Newsletter 31 July 2026

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, Greetings to our school families.

Kia ora e te whānau

Over the weekend, as the Warriors’ hopes slipped away under the lights and the All Blacks had the weekend off, we were reminded that sport has a way of lifting us to the highest peaks one week before returning us to earth the next. That, of course, is what makes us keep coming back.

Sport reminds us that there are highs and lows, victories and disappointments. While we all enjoy celebrating success, it is often the setbacks that teach us the most. Great teams—such as our beloved Wahs— don’t become great because they never lose; they become great because they learn, adapt, and come back stronger.

School is much the same. There will be days when everything falls into place and days when things don’t go as planned. A challenging assessment, a difficult conversation, or a goal that takes longer to achieve can be disappointing, but these moments do not define us. They help us grow. In both sport and education, success is rarely built on a single performance. It is built over time through consistent effort, resilience, and a willingness to keep improving.

Perhaps the greatest lesson from both sport and school is the importance of being part of a team. Every person has a role to play. Every contribution matters. Together we celebrate success, support one another through challenges, and keep moving forward. We work on our own stuff, but also help each other and celebrate the success of the team.

As we continue through the term, it’s worth keeping a long-term perspective. One game does not define a season, just as one day or one result does not define a school year. What matters most is our attitude, our resilience, and our commitment to learning and growing together.

Let’s make this our year.

Up the Wahs!

Mr Port

Acting Principals

School Diary

Week 3 Mon 3 August – Fri 7 August: COOK ISLAND MAORI LANGUAGE WEEK

Mon 3/8 Senior School Cross Country Practice (external course) 2pm.
Mon 3/8 Middle School cross country practice, inside school 2:20pm
Tues 4/8 Middle School cross country track walk through straight after lunch
Wed 5/8 SBS Cross Country
Thur 6/8 NED’s Resiliency Ride – see below for more info
Fri 7/8 Mahu College Open Day (Parents & Caregivers)
Fri 7/8 Full School Assembly, 2.10pm in the hall. (Kōwhai 2 presenting)

Week 4 Mon 10 August – Fri 14 August:

Tues 11/8 SBS Cross Country Save Day
Thurs 13/8 Mathex @ Whangarei Boys High (Select Y5 & 6 only)

Week 5 Mon 17 August – Fri 21 August: TONGAN LANGUAGE WEEK

Tues 18/8 Junior Poetry Recital Finals (9.10am in the hall)
Weds 19/8 Middle School speech finals in hall 11:30am
Weds 19/8 5:30pm Year 5 Camp information meeting with parents Kowhai 2 – Please note the change in meeting date and time
Thurs 20/8 Interschool Cross Country
Fri 21/8 Full School Assembly, 2.10pm in the hall. (Pūriri 1 presenting)

Important Notice to all Parents and Whānau – student with extreme allergies

This is an important reminder for all families at our school, and in particular for those new to our school. In our Junior School we have a student with a severe egg allergy. This student is allergic to eggs through ingestion, inhalation, and touch.

Please ensure that:
No whole egg products are included in lunch boxes. This includes items such as hard-boiled eggs, egg sandwiches, or eggs in rolls.
Egg used in baked goods, such as cakes or muffins, is still fine.

Thank you very much for your understanding and support in helping us keep all of our students safe.

NED Show at SBS

Next week, Thursday 6th August, we have the NED show at Snells Beach School. NED’s Resiliency Ride, is a character education program that centers around three important messages that have lifelong relevance: Never give up, Encourage others and Do your best. During the assembly, students will learn about the importance of these three life skills while also enjoying storytelling, magic, humour and yo-yo tricks. The show is free to our school, however they fund the show by offering yo-yo’s for sale to our students. You will receive a notice next week with prices and if you would like to purchase one, please send your child back with the order form and cash or pop into the office to pay via EFTPOS. The yo-yo’s will be on sale for 1 week after the show.

Pia Vlok’s visit to the Year 4’s

Oliver, one of our Year 4 students, invited his older sister Pia Vlok in to SBS to talk to our middle school students on Monday. Pia plays professional football for the Wellington Phoenix and represents NZ, playing for the Football Ferns. She generously shared her footballing experiences with the students. The students loved hearing all about the different countries Pia had visited, as well as seeing some of Pia’s accolades and achievements. Truly inspiring stuff!

Upcoming Snells Beach School PTA Events

Trash Free Tuesdays – Let’s Make Every Lunch Count!

At Snells Beach School, we’re working together to keep our school clean, green and sustainable by encouraging Trash Free Tuesdays. We invite all families to pack a litterless lunchbox by choosing foods with little or no single-use packaging.

A litterless lunchbox doesn’t have to be complicated! Fresh fruit and vegetables, homemade baking, sandwiches, wraps, sushi, boiled eggs, cheese, yoghurt in reusable containers, and leftovers are all fantastic options. Packing food in reusable containers, beeswax wraps or washable zip-lock bags instead of disposable wrappers is a simple way to reduce waste while teaching children to care for our environment.

Looking for some new lunchbox inspiration? Woolworths has a fantastic collection of “Nude Food” ideas and family-friendly recipes, including homemade muesli bars, savoury muffins, healthier cauliflower bites, chicken and vegetable patties, sushi, rice paper rolls and delicious snack balls that are perfect for lunchboxes. They also have helpful tips for batch cooking so you can prepare snacks ahead of time and make busy mornings easier. https://www.woolworths.com.au/shop/articles/nude-food-lunch-box

Together we can reduce rubbish, protect our beautiful environment, and show our tamariki that even small changes can make a big difference. Thank you for helping us make Trash Free Tuesdays a success!

Mahurangi College Open Day – Friday 7th August 9:30am – 11:30am

This is an open invitation for all families considering Mahurangi College, whether they have decided to enrol or are still exploring their options. Our Open Day is for parents and caregivers. Students will have the opportunity to visit the school during our Orientation Day on Friday 6 November, 9am – 1pm (they will attend this as a group from SBS).

Families who would like to discuss their child’s specific learning or pastoral needs can request an enrolment interview at our Open Day or through the online enrolment process. An enrolment interview is not intended for every student, only for ones that have specific pastoral or diverse learning needs.

The closing date for all 2027 enrolments (in-zone and out-of-zone) is Wednesday 2 September 2026.

Horizon School Open Day

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.