Kia ora, Ni hao, Dobar dan, Malo e leilei, Hola, Konnichiwa, Talofa, Namaste, Chão, Vannakkam, Kamusta, Hello!

Dear Marist whānau,

We are people of hope journeying through this Lenten season and looking towards the celebration of the great Alleluia which is the Resurrection. We are people of hope as we look forward to a more settled term 2 and beyond. We are people of hope as we plan to fully reconnect with our community.

Therefore as we draw closer to the end of term 1 it is timely to be thinking about how you could become a more active participant of our Marist School community, our place, our tūrangawaewae.

As stated in the previous Newsflash we are seeking new members to join our passionate PTFA who have had their hands tied due to the challenges of the pandemic. They are ready to take flight again and need more volunteers.

Do you want to be involved in helping to plan our upcoming community events, celebrations, fundraisers and gatherings?

Come along and see how you can help! Be part of the big picture!

Join us via zoom on Tuesday 5th April at 7.15pm and let’s plan some fun reconnection events and celebrate being fully together again from Term 2. The only way is forward!

OTHER WAYS YOU CAN HELP?

Our tamariki have missed out on so many opportunities over the last few years due to the pandemic and now is the time to bring the fun and excitement back.

Do you have a passion for a certain sporting code where you can offer to coach or manage a netball, football, touch, or rugby team?

Do you have a few spare hours on Wednesdays to help out with the Garden to Table programme, whether in the garden or the kitchen?

Are you able to help out with the sorting and organisation of our Second Hand Uniform cupboard for an hour or two a week?

Do you have a passion for your culture you would like to share with our tamariki?

Do you have any time to help shelve books in our library?

Are there any other ways you can volunteer your time and energy in helping to continue to grow our place? Send us your ideas & thoughts.

Nga manaakitanga katoa a te Atua

All God's Blessings

Carolynn & the Marist Team

Thank you for your very generous support of our Ukraine fundraiser. We will advise how much we have raised on Monday and send some photos of our kids looking great in blue and yellow!

This week we farewelled Catherine Gilchrist as our Board of Trustees Chairperson. Cath has served the Marist School BOT and ultimately the community for 6 years. The last few years have been particularly challenging with the appointment of a new principal, the development of our new buildings and of course, the pandemic.

Cath has led with wisdom, direction, empathy, integrity and knowledge. She has been of immense support to the principal and BOT. We thank Cath for her years of service, her passion and her commitment to our tūrangawaewae. We wish her all God’s blessings and know that she is continually wrapped in the mantle of the Marist Way.

Thank you, thank you, thank you Cath.

Please keep those who have lost loved ones in your thoughts and prayers at this time. We continue to pray for those in our community who are unwell or suffering at the moment.

Last week on Friday, the teacher’s told everyone to go to church and pray for the Ukrainian population. We did because Catholics in Aotearoa New Zealand were asked to visit their churches to join with Pope Francis in a special day of prayer for Ukraine.

Hub 1 headed down to the Church on Friday 10:40 am. Some people in the hub said prayers they had written and we meditated. Then we said one decade of the Rosary. We had a moment of silence for the Ukrainian people.

It was a special moment because it was our first time back in the Church since August last year. It felt nice to be back in the Church as a school family.

By the News Crew: William, Samara, Clara, Thomas

Hub 1 Prayers and Peace Cranes for Ukraine

Hub 2 Prayers for Ukraine

By Ava. J

On Friday the 24th of March the Manaakitanga team attended a Caritas zoom meeting involving many students from schools all over New Zealand.

We loved brainstorming ideas..

One of the first things we learnt about was the “2022 One Day challenge”. This challenge is about living without our luxuries for 24 hours. Teaching us to understand how thankful we are for our food, items and our homes.

The formal caritas presenters also helped us to understand what difficulties people are going through. One of the presenters asked “What could you do to raise or help people in need?” Our team suggested setting up a stall to play instruments while singing a song as well as selling cupcakes and lemonade. All funds would go to Caritas who helps those who need a helping hand.

If you're wondering “What can I do?” We recommend trying the One Day challenge as it may help you to understand a little more of what people go through everyday. If you prefer not to (which is totally fine!) you can pop down to the parishes presbytery and offer a canned meal (e.g Pineapples, Tuna, Baked beans and corn)

Ngā mihi nui

The Manaakitanga team

We are looking for a fun, passionate garden enthusiast to join our team in Term 2. We're a great team of 2 x kitchen specialists and 1 x garden assistant, very enthusiastic about our roles, and we love working in our fun and positive environment.

The programme runs Wednesdays for 5 hours approximately 9am to 2pm and is currently offered to Year 5s. We run two sessions at 9.30 and 11.30 for 1 1/2 hours per session.

If you would like more information on the role, please contact s.white@marist.school.nz

Garden Specialist Job Description

2022 Term 1 Dates - important dates for your calendars!

• Term 1 ends: Thursday 14th April

Staff Only Days: As part of our collective agreement the Ministry allocated a number of 'Staff Only Professional Development' Days over 3 years. With the disruptions throughout 2020/21 we have two remaining days to use prior to mid June. Therefore the following dates are closed for children:

• Term 2: Monday 2nd May & Friday 3rd June

Wednesday 13 April

In the School Hall

8.30am - 9.00am and 2.45pm - 3.30pm

Winter uniform for boys and girls available

New uniform can be purchased from Elizbeth Michael, either a their shop at 4 Bond St, Grey Lynn, or online using Marist's unique school login code MP209

URGENT - if any of your contact details have changed (phone numbers, email, street addresses) please advise the office as soon as possible. It is always important, but particularly so in these Covid times, that we have the correct and up to date information for your child/ren. Thank you!

Well a few weeks ago whilst on playground duty Kieran and I were watching the construction of the Bicycle track. I said how excited I was about it and that when completed I couldn't wait to come to school with my bicycle and have a run around it . Kieran's reply to this was "Mrs Lal I didn't think at 58 (the kids know my age) you'd still be able to ride a bicycle". A great young man with a great sense of humour. Well of course I replied "Just you wait".

So today was the day of reckoning . I produced a bike not only for myself but him. We had great fun doing some laps. I may regret it tomorrow with aches in muscles I didn't know existed.

After some pretty wet and wild weather recently we spent some time writing poems about how it made us feel!

Freezing

Water in the clouds.

Water on the road.

Water everywhere.

Water on my toes.

I shiver.

I shake.

I shudder.

I dash to bed.

By Sophie. B

Enjoy more of our amazing poems by clicking the link below!

We also got to watch a pretty cool play......

In Hub 2 Mrs Politini and Mrs Walker did a play of the Hare and the Tortoise. Mrs Politini was the slow and wise Tortoise and Ms Walker was the fast Hare that likes to show off.. They decided to do a race. The Hare was saying mean things to the Tortoise. The Tortoise started to say “Slow and steady wins the race Slow and steady wins the race”. The Hare was like “Oh you're so slow you'll never win against me!”. The Hare Was so bored he fell asleep on a tree. The tortoise passed the Hare and the Hare woke up and looked back and was like “Where's that slowcoach? Everyone knows that I'm the fastcoach!” The Hare looked the other way. The Tortoise was winning! The Hare ran to the Tortoise. But - too late! The Tortoise won the race!

By Benedict

In hub 2 we were learning about the hare and the tortoise and Ms Walker & Mrs Politini did a play called “The Hare and The Tortoise”. Ms Walker was the hare and Mrs Politini was the tortoise. In the play the hare was showing off how fast he was. The hare called the wise and smart tortoise for a race, so they lined up at the start line and the hare blasted off while the tortoise walked slowly towards the finish line. Meanwhile, the hare lay down beside a tree and fell asleep. Slowly the tortoise passed the hare and crossed the finish line. By the time the hare woke up the whole forest was congratulating the tortoise!

I went home and I took a picture of the tortoise passing the finish line and the hare jumping in surprise.

By Tas

This term as part of our learning about tūrangawaewae, we have been learning about rocks.

We have been learning to appreciate that rocks make up our planet and are an important part of Mount Albert and New Zealand's history.

In Science , we learnt how to scientifically observe rocks and carry out tests to identify and classify different rocks.

In Reading, we have read different journals to learn more about the rocks in New Zealand.

For Writing we have used the information we have read to inform others about what we have learnt about NZ rocks, how they are formed and how they have been used.

We shared our learning in different ways. Here are some ways we shared our learning.

We used Book Creator to write our own books to inform others about rocks. Click on the links to read our books about rocks.

Lulu S New Zealand Rocks

Hana B Rocks

Zac G Rocks

We used Flipgrid to record videos to inform others about rocks. Click on the links to watch our Flipgrid videos about rocks

Hunter P Flipgrid Rocks

Dan A Flipgrid Rocks

Harrison S Flipgrid Rocks

Ed M Flipgrid Rocks

Tristan I Flipgrid Rocks

It has been another busy 2 weeks in the garden and kitchen. Here are some highlights from the last few weeks:

In the Garden

Drying herbs so we have a year-round supply

In the kitchen

Sharing food

This week the Eco Team cleaned a part of the school.

We were amazed at how much rubbish there was.

We found lots of things such as masks, a milk carton and a lot of other bits of rubbish. We used litter pickers to pick up the rubbish and so we would not get our hands full of germs.

We are encouraging everyone to help keep the school clean. Please be a tidy Kiwi and keep our environment rubbish free and our stormwater drains free of litter.

By Clarike, Tristan and Seraphina

This year we are continuing with Marist Meals - a pastoral care initiative. These meals are provided to families in the school & parish community when a little extra support is needed (e.g. a new baby, sickness, bereavement). With the impact of covid and many of our school and parish families isolating or unwell, it would be great if we could fill up the freezer so we can help lighten the load for families during these challenging times.

If you would like to contribute, we welcome any homemade, brought meals or baking for our freezer. Meals can be dropped off to the school office.

Containers available at the school office.

St Mary's Parish Foodbank is feeding nearly 2000 a month. PLEASE remember them when you are shopping - they are in desperate need of donations! Anything you can contribute will be very much appreciated.

There is a box on the front porch of the presbytery.

Thank you so much for your ongoing support!

Metro FC Junior registration is closing soon so we can make up our teams and be ready for a great new season.

Go to the Metro FC website for a link to registration and more details.

https://www.metrofootball.org.nz/grades-2/registrations-fees

Metro Family Fun Day is on Sunday 10th April 3pm-5pm.

Fun skills and drills with senior players plus sausages and drinks.

See you there!

KIDS HOLIDAY CAMPS
Carey Park Christian Camp runs OSCAR funded kid’s camps every school holidays. Come for a full week or just for a day. Registrations are now open for the April Kids Camps.

Where: Carey Park Christian Camp, Henderson Valley
Who: Kids aged 5-13
When: 19-22nd & 25-29th April, 2022
Cost: Full Week Registration $250.00, Day Camper $50.00 per day (all meals included)

For more information or to register, please visit www.onebigadventure.org.nz or give us a call on 837 0494.

News alert! There are just over 2 weeks until school holidays begin. Don't get caught short these holidays - we have all the fun lined up!

Our Multi Activity programme is ideal for boys & girls of all ages. We make the most of our amazing indoor and outdoor facilities and the huge range of equipment on site. Our experienced staff will keep your children busy with a range activities from sports to team building, art, baking, science and more.

Our Netball programmes are second to none and we have options for players of all ages and levels:

• Netball Skills Programme - a 3 half day programme at St Johns (Week 1 & 2) and Windmill Park, Mt Eden (Week 2 only).
  All ages and levels.
• Become an Umpire - a fun and interactive one day course which enables children Year 7+ to take the court and confidently umpire a game. St Johns & Mt Eden.

Combination programme is the perfect option for your child who wants to do netball but needs a full day programme. Have a half day of netball followed by a half day of Multi Activity. A full day of fun. St Johns venue only.

For more information and to register head to: bit.ly/Holidayprogrammes

Email: admin@marist.school.nz
Website: https://www.marist.school.nz/
Location: 14 Kitenui Avenue, Mount Albert, Auckland, New Zealand
Phone: 09 846 7408