Christian Values Future Focussed Love of Learning

Cardinal McKeefry School Newsletter 1 D e c e m b e r 2 0 1 6

Welcome Nau Mai Haere Mai

Fáilte

欢迎

Maligayang pagdating Welkom

Willkommen Добро пожаловать

Afio mai Malo e lelei

Selamat datang Bienvenida

Ahlan Wa Sahlan Velkommen

Salam Croeso

Youkoso Mabuhay

Mufti-Day Tomorrow is wear Red and Black Mufti day for the Kaikoura Earthquake.

All gold coin donations will be going to the Red Cross Appeal for Kaikoura.

Kia ora te whanau,

Catholic Character

Advent - last Sunday the church celebrated the First Sunday of Advent. In the Catholic Church, Advent is a period of preparation, extending over the four Sundays leading up to Christmas Day. During Advent and Lent the priest wears purple vestments to symbolise a time of preparation. Perhaps the best known of all Advent symbols is the Advent wreath.

The Advent wreath has four candles, three purple and one pink, to mark the waiting period before Christmas. One additional candle is lit each week, reminding us that Jesus comes to bring light to the world. The first purple candle symbolises hope and we lit this at our school prayers on Wednesday. At home you may like to create an Advent wreath with your child/children and light the candles as we move through this special season in our church calendar.

The Giving Tree Our Catholic Social Services Christmas Giving Tree is now up in the foyer. It has been decorated beautifully. Thank you to Room 2 for preparing both this and the nativity crib in the library. Our Giving Tree is for families that Catholic Social Services works with over the year whom find Christmas very hard. Otari Parish is helping Catholic Social Services by giving them some gifts to distribute over Christmas. We invite you to bring along a small gift for either children, teenagers or adults and place it under the tree in the school foyer. If you wrap it, please indicate on the outside if it is for a man, woman, teenager, boy or girl and the approximate age it would suit.

Classes for next year Due to our current student numbers the Board of Trustees of Cardinal McKeefry have been allocated by the Ministry of Education four teaching positions for 2017. This has resulted in some changes to our school organisation as I will be teaching two days each week, Tuesday and Thursday, throughout the school in 2017. This has also meant that Jayne Taylor’s position, which was fixed term for 2016, is unable to be renewed. Jayne has been a wonderful asset to our team through her roles in the classroom, as mathematics lead teacher and as the staff representative on the Board of Trustees. Jayne came to our school first as a parent and will continue to be part of our community. We will have an opportunity to acknowledge her contribution formally during our end of year celebrations.

Our classes for next year will be:

Room 4 Year 1/ 2 Kate Reynard

Room 5 Year 3/ 4 Mary Ryan

Room 2 Year 5/ 6 Bridget Wylie

Room 1 Year 7/ 8 Laura Thomsen and Tania Savage

Classroom Release Teacher: Tania Savage

2 0 1 6 T e r m s :

Term 4 Mon 10 Oct — Fri 16 Dec

2 0 1 7 T e r m s :

Term Wed 1 Feb — Thurs 13 April

Upcoming Dates

December

Thurs 1 - Assembly Rm 2

Mon 5 - Capital E trip Rm 2

Wed 7 - WPCA Snorkelling Rm 1

Thurs 8 - Christmas Liturgy 6.30pm

Fri 9 - Carols at Sprott House

Sat 10 - Community Carols

Sun 11 - Leavers Dinner

Wed 14 - School End of Year Trip

Thurs 15 - Leavers Assembly

Fri 16 - Last day of Term 4

Ngā mihi nui Tania Savage

2 0 1 7 T e r m s :

Term 1 Wed 1 Feb — Thurs 13 April

Term 2 Mon 1 May — Fri 7 July Teacher Only Day Tues 6 June

Term 3 Mon 24 July — Fri 29 Sept

Term 4 Mon 16 Oct — Tues 19 Dec Teacher Only Day Tues 24 Oct

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Ra whanau kia koe…. This week we celebrate Eva Ybarra’s and Allen’s birthday next Monday.

Ngā Rerenga Kōrero — Maori Phrase of the Week

Mea rawa ake, i hinga/toa rātou!: Next minute, they lost/won!

Lost property We currently have lots of lost property in our two baskets so look to see if your child’s fleece, PE gear or hat is there. We are missing a number of hats so please make sure that all hats are well named so they can be returned to their owners.

School lunches The last day of Sushi deliveries will be on Tuesday 6 December, the last day for NZ kids food lunch bags will be Friday 9 December and the last day for Pizza will be Tuesday 13 December.

Room 1 Writing During last week the Room 1 students went to Newlands Intermediate School for technology. The Year 7’s had digital tech, and had to design calendars based on places and events that happen in Wellington. In art, the Year 7’s had to create stamps that would be used to make amazing Christmas cards for friends and family. They used lino to make the stamps, using special techniques to press it onto the paper and they all worked really well.

In Hard Materials the Year 8’s were working on mazes and puzzles as part of a two week project. Our brief was that it had to be a challenging maze that would fit our stakeholder and the purpose of it. Everyone finished their puzzle or maze and they looked really cool! The Year 8’s also did food tech, where we made a range of different savouries and a dessert. This included making pies, burritos, bread savouries, a potato bake and a pavlova! We have all enjoyed our year at tech, and sadly for the Year 8’s it was our last time and we will miss it! Izzy and Tiffany Monday and Tuesday were very exciting days for Room 1 this week. As you all know we are doing the William Pike Challenge Award this year and an overnight tramp in the Orongorongos was one of our outdoor activities. It wasn’t as easy as we thought … first of all we had a preparation day with Zoe’s dad, John. John did an amazing job of teaching us how to be successful on a tramp and basic tips like what to pack and how to be safe on the track. The full tramp was approximately 20kms and took us around 10 hours from start to finish. We stayed overnight at Turere Lodge and even had a swim in the river! By the end of the tramp we were absolutely knackered but it was all worth it. A massive thanks to John Wilmer, Ben Spencer, Nigel Robb, Pam Ramsay, Louise Hagger, Miss Thomsen and Mrs Savage who were amazing helpers on our trip. Ruby and Brontё

At the end!

Before the tramp

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Summer soccer After the customary Friday wash-out, we actually got some soccer on Tuesday! The Leopards, in their second game ever, came up against a very tough opposition, but took some learnings out of the occasion — whose goal is whose, where the out lines are and what the referee is for. We can build on that! The Panthers had a titanic struggle, with the lead see-sawing. In the end, they lost the match, but they played with a heap of fire and determination. The Cobras, too, had an epic battle, and finally prevailed in their match. They are fast becoming a formidable outfit: world broadcast rights are available — apply to Moana. The Cheetahs turned on an excellent defensive display against a very proficient opposition, and while they lost the game, they scored a moral victory through sportsmanship and grace in adversity. The Golden Ninjas were somehow matched against a much younger team, and understandably prevailed. The Cowgirls were also mismatched against a younger team, but the pleasing aspect of their play was the dazzling passing that they employed. The draw for this week's Friday wash-out (although look out … the weather forecast is good with only 0.2 mm of rain predicted for start time!) is:

Leopards: 3:30 pm, pitch 5 Panthers: 4:00 pm pitch 2 Cobras: 4:30 pm pitch 2 Cheetahs: 4:30 pm pitch 3 Strikers: 5:00 pm pitch 8 Golden Ninjas: 6:30 pm pitch 4 Cowgirls: 6:30 pm pitch 7 Cardinal Cougars: 7:00 pm pitch 1 Wolves: 7:00 pm pitch 10 Golden Ninjas: 7:00 pm pitch 11 Good luck, everyone! (note that the Golden Ninjas have two games, back to back)

Mobile Phones It is the last week to collect any old mobile phones you have around the house to support the Mobile Phone Recycling Scheme and Sustainable Coastlines. We are truly grateful to all the Schools, organisations and individuals from all over NZ that have kindly helped us with raising the awareness of this campaign and for all the donations of unwanted mobile phones we have received throughout 2016. Please drop any old phones into the box at the office.

Otari Parish News

Nativity play December 24th

St Thomas More Church will be holding its annual Nativity play on December 24th at 7pm during Mass. There will be two practices which will probably take place on the morning of the 22nd and 23rd (to be confirmed) at the church in the morning. There is no limit to the number of children involved - the more the merrier. If you would like your child to be involved or have any questions please email Janet at strawberry.jam@xtra.co.nz

Otari Parish Children’s Mass November 27th Please come along to the Otari Parish Children’s Mass this Sunday, 10.00am at St Teresa’s Church. This is a child friendly mass celebration and all families of the parish are warmly invited to attend. If your child would like to participate please contact Pat Gee on 0272466150.

PTA News

Christmas Croissant Fundraiser We are selling our delicious frozen croissants as a fundraiser just in time for Christmas! Orders and payment are due back to school by Wednesday 7 December for delivery at school on Thursday 15th December at the tuck shop.

Please make payment via internet banking to PTA Cardinal McKeefry 12 3140 0357670 00 using your surname and croissant as a reference. You also have the option of placing your green form and cash/cheque to the office, please ensure you have correct money.

Cardinal Cheetahs

at prize

giving

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Community Information

For rent: Northland (Cheshire St) house available from 9th Dec Large sunny 4 bedroom house with expansive views over hills. Three spacious living areas, good indoor/outdoor flow onto large flat fenced lawn. Call Sarah on 04 297 9152 or 021 0232 9772 for further details and to arrange viewing.

RAROA MUSIC CENTRE ENROLMENTS FOR 2017 Raroa Music Centre offers Saturday morning group music lessons for primary school children at low cost. Classes include choir, keyboard, recorder, drums, ukulele, guitar, violin, cello, clarinet, flute and trumpet. Enrolments open in mid-January. To enrol for 2017 visit our website at www.raroamusic.org.nz and enrol online. Summer Camp January 2017 KHAAT NZ takes children aged 8-12 years around New Zealand. Children explore new areas, make new friends, learn about different environments, build self-confidence and give back along the way by volunteering. This summer we visit Taupo, Hawke’s Bay, and Wairarapa. The fully inclusive camp starts Monday 16th January to Friday 20th January for $125 per day. Find out more at www.kiwikhaat.co.nz/khaat-nz

KidsFit Christmas Holiday Programme with the Push Play Trailer: Tuesday 20th December to Friday 23rd December. To kick start the summer break, KidsFit is offering four days of games, sports and fun exercise drills. Run at Karori Park from 9.30am to 3.30pm, $50 which included lunch provided by the park cafe (drop off/ pick up time flexible on request). Limited spaces. Fine out more at www.KidsFit.co.nz/holiday or phone 027 347 3001.

At the Karori Recreation Centre we offer a wide range of programmes for school-aged children including Gymnastics, Karate, Squash, Parkour, Basketball clinics, Miniball and Basketball leagues and a School Holiday Programme. For more information or to book please check out the Karori Recreation Centre’s website, or contact our friendly staff on (04) 476 8090 or karori.rec@wcc.govt.nz. Bookings for Term 1 open 29th November. Please contact your school if you are interested in joining the leagues in Term 1.

Parent Drop-in Centre. Drop in for a cuppa. Monday mornings, 8.45 – 11 m during school term. St Anselms Union Church Lounge at 30 Makara Road. You are invited to come and meet with other Karori parents over a cuppa. We are offering a warm place to sit and chat, morning tea and a coffee with a play area for pre-schoolers.

Everyone’s Adventure wants to make outdoor adventures free for as many Wellington families as possible this summer. You can help them reach the target buy booking a fun kayak or bike experience for your family (child size available!), or buying vouchers for family and friends for Christmas. Here’s how it works: 1. Make a booking at The Boatshed - Days Bay, The Bike Shed - Pencarrow, or Cycle Rimutaka, or buy a voucher for someone else to enjoy an adventure. Every dollar spent there counts - including drinks, ice creams and snacks. 2. The owners have calculated how much it’ll cost to safely operate those businesses over summer, and pay staff - it’s $300k. 3. Once the business' $300k summer costs are reached through your purchases, gear hire is FREE for everyone, for the rest of summer - til Easter weekend 2017. If Wellington families get behind Everyone’s Adventure now, adventures will be free by the end of the summer holidays!

Artrageous kids is running Holiday programmes in 3 Venues around Wellington. Artrageous kids focus on drawing out creativity and providing a space for children to play explore and expand. Artrageous Kids @ the Poneke Dojo in Mt Cook, Olderageous Kids (kids 10-14 years) in Newtown and Artrageous Kids@ Pataka Gallery in Porirua For more information and to make a booking go to our website www.artrageouskids.co.nz