St Kevin's College News and Reminders Term 2 Week 4
Kia ora whānau and friends of St Kevin's College,
Halfway through the term already, we had another busy week at SKC, with the team from Life Education Trust visiting the College on Tuesday and presenting their 'SMASHED' show to our Year 10s, and 'Behind the Scenes' to our Year 9s. On Wednesday the Roncalli Exchange took place, we have a small cohort of swimmers in the Aoraki Swimming today up in Ashburton and several sporting teams competing this weekend. We wish them all the best!
School Notices
- This is a friendly reminder that parents and caregivers must let the office know beforehand if students have appointments during the day: 03 437 1665 or 021 437 176.
- All students in Years 9-12 are not permitted to leave the school grounds during intervals and lunch breaks.
All Year 9-11 students must get caregiver consent to sign out during school hours. Caregivers can email or call the office to provide consent and reason for the absence. Students cannot sign out until the caregiver is reached.
Attendance Matters
As we venture into Term 2, it is an excellent time to check in on your school attendance.
Every day matters!
SKC uniform shop
SKC desperately needs donations of any and all second-hand clothing for the SKC uniform shop. We especially need pants, shorts, white and blue shirts, and socks. Depending on their condition, we are able to buy back kilts, blazers, jumpers, soft shell jackets, and new PE tops.
Drop off at the shop on Thursdays (1-2 p.m) or the main school office.
For all inquiries, call Jane at 0211996525.
Sibling Enrolment at St Kevin's College
Dear families, please ensure that enrolments for siblings of students already attending St. Kevin's College are submitted prior to the enrolment cut-off date.
Having a sibling at the college does not guarantee automatic entry. Please ensure that application forms are completed and sent to the school office in a timely manner to avoid disappointment.
Domestic applications for 2025 day students close on Friday, 5th July, 2024. Families will be notified of the outcome of their applications during Term 3, 2024.
Late enrolments will be placed on a waiting list, and contact will be made if space is available.
Ngā mihi
The Senior Leadership Team
St Kevin's College
NCEA study tips from students
Here are some handy NCEA study tips from students for students; please share them with your student/s to help them prepare.
Meet students, hear their study advice and learn about the tools they use for success in NCEA exams.
Ngā mihi
Past few weeks at SKC
Have a Go indoor bowling - 17th May
Last Friday there was a "Have a Go" indoor bowling session in the gym. It was a great opportunity for the students to try something different, and there was some impressive talent on display!
If anyone is interested in trying indoor bowls, there are more opportunities at Athletic Rugby Clubrooms at 4 pm on Tuesdays.
A big thank you to Neil Gilbert for organising the event.
Left to right: Jian Torres & Sunny Tian
Timaru-Oamaru Chess Power regionals - 17th May
Last Friday the Timaru-Oamaru ChessPower regionals were held at SKC. There were 70 chess players from the region who had registered to play.
A day full of Chess games and Chess-themed challenges kept everyone busy, happy and engaged.
The St Kevin's College A team, comprising of the talented Carter Lambert, Sunny Tian, Benjamin Jonothan, Liam Fontaine, James Miers, Tama Roberts and Todd Growcott, emerged victorious in the senior division. This remarkable achievement has earned them the privilege of sending 5 members to compete in the Finals in Wellington this October.
Congratulations to Jian for achieving 1st place in the senior competition and to Sunny Tian for securing 3rd place overall in the Senior Competition.
OIS and Fenwick won the intermediate and junior competitions, respectively.
Congratulations to these Oamaru Chess players.
Thanks to our student photographers, Ianna Abuyabor and Janelle Casitas.
St Kevin’s College Rowing Badges - 20th May
On Monday at assembly, 8 young men who qualified for an A or B Final at the Maadi Cup were presented with the St Kevin's College Rowing Badges.
Nye Jones-Hogan
Paddy Spillane
Kobe Narruhn
Kouper Lynch
Orlando Narruhn
Henry Robinson
Jacob Harrison
Cody Marshall
Special mention to Cody Marshall, who also received the Top 10 Crew Pin for placing in the top 10 of the Under 18 Single Skulls in New Zealand.
Congrats guys!
Behind the Scenes & Smashed
A team from the Life Education Trust visited the College on Tuesday and presented their 'SMASHED' show to our Year 10s and 'Behind the Scenes' to our Year 9s.
SMASHED seeks to support our young people to understand health risks, how alcohol can impact behaviour and decision-making, and to explore strategies to avoid peer pressure when they find themselves in situations where alcohol is present.
'Behind the Scenes ' is not just a show but an interactive experience that follows three young characters. In this 45-minute performance, we delve into the complex issues of vaping and social media, inviting our audience to actively consider them. It's a safe and engaging way for young people to explore peer dynamics and decision-making.
For more information and resources, please
The Great Brain Robbery - https://gbr.org.nz/
School Events
Coming up this term
Tuesday 28th May - Numeracy Common Assessment Activity
Wednesday 29th May - Writing Common Assessment Activity
Thursday 30th May - Reading Common Assessment Activity
Friday 31st May - Teachers Only Day
Tuesday 7th June - Loves Me Not programme- Year 12
Tuesday 11th - 13th June - Year 11 Geography trip
Saturday June 15th - SKC Formal
Monday 24th June - Thursday 27th June - Cambridge Practice Assessment Week
Term 2 Holiday Dates
Monday 3rd June - King's Birthday. The Hostel will be closed.
Friday 28th June - Matariki
Sports
Coming up this term
Sunday 26th May - South Island Secondary School Cross Country
Sunday 26th May - Aoraki Chess
Saturday 1st June - Smallbore Postal Shoot
Wednesday 5th June - Junior Quads/Aoraki Squash
Sunday 9th -10th June - Otago Secondary Schools Netball
Tuesday 11th June - Mercy Cup
Thursday 13th June - Aoraki Open Basketball
Tuesday 18th June - Aoraki Junior Boys Basketball
Wednesday 19th June - Aoraki Junior Girls Basketball
Sunday 23rd June - Aoraki Netball
Monday 1st -5th July - Waitaki Week
The Past week in Sports
Roncalli Exchange 22nd May Results
We had such a great time hosting the Roncalli Exchange on Wednesday, a fixture we look forward to each year.
Here are your results.
Rugby
Under 16.5 win 31 - 29
Under 14.5 loss 44 - 12
Hockey
Girls First XI win 3 - 1
Netball
Senior A win 34 - 24
Senior B loss 29 - 20
Intermediate A loss 21-18
Junior A win 25 - 5
Football
Senior Boys Football won 3 - 2
Girls Football 2 all draw
Junior Boys Football lost 9 - 0
Basketball
Junior Girls loss 13 - 29
Junior Boys win 52 - 31
Senior Boys win 72 - 65
Senior Girls win 34 - 24
Debating
Win by 1 point
Art and Cultural Events
Coming up this term
Monday 10th June - Big Sing
Thursday June 20th - Scripture Reading
Play It Strange Songwriting Competitions
Play It Strange is well into the year's national secondary school songwriting competitions, but there is still time to enter!
Year 9 – 11 Songwriting Competition – closes Friday 24th May
All winners will have their songs recorded in a professional recording studio and then released onto Spotify albums.
The first prize will be a 1:1 mentor session with our guest judge, Marlon Williams and a $500 Rockshop gift card.
Peace Song Competition – closes 30th June.
The theme of peace and non-violence may be interpreted broadly from inner personal peace, peace in the home and among families, to peace between people worldwide.
All winners will have their songs recorded in a professional recording studio and released as Spotify albums.
The first prize will be a 1:1 mentor session with our guest judge, Jordan Luck and a $500 Rockshop gift card.
Year 9 – 13 Songwriting Competition – closes 31st July
All winners will have their songs recorded in a professional recording studio and then released onto Spotify albums.
First prize winners will receive a 1:1 mentor session with our guest judge, Ladi6, a $1000 Rockshop gift card, and a $10,000 recording and PR music package thanks to NZ on Air.
Te Reo Māori Award
Any song entered in any competition will also be eligible for our Te Reo Māori Award, formally known as the Junior Maioha Award. All winners will have their songs recorded in a professional recording studio, and the first prize will win a 1:1 mentor session with our soon-to-be-announced guest judge!
All competition winners will also be flown to Auckland to perform at our Annual Awards at the end of the year.
The recording and performance quality of the entry are not taken into account during the judging process.
Entrants need to upload their original song and lyric sheet into our online portal.
Enter now: https://www.playitstrange.org.nz/competitions
Guidelines for Attitude to Learning
General philosophy.
The purpose of ATL feedback is so that parents and students can have real time information about how students are engaging in each subject.
The overarching objective should be to have ‘no surprises’ for caregivers.
ATL numbers should cover how students are working generally in relation to:
How they are developing the habits of an independent life long learner.
This means:
Teachers will be providing opportunities within classes for independent, differentiated learning opportunities.
ATLs will be used with the Junior reports. This will require additional weight to be given to ATL, meaning that periodically, a curriculum statement will be added to the ATL report. At the end of Term 1, the focus will be on setting goals and identifying learning challenges for the students so that we head things off before they become a problem.
Comments.
These should be specific and address immediate concerns or celebrate recent, specific achievements.
These should provide caregivers the opportunity to be able to participate in supporting their student.
These should be brief and accurate.
Only be provided for immediate and relevant issues.
What ATL’s are NOT.
They are not a method for punishing a student.
They are not a forum for diagnosing medical or learning issues e.g. suggesting a student is dyslexic
They are not a place for long term guidance such as large general statements about learning.
They are not a report which you must feel compelled to write every fortnight.
They are not a replacement for Dean involvement, discussions with HoF’s, phone calls to parents etc.
They are not a ‘restorative chat’.
School TV
Cyberbullying
With the advent of the internet, smartphones, and tablets, a whole new digital dimension has been added to traditional schoolyard bullying. There was once a time when bullying victims were given some respite outside of school hours, but sadly, these days, online bullying can occur 24/7. In today’s world, teaching your young person about online and cyber safety is as important as learning to swim or cross the road!
Cyberbullying can be identified as being the repeated behaviour by an aggressor with the intent to harm or embarrass. Technology enables these aggressors to share information widely and quickly, making this form of bullying extremely dangerous and harmful. However, the answer is not to shun the internet nor social media. Instead, families are encouraged to embrace it and instil a family internet policy to protect their young people without limiting the freedom to learn, explore and communicate online.
In this edition of SchoolTV, families are provided with useful guidelines and advice on how to minimise the risks. Our young people have the right to feel safe, regardless of whether it is in the schoolyard or online.
We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this edition of SchoolTV. If you have any concerns about your child, please contact the Pastoral Care Team for further information or seek medical or professional help.
Here is the link to the Cyberbullying edition of SchoolTV
Community Events/Notices
TE NGAKAU NUI (The Big Heart)
Te Ngakau Nui, the parents/caregivers and supporters group of St Kevin's, is a beacon of hope for our school. Our collective efforts have raised significant funds that have made a substantial difference to St Kevin's.
We are not just a small group, but a close-knit community of dedicated individuals. We meet once a month to brainstorm and organise fundraising ideas for the school. We welcome new members and invite everyone to our upcoming AGM on Tuesday, 21st May, at 7 pm in the staffroom.
As a group, we have a constant fundraiser thanks to Rebecca Hefferman, who runs the Hungry Course Cafe at the race course. This involves providing and selling food for at least 10 race meets annually. So far, we have made around $10,000 through this venture.
We run the Uniform shop and provide quality second-hand uniforms and new kilts, blazers, PE tops, beanies, scarves, and soon-to-be-sold winter jackets. We are looking for donations of any uniforms to restock our supplies.
Our primary fundraiser is held Biannually, which involves a 'Do' of some sort. This year's will be a Masquerade Ball, date to be confirmed, so watch this space!
Anyone can help out, and everyone is welcome to join in. Money from our last 'Do', 'Mr North Otago, ' $18,000, was used to help resurface the gym.
If you are interested in joining Te Ngakau Nui - please get in touch with Sam Growcott at tengakaunui@stkevins.school.nz
Ngā mihi
The Te Ngakau Nui team.
Winterfest 2024 - 15th - 18th JULY
WINTERFEST 2024 is HERE!
We have some cool stuff planned!
Not only are we going to Cardrona, an internationally renowned ski field with various jumps, but we also have options for activities in Queenstown (gondola, luge & aquatic centre). Plus, we have a live band and guest speakers from all over the USA who will be with us for the four days. Bring the gear listed below, some good mood, and let's have some fun! To top it up, games, laughter, dance, music, movie night, fun speakers & staying up late (don't show parents this bit) are a few of last year's highlights that will carry on. You might have heard a rumour about a tradition of jumping into the freezing lake on the last day morning-not wrong ;-)
Musac Edge portal and app guide
We have an updated guide on how to use the Edge caregiver portal/app that allows you to view school information about your child(ren), and to pay school bills online if your school supports this. The portal & app gives you quick and easy access to the information for the children in your care and can receive announcements and notifications from the school. Please view the guide here
News to Share?
We love celebrating our students' success. Photos are always a bonus; please email these as Facebook Messenger compresses the quality!
Please let me know via email any relevant news we could share - srees@stkevins.school.nz
You can follow St Kevin's College on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube
Have a great weekend!
Ngā mihi
Shane Rees
Communications and Events