Welcome back to week 4  

Kia ora koutou katoa e te Whānau, Welcome to the start of Week 4, 2025.

This year, our school theme is ‘Zeal’ -  A word that embodies great energy, passion, and enthusiasm in pursuing a cause or purpose.  It invites us all to reflect on what ignites our passion and how we can channel that into serving and supporting one another.

As part of this, our school will focus on finding and celebrating the unique gifts that each person brings to our community.  Through the lens of zeal, we aim to inspire our students to live with purpose and courage, embracing opportunities to make a positive difference in their lives and the lives of others.

This Term's Inquiry: A School Taonga
This term, our school-wide inquiry is driven by the question:

“What makes our school such a taonga (treasure)?"

This ties into an incredibly special milestone: St Columba’s School and Parish celebrate 100 years of life and service!  From 28 February to 2 March, we will honour this centennial anniversary with events that bring together our entire community to reflect on our history, celebrate our present, and look forward to our future.  We encourage everyone to be part of these celebrations!

Centenary website.https://www.stcolumbas.school.nz/1149/easy_pages/11-welcome

We encourage you to talk about our theme of zeal at home.  Here are two questions to reflect on as a family:

What is Zeal?
As noted above, the word zeal means "great energy or enthusiasm in pursuit of a cause or an objective." It is beautifully captured in the words of our school's founding nun, Sr. Euphrasie Barbier of the Mission Sisters (RNDM):

As we embark on this year, let's embrace zeal in all we do—learning, sharing, serving, and growing as a community.

Sports and Activities Update
It's great to see Touch Rugby kicking off at Swarbrick Park, with children of all ages getting involved.  Our basketball players are also enjoying their opportunities and developing their skills on the court.

Looking ahead, many winter sports clubs are now opening their registrations.  Families are encouraged to check Facebook, club websites, or communication channels for details on how to enrol.

If your child is playing rugby, they must register their profile on Rugby Xplorer before signing up with a club.  For those interested in Football, Rugby, Hockey, Netball, or any other winter sport, please ensure you do not miss out on the enrollment process for your chosen sport.

Stay Connected
We will share information through Facebook and Seesaw to keep you updated, so please check these platforms regularly.  If you need more details about information shared on these platforms, please talk to your child's teacher.

Changes to personal details
If you have changed an email address or other contact details, please let the office know immediately so we can keep communication seamless between school and home.  We no longer send paper copies of the newsletter; all communication is electronic.  If you need more information, call the school at 07 847 9322 or visit our school website or Facebook page.

Let’s make 2025 a year filled with energy, enthusiasm, and purpose as we embrace our theme of zeal and continue to build our vibrant St Columba community together.

Ngā mihi nui

School commences at 8.45 am and finishes at 2:45 p.m.  Can I remind you as parents that children starting 15 minutes late daily reduces their opportunity to access the curriculum in one of the three important areas;  reading, writing and mathematics. Also, at the end of the day, school children are expected to be collected by 3 p.m. at the latest.  Those children here after 3.15 p.m. Will be sent to our After School Care programme at the cost to you, the parents;  This is school policy.

Classrooms are open from 8:15am If your child is earlier than this time, they are required to wait quietly outside the office area and wait for Mr Duncan to release them at 8:15am. We do not have teachers on duty watching children before school as all teachers prepare for instruction. 

Do not park on yellow lines around the school and carpark areas. Please help me as I have staff positioned at the gates, crossings and around the carpark environment to ensure that we all model safe walking and crossing of the roads and carpark areas. It still amazes me that we have adults and children who think it is okay for them to lift safety barriers to walk out into the carpark because it's convenient for them.  Please model safety at all times when walking and crossing the carpark area - YOU/WE and ME are the role models of safety.

Based on the Government directive, NO phones are allowed at school. If children must bring a phone to school it is to be handed into the office for safe storage throughout the school day and collected after the day.

The school roll is now closed for all year levels this year, 2025. We are now accepting new enrolments for 2026.

FREE breakfast for all SCCS dads and daughters.  Book this in your calendars dads -Bring your daughter for breakfast and hear about well-being and being the best dad ever!

Next week, as Catholics, we mark the beginning of Lent with Ash Wednesday on Wednesday 5th March. Pope Francis tells us that Lent is a new beginning, a path toward continual change of heart. We can embrace this through almsgiving, prayer, and fasting.

Almsgiving - This involves practical ways of helping others, such as donating money, performing acts of charity, or offering assistance to those in need.

Prayer - We can ask for God’s mercy, seek a change of heart, and pray for spiritual growth. We may also pray for the poor, sick, and suffering, and strive to grow closer to Christ.

Fasting - This includes abstaining from bad habits (e.g. being unkind or gossiping), not eating meat on Fridays during Lent, giving up sweets, chocolate, or desserts, and reducing screen time.

On Ash Wednesday, our Years 5 to 8 students will join our Parish for Mass at 9:00am, while our Years 1 to 4 students will participate in a liturgy with Fr. Stuart at 1:45pm in the Church.

Here is a simple prayer to help you feel connected to God during Lent this year:

In the Heart of Euphrasie Barbier
Jolan Search
Deputy Principal / Director of Religious Studies

Term 1 - Monday 3 February to Friday 11 April  - Easter falls during the school holiday period this year
Term 2 - Monday 28 April to Friday 27 June 
Term 3 - Monday 14 July to Friday 19 September
Term 4 - Monday 6 October to Tuesday 16 December

Here are some key dates to mark on your calendars:

Please remember hats must be worn at all times during Term 1 and Term 4.

Ensure your child has a drink bottle and a filled lunch box each day.

Hair must be worn off the face and tied back if longer than the bottom of the collar and be a natural hair colour. Navy, black, white or maroon hair ties or head bands are in keeping with uniform standards and are acceptable headwear. Head scarfs are not to be worn, unless for cultural or medical reasons or for specific events.

Nail polish and cosmetics are not permitted.  Fingernails should be clean and well cared for.

It is a requirement that footwear is worn to and from school.  Children must have footwear on before they leave the school grounds each day.

Rings, bracelets and earrings can be easily lost or damaged at school. They may also cause injury to the wearer. For safety reasons, we ask that these are not worn. The school accepts no responsibility in the case of loss, damage or injury.

New Enrolments…

Please download our 2025 enrolment forms from our school website and complete them, then email them to Deb at Kidsclub@sccs.school.nz.   You will then be contacted to make an appointment to visit our centre and discuss your child's needs.  

If your child is new to school, please give them time to settle in before starting them with Kids Club so they can adjust to the long school days  first.  This works very well, especially with our new five-year-olds.  If you have any questions or queries, please contact Deb to discuss your needs on 021 586633 anytime.  

Absences….

Please text Deb on 021 586633 to advise if your child is away from school or not attending Kids Club that day.  These are chargeable days as per the conditions on your enrolment form. 

Accounts….

Kids Club accounts are charged weekly and added to your child's school account. Kids Club fees are part of your total school account so if you are finding things tough at the moment please contact Andrea Hall at the school office to discuss a payment plan.  Your weekly fees go towards paying wages for the leaders who look after your children, food for afternoon tea, and supplies and resources to help entertain your children each day.  

Thanks again for all your support and communication and, most of all, for sharing your children with us while ou are busy working. 

Regards