Newsletter Week Eight Term One

REMEMBER HOLY WEEK LITURGY IN THE HALL ON HOLY THURSDAY AT 1.30!

Thank you to Patuone House Families, children, teachers and our school choir and to Zheng, our pianist, for all your great contributions last Sunday at the 10.00 a.m. Mass. Thank you to Sue and the Youth Group for the sausage sizzle and soccer game afterwards!

Good luck to our representative swimmers at the Pupuke Schools Cluster Swimming Sports next Wednesday.

Ka kite ano! God bless! Have a wonderful weekend. Good luck to all participants in Shore to Shore on Sunday! “Go the Black Caps!”

Phil

Week Eight Term 1 2015

Our Term’s Living and Learning Focus is

TEAM KOTAHITANGA

Our School Values

Tina Justice, Pono Truth, Aroha Compassion, Manaakitanga Hospitality and Tapu Respect for the Environment

lived out in our Motto

Courtesy Care Co-operation Courage

Learning to Learn at St Joseph’s #L2L

The Learning Model for our school is: “To Know To Do To Use”

Key Competencies

Capabilities for living and lifelong learning

The New Zealand Curriculum identifies five key competencies: • thinking • using language, symbols, and texts • managing self • relating to others • participating and contributing.

Learning Areas

are important for a broad, general education

“The New Zealand Curriculum specifies eight learning areas: English, the arts, health and physical education, learning languages, mathematics and statistics, science, social sciences, and technology.

The learning associated with each area is part of a broad, general education and lays a foundation for later specialisation. Like the key competencies, this learning is both end and means: valuable in itself and valuable for the pathways it opens to other learning.

While the learning areas are presented as distinct, this should not limit the ways in which schools structure the learning experiences offered to students. All learning should make use of the natural connections that exist between learning areas and that link learning areas to the values and key competencies.

Learning areas and language

Each learning area has its own language or languages. As students discover how to use them, they find they are able to think in different ways, access new areas of knowledge, and see their world from new perspectives.

For each area, students need specific help from their teachers as they learn:

the specialist vocabulary associated with that area
how to read and understand its texts
how to communicate knowledge and ideas in appropriate ways
how to listen and read critically, assessing the value of what they hear and read.

In addition to such help, students who are new learners of English or coming into an English-medium environment for the first time need explicit and extensive teaching of English vocabulary, word forms, sentence and text structures, and language uses.

As language is central to learning and English is the medium for most learning in the New Zealand Curriculum, the importance of literacy in English cannot be overstated.” Extract from NZ Curriculum

SHARING THE LEARNING -Kakarikii, Kereru and Kea Teams all Shared their Learning with Parents and Grandparents at different times and on different days this week. Thank you so much for the great turnout, especially for Kereru and Kakariki. The photos below are from Home Group 14, Kea Team.

The Building Programme

The roof flashing and insulation are complete and the exterior courtyard stairs are almost finished. As you will see, most of the windows are in. The exterior weatherboards and painting is happening at present and shortly we are looking forward to the vinyl and carpet being laid in the basement.

Extract from the Diocesan Property News: “St Joseph’s Takapuna – The shared teaching and learning facility is nearing completion and is looking magnificent. When completed, it will provide the equivalent of six teaching spaces on the top floor, six on the ground floor and a further two at the lower level – all as an open plan shared environment. Staff are genuinely excited at the prospect of moving into new spaces that will complement the outstanding pedagogy that already exists in the school.”

FROM THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

The Board met last night. We are delighted with the progress on the building.

We will be holding information meetings for parents on 15 and 16 June. Note these dates.

We would like to advise parents that Ms Jessica Burton

has resigned from her teaching position at St Joseph’s to focus on the important role of parenthood. Ms Lynda Harris who has been working with her, will also finish at the end of term. However, I am sure we will see both of them around the school as they will continue to be available for relieving.

We confirmed the appointment of Mrs Kim Wannenburg who will take over Home Group 5 in Kereru Team, from the beginning of next term. Kim is an experienced teacher who has taught at St John’s School and is currently at Glamorgan. Some of you may know her from taking children’s liturgy at St John’s Parish.

Consultation Meetings this year will be with our Indian families on 30 April and with our Sri Lankan Families on 21^st May. Please note the dates. More information will be sent out to the relevant people.

Next year there will be BOT Elections. Ask any Board member if you are interested in finding out more.

Congratulations to Janine O from Home Group 4, Kakariki Team

who won a competition and as a result, our Library has benefited from a donation of books, thanks to her!

Athletics Day

Athletics Day, the 10 of March, was a thrilling day for the school and especially the sports and house captains. We have been training over the past weeks and lots of tension has been built up. The events were javelin, shot put, discus , 50/100 metre sprints, egg and spoon, long jump and high jump. We all tried our best and we all did really well It was an amazing day, full of excitement with wins, triumph, success and self-improvement. What a Day!!! On top of all that, Pompallier won the Athletics House Cup!

By Cole and Mikal (Pompallier Sports Captains)

A big thank you to all the parents who helped on Athletics Day with providing shade, measuring, recording results and offering encouragement. We really appreciate your support which contributed to the day running so smoothly!

Cricket Australia

Our first game was nerve-wracking because we didn’t know how good our team would be with all the new players. We reckon our team fitted in quite well after the first few games on a winning streak. Our hardest game by far was India in the finals. Our team was chosen to play a big game against East Coast Bays. It was up to the last over when we hit a six to win the game. Some of us got chosen for rep teams. In the final in the 1st Innings our fielding was the worst ever. In the end, we ended up winning unbeaten the whole season.

By Charlie, James, Jack, Noah and Fletcher

TEAM

Jack – Bowler Joseph – Batsman, Charlie – Seam Bowler and Inswing, Noah – Seam,

Fletcher – Spin Bowler, Fergus – All Rounder, Jayden – Batsman, James – All Rounder

We are delighted with the quality and depth of expression in our children’s writing, some of which is published in this week’s newsletter.

The first example is a letter written by Olivia M from Kakariki Team, Home Group 4, as if she is Jesus writing to Mary.

Dearest Mother,

I’ve just had my last supper.

I long to be with you; emotion fills my heart.

Every step I take it feels as if I’m being pulled further away from you.

I can hear them coming and for the first time I’m terrified.

I can’t deal with this pain but yet I know I must.

I’ve talked to my father but it seems this has been destined to happen to me.

I can’t figure out what I’ve done wrong!

Right now I feel as helpless as a flightless bird.

This is the darkest time in my entire life.

My heart has been squeezed dry of the happy times we’ve had together but at the same time I’m desperate to get this agony over and done with.

Sadness engulfs me and it feels like my heart has been shattered into billions of

tiny pieces as small as the grains of the finest sand.

I’m nothing without you. My mind is screaming for help.

You are the most special person in my life. Always remember that.

Have faith in my father and be strong even when the terrible deed does happen.

Put all your trust in me and remember that you’re the person I love most in the world.

Your son Jesus.

Another letter…this time written by Oli W from Home Group 4 in Kakariki Team

Dear Mary

My loving mother I have missed you so much. I feel like I am nothing without you. You are everything I have. You are my precious mother and nothing can replace you to me. You are my life. I feel like I am already dead because you aren’t here with me. My dream right now is to be with you.

I miss you too much, I hope nothing bad will happen soon. Soon I will be gone, but not properly and not forever. I hope you do not have a bad life after this.

Goodbye beautiful mother, my time has come to make a difference.

Yours sincerely,

Jesus

HOLY WEEK

As you know Holy Week and Easter is coming up. This is the most significant celebration on the Church calendar.

During the last week of Term 1 we, as a school, will be focussing on the events that occurred during Holy Week and Easter, the symbols associated with these and the significance of the events. On Holy Thursday (2 April) at 1.30 we will celebrate and share a Holy Week Liturgy, covering the whole of the Paschal Mystery. All welcome to be present.

As parents you can assist with your child’s faith development by using some of these ideas.

Discussing what they are doing within the class programme.
Attending the various services (see timetable below)

– Reconciliation – Palm Sunday Mass

– Holy Thursday Mass – Stations of the Cross (led by the Youth Group)

-Easter Saturday Vigil or – Easter Sunday Mass

Read and discuss the Easter Stories (use children’s bibles – depending on the age of your children)
Discuss family and cultural traditions around Easter
Perhaps share other cultural Easter traditions with your child’s class
Re-enacting the Passover meal at home and discuss the significance

Services at St Joseph’s Church