Dear Parents, Caregivers and Friends of St Mary’s School,
After a long period during which few, if any visible changes took place on the new building site the last week has been a literal hive of activity.
The temporary access road has been put in and the clearing of the site is progressing at pace to enable the beginning of the driving of the piles so that Rooms 4 and 5 can be shifted during the holidays.
It is a very exciting time at the school with: along side the acceleration of work at the new school site the smart new sports uniforms have arrived; the two class rooms, the storage room and the reading room at the western end of the main block are all empty and being prepared for the shift. And of course this is the week during which ‘Animal Antics’ our annual school production is being staged. It promises to be a great show so please make every effort to get along.
Early next term is our schools annual fair, this day is always highly successful both in terms of money raised and as a great social day for the families, but this year is going to be special, it is our final fair based at 62 Church Street. All of the money raised will be used to ensure that our move to our new school will be highly successful, so please support our hard working and highly motivated P.T.A. and this will ensure that our shift will be a major success.
As this is the last newsletter for the term I would like to thank all of the people who have helped at school over the term, sport coaches, people who have worked in classes, those who have gone on trips and camp, and especially the P.T.A. and B.O.T. the amount of time and effort that these groups put in is often not recognized—so thank you.
Next term will be a huge term for the school, our aim is to ensure that your children’s learning is effected as little as possible by the shift while ensuring that it is an experience that they will remember.
Have a great week and a happy and safe holiday.
Mike Brosnahan
Dear Parents, Caregivers and Friends of St Mary’s School,
Despite the snow that fell last week spring is definitely here and except for a few hockey representative players children’s winter sport is definitely over for the year.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the parents who have coached, managed or supported our sports teams over the winter months. As I look at the models of schools that succeed in sport the two key factors that lead to their success is continual support and skill development.
So thank you once again to all of you, your continual support leads to your children having a greater range of opportunities and enjoying greater success!
I would also like to thank and acknowledge the parents who helped with making the celebration of the First Holy Communion for our pupils so special. The celebration of the Sacraments is obviously a hugely important part of our schools special character. The preparation that the children put in, and thank you to the parents who lead this, is crucial to underline the importance of the sacraments to us.
The leadership of Father Michael and Mrs Dillon has made the whole process a highly successful and enjoyable experience.
Have a great week
Mike Brosnahan
Dear Parents, Caregivers and Friends of St Mary’s School,
Over the past week I have been involved in a number of rolls in a range of sporting codes. From spectator to selector, from coach to supporter, and reflecting back on these experiences I would like to share some observations with you.
Firstly children succeed in sport when they enjoy the sport and are playing it because it is something that they want to do. Often you will see children who have been pushed by their parents drop out at high school because they had become so afraid of failing that sport was not enjoyable.
The rule of ten thousand definitely is still a major factor, that is that to achieve at a high level you need to put in a minimum of ten thousand hours at your selected sport, but if you want children to put in anything like this level of effort then two factors are vital: they must have excellent support and they must enjoy what they are doing—feel part of a team or group.
My daughter’s hockey team has had a very successful season and the reason for this lies in their coaches ability to take a diverse group of girls ranging in age from 13-18 and including a national representative and some who only play for the school, and welding them into a team.
She was able to achieve this by her own skills but also by the fact that the older members in her team were real leaders. Despite the fact; in one case they could have been playing for New Zealand one day and the next playing against South Otago, there was no self aggrandisement or self promotion but rather they emphasized the no ‘I’ in team saying.
The rest of the team responded to this leadership. There was no talking down but only encouragement, no rebukes yelled but only encouragement, no snide remarks but rather support for a common goal.
I would suggest that sport here becomes a metaphor for life, if we want our team to succeed we need to focus on the collective not on our own aspirations.
Have a great week
Mike Brosnahan
Dear Parents, Caregivers and Friends of St Mary’s School,
Last week I had the absolute privilege of going ‘on camp’ with our senior pupils. The programme that Mrs Baines designed was excellent, it was a perfect balance between: outdoor education, social
sciences, science and life skills.
The highlight for many would have been the skiing and as one pupil expressed to me. “When I first
arrived I was scared to go on the learners slope and now I can ski anywhere”! encapsulates the
development in confidence and motivation that the group went through during the week.
My personal highlight was the trip to the Arrowtown museum, when the pupils went to 1880’s school.
“Miss Grey” scared me and I was only watching, but the programme highlighted now education has changed and how lucky we are to have now the New Zealand National Curriculum.
I would like to thank all of the parents who helped out on camp, with out you all we would never have achieved all that we did and once again acknowledge the huge effort put in by Mrs Baines. The
success of the camp was down to the hard work that she put in with regards planning and designing the camp over the preceding months.
Our Year Seven and Eight camp has become something of an institution and when I see the positive
effects that it has for our pupils then I am more than ever determined to ensure that it continues.
Have a great week
Mike Brosnahan
Dear Parents, Caregivers and Friends of St Mary’s School,
Here we are in Week Six and as usual we have a busy week planned. The senior children are away at camp in Queenstown.
School camps are a tradition in New Zealand and all of us would fondly remember them from when we were children. I went to a small country school so our school camps tended to be in Dunedin which was a real eye opener to kids from the ‘Styx’. But most children would have learned to kayak and climb rocks, abseil and generally challenge themselves in a range of stimulating outdoor experiences.
School camps and the opportunities that they present to our pupils cannot be over estimated. We don’t know what we are capable of until we try.
On Sunday night I watched a documentary about Palmerston North Boys High and the ethos that they had, one of tradition and challenging your self to be better. I think that we can learn a lot from that.I am always keen for St Mary’s pupils to present a good first impression, by ensuring that their grooming is neat, dress appropriately, and that they use good manners.
To make a good first impression puts you on the front foot when dealing with a potential employer, or someone who can offer you a place in a course or school or select you in a team. First impressions really do count.
I will be at the Senior school camp in Queenstown this week—Mrs Kenneally and Mrs Stevens will be Acting Principal.
Have a great week
Mike Brosnahan
Dear Parents, Caregivers and Friends of St Mary’s School,
Week Four already and what an exciting week this looks like being.
The Kapahaka group is presenting a performance at the Hui Ako festival at Fairfield school on Wednesday, various classes have visitors to them during the week and Room 3 and Room 5 have Mass on Friday.
I do notice a lot of tired eyes around at the moment as most people have spent a little more time watching the Olympic Games then we should. I am always very happy to see new Zealand doing well but I was especially pleased to see Mahe Drysdale win his Gold medal. He was so close four years ago and his victory just underlines his amazing dedication, skill and tenacity.
I think another point to remember is that more and more of the athletes taking part are aged in their late 20’s or early 30’s because with more funding and support athletes are staying active for much longer. We need to relay this information to our pupils that life isn’t a sprint race but rather a marathon and that they need to be prepared like Mahe to learn from defeats.
I will be away at the Catholic School Convention from Wednesday to Friday, Mrs Kenneally will be Acting Principal so have a great week!
Have a great week.
Mike Brosnahan
Dear Parents, Caregivers and Friends of St Mary’s School,
Week Three and what a busy time it is for all of us who are involved in any way in sport.
It’s that time which happens every four years when we all know what it is to ‘win by an ipon’, ‘catch a crab’, or ‘lose by T.K.O. Yes, the Olympics are on, and you can only marvel at the amazing ability at the athletes that we watch and the amazing feats of skill, strength and endurance that they display.
What we must not lose sight of though is that these performances were not just made by someone wandering up and saying ‘can I have a row’ but rather by immensely talented athletes who have dedicated years to their sport. Often making huge personal sacrifice along the way.
The one sport in the Olympics that I can comment on with any knowledge is rowing, I know what is required to achieve at national level and the jump to international level is immense. To have a crew like Bond and Murray in such a technical boat is a huge boost for New Zealand rowing and our chances at the Olympics. Every other crew is determined to win, there is no such thing as a ‘lay down—misere’. Upsets happen, oars break and sport by it’s very nature is fickle. We expect great things of our athletes, they expect more of themselves.
But we must remember to temper our expectations especially of our own children. We can encourage, support, nurture and even dream but if we want our children to play a sport to a high level we must ensure that they enjoy it. As the American golfer Ray Floyd said “if you love what your doing you never work a day in your life”.
So when we watch our children at their sport we need to remember that they are learning: skills, attitudes, values and setting goals. Our job as parents is to offer support and hopefully they will continue to enjoy their sport and one day they may achieve something great.
Have a great week.
Mike Brosnahan
