4. Diary Dates - Week 6, Term 3 2018

AUGUST

Thursday 30                 -  Home and School meeting at 7.00 pm

Friday 31                      -  Daffodil Day – mufti day fundraiser

                                     -  Staff v Yr 8 netball game at 2.00 pm

                                     -  Celebration assembly at 2.30 pm

SEPTEMBER

Sunday 2                      -  Father’s Day

Monday 3                     -  North Otago Cross Country

                                     -  Junior Swimming from 1.30 to 2.30 pm

                                     -  Technology for Yr 7 & 8 at SKC

Wednesday 5                -  North Otago Cross Country postponement date

Thursday 6                   -  School Mass at 9.15 am

                                     -  Yr 7 ECB and Young Vinnies

                                     -  Terrific Thursdays at 2.15 pm *

Friday 7                        -  Celebration assembly at 2.30 pm

Monday 10                   -  Social Justice Week

                                     -  Home & School Food  Fair $10 donation due in

                                     -  Technology for Yr 7 & 8 at SKC  

Wednesday 12              -  Scholastic Book Club due back *

                                     -  End of Winter Season Prize giving at 3.30 pm in school hall

Thursday 13                 -  School Mass at 9.15 am

                                     -  Terrific Thursdays at 2.15 pm *

Friday 14                      -  Otago Primary School Cross Country

                                     -  Celebration Assembly at 2.30 pm

Monday 17                   -  Technology for Yr 7 & 8 at SKC

                                     -  Special Character Review

                                     -  Multi- Cultural Hui from 6.30 to 8.00 pm in the staffroom * note new date

Tuesday 18                   -  Special Character Review

                                     -  Board of Trustees meeting at 6.30 pm

Wednesday 19              -  Top School Gymnastics competition

                                     -  Special Character Review

Thursday 20                 -  School Mass at 9.15 am

                                     -  Yr 7 ECB and Young Vinnies

                                     -  Terrific  Thursdays at 2.15 pm *

Friday 21                      -  Celebration assembly at 2.30 pm

Monday 24                   -  Technology for Yr 7 & 8 at SKC

Thursday 27                 -  School Mass at 9.15 am *

                                     -  Terrific Thursdays at 2.15 pm *

Friday 28                      -  Singing Cup Finals at St Joseph’s

                                      -  Celebration assembly at the earlier time of 2.00 pm

                                      -  Term 3 finishes today

OCTOBER

Monday 15                   -  Term 4 starts today

                                     -  Technology for Yr 7 & 8 *

Tuesday 16                   -  School photos

Thursday 18                 -  School Mass at 9.15 am *

                                     -  Yr 7 ECB and Young Vinnies *

                                     -  Terrific Thursdays at 2.15 pm *

Monday 22                   -  Labour Day (holiday)

Wednesday 24              -  Yr 7 Camp to Wainui 

Thursday 25                 -  Yr 7 Camp to Wainui

Friday 26                      -  Yr 7 Camp to Wainui

Sunday 28                    -  Food Fair

NOVEMBER

Friday 16                      -  School athletics for Yrs 1-8  tbc

Monday 19                   -  Yr 8 Camp to Staveley 

Tuesday 20                   -  Yr 8 Camp to Staveley

Wednesday 21              -  Yr 8 Camp to Staveley

Thursday 22                 -  Yr 8 Camp to Staveley

Friday 23                      -  Yr 8 Camp to Staveley

Monday 26                   -  North Otago Athletics

Tuesday 27                   -  Multicultural Day

Wednesday 28              -  North Otago Postponement Date

                                                 

DECEMBER

Friday 14                       -  Term 4 finishes today – note new day

1. Principal's News Week 5 Term 3 2018

Cross Country
What a fantastic day for cross country on Tuesday!  We were truly blessed - blue sky, sunshine, great environment, supportive adults and happy children - what more could you ask for?

A big thank you to Paula Brien for organising the event; to Dave and Rebecca Heffernan for use of the Racecourse and setting up the track; to the many parent helpers who helped out as marshals and the children for doing their best and supporting each other.




Reading
Our staff are presently doing some professional research, discussion and development around teaching and learning reading. 
We've all noted something significant that makes a big difference to a child's reading enjoyment and learning.  That is:

Bridie reading her book: Houston and the Show Horse

Adults reading to children at home makes children better readers...

That's it..... it makes a huge difference - children who are regularly read to have more enjoyment of reading, more understanding of narrative, longer attention span and tend to find it easier to learn to read - thus giving them a head start in life.  And don't stop when they are 7 or 8,  carry on for as long as you can - if the book's good enough they will want to listen.  Its too simple to miss out on.

Author - Bridie McGeown
Congratulations to Bridie McGeown who has just published her first book.  She is selling copies for $5 a copy.  All proceeds go to Diabetes Otago.  Thank you to Brackens who have helped cover the printing costs.

Family Food Donations
Thank you to all families who have donated food for the parish freezer.  Our Home and School Association manages the freezer and each class is asked once a year to provide food.   Many families have given generously.

We give something from the freezer to any of our families who have something "going on" - whatever it may be.  Its mainly a token of our care and concern and a reminder that there is a whole community behind and around each one of us.

Check out our blog page "God for Parents" to help connect with your child's Religious Education.

Uniform
In their weekly emails, the teachers tell you which days the children should wear sports uniform.  On the other days children should be wearing full, correct school uniform.  We have a few children who are repeatedly wearing the wrong uniform, or non-uniform items.  I will be following these up over the next couple of weeks to find out why.  Uniform policy is up for Board review in term 1 of 2019 and you will be asked for feedback on uniform before that.  This is the Winter uniform:

God Bless and Aroha
Lorraine Frances-Rees

2. Special Character Term 3 Week 5

First Holy Communion Mass Sunday August 26 @ 9.30am

We pray for and congratulate our candidates for First Holy Communion this weekend:-

Luse Asi, Paige Geypen, Hamish Fowler, Elias Fraser, Eli Herbst, Christopher Jorgensen, Ideg Jones Hogan, David Kilgour, Sandrene Mordeno, Rolfe Patalbo, Ally May Rawson, Tama Roberts and Jayla Strong.
All families are as always, warmly invited to come and celebrate Mass together. 

Faith Facts this Week:-

This week the Church celebrates the feast days of three great “founders”.  On 31st of July St Ignatius is celebrated.  He was the founder of the Jesuit Order, who have been one of the most influential orders in the history of the Church.  Jesuits are involved in academic, spiritual and missionary ministries around the world.  Fr Robert Morris who was ordained by Bishop Paul on 2 June 2018 in Christchurch is a Jesuit, as was Pope Francis before he was made a bishop.  St Alphonsus Liguori founded the Redemptorist order and his feast day is celebrated on August 1st.  St. Alphonsus was an accomplished preacher and he has left to his followers, many volumes of writing that has won for him the title of “Doctor of the Church”.  The Redemptorists had a monastery based in Bower Ave, Christchurch for many years.  On August 3rd the Church marks the feast of St Dominic.  Dominic was a contemporary of St Francis, and the two started important religious orders at the beginning of the 13th century. The Dominican order, sometimes referred to as the “Order of Preachers”  includes sisters and friars (priests), and their work is primarily academic focussed, with many Dominicans working in tertiary education around the world.  Dominican sisters have staffed several primary and secondary schools in New Zealand including Teschemakers and St Joseph's School (Oamaru), St Dominic’s (Dunedin) and St Dominic’s (Henderson).

 Who was St Bernard? And what has it got to do with dogs?
Saint Bernard (1090-1153) was a clever and Holy man who guided many princes, popes and holy people and helped them in their faith. He founded an order of monks that grew to have many monasteries. These were known as Cistercian monasteries.

There was monastery high up in the Swiss mountains on the St Bernard’s Pass, it was called the monastery of St Bernard. It was a hospice for the sick and injured. At that monastery they had dogs that turned out to be very good at rescuing people in the snow and ice. They became the name St Bernard.  But guess what this monastery was named after a different St Bernard! St Bernard of Menthon (923 – 1008). He started this monastery for travellers.

Atua e Manaaki
Nicola Winders