St Mary's School
Thursday 17th November
'And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.' - The Gospel of Mark 13: 33 - 37
Dear whānau,
Another week down and another week closer to JC's birthday, time flies when you're having fun.
Speaking of Christmas, we have to work our way through Advent before we get there and Mrs Gray has come up with this fantastic activity that you can do with your family to prepare for the coming of Jesus. Hopefully your child has arrived home with a letter this week with a bit more detail for you but if not, I've snaffled this info below straight from it ...
Advent is the first season of the Church year. Advent this year begins on Sunday the 27th November.
It is a four-week season of hope and expectation.
It is a getting ready time for Christmas.
It is a time to think about the way we live our lives and about how we can live them better.
It is a time of reflecting on what the coming of Jesus means to us and our families.
It is a time to reach out to those who are in need, bringing them hope, as a sign that we all share God’s love.
The Advent wreath reminds us that God is always faithful to us. It reminds us that Jesus is the light of the world and the light of our lives. The circle of the wreath is a symbol of God’s never-ending love for us. Each of the four candles of the wreath represents one of the weeks of Advent. The candles remind us of the years of waiting for Jesus – the light of the world. Traditionally three purple candles and one rose/pink candle are used. The purple candles are lit on each of the first two Sundays of Advent and the rose/pink candle is lit on the third Sunday of Advent with the last purple candle being lit on the fourth Sunday of Advent.
The season of Advent is a special time for families and making an Advent wreath is a great activity for families to do together. Completed Advent wreaths need to be at school on Thursday 24 November so Fr Jaime can bless the wreaths before they go home to be used for the coming 4 weeks.
Such fun! If you have any questions, get in touch with your child's classroom teacher or Paula, our Director of Religious Studies - paula.gray@stmarys.school.nz
Please remember, if you have something you'd like us to celebrate in the newsletter, send me through a picture and a wee blurb by Thursday 9am each week and I'll make sure it gets in - mallory.hood@stmarys.school.nz
God bless you all.
Mallory
Acting Principal
More Work from these Talented Artists!
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Room Kiwi's Novel Study Trailers
Save the date - 1st December - Cultural Liturgy
On Thursday December 1st we are having a special afternoon of celebrating and sharing.
From 12.30 - 1.40pm we will be having a shared lunch (byo), this is also a time where your kids can take you around our classrooms and show you the cool stuff they've been learning about and making for our inquiry topic, Tūrangawaewae.
At 1.40pm we will head over to the Church to celebrate a Liturgy (it was originally a Mass but the lovely Father Jaime is away on retreat) together, as this is part of our culture and special character at St Mary's. This Liturgy will be like no other that we have had before, it will be a Liturgy celebrated in many languages, with songs and sharing, embracing all the fantastic cultures we have as part of our St Mary's School community. We'd love you to join us for all of the afternoon events, or even part of them ... but of course, if you can't make it, we'll always have pictures on Facebook afterwards.
Armistice Day
Last Friday we had the honor of singing the National Anthem at the Cenotaph for the 104th Armistice Day ceremony. The kids made us all super proud by singing pridefully and standing very respectfully the whole time (this was no mean feat, it was really, really hot). I've since had lots of feedback from the many Servicemen that were there who were incredibly impressed by the performance and behaviour of our children - I think we'll be asked back next year! Thanks to Aaron Horrell, Bradley Bridgman, Tony F Williams, Steve Brinsdon, Bruce Cavanagh and Stretch O'Neill for providing another great learning opportunity and experience for our kids.
3D Art with Janet de Wagt
Frisbee Golf with Gore Main School
Our year 3 students (and Megan and Mrs Christie) have been very lucky this week, spending Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon with the year 5's at Gore Main School learning how to play frisbee golf. They finished their learning off with a competition today out at Dolamore Park - look how much fun they're having! Thanks to Gore Main School students and teachers for having us and Bronnie Grant for choosing us for this great opportunity.
Upcoming events
Week 5 (14 - 18th November)
Room Ruru and Miss Smith - Monday prayers and Gospel
Monday - Wednesday 14th - 16th Nov - Year 3's to Gore Main for frisbee golf
Thursday 17th Nov - Year 3's to Dolamore Park for frisbee golf tournament
Week 6 (21 - 25th November)
Room Takahe and Miss Bond - Gospel
Monday 21st Nov - Advent Prayers - Church
Thursday 24th Nov - Board Meeting - 6.30pm
Week 7 (28 Nov - 2nd December)
Room Moa and Miss Hood - Gospel
Monday 28th Nov - Advent Prayers - Church
Tuesday and Wednesday 29 and 30th Nov - Sports Activator
Wednesday 30th Nov - Karla from UTB in - Microsoft with year 6's
Thursday 1st December - Tūrangawaewae celebration and cultural Liturgy
Week 8 (5 - 9th December)
Room Piwakawaka and Mrs Christie - Gospel
Monday 5th Dec - Advent Prayers - Church
Friday 9th Dec - Final leavers assembly for our year 6 leaders
Week 9 (12th - 15th December)
Room Kiwi and Mrs Gray and Mrs Hansen
Monday 12th Dec - Advent Prayers - Church
Tuesday 13th Dec - 6pm - Junior Nativity - Church
Thursday 15th Dec - 6pm - Whole School End of Year Mass and last day for 2022
Contact Us
Email: admin@stmarys.school.nz
Website: https://stmarys.school.nz/
Location: 14 Ardwick Street, Gore 9710, New Zealand
Phone: +64 3-208 7733
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1407464649522913