St Francis Xavier Catholic School To Love, To Learn and To Serve

Kia Aroha, Kia Akona, Kia Aro Atu No. 7 Thursday 2nd July 2020

Address: 1 Percy Street, Whangarei 0112 Phone: 09-4371039 Cellphone: 027 2784303 Email Office Manager: office@sfx.school.nz Website: sfx.school.nz Email Absences: absent@sfx.school.nz

Dear%Parents,%Caregivers%and%Friends%of%our%school,

As%we%all%moved%into%Level%4%Lockdown%at%the%end%of%last%term%we%had%little%idea%how%the%future%was%going%

to%look.%Twelve%weeks%later%and%here%we%are%at%the%end%of%Term%2.%What%a%term%it%has%been.

Thankfully,%our%students%and%teachers%returned%to%school%after%the%lockdown%feeling%upbeat%and%

enthusiastic.%Most%of%the%children%settled%quickly%and%the%routines%continued.%I%want%to%thank%you%for%your%

vigilance%and%adherence%to%the%rules%that%we%were%required%to%put%in%place%during%the%government’s%

response%to%CovidH19.

I%know%it%wasn’t%always%easy%but%we%succeeded.

As%a%school,%a%community,%a%country;%the%team%of%Live%million%united%and%did%an%outstanding%job%of%

eliminating%the%spread%of%Covid.%Unfortunately,%we%have%heard%media%reports%of%lapses%in%following%

procedure,%and%this%has%somewhat%overshadowed%the%good%work%that%was%done%previously.%

Over%the%past%couple%of%weeks,%I%have%had%several%interesting%conversations%with%children.%They%have%made%a%

decision,%the%outcome%wasn’t%great%and%there%were%consequences.%Regardless%of%age,%title%or%creed,%we%

acknowledge%that%everyone%makes%mistakes.%As%a%Catholic%community%we%appreciate%our%humanity%and%seek%

forgiveness%for%our%errors,%whether%they%were%intentional%or%not.%Forgiveness,%of%self%and%others,%is%a%crucial%

component%towards%healing.%What%matters%most%is%that%we%learn%from%our%mistakes%and%make%better%

decisions%next%time.

STUDENT%WHANAU%LEADERS:%Since%our%current%student%whanau%leaders%had%a%shortened%length%of%service%

last%term%we%have%decided%that%they%will%continue,%alongside%the%newly%appointed%whanau%leaders,%for%the%

Lirst%Live%weeks%of%Term%3.%

LEARNING%SUPPORT%COORDINATOR:%%Our%school%is%fortunate%to%have%been%allocated%a%permanent,%

dedicated%Learning%Support%Coordinator%position.%The%position%was%advertised%and%the%successful%applicant%

was%Mrs%Nirvana%Withers,%a%teacher%at%our%school.%Nirvana's%replacement%teacher%is%Mrs%Daniella%Nieddu.%

The%Learning%Support%Coordinator%role%will%be%an%important%addition%that%will%complement%our%existing%

support%programmes.

TEACHER%ONLY%DAY:%In%all%likelihood%we%will%be%having%a%Teacher%Only%Day%on%Friday%August%the%28th.%I%am%

waiting%for%conLirmation%of%our%professional%development%provider%and%I%will%let%you%know%as%soon%as%the%

day%is%conLirmed.

As%the%school%holidays%start%at%the%end%of%the%week%we%hope%and%pray%that%they%won’t%be%as%eventful%as%the%

Term%1%Easter%and%holiday%break%when%lockdown%was%announced.

Enjoy%the%break%with%your%children,%take%care%and%God%bless.

Craig%McKernan

Principal)

mailto:office@sfx.school.nzmailto:office@sfx.school.nzmailto:absent@sfx.school.nzmailto:absent@sfx.school.nzfile://localhost/Users/Admin2/Desktop/Newsletter%20Images/Religious/Jesus%20hands%20and%20feet%20statuefile://localhost/Users/Admin2/Desktop/Newsletter%20Images/Religious/Jesus%20hands%20and%20feet%20statue

An Invitation to the Sacrament of Baptism for School Age Children

Mrs J and our Parish Priest, Father Chris Martin, will be running a Baptism programme at school in term three. The programme is for children who are 7 years or older who have not yet been baptised.We will have three short classes in the staffroom at school from 8:45am-9:30 am on these dates;Wednesday 29th July, Wednesday 5th August and Wednesday 12th August.There is an expectation that an adult family member will accompany the child. Once a parent has accompanied one child through the programme, younger siblings can be baptised too.The timing of the lessons is such that the children can go straight to class after the lesson. Please sign in at the office before the session starts.Baptism will be on a Sunday later in the term. Mrs J is happy to answer any queries about the Baptism programme, or the any of the Sacramental programmes of our church glenys@sfx.school.nz Ph4371039.If you have a child younger than 7 years old - parents and caregivers are welcome to attend the parish programme and details for this are available from Janet, the Parish Secretary on 4377902. Please contact Mrs J if you need any further information.

Religious EducationThis Week’s Readings: Zechariah 9:9-10, Romans 8:9, 11-13, Matthew 11:25-30

*School Mass‘Having an attitude of gratitude’ is one of St Mary of the Cross (Mackillop’s) values that we aspire to live by at St Francis Xavier. With that in mind, you are warmly invited to come and join us in celebrating Mass, as a school family, this Friday 3rd July at 9:15am.

*Sacramental Programme Sacramental programme sessions will begin again in Term 3. Our next session is scheduled for Sunday, July 26th 2020. At 10am Mass, the children will receive Cards with the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit.  We will then have a 4pm session that afternoon. At this stage the children will be confirmed on Thursday November 5th, and make their First Holy Communion on Sunday November 8th.

Family/Whanau BooksJust a little reminder about the Family/Whanau Books, a fabulous resource book for families that explains what we are teaching in the Religious Education Programme from Year 1 to Year 6. This resource is available online at Faith Alive website - outside the password by clicking on the Family tab.

* Classes Attending a Tuesday Mass at 9am If you are able to, you are welcome to come and join your child’s class when they attend Mass on a Tuesday morning.

I hope you all have a safe and happy holiday and I look forward to seeing you in Term 3!

Yours in Christ Maria WilsonDRS – Director of Religious Studies

Week 1 Tuesday Mass 9:00am Class - Year Level

1 Puriri Whanau - 21st July Rm 15 - Yr 5&6 - Kathy Pirrit Rm 13 - Yr 4 - Maria WilsonRm 16 - Yr 3 - Jennie Dean Rm 14 - Yr 2 - Teresa Webber

mailto:glenys@sfx.school.nzmailto:glenys@sfx.school.nz

Jake Ragnat who started at our school recently

*SCHOOL ATTENDANCE DUES COVID-19 FINANCIAL ASSISTANCEFinancial assistance is available to assist families who may need financial support as a result of the Covid-19 Virus with the payment of 2020 Attendance Dues for students attending Catholic schools in Auckland Diocese, both primary and secondary. Families facing financial difficulties can contact their school office, their Parish Priest or the Revenue Manager on 09-360-3069 at the Catholic Diocese of Auckland for further information. Application forms for this assistance are available from school and parish offices, or can be down-loaded from the Catholic Diocese of Auckland Website:https://www.aucklandcatholic.org.nz/catholic-schools/covid-19-attendance-dues-assistance/ Many thanks to all the families who have made payments or continued automatic payments.

*SCHOOL PHOTOSWe expect the shoot keys to be ready to sent out to parents by week 3 of Term 3. We will keep you informed.

*UNIFORMSOur uniform shoes are flat, black, polishable shoes - not sneakers or basketball boots. We wear navy socks, not tights, in winter.There is a good selection of uniforms in our uniform pool. We even have some school shoes. These items can be purchased with a small donation. Email Mrs J: glenys@sfx.school.nz with your child's name, class, size and which items you require. Please note shirts, vests, polar fleeces and shorts are measured in even numbers but skirts are measured in centimetres. Check what size your child is currently wearing, to request the new size you wish to order.

*HEALTHLINEFor children’s health, the best information source is the Ministry of Health website. You may also call Healthline any time, Ph: 0800 611 116.

Literacy Tip #8Write notes to your child!Writing notes to your child and encouraging them to reply is a great way to model quality writing and also encourage them to write. Short notes left behind

for them to find in a drawer, in their uniform pockets or in their toy box will be a fun way to get them reading and writing. If you end your notes with an open-ended question then it leaves the door open for them to write a note and leave it somewhere for you to find.Book of the week: Dinosaur Rescue by Kyle Mewburn and Donovan Bixley (Junior Chapter Book)

SCHOOL EVENTS Dates and times for events are subject to

change. Please check this fortnightly newsletter for any changes.

July3rd! 9.15 am! Full School Mass!3rd ! ! ! Last day of Term 3

20th ! ! ! Term 3 Begins29th! ! ! PTFA SAUSAGE SIZZLE $2 (please place your order with the class teacher at the start of the day)30th ! 9.00am!! Mihi WhakatauAugust11th! ! ! SFX Cross Country12th! 7.00pm!! PTFA Meeting13th ! ! ! SFX Cross Country ! ! ! Postponement date 26th ! ! ! WPSSA Cross Country 26th! ! ! PTFA SAUSAGE SIZZLE $2 (please place your order with the class teacher at the start of the day)September23rd! ! ! Northland Cross Country23rd ! ! ! PTFA SAUSAGE SIZZLE $2 (please place your order with the class teacher at the start of the day)

Term DatesTerm Three: 20th July to 25th SeptTerm Four: 12th Oct to 15th Dec

https://www.aucklandcatholic.org.nz/catholic-schools/covid-19-attendance-dues-assistance/https://www.aucklandcatholic.org.nz/catholic-schools/covid-19-attendance-dues-assistance/https://www.aucklandcatholic.org.nz/catholic-schools/covid-19-attendance-dues-assistance/https://www.aucklandcatholic.org.nz/catholic-schools/covid-19-attendance-dues-assistance/https://www.aucklandcatholic.org.nz/catholic-schools/covid-19-attendance-dues-assistance/https://www.aucklandcatholic.org.nz/catholic-schools/covid-19-attendance-dues-assistance/mailto:glenys@sfx.school.nzmailto:glenys@sfx.school.nz