"Together we are lifelong CREST learners"
Principal's Message
Kia ora koutou 
Parents, we really need your help with scooter safety reminders. We love that PBS kids love riding scooters to school but just lately things have gotten dangerous and our staff are very concerned.
Students are only allowed to ride their scooters within the light blue painted line between Room 17 and the staffroom. Before and after school, the footpaths around the school are simply too busy with pedestrians, including younger children and parents with strollers, making it unsafe to ride. Lately, we’ve seen some students ignoring these rules, which puts others at risk. We ask all parents to remind their children to walk their scooters in and out of school to prevent accidents.
If these rules continue to be ignored, students may be asked to leave their scooters at home. Please also ensure preschoolers follow the same rules so they learn early. Electric scooters are an even bigger concern—one nearly collided with a staff member recently! Let’s all work together to make our school a safe place for everyone.
In our newsletter this week you’ll find information on:
- Announcement: Student Councillors for 2025!
- Verbal abuse on Road Patrol
- Reporting Schedule for 2025 – how we will report on your child
- Movin’ March parade- this Friday at 9:10am
- School FUN RUN – Friday, 11 April
Ngā mihi nui
Jess Ward
Principal – Tumuaki
P.S. Got a suggestion? Let us know through our online suggestion box.
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
Last week our Student Councillors for 2025 were notified of their success. The process was a little delayed this year due to camp, but we were absolutely delighted with the strong calibre of candidates.
A BIG congratulations to: Emily Byrne, Charlotte Chisholm, Jackson Cooper, Gryphon Corlett, Kaycee De Wit, Emily Kaye, Alyssa Kilsby, Peyton McGarry-Paku, Pranav Nayanar, Camryn Reid, Aidan Robertson and Sophie Stevens
We look forward to seeing all the ways in which these students uphold and role-model the school’s CREST values.
Welcome to Our Recent New Students
There were no new students this week
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/
Verbal Abuse on Road Patrol
Every day members of our staff stand on gate duty to ensure the safety of PBS kids and other pedestrians. This role requires vigilance and confidence, ensuring road users are doing the right thing in a very crucial space.
Most of our parent community will be surprised to learn that teachers undertaking this duty are often verbally abused by drivers. It’s behaviour that is absolutely not OK, and I’m sorry to say that it happens so often that at times we become numb to it.
However, this morning an incident made me so embarrassed as a leader in this community that I need to say something. Today we had two wonderful parent volunteers supervising road patrol, so that the staff could have their photo taken before school started. One of these parents was so badly abused by a school parent (including swearing and a racist taunt) that I’m making a stand. Our school CREST values are not just for our kids, we expect our staff and parents to uphold these too. Abuse of this nature will not be tolerated and from now on a record of this abuse will be documented and forwarded to the police.
School Photos - 25 & 26 March
Photo Schedule | |
Tuesday, 25 March | Wednesday, 26 March |
Te Motu (Years 7 & 8) Syndicate Ngaru (Years 3 & 4) Syndicate | Tātahi (Years 1 & 2) Syndicate Te Moana (Years 5 & 6) Syndicate |
See a sample copy of the order form below for instructions on how to order.
Using Māori Language at Home
Learning another language provides many benefits including greater academic achievement, greater cognitive development, and more positive attitudes towards other languages and cultures. So, let’s give it a go and help to revitalise this unique language to Aotearoa for our tamariki. Each week our newsletter will include words or phrases that you might like to try out at your kāinga/home.
Kīwaha (idiom)
A super simple saying that you can use in your everyday conversations.
Kia manawanui – Hang in there!
Reporting to Parents 2025
At PBS reporting to parents on children’s progress and achievement will be ongoing throughout the school year. This means you will receive a termly update (via HERO) rather than a mid-year and end of year report.
We have developed a termly schedule for reporting which is aligned with the core curriculum areas of Literacy and Mathematics. The schedule also allows for reporting on the other curriculum areas, and the school’s CREST values.
The schedule is as follows:
TERM | You will receive: |
Terms 1 & 3 | A general update regarding your child. This update may include information about their attitude to learning, their behaviour and social needs, diligence etc You will also receive between 1-5 ‘Learning Journal’ posts about classroom learning throughout the term. These posts may include photos, examples of work, updates on other curriculum learning (e.g. the arts, technology, inquiry learning etc) and CREST values. Please note:
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Terms 2 & 4 | An update on your child’s maths progress. This update may also include next learning steps and what you can do at home to support your child. An update on your child’s literacy progress. This update may also include next learning steps and what you can do at home to support your child. You will also receive between 1-5 ‘Learning Journal’ posts about classroom learning throughout the term. These posts may include photos, examples of work, updates on other curriculum learning (e.g. the arts, technology, inquiry learning etc) and CREST values. Please note:
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Fancy Feet & Wheels Day
Don’t forget this Friday is Fancy Feet and Wheels Day
Dress up your bike, scooter, skates or feet and take part in our parade!
The parade will be 9.10am on the basketball court, weather permitting.
Touch Rugby School vs School Inter-School Tournament
Well done to all of our teams who competed in the School vs School Touch Rugby tournament on Sunday. Congratulations to the PBS Eagles and the PBS Storm touch teams, both silver medallists in their respective grades (U12 & U14). Ka rawe also to PBS Whero and PBS Pango who competed in the U10 grade. They played hard throughout the day and had some very close matches. Ngā mihi nui to our volunteer coaches, managers and the PBS support crew.
Netball
Year 7 – Year 8 students who have returned their netball forms, please remember you have trials this Friday (28 March) 3.15pm at school. You need to be wearing appropriate footwear and have all your jewellery off. Also, don’t forget your drink bottle.
Year 3 – Year 6 students if you are keen to play you still have time to bring back your registration form. These need to be at school by Thursday, 27 March.
Hockey 2025
School Hockey Registrations are now open for Years 1-8 for the 2025 season! Hockey is a really fun game, and our local club runs a great programme for all ages. It does not matter if your child has played before or not – everyone is welcome. Register by filling in this google form: https://forms.gle/CmajZ4xzkmqxRSk88
A huge thank you to Paul Tessier for running “Have a go Hockey” at school last week for Years 3-6. We hope that lots of students who enjoyed these sessions will sign up for the season!
If you have any questions about school hockey, please email Caty Spencer at cspencer@pbs.school.nz.
Out of Zone Applications
Twice a year we will call for applications for five year old new entrants who haven’t started school yet and are living out of the school zone. The next round of applications will open tomorrow and will close at 4pm on 5 May 2025. This will be for five year old children due to start school during the second half of 2025.
If you have a five year old new entrant due to start school during this time, then please contact the office on 298 5775 and we will arrange for you to receive application papers. If you have already been in touch with your details, then we will email out the forms to you from 26 March.
New Entrant Parent Information Presentation – Tātahi Syndicate
A New Entrant Parent Information Presentation will be held for all parents of new children this Friday, 28 March from 10am – 10.30am in the school 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, and explain the purpose of the
Home Learning Books
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.
Fun Run
At PBS we are holding our awesome FUN RUN event on the last day of term (Friday, 11 April) at 1.30pm. There will be lots of cool activities like the slip and slide, a dance off, colour run, pool of bubbles, lots of different fun activities and of course the fire truck to hose kids off at the end. Your child will need to wear old clothes that you don’t mind colour getting on, as well as bring a towel and change of clothes.
All the funds raised from this event will be put towards a large permanent sports canopy over the stage area on the field. This will enable the school to make use of the stage all year round, as well as an outdoor field space that can be used rain or shine.
After lots of discussion, the PTA have decided to change the fun run up a bit this year. We are going to have an old-fashioned sponsorship form (on paper) and a different price structure. This is because in previous years we have had an external company managing the payments and prizes, resulting in a big portion of our hard earned funds going to them. This year, we have four individual prizes to give out to the students who raise the most money from their sponsorships. These prizes will be in the form of a voucher from their favourite store (EB Games, Rebel, Warehouse, Sterling Sports etc).
- 1st prize will be $200
- 2nd prize will be $150
- 3rd prize will be $100
- 4th prize will be $50
But wait, there will also be a class prize; yummy pizza for lunch for the class that raises the most money. This will be delivered to the winning class in Term 2 after all the sponsorship money has been collected.
It is going to be so much fun! Parents and whānau members are more than welcome to come and watch the kids in action. Just remember, don’t send your child in their good clothes!
Te Moana Syndicate Fundraising
Easter Raffle
Te Moana Syndicate are selling raffle tickets for Easter – $2 a ticket and you could win one of three baskets full of Easter and holiday treats!
The raffle will be drawn at the last Te Moana assembly on Wednesday, 2 April.
Iceblocks for Sale
Iceblocks will be for sale on Wednesday lunchtimes for $1 each.
Recent Student Achievements
North Island Trials Champs: Over the weekend James Lawton competed in Round 1 & 2 of the North Island Trials Championship. The grades go by ability not age, so James rode against adults. He came second on Saturday and 1st on Sunday leaving him with 1st overall for the weekend. Well done!
Recent Student Achievements
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
Join the PBS Whānau Rōpu
Inclusive Whānau Network
Waitārere Forest Run
