Kia Ora, Ni Hao, Fakaalofa lahi atu, Malo e lelei, Kia Orana, and Bula Vinaka Whānau,

Welcome back to the 2025 academic year where we are Living, Learning and Serving with Jesus as our guide. 

Our year has started smoothly as we mark this Jubilee Year in our Catholic faith – a Pilgrim Year of Hope.
Our connected curriculum this year focuses on the mission of bringing hope to the world under the guidance of Jesus Christ, with key themes of Discovery, Stories and Empower guiding our learning as the year progresses.
We delve more deeply into supporting our student’s wellbeing and mental health, embedding the wellbeing model of Te Whare Tapa Whā and lessons through the Mitey mental health programme. Families will be supported in guarding and promoting the wellbeing of their children by the ongoing tips from the Keeping our Kids Safe Online team as the year progresses too – keep your eyes on the weekly ‘events’ emails for updates and two minute videos.
Our focus this year also takes us on the journey of implementation of the new Mathematics and Literacy curriculum areas.
So, a busy year all round!

Parish Connect
Sacramental Programme 2025:   Enrolments are open until Sunday 23 February for families wanting to prepare their children for the Sacraments of Reconciliation, Confirmation, and First Holy Communion.  Parents,  you can access the process for enrolments either by going to the Parish website (www.howickcatholic.org.nz)  or by collecting an enrolment form from the tray sitting on the table in the foyer of the Church.  The children will celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation (First Confession) on Friday 21st March at 7.00pm.  The Sacrament of Confirmation will be administered by the Bishop on Friday 08th August at 7.00pm,  and First Holy Communion will be celebrated over the weekend Masses on 09th/10th August.

Please  follow this link to view this Sunday’s readings.

Welcome Picnic 
Last Wednesday we were blessed with warm weather as we celebrated the start of the school year with our meet the teacher and school picnic to follow. Although early in the year, our Parents Committee were super organised and I am sure, like me, you enjoyed a free sausage as part of the evening’s entertainment. We are most grateful to our Parents Committee for their support of community events.

Science in a Van visit yesterday our students were enthralled with the dynamic team from Science in a Van, exploring the material world. This exploration connects well with our ‘Discovery’ Theme this term.

Year 6 Camp As we look to next week, we ask you all to keep our Year 6 campers in your prayers as they head to Kawau Island on Monday for the week. I am sure they will have an amazing time, aided by our wonderful crew of teachers, parent supporters and the prayers of our community.

Staffing Update
We congratulate Mrs Brooke Crowe and her husband on the safe arrival of their wee son. An early arrival, but we are all very pleased that they are doing well. Your ongoing prayers for Brooke and the family are most welcome!

We are pleased to welcome Miss Morgan Solecki to our teaching staff. Morgan is a familiar face to many already as she has worked and volunteered at OLSOS in years gone by. I know you will make her feel very welcome as she embarks as a class teacher in our Year 1 class this year. See below for an introduction message from Morgan.
Hello, I am Morgan Solecki and I am the teacher in Room 9 this year. While I was born in South Africa I have lived in Auckland for most of my life and went to school in Bucklands Beach. This is my first year as a teacher at Our Lady Star of the Sea, but I have been around for the past few years as a volunteer and a learning assistant. Before beginning my teaching career, I studied psychology at Auckland University. I am an avid reader and I enjoy crafting in my spare time. I am very excited to get to know everyone and to be a part of the Our Lady Star of the Sea community!

A few reminders as we start the year:
Annual Consent Form – This was due by Friday 7 February.  Your child/ren will have brought home our annual consent form for trips and visits across our school year as well as other critical consent elements. Your child/ren will not be able to leave the school for any trips or events until we have this form back to school. If you haven’t already, please give this to your class teacher.
Updating Contact Details If any of your contact details have recently changed, (phone numbers, address, email address or emergency contact details), please be in touch with our school office to let them know, or, you are welcome to make changes through the parent portal.
Uniform Please ensure your child/ren has the correct uniform including a school hat. The uniform shop is open on Thursdays from 8.15am to 8.45am and again from 2.30pm – 3.00pm.  Uniform orders can be placed online by completing an order form, paying online and emailing the order to [email protected].  An order form can be found on the school website under the School Information tab, then select School Uniform.  Orders must be in by Wednesday for delivery to your child’s classroom on Thursday.  For any size exchanges please return to the office and we will action.     If using an online order for PE tops, please remember to circle the colour sleeve band for your school house.
Cell Phones Away for the Day A reminder: The Government has introduced regulations that require students to keep phones away whilst at school. Please email your class teacher if your child has a mobile phone and they will look after it during the day. If your child has a watch that has the ability to communicate, this will also need to be set on ‘school’ mode to prevent distractions/interruptions. 
Safety around the school gates With all the congestion we experience before and after school, we are very mindful of keeping our tamariki|students, safe. There are a few things you can do to help us make sure that no child gets hurt, or worse, coming to and leaving school.
1. Make sure all children get out of, or into the car on the curbside
2. Always use the marked crossing areas at the front or the back of the school to cross the road as these have the most visibility for drivers
3. Make sure your child/ren do not run between parked cars to get into or out of the car or across the road
4. When the road patrols are operating at the pedestrian crossing please always use these
5. When entering at the front of the school please use the footpath and pedestrian crossing that extends across the staff carpark, refraining from walking across the bus bay
6. Demonstrate to your children safe ways to cross the road
Thank you for your support. We know it often means walking a little bit further but it is worth it to avoid a tragedy.

Wishing you all a happy, safe and blessed fortnight ahead, before we share more news in our next newsletter.

Ngā mihi nui, Tōfa soifua, ‘Alu ā, cǐ zhì jìng lǐ, Koe Kia, and Vinaka vaka levu,

Louise Campbell
Principal

                                                                          JUBILEE YEAR OF HOPE
Pope Francis has declared 2025 as a year of Jubilee with the theme ‘Pilgrims of Hope’, giving voice to his desire for the year to foster a greater sense of global sisterhood and brotherhood, solidarity with the poor, and caring for the environment.

“We must fan the flame of hope that has been given us and help everyone to gain new strength and certainty by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting heart and far-sighted vision.” 

Religious Education Focus Term 1

The Religious Education focus this term is Te Atua – God. Our young learners in the Year 1 and 2 classes will develop an understanding of God – Father, Son and Spirit – who loves us and is present to us. The children will be introduced to the idea of an encounter with Jesus. Our learners in the Years 3 and 4 classes will come to understand that each Person of the Trinity is special and shares gifts with us. In Years 5 and 6 the focus is on the learners’ understanding of how to love and serve God as well as how Mary and other Saints show us how I can be like Jesus. You will have received through Seesaw the whānau page for this term’s learning with suggestions of ways to help your child and home. Please continue to spark conversations with your child/children about their RE learning and the taonga of our faith. 

Parish Sacramental Programme
Enrolment for this year’s parish sacramental programme close Sunday 23rd February. The programme is for children in year 4 and above. More information can be found on the parish website and our school website.

                                                                         Dedication Mass
Monsignor Bernard Kiely celebrated Mass for all teachers involved in Catholic Education across the Auckland Diocese, last Tuesday 11th February.   All teachers in Catholic schools are expected to be involved in ongoing Religious Education Professional Development.  During this Mass Mrs Shelley Arnott, Miss Alice Shin and Miss Laura Bentley were acknowledged for their work.

                                                                                             Parish Children’s Choir
The Children’s Choirs sing at several Masses throughout the year. The children learn vocal technique, learn to read music, those who are willing and able learn to cantor. The Choir members have shared family meals after sung Masses and sing with the Parish Choir and in community concerts. Youngest children sing in unison as they find their voices; older children sing more complex repertoire in parts. No audition is required.
Rehearsals are just beginning.  The Children’s Choir rehearse in three age groups on Saturdays during school term only: Years 1 – 3, Years 4 – 6, Years 7+. Please contact Jennifer Maybee for more information.   [email protected]

“We are a Christ centred community
fostering belonging (whanaungatanga)
and outreach
through selfless giving (manaakitanga)
in Mary’s Way”.

Welcome back to school! It was wonderful to connect with our school families at the welcome picnic—meeting new faces and catching up with familiar ones. A huge thank you to our amazing helpers who gave out 360 sausage sizzles!

We’ve relaunched the Communication Tree to keep families informed about the Parent Committee’s activities and ways to get involved. If you haven’t signed up yet, there’s still time! Sign up here

On Friday 21st of February we are starting Frozen Fridays! Every Friday the Parent Committee will deliver lemonade ice blocks to each class. Look out for a flyer with more details.

Join us for some nibbles and wine at our next meeting on the 3rd of March at 7pm in the staff room. Everyone is welcome.

On Monday you will receive from your Board, by email,  a full letter of explanation for 2025 school fees.  Along with this you will also receive by email, your current statement.  If you have previously paid by Direct Debit, you will receive an email advising of the amounts and date of the first payment due to be processed.   Direct Debits can be set up by contacting the school office.   Payments can be accepted via the school office or electronically using the bank account on the bottom of the statement.  Please reference your student’s name.  If you wish to pay more regularly than monthly, this can be arranged by contacting Sue Yandell in confidence.

Receipts for the financial year 01.04.2024 – 31.03.2025 will be processed and sent home in early April.

As usual, financial assistance is available if required, by contacting us in confidence.

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Tuesday After School Art Class

Drawing, Oil pastel, Sketching, Painting…

Classroom – Room 3

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A word from your traffic safety team

Thank you to those people that use the school Kea crossing in the morning and the afternoon. You are keeping yourselves safe by doing this. 

We are asking parents to refrain from crossing their children on the bend leading to Stella Maris Way, directly opposite the school, as it puts lives in danger. We would hate for our school to have a traffic incident when the walk to the crossing is a mere 10metres further.

It is also very hard for our student patrollers to safely manage the crossing when people do U turns on Oakridge Way – please could you refrain from doing this by driving further along Oakridge way and using the turn into Stella Maris Way or the cul de sac of Oakridge Way.

Please make sure you are not parking over our neighbours driveways or on the broken yellow lines – this helps us build healthy relationships with our neighbours and avoids you getting parking tickets from our randomly occurring police officer visits.

Please ensure all students are getting into and out of the car on the kerb side so they can wait safely on the paths. 

Our patrolled crossing operates from 8.15-8.40am in the morning and 2.40-3.00pm in the afternoons.

Our job is to keep our students safe when crossing the road. We can only do this if our parents help us by asking their children to use the Kea crossing and abiding by the road safety rules.

Many thanks for your cooperation.

Last year Our Lady Star of the Sea achieved our Bronze status as an ‘Enviro School’.  We are proud of this achievement and how we are educating our children about how to care for God’s creation.  We are now working towards our Silver status and have ongoing goals for this year.  Some of these include: 

• The pest cadet programme to encourage move native birds and plants in our school gardens
• Extending our recycling programmes 
• Continuing to work towards being a rubbish free school
• Continuing to implement sustainability into our concept planning and teaching  

YOU CAN HELP US REACH OUR GOAL! 

Please ensure your child’s lunch box is rubbish free.  We respectfully request that no packaging or glad wrap comes to school.  The 2025 Environmental Team are very keen to continue our journey to reduce our waste so watch this space for more ideas and inspiration.  

Here is a video from the NZ Herald with some great ideas for healthy and rubbish free lunches https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/back-to-school-fresh-and-healthy-school-lunches-your-kids-will-love/UCLBZAGVHRD5ZAW6QXVBP2E2XQ/

Last week we enjoyed watching ‘Freddie’s Food Scraps Quest’ which was supported by Auckland Council. We met Freddie, a young Food Scrap Fairy in training.  Her mission is to help the people of Tamaki Makaurau make sure their rekenga kai (food scraps) are saved from the terrible “Land of Phill” and are transformed into magical resources.  

The students thoroughly enjoyed the show and we all learnt more about the importance of our food scrap bins and how to use them properly.

Enrolment Applications for Year 7 and Year 9 for 2026 are now open

A Sacred Heart education provides a foundation of faith and aspiration to succeed at the highest level in personal and professional life. Places are available in Years 7 and 9 in 2026, with Boarding available from Year 9. Applications are prioritised in accordance with our Enrolment Scheme. Scholarships are available.
Join us for our Open Day on Wednesday, 26 February 2025. Two sessions are being held, 10am and 1pm in our Auditorium, followed by tours of the College. Parking will be available at Gate 4, West Tamaki Road, Glendowie.
Applications for enrolment close Friday 4 April 2025. Apply online here. Visit www.sacredheart.school.nz for more information.

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BARADENE COLLEGE – OPEN DAY TOURS – Tuesday 25, Wednesday 26 & Thursday 27 February 2025

BOOKINGS online REQUIRED (bookings open 9.00am Tuesday 18 Feb)

Tour times: 9am and 10am each day

Book at www.baradene.school.nz – 2025 Open Day Tours

Book your time by 3.00pm Monday 24 Feb

Enrolments for Year 7, 2026 and for limited places in other Year levels are being accepted now and will close at 3pm on Friday 14 March, 2025.

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Receptionist/Administrator – Catholic Social Services, Auckland.

Catholic Social Services is looking for a part-time (20 hours – 3 days – hours can be negotiable) Receptionist/Administrator based in Ponsonby.  As a faith-based professional service Catholic Social Services provides social work, counselling, out-reach and support to individual people and families.

The successful applicant would be required to provide efficient, effective, and professional reception and administrative services to the team at Catholic Social Services.

For further details please go to our website www.aucklandcatholic.org.nz, Diocesan Services and staff vacancies.

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JOIN A CHOIR!
Rehearsals are just beginning for children in one of our Children’s Choirs at Our Lady
Star of the Sea Church, Howick.
Children’s Choirs rehearse in three age groups on Saturdays during school term only:
Years 1 -3: 3.30 – 4
Years 4 – 6: 4 – 4.45
Years 7 +: 4.45 – 5.15 for older siblings
The Children’s Choirs sing at several masses throughout the year; the children learn
vocal technique, learn to read music, those who are willing and able learn to cantor, we
have shared family meals after sung masses and we sing with the Parish Choir and in
community concerts. Youngest children sing in unison as they find their voices; older
children sing more complex repertoire in parts. No audition is required. No fee and free
marshmallow after each rehearsal ☺
Please contact the Choir Director, Jennifer Maybee, for more information:
[email protected] or 022 169 1030 or contact the church office.

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