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.
Short terms are always a bit of a whirlwind—just as much to fit in, with fewer days to do it. This term has been no exception, with plenty of rich learning alongside fun, humour, and the making of great memories. Thank you to our many whānau supporters who help make all of this possible.
A significant focus for me this term has been working through how we assess and report against the new curriculum expectations. With the scale of the changes, assessment tools at the primary level simply haven’t kept pace, and many of the tools we’ve traditionally relied on are no longer fit for purpose. Principals across our region have been working collaboratively to develop a more consistent approach across schools.
Our priority is to communicate student progress clearly and meaningfully with parents and whānau. This is not a simple task in the current climate, despite what some political messaging may suggest. Early next term, we will be holding a curriculum evening for parents—please keep an eye out for further details. We look forward to working through these changes together.
As we head into Easter next week, hopefully we can enjoy some settled weather and quality time with family and friends.
Ngā mihi nui,
Kathryn Ramel
Principal
School Diary
- Mon 30.3 Middle School End of term fun day.
- Thurs 2.4 Last Day Term 1. SBS Mufti Day (Gold Coin donation) to Support Kowhai Trust, Easter Egg Hunt, Full School Assembly 2:00pm. End of Term Awards.
- Fri 3.4 Good Friday
Are You Ready for Winter? Wet Weather Pick Ups – Snells Beach School
Yesterday’s heavy rain, while extreme, was well forecast and gave everyone time to plan ahead. Unfortunately, the behaviour we saw at pick-up created unnecessary risk and disruption for both our school and the wider community.
Every child should have a raincoat in their bag during winter. Even a short walk to the car can leave them soaked without one. Disposable ponchos are also an easy, low-cost option (available for less that $5 from stores like Mitre 10 or Hunting & Fishing) and can be folded up and reused.
At 3:00pm yesterday, Dawson Road became gridlocked. We saw cars blocking the drop-off zone, double parking, trapping other vehicles, and even pulling in behind the bus in unsafe ways. Cars were parked across driveways, on curbs, and in clearly inappropriate places. This not only frustrated our community, but also impacted local residents. Our buses struggled to get through, and supervising staff had difficulty safely moving students across the crossing. We can only imagine the impact on surrounding streets like Foster Crescent.
If you need to collect your child by car, please arrange a safe meeting point away from the school gates. Suitable options include further down Kia Kaha Drive, Bridgette View, or near the Fire Station. Students can walk to you safely in their raincoat or poncho, and there will always be an SBS staff member on road patrol to assist them across the road—even in poor weather. Only our youngest students really need to be collected directly from the classroom or front door.
If you choose to collect your child from directly outside the office, please be realistic. With 360 students leaving at once, they will not all be ready at 3:01pm. You will need to wait patiently, in a safe and legal position, until your child arrives.
We need to be very clear: if behaviour does not improve during wet weather pick-ups, someone will get hurt. This cannot happen.
Please take responsibility for your choices and help us keep all of our students and community members safe.
Do better.
The Great SBS Easter Egg Hunt 2026
Next Thursday our annual SBS Easter Egg Hunt will take place. All eggs are gathered in house groups into one container, and then shared evenly (about 4/5 small solid eggs per child).
Parents of food allergy students:
If you wish your child to receive something different, please drop it CLEARLY NAMED into the front office cabin before Thursday morning, and Miss Ramel will make sure they receive it. Please see pics below for the brand of eggs we will be hunting.
On Monday the 22nd of March, we kicked off WOW Week (Walk or Wheels Week), a special Travelwise event. Throughout the week, around one third of our school chose to travel in a Travelwise way—an awesome effort!
Each day had a different theme:
- Move It Monday
- Travel Together Tuesday
- Wheelie Wednesday
- Thoughtful Thursday
- Funky Feet Friday – our main event
On Friday, we saw an amazing number of students decorate their footwear in creative and colourful ways, finishing the week with a fantastic parade.
Travelwise is great for our bodies and our environment. It helps reduce traffic and pollution, while also keeping us active and healthy. We are lucky to live in a quiet town with fewer cars, and events like this help keep it that way.
Walking, biking, scootering, or taking the bus are all great options. These choices give us fresh air, exercise, and a positive start or end to the day. Taking the bus is also a great option because it carries many people at once, helping reduce the number of cars on the road.
Thank you to everyone who took part and made WOW Week such a success!
From your Head Travelwise Monitors,
Freddy, Maggie, Meila and Kalo
Mufti Day for Kowhai Youth Trust – next Thursday 2nd April
Optional winter uniform items – rainjackets and beanies now for sale!
With the cold, wet and windy weather upon us, we’re all needing some extra layers in the morning. We have SBS rainjackets and beanies for sale at the office. Rainjackets are $44 each and beanies are $14.50 each. We also have long trousers for sale for $45. Please note: these are not compulsory uniform items.
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.
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.
Community Events
Toukon Ryu Karate
Netball Holiday Progammes
Year 5 and 6 students
Year 6 students only
Our Mahurangi College Wider Premier Netball Team is heading to Australia this year, and the girls are working towards alleviating some of the costs by running a fun, skill-based programme for our younger players. Our Premier 1 Wider Squad will be delivering engaging netball sessions for Year 6/7 and Year 8/9 students, focused on developing both confidence and ability in a supportive environment.
All sessions are led by our Premier players, giving younger athletes a great opportunity to learn from experienced and passionate role models.
Dates:
Year 8/9 – Thursday 9th April and Thursday 16th April
Year 6/7 – Friday 10th April and Friday 17th April
Location: Mahurangi College Gymnasiums
Time: 9:00am – 12:00pm
Cost: $40 per session or $70 for both sessions
Please fill out the attached link to register and view additional information. If you have any questions, please email Jean
Register below –
https://forms.gle/6ytSg5Hh7me5uGEh7
This is a fantastic opportunity for players to grow their skills, have fun, and connect with our Premier programme while supporting the team on their upcoming tour.
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