Greetings, Kia ora, Kia orana, Talofa, Mālō e lelei, Namaste, Ni Hao, Bula, Hola, Kumusta, Namaskārām,
Sat Shri Akaal, Vanakkam and Ayubowan
Dear Families
Once again, we have raced through another term of busy school life and now find ourselves fast approaching Term 2 but not until after the well deserved April holidays! So as we do go on holiday, we pause to give thanks to God for all that has been achieved as a school community. We give thanks to God for our staff and the dedication they show in working with each child as they grow in their learning and personal development. We give thanks to God for our children who take on the opportunities and challenges of school life with willingness and positive attitudes. We give thanks to God for our families/whānau who continue to support their child and school in the many shared activities and events AND we give thanks to God for all those who lead and support our school through governance (our School Board), prayer and spiritual life (our Parish Priest, Fr Mathew), fundraising and social events (our PTFA) – may we all be blessed for the work we do to nurture and grow this special school community in learning ka ako, loving ka aroha and serving ka manaaki.
A special thanks to our families – parents and grandparents who have assisted at the Gymnastics sessions each week for our Year 3 and Year 4 students. Your dedication to this role is inspiring – THANK YOU!
The Stations of the Cross
It is unusual for us not to be able to pray and celebrate the Holy Week Liturgies as a school community in preparation for the Easter Triduum due to the school holiday break. We feel like we are missing out! We do hope our families can join with us this Friday as we pray and reflect on the Stations of the Cross here at school. And then join with the parishes for the Holy Week and Easter celebrations during the first week of the holidays. Please keep an eye out for the parish bulletins which will have all of the Liturgy and Mass times advertised.
The Stations of the Cross takes us on a prayerful journey of reflection … and as we walk through the Stations, we take time to pray and reflect on where we see Christ in our world through a mixture of stories and scripture. We reflect on the final journey of Jesus, leading to his death on the cross and we do so in solidarity with all those – here in our school, at home, in our community, in our country and across the world, who are suffering today.
Through this Holy Week and Easter Season, may we as Pilgrims of Hope, be reawakened to the hope and new life given to us through Jesus Christ, our Saviour.
Catholic Special Character School Review
On Wednesday 7th May, we will welcome Christine Smith and Viki Trainor from the Catholic Education Services Team in the Catholic Diocese of Auckland Office who will be with us for two days as reviewers for our school’s Catholic Special Character Evaluation for Development Review. The purpose of the Catholic Special Character Evaluation process is to examine the effect of what is being done to safeguard and strengthen Catholic Special Character at our school. It also provides assurance to the proprietor/Bishop Steve Lowe and to our community that Holy Trinity School is authentically Catholic and we are meeting the goals of Catholic education.
There will be opportunities for our Board, our PTFA, a parent group, our staff and our students to have time meeting and sharing with our reviewers. Respective surveys have also been shared with the relevant groups for their feedback and reflections which the reviewers will use to collate and process information from.
We are looking forward to Christine and Viki being with us and warmly welcome them to our Holy Trinity Catholic Primary School community for the 2 days of our review – Wednesday 7th May and Thursday 8th May, Term 2.
DRS Report
End of Term 1 Mass
This week we celebrated our end of term Mass in Taamaua/school hall with Father Mathew of St Mary’s Parish, Papakura. It’s always a great way to end the term with a Thanksgiving Mass, to give thanks to God for another busy term that our tamariki and kaitiaki have had with exploring the concept of Kaitiakitanga/Guardianship.
Stations of the Cross Liturgy
All our school families are invited to come and join us as we walk the “Stations of the Cross” with our tamariki on the last day of school – Friday 11th April at 12:30pm. Our children will be reenacting the 14 stations which will be held outside on the school field. As we make our way to each station, we will be reflecting on the station and reminding ourselves of Holy Week which will occur during the school holidays. This will be a special way of ending the term as we prepare ourselves for the Death and Resurrection of our Saviour, Jesus Christ, at Easter Time.
Parish Bulletins
Please click on the links to access St Mary’s Parish and St Anne’s Parish Bulletins:
St Mary’s Parish Papakura 6th April 2025 Newsletter
St Anne’s Parish Manurewa Bulletin #14 – Sunday 6th April 2025
Term 1 Online Reporting on HERO
Next week, we will share our term’s learning with families on HERO. This will include each student’s progress toward their learning goals in reading, writing, and maths—click on My Learning Wall in HERO to access this information.
You will also find updates on student achievement in Social Science, Health, and PE. To view these, visit your child’s Learning Community page in HERO e.g. Learning Community Whenua.
We encourage you to read and discuss your child’s HERO online reporting comments together, celebrating their learning successes and personal growth this term!
Staff/Teacher Only Day in Term 2 2025
School will be closed for students on Friday 16th May – Term 2
Teachers and Support Staff will be involved in a professional development and learning day about the newly released New Zealand Curriculum Refresh, Mathematics and Statistics Learning Area. This is a Ministry of Education approved Staff /Teacher Only Day. We received notification of approval for this Staff/Teacher Only Day last week.
This day will provide our school with a dedicated time to understand, prepare and engage with changes across The Mathematics and Statistics curriculum. This is our second staff/teacher only day for the year. It is an opportunity for all of our kaitiaki to share ideas and expertise and to grow in our confidence in implementing the upcoming curriculum and assessment changes.
Please make alternative arrangements for your child/ren for Friday 16th May.
PTFA News …
It’s the final days for the Holy Trinity Catholic Primary School Math-a-thon fundraiser!
Thank you again to our amazing sponsors – thank you to sKids, Auckland Zoo, Toshiba and Silky Otter who have provided us with a great range of prizes!
Thank you to everyone for your amazing support for this fundraiser – it has been a great start to the year!
HTCPS PTFA
Teaching and Learning News
HTCPS Home Learning Site
Kia ora whānau,
We are excited to share that our HTCPS Home Learning site will be published in the last week of this term! This online site will feature home learning tasks for the holidays, designed to introduce our Term 2 concept: Systems. The curriculum focus is Science exploring how systems are an essential part of our world and when we know about systems, we can make good choices to serve and sustain our common home for creation.
These tasks are practical, hands-on, and family-friendly, encouraging tamariki to observe, explore, and discuss the systems they see around them—whether at home, in nature, or in the community.
In the first two weeks of Term 2, we will use these home learning experiences to help students connect what they already know to new learning, deepening their understanding of systems. Your support in engaging with these learning tasks will set them up for rich learning next term.
Keep an eye out for the link to our Google Site on Hero, and we encourage you to explore the tasks together over the holidays. We look forward to hearing about your child’s discoveries when we’re back at school!
Outdoor Education Day
As part of the Health and Physical Education Curriculum which is integrated across all learning areas, our students from Learning Communities Awa, Ngahere, Maunga and Moana spent some time outside for outdoor education in making connections with nature through a variety of planned activities. Our younger students worked with magnifying glasses to explore nature in the school gardens, while the older children had rakau games, harakeke weaving and cooking damper over a fire. It was a great day for all our tamariki as they explored ways to connect with nature and how it impacts positively on our wellbeing.
Dog Safety Lessons
The Auckland Council Animal Management Team visited Holy Trinity learners to teach us how to “Be Safe Around Dogs”. With many dogs roaming streets in Auckland areas it is important that we know what to do when a dog approaches us or when we would like to approach a dog.
We learnt nine important steps to keep us safe around any dog that we might encounter.
Step 1: Check its sweet before you meet – Make sure you ask the owner before approaching any dog
Step 2: To understand – they Sniff your hand – Allow dogs to have a sniff before you pat them..
Step 3: Chin or chest, that’s the best – With permission, only stroke the chin or chest area of unknown dogs.
Step 4: To meet a pup, ask a grown up – Ask an adult before having a puppy cuddle.
Step 5: If a dog has a snack, keep well back – Stay away from a dog that is eating.
Step 6: Keep your face out of their space – Never put your face close to a dog’s face.
Step 7: Don’t run or shout, it freaks them out – Dogs might chase you if you run and shout.
Step 8: A dogs not a toy, don’t tease or annoy – be gentle with dogs
Step 9: Quiet and slow is the way to go – If you are scared, move slowly and quietly away from the dog.
“Duffy Books in Homes” Schools Programme
- Share books with your child: Reading aloud is a powerful way to build a child’s vocabulary, comprehension, and love of reading.
- Make it a regular habit: Even a few minutes each day can make a big difference to your child’s confidence and ability in reading.
- Make reading a fun and engaging experience: Use expressive voices, ask questions, and encourage discussion.
Duffy Theatre Performance …
But wait! There’s more! On Wednesday 9 April, Duffy Theatre will be visiting our school. Every year, two groups of travelling actors journey from North Cape to Bluff bringing the message “It’s Cool to Read and Cool to Achieve!” to tens of thousands of Duffy kids.Book Club Orders Update
Thank you to those families who placed an order for the latest issue of the Book Club. The orders should be making their way home early next week.
Learning Community News
Whenua
We are seeing children not only sharing their ideas about Kaitiakitanga but also demonstrating it in real-life situations at school, such as being kind to others and taking care of our class resources.
Our learners have been working diligently to choose effective ways to convey their message about Kaitiakitanga and inspire others to nurture and serve our Common Home—our Whenua. Some children created trash bin models for sorting waste correctly, while others made puppets to share their message of being Kaitiaki for people and places. Some students presented their ideas through a classroom TV talk show. Others used technology, such as Book Creator, to illustrate how people’s jobs and roles in the community reflect Kaitiakitanga in various ways.
In Health & PE, we saw a range of creative presentations about caring for ourselves and others. These included paper mats representing Hauora connected with our school’s Gospel Values, as well as posters and booklets about building a strong life—our whare—upon Jesus as our Rock. Some students created collages using natural materials while listening to calming music, helping them stay focused and relaxed.
LC Whenua children are also enjoying exploring positional language in the Maths strand, giving and receiving instructions to move from one location to another.
It is a blessing to witness our children praying for God’s grace to help them and others grow in Kaitiakitanga as they work together to serve, nurture, and sustain our Common Home—our Whenua.
Awa
LC Awa learners have created, presented and reflected on their new knowledge acquired around Kaitiakitanga to serve, nurture, and sustain our common home.
In RE, we connected the Gospel Value stories to being kaitiaki of themselves, each other and the environment. On our EOTC Haoura day, learners were excited and actively engaged in finding the rainbow colours in and around our school, and completed a tally chart to record their findings. Through this activity, students were able to reflect on how to look after their Hauora well being.
Our learners enjoyed meeting the beautiful puppy, Nuggets and learning dog safety rules such as asking the owner for permission to touch the dog, making the dog sniff your hand to obtain its approval to touch it and keeping a safe distance between yourself and the dog, which is between your chin and chest. With that experience, our learners have written their stories about dog safety as a way of looking after themselves and animals to grow kaitiakitanga.
Ngahere
LC Ngahere learners have been practicing their presenting skills, they have been learning to use a clear voice and learning how to engage their audience. They have done a wonderful job at presenting ways to be a kaitiaki of our common home so they can influence their audience to take action.
Learners have completed their last session of gymnastics, they have grown in their confidence in showing a range of shapes with their bodies and safely using the gymnastics equipment. They are able to confidently talk about how gymnastics has helped them to look after their hauora.
Maunga
LC Maunga learners completed a fantastic eighth week at gymnastics today, revising all the new skills they have learnt over the term and safe positions for gymnastics as well as safe use of the equipment. They are all able to positively talk about the ways that gymnastics sustains their hauora.
During social science our learners worked hard to develop effective ways that inspire us to be kaitiaki of our common home. They strategically presented these ideas to their audience in order to influence them to act on the new knowledge being shared. The learners ensured they used active listening skills so they could pick out the ideas that were most effective to them and they could act on quickly.
Moana
n LC Moana, we continue to celebrate our learners who are pushing themselves to show excellence/hiranga and resilience/ngāwari. This week, we celebrated our latest round of learners who completed all of their reading tasks. Ka rawe!
Ms Gill’s Religious Education groups have been busy working on a website on the history of St Mary’s Parish, and how members of the parish are role models of kaitiakitanga for us. We hope to have the website finished next week and ready to share with the school and St Mary’s Church communities.
Mrs Griffiths’ and Mrs Ali’s RE groups have been working on their presentation slideshows all about our common home, our school parish, and how this relates to kaitiakitanga. When learners have completed their presentations, they will be given the opportunity to present and receive feedback from their peers about how influenced they are to show kaitiakitanga.
Travelwise!
At the end of Week 9, Travelwise student leaders will have the chance to collaborate directly with Auckland Transport (AT) personnel. This opportunity will allow them to gain valuable insights into their responsibilities and impact as Travelwise leaders in our school. This experience aims to equip them with the knowledge and skills to be more effective in their leadership positions.
During Term 2, our leaders will be planning a variety of activities for learners across the school to be involved in around Road Safety.
Our Travel-wise student leaders from LC Moana are: Hannah Chau, Jane Tatui, Lara Tamani, Kinsley Miravite, Mikayla Chand, and Maegan Tiongco.
Sports News
Year 5/6 North Counties Football
Some of our Year 5/6 tamariki took part in representing our school at the North Counties Football Tournament that was held at McLennan Park, Papakura. Mr Kumar, kaitiaki of Learning Community Moana, coached and refereed the games on the day and students displayed great resilience, teamwork and positive sportsmanship, especially in the rain! Overall, they were placed 3rd in their grade of the competition. What a wonderful display of talent from our players.
New Families
Welcoming our New Families!
We had a wonderful time meeting our new families on Thursday morning, sharing how proud we are of our Catholic Special Character and providing school information. It was a great opportunity to connect, and we look forward to officially welcoming them next term with a school Whakatau. We are excited to get to know our families and their child/ren better as they become part of our school whānau.
Hauora/WellBeing News
Awhi Team – Peer Mediators
Mental Health Foundation’s top tips for connecting with nature
Connecting with nature is about having more awareness of the natural environment around us, spending time with it, and learning to feel appreciation for it. We’re lucky in Aotearoa New Zealand to have an abundance of beautiful natural spaces across the country.
You can start a connection with nature just by spending more time in it:
- Walk (anywhere – a park, maunga, or your neighbourhood)
- Swim at the beach
- Stargaze at night or observe clouds moving during the day
- Go for a hike
- Look after your own garden (you could even plant on a windowsill if you live in a flat)
- Visit a local botanic garden
- Play an outdoor sport like rugby or soccer
Bring nature into your life even if you don’t have much time or access to nature.
- put a plant in your bedroom or on your desk at work
- learn the names and history of local maunga (mountains), awa (rivers) or native plants
- print out pictures of a favourite place in nature you love (like a beach you went to as a child)
- learn a song or karakia about nature that makes you feel positive
- have a walking meeting at mahi
- get some sunlight (you can either spend time near a window or buy a sunlight lamp)
Build up a feeling of appreciation or attachment to the natural environment around us. Research shows that the quality of connection we have with nature can increase the benefits we receive.
You can do this by:
- taking notice of your surroundings when you are in nature, such as doing a senses exercise (noticing what you see, smell, feel, hear)
- joining a local community garden or a nature restoration group. Giving something back to nature can help us to feel more connected, and feel a greater sense of hope
- meditating or doing a breathing exercise while outside
- taking inspiration from nature for drawing, writing, crafting or photography.
Nature is all around us – even if it’s the feeling of sunshine or breeze, or walking down a street with lots of trees. All we have to do to feel the benefits of nature is to be present. Focus on what we’re seeing and feeling. To help you focus, try starting with a simple breathing exercise. Studies have shown that even images of nature can have some of the same positive effects on us that time in nature can have!
Bonus: you can do any of these activities with a friend or whānau member! Why not build your relationships with the people you love at the same time as building your relationship with the environment.
Reminders!
2025 Attendance Dues Payments
Reminder Attendance Dues 2025 statements were sent out last week to families who still need to pay for Term 1 Attendance Dues.
Please note that there are 3 options for payment of the Attendance Dues and Catholic Special Character Contribution
- Full amount paid by Internet Banking to ASB school account – details for payment are on the statement.
- Automatic Payment to be set up via internet banking to ASB school account
- Payment can be made at the school office – cash or Eftpos
Many of our families choose the AP (Automatic Payment) option to make a small payment each week or fortnight which helps families to manage their financial budget for the year. This is a very good option and one that is encouraged by our school. For those families paying by Automatic Payment (AP), please note that 2025 payments must all be completed by 1st December 2025.
Please see Carmel Stewart (Office Administrator) or Peta Lindstrom (Principal) in the strictest confidence if you have any concerns or questions regarding the payment of Attendance Dues.
Financial Assistance is available for payment of Attendance Dues.
School Winter Uniform
Students will be expected to wear the correct winter school uniform in Term 2. This includes the long sleeved blouse or shirt, school stripe/ navy knee high socks and black closed shoes. Please name all items of clothing so that they can be returned to the children immediately when found.
Our School uniform is only available for purchase from NZ Uniforms on 5/20 Lambie Drive, Manukau.
All students are required to wear the correct school uniform for winter as listed below. NZ Uniforms have school jerseys available to purchase. Our preference is for students to wear their school jumper/school fleece inside the learning community and school jackets outdoors.
Girls Uniform
Tartan skort
Blue long sleeved monogrammed blouse (winter)
Black closed shoes (winter)
School stripe / navy knee high socks
Navy bucket sun-hat monogrammed
Navy wollen monogrammed school jumper OR Navy monogrammed fleece
School jacket
Boys Uniform
Navy shorts
Blue long sleeved monogrammed shirt (winter)
School stripe / navy knee high socks
Navy bucket sun-hat monogrammed
Navy woollen monogrammed school jumper OR Navy monogrammed fleece
School jacket
Managing our School Roll
Holy Trinity is now “managing” our school roll for 2025. Some of our learning spaces and year levels are now at full capacity for the year. This includes students who are already pre-enrolled for the 2025 year. The lack of further buildings/learning community spaces means we are in a position of having to manage school enrolments for new inquiries. Families are welcome to place their child on the preference waiting list for 2026 – this does not guarantee a placement for 2026 as we will only be able to accept siblings as a first priority.Student Attendance
The Boards and schools are requested by the Ministry of Education to have an “intervention tier” in place so that student attendance is monitored, tracked and intervention strategies are put in place quickly and efficiently to ensure high rates of school attendance for every child.
For Holy Trinity School, our student attendance concern is with the large number of children who are regularly arriving late to school after the 8:50am bell and/or are leaving school early in the afternoon. As the first intervention tier for our school, we will be monitoring student lateness and will be communicating promptly with those families where there is regular lateness – special circumstances permitting.
The school gates open from 8:30am with school commencing at 8:50am. The school day concludes at 2:50pm.
We are asking parents to refrain from requesting early afternoon finishing time for their child/ren unless it is necessary or a special circumstance. If you need to collect your child early from school then you must notify school the day before where practicable.
Please do not be offended if we say “no” to your child leaving school before the end of the school day if you do not have a legitimate reason. We are abiding by the Ministry of Education guidelines.
We are confident that by working together and respecting the school bell times, we can ensure our children have the best possible opportunity for their learning!
New Zealand Traveller Declaration
Going overseas for the school holidays? Everyone travelling into New Zealand must complete a New Zealand Traveller Declaration, including returning New Zealand passport holders.
Its FREE and you can do it on the online form or on the NZTD app.
If you’re travelling as a family or group and completing multiple declarations, the NZTD app allows you to copy your travel details into another declaration, making it easier to complete multiple declarations for the same journey. The submitted declarations are then all easy to see within the app.
The New Zealand Traveller Declaration collects travel, customs, immigration and biosecurity information and aims to improve the safety and security of New Zealand. It replaces the paper card you used to fill out on the plane.
To make your arrival easier, do your digital declaration before your flight back to New Zealand.
Head to travellerdeclaration.govt.nz today!
Upcoming School Events
PTFA MATH-A-THON Fundraiser – FINAL
Fundraising sponsorship closing
HERO Term 1 Online Digital Reporting published for all students
From Monday 7th April
School Emergency LOCKDOWN Drill Practice
Tuesday 8th April
Duffy Books Theatre Performance
Wednesday 9th April @ 1:30pm in Taamaua/school hall
School Stations of the Cross
Friday 11th April @ 12:30pm on the school field
Term 1 Concludes
Friday 11th April 2:50pm
Term 2 Commences
Monday 28th April 8:50am
School Whakatau of Welcome, Gathering Liturgy and Assembly – led by the Senior Leadership Team
Monday 28th April March @ 9:15am in Taamaua/school hall
PTFA Monthly Meeting
Tuesday 29th April 7:00pm in the school staffroom
Catholic Special Character Evaluation Review
Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th May
Gymnastics/Fundamental Skills Lessons for Year 5 (10am-11am) and Year 6 (11am-12:00)
Thursday 8th May @ Bruce Pulman Park Recreation Centre
Mothers Day Liturgy
Friday 9th May 1:45pm in Taamaua/school hall
Staff/Teacher Only Day – school closed for students
Friday 16th May
Upcoming Community Events
Auckland Basketball Services South Auckland Holiday Camp
Kia ora!
Auckland Basketball Services is hosting our Holiday Camp on Thursday, April 17th at Pulman Arena, and we’d love for your students to be part of it. It’s the perfect way to spend the day – improving skills, making new friends, and, of course, playing lots of basketball!
Here are the details:
- Venue: Pulman Arena
- Date: Thursday, April 17th
- Time: 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
- Cost: $40
- Age Groups: 5-8, 9-11, 12+ years
The camp is all about having fun while learning new skills, competing in friendly games, and meeting new teammates. Whether your students are new to basketball or have been playing for years, everyone will find something to enjoy!
Feel free to share this opportunity with your athletes, coaches, and parents.
Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with any questions. We can’t wait to see everyone on April 17th!
You can register through the link. https://membership.mygameday.app/regoform.cgi?formID=118037&programID=73384
