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ECS Update Term 4, Week 4 – Friday 6 November 2026
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Dear Parents, Caregivers, and School Community,
Welcome to Week 4! It is wonderful to see the vibrant energy across our school as we move further into this action-packed term.
We were blessed with fantastic weather on Tuesday for our rescheduled Years 1–3 Athletic Sports. It was a delight to see our youngest students giving their absolute best, encouraging one another, and displaying such great enthusiasm. A huge thank you to all the parents and whānau who came along to support, cheer, and make the afternoon so special for our children.
This week has also been a major highlight for our performing arts, with a number of our students involved in the Christchurch Schools Music Festival. From those performing in the representative groups to our school choir taking the stage on Wednesday evening, our students represented Emmanuel Christian School with real excellence and joy. We are so proud of their hard work and dedication!
Looking ahead, we are drawing closer to a very special occasion for our school community: our Worship & Thanksgiving Evening on Wednesday, 11 November. This will be a meaningful time to gather, give praise for God’s faithfulness, and formally farewell Simone Thomas as we celebrate her 25 years of service. (Please look further down in the newsletter for event details and timings).
Upcoming Key Dates:
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Worship & Thanksgiving Evening (Farewell to Simone Thomas): Wednesday, 11 November
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Canterbury Show Day Holiday: Friday, 13 November (School closed)
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Teacher Only Day: Monday, 16 November (School closed)
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Final Prizegiving: Wednesday, 9 December
Thank you for your continued support, prayers, and partnership as we navigate these final weeks of the school year together.
Blessings,
Ngā mihi nui,
Alistair McKinnon
Principal
Emmanuel Christian School
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This email contains information about:
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- Important Dates
- Te kupu o te wiki – Word of the week
- Special Evening of Worship, Music & Farewell for Mrs Simone Thomas
- Kids Art Works Fundraiser
- Car Park Safety Notice
- Scholastic Book Club
- Health Nurse Notice
- Position Vacancy notice – Aidanfield Christian School
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Wednesday 11 November: Farewell for Mrs Simone Thomas
Friday 13 November: Canterbury Anniversary (Show) Day holiday
Monday 16 November: Teacher Only Day
Wednesday 9 December: End of Year School Prizegiving
Friday 11 December: Last Day of School for 2026
(The School Calendar including 2026 Term dates can be found here)
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Te kupu o te wiki – Word of the week
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This week’s te reo Māori word/phrase of the week.
We would encourage you to try to use these at home.
This weeks word/phrase is: “Māku e mahi!” – “I’ll do it!”
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Lion’s Christchurch Schools Music Festival – Tuesday to Friday this week!
A huge congratulations to our 25 students in Year 5 – 8 who represented our school so beautifully on Wednesday evening, the 2nd night of the evening performances in the Christchurch Town Hall.
Behaviour was immaculate and once again our students represented Emmanuel Christian School and Jesus like bright lights!
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Special congratulations to our 10 students involved in the Representative groups.
The standard of the Orchestra and Concert Band was phenomenal and the choirs were poignantly beautiful.
These amazing students performed every night of the Festival from Tuesday to Friday and have spent hours practicing in their holidays and on Saturday.
Minah Yoon (yr8) – Violin -Orchestra and 4 year medal recipient
Michelle Ou (Yr 8) – Viola – Orchestra
Noah Ting (Yr 8) – Violin – Orchestra
Bethany Chen (Yr 5)- Viola – Orchestra
Ella Kim – Cello (Yr 6) – Orchestra
Zeph Luke (Yr 7) – Double Bass – Orchestra
Jemina Lin (Yr 6) – Flute – Concert Band
Seanna Yoon (Yr 6) Junior Choir
Melissa Reid (Yr 8) Senior Choir
Victoria Moreno-Moncada (Yr 8) Senior Choir
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Congratulations to:
Minah Yoon (yr 8) Grade 7 Violin ABRSM – Distinction, Grade 5 Theory ABRSM – Distinction
Seanna Yoon (yr 6) Grade 3 Trumpet ABRSM – Distinction
Jemina Lin (yr 6) – Grade 4 Flute ABRSM – Distinction
Noah Chen (yr 7) Grade 5 Theory ABRSM and Grade 5 Piano ABRSM
Bethany Chen (yr 5) Grade 5 Theory ABRSM
Lucas Lee (yr 7) Grade 5 Theory ABRSM and Grade 7 Piano ABRSM
Sam Carter (yr 10) Grade 6 Trombone exam ABRSM
Noah Ting (yr 8) Grade 6 Violin ABRSM
Camille Qiu (yr 4) Grade 5 Piano ABRSM
Jelena Wang (yr 4) Grade 2 Cello ABRSM
Hannah King (yr 5) Grade 2 Piano ABRSM – Distinction
John King (yr 10) Grade 8 Piano ABRSM
Jeremy Lin (yr 5) Grade 2 Piano ABRSM – Distinction
Belinda Du (yr 8) Grade 8 Piano ABRSM, Grade 4 Violin ABRSM, Grade 5 Theory ABRSM – Distinction.
Elias Liu (yr 7) Grade 3 Piano ABRSM
George Ting (yr 4) Grade 3 Violin ABRSM – Distinction
Burnside High School Special Music Programme 2026
Michelle Ou – viola (SMP Scholarship for Year 9)
Noah Ting – violin
Minah Yoon – violin (SMP Scholarship for Year 9) also Academic Scholarship to St Andrews College which she has accepted.
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Special Evening of Worship, Music & Farewell for Mrs Simone Thomas
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An invitation to join us for a special evening as we come together as a school community for a time of worship, music, and to give thanks and bid farewell to Mrs Simone Thomas after 25 years of faithful service to Emmanuel Christian School. We would really like to encourage every student across the school to attend this event if at all possible.
Please feel free to extend an invitation to attend to any members of the wider Emmanuel Christian School community, including any ex students and families you may have contact with. We would love to see the venue full as we celebrate together
- When: 7:00 PM – 8:15 PM
Wednesday 11 November 2026
(Students please be there by 6:40pm so we can seat you as part of this event. Uniform should be worn for this event) Students involved in the orchestra may be asked to arrive slightly earlier
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Kids Art Works Fundraiser
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Final Chance to Order!!!
The art works the students created are going to look great as calendars, cards, diaries etc. And we know how busy this time of year can be. So we have extended this opportunity for a second round of orders.
We have samples of all the products available to order at the Office so pop in any time to have a look at these.
To order please visit www.kidsartworks.com and use the code on the flyer your child brought home. If you have misplaced your childs unique order code, don’t worry! We will be sending these out again next week.
The final round of orders closes on Wednesday 18th November.
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Main Entrance and Car Park Notice
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As we head into a very busy time of year, we would like to share a quick reminder to help keep our school car park safe and efficient for everyone.
Our main car park experiences peak traffic during school drop-off (8:20 am – 9:00 am ) and pick-up (2:35 pm – 3:10 pm ). During these busy windows, please remember to take extra care, keep your speed to an absolute minimum, and always keep left to allow for smooth two-way access.
Additionally, a gentle reminder that there is a strict “No Right Turn” policy onto Sawyers Arms Road when exiting our driveway during peak times. If you need to travel in that direction, we kindly ask that you use the Papanui Club car park instead.
Thank you so much for your continued co-operation, patience, and commitment to keeping our students safe.
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Closing date : 6pm on Friday 20th November.
If you didn’t receive a brochure we have some at the Office and they are also available online on LOOP.
If you would like to order any of the books, this can be done online on LOOP. For your first time you will need to register in order to make a Book Club LOOP login.
We cannot take orders/payment via the Office so please order online.
Instructions are on the back of the brochure.
Once orders close, they will be sent to school and will come home with your child. On all orders the school earns 15% in scholastic rewards which benefits our school librar y.
Emmanuel Christian School does not endorse all material that is available for purchase from Scholastic Book Club. Please use your discernment when selecting reading material for your child.
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PUBLIC HEALTH NURSE INFORMATION
Kia ora
My name is Natasha and I am the allocated Public Health Nurse for your school. I work within a team of Public Health Nurses. We are Registered Nurses with knowledge and experience in child/tamariki and family/whānau health. We work with children/tamariki and families/whānau where health and wellbeing concerns impact on their home and school lives.
Please contact me if you have any health concerns for your child/ tamariki.
My details are:
Email: Natasha.graham@tewhatuora.govt.nz
Referrals to service: https://www.cdhb.health.nz/wp-content/uploads/08e86c56-referral-form-public-health-nursing-service.pdf
Ngā mihi
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Finance – Principals PA School Office
– Aidanfield Christian School
Vickie James who has faithfully served the Aidanfield school community for many years will be retiring at the end of this year.
For further information please head to the link or if you or anyone you know may be interested in completing an application.
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