Welcome Message

Another busy year has come to an end, and our hearts and heads have grown and developed. Many new families have been welcomed through the year by means of mihi whakatau at the start of each term. The year ended with a week of celebrations; the graduation of our Year 8 students as they embark on the exciting opportunities Senior School offers and the 2025 Awards Ceremony at Aukilani AOG Church in Avondale where we acknowledged all the hard work and outstanding achievements made this year by our amazingly talented students.

Students have been afforded numerous sporting opportunities among them have been the Whau T-ball, Winter Field Day, Basketball competitions and Ki-o-rahi sports day. Two Athletic Days were held, a Junior one and a Senior one, where students experienced long jump, high jump, javelin, shotput, hurdles, sprints, relays and long-distance races at Lovelock Track. Teams represented JCS at the ACS football, netball, cross-country and touch days. Thirty-five students from Tīwai did us proud at Sports Camp in Matamata, coming third overall and first for sportsmanship and the team chant. Tīwai had volleyball lessons at Synergy and the whole school enjoyed swimming lessons in Term 4. Manu Team learnt some energetic dance moves with Footsteps Dance. A number of intermediate sports events took place between St. Marys School and JCS at lunch times over the year.

The Tīwai team spent a day at Tree Adventures early on in Term 1, developing teamwork and learning to overcome challenges. House and Sports Captains have served the school faithfully, developing their leadership capabilities. They ended the year with a camp at Mangawhai where they learnt to surf, among other outdoor activities.

Learning teams were out and about on trips to consolidate and enrich learning. Manu visited Maunga Māngere. Ika enjoyed an arts experience at Corban’s Art Centre and learnt about animals at the Auckland Zoo. Ika and Manu learnt about plants in the Waitakere ranges at the Arataki Visitors Centre. Tīwai spent a day on the water in Auckland Harbour with the Maritime Museum.

Service opportunities within and outside school have taken place with buddy classes supporting learning all year. Tīwai cooked, packaging and gifted pumpkin soup to Feed the Streets Avondale. The Market Days were packed with fun games, activities, edible delights and more as our students used their creativity and ingenuity to raise funds for Ebenezer Orphanage in India and Asian Outreach New Zealand. Mufti Days have brought in money for our TEAR Fund sponsor child through gold coin donations. Manu sang lovely Easter songs to nearby rest homes and visited them again later in

Term 4 to bring Christmas cheer. We had a Wig Wednesday to help raise money to fight cancer in children. The Year 5 students were part of the Missionary Minded Kids programme run by Asian Outreach, where they learnt what it might be like to be a missionary in a foreign land.

Language weeks were celebrated in dance and song as we learnt more about the Pacific Islands. House Winner and greatest attendance Pizza lunches were thoroughly enjoyed each term. Strike to Schools percussion group, wowed us with their incredible skills and a few staff and students had a chance to impress too. Kōtukutuku had an afternoon at the theatre watching the Wizard of Oz, put on by the National Youth Theatre at the Aotea Centre.

The JCS PA is comprised of a dynamic group of parents who plan and organise social and fundraising events. We are so grateful for another year of great work. A Movie Night, Walkathon, Family Fun BBQ, Friday ice blocks, Grandparents Day and more have been on the calendar this year.

Two of the highlights of the year were undoubtedly the Cultural Week where we travelled the world and celebrated one another’s unique cultures that so enrich our JCS community. Our first musical was a huge blessing as we sang, danced and enacted through the gospel story. It was a true team effort where every student had the opportunity to glorify God on stage.

It has once again been a privilege to partner with you in the nurturing of your children along their learning journey.

Yours in His service,

Sandra Bosman