Term 3 Week 9 Newsletter #17

Term 3 Week 9                           22 September 2022                                       Newsletter# 17

Principal’s Message

Tena Koutou Katoa    Talofa Lava    Kamusta    Malo el lelei    Mauri    Hello Everyone

The term is quickly coming to a close and we have been so busy! It is exciting to see our children participating in activities we haven’t been able to do over the past two Covid years.

Our Pasifika Week ended in a fabulous multi-cultural day when everyone was celebrated. We had a Pasifika assembly and were entertained by our cultural group. A special thank you to our Pasifika parents and grandparents who supported these events. It was great to see you in our school. 

Last Thursday, we had students participating in the Franklin Schools Pasifika Speech Competition. St Joseph’s School was well represented and our children won several categories; as you will see further in this newsletter. Once again we need to thank our parents for supporting them in being well prepared to do this. Thanks too to Mrs Waru, Mrs Mravicich and Mrs Ali for the work they have done with our Pasifika fanau.  

There was a very favourable response to the St Ignatius of Loyola College meeting held here at our school on Monday evening. Thank you for all coming. I am sure you were reassured by knowing that St Joseph’s preference students, alongside two other Catholic schools, are the first priority for enrolment and our non-preference students living within the zone are considered before other non-preference who have not attended our Catholic primary schools. www.saintignatius.school.nz .

Yesterday, Franklin schools were once again able to participate in the ASB Mathex Competition. This year it was largely organised by our school and so a lot of time was spent preparing and running it on the day. Although not placed, we were very pleased with our Years 6-8 teams’ achievement in their competitions. Many thanks to our staff that helped make this event such a success. 

Today we are having our Proclaiming the Word finals up at St Patrick’s Church. This is an opportunity for our students to develop skills to speak in front of our parish congregation in the future at Mass. I’m sure Fr Robert will have a difficult task choosing from our young readers. 

We have been very disturbed by recent criminal acts on our school grounds. On two occasions we have had staff cars broken into and damaged after-hours. Our cleaner’s car was recently stolen and rammed through our front gates. This week one of our teacher’s car windows was smashed and the ignition was removed. This was interrupted by a staff member going to her car. We are feeling a bit unsafe at the moment and for this, will not be having our driveway gate open after 3:00 pm, once after-school care vans have left. Parents are reminded not to drive into the school driveway to pick up/drop off your child. 

In addition to this, we have had two incidents of vandalism by our own students in our boys’ toilet area. Sadly, this shows a lack of respect for school property. This flooding could have caused thousands of dollars of damage if it hadn’t been found quickly and Mr Jones, our caretaker, was very unhappy. 

It is with regret that we inform you that Mrs Suit-Keen Waru, a Year 5/6/Ako 2 teacher, is leaving us at the end of this term. Mrs Waru has made a significant impact on the school in the short time she has been here; this year being our Pasifika Lead Teacher and having a Within-School Community of Learning Lead Teacher role, as well as, encouraging staff in their use of te reo. We wish her and her whaanau many blessings as she begins a new chapter of her life. Her son, Daniel, will continue to attend our school and we may see Mrs Waru rejoin our staff in the future. We are pleased to say we have filled her position for Term 4.

Next week the school will be having N4L internet upgrade (formerly SNUP). This will take place over two days next week: Wednesday and Thursday. While this is happening the internet will be down intermittently which also means our phone lines will be interrupted as we have a VOiP system. This installation is needed to improve the wifi capability within the school. We had asked that this work wasn’t begun before our Open Classroom – Science/Tech display in the Hall on Tuesday night. 

We wish to pass on our school community’s condolences to the Polwart family on the passing of their mother and grandmother, Lyn Polwart. Lyn taught in our school for several years and, at one time, was acting principal. May she rest in peace.

Stay well and God bless.

Ngā mihi nui

“Would that you could see in practice 

that all the malice about which you complain 

is in yourself and that there is nothing else except to pray to open your eyes, to touch your hearts

 and to change. God will not do that without you.” 

Euphrasie Barbier 1868

KEY DATES

   TERM 3 KEY DATES

Please note these dates are subject to change For further dates see calendars on the Skool Loop app or at: www.stjosephs.co.nz

Special Catholic Character

St Vincent De Paul CANS4CHRISTMAS – 

MUFTI DAY TOMORROW FRIDAY 23 SEPTEMBER
Thank you all so much for your generosity in donating cans of food. We commend our students for their Mission spirit. Cans will be collected by St. Vincent De Paul tomorrow at 8am tomorrow. Those who have brought cans can wear Mufti tomorrow, Friday 23rd September. 

School-Assisted Mass Term 4
Save the date – Sunday 6 November – for our School-Assisted Mass next term. The term will also be busy with end of year events so keep an eye on Newsletters and the School Calendar as well.

VALUES AWARDS from Assembly 9 September

Arjun Bal, Mata Lesavua, Peni Helu, Elijah Koaneti, Velolini Puamau, Isileli Mamatuki.  Arahi – For your leadership during Pasifika Week.

PROCLAIM THE WORD 2022
Here are the Proclaim the Word winners for 2022 – Marius Vicente, Simon Vicente, Lydia Lynch and Sophia Hewitt. Their trophies will be awarded at the End of Year Prizegiving. Congratulations to all tamariki who participated in our Proclaim the Word School Final today at the Church. Each finalist read a passage of scripture from the Children’s Lectionary and were assessed on marking criteria such as reverence, use of pause, expression, pace and rhythm etc.  Special thanks to Fr. Robert for adjudicating for us. The standard was high and all finalists should be very proud of this achievement. 

MESSAGE FOR ST JOSEPH’S FROM CARITAS
To St. Joseph’s Teachers and Students,
Thanks so much for sharing all the wonderful learning experiences and activities that your school did as part of Social Justice Week 2022. We can see from looking at the pics that your teachers and school created some very memorable and authentic learning experiences for your students.

 We have popped up a post on our CANZ Facebook page recognizing your inspiring work.  Here is a link for you to check out and share:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1889874771154587/permalink/2549182981890426/.

God bless

Justine Delport and Michael Stewart
Caritas Education Coordinators.

School Board News

School Board Elections 2022

Voting is now open for school board elections.  Voting papers have been sent to you by mail.  These can be returned to the school by mail or left in the voting box at reception.  Voting closes tomorrow, 23rd of September 2022, at 4.00 pm.

Results will be posted after the 30th September.

School board members play an important role in shaping the education experience and achievements of students. Please take the time to look over the candidate profiles attached and make your vote.

If you would like to contact the Board directly at any time, please do so through bot@stjosephs.co.nz

School Notices

NO SCHOOL ON MONDAY
Monday 26th September is a public holiday in memorial for Queen Elizabeth II RIP

TUESDAY 30th SEPTEMBER
A reminder that we have an open afternoon/evening so that you can visit your child’s classroom and view their Science/Tech displays in
the school hall.
Classrooms will be open from 3:15 – 4:00pm and  5:00 – 6:30pm.
Everyone Welcome!

NEW ENROLMENTS 2023
If your child, or someone you know, is turning 5 years old next year, 
we need them to enrol at St Joseph’s School now!
Knowing how many children are coming helps us to plan ahead for our staffing.
Other enrolments are welcome at any time.

Please contact the office stjoesoffice@stjosephs.co.nz 

STUDENTS MOVING ON FOR 2023
If your child is moving on to another school for 2023 could you please 
contact the office stjoesoffice@stjosephs.co.nz and let us know where your child/children
will be going. This also helps us to plan ahead.

2022 School Magazine Orders: Purchasing our annual school magazine is a lovely record of your child’s year at school. The cost of $25 has been added to your school account however the purchase is optional. If you do want to buy this year’s magazine, payment will need to be made by November 24th. The magazine is printed in December and distributed at the end of school year.

Summer Uniform: Next term (Term 4) we will change into our summer uniform.  For Girls this is our green summer dress.  For Boys this is grey school shorts (light weight) and our short sleeved polo shirt (logo on front). Both girls and boys should be wearing either black or brown sandals. The sandal must have a heel/ankle strap, and no colour variations are allowed.  Roman sandals are an acceptable option. Bottle green brimmed hats are expected to be worn in the summer terms. 
**Students can wear full winter uniform until the end of Week 1 Term 4**
*Year 8 students may wear their winter uniform if they have outgrown their summer one*

Holiday Office Hours: The School Office will be open during the holidays on Wednesday 12 October and Thursday 13 October from 9am until 3pm.

Second Hand Uniform Shop Hours: This will be open for parents on Wednesday 12 October from 10am until 2pm if you wish to purchase second hand summer uniform.  
We have very limited numbers of girls tunics. If you have any that no longer fit please send them to school for our second hand uniform shop. Thank you.

NEXT FRIDAY 30th SEPTEMBER IS THE LAST DAY OF TERM!

TERM 4 BEGINS ON MONDAY 17th OCTOBER

School Events 

Pasifika Speeches 2022
Students from various schools all over Franklin came together at Pukekohe Intermediate on Thursday 15 September to participate in the annual Pasifika Speech Competition. Many of the children in Years 5 to 8 wore their traditional cultural clothing and presented either a bi-lingual speech, which had to consist of at least 30% of their chosen language, or a full speech in their native language. We heard speeches in Tongan, Kiribati, Fijian, Samoan and Cook Island Māori. 

These children were all incredibly brave, as learning a speech and presenting in their first language is a tough task, yet alone in a second language. The theme of the night came across clear and strong; every single speaker spoke proudly of their country, their family and their values. Arjun Bal, the winner of the Year 7 & 8 Samoan Bilingual quoted a well-known Samoan Proverb, “A leai se gagana, ua leai se aganu’u … A leai se aganuu ua po le nu‘u.When you lose your language you lose your culture, and when there is no longer a living culture, darkness descends on the village.” At this young age they already understand the importance of learning and preserving their native language.

St Joseph’s Winners

All of our students who entered the speech competition made us  extremely proud! Mālō, Faamalo, Kia Manuia, Vinaka Vakalevu, Tekeraoi! 

Ako 2 News
Students have been working hard this term, especially on their Concept Science projects. We are excited to share these with you at our open evening next week! Students have chosen an inquiry or science project inspired by the learning experiences they had with BLAKE VR earlier this term. You will see presentations within the three learning areas; Marine Reserves, Mussels and Mangroves and Fishing. For Music, students have been creating soundscapes using our natural environment to promote a positive message connecting to their inquiry. We have been training hard and look forward to taking our teams to the St Anne’s tournament next week. A special thank-you to Renee Farrell and Ryan MacGilloway for giving up your time to coach our teams. 

Arahi News
Next stop…Hollywood! Students in Arahi are in the final steps of preparing for their film debuts on Friday of this week. They have been busily filming and editing their final drafts and we can’t wait to view the final products. Check out some of the movie posters. 

Over the past fortnight we have also had the semi-finals for proclaiming the word. This was a great opportunity to not only practise reading and presenting to an audience, but more importantly reading and understanding the Gospel. Other highlights over the past two weeks have been practising for Mathex, cooking healthy meals, finishing our science experiments and presenting our findings in preparation for the open evening next week and participating in drama lessons too. It has been a very busy and exciting term and we look forward to sharing all of our mahi with our whānau on Tuesday next week. 

Mathex 2022
Yesterday, 21 September, four maths teams represented St Joseph’s at the Franklin ASB Mathex Competition. This was the first time this event has been held since 2019. Although we didn’t place in the top three, each of our teams competed extremely well and we have very high hopes for next year. A big thank you to Mrs McArthur and Mr Muller for taking the time to train the teams and a huge paki paki to our competitors. 

Ako 1 News
We had a wonderful Social Justice and Pasifika Week.  The students were so proud to showcase their culture by sharing prayers, food and customs with their classmates.  This week we are working hard on our recycled projects – creating board games, musical instruments and toys by reusing items that would have otherwise been thrown away.  We can’t wait to share these with our parents at the open evening next Tuesday.

Community Notices

St Ignatius of Loyola Catholic College – Part-time School Administrator Vacancy
We are looking for an experienced School Administrator to provide support to the Principal in assisting with administrative duties and daily financial operations involved with the establishment of the school. There is scope for this part time role (12 hours per week) to become full time when the school opens in 2024. If you have experience of school accounts management and/or administration and are interested in the role, please send an email to recruitment@saintignatius.school.nz to express your interest and receive a position description with details of how to apply.

St Ignatius of Loyola Catholic College – Whānau information events
Kia ora Parents, Caregivers and Whānau, many thanks to all who attended the information session about the college. We appreciate that not everybody who has expressed interest could make it and encourage all who would like to enrol students for Years 7, 8 and 9 for 2024 to visit our web site www.saintignatius.school.nz for information. As explained at the information events, we are not publicly marketing the college until term 4 to provide feeder school families the opportunity to submit an online enrolment and have the first opportunity to apply for places. We are happy to answer any questions via the email address enrolment@saintignatius.school.nz and look forward to receiving your applications.

Ngaa mihi maioha,

Dean Wearmouth

Foundation Principal