ST JOSEPH’S CATHOLIC
SCHOOL
TAKAPUNA

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

Tēnā Koutou Katoa,

Today we farewelled the children for their holiday break. We wish them and their whānau a happy and Holy Easter break. We hope that you will be able to have some special family time for the next two weeks and the children re-energise for term two.

The final day for term one saw the children participate in our Holy Week Liturgy. This is a very special celebration for our school community. The liturgy sees the children, in their teams portraying the Easter story. It was lovely to see so many whānau witnessing this liturgy.

Tomorrow, Friday 3 April at 10am, St Joseph’s children will be re-enacting the Stations of the Cross in our church. We invite all our school community to join us for this liturgy.

Thank you for your very generous support of our Holy Week Outreach. We had a wonderful response. You are all very generous and your support of this outreach is greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your support of the PTA Hot Cross Bun fundraiser. You will have received them yesterday. If not, your child must have eaten them at pick-up! Enjoy.

We look forward to welcoming back the children on Monday 20 April for term two

Ka manaakitia e te Atua

Alister Bridgman

Tumuaki

STATIONS OF THE CROSS

COLOUR FUN RUN 2026

TERM 2 DATES

Monday 20 April School Opens Term 2

Monday 27 April School Closed ANZAC Day Public Holiday

Friday 29 May School Closed MOE Curriculum Day

Monday 1 June School Closed King’s Birthday Public Holiday

Friday 3 July Final Day Term 2

TAKAPUNA ANZAC PARADE

ANZAC Day is Saturday 25 April and the public holiday is Monday 27 April – Term 2 Week 2

Our school participates in the annual Takapuna Anzac Parade. Please ‘Save the Day’ if you would like your children to represent our school in the Parade.

Takapuna ANZAC Parade and Service 2026

When: Saturday, 25 April

The Parade

Assembly Point: Corner Lake Rd / Sanders Ave

Assembly Time: 8:45 am

The Service

Start Time: 9 am

Location: War Memorial, 1-7 The Strand, Takapuna

Mr Bridgman will be at the assembly point from 7:15 am. Parents are invited to bring their children to Mr Bridgman and then walk down to the War Memorial to be part of the Service.

The children will walk with Mr Bridgman in the parade and lay a wreath on behalf of our school community. Parents will collect their children immediately following the service at the War Memorial.If you are interested in your children walking in the parade please take note of the above details. Please email secretary@sj.school.nz to let us know your children will be participating.

HOLY WEEK OUTREACH

The following is a message from the St Joseph’s Parish and De Paul House

We asked & you answered… generously – A heartfelt thank you to the students and families of St. Joseph’s School, together with our wonderful St. Joseph’s & St. Vincent de Paul parish communities, for your wonderful support of the Easter Egg collection for De Paul House. Thanks to your kindness and thoughtful contributions, these small treats will bring great joy to many children this Easter, reminding each child that they are seen, valued, and cared for.

Thank you to all the parents and children for their help for your kind donations. Speaking with the team at De Paul House they said that they hadn’t received as many Easter Eggs as in previous years. But with ours we really helped them so much!

SPLASH POLO

Splash Polo registrations are open for Term 2. Please note there may be some movement within existing teams depending on registration numbers for each year group. While we aim to keep teams as consistent as possible, some changes may be necessary.

Registrations are open until 17 April. Please click the link below to access the registration page.

Registrations

Please note that we did not receive enough registrations in Term 1 to form a Year 2/3 team. However, you can still register your interest, and I will send out an invoice once we have sufficient numbers to form a team. Any questions please email sports@sj.school.nz

THANK YOU SHORE-TO-SHORE PARTICIPANTS

COHORT ENTRY

Our school uses the Ministry of Education Cohort Entry system for children having their first day at school as a five year old.

Cohort entry is where children start school for the first time in groups on set dates, rather than on or after their fifth birthday.

As a school that uses cohort entry, children can start on one of 8 set dates throughout the year.

Once your child turns 5 you can choose any of the dates below. They can’t start before they turn 5 but must start by the time they turn 6.

There are start dates at the beginning and middle of each school term. They are set by the Ministry of Education.

2026 start dates are:

Term 1 – between 26 January and 9 February or 9 March
Term 2 – 20 April or 2 June.
Term 3 – 20 July or 24 August.
Term 4 – 12 October or 16 November.

Cohort entry provides many benefits for the children. These include children being less anxious and settling more quickly as they often start together with other new children. Parents also benefit as they begin with a cohort of parents with the same age children. Teachers plan their programmes of learning to cater for both of the school visits on the two Wednesdays prior and first ‘welcome’ week. The school visits in a cohort benefits both the children and the parents by providing a welcoming and supportive start to the student’s education journey.

If you would like to share your thoughts or experience please click on this link.