will now be shared through our School Newsletter.

November 2022

8th 6pm  School Production @Aotea College

9th 10am school classes start  6pm School Production @Aotea College 

10th 10am school classes start

(see above for Production notice)

14th-17th November Book Week

14th Northern Zones Athletics  (Yr4-8 for  those who qualify) 

15th 9am Book Character Dress up day  Parade 

17th Visiting Author Apirana Taylor

18th Teacher Only Day  school closed for instruction

21st  Northern Zones Athletics cancellation day 

22nd 11am Advent Reconciliation @ School whānau welcome

24th Year 8 transition to St Patricks College, St Mary's College, St Catherine’s College and Wellington Girls College

24th-25th Mrs Savage @ Catholic Principals Retreat

28th Year 7 Retreat @ Huntleigh Girl Guide Centre

29th PSW Interzone Athletics @ Newtown Park 9am-2:30pm

December 2022

1st PSW Interzone Athletics @ Newtown Park 9am-2:30pm PP day

2nd School Speech Competition 9-12:30pm 

       Frosty Friday

5th  Year 6 Retreat - Home of Compassion 

        Year 8 Retreat (Huntleigh Girl Guide Centre)

        Big Day Out Year 1-4 ASB Centre

6th 1:45pm Year 8 Assembly

7th 1:30-3pm Students vrs Teachers Netball with surprise guest

9th 9:30am End of Year Mass @ Church 

         10:30am Thank you Morning Tea for our supporters of our school

10th  6:30pm Year 8 Leavers Dinner Khandallah Town Hall

11th 12pm Kapa Haka Choir performing at Khandallah Fair

         Choir performing Ngaio Community Carols

13th Big Day Out- Year 5-8 – ASB Centre

         10.00-11:15 Manuka Whanau Christmas Celebration @ Church

           Reports go home, including class placement for 2023

14th 9am-10:30pm Visit to new class for 2023

15th 6:00pm Carol Service and Year 8 Prizegiving @ Church 

16th 12 noon House Carols / Poroporoaki @  Turf
           Last day - 1pm finish

February 2023 

1 and 2 of February will have whānau conferences to support a seamless and positive start to the year.  Further information about what will be covered in  these conferences can be found Week 10, Term 3's newsletter.   Tamariki only need to attend school for their 20  minute interview with their family. If you have further questions about this please feel free to contact me directly. 

 Term Dates 2023

Term 1: Feb 1-6 April 

Term 2: 24 April-30 June 

Term 3: 17 July-22 September 

Term 4: 9 October- 15 December.

'Yummy Stickers' - result

We have been notified by The Yummy Fruit Company that we have $412 to spend on sports gear.                  Thank you to the families who have been collecting stickers we are very grateful.

Please continue to save your stickers for our 2023 collection starting in Term 2.

Congratulations to..

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More Former Student Success

We were delighted to hear of the following students gaining roles on the Wellington Girls College 2023 Leadership Executive Committee.

Briana Belford - Head Girl
Raina John - Member of the Community executive committee
Eva Collier & Natasha Casey - Members of the Sports/Recreation executive committee

St Benedict's Speech Competition

The St Benedict’s Speech Competition takes place on Friday 2nd December.  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 they write and present a speech which is 1-2 minutes long.
• At Year 5 and 6 they write and present a speech which is 2-3 minutes long.
•  At Year 7 and 8 they 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-points displays.

We encourage students to continue  working on their speeches. Preparing for speeches will replace homework over this time. If this event is new to your family please get in contact with your class teacher to learn more about it. 

EPIC Gratitude

All Saints Day Liturgy

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Athletics Day - Years 3-8

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

St Benedict's Sports

Touch Rugby

Is your child interested in playing Touch Rugby in Term 4?  Total Touch holds a competition for school teams on a Monday afternoon/evening at Alex Moore Park in Johnsonville.  The competition runs for 6 weeks from 31 October to 5 December 2022.  It is a great team sport and a fun game for all ages! 

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.

The fee for entering a team is $165 so this amount will be split between the number of players in each team (likely be between $20-$25 per player). Registrations close on 24 October.

All teams will need a coach and a manager.  For the coaching you don't have to know a lot about the game, generally just a few basic rules.  If your child is interested in playing or you are keen to help out with the coaching please contact me at lizziemid@gmail.com and I can help you form a team (depending on numbers). 

Lost Property

Helping Our Kids

UNIQUE CHRISTMAS GIFTS USING DESIGNS FROM YOUR CHILD’S OWN ARTWORK
Last day for ordering 7 November!
St Benedict’s students have been busy creating art work that can be made into affordable calendars, cards, diaries, mouse mats and sketch pads.
Each product is made from your own child’s art. These make unique Christmas gifts for family and friends and are perfect for posting overseas.
$4-5 for each item goes back to HoK which we put towards improving your child’s/children’s learning experience at St Ben’s.

Follow these instructions to place your order online:
1/. Go to www.kidsartworks.com
2/. Use the Entrance Code: KZ2044
3/. Enter your child’s room & name when prompted
The order is open from Monday the 17 th of October until the 7 th of November
Payment can be made over the website via credit card or account2account.
If you have any questions please contact Michelle Bowmaker on wlgbowmakers@outlook,com

Frosty Friday

 We’re planning a frosty Friday and sausage sizzle on 2 December! (not this Friday )

The HOK committee is made up of parents from the school who volunteer their time to make stuff

happen. 

HOK are always on the lookout for fresh ideas and new members. Let us know if you want to join our next meeting at school and see what we do and how we work. Contact Johanna (HoK secretary) for details: johanna_reidy@hotmail.com

Entertainment Book

Attendance Dues

Wider Community Notices