Tēnā Koutou, Talofa Lava, Malo e Lelei, Namaste, Ni sa bula, Noaia’e mauri, Fakalofa lahi atu, Kia Orana, Ni Hao, An Nyung Ha Sai Yo, Nay Ho, Hej, Hallo, Sawat Dee, Cześć, Goeie Dag, សួស្តី, Здравствуйте, Hola, Ola, 안녕하세요, Ayubowan, Vanakkam. Greetings to our school families.

Our Meet and Greet is a special event at the start of each year. We hope you were able to take the opportunity not only to get to know our SBS crew a little better, but also to connect with one another.

As our area continues to grow, it’s important that we keep our village connections strong — for the benefit of our tamariki and for each other.

If you’re new to the area, we encourage you to keep an eye on our fortnightly newsletter. It’s not just for school updates — it’s also a great source of information about opportunities and events for families across our wider community.

There is plenty happening at the moment:

  • Winter sport registration days are coming in thick and fast
  • Karate has started up again here at school on Tuesday nights
  • The PTA are gearing up for their Fun Family Fishing Competition

You’ll find details about all of this — and more — in the newsletter below.

Thank you also for your patience and communication regarding the road works at the end of Dawson Road. We’re going to LOVE that smooth road when it’s finished!

Ngā mihi nui,

Kathryn Ramel

Principal

Welcome to our New Students – we hope you enjoy your time at our school!

Taylor M

School Diary

Week 4: 23 Feb – 27 Feb

  • Mon 23.2
  • New Entrant/Drop Off Anxiety Session 9am in the Staffroom (details below)
  • Junior Swimming. Leaving 11:30am
  •  Cricket w/ Liam Jones
  • Pasifika Performance Group – 2pm whole school in hall (details below)
  • Tues 24.2
  • Junior Swimming. Leaving 12:30
  • Cricket w/ Liam Jones
  • Weds 25.2
  • Junior Swimming. Leaving 12:30
  • New entrant visits 9-11
  • Board Meeting 6:30pm
  • Thurs 26.2 Year 4 Mountains to Sea program at school

Week 5: 2 Mar – 5 Mar

  • Weds 4.3 Food for Thought visits to 4 Square 9.00-12.30 (Nik 1-2, Kow 2)
  • New entrant visits 9-11
  • Thurs 5.3 Senior School SBS Athletics (parents & whānau welcome – further info to come)
  • Fri 6.3 Whole School Sprint Finals straight after morning roll (parents & whānau welcome – further info to come)
  • Full School Assembly 2:00pm. Man 2 presenting

Week 6: 9 Mar – 13 Mar

  • Mon 9.3 Junior Swimming. Leaving  11:30
  • New Entrant Mid Term Cohort starts
  • Middle School SBS Athletics (Blocks 1 & 2) (parents & whānau welcome – further info to come)
  • Tues 10.3  Junior Swimming. Leaving 11:30
  • Weds 11.3 Food for Thought visits to 4 Square 9.00-12.30 (Tot 1-2, Kow 1)
  • Junior Swimming. Leaving 1pm
  • Fri 13.3 Inter School Athletics

Ministry Directed Teacher Only Day – Friday 20 March

We have a Ministry Directed Teacher Only Day coming up on Friday 20 March – the same day as Mahurangi College. The focus of this will be to grow our understanding of the Government’s curriculum changes. Kelly Club will be operating on the day – please contact Lauren or Jessye to book: snellsbeach@kellyclub.co.nz or 0211954227

A special welcome – Pasifika Performance on Monday

Next Monday 23rd February, we have a special performance by a Pasifika Performance Group. This will happen at 2pm in the hall (immediately after Junior swimming). Our whole school will attend, but parents and whānau are very welcome too. Pop on down if you have time.

Anxiety at School Drop Off  Support/New Entrant Info 

You will have received information via email about this upcoming session.

We are holding a parent session at 9:00am on Monday in the staffroom with Bridget Farmiloe, our school counsellor, who will be supporting parents with strategies to manage student anxiety at drop off.

We would love as many of our New Entrant (Rim 2) parents as possible to attend. However, we also warmly encourage whānau of students at any year level who are experiencing drop-off difficulties to join us.

This session will provide:

  • Practical ideas you can use straight away

  • Strategies to support your child at home

  • Guidance on how to mirror what we do at school, so children receive one consistent message

There will also be time during the New Entrant information session for parents of older students to speak with Bridget individually, if needed.

New Entrant Information Session

This session is an introduction to how school works for little people and helpful things you can do at home to support them as they settle in. It is specifically focused on our newest starters in Rimu 2.

There will be a separate evening session later in the term that focuses on learning and curriculum. That session will be more relevant for parents of students in our other Year 1 & 2 classes.

If you are unable to attend, we are happy to provide a video link that you can watch in your own time. Please email the office to request this:
admin@snellsbeach.school.nz

Safety Before and After School

During play times, there is significant supervision in place to keep your children safe. We have duty teachers on site, peer mediators supporting students, and plenty of other children around who can quickly get help if needed.

This level of supervision does not continue after school.

If a child falls from the playground or comes off their bike after school, they could be hurt and left without immediate assistance. We are increasingly concerned about students not being collected after school and told to play in the playground without supervision, until parents collect them later.

Please do not do this. We are genuinely worried that this could result in a serious injury.

We absolutely welcome families to use our school facilities after hours. However, if you choose to send your child back onto school grounds unsupervised after school, they must understand that they are no longer under school supervision. If you are sending them back soon after school finishes, please send them in mufti.

Thank you for helping us keep all of our tamariki safe.

Please Check Your Child’s Helmet

We have noticed over the past few weeks that many of our students are wearing badly fitted helmets. With so many children arriving with bikes and scooters each day, it simply isn’t possible for us to individually check and adjust every helmet at school.

So just a wee reminder — if you are sending your child with wheels, please take a few minutes this weekend to double-check that their helmet fits properly.

Children grow quickly. What fitted perfectly at Christmas may no longer provide the right protection now.

The most common issue we are seeing is helmets sitting too far back on the head. When this happens, the forehead and face have very little — if any — protection.

Here are a few quick checks that may help:

  • The helmet should sit level on the head, not tilted back.
  • It should sit low on the forehead — about two finger-widths above the eyebrows.
  • The side straps should form a “V” shape just under the ears.
  • The chin strap should be snug — you should only be able to fit one or two fingers underneath.
  • Helmets with an adjustable dial or screw tightener at the back tend to provide a more secure and adjustable fit as children grow.

Thank you for helping us keep our students safe on their wheels. Here’s some extra information if needed:

https://at.govt.nz/cycling-walking/bikes-gear/cycling-gear/check-and-fit-your-helmet

PTA Fun Family Fishing Comp

Our wonderful PTA puts on many events throughout the year which both raise money for our school and help to bring families together. The first of the year is the family fishing competition, see details below and please contact pta@snellsbeach.school.nz if you or your business would like to support this fundraiser.

 

Lunch ordering at Snells Beach School

Here at Snells Beach School we have lunch-ordering through Ezlunch available every day. Follow the link below to sign up for ezlunch and check out the menu. Sushi is available and needs to be ordered the night before whilst sandwiches/baking/other lunchbox items from New World can be ordered up to 8am of the same day. Please note, the lunch order is delivered right before our 1pm lunchtime so students still need to bring morning tea with them. Please contact the school office if you have any questions.

Stronger Within

Stronger Within, is a local service run by social worker, Rachael Willis, focusing on raising resilient, kind and confident young people. See below for information on an upcoming course in Warkworth.

Keeping in touch – communication is key

Keeping in touch is important. We need to be able to contact whānau quickly and efficiently. If you have changed address or contact details, please let us know asap, either via email admin@snellsbeach.school.nz, or by calling the school office 09 425 6058.

  • Following our school Facebook page or Instagram

“Snells Beach School”, which operate as a digital newsletters. This is a great way to get quick updates and reminders. We post reminders and notices on Facebook – Instagram is more quick updates and snapshots of school life

  • Downloading our School App

Simply download the “Skool Loop” app from either App Store or Play Store & select “Snells Beach School” from the drop down box to receive instant notifications & reminders. This is an effective way to get immediate notices – they will pop up direct to your phone. Mahurangi College use the same app which is useful – just use the drop down box to change schools.

  • Subscribing to our school email database

Please email us admin@snellsbeach.school.nz to be added to the list. If you do not receive this newsletter via email on Friday afternoon, you are NOT in our database. All new families should have been added – please check. You can unsubscribe at any time.

  • School Newsletters

We do not usually print newsletters – just the first one each term while people update their contact details if needed. They are emailed out or linked to our school Facebook page. School newsletters come out once a fortnight – teachers may send home additional class or team messages at other times.

Toukon Ryu Karate

Classes running every Tuesday evening in the school hall 6.30 – 7.30PM.
My name is Paul Hart and I am the Founder and Chief Instructor of Toukon Ryu Karate New Zealand; affiliated to JKF (Gojukai Japanese Karate Federation). I have been involved with Martial Arts for over 35 years. I have studied Goju Ryu Karate for the past 26 years and I have been teaching a variety of students from the age of 5 through to students in their 80s!
I’m very excited to be bringing karate to the local community.
Karate is the ideal sport/activity for kids and adults alike. In today’s world it is vital that we equip ourselves, and especially our children, with self defence skills. Karate helps promotes self-confidence, balance, fitness, co-ordination, discipline, courtesy, health and wellness, responsibility, and will power. Children may start training in Toukon Ryu Karate as young as 5 years of age.
I hope to see all the students again from last year, but also all Beginners are welcome to come along and have a go. Uniforms are called a ” Gi ” pronounced ” Gee ” – parents will need to purchase one which they can do through Paul if they wish. All other information regarding joining etc will be supplied at the class or feel free to txt Sensei Paul on 021 297 2431
FB toukon ryu karate
I look forward to seeing you

Community Events

 

After-school activities – Winter Sports information

 

Our Fantails programme is back for 2026!

Term 1 Starts Wednesday 25th February 2026 from 3.45pm.

Fantails is aimed at all girls, regardless of ability to try football for the first time or continue playing in a fun, safe environment. We’ll have two age groups this year, U5-U6 and U7-U8.

For more information and to register head to our website
https://warkworthfc.org/warkworth-afc-fantails

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