Culinary Delights

This year Food Technology at the College has extended into the area of Hospitality and senior students who have taken this option have the wonderful opportunity for practical classes with Mr Perkins in the College Dining Room Kitchen.

Piping His Way To Success

Congratulations to Y10 student Callum Bishop who piped his way to success at the Mackenzie Country Show over Easter Weekend.  He won the C Grade and D Grade Aggregates.  Well done Callum!

Principal's Comment

Kia ora Kevinians and Supporters of the College

Yesterday afternoon our telephone system was finally restored after 14 days. The disruption to our office and emergency systems seems to hold little sway when dealing with a corporate giant, so we are pleased to eventually have services restored.

The St Kevin's College Confucius Classroom was formally opened this week and it was my pleasure to welcome our distinguished guests for the occasion including; Mayor Gary Kircher, the Education Consul General Mr Yucai Li, from the Chinese Consulate in Christchurch and Professor Hong Hu from the Confucius Institute at the University of Canterbury. The opening marks the culmination of four years of partnership with the Confucius Institute and while the classroom may be here at St Kevin's, it is a sign and symbol of a much wider community endeavour. As such I was delighted to acknowledge the Oamaru Chinese community, our local school principals and their students leaders at the opening and have them join us as guests for the afternoon ceremony.

The evening saw the College host a number of interactive Chinese activities and my thanks to the staff from the Confucius Institute and members of the local Chinese community for their invaluable contribution to the success of the day.

May God bless you this Easter
Paul Olsen, Principal

U16 Rugby Win

Congratulations to the U16 Rugby team who took the win this afternoon over a visiting side from St Edmunds College in Canberra.

Easter Liturgy

Yesterday the Top Six lead the Easter Liturgy in the Chapel, focusing on the Stations of the Cross.  Modern imagery was used to recreate the path of Jesus on the day of his crucifixion.  Father Wayne concluded the liturgy with his words of wisdom reflecting on the Stations in today's world.

Confucius Classroom Opening

The St Kevin's College Confucius Classroom was formally opened this week during an afternoon ceremony held in the College Auditorium.  We were joined by distinguished guests Mayor Gary Kircher, Professor Hong Hu from the Confucius Institute at the University of Canterbury, the Education Consul Mr Yucai Li from the Chinese Consulate in Christchurch, as well as Principals/staff/students from Waitaki Boys’ High School, Waitaki Girl’s High School, St Jospeh's Primary School and Weston Primary School, and members of the Oamaru Chinese Association and local Chinese community. 

The brass plaque, which will be mounted in the classroom, was revealed during the ceremony by Mayor Kircher, Mr Li, Professor Hu and Mr Olsen.  Diane Vidallon sang a song in Chinese to conclude the ceremony.  Guests were then invited to visit the classroom before joining Mr Olsen at the Redcastle for afternoon tea where a cake made by local woman Joy Wang was cut to mark the occasion.

As part of the celebrations the College held an Confucius Celebrations Evening to host a number of hands on activities for members of the community to try.  With demonstrations on everything from Kung Fu and Tai Chi, to Plate Painting and Chinese Knots there was something for everyone.  The Paper Cutting in the Library was particularly popular, as was Ms Yunbing Chen’s Chinese Tea Ceremony.  However the stars of the evening were the children from Weston school who performed a short concert which included “London Bridge” in Chinese.  The evening concluded with a Chinese Supper which was hosted by the Oamaru Chinese Association.  St Kevin’s College is extremely grateful to both the Confucius Institute and the Oamaru Chinese Association for all of their assistance in organising the evening's activities.  

For lots more great images CLICK HERE

Race Relations Day Celebrations Multicultural Concert

The Race Relations Day Celebrations Multicultural Concert was held at the Oamaru Opera House over the weekend and once again, well done to all those who worked hard to stage the event.  St Kevin's was represented by members of the Kapa Haka and Pasifika groups and they were congratulated on their performance item.  As previously mentioned in the College blog, students from all of the High Schools joined Sela Faletolu in an excerpt from the production Through My Father's Eyes, a powerful piece.

Aoraki Swimming 2016

A team of seven representatives went to the Aoraki Secondary School’s Championships where Penny Keeling took the trophy for best female in the Junior section. This was a great effort from Penny as she took 11 points from a maximum of 12 in her four events. She has two more years in this age group and is already planning for next year. Close behind was the captain for the day, Jaxson MacDonald-Piner, who got two firsts and two seconds.

Tiana Mansfield placed first in 50m Backstroke and managed a second and third also. Mannix Fraser gained a creditable fourth against some strong opposition. Charlie Gilbert placed second and third in two of his events. Amanda Sheehan, and Nina Dickie travelled and accredited themselves very well. Most swimmers produced personal best times in at least one of their events which is the goal of any dedicated athlete. Tiana holds an Aoraki record while Jaxson holds three.

A special mention must go to Jo Gilbert and Cynthia Sheehan who attended and acted as officials for the day.

Ministry of Health: Promoting Healthy Lifestyles

Hot tips for parents

Young people need healthy food for their bodies and brains to work properly.  Get them into healthy habits with these tips.

• Keep a variety of fresh vegetables and fruit on hand for snacks.

• Encourage children to drink water throughout the day. Service it in a jug with ice. You could add slices of orange, strawberry, kiwifruit or lemon.

• Hooked on sweet drinks? Wean your children off gradually by making water the only option at breakfast, then add lunch, then dinner. Soon they’ll be drinking water with meals all the time.

• Eat in season– seasonal vegetables and fruit are the cheapest, freshest and tastiest.

• “What should we eat at our main meal?” Try meat (size of the palm of your hand), add some rice/pasta/potato and plenty of vegetables or salad.

• Eat together as a family as often as possible.

• Avoid using food or drink as a treat or reward – a special activity can be used instead.

• Cook a meal with your children once a week – you’ll be surprised what they can do, and their future flatmates will thank you!

• Help children stay active – it’s a great way to have some fun and spend time together.

• If you have time, eat breakfast with your children – it sets everyone up for the day.

• Avoid calling food ‘good’ or ‘bad’ – instead try ‘everyday’ and ‘sometimes’ food.

• Treat overload. A treat is not a treat if it happens every day! Check how often your children have treat foods. Have ‘everyday’ foods for everyday occasions, like school, and keep treats for special occasions like parties.

• ‘Lighten up’ and use reduced fat versions of mayonnaise, coconut cream, cream cheese, minced beef and milk (for children over two).

• Try foods from a range of different countries and cultures for new flavours, colours, textures and aromas.

• Offer children a variety of healthy foods – different types, colours, textures, flavours, smells and temperatures – so they get all the nutrients they need.

• Introduce wholegrain bread by making it the only option for toast or by making sandwiches with one wholegrain slice and one white.

• Get more vegetables and fruit into their diet – fruit smoothies, carrot sticks before dinner, savoury/fruit muffins, grated vegetables in mince/bolognaise/homemade hamburgers.

• Pack an extra sandwich or piece of fruit for that after school hunger!

• Bananas make a great snack for hungry children. Take fruit to keep them going when collecting your children from their ECE service or school.

• Try swapping:

     chocolate biscuits with plain fruit biscuits
     potato chips with plain popcorn
     fruit juice with a whole piece of fruit
     ice cream with yoghurt
     chocolate bars with dried fruit or nuts

Principal's Comment

Kia ora Kevinians and Supporters of the College

This week we have been without a telephone system as our land line has be down because of a line issue outside the school. My apology to anyone inconvenienced by this very frustrating situation. It is timely to remind everyone that there are contact details and a directory of email addresses available on our website.

Congratulations to the 1st eleven Cricket team who have made it to the finals of the regional competition. This is an outstanding achievement and we wish you every success this weekend.

A big thank you to Sela Faletolu who has been working with our Pasifika students this week. The "Lead your Future" seminar had a powerful and inspiring message. We look forward to seeing the results of the combined schools work at the Race Relations Day Celebrations and Multicultural Concert this coming Saturday.

Thank you to all the staff and helpers who supported our students at the Aoraki Athletics this week. After being rained off the alternative day was glorious and our students performed with distinction.

Next week we have irregular arrangements because of the shortened Anniversary Day and Easter week. Please keep up todate with arrangements by looking at the calendar on our website. If you are needing to be absent on the middle days, email me to formally seek permission. Senior students risk complications with NCEA assessment if they do not have approved leave.

May God bless you this Lenten Season
Paul Olsen, Principal

Aoraki Athletics

SKC Athletes competed at the Aoraki Athletics yesterday with some great results.  Congratulations to all those who represented the College with such pride.  Thanks to Gabrielle Hawkins for sending these shots of the team in action through 

Biology Study

Year 12 and 13 Biology students have been out and about, studying the marine environment.  The Year 12 students spent the day down at Kakanui while the Year 13's headed to the Portobello Marine Laboratory.