7 June

Dear Parents

Our prayers are with the Walsh family this week

Winter is finally here! There are some days I am pleased I work inside and yesterday was one of them. For winter there are a number of lunchtime activities being run by the staff;

Chess                       Mondays @ lunch in the Library

Lego                          Wednesday @ lunch in Room 6

Polyfest                    Thursdays @ lunch in the Hall

Congratulations to the children who competed in the Zone Cross Country yesterday afternoon in perfect weather conditions. We had some excellent results with 12 pupils representing the Zone at the Southland Cross Country. Thank you to Mrs T.K. (who forgot her gumboots) and all the parents who helped with transport and also down at Elizabeth Park. The results are:

10 year Boys:           1^st = Justin McLean, 2^nd = Cory Foleni, 6 = Shaun Wilkes

10 year Girls:           2^nd Caelan O’Connor, 3^rd = Lucy Blue, 5^th = Briana Henson

11 year Boys:           1^st = Erik Cahill, 2^nd = Ben Henderson, 3^rd = Callum O’Connor, 4^th = Alex Armstrong, 5^th = Rohan Mackenzie

11 year Girls:           1^st = Nellie Boyle

After a week wandering around Sydney looking at schools and the innovative ways they use technology, I am pleased to say that the class room practice in the best schools we saw, was not as interactive and child centered as I have observed in our own school and other Invercargill school classrooms. What was beneficial was seeing some of the state and federal involvement, especially in terms of school management and learning management systems, a roll out of laptops for all secondary pupils in the state and the use of i-pads and other devices in classroom settings.

It has also been an interesting week in the education world with class sizes a topical issue. I have made some observations about this below:

I mentioned a couple of newsletter’s ago that I would include some of the pro’s and cons of the government’s announcement to increase the class sizes in schools. Unfortunately I could not find any positives in terms of children’s achievement.

Also this week has come the revelation that the government has miscalculated and there is the potential for specialist technology teachers of year 7 & 8 to lose their jobs.

The class size increases will have a negative effect on our class sizes next year. The Minister’s sound bite continually talks about quality teaching which is very important, but as any quality teachers can tell you, it is more beneficial for all students if you are teaching a class of 25 rather than 35. The Government’s own target groups Maori, Pacifica & Special Needs children, will be the very groups most adversely affected by these changes. Higher class numbers mean less 1 – 1 or small group work. Our teaching styles have changed to a more child centered approach rather that a chalk and talk one.

Todays Tip –Encourage Learning Efforts Children are able to influence the amount of effort they put into their learning, and this is something that is easily encouraged. ·      Praise and encourage your child’s ideas. ·      Be enthusiastic about your child’s school projects ·      Collaborate with your child’s teacher and attend school functions. ·      Be realistic about your expectations. ·      Focus on your child’s strengths not his/her weaknesses. ·      Share something that would be hard for you to learn. ·      Project a positive image of your child’s ability in the future. More information can be found at http://www.incredibleyears.com

As a point of difference from the National Standards debate, which had primary schools alone in opposition, this issue has the support of School Trustees Association (STA), Association of Intermediate & Middle Schools (AIMS), Primary & Secondary Principal’s Associations and parent groups.

The Government has used the research of John Hattie to say that class size by itself isn’t the most important thing. The same research also says, in-class relationships between teacher and children are also very important and that class size increase is bad policy.

We knew this is a cost cutting mechanism for the Government, but I am sure there are other areas in the education budget that could be cut before this.

What can you do:

-        Write to your local MP, John Key or Hekia Parata.

-        Sign the petition asking for a reversal of the policy (ask at the Office)

-        Attend a parent public meeting (time & date to be confirmed).

*REFLECTION ON TODAY’S GOSPEL READING (From Lectio Divina)

OUR PASSOVER LAMB

Today we reflect on the one most profound celebrations of the church – the Eucharist. We begin our reading with Jesus and the disciples making preparation to share the Passover meal together. This was, and still is, one of the most significant dates in the Jewish calendar, the annual celebration marking God’s protection and deliverance of his people from slavery in Egypt.

The disciples would have shared this meal many times with their own families but they would certainly never forget this particular Passover meal as Jesus gives it a whole new meaning.

The provision of the room where they celebrated the Passover seems remarkable to us, although we are not told what the disciples thought about this, only that they followed Jesus’ instructions and found things just as he told them. The real surprise comes during the meal itself. When Jesus breaks the bread he tells them ‘this is my body’. When he hands them the cup he tells them ‘this is my blood…poured out for many…which seals God’s covenant.’

The gospel text begins in verse 12 with the reference to the sacrifice of the Passover Lamb. The covenant of God made with Moses and the people of Israel at Mount Sinai was sealed with the blood of animals, as we can read in today’s Old Testament reading (Exodus 24:3-8). Jesus himself now becomes the Passover Lamb (John 1:29) and God seals a new covenant through the blood of his Son on the cross (1 Corinthians 11:25). At this Passover meal Jesus institutes the Eucharist by the sharing of bread and wine and Christians continue to remember his sacrifice and celebrate his new covenant in this way ever since.

MEDITATION: Enrich your appreciation of the Eucharist by reflecting on the three other accounts we have of the institution of the Lord’s Supper in Matthew 26:17-25, Luke 22:7-23 and 1 Corinthians 11:23-34. Consider the significance of Jesus using bread and wine to signify his presence and consider the importance of being in communion, both with God and your brothers and sisters rather than just receiving communion.

PRAYER: Come before God with humility and thankfulness. Thank him for sending Jesus so that you can have your sins forgiven and come into communion with God and his people. Ask him to deepen your appreciation of all Jesus accomplished by his death and resurrection.

Wilson McCaskill – Play is the Way

There is a free parent evening at Salford School Hall on Tuesday 26^th June @ 7.30pm to hear Wilson McCaskill. Wilson is a brilliant presenter who we have had at a number of ILT Conferences.

His theme is ‘moderating behaviour through play and building emotional resilience’. I highly recommend this to you.  Please let the office know if you will be attending. Any queries to me.

Assembly Times will revert back to Monday afternoons next week.

Altar Servers

Saturday 9 June                       7.00 pm                     Reuben Brown & Ben Nind

Sunday 10 June                       10.30 am                                     Eli Winders & Max Forde

Children’s Liturgy                                                         Cecelia Russell

Achievements

Bridie Kinney received ‘Player of the Day’ for her Queen’s Park Soccer team recently.

Joshua Newell received ‘Player of the Day’ for his Under 8 Waikiwi Rugby team recently.

Corbyn Shuttleworth got ‘Player of the Day’ for Blues Under 9 last Saturday.

Pita Pit

Order your lunch on Mondays before June 29^th and our school could win a visit from the Steel players.

Room 9 Class Happenings

Science Galore
The last weeks have been packed full of Science as Room 9 students begun to test the hypothesis each group had written in response to the question they had.

Static Electricity ~ Mathew, Cameron, Kayne, Jake, Hannah and Emma got all steamed up when they tried to discover “Does humidity effect how much static electricity is conducted?” With the use of a steaming urn and a dehumidifier they are well on the way to coming to a conclusion. Isabella, Nellie, Samantha and Monique wanted to know “What type of hair will conduct static electricity the best?” So it was a hair – raising day in our class as we experimented with the Van der Graff Generator. We tried to find out which type of hair was affected the most by static electricity. We even washed our hair with the same shampoo and conditioner the night before so our results wouldn’t be affected by the use of different hair products.

Batteries  ~ Alex, Harry, Finley and Callum said they have been learning a lot about how electricity is generated. They wondered if they could make a battery out of fruit. Already they have discovered they can run an electronic clock with two kiwifruit for hours.  Rohan, Ben, Erik and Kayson have discovered that soil can act as a battery and they have managed to power a sound chip using 5 different soil samples.  Briana, Caelan and Georgea were shocked to discover that tap water can run an electronic digital clock for two days.

Solar Power ~ Mike, Liam and Cody wanted to know how much UV light was needed to power a solar cell after the speed warning signs on Queens Drive didn’t work last week.

Ella, Thamsyn and Lucy want to know “If you can power a solar panel with other types of light?” They are using LED torches and electric light.

Weather ~ This week we have had Mr Esler in to talk to us about the transit of Venus across the sun and to help us discover more about the weather. Our heads will really be in the clouds this week.

Sports Activities Run by Verdon College Students ~ Sacred Heart School has been lucky enough to have some Verdon students come and take Rooms 7, 8 and 9 for P.E on Friday afternoons. They are teaching us the skills and strategies we need to play; netball, rippa rugby, football, basketball and hockey. Thank you to the Verdon Students for coming.

We are having so much fun.

Pedestrian Crossing

After a spate of red-light-runners at the pedestrian crossing this term it has been suggested that a “crossing supervisor “ role be resumed for the safety of the children using the crossing before and after school. The most practical and cost-effective method will be to have parent volunteers supervise the crossing for about 15minutes before and after school.

If you would be available to share this role on occasion please fill in the attached form and return it to the school office by Friday 8 June please.

Name:    ………………………………………………………….

Parent/carer of: ………………………………………………..  Ph No:  ……………………………………

E-mail address:…………………………………………………….

I would be available for crossing duty on the following days/times:

(please circle those which apply)

Mon: AM                     Tues: AM                   Wed: AM                    Thurs: AM                  Fri: AM

Mon: PM                     Tues: PM                   Wed: PM                    Thurs: PM                  Fri: PM