Parnell District School Pānui

Wednesday 31 July, 2024

Week 2: 29/07 - 02/08 (PAT testing this week)

Friday

• Assembly - Room 20
• O.E. begins

Week 3: 05/08 - 09/08

Wednesday

• Whånau and Friends Meeting 6pm, in the staffroom

Friday

• Cross Country

Week 4: 12/08 - 16/08 (FOCUS WEEK - Te Ao Kori)

Tuesday

• Easter Zones Basketball (Girls)

Thursday

• Eastern Zones Basketball (Boys)

Friday

• Assembly - Curriculum Council

Week 5: 19/08 - 23/08 (INQUIRY 3 BEGINS - Designing for Diversity)

Monday

• Parnell's Got Talent Auditions begin (lunchtimes this week)

Wednesday

• Non-uniform Day (bring a gold coin donation if not wearing uniform)

Friday

• Assembly - Room 25

• O.E. continues
• PDS DISCO brought to you by the Whānau & Friends

Week 6: 26/08 - 30/08

Wednesday

• Parnell's Got Talent Final

• Easter Zones and Bay Suburbs Cross Country

• Assembly: Service Leaders
• O.E

Week 7: 2/09 - 6/09

Friday

• Assembly: Room 14

Week 8: 9/09 - 13/09

Wednesday

• Whānau & Friends Meeting
  
• Tokomaru Bake Sale

• Assembly: Room 24
• O.E

Week 9: 16/09 - 20/09

• Assembly: Sports Leaders
• O.E
• Reports go home

Week 10: 23/09 - 27/09

• Assembly: Tokomaru Waka
• Whānau Day

Wheels Wednesday - EVEN weeks of the term only.

Welcome to Term three! Thank you to our parents and caregivers for ensuring children arrive at school on time and ready to learn. Your support is invaluable in setting a positive tone for the day and helping us create a productive learning environment. As we look ahead, we have some wonderful activities and events planned.

Focus Week

In Week 4, we will focus on Te Ao Kori, a celebration and exploration of traditional Māori movement and play. Te Ao Kori, meaning "the world of movement," encompasses a range of physical activities, games, and exercises rooted in Māori culture. During this week, students will not only engage in these activities but also learn about the tikanga (customs) and whakapapa (history) behind them, enriching their understanding and appreciation.

Cross Country

Our school Cross Country event is scheduled for Friday next week. Details about the day can be found further on in this newsletter. The event is a highlight for many students, and we encourage parents and caregivers to volunteer their time to help make the day a success. Your involvement is greatly appreciated and helps to foster a strong sense of community and support for our students.Please email georgeh@parnell.school.nz if you are willing and able to volunteer your time.

Opportunities for Excellence and Friday Fizz

We are excited to announce the start of the Opportunities for Excellence programme for our Year 3-8 students this Friday. This programme offers students the chance to pursue activities they are passionate about and develop their skills in areas of interest. Meanwhile, our Year 0-2 students will participate in the Friday Fizz programme, designed to introduce them to a variety of activities across the curriculum, sparking curiosity and enthusiasm for learning.

Progressive Achievement Tests (PATs)

This week, our students are undertaking Progressive Achievement Tests (PATs). These standardised tests provide valuable insights into each child's current levels of achievement in core subjects. The results help our teachers to understand the strengths and areas for development in each student's learning. By analysing this data, we can tailor our learning programmes to better suit the needs of all students, ensuring that each child receives the support and challenges necessary to thrive. We encourage parents to support their children by encouraging a positive attitude towards these assessments.

Camp Year 4 - 8 Students

Looking ahead, our school camps for Years 4-6 and Years 7-8 will take place in Week 8 of Term 4. These camps are a fantastic opportunity for students to develop independence, build relationships, and experience new activities in a supportive environment. Please see below for details about our Camp Information Evening in Week 4.

We wish all our students and families a wonderful term filled with learning, growth, and of course fun! We look forward to sharing many more achievements and experiences with you in the coming weeks.

Ngā mihi nui,

Richard George

Principal

Before the break, we emailed letters to parents about the implementation of our Relationship and Sexuality Education programme this term. We understand the importance of keeping parents informed and comfortable with the content so we have included links to the letters in this newsletter below.

If you have any further questions, email Anna Sephton on annas@parnell.school.nz

Our annual Cross Country events are happening next week, Friday 9 August.

Year 0-3 students will participate in an event here at school and Year 4-8 students will walk to Bloodworth Park to compete in their event.

Encourage your child to wear their Waka colour for their race!

Please read the information below to ensure that your children are prepared.

Year 0-3 - Parnell District School

Races begin at 9:15am.

Expected order for the morning – please be aware that times are approximates

9:15am: Year 3 girls

9:25am: Year 3 boys

9:35am: Year 2 girls

9:45am: Year 2 boys

9:55am: Year 1 girls

10:05am: Year 1 boys

Year 4-8 - Bloodworth Park

Races begin at 11:15am.

It is HIGHLY LIKELY that children will get muddy. With that in mind, please ensure that your child has the following gear on the day:

• 2 x pairs of shoes (one pair to run in, one pair to wear back at school)

• 2 x towels (one to wipe off mud, one to dry themselves)

• Change of clothes (coloured clothing for running, school uniform for afterwards)

• Warm jacket

• Warm pants

Race Times (approximate)

11:15am: Year 4 Girls

11:35am: Year 4 Boys

11.55am: Year 5 Girls

12:15pm: Year 5 Boys

12:35pm: Year 6 Girls:

12:55pm: Year 6 Boys

1:15pm: Year 7 Girls / Year 8 Girls

1:30pm: Year 7 Boys / Year 8 Boys

If you are able and willing to volunteer your time at this event, please email our sports coordinator, Mr George Hollingworth, georgeh@parnell.school.nz

We are holding a camp information evening on Wednesday, 14 August at 6pm, in the staffroom. During this session, we will provide detailed information about camp costs, locations, behaviour expectations, safety measures, well-being considerations, and the exciting activities planned. There will also be an opportuity for parents to ask questions.

We strongly encourage you to attend and and support your children in participating in this valuable experience.

Reading is alive and thriving at Parnell District School!

Library Wall of Fame

We have 21 tamariki who have read at least 50 books this year and are honoured by having their photo on the Wall of Fame in the library.

Considering we are only just into Term 3, it means that these children have read at least 2 books a week! This is an outstanding achievement!

Hell Reading Challenge

Hell has sponsored a reading challenge for our tamariki to read 7 books, chat with their teacher or me about the book and have their pizza wheel signed off to collect free pizza - and it's already a big hit! We have had at least 15 children head home with a full pizza wheel!

Olympics

There is definitely an excited buzz in the library with the display of Olympic books, flags and bunting especially as we are now on the medal board with our win to the Black Ferns Women's Rugby Sevens team winning our first Gold medal! Thank you to Whānau and Friends for the international flag bunting.

Overdue Books

We have a few overdue books from last term. Could you please help your child look around your home and send it back to school as soon as possible. Thank you for your support.

Happy reading

Mrs Kath Twomey

LIbrarian

Our priority is making sure our students are safe. We have noticed a significant increase in cars being parked over driveways around our school and on yellow lines during drop off and pick up times, particularly next to the patrolled crossings. Cars parked there obscure our road patrollers view of oncoming traffic.

If there are no safe parking spaces, you will need to park further away and walk your child a short distance. Auckland Transport are regularly monitoring parking around our school, and will fine any cars not parked correctly.

Whānau & Friends Meeting - Wednesday 7 August 6pm, Staff Room

Everyone is welcome to attend this term's Whānau & Friends meeting. We'll be making plans for the upcoming student disco. Come along to share your ideas, volunteer your time, and meet with our other amazing PDS whānau!

PDS Student Disco - Friday 23 August

Save the date in your diary for the annual PDS student disco! Look out for posters with more details coming soon...

We're looking for anyone who'd like to be involved in making this year's disco an amazing success, just email pta@parnell.school.nz and let us know if you can help with the following:

• decorating and setting up the hall on Friday, 23 August from 12noon - 3 pm

• helping inside the disco in a stall on the night

• assisting with the Parent Haven (serving food, drinks, etc in our adult-only retreat)

• any other info / ideas / skills you have to offer!

Sign-up to volunteer 2024

If you would like to volunteer in any way, please complete our online volunteer form at https://bit.ly/pds-waf or use this QR code for a direct link. You can also email us at pta@parnell.school.nz or speak to Amy at the Office.

Cross Country - Sponsorship Forms

Your child should have brought home a fundraising form last term. Funds raised through sponsorships will be used to buy new sports equipment for the school. Please encourage your children to ask family, friends and neighbours to sponsor them. Every completed sponsor form (irrespective of amount raised) handed into the office before Monday 12 August will be put in the draw to win a sports-related prize. We encourage all of the children to do their best and, most importantly, have fun!

We’re now 2/3 of the way through winter! Spring is around the corner but in the meantime, it’s still important to keep active and participate in outdoor activities!

We still have places available for Young Guns Skate School & Wynrs (soccer).

YGSS & Wynrs run after school from 3.30-4.30pm. Care is available at C4 from 3-3.30pm.

Both classes start this week, YGSS on Thursday 1st August and Wynrs on Friday 2nd August.

If you are interested in your child joining one of these classes, please book as soon as possible at PDS.aimyplus.com or contact Claire on 0272706810 for more information.