Newsletter Week Two Term Four

Principal's Message

NEWSLETTER WEEK 2 TERM 4 2025

We had a great first week back to school. The weather hasn’t been playing ball, with a fair bit of wind around. Our Kakano students are using the school pool for the next few weeks. Having a school pool is undoubtedly a blessing, and it’s an opportunity for children to gain confidence in the water.

I hope your child was able to read during the holidays and they have filled in their Reading Logs. They must be returned for the lucky draw on Friday at assembly by Thursday.

Today, we hosted thirty educators from around the North Island to see our classroom practice. They were looking at the structured approach to learning, and they were very impressed. We are hosting another large group in a few weeks.

You may have seen in the media, talk of a NZEI teacher Union member strike on Thursday, 23rd October. This is not yet official as the formal notice has not been presented to school Boards, but an informal notice has been made. If an official strike notice is given, the Board will determine whether there are enough non-union members to keep the school open; if not, the Board may choose to close the school on Thursday, 23rd October. Since most of our staff are union members, we will be unable to keep the school open. For now, please keep this possibility in mind. Further information will follow from the Board.

Some reminders:

TEACHER ONLY DAY

We have a Teachers’ Only Day on Monday, 10th November. There will be no school for children on this day. If you require after-school care, you can ring Aidan from A-Z Kids’ Club (Glenholme Afterschool Care). Aidan’s contact number is 347 0709 or 0211 215599

GRANDPARENTS/GRANDFRIENDS MASS: Friday, November 14th at 9.00 am

Join us for Mass. We would love to see as many grandparents and grandfriends as possible there with us.

ATHLETICS FOR YEARS 4 TO 6

Interhouse Athletics Day 2023. Our annual Athletics Day for Years 4 to 6 students will take place on Wednesday, November 19th.

Have a good week.

David.

DATES FOR TERM 4:

Friday 7th November Legends of the Peak

Monday 10th November Teacher Only Day

Friday 14th November Grandparents' Day

Wed 19th November Athletics Day for Totara Team

Thursday, 20 November Celebration of Learning

Friday 21st November JPC Orientation Day for Year 6 students

Nov 24th Ahurei week. Our night to be confirmed

Friday 28th November Year 6 Retreat and Year 5 Leadership Day

Tuesday 2nd December Year 6 Big Day In

Wed 3rd December Kakano team Big Day In and Totara team picnic

Friday 5th December End of Year Mass

Monday 8th December School Prizegiving

Thursday, 11th December, Missioning of our Year 6 students and the last day of school

PTA

We warmly welcome all levels of involvement with the PTA — every bit helps strengthen our school

community and it truly is a great team to be a part of. If you're interested in getting involved or learning more, don’t hesitate to reach out!

The PTA are looking for 4 more volunteers to join our dedicated team who run the weekly sausage sizzle. If you're able to give 2 hours of your time between 11.15 - 1.15 on Fridays, we would love to hear from you. Please contact the school office.

Next Meeting: 22 October 2025 at 7pm in the Staffroom at school or

contact: stmaryspta@stmarysrotorua.school.nz

The PTA would also like to acknowledge our Quiz Night raffle sponsors - these were truly amazing and such a hit on the night!

Thank you to: Ranolf Pharmacy, Steph Northey Art, Joanna Johnson Artistry, Clara Makes, Amalgamated Roofing, Mrs Bowen, The Needham Family

PTA Fundraiser – St Mary’s Towels

This term, our wonderful PTA is running a fun fundraiser! You can order a special towel with the St Mary’s logo and your child’s name on it.

Each towel costs $35, and they’re perfect for school swimming or as a Christmas gift.

To order, please fill out the order form. Remember, you’ll need to complete a separate form for each towel you’d like to buy.

Thanks for supporting our PTA – we can’t wait to see everyone’s St Mary’s towels!

https://forms.gle/AKB6bD6TYDLZLTbM7

Director of Religious Studies

Tomorrow, we continue to celebrate the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary with a Liturgy at 12:15 pm. On 31st October, we will be leading the rosary with our parish community from 8:30 am. On Friday 14th November, we will be celebrating Grandparents Day, starting with a Mass at 9 am. Everyone is warmly welcomed to come along and join us.

Over twenty years ago, St. John Paul II released the apostolic letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae, in which he introduced five new Luminous Mysteries to the traditional fifteen mysteries of the Rosary. In his apostolic letter, the Holy Father said that “the rosary, while clearly focused on Mary, is really a prayer centered on Christ.” He also shared that the rosary had always been an important part of his own prayer life, even when he was young. Just two weeks after becoming pope, St. John Paul II said openly, “The rosary is my favorite prayer.” He introduced the Luminous Mysteries to show more clearly how the rosary is about Christ’s life and mission. These mysteries focus on Jesus’ public ministry, from His Baptism to His Passion. The five Luminous (or Light) Mysteries are: The Baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan, when God reveals Jesus as His beloved Son. The Wedding Feast at Cana, when Jesus performs His first miracle. The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God, when Jesus calls people to conversion and faith. The Transfiguration, when Jesus is revealed in glory before His disciples. The Institution of the Eucharist, when Jesus gives us His Body and Blood at the Last Supper.

I hope you have a blessed week.

God bless.

Lorna Dobson

DRS

Year 6 JPC Orientation Day

We have our annual Y6 Orientation Day. Here are the details

- Friday 21st November.

- Start at 10:45am

- Wear your regular school uniform.

- Bring your lunch and drink bottle.

- Bring a hat

- Meet Mrs. Fraser, the Y7 Dean, in the Edmund Rice Centre (the school gym).

- We're all finished at 2:30pm ready for parents to come collect (from inside the gym).

Summer sport & other tournaments information is up on the website. Good luck to all participating in a sports this term. Please remember our values and fair play.

Cricket

Super Smash Cricket (for years 0-3)

$30 Term 4 (6week program)

3.45pm-4.45pm at Smallbone Park on Thursdays each term.

Click here to register

Tennis Please let the office know if you are interested in Tennis.

Term 4 Touch Rugby

Registrations are closed, see office if you would like to be put in a team.

We are looking for more Year 3/4 players

More information is on our website.

SPORTS PHOTOS

Please keep sending in and taking photos of our children playing sports. We love to see them and they all get used for the magazine pages at the end of the year. Please send to schooloffice@stmarysrotorua.school.nz

Special Mention

Emma over the holidays was the only Junior (Year 8 and under) to receive a nomination for Dance NZ made Nationals at the Rotorua Regional on the 1st of September. She zoomed to Palmerston North for Nationals on the 13th of September and won Year 5 National Champion! Well done Emma!

Lucky Books

Lucky book orders due back 24 October 12 noon, no late orders please. Please ensure that your

child’s name and classroom number are on the order form otherwise the order will remain in the

office. There are 2 ways of paying either 1) through the loop system which is on web page LUCKY

Book Club | Scholastic New Zealand and selecting the parent’s tab, or 2) paying cash and sending the

money and order form to the school office. If the order is a gift, then please mark this clearly and

you will be contacted to collect the order from the office.

Lucky books donate the school 15% of the total amount spent to purchase extra books or on

classroom resources.

There is a promotion with this issue to get up to 3 free books, which is only available to parents

using the LOOP system to order and pay, and can only be used once per customer. The LOOP system

will direct you to the selection of free books to choose from.

1 free book when $25 is spent

2 free books when $50 is spent

3 free books when $75 is spent

This is the last book order for the year

Lunch Online

We're pleased to announce that Lunch Online now has a QR code that allows families to quickly and easily create an account. This will provide a convenient way for new families to get started with their service.