New Parent Information
ST JOSEPH’S CATHOLIC SCHOOL , ORAKEI
The History of St. Joseph’s School, Orakei
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Brigidine Sisters were the founding sisters of St. Joseph’s School from February 1958 – December
1971. (13 years).
“As Brigidines, we stand in reverence for the community of life
and we will continue to work to further compassion and
justice. For humanity and the earth.”
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Josephite Sisters were the second group of Sisters to run the school. During these years lay
teachers also began working in Catholic Schools.
“As Josephites we value the dignity of each person, particularly
the poor, act with simplicity and love, and have complete trust in God.”
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The Marist Sisters moved here in May 1984 (literally) and have resided here ever since. They have
always had a strong connection with the school.
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Our school celebrated its 50th Jubilee in 2008
What makes a Catholic School different?
 The School’s Special Character
 Religious Education
 Gospel Values
 Liturgies
 Prayer / Karakia
 Brigidine Charism
Staff Professional Development
Staff professional development is integral to improved
outcomes for our children.
Full Staff PD this year:
 Numeracy
 Literacy – writing focus
 Visual Arts – painting and drawing
 National Standards
The Teaching of Literacy
 Oral Language
 Phonics / Spelling
 Reading
 Writing
Oral Language
The main skills we focus on during
the children’s first year at school
are:
 Using the correct/appropriate
volume
 Using eye contact
 Asking appropriate and specific
questions (demonstrates a good
listener)
 Sitting/standing still when both
speaking and listening
Phonics (letter sounds)
Phonics are the building blocks for Reading and Writing
 Children begin by identifying the initial phoneme in a
word, then they can identify the final sound, then they
begin to fill in the middle sounds.
How can I help my child with their phonics?
 Ask your child to point out phonemes in their reading
books or in signs, posters, newspapers, etc.
 Don’t teach the upper case
 Play I Spy
 Help them choose something for the Letter of the
Week display
Reading
 Reading begins by memorising the
language patterns
 Children will begin to use the
initial letter/phoneme to work out
the unfamiliar words
 Children will begin to recognise
some of the basic words that
reoccur
 Using a combination of their
knowledge of basic words and
their phonic knowledge they will
begin to read.
How can I help my child with their Reading?
 Discuss the front cover. Predict – what could it be about?
 Relate the events to personal experience wherever possible
 Look closely at the pictures – facial expressions, unfamiliar
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objects
Match their finger to the words as they read them. It doesn’t
matter if they are reading from memory or just know the
pattern.
Ask you child to point out the letter sounds..sssss….
ttttt and later basic words such as I, am, went, etc.
Ask them questions at the end – can they tell you
what happened?
Give them lots of praise and encouragement.
Writing
We try to give the children as many different reasons to write as
possible.
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Weekend news
School trip
Our family
Our friends
Letters
Lists
Recipes
Instructions
Myths & legends
Fairytales
The Writing Process
 Say it out loud. Does it make sense?
 Teacher writes it. Child copies over the top. Child reads it
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aloud.
Teacher writes it. Child copies underneath. Child reads it
aloud.
Encourage children to take risks. Can they use their
phonic knowledge to write down the first sound of each
word?
Write down the first and final sound in each word.
Write down the first, final and middle sounds in
each word.
Example 1
One of my teeth is sore and it is wiggling a little bit.
When it is wriggling much my teacher will pull it out.
Example 2
I want to fight a crocodile and I do
because I will get a girlfriend.
How can I help my child with their Writing?
Let your child write whenever possible.
 Ask them to write out the shopping list
 Write letters/notes to each other
 Lots of phonics work
Numeracy
The Numeracy Project represents a significant change in the way mathematics
is taught in New Zealand schools.
Focuses on:
 Developing children's understanding of numbers – knowledge
 Developing their ability to use numbers to solve problems – strategy
Children may solve number problems by counting, adding, subtracting,
multiplying, dividing, or combinations of these.
The Numeracy Stages
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Stage 0 Emergent – the child has no reliable strategy to count a number of objects
Stage 1 One to One Counting – can reliably count a number of objects
Stage 2 Counting from One on Materials – solves + problems by counting from 1
Stage 3 Counting from One by Imaging – can solve + problems without the use of materials (in
their head)
Stage 4 Advanced Counting – counts on or counts back to solve + and – problems; skip counting
to solve multiplication tasks
Stage 5 Early Additive Part-Whole - limited range of mental strategies to estimate answers and
solve + or – problems; uses a combination of known x facts and repeated addition; uses known x
and repeated + facts to anticipate the result of division
Stage 6 Advanced Additive - estimate answers and solve + and –
tasks involving whole numbers mentally by choosing appropriately
from a broad range of advanced mental strategies; uses a combination of
known facts and mental strategies to derive answers to x / ÷ problems
Stage 7 Advanced Multiplicative - chooses appropriately from a broad
range of mental strategies to estimate answers and solve + / -,
and x / ÷ problems involving decimals, integers and related fractions.
The student can also use multiplication and division to solve addition and
subtraction problems with whole numbers.
How can I help my child with their Maths?
 Do lots of counting, especially objects
 Add groups of objects together
 Visit the NZ maths website www.nzmaths.co.nz and click
on ‘Families’
 Bring Maths into your everyday life – shopping, tidying up
What activities can my child get involved in?
Soccer
Rugby
Folk Dancing
Camp
Netball
Gymnastics
Chess Club
Swimming
Softball Basketball
Speech Competitions
Sailing
School trips
Cross Country
Music Lessons
Getting Ready for School
What should my child be able to do when they start school?
There is no set thing that your child should know or be able to do when they
begin school. Here are a few things to be working towards:
 Read and write the numerals to 10
 Count to 10 and backwards from 10
 Count out 10 objects
 The letters of the alphabet (lower case) and the sound each letter makes
 Write their own name – capital first letter, then lower case, e.g. Rebecca
Getting Ready for School
What can I do to help the transition go smoothly?
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Come for a pre-school visit
Let your child look at their lunch with you
Teach your child how to pack their bag
Promote the “It’s okay to ask” attitude
Name everything, including shoes!!
Provide us with as much information as possible
Be at school on time or early
When the bell goes kiss them and leave
Please no lace ups until your child can tie them
Keep us informed
Sunhats and Water
Communication
Helping your child settle in and make friends
 Class Buddy
 Senior Buddy
 Regular feedback from the teacher
 Teacher observations
 Welcomed to the school at assembly
Thank You For Choosing St Joseph’s