Wednesday 05 March, 2025

Week 6: 03/03 - 07/03

Friday

• Friday Fizz
• Assembly - Room 4

Week 7: 10/03 - 14/03

Wednesday

• Whānau and Friends Meeting, 6:30pm Staffroom

Friday

• Friday Fizz
• New Parents Breakfast
• Assembly - 12

Week 8: 17/03 - 21/03

Wednesday

• Bake Sale - AOTEA Waka

Friday

• Orchestra Performance - Auckland Grammar School
• No Friday Fizz
• Assembly - 16

Week 9: 24/03 - 28/03

Monday

• Photos - Class and Individual Portraits

Tuesday

• Photos - Siblings Portraits

Friday

• Friday Fizz
• Assembly - 30

Week 10: 31/03 - 04/04

Wednesday

• Non-uniform Day – items for the Fete
  

Friday

• Friday Fizz
• Assembly - 2

Week 11: 07/04 - 11/04

Friday

• No Friday Fizz
• Assembly - Aotea Waka
• Last day of Term 1!

TERM 4

Week 8: 24/11 - 28/11

EOTC Week (Camps for Years 4 - 8)

2025

Term 1: Tuesday 28 January - Friday 11 April

Term 2: Monday 28 April - Friday 27 June

Term 3: Monday 14 July - Friday 19 September

Term 4: Monday 6 October - Friday 12 December

Kia ora e te whānau,

It’s been a fantastic couple of weeks at school, with so much energy, creativity, and learning happening across all classrooms. Here’s what we’ve been up to and what’s coming up!

Mathematics – Growing with Maths, No Problem!

Our Maths, No Problem! professional development is ongoing, and it’s great to see teachers and students fully engaged in this new programme. The problem-solving approach is building confidence and deepening understanding, and we’re already seeing some fantastic results in our classrooms.

Inquiry – Our Places, Our Stories

Art is everywhere at the moment! As part of our current Inquiry, Exploration Thinking: Our Places, Our Stories, students are busy exploring artists of Aotearoa and expressing their learning creatively through artwork. It’s wonderful to see their interpretations of our shared history, community, and personal connections come to life.

New Friday Format – Building Team Spirit & Values

Our new Friday schedule is proving to be a great success. This term, Waka teams gather after assembly to build team spirit and explore our school values—Kaitiakitanga, Innovation, and Truth. The Friday Fizz programme has now moved to the afternoon, and it’s been fantastic seeing students highly engaged in a wide range of activities. The energy, enthusiasm, and happy faces during this time show just how much they are enjoying the variety of opportunities on offer.

New Parents Breakfast – Next Friday 14th March

We warmly invite all new parents to join us for the New Parents Breakfast next Friday morning. This is a great opportunity to meet other new families, connect with our school community, and have a relaxed chat with senior leadership. If you’re new to the school and haven’t already received your invitation, please contact the office—we’d love to see you there!

School Fete – Saturday 10 May (66 days to go!)

The countdown is on for our biggest school fundraiser of the year! The School Fete is happening on Saturday 10 May, and our Class Reps are working hard to organise their class stalls. We’d really appreciate your support—please help where you can to make your class stall a success. The Fete is always a fantastic community event; we can make it another great one with everyone's involvement! See photos from our last Fete in 2023 below.

Our Commitment to Learning & Community Partnerships

We are deeply committed to providing the best possible education for every student. A key part of this is building and maintaining strong partnerships with our whānau and wider community. We believe that when we work together, we can create the best learning opportunities and support systems for our children.

We are always happy to discuss your child’s progress, strengths, and areas for growth, with the goal of ensuring they are fully supported to reach their potential. If you ever have any questions or would like to chat about your child’s learning, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Ngā mihi nui,

Richard George

Principal

Here's what our students in Kākano team have been up to...

Creative Learning in Action! As part of our Inquiry, Exploration Thinking: Our Places, Our Stories, students will be working with a variety of visual art media to design and create their own artworks. This hands-on learning can get a little messy, so to help protect uniforms from paint, and other creative materials, we ask that each child brings a shirt to wear over their uniform during art activities.

An old, oversized t-shirt or button-up shirt works perfectly. Thank you for your support in keeping our young artists' uniforms clean while they create!

Please ensure that your child has their school hat every day. Our Sun Protection policy states that children must wear their school hat "whenever they are outdoors during school hours and/or activities, e.g. interval and lunch breaks, P.E., sports days, outdoor EOTC trips, and other school activities."

The school office has new and second-hand ($5) options if your child needs a hat.

Get ready for our biennial fundraiser, the PDS School Fete: Saturday 10th May 2025 (Week 2 of Term 2)! There will be an amazing array of entertainment, cakes and treats, pre-loved goods, inflatables, food trucks and so much more! To make the day a great success we need YOUR help!

Donations of Prizes

We are looking for donations of goods, events, or experiences that could be included as raffle or auction items. Do you have a bach you could offer for a weekend? A favourite restaurant, gym, or spa that could donate vouchers? Any offers should be directed to pta@parnell.school.nz or via the school office.

Pre-Loved Goods

Good-quality, second-hand books, children's clothing, and toys are needed. We need clean items you would be happy your child was bringing home. Please don't donate ripped, stained clothing or broken toys. Also, please do not donate electrical items, magazines, or DVDs. Hold onto your donations for now. Full details and drop-off times will be published in the next newsletter.

Whānau & Friends Meeting - Wednesday 12 March at 6:30pm, Staff Room

Everyone is welcome to the second fundraising meeting of this year, where we'll discuss the upcoming Fete. Come along for drinks and nibbles to participate in the discussions and meet new people.

Can you help?

If you would like to volunteer with Whānau & Friends fundraising events in any way, please complete our new online volunteer form at https://bit.ly/pds-waf

You can now sign your children up for the Weethbix Tryathlon. The Eastern Auckland triathlon is 30 March 2025.

Simply click on this link and be sure to sign up under Parnell School so we can keep in touch in preparation for the day.

https://raceroster.com/events/2025/93895/central-east-auckland-weet-bix-kids-tryathlon