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Presbyterian Church Schools' Resource Office Newsletter


February 2018

Kia ora tatou
I hope that the year has started well for you in your school.
It has been a pleasure to be involved in teacher only days with two schools in our network over the last couple of weeks. In my presentations I have aimed to help the teaching and support staff learn something about our NZ Presbyterian heritage and to reflect on how being Presbyterian informs their school's special character and has an impact on its culture. 
It was great to see staff engaging with the challenging question of what lies at the heart of their school with its Christian ethos and Presbyterian tradition and how that is lived out in today's educational context.
Please let me know if you would like me to have similar involvement with staff at your school. 

The beginning of a new school year brings with it changes and new beginnings.
Welcome to those who are new to the Presbyterian Schools' network:
Dr Jeremy Sievers has been appointed Head of Christian Education at Saint Kentigern College. 

Justine Mahon, previously Deputy Principal at St Cuthbert's College has been appointed Principal following the resignation of Roz Mexted over the summer break.

Dr Jennifer MacLeod previously Science and Christian Studies teacher at John McGlashan College in Dunedin, was recently commissioned by Southern Presbytery to the newly-expanded Chaplain's role at Columba College. Rev Geoffrey Skilton, minister at Highgate Presbyterian Church, and a valued member of our network, filled the Chaplain's role at Columba for a number of years. 

Rev Barry Kelk has been Chaplain at John McGlashan College since 2015 and his Chaplain's role has now been expanded, including teaching Christian Studies.

Congratulations to McGlashan College who launch their centenary celebrations this coming weekend and to Saint Kentigern College as they celebrate their 65th anniversary this year.

A reminder that this year's Presbyterian Church schools' conference will be held in Dunedin, hosted by John McGlashan College on Thursday August 9 and Friday August 10. More details including the programme and registration will be available at the beginning of Term 2.

Warm regards and God's blessings to you all as you settle into a new, busy and I hope, rewarding year.
Noho ora mai rā, nā 
Sharon Ross Ensor
Director

2018 Student Gatherings

Anne Overton from Presbyterian Support and I are planning two Student Gatherings for this year.
The first will be a Year 8 Gathering which is being offered as a pilot to our four Auckland schools. This will be a day-long experience based at an Auckland marae on March 27th. Drawing on the resources and connections of both the Presbyterian church and Presbyterian Support we will be focusing on issues of child poverty grounded in the biblical concept of Shalom ie the vision of peace, wellbeing and wholeness.

Following on from the success of our inaugural Year 12 Gathering which ran in parallel to our Presbyterian Schools' conference last year (see photo above), we will be offering a similar opportunity during our conference this year .
The Year 12 Student Gathering will be based at Knox College in Dunedin which will be a great opportunity for Year 12 students to get a taste of University College life. The students will sleep 'marae style' in Cameron Hall at Knox College and will eat in the college dining room, be given a tour of the beautiful  college buildings and will generally be warmly welcomed during their time there by the Master, Rev Dr Graham Redding and his staff.
The Year 12 Student Gathering will be run by the Resource Office in partnership with Presbyterian Support and will draw on the resources and expertise of our local church, Presbyterian Support and related social service agencies. It will focus on issues of justice and action grounded in the biblical mandate to work for the wellbeing of others, particularly those who are most vulnerable in our community.
I will be writing to the schools in our network with more details about the Gatheirngs in the next few weeks.

Resources for the Chapel and Classroom

Lent and Easter resources
The season of Lent begins on February 14th this year.
Our Kids Friendly office has a collection of resources and ideas for helping children engage with the themes of Lent and Easter.
Our Christian Contemplation Curriculum web-site also has a number of resources based on the ancient Christian practice of Stations of the Cross which you might find useful.
I'm always happy to receive classroom or worship resources you have developed or found useful in order to pass the ideas on to others in our schools. 
Presbyterian Shapers curriculum

A reminder of this curriculum on the Presbyterian schools web-site which tells the stories of a number of Presbyterian 'shapers', people who in the living out of their Christian faith have made (or are making) a difference to their communities.
Written by Rev Yvonne Smith, previously Chaplain at Rangi Ruru Girls' School, the units focus on Rev Dr Rutherford Waddell, Sarah and David Dingwall, Dr Margaret Neave, Kathryn McDaniel and Rev Mo Morgan, connecting their stories with biblical themes and contemporary issues.

Kids Friendly 'Love Reaches Out' art and writing competition

This annual competition, run by Kids Friendly in partnership with Presbyterian Support is open to children from preschool to Year 8.
Entries may be visual art or writing and will be judged within age groups. Art may be submitted as an individual or group project.
This year's theme is Caring for our World.
The competition opens on the first day of Term 2 and runs until the end of week 1 in Term 3.
There are prizes!
More information will be sent to you during this term.

Transforming Service conference

Registrations are still open for the Transforming Service conference which will be held in Melbourne on April 12-14 2018. Early bird registration of $375 is available until  February 9th.
The aim of the conference is to 'shape the direction and practice of service learning in schools, provide models of best practice and be engaged in teacher formation in this area. All of this will be grounded in a broad understanding of the Gospel imperative for justice and compassion.'
There is an interesting programme organised which you can find out more about here.
Highly recommended for those schools in our network who are wanting to go deeper in their understanding and development of community (including global) service learning as being grounded in their Christian Special Character.

For more information go to transformingservice.com or follow on Twitter @TransformServe

Presbyterian Schools in Spanz

The Presbyterian church's national magazine, Spanz, published an article about last year's Student Gathering, the Presbyterian Schools' conference and the Pursuing Peace in Godzone resource project.
Pursuing Peace in Godzone, edited by Drs Geoff Troughton and Philip Fountain of Victoria University and published by VUP, will be launched at events in Wellington and Auckland in late March.
The Anglican and Presbyterian Schools' offices are developing a web-site in support of the book with curriculum and other resources which we hope will be of use to the schools in our networks.

Presbyterian Church Schools’ Resource Office on Facebook

 

Follow us on Facebook and ‘like us’. I post stories, events, news, photos and other information about what is happening in our Presbyterian church schools on a regular basis to encourage a sense of connection amongst our schools. You can view our Facebook page here.
 
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