Greetings, Kia ora, Kia orana, Talofa, Mālō e lelei,  Namaste, Ni Hao, Bula, Hola, Kumusta

Dear Families

What a joy it was on Monday, to formally welcome our new families with a Whakatau. It was so lovely to see the families who have joined with Holy Trinity Catholic Primary School over the past term and also our brand new families that joined with us just this week, coming together to celebrate being one in unity – kotahitanga. Our students enthusiastically shared with them our school pepehas, through haka and waiata and words of welcome through mihi and karakia. Mr Malele and myself spoke on behalf of the tangata whenua/home people and we were thrilled to have Mr Farley, Katherine’s Dad respond in mihi on behalf of the manuhiri/visitors.  This was a great occasion, shared by all and ably lead by our student leaders who exemplify what it means to be Holy Trinity people – endeavouring to learn, love and serve in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Sprit.

Term 3 is always a busy term with many school activities – sports days, book week, cross country, speeches, etc so we encourage all our families to participate and enjoy school life when each opportunity arises!

A Blessing for Term 3

Living God,
Bless us with …
eyes that see goodness
mouths that speak love
ears that are discerning
hearts that are accommodating
hands that touch in kindness
feet that go the extra mile
and smiles that show acceptance
Amen

HERO – School Communication and Student Reporting System

At the end of last term, we launched the upgrade to our student management, school reporting and communication system by migrating from Linc-Ed to HERO.

Click https://hero.linc-ed.com/parents/ for HERO login instructions. If you need any additional help, feel welcome to email the school office at office@holytrinity.school.nz

HERO enables you to keep up-to-date with all school communication through a modern computer browser or through the HERO app. Note, Internet Explorer is not supported.

All the rich learning content from Linc-Ed has been migrated to HERO.

School Reports

At the end of the term, families who attended the THANK YOU CELEBRATION at school, spent time tasting school-made soup and chatting with teachers/kaitiaki about their child’s term at school.  Families were able to add comments to the children’s Key Competencies report. This gave everyone an opportunity to capture learner voice, teacher/kaitiaki voice and parent/family voice about each student’s learning capabilities. Hard copy Key Competency Reports will be coming home with the children today as well as being published on the HERO learning site.

DRS Report

Community Outreach

Last weekend, one of our younger students, Daniel Bangero (Year 1) and his family supported a community outreach fundraiser by providing a food stall with delicious treats for sale! Daniel and his big sister, Andrea, had been very busy over the holiday break baking rice cakes, custard flans, creating book marks and cards and designing artwork for aprons.  We are very proud of you Daniel and your whānau, for your generous and positive contributions to our wider community. This is a great way to show the school Gospel values of Excellence/Hiranga and Compassion/Arohanui. Ka mau to wehi!

Whole School Mass

Father Peter Murphy of St Mary’s Parish, Papakura will be leading our whole school Mass next week on Tuesday 28 July at 9:00am in Taamaua (school hall). It’s always wonderful to be able to gather together as a school faith community to ask God to bless us as we commence our journey through this new term. We invite you all to join us as we celebrate the beginning of another school term full of learning, loving and serving.

Baptism Programme

We are inviting any parents who wish for their child/children to receive the Sacrament of Baptism this year to contact school or Mrs Silva. Father Peter Murphy will be running a Baptismal session with interested parents in the staffroom later this term. If you would like to find out more information please contact Mrs Ana Silva – asilva@holytrinity.school.nz

Community Dinner

The Papakura Community Dinner is now held at the Crossroads Methodist Church 25 Broadway, in Papakura, every Tuesday evening from 6:00pm. Holy Trinity Catholic Primary School has volunteered to offer helpers for the community dinner every last Tuesday of each month. Our first Tuesday to serve at the Community Dinner is next week Tuesday 28th July. If you are available and can volunteer an hour of your time to help out, please contact the school office or email Apaula Lautua. School Office – (09) 296 9039 Apaula Lautua afruean-lautua@holytrinity.school.nz

Caring Foundation Mass

This week, six students and their families, Miss Lindstrom and Mr Cortesi representing the Board of Trustees attended Bishop Patrick Dunn’s Catholic Caring Foundation’s Annual Caring Mass and Awards. This Mass celebrates the care and compassion our students and outside organisations show others, especially during these challenging times of COVID-19.

Recipients of Bishop  Pat’s Caring Foundation certificates were Georgina Lautua, Simone Gertos, Franxon Villa, Charlita Agafili, Abigail Moorthy and Destin Barte. These students consistently demonstrate compassion/arohanui and caring for others – it was a privilege to see them being acknowledged and celebrated at Mass. This year, Monsignor Bernard Kiely was the celebrant at Mass as Bishop Pat was unwell. Monsignor Bernard shared with us about the caring nature of Mary Magadalene (as it was her Feast Day) and how she remained with Jesus right to the end and was such a great example to other believers of Jesus. Monsignor Bernard reminded us that we too can be like Mary, by always reaching out and caring for others in need.

Charlita and Franxon’s reflection of the day … The dome-like structure of the roof, the energy and enthusiasm of fellow believers was really breathtaking and extraordinary in the Church. To formally see the people who answered the calls of the poor, was something we would never forget. We did receive certificates but the greatest honour and prize was the sense that our people of Aotearoa really cared about the poor, about the community, and about God!

Thank you Feast Celebration

On the last Thursday of Term 2, we celebrated our wonderful families, their parents and caregivers, with a thank-you feast.

This was our way to acknowledge the great work families had put into their children’s learning during the lockdown period, and to thank them also for their support and patience. Term 2 of 2020 will always be a memorable occasion for different reasons for us all, but one we will always remember; for the innovative learning that was shared, the video assemblies that we watched and for the quality time spent together.

The Thank You Celebration night was well attended by our families. The atmosphere of the event was very relaxed, and it was nice to converse with other parents with a cup of carefully prepared school-made soup. It was great to hear that some of our families even made an event of it, and went exploring other soup stations throughout the school! Our learners shared their own strengths and areas to work on with their Key Competency reports, and parents were able to feedback on their children’s report also. All in all, it was another successful evening of coming together in kotahitanga. Special thanks to those that attended, and to our wonderful staff for their work behind the scenes.

School Closed TUESDAY 8th September 2020

School will be closed for students on Tuesday 8th September 2020.  Teaching and Support Staff will be on site for this day ONLY.  Teachers will be involved with professional development and learning, continuing their learning about innovative learning and collaborative practices for effective teaching and learning.

These TEACHER ONLY DAYS are part of the Primary Teachers’ Collective Agreement Contract where days are available for teachers to have professional development and learning during the school week.

Please make alternative arrangements for your child/ren on this day. SKIDS (Before/After School Care Provider), has advised that they will run a full day’s programme at school in Taamaua/Hall. It is up to parents to organise this arrangement with SKIDS. Contact numbers are Rose and Luke King, 021 2899939 or 0800 546 475.

Staff News

Congratulations

This week we celebrated a very special day for Mrs Quarterman, our school’s Office Administrator. Jennifer celebrated 25 years of continuous service in the education administration sector on Tuesday! We shared in Jennifer’s anniversary day with a morning tea and messages of thanks for her administrative work and for the care that she has shown to many school staff, children and families over her past 25 years. Congratulations Jennifer and THANK YOU from us all – we are very proud of you!

Family Bereavement

Carolyn Harvey, a member of our Support Staff”s, mum has sadly passed away this week. On behalf of Holy Trinity school community, we extend our sympathy and loving thoughts and prayers to Carolyn and her family as they gather to celebrate the earthly life of a much loved and cherished family member. May she rest in peace. Amen.

Curriculum News

Learning Community Ngahere

Innovation Concept Learning … our next steps in making the flying fox accessible to ALL children.
We have been testing different materials that can be used to make the ground higher for all children to reach the flying fox. We thought of boxes, wooden blocks, concrete blocks, a little trampoline and ladders. I wonder which material is going to be the best choice?
We tested boxes first. We were able to reach the flying fox BUT the box did not handle our weight and it collapsed! Then we used a stronger box. It was wobbly, so our friends helped keep it balanced.
Our next questions are:
How do we make sure that the box stays firm?
Is the box made from material that will last in all types of weather.
Mrs Champion/Kaitiaki

HTCPS Home Learning Google Site

For those wonderful whānau who would like to do more learning with their children at home, we’ve kept our HTCPS Home Learning Site from the lockdown period, up and running. The learning tasks were updated during the first week of the Term 2 holidays and are still available now. We’re always looking for feedback of how we can best use the site to help connect the learning from school with home and vice versa – so feel free to make contact with us and share your much appreciated thoughts and suggestions.

You can access the site with the link link here:  https://sites.google.com/holytrinity.school.nz/htcpslearningheadquarters/home

Visual Arts Programme

Six students from Learning Communities Moana and Maunga have been busy exploring the many media related to presenting art. They came with their own knowledge and skills and drew on these to share ideas about how to transfer this into art. We talked about our own experiences and reflected on how we could contribute to the ethos of our school.
We reflected on our own cultural backgrounds and challenged ourselves to look at innovative ways that we can represent the many ethnicities at our school. Such as using the symbol of the triquetra by adding cultural designs within the emblem. We discussed designing panels to hang on the railings on the top floor outside of Learning Communities Moana and Maunga. We thought of a signpost for our garden with signs pointing in the direction of countries that represent the whānau in our school!
During each lesson, a lot of discussion and sharing time helps keep our interests renewed. We learn from each other’s experiences while drawing and genuinely offering support by showing one another how to do different skills.
We begin our lessons by exploring how to manipulate materials such as pencil and paint. Our first visual arts task is to create portraits of our School Whānau Patrons – Bishop Pompallier, Suzanne Aubert, Mary MacKillop, and Bishop Patrick Dunn. After lots of sketching of drafts, the students are now confident to set their final attempt to paint.
This has been a positive experience for these six students and they look forward to spending every Thursday and Friday afternoon indulging in their love of creating artworks.
Mrs Chung/Kaitiaki

Sports News

ANNUAL CROSS COUNTRY EVENT

Ki Ora Whānau,

Next Thursday the 30th of July we will be having our annual Holy Trinity Cross-Country event.  This event will be held directly behind the school at Bruce Pulman Park. We will walk as a whole school to Bruce Pulman around 11am.

Races will start from approximately 11:30.

All students are expected to wear their house Whanau colours for the day.

PATRICK DUNN WHANAU = YELLOW

MACKILLOP WHANAU = RED

AUBERT WHANAU = GREEN

POMPALLIER WHANAU = PURPLE

Bring a jumper / jacket or both on the day. It is advisable to keep warm prior to the event and also after the event.

It is strongly advised that all students wear appropriate footwear i.e running shoes for this event.

If you are able to assist, where you will be standing on the course on the day for simple marshalling duties, please let me Mr Brown know on qbrown@holytrinity.school.nz.

Any student who normally uses an asthma inhaler while undertaking exercise is expected to bring their personal inhaler on the day.

No doubt an exciting time ahead, we look forward to our families dressing up to support their children, and to what will be another memorable occasion for the year. Final details will be sent via HERO closer to the day.

Many thanks in advance, and look forward to what will be an amazing day!

Health, Safety and Well-Being/Hauora

Cyber Safety

5 Emerging Social Apps Trends in 2018 so farWith the rise of social media and the many ways to communicate, we’re well aware that our tamariki are exposed to and even own a social media account. It can become a problem when a child is left unattended. This youtube video demonstrate the potential consequences if used incorrectly:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBhxVomEN7Y

So parents, caregivers, please check in on your children’s activities and make sure that they are using these social applications for what they were intended for – for communication and positive communication. For ideas and resources on how to manage cyber safety from home, here is a link to Netsafe that will provide a toolkit for parents to use: https://www.netsafe.org.nz/parenttoolkit/

Mindfulness for Well-Being

Stopping and noticing what’s happening in the moment is a great way to boost our wellbeing. Have a chat about the 5 senses with your whānau (see, hear, smell, touch, taste).

We can use all our senses when we’re enjoying a snack or meal! When you’re enjoying a snack or meal with your whānau, take notice and talk about what you see, feel, smell, taste and hear.

Slow down and enjoy the moment!

Park and Walk to and from School

Thank you to all our families that are parking in the neighbouring streets and walking to and from school.

On Wednesday 5th August, the Hauora Team will be out looking for all the families that are taking part in this initiative and there’ll be some prizes for those who are parking and walking!

THANK YOU from the Hauora Team

Book Club

The latest issue of the Book Club catalogue is out now. This issue has 41 titles that are $5 or less, so it’s a great time to stock up. Each order earns reward dollars for the school that we can use to get free resources for the learning communities.
You can order online at https://mybookclub.scholastic.co.nz/Parent/Login.aspx (credit card payments) or through the school office (cash or EFTPOS payments).
Orders close at 3pm on Friday 31 July.  If you have any questions, please see Kirstie in LC Awa or email her at   kthorpe@holytrinity.school.nz

Reminders

School Bell Times

8:50am      School commences
8:50am      Morning Block
10:30am    First Break
11:00am    Middle Block
1:00pm      Second Break
1:40pm      Afternoon Block
2:50pm     School concludes

2020 School Dates

Term One – Tuesday 4th February to Thursday 9th April
Term Two – Tuesday 28th April to Friday 3rd July
Term Three – Monday 20th July to Friday 25th September
Term Four – Monday 12th October to Wednesday 16th December

Uniform – lost property!

Thank you for the way you have helped the children prepare for Term 3. They continue to look very smart in their uniforms. Please ensure all uniform clothing is named clearly, so lost items can be returned. We have had a number of items in our lost property box that are unable to be returned to their rightful owners as the clothing is unnamed. The Lost Property container is kept in the Health Room and you are welcome to pop in to see if any of the misplaced clothing etc belongs to your family.

Upcoming School Events

School Liturgy and Assembly – led by Learning Community Ngahere
Monday 27th July 8:50am in Taamaua/school hall

School Mass – Beginning of the Term Celebration
Tuesday 28th July 9am @ Taamaua/school hall – Fr Peter Murphy 

School CROSS COUNTRY
Thursday 30th July @ Bruce Pulman Park

School Liturgy and Assembly – led by Student Cultural Leaders
Monday 3rd August 8:50am in Taamaua/school hall

Cook Island Language Week
Monday 3rd – Friday 7th August 

Year 7/8 Inter-school Cross Country
Wednesday 5th August 

Book Week at School
Monday 24th August – Friday 28th August 

Term 3 concludes
Friday 25th September

Term 4 commences
Monday 12th October