News and events for the week ending 3rd August 2018 Friday 3rd August 2018 Opening words from the Executive Principal如需阅读校长的中文留言和重要事件日期,请点击此处 Kia ora tatou, good afternoon, 你好 I had a fantastic evening on Monday this week watching four Primary Hockey teams play exciting matches against other schools on the turf at Harbour Hockey. It took half an hour to travel the two kilometres from school, of course (Albany at rush hour is generally to be avoided), but it was well worth it. We lost two, won one, and our Year 6 Girls team drew a very tense top of the table clash. Well done to the all the players and supporting parents who were there, as well as to Will Elliott, who runs the programme, and to our wonderful team of student coaches. It’s also been great to see so many of you at the College Parent Teacher Conferences this week. You should have had the opportunity for precise, informed conversations about your child’s progress so far this year and come away with a good idea of how you can support them to continue to develop as the year develops. I saw lots of smiles and happy children (always a good sign!), but if you haven’t had the chance to come along or would like to have a fuller discussion with the teachers, please don’t hesitate to contact them to arrange a longer meeting to talk things through. We are very fortunate to have such a supportive community, and we know that our children will be happier and make more progress if we can all support them in an informed way. I thought I would write a little about our enrolment process this week. At the moment, a few of us are interviewing Year 7 students for the start of 2019, and New Entrants for Term 1, 2019. We moved to a new process for Year 7 and New Entrants last term, and now use deadlines for applications. We stick to these deadlines strictly, because we are oversubscribed in most year groups now, and these are two of our main three points of entry. In other year groups, we would ask anyone interested to contact us to see if places have become available. We know we have a few spaces in Year 9 next year, for example. When we interview students, the main thing we are doing is finding out about them and their families. It’s a friendly conversation, and a chance for the child and the parents to ask any questions they may have (although most of these have usually been answered before the meeting). If the child who is applying to our school has a sibling in school already, they jump to the top of the list and are highly likely to be offered a place. Other than that, we simply ask, when we decide who to make offers to: will this child benefit from a Pinehurst education and will he or she make a contribution to the school? The answer to these questions is almost always ‘yes’! So we then talk long and hard about the applications and make a final decision that can be based on a range of factors, and is never based on just one or two things. In an ideal world, we would make offers to every child who wants to come here, but we simply can’t do that. I hope that clears up the process we use for enrolment, and I hope you enjoy this week’s newsletter. There won’t be a newsletter next week as I’m in Wellington and I’m giving our staff a week off! Have a fabulous weekend – may it be clear and sunny and full of light and music. Ngā mihi Alex Reed Alex Reed WEEK 3: Monday 6 August
Tuesday 7 August
Wednesday 8 August
Thursday 9 August
Friday 10 August
WEEK 4: Monday 13 August
Tuesday 14 August
Wednesday 15 August
Thursday 16 August
Friday 17 August
Sunday 19 August
如需阅读校长的中文留言和重要事件日期,请点击此处 Rescue Run Secondary Schools ChallengeSix Pinehurst students are taking part in this year’s Rescue Run Secondary Schools Challenge on Saturday, the 8th of September. PLEASE MAKE A DONATION HERE so that the students can reach their $5,000 target. All the money raised from this will go to one of the four Senior College charities – Youthline. Parent Breakfast Meetings - Term 3
Venue: Caffe E Cuccina, 265 Albany Hwy Please RSVP: judy.wallace@pinehurst.school.nz Ordered MUKA YOUTH PRINTS are ready for collectionThose Students that ordered a MUKA YOUTH PRINT – they have arrived and are in the JC Art room ( where the exhibition was held ), ready for collection. Parents or older siblings need to collect prints for any Primary student. This is to ensure that the prints get home undamaged. Quiz Night 2018Gather your teams and start planning your theme for a fun night. Held at Pinehurst School on Friday 31 August at 7:30pm. This event is for parents and their family and/or friends. Maximum of 8 adults per table. Entry: $15 per person. BYO drink and nibbles. Prizes for the best dressed team and decorated table, games and prizes. Dress up is optional. Any money raised will go towards outdoor seating for the students. We look forward to seeing you there, so get your teams together now and contact Judy Wallace judy.wallace@pinehurst.school.nz to book your team’s table. IMPORTANT INFORMATION: Online Shoot Key slips have been handed out to students and their photos are now uploaded and ready to view online. PLEASE NOTE DEADLINE: SUNDAY 19 AUGUST Kia Ora, It’s the end of Week 2 already and the term seems to be flying by! Our newest members of the Primary in Miss Lewandowski’s class are all extremely settled and are clearly ready for school and learning. We have enjoyed an action packed start to the term with a visit from Brett Fairweather the inventor of Jump Jam as well as the NED show teaching us all about kindness. The Junior Primary are rehearsing, sorting costumes and props and singing their hearts out ready to perform in Seussical in Week 8 as you will read below. Coming up this term we have all of our curriculum topics which you will see on the termly overview plus several Mid Bays sports events, cross country, speech competitions and visits to the Museum as well as our show. Whilst we highly value our exceptional programmes in numeracy and literacy we aim to provide a wide variety of opportunities in the context of a broad and balanced curriculum. We are continually looking for ways to improve outcomes for our students and we are currently researching ways to ensure that every student is engaged in their learning and has an expectation of fully participating in their education. Many students are using mini whiteboards to instantly show their teacher if they understand what they have learned. In some classes we are trialing the use of talking sticks where a child answers a question when the stick with their name on is pulled out, thereby keeping them focused on what is being taught as they know they will be asked to share what they are learning. Some classes are using exit passes which quickly let the teacher know if they have understood what they have learned. These forms of instant feedback allow teachers to have a very clear picture of where students are and their next steps in learning. This in turn helps us to provide a more individualised programme where students make noticeable progress in short periods of time. As teachers we are also learners and will continue to look for the best ways to educate those in our care. Ngā mihi, Sian Coxon, Principal of Primary Sunshine in P8P8 are learning about how the past is important to New Zealand people. We have been reading Myths and Legends and discussing why we think people use stories to explain things. One of our favourite stories is “How Maui slowed the sun.” We learnt that the sun is called Te Rā. The days of the week in Maori are Rāhina, Rātū, Rāapa, Rāpare, Rāmere, Rāhoroi, Rātapu. Rā is similar to the word day in Monday. We have illustrated Te Rā using paint and markers. If you need some sunshine to warm you up, please come to P8 and warm yourself under our Te Rā. SeussicalOur rehearsals for the Junior Primary production are well under way. The songs are starting to come together beautifully, during music lessons and individual students, who are part of the main cast, have been attending lunchtime practices. Last Friday, the whole cast enjoyed meeting in the Arena for our first run through of all the catchy songs. This gave the students and teachers a good chance to hear the music from start to finish. The teachers and staff are all working hard behind the scenes to bring the show together - it is a real team effort. Planning for the costumes has commenced and we would like to thank the parents who have volunteered to help with this, we really appreciate it. If you haven’t yet put your name forward but would like to help, then please contact Mrs Jones-Hill or Miss Dobbins. Well done to everyone for the commitment you are demonstrating in learning your lines, turning up to rehearsals and all done with smiles on your faces! Pointillism in P16P16 have been learning about Georges Seurat a French artist who created the technique of Pointillism. Seurat believed that a painter could use colour to create harmony in art like a musician uses melody and notes to create harmony. Seurat’s first masterpiece where he displayed the pointillist technique was ‘A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte’. It took 2 years to paint and was completed in 1886. We recreated a part of this painting and had a go at using his technique. It did take us a long time making all the dots but the finished creation was worth it. Kindness AdventureThe Primary school was lucky enough to go on a “Kindness Adventure” with the NED show. The show encouraged children to be kind to one another and spread super smiles. Part of the show was about the children and villagers in Kenya. They appear such happy and friendly children despite facing hardships that we are lucky enough not to have to face. To help these happy, smiling children have clean water in their villages we are able to buy various “Kenyan treasures” from the reception area every morning this week. The proceeds go towards erecting wells in villages so that they have access to clean water. Here are some of the treasures the children in P11 have bought to help with the fund raising. The treasures have made them smile “super smiles”. Hands On, Brains OnScience in the Year 3-6 classes includes practical work which is part and parcel of what teaching and learning in science is all about. Given that such a large proportion of our time in science lessons is spent on practical work it is important to be able to justify that amount of time by understanding the purpose of this activity as a tool for teaching and learning. Practical work in science is a 'hands on' learning experience which prompts thinking and the world in which we live. Our core activities include investigations, laboratory procedures and techniques and fieldwork. These 'hands on' activities support the development of practical skills and help to shape student's understanding of scientific concepts and phenomena. Directly related activities also include teacher demonstrations, experiencing phenomena, designing and planning investigations and analysing results. A variety of complementary activities include; presentations, role play, simulations using ICT, models and model making, group discussions and group text-based activities. These activities have an important role to play supporting practical work in developing understanding in science concepts. Effective practical activities enable students to build a bridge between what they can see and handle ('hands on') and scientific ideas that account for their observations ('brains on'). In the planning of activities, tasks are tailored to achieve the aims of our curriculum. Photographs show a range of 'hands on' activities which have been taking place in our science room. I Spy in the PrimaryI Spy.... lovely students supporting our Kindness Show by purchasing products from Kenya I Spy....decimals being calculated in Year Five!! I Spy...our newest students ready for a great day in P4! I Spy.....fraction mathematicians in Year Five. I Spy....clever swinging on the monkey bars! Kia Ora, As I write this and reflect on the week, it is hard to believe that two weeks of the school term have already passed. The College has settled back into a positive and busy routine, and I thanked students at assembly yesterday for their positive start to the term. I would like to thank all the parents who made it to conferences also. We do appreciate that conferences can be fairly frantic for parents as you spend 1 to 2 hours bouncing from teacher to teacher. Hopefully you garnered some good information to support your children, but just as importantly, continued to build relationships with teachers to connect our community. Term 3 is a challenging term for our senior students as they complete coursework for some subjects, and work to complete their courses. They will face a range of pressures from different aspects of life competing for their time. Learning to cope with and manage pressure is an important skill for our students to develop. This can be done in many ways. I have been fortunate this week to watch a few of our sports teams compete. I watched our 1st XI boys hockey team win their top of the table match 1 – 0 over Northcote in a challenging match. I also watched our Under 17A and Under 17B Basketball teams win their semi-finals by one point each. The students showed great composure. The A team took the lead with 4 seconds remaining on the clock and the B team defended the narrowest of leads. The students were well drilled and prepared so that their skills stood up under pressure, there was probably more nerves on the side-line than on the court. Preparation, practice and experience have helped to build their confidence so that they can cope when the situation demands it. Finally, it is pleasing to see the positive difference in the interactions of students around school now that phones are no longer a distraction at Year 9 – 11 level. It is great to see students engaged in conversation and many interacting through a variety of card games and board games. I noted on the news this morning that France has banned phones from all schools for students 15 years and under. Whilst we continue to educate and support students in their online and social media behaviour, it is also important that we allow them the freedom to be away from their devices for significant periods of the day. Ngā mihi, Chris Wiggin and Kieran Verryt Principals of College North Harbour ‘Rugby Experience’ MorningOn Friday 27th July, Pinehurst hosted a ‘Rugby Experience Morning’ for selected Year 6-8 students. North Harbour Rugby sent 20x MITRE 10 CUP and even some 2018 Auckland Blues players to run rugby skills sessions and fun activities for over 60 students! The game was followed by an epic tug of war (go kids!) All students who were involved on the day then received a Harbour Rugby ball, with the opportunity to have this signed by their favourite players - awesome Harbour Rugby for sponsoring these giveaways! A huge thank you to Debbie Stanaway from North Harbour Rugby and Sports Coordinators Kelly Lindsay (Pinehurst) & Jo Monkton (AJHS) for all their work in making this event happen, and of course all the Harbour Rugby players & staff for their energy and enthusiasm promoting Rugby at Pinehurst ! JC Table TennisCongratulations to our JC Table Tennis players and teams, who were recognised last week for their achievements in Term 2: Individuals
Teams
Music in CollegeBoth the Jazz Band and Orchestra have been bonding over the last couple of weekends, spending some concentrated time working on their repertoire for the upcoming KBB competition. The Orchestra experienced a slightly different style of conducting under the guidance of Sally Tibbles who came to work with them over a three hour period on Saturday. The Jazz Band, under the skillful guidance of Callum Passells, also put in a good amount of time in ironing out their pieces. Thank you to all parents who ensure this workshop was well attended. There is one more set of rehearsals this weekend to attend before these groups compete with 45 other secondary schools in the largest music competition held in New Zealand.
Y7 & Y8 MandarinIn the last two weeks, Y7 and Y8 students have been making Sino-Mags about their name, age, year level, birthday, family and pets, as well as family members’ Chinese Zodiac Sign in Pinyin, Chinese Characters and English. Year 10 Speech CompetitionThe Year 10 speech competition was held in the second to last week of Term 2. The topics were varied and engaging and the standard was high. The top three speeches were as follows: In third place was Angelica Morton with her speech entitled, Why it is good to believe in childhood myths. In second place was Danielle Bernacchi with her speech entitled, Why reality TV is good and finally in first place was Francesca Miller-Hard with a superb, thought provoking speech entitled , Why it is good to believe in childhood myths. Year 11 PhysicsStudents were busy this week constructing their own d.c. motors and investigating the ‘catapult field’ created with electromagnets. The practical work enhanced their understanding of Fleming’s left hand rule and it’s applications. AUT’s 'Shadow a Leader' DayDuring the holidays, 3 Pinehurst students attended AUT’s Shadow a Leader day. This experience allows students to, quite literally Shadow a Leader; Along with an AUT student, our students were paired with a prominent local business or government leader to follow for the day by attending meetings, engaging with employees, customers and suppliers, and of course going for lunch. Tawan Sangprong (pictured) was paired with Gordon Shaw, CEO of Vehicle Identification New Zealand. Louie Holgate-Simpson was paired with Jackie Blue, Commissioner for EEO, Women’s rights and LGBT at the Human Rights Commission. Emily Bartlett was paired with Nick Hill, CEO of Auckland Tourism Events and Economic Development. This is a day rich in real-world experiences for these students, and one to be remembered for many years yet Senior Hockey ReportPinehurst supporters were perched expectantly along the top of the rough green wooden fence rails like seagulls waiting to be thrown a scrap or two. Cheers were rapid and quirky comments were directed towards the robust men in white, who were fighting their way from end to end of the green plastic carpet. As players stopped to catch their breath steam rose from their tiring bodies. With faces red and ruddy from the contest Pinehurst imbibed the cold air and aggressively challenged their sporting assailants, Northcote College. Parents huddled like penguins weathering an Antarctic storm ‘oooed and arrred’ as the hearty whack of carbon fibre against plastic rang out around the isolated venue. Pinehurst were playing their most contested game of the season against a fine and well-matched side. There were moments of brilliance from all corners of the field. Nathan was holding the line as goalie and his defenders cut the opposition down whenever they entered the danger zone. Ethan, Dom, Felix and Mitch worked as a cohesive unit sending the ball far and wide. Rocco and Rico played deft shots and performed like a special two-man unit sent out on a mission. Corban quietly chased down the opposition and Hamish was the wingman, picking off the stragglers. The front line were hostile and assertive and gave as good as they got. Mitch, Harry, Louie and Haydn intimidated the defenders and played some startling great shots. The Benson boys were also in the mix and creating mayhem wherever they ventured. Some of the parents had been watching the Pinehurst 1st XI for five years or so and were in agreement this game was one of the finest. Northcote College must be congratulated for their efforts. Umpire Anderson signalled the end of the contest and coach Taylor congratulated the boys on ‘listening to the plan’ and playing like troopers. Cheers went up for the vigorous opposition and the Pinehurst spirit buoyed the young men as they modestly ambled into the gloomy damp evening. (Pinehurst 1 (Mitch 72 minute) Northcote 0) Seina MurakamiDuring the recent school holiday, Seina Murakami (Year 7) attended two weeks workshop and rehearsal for the world premiere performance of “Né: Roi” (a ballet in three acts) in Mackay, Australia. Seina was selected to take part in the production by Ken Ludden (Director of The Margot Fonteyn Academy of Ballet in New York) who created and choreographed this brand-new ballet to commemorate centenary anniversary of birth of Dame Margot Fonteyn. The music was composed by David Pyke based in Mackay. There were 50 plus selected young ballerinas from across Australia (Seina was the only one from New Zealand), Principal and Soloists from Miami City Ballet and professional actors who took part. This grand ballet project is a work in progress for the next four years; a truly unique experience. Although it was full on a daily schedule, Seina thoroughly enjoyed it and is already looking forward to next year’s performance. Afterschool Chess Coaching for BeginnersIs your child is wanting to learn the basics of chess? We now have beginners coaching on Thursdays from 3:20-4:20 in P19. It is mainly for Years 3 and above. Junior College and College students are also welcome. The cost is $20.00 per lesson. Please contact our chess coach Alex Huang on 0210543891 for payment options or come on Thursday afternoon to have a go. Fun Athletics Activity for KidsTo promote sports in the community, Athletics NZ will deliver a fun training event for children aged 5-11, from 22nd August to 26th September, every Wednesday afternoon. The programme provides educational, developmentally- appropriate, fun activities that build and develop children’s basic fundamental movement skills. Time: 4:30-5:30pm | Venue: Pinehurst School Please contact Crystal for more information, mobile: 021658499, Wechat: crysalleng58 2018年8月22日-9月26日,每周三下午4:30 – 5:30,田径协会将专为华人5-11岁小学生提供趣味田径活动,帮助孩子学习基本的运动技巧。 地点:Pinehurst操场 详情请联系Crystal,手机:021-658499,Wechat: crystalleng58 Northpoint Medical CentreThis is a brand new GP practice that has opened in Albany village. Ph: (09) 320 4759 | Address: 1A, 40 Library Lane, Albany Alumni Facebook GroupIf you're a past student, parent or staff member you can join our Alumni Group on Facebook! Stay informed of upcoming Alumni events, updates on past peers and reminisce over photos of the good old days! Link HERE. WE WOULD LOVE YOUR NEWS Please email us your news for inclusion in the next newsletter |