"Together we are lifelong CREST learners"
Principal's Message
Kia ora Whānau,
Kei te pehea koutou?
Te wiki o te reo Māori tenei! This year’s theme is “Ake, Ake, Ake – A Forever Language”.
During our recent staff professional development on Te Tiriti, Nathan Riki emphasised the importance of teaching te reo and tikanga in our schools. Afterall, Aotearoa is the only place on the planet where Māori culture and language exists. People from other cultures, who have since made New Zealand home, have the benefit of knowing their culture and language continues in their homeland; a space where they can return to and immerse themselves in their culture and language. However, Māori have nowhere to return to; Aotearoa is the only place. Therefore, if we do not make efforts to learn te reo and tikanga Māori on our shores, this unique culture will be lost forever.
Please keep reading! Today’s newsletter contains information about:
- Welcome to our new Teacher Aide
- Student Council’s Muscular Dystrophy fundraiser
- Is your child getting the sleep they need?
- Full Board Elections 2025
- New Entrant Parent Information session
Just in! Congratulations to Charlie Delao (photo below) who won our Senior Speech Cup this morning with his speech on the 1925 Tri-State Tornado. Charlie’s American heritage and interest in this event (one of the largest tornadoes in history) were obvious drivers of his success. Congratulations also goes out to Lucas Yeoman, Ruby Graham and Charlie Hanna who all received Highly Commended in this speech competition.
Ka kite anō au i a koutou,
Jess Ward
Principal – Tumuaki
P.S. Got a suggestion? Let us know through our online suggestion box.
Upcoming dates for your awareness:
- Monday, 23 September – Prezzy Card Prize Draw (for Parent Survey participants)
- End of Term 3 – Friday, 27 September
- Start of Term 4 – Monday, 14 October
PRINCIPAL’S C.R.E.S.T CORNER:
At PBS we champion our school C.R.E.S.T values in everything we do.
Curiosity. Respect. Excellence. Self Management. Teamwork
Following on from our students’ success at the AIMS Games in Tauranga last week, which saw Mia Thompson achieve 1st in Cross Country, our Year 8 Hockey girls achieve 2nd place and Callum Rice achieve 3rd in golf, we have some more awesome news to share!
We have just received the results of students who participated in the KIWI Competitions, run in association with University of Canterbury. We are delighted to announce that the following students achieved Excellence or Merit in the tests for Science, Maths and/or English. Congratulations to:
ENGLISH: Keely Collier-Fiske (Excellence), Emily Hamdan (Excellence), Maxwell Willis (Merit), Griffin Gunawan (Merit)
MATHS: Sunny Dou (Excellence), Keely Collier-Fiske (Merit), Devin Direen (Merit), Jamie Zhou (Merit), Maxwell Willis (Merit)
SCIENCE: Griffin Gunawan (Excellence), Emily Hamdan (Excellence), Maxwell Willis (Excellence), Callum Rice (Merit), William Hamdan (Merit)
Your results are outstanding!
Welcome to Our Recent New Students
Ane – Rm 13
Alisa – Rm 16
Have You Checked Out Our Community Notices Directory?
Do you need to advertise your business, an upcoming event, need child care, or looking for a gift or new club to join? Check out the PBS Community Directory on our website https://kapiti.pbs.school.nz/
Welcome Claire
Please join us in welcoming Claire Coleman, our new Teacher Aide, to the PBS team! We attracted a large pool of applicants for this position and interviewed a number of excellent candidates. In the end the combination of Claire’s skills, attitude and personality shone through and we are delighted to have her on board.
Helping Your Child Get the Sleep They Need
We all feel good after a restful sleep, right? The benefits of a good sleep routine for our kids are numerous; a well-rested child is a happier and more focused child. A good night’s sleep helps them to focus better in school, learn more effectively, and have a positive outlook on life.
While we know that balancing schoolwork, extracurricular activities, and family time can be challenging, prioritising sleep is essential. The right amount of sleep can significantly reduce irritability, improve concentration, and boost overall well-being. For children aged 5-12 years old, aim for 9-11 hours of sleep each night. By creating a calming bedtime routine and ensuring a comfortable sleep environment, you can help your child develop healthy sleep habits. https://www.sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/how-much-sleep-do-we-really-need
NB: It may surprise you to know that sleep deprivation is also associated with obesity, increased blood pressure, depression, increased levels of stress hormones, decreased mental alertness and brain function, and reduced immune functioning.
Interested in Becoming a Board Member in 2025?
We were recently informed that the next full Board Elections will occur in September 2025.
If you’ve ever considered it, this is an excellent opportunity for members of our school community to get involved and make a difference.
At PBS, we’re fortunate to have a diverse community of whānau and caregivers with a wide range of skills and abilities. These strengths would be invaluable on our school board, and we encourage anyone with an interest in contributing to consider standing for election.
Over the coming months, we’ll be sharing more details about the board’s responsibilities, what it means to be a board member, and how you can get involved. Our goal is to ensure that all potential candidates have the information they need to make informed decisions ahead of the election.
If you’re already interested in joining the board or have any questions, feel free to get in touch! You don’t need to wait for our upcoming articles—reach out to boardchair@pbs.school.nz for more information.
We look forward to hearing from you and seeing how we can continue to grow as a community!
Kid's Quote
Last week Jackson decided to wear a suit to school. Doesn’t he look professional!
He spotted me in the playground, ran up and said “Ms Ward, can I be your Assistant Principal?”
Using the @School App
I will regularly highlight a button on the @school app. This week it is:
This button takes you to our school’s Facebook page. This is where you find photos of events that have happened at PBS. We also post notices on our page as well.
Out of Zone Applications Open for 5 Year Old New Entrants
If you have any children due to start school soon that you have not let us know about, or if you have friends or neighbours who don’t currently have a child at PBS, but may be hoping to enrol a student here in Terms 1 or 2 2025, please ask them to contact our school office as soon as possible. Thank you.
“Out-of-zone” applications for Terms 1 and 2 2025 five year old new entrant students will be advertised in the Kapiti News next week.
From the Student Council
This term the charity we’ve chosen to support is Muscular Dystrophy New Zealand. This is because we have students and whānau within our school community who know first hand the impact of living with Muscular Dystrophy.
Muscular Dystrophy is the name of a group of conditions causing muscle weakness that gets worse over time. There’s no cure for Muscular Dystrophy, but there is treatment and support to help manage the condition.
We’ll be running a lunchtime movie for each syndicate in weeks 9 & 10. Please help us to help others by purchasing a movie ticket for only $5 (This includes popcorn, a drink and the movie). Tickets are available through KINDO.
- Tātahi’s lunchtime movie is Wednesday, 18 September
- Te Motu’s lunchtime movie is Friday, 20 September
- Te Moana’s lunchtime movie is Wednesday, 25 September
- Ngaru’s lunchtime movie is Thursday, 26 September
Calendar Art - Fabulous Presents for Christmas
Have you ordered your calendars and diaries for 2025?
Orders close next week so get your orders in asap. Order forms MUST be returned to the school office regardless of payment method by 25 September. Thank you.
New Entrant Parent Information Presentation – Tātahi Syndicate
A New Entrant Information Presentation will be held for all parents of new children on Friday, 20 September 2024 from 10.00-10.30am in the staffroom.
This session will :
- provide an overview of the ‘Transition to School’.
- provide an overview of the New Entrant Programme in reading, writing and mathematics
- highlight how you can help at home with learning
In Tātahi Syndicate, we believe that successful partnerships between home and school are established when both parties have a shared expectation and knowledge of their child’s learning. We would love to see you there.
AIMS Games Event Success
Congratulations to our amazing team for their outstanding performance at the Annual AIMS Games Event in Tauranga! With over 13,000 participants, this was the largest Southern Hemisphere Sports Event for Intermediate students.
Our team of 27 athletes represented us with pride in a variety of sports, including hockey, football, BMX racing, golf and cross-country. Alongside Mia Thomson’s gold medal in the cross-country race, our female hockey team earned a silver medal, winning all their games up to the final. Callum Rice also brought home a bronze medal in the boy’s golf event in a field of 92 competitors.
A special shout-out to our football team for their impressive improvement throughout the tournament and to Alex Martin for setting a personal best in BMX racing.
Your hard work, dedication and sportsmanship are a testament to our school’s values. We are incredibly proud of your achievements! Thank you to all the coaches, umpires, managers, and supporters who made this event a success for all our athletes.
Netball
Now that the season is finished a huge thank you to all who were involved especially the coaches, the managers, the spectators and the players of all teams. You all made us proud.
Now to netball housekeeping:
- Can all netball uniforms please be washed and dried and returned to school as soon as possible so they can be put back into storage
- Coaches, if you have finished with your netball bag, please check the contents to ensure that everything is in there, especially the training bibs. Once you have sorted the bag please return to school. If there is anything missing please leave a note on the bag
- 2024 Netball fees – there are still fees outstanding, it does amount to nearly $800.00. This is money that we don’t have to put towards the replacement of missing training bibs, new game balls, the replacement of gear bags or the replacement of uniforms. If you have said you will start to pay these off, can you please start making payments as a sign of goodwill
Lost Property
Lost property will be on display by the netball courts on fine days over the last 2 weeks of term. Anything unclaimed will be sent to the Koha shed.
Future Student Achievements
If your child has an achievement you would like us to share in our newsletter, then please send details (and a picture if you would like) to mbarfoote@pbs.school.nz
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