7 December

Dear Parents

As this is the last newsletter of the year, I wish to take this opportunity to wish all our families a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

It has been another very busy and successful year at Sacred Heart School and I wish to thank everybody for their support during the year.

A special farewell to our Year 6 pupils as they move onto the next stage of their education.

You are a great group and we are all very proud of your achievement and wish you all the best in the years ahead.

We also farewell Miss Harding. A big thanks for all your work this year. The Room 8 children have been lucky to have you as their teacher.

We also thank Miss McCombe for her Wednesdays in Room 8 for the past 2 terms.

Special Canteen on Monday  ~ Order Hot Chips  ~ $2.50 each

Come to the hall on Monday morning and order Hot Chips for lunch. Drinks will also be available: LOL $2.50 or Flavoured Water $2.

Children wanting sauce will need to bring this from home, as it is not provided with the chips.

PTA Sausage Sizzle – Wednesday 12^th December

The children will receive a free sausage in bread on Wednesday for lunch.

In return the children are asked to bring a can for the Southland Food Bank. Thank you.

Congratulations to Jacqui Holland, Jacqui Paulin & Jude McCabe who all graduated on Wednesday from the Otago University - Southland Campus Teachers College/Early Childhood.

Have a safe and happy holiday – school re-opens Tuesday 29^th January.

2013 Classes

Room 1                     -                 Y1 & 2                        -                 Mrs Williams

Room 2                     -                 Y0 & 1                        -                 Mrs Stupples

Room 5                     -                 Y2 & 3                        -                 Mrs Winders

Room 6                     -                 Y3                               -                 Mrs Buxton

Room 7                     -                 Y4 & 5                        -                 Mrs Tagomoa-Kaa

Room 8                     -                 Y4 & 5                        -                 Miss Swney

Room 9                     -                 Y6                               -                 Mrs Lieshout

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

THE TIME IS AT HAND: During our celebration of Advent, we will be reading a lot of prophetic texts that refer to times and events in what feels like very general terms. In contrast, Luke’s precision is almost jarring. Using the standard method of his day to mark the time, Luke refers to the reign of sovereigns and rulers, and pinpoints the exact moment when the ministry of John the Baptist began. Luke’s precision does more than just help us correlate the Scriptural narrative with the surrounding historical events. It helps us to understand the cultural setting of the events Luke will recount. It reminds us that the Messiah came to his people at a time when they were not in control of their own fate. This was a time of occupation, with all the difficulty that went with it. Luke’s precision also helps us to make the connection between the text of Isaiah written long ago and the lives of ordinary men and women of his day. For this is the jarring premise of the Advent, the central reality of the Incarnation, that after centuries of divine promises, the day arrived when the Eternal stepped into the reality of time and space.

MEDITATION: Much of our texts for this week focus on the positive side of the Incarnation, on how good it feels to have the Lord enter into our world and walk among us. But Malachi 3:1-4 also reminds us that this can be a frightening thing. Having one of such great righteousness and purity in our midst might not always be so comforting. Malachi asks a heart-searching question in verse 2. Will you be able to endure the day when he comes? Why do you thing the presence of God might be troubling?

PRAYER: This excerpt from Zechariah’ prophetic prayer in Luke 1:68-75 is quite appropriate for us as Christian believers today:

“Let us praise the Lord, the God of Israel! He has come to the help of his people and has set them free. He has provided for us a mighty Saviour, a descendant of his servant David. He promised through his holy prophets long ago that he would save us from our enemies, from the power of all those who hate us. He said he would show mercy to our ancestors and remember his sacred covenant. With a solemn oath to our ancestor Abraham he promised to rescue us from our enemies and allow us to serve him without fear, so that we might be holy and righteous before him all the days of our life.”

Reports

Reports will be sent home on Tuesday 11^th December. As in previous years they will indicate where your child sits against the National Standards expectations.

Areas such as reading, writing and mathematics will also include goals achieved and next steps.

School Buses

The last day for school buses will be Tuesday 11^th December. All children will need to find alternate transport for Wednesday 12^th & Thursday 13^th December.

Reminder for Year 6 Students

On Tuesday the 11^th of December we will be having the Year 6 celebrations.

The students will come to school as usual. They may wear mufti. They will watch a movie in the morning then have an early lunch. I will provide the lunch as a farewell treat but they will need to bring their own snacks for the day.

At 12.30pm we will leave for Kart World to do GO Karting and mini golf. The cost for this is $10 per child. The PTA has subsidised this activity by donating $10 per child.  

We will return to school at 2.30pm.

At 6.30pm we will have a celebration in the hall for the students. They will share their memories of their days at Sacred Heart and a couple of songs they have prepared. This will be followed by the presentation of cups and a finger food meal.

The girls have been asked to bring something sweet to share and the boys something savoury.

Fundraising for the 2013 Year 6 Camp

Cadbury’s have offered a fundraising opportunity for anyone, or a group of people interested in fundraising for next year’s camp. If you would like to do this as an individual or as a group, please send me an e-mail at klieshout@shsinv.school.nz Fundraising for this camp is the responsibility and choice of the parents and is not coordinated by the school or the class teacher.

House Teams

We are asking for feedback in regards our House teams. We introduced an extra 2 houses (Pompellier & Marist) when we had the Year 7 & 8 children to spread them our more. We are now proposing to cut back to the original 4 houses – Mercy, Harrington, Donovan and Mercy.  If you have any issue with this happening, please contact me:  principal@shsinv.school.nz

Lost Property

Lost Property will be displayed in the foyer for the rest of the term. Please check if anything belongs to your family.

Achievements

Aimee Brookland had a successful tap competition last weekend. She was placed 1^st in her song & dance, 2^nd in her waltz, slow & speed, 3^rd in her solo, and her duo, trio & troupe dances were all awarded a 1^st. Aimee also won a special award for personality for 10yrs & over.

Congratulations to Sam Downing who has been chosen for the Under 13 Southland Touch Team.

Altar Servers

Saturday 8^th December                               7.00 am                                     Sam Sherriff & Caleb Wolf

Sunday 9^th December                               10.30 am                                    Emma Harrington & Lucy Nind

Children’s Liturgy                                                                           Pauline Harrington

Basketballs Results                                Cricket

Slamdunkers lost 8 - 13                            Kiwi Under 8’s won against Tokanui. ‘Player of the Day

Shooters lost 2 - 14                                    was Matthew Winter. Matthew was also awarded

Flyers won 30 - 0                                        ‘Player of the Season’.

Sharks lost 13 - 15                                                        

Junior Netball Academy
Registrations are now being taken for the Southland Junior Netball Academy. This is a skills based coaching programme that is available for 8-14 year olds. The programme consists of 8x 1 hour coaching sessions, a training t-shirt, diary and lots of fun. For more information, check out www.netballsouthland.org.nz or contact Tracy on 03 2171303.

Fuel Fitness - Holiday Programme 17 – 21 December 8.30 – 5 @ St. Josephs School Hall

Need something to keep the kids occupied these holidays? Look no further!! $25 1/2 day, $34 per full day / $150 per 5 day week. Activities: Art, Craft, Movies & Popcorn, Sport, Swimming, Gymnastics,

Face Painting & Hair Braiding Lessons, Orienteering & lots of fun games & activities!!! Get in quick! To register  contact:  Toni Canny 2172220 or Patricia Balloch 2172064.

What has been going on in Room 5?

Well this year has certainly gone fast and we are all getting really tired.

Last week we had a dress up day. We all had to dress up as something that started with one of the initials in our names. Here are some of the pictures.

    Transformer               Batman                    The Joker

         Tyler                    Braedyn                       Josh

            Santa                   New World                John Cena               

         Sarah                       Neve                     Benjamin

      James Bond              Karate Kid                The Riddler

           Jules                               Kade                        Jesse

Last Day Fun Day

Please fill in the permission slip and return to the class teacher, as your child cannot participate unless they have written permission. Please also let us know if your child is unable to slide on the soap suds, we will provide alternate water play for them.

_________________________ has permission to participate in the water fun day on Thurs 13 Dec

I understand that I must provide swimming togs and a towel to participate.

Signed ___________________________