St Teresa's School Newsletter
Friday 5th May 2023
Nau mai, afio mai!
We have had a positive start to the new term.
At our Pōwhiri, we welcomed Bella, Luke and Viktoria. Thank you to our student leaders for their support. This week we also welcomed Viktoria's brother George to the St T's whānau.
Looking ahead in our calendar we have some exciting events stacked up. Next week all students will have the opportunity to participate in the Karukatea Book Town Festival and receive $15 book vouchers. You will find more information in this newsletter.
In Week 4 we have our school photos (cue the 'Bad Hair Day' song!). Please see the flyer below - you need to pre-book a studio or sibling session before photo day. Lisa will also be taking some promotional shots of learning in action at our school for the website and prospectus. If you have not done so already, please inform the school office if you do not wish your child's image to be used in school promotional material.
God bless,
Lindsey Dailly, Tumuaki
Diary Weeks 3 & 4
Monday 8th May
NZ Sign Language Week
Wednesday 10th May
Booktown Young Readers
Rippa Rugby Tournament
Thursday 11th May
Kapa Haka performance practice
Booktown Young Readers
- Red Bus Goes to the Beach (Year 1-3)
- Paetūmōkai o Tauira Life in the Shallows (6 senior students)
Friday 12th May
Booktown Young Readers
- Writing Funny with Victor Rodger (Year 7-8)
- Book Ready and Q&A with Melanie Drewry (Year 4-6)
Postponement - Rippa Rugby Tournament
Kapa Haka Booktown performance Anzac Hall 6.15
Monday 15th May
School Photos
Tuesday 16th May
School Photos
Board Meeting 6 pm
Thursday 18th May
Feast of the Ascension
Friday 19th May
Pink Shirt Day
Spotlight on Attendance
This term, children who have over 90% attendance will go into the draw to win one of three awesome prizes! We also have a special draw for students who improve on their term 1 attendance. We have added in a class treat for the class with the best attendance every fortnight.
What can I do to make sure my child is going to school?
The key here is to make school the priority. There are things you can do at home and things you can work side by side with the school on.
At home
- talk to your children about why it is important to go to school every day – ask them what they want to be in the future. Their education is the key to doing well in life
- be positive about school
- set good habits about going to school from day one
- prepare your children the night before school
- have a good morning routine that gets them to school on time, relaxed and with everything they need
- don't let them have the day off just because they would rather be at home
- keep absences due to sickness to times when your child is actually sick - don't keep them at home when you know that they are just nervous about school – talk to the school who can help your child overcome this
- know about your child's school life – ask questions, listen to your child. This will make it easier to pick up on any issues they might be having
- keep family holidays outside of term time, as every day at school is an opportunity to build skills, and repetition is critical for learning – especially for primary school children
- don’t overload them – school may be exhausting for your child so make sure they have some downtime after school to relax and have a break.
Working with the school
- build a strong relationship with the school and teachers to improve communication – it’s easier to talk to them if a problem arises
- get involved with the school – volunteer for parent help, go on school trips, or help out on the FOSTA team. It helps you to get to know the teacher and the school, and it shows your child that you prioritise their schooling
- learn your school’s process for letting them know about absences, and contact them as soon as you know your child is not going to be at school that day
- talk to the teacher or principal if your child is reluctant to go to school, and work together to problem solve.
Basketball
Winter health and vaccination reminders
With the change in season we have seen an increase in children needing to use inhalers and hay fever medication, if your child needs an inhaler please make sure they have one to use at school and at home. Please contact Zoë in the office to make sure our records are up to date and all medications are current.
Te Whatu Ora encourages whānau to vaccinate their tamariki for pneumococcal disease, Meningococcal B, measles, and flu, alongside their three COVID-19 vaccines to provide the greatest level of protection heading into winter.
Tamariki aged six months to 12 years are eligible for free flu vaccinations. For more information, visit:
Flu immunisation for tamariki – KidsHealth
Measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine – Te Whatu Ora
COVID-19 boosters for over 30s and those at increased risk of severe illness – New Zealand Government
You will still need to isolate for seven days if you have COVID-19 to reduce the risk of spread. For further information:
If you have COVID-19 – New Zealand Government
Managing staff leave due to COVID-19 – Te Mahau
Waiorongomai
We have had such a super start to Term 2. We have two new students and we are all set for a great term!
We have enjoyed doing some number patterns in maths, exploring our equipment, and we started our Cross Country training. We even had a visit to Bell Street Early Learning Centre. It was so much fun seeing old friends and making new ones.
Our Uniform is on the Move!
School Policies and Procedures: School Docs
SchoolDocs is a website for our policies and procedures. We invite you to participate in the Term 2 review: Education Outside the Classroom.
To take part follow these steps;
- Visit the website https://teresas.schooldocs.co.nz/
- Enter the username (teresas) and password (ontrack).
- Follow the link to the relevant policy as listed.
- Read the policy.
- Click the Policy Review button at the top right-hand corner of the page.
- Select the reviewer type "Parent".
- Enter your name (optional).
- Submit your ratings and comments.
Hands of Christ
Heath has been practising hard and he can now ride his bike without training wheels! Wahoo! He is also a committed player to his new sport, soccer. Keep being the best version of you, Heath!
Breakfast Club
Here at St Teresa's, we provide a complimentary breakfast club. Students can gather in the Hub every day from 8 am for yummy toast and cereal.
Book Vouchers
Today each student will receive three $5 vouchers. Please look in bookbags and backpacks!
The book vouchers can be used from Monday 8 May until 20 May 2023 at all the seven Featherston Bookshops, Martinborough Bookshop and Mrs Blackwell’s Village Bookshop in Greytown and during the Featherston Booktown Karukatea Festival weekend with the visiting booksellers over the weekend of 13-14 May.
Please note, the booksellers know that they are not to exchange them for cash.
The book vouchers are funded by individual, family and business Friends of Featherston Booktown – and we are very lucky that so many people in our community support the idea of enabling children to purchase a book of their choice with their own “money”. We all hope that this adventure will launch the children into a lifelong habit of reading for pleasure.
What's on for Kids at Booktown?
Get Outdoors with Paul Adamson (FREE)
St Teresa's Catholic Primary School, 63 Bell St, Featherston
Saturday 13 May 2023 11:00am – 12:00pm
Launch a rocket, fossick in a creek, build an epic fort, hunt for bugs or sleep under the stars – these are just some of the fascinating activities Wairarapa author Paul Adamson suggests in his latest book: Get Outdoors. Suitable for Kiwis of all ages, come and listen to Paul as he explores boredom-busting ideas on how to have and make fun in the outdoors.
Granny McFlitter Knows Knitting (FREE)
Featherston Community Centre, 14 Wakefield St, Featherston
Saturday 13 May 2023 1:00pm – 2:00pm
Join Heather Haylock, author of the Granny McFlitter picture book series, and the Featherston Knitters Group for some wild, woolly, fantastically funny and fluffy fun! Heather will read from Granny McFlitter: A Country Yarn.
There will be woolly crafts and colouring, and the chance to hear more of Granny McFlitter’s adventures.
Reading Nanny Mihi with Melanie Drewery (FREE)
St Teresa's Catholic Primary School, 63 Bell St, Featherston
Saturday 13 May 2023 1:00pm – 2:00pm
Melanie Drewery, author of over 20 children’s books, including the much-loved Nanny Mihi series, will read from her books and talk a little about her inspiration, as well as the journey from ideas to published stories. There will be opportunities to ask questions.
Flightless Birds Workshop with Carol Duffy (FREE)
St Teresa's Catholic Primary School, 63 Bell St, Featherston
Saturday 13 May 2023 3:00pm – 4:00pm
Recently Carol Duffy teamed up with a teenage artist to produce some picture books. In this session Carol will read from It’s Time to Go. There will be an opportunity to make native bird stick puppets. Carol will also read extracts from Don’t Feed the Kea and Little Brown Weka. There may be time for a visit to Dragonfree – the archipelago where people and dragons work together.
Amorangi and Millie's Trip Through Time with Lauren Keenan (FREE)
Featherston Community Centre, 14 Wakefield St, Featherston
Sunday 14 May 2023 11:00am – 12:00pm
Just because something happened a long time ago doesn't mean it's not still relevant today. Hear some tricks and tips about how to turn what happened in the past into an interesting story from award-winning author Lauren Keenan, creator of Amorangi and Millie's Trip Through Time.
Finding and Making Workshop with Emma Hinton
St Teresa's Catholic Primary School, 63 Bell St, Featherston
Sunday 14 May 2023 11:00am – 12:00pm
General Admission: $11.15 each ($10.00 + $1.15 fees)
Includes materials and a bound book to take away.
Turn a poem into a prompt journal to write and/or draw your own story. Bind the preprinted “I have a story to tell” and learn the Japanese binding method to make your own books.
Limited to 20 children, aged 8 or older . Please bring your favourite caregiver to help you!
Writing Funny Stories Workshop (FREE)
Featherston Community Centre, 14 Wakefield St, Featherston
Sunday 14 May 2023 1:00pm – 2:00pm
What are some things that you find really funny and how would you go about putting them in a story? Come join Leela Chakraborti (11) and her dad Rajorshi Chakraborti who turned a throwaway joke about people farting uncontrollably into a children's novel they wrote together –The Bad Smell Hotel! Talk about noticing fun, and funny things that crop up in our daily lives, and how we can build on them to create characters and stories.
Singalong with Kath Bee (FREE)
St Teresa's Catholic Primary School, 63 Bell St, Featherston
Sunday 14 May 2023 1:00pm – 2:00pm
Come and join Kath Bee as she sings songs you know and love, like Individuality, Dad I wanna be a Camel, Sprinkle A Little Sunshine and more. Dance, sing, do actions and even pop bubbles! The hour will fly by, Kath will leave time for Q & A at the end, give some basic song writing tips for budding songwriters and leave you feeling uplifted, with a smile on your face and a song in your heart.
Follow Kath to Chicken and Frog, the best little children's bookshop around, where she will read both her picture books Dragons Under My Bed and Dougal the Kākāpō and sing more songs.
Thanks to the South Wairarapa District Council and Chicken and Frog Bookshop’s sponsorship this event is FREE.
Tickets and registration for the FREE events are available at https://www.eventfinda.co.nz/tour/2023/featherston-booktown-karukatea-festival-2023
Join us for Pink Shirt Day!
Bullying in Aotearoa is a real problem. We have the third-highest rate of school bullying out of 36 OECD countries and one in five workers feels discriminated against or bullied at work. Those bullied are far more likely to experience mental health issues.
Pink Shirt Day works to reduce bullying by celebrating diversity in all its forms and supporting schools, workplaces and communities to be safe, supportive, welcoming and inclusive for everyone.
To celebrate this important kaupapa we’ll be inviting everyone to wear pink and holding lots of fun activities!
You can learn more about Pink Shirt Day here: www.pinkshirtday.org.nz
Feed and Fund
We invite you to come and share some kai with us, listen to local community projects and vote for your favourite. Entry is $10 per person (gold coin for under 16s), which includes your supper and a vote.
So please come along and join us for this fun community event!
Steering Group
The steering group meets once a month (in the evening) and guides the direction of Fab Feathy's mahi based on the five CLD principles.
Interested in finding out more? Contact Hana
Life Education Quiz Night
Our fundraiser is a quiz night to help continue the fabulous work that Life Education does within our community, in particular our schools.
Life Education and the Healthy Harold programme is focused on the education, development and well-being of our young, local, school age kids. We cover a total of 68 schools and 7800+ primary age kids across the region. Please read the attached brochure for more information and context on the event.
Quiz is on 6th May at Wairarapa College auditorium and the registration link is below.
https://www.helpingharold.com/quiz
Teams of up to 8 for each table and the table is a cost of $240. Cash bar available with spot prizes and supper provided.
Contact Us
Email: office@teresas.school.nz
Website: https://www.teresas.school.nz/
Location: St Teresa's School Bell Street, Featherston, New Zealand
Phone: 06 308 9064
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/St-Teresas-Featherston/100057033717170/