Pictured here are our amazing Einstein Olympiad Team.

Coming Up

• FOTS Pie Day - Thursday 11 December *Orders Now Closed

• Sports Assembly - Friday 12 December - 9.45am

• Class Placements - Friday 12 December - 1.30pm

• Reports to Parents - Friday 12 December - 3pm

• Y3, 4 & 5 Movie Trip - Monday 15 December

• Y6 Graduation - Tuesday 16 December - 6pm (School Hall)

• Y0-2 Assembly - Wednesday 17 December - 9.30am

• Y3-6 Assembly - Wednesday 17 December - 11.30am

• Term 4 Ends - Wednesday 17 December - 1pm

• Term 1 2026 Starts - Monday 09 February

Contents

Principal News

• Jingle Thanks

• Communication at the Start of the Year

School Notices

• Morning Road Patrol - A Request for Parent Volunteers

• Library Books and Readers Returns

School Events

• Travelwise

• Einstein Olympics

Principal News

Jingle Thanks

Jingle was wonderful! Thank you to everyone who made the evening so fun. Just in case you missed my message last night, here is a summary:

We were absolutely thrilled to see so many of you enjoying the beautiful atmosphere at our annual Jingle. What a fantastic community we have! Thank you all so much for coming out to celebrate with us.

Jingle holds a very special place in the hearts of the Browns Bay School Community, and we are so grateful to Karen Warren for bringing everything together in a way that seems effortless, though we know it takes a huge amount of energy behind the scenes. Thank you, Karen.

I want to direct a huge, heartfelt thank you to the very special group at BBS who make events like Jingle happen, the Friends of the School (FOTS) team. They are the engine that drives fantastic events like this. From the initial planning to ensuring the night goes smoothly, their volunteer hours made the evening the success that it was. And as at every event, I know they will be the last to leave—putting away the last chair and table and picking up the last piece of rubbish.

Thank you also to the team who worked so hard preparing the Kai. You are a great part of the Browns Bay School Jingle tradition. And of course, thank you to our wonderful dedicated staff who work together to make events like this such fun for everyone.

If you spent a couple of hours sipping a drink, enjoying the music, and watching your children have a blast, you’ve seen the magic that just a few dedicated volunteers can create.

If you loved Jingle, please consider joining the Friends of the School next year. We're not asking for huge commitments—just two hours of your time, perhaps to help set up or pack down an event, or assist with a small task. Your couple of hours next year will help pay back the amazing evening you had last night.

It’s easy to sign up—just look out for the QR codes displayed around the school.

Thank you again for making Jingle 2025 so memorable. Have a safe and happy holiday season! (Photos will be in next week`s newsletter).

Communication at the Start of the Year

As I shared in the newsletter last week, in the New Year, we will be moving to a new communication platform at school called Hero. Etap no longer meets our needs in terms of reporting and communication.

At the start of 2026, we will use Email for our communications. At the 'meet the teacher' sessions in Week 1, we will provide you with everything you need and give support for signing up to the Hero App.

School Notices

Morning Road Patrol 2026. A Request for Parent Volunteers

If you have 30 minutes in the morning/s to spare from 8.20am-8.50am and would be interested in helping out with Road Patrol at our crossings, please email Tanya Sheppard, tanyas@brownsbay.school.nz

You only need to volunteer for 30 minutes, once a week, which would really help our school.

This year, we have had 2 parent volunteers who help man the crossings with the children and this makes a massive difference to us. It is over 2 hours of teaching time every week that has been saved and it is time that teachers can spend planning learning for your child.

Full training will be given.

Library Books and Readers Returns

A reminder that all library and reading books are to be returned to school as we have a stocktake on Friday.

If you have ANY reading books at home....please return...no questions asked! 😀

School Events

Travelwise

We are absolutely delighted to announce that our school has achieved the highest recognition in sustainable travel, earning the prestigious Travelwise Gold status from Auckland Transport! This significant achievement is owed entirely to the extraordinary commitment and effort of our Year 4, Year 5 and Year 6 Travelwise students.

This year, they have proudly held placards near the school to encourage drivers to abide by the speed limit, run engaging school-wide events to encourage students to use sustainable transport, and confidently spoken at assemblies to inspire their peers. Their passionate, sustained work has helped our school community be safer and more eco-friendly—we are incredibly proud of their success!  

Einstein Olympics

Thank you to the team that represented us at the recent Einstein Olympiad at Rangitoto College. (See photo top).

Year 6 - Jamie Rm 26 / Meilun Rm 28 / Leah Rm 25 / Victor Rm 25 / Harold Rm 28 / Celine Rm 27

Year 5 - Vera Rm 18 / Jessica Rm 20 / Jason Rm 20 / Rhyss Rm 18 / Jasmine Rm 20 / Joey Rm 18

Jamie and Vera have written about the day:

"I was one of the privileged kids to get to go to the Einstein Olympiad at Rangitoto College and I enjoyed it a lot. I think it was a great learning opportunity for me, along with my fellow pupils who went with me. The Teachers explained our timetable and what we were going to do. In the morning, we were going to do Anagrams and some Maths. For the Anagrams, we had to make words out of the letters that were shown on the screen. For the Maths, we had to try to get a number that was close to the number shown on the screen by dividing, multiplying, subtracting and adding. We only had 30 seconds for both of those activities which made it slightly harder. During morning tea, we just had a quick crossword to what I call 'keep our brains in the mood' 

After morning tea we did a quiz that included guessing the celebrity, general knowledge, popular holiday destinations and more. You could also pick a round where you would get double points if you answered correctly. After lunch, we did the amazing race and as the name states: It was amazing! We sprinted around the school at top speed going from class to class doing different activities. Our favourite activity was when we stuck popsicle sticks into the bunsen burner flame. The chemicals on the sticks caused a reaction which changed the colour of the flame to purple, red, yellow and even green!

In the end, our team got 12th out of 15. I really enjoyed it and I thought it was really fun and thank you to the parents who drove us there and the parents who stayed there for the whole day. And also a huge thanks to the Teachers and Rangi students who helped us and made the day possible.

By Jamie Mole and Vera Li.

Community Notices

SKids is open on the last day of school -Wednesday 17th December from 1-6pm.

Please click HERE to secure bookings for Term 4, Christmas and our fabulous Summer Camp holiday programmes.

Holiday HQ: Festive Celebrations 🎅

Get ready for daily festive fun at sKids Christmas Holiday programme as we countdown to the holiday season! Cool crafts, hilarious games and a massive Xmas feast It's the best place to celebrate this season!

Holiday HQ: Summer Camp 😎

​Let the summer camp fun begin! 
Join us for an action-packed summer full of outdoor adventures, creative crafts, water fun, and exciting games! Whether you’re making new friends or learning new skills, every day is filled with endless excitement at sKids Holiday Summer Camp.