News and events for the week ending 2nd August 2019 Friday 2nd August 2019 Opening words from the Executive PrincipalKia ora tatou, good afternoon, 你好, 안녕하세요 I’m going to start at an oblique angle today. I teach a Year 12 AS Level English Literature class: I see them four days a week, and it’s always the highlight of my day. That’s not to say that I don’t enjoy the company of the teachers, staff and parents I meet (of course!), but there’s something special about spending time working with young people, talking about literature, and teasing out complex ideas around identity, politics, culture, class, love and just about every other profound subject you can think of. One of the reasons I enjoy this part of my day so much is the way our young people respond in class. They are smart, quick on the uptake, reflective, and interested in relating their own experiences to the broader concerns of the books we read. In other words, they are a pleasure to teach and a credit to their parents and families, to the school and all the teachers here and, most of all, to themselves. These were some of the thoughts I was having on Wednesday as I listened to the students in the Senior College Speech Final. Amongst other topics, they covered sexism, cultural representation, environmentalism and the general superiority of Generation Z (this is a topic my daughters are quite fond of too), and they were sharp, articulate and well-structured from the first word to the last. A huge congratulations to all those who took part. Just picking up on a theme in one of the speeches, we are continuing to develop our whole school approach to sustainability. We have had the “Tread Lightly” caravan in school this week, working with our primary school children to encourage them to develop sustainable approaches to their lives, and there will be an added focus on this area within the primary curriculum next year. In College, we are building elements of sustainability into our Global Citizenship programme, and it’s already a fairly prominent part of our Year 7 and 8 Social Studies course. Well done to all the students who have taken part in the Primary and Junior College North Shore chess competitions this week: our Primary students came 2nd overall, just behind Milford Primary and ahead of Kristin, and they will be competing in the national tournament in Palmerston North, defending their title, later this term. Our Junior College team also did well, and enjoyed the level of competition. Well done too to the netball and basketball players who took part in the zone days this week, and to our Senior Debating team, who have had a good year, reaching the knockout stages of their competition. I have had quite a few questions about university entrance and Cambridge over the last couple of weeks, so I thought I’d add some very brief notes about Cambridge at our school, and how it compares with NCEA and IB. All three systems are good systems and can support children well. All three systems are also good preparation for universities in New Zealand and overseas, and all are accepted in all countries. Cambridge is obviously very well-suited for the British system, but it was designed for international students, and so is a prestigious qualification in universities in places like the USA, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Korea and Europe. At the moment, we have Pinehurst students in a number of US universities, including M.I.T.; in a range of top British universities; and a number of Australian universities. We also have a student in Yonsei University, one of the top institutions in Korea. The question I’m asked is sometimes: which is the best system to go to a particular country? And the answer is: the assessment system is not the most important factor. What matters most is the way the school uses it, and how the school looks after your child. I think Cambridge is an outstanding system: rigorous and consistent, strong and future-focused, supporting students brilliantly. It stretches students in areas like Maths and Science particularly well; and it has the structure to support students of all abilities. But I hope that what makes it stand out at Pinehurst is the way we use it, and the way we ensure that every child is supported as an individual. Please look here for a more detailed explanation of the way we use Cambridge. And please ask if you have any questions at all! Finally, a quick favour. Our car park, as you know, is very busy, especially in the afternoons. One of the things that has started to develop is the habit of arriving at school between 1.30 and 2.30 pm, parking, and then leaving to have a coffee, or even waiting in cars for long periods of time. I love that we are a place where parents can meet and socialise, and I want to encourage all parents to see us like this. It does, though, make it difficult for some other parents to even get into school from about 2.30 on some days, stopping them from picking up children to get to early appointments at the dentist, or to sports games starting early. I would appreciate it if you would try to wait until around 2.45 before coming to school to pick up your children. If more parents arrived later, there would be less need to arrive early to find a parking spot for everyone. Many thanks for your support. Have a lovely weekend. WEEK 3 Monday 5 August
Tuesday 6 August
Wednesday 7 August
Saturday 10 August
Sunday 11 August
WEEK 4 Monday 12 August
Tuesday 13 August
Wednesday 14 August
Thursday 15 August
Friday 16 August
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, Thank you to all parents who attended this week’s parent teacher conferences. Teachers really value the face to face contact with parents and are always aiming to provide feedback which will help a student move forward in their subject. Well done to the 40 students who took part in yesterday’s Australian Maths competition. We look forward to receiving the results of these student’s achievements. This is the time of year when many senior students start thinking about their academic plans for the following years. In particular, Year 9, 11 and 12 students have option choices which determine their 2020 classes. On Monday August 12th, at 6.30pm, we will be hosting our IGCSE options evening. This will be a presentation explaining our IGCSE structure and programmes. Though, this meeting is aimed at parents and students currently in Year 9 we welcome any parent who is wanting to know more about Cambridge IGCSE. During the evening we will also explain the process that leads to the Year 9 students choosing the IGCSE subjects that they will then study in 2020 and 2021. To help Year 9 students with their decisions they will be completing a careers module during this term’s Global Citizenship classes. Our A Level options evening will be held the following week, Monday 19th August. This week if you have a child in Year 11, 12 or 13 they will have received their “statement of entry” for their external Cambridge examinations. We would like you to check that the information is correct and then return the sheet to your child’s POD teacher. Next week, on Wednesday 7th August, there will be a meeting to launch next year’s US Commerce tour. We wish everyone an enjoyable weekend. Ngā mihi, Chris Wiggin and Kieran Verryt Principals of College Information Evening - Cambridge IGCSE
Mr Chris Wiggin (Head of College Curriculum and Assessment) will present information regarding:
Mrs Kaye Griffiths (Careers Counsellor) will also be available to answer any questions that you may have. Years 12 and 13 Senior Speech CompetitionOn Wednesday, twelve students from Years 12 and 13 spoke in the finals of the senior speech competition. We listened to a variety of speeches which both educated and entertained us. Some were thought provoking, some sobering and some were highly amusing. They were united by the confidence and flair of their delivery. Many of these students have been giving speeches since they were in primary school. Six years on and they have honed their oratorical skills. It was a delight to see how far these students have come and to see how comfortable they were speaking in front of an audience of their peers and teachers. The three judges had an extremely difficult choice to make and it took them a considerable amount of time to arrive at a decision. In the end they made the following decision: 3rd place – Neeraj Charya 2nd place – Jemma Goeldner And in 1st place – Wie-jie (Danielle) Wong with her passionate speech on why we should vaccinate our children. Congratulations to everyone who participated in this competition. Global Citizenship and PerspectivesWith the successful introduction and development of our Pinehurst Global Citizenship and Perspectives programme from Year 0 – 11, we have decided to offer from next year (2020) the highly respected Cambridge Global Perspectives and Research A-Level subject as another option at Year 12. Universities and employers around the world recognise and value the research and thinking skills developed when studying this course. The current Year 11 students will be familiar with the IGCSE Global Perspectives course which is taught alongside the Global Citizenship modules. Both IGCSE and A-Level Global Perspectives courses are firmly based on skills, developed during the completion of coursework, rather than specific content. They enable students to explore and make judgement about global issues of relevance and importance to their own lives. They are designed to develop skills in research, critical thinking, reasoning, problem-solving, obtaining information, evaluate its reliability and usefulness, and develop communication skills by analysing and evaluating arguments and perspectives. Collaboration skills are enhanced through participation in a team project. Through the study of a range of global issues, students will explore different perspectives allowing them to nurture cross-cultural awareness and promote cultural empathy. Global Perspectives & Research encourages transformative learning, whereby learners become more aware of their own beliefs and assumptions and more able to be self-critical. The skills-based Cambridge A-Level Global Perspectives and Research course consists of 70% coursework – Individual Essay (2000-words) and a Team Project – individual 8-minute Presentation and Reflective Paper (800-words). The 30% examination is source-based testing the skills learnt during the coursework. Students who have completed the Year 12 AS course can advance to Year 13 A2 Global Perspectives and Research where candidates devise and develop a research question. This is answered in a report based on individual personal research. The research report must not exceed 5000-words. By developing thinking and reasoning skills, as well as research and communication skills, Cambridge Global Perspectives & Research will enable students to meet the demands of the twenty-first century and to make a successful transition to higher education, employment and lifelong learning. Table Tennis Mentoring ProgrammeOur Table Tennis mentoring programme has been very successful in 2019, and we are very grateful to Senior College students Lachlan Burnell, Ryan Connolly and Brian Park for giving up their time every Monday to support our aspiring young Table Tennis players. We have had great success at the Interschool Primary & Intermediate tournament in Term 2 this year, and look forward to an exciting Term 3 and AIMS programme in the coming weeks! Massey University VisitEarlier this week we were fortunate to have several Massey University PhD Food Technology and Engineering students visit Pinehurst to talk about their educational journeys and to demonstrate their projects. The first session was targeted towards senior students and the second session was for two Year 9 Digital Technology classes. The last part of the presentation allowed students to move around and interact with the students and projects including robotics, AI face recognition software, 3D printed material, taste testing fish sauce and learning about creating new food products. Sausage sizzle for YouthlineLast Saturday members of MSW (Sandie Waddel's POD) supported Youthline by manning the BBQ for Kidsplay Netball. After a few burned sausages and lots of enthusiastic singing by some members they managed to provide the public with the much sought after sausage with bread and onions, juicies and water. They raised almost $600 to support this worthy cause. Thanks to Ayden Dickens for being an honorary MSW member as well as Joules and Tesla Blackwell who all came to help out. A special thanks to the parents David Blackwell, Tony Van der Steeg and Alex Ovenden who also came along to provide support. Gold for Pinehurst ThunderOur Year 8 Basketball team won gold in the Semester 1 North Harbour BL3 final earlier this week vs Northcross Kings. Well done team! NH Zone Day NetballEarlier this week, 3 Pinehurst Netball teams travelled to Netball North Harbour to take part in the 2019 NH Zone Day Netball competition. This was a great tournament experience for all teams. For our Year 8 girls team, coach Marcia Hardcastle was able to try out different combinations to help the team adjust to different timing of players around them, and it provided an opportunity for the girls to build a better understanding of their roles on the court. Our Year 7 team, coached by Suzanne Huffadine, had a great day finishing 9th overall in the Year 7 Girls grade. This year we also entered a Year 7/8 Boys team in the Year 8 grade. The boys, coached by Kelly & Rebekah Lindsay, had some excellent games, finishing up 10th overall. A huge thank you to Kelly Benison & Anne Benshaw for your wonderful support on the day ! Hockey 1st XIOnce again with a final score of 5:1 Pinehurst agreed their opposition, Mahurangi, were the merited winners. At half-time the score stood at a respectable 2:1 and the Pinehurst crew had played extremely well against and tough and spirited team of young men. CJ provided a deft touch to score the Pinehurst goal and several other efforts were close but thwarted by a strong defence. Harry and Toby both had some respectable attempts at striking a goal or two but could not quite get the finish. The weather was cold and grey and a chilly southerly nipped at the flesh making these conditions difficult to keep the pressure on the opposition. After the break Pinehurst could not manage to gain the upper hand and slowly Mahurangi pushed their advantage home. With only a few weeks left Pinehurst have found this new league a true challenge and it is providing them with a chance to improve and develop their hockey for future games. Kia Ora, There has been much excitement in the Primary school this week with the arrival of the Tread Lightly caravan. A constant stream of classes head towards the caravan which is situated in the College, an adventure in itself, off to save the environment and indeed the world! Our resources are precious and it is wonderful to be able to teach future generations how to look after their part of the Earth and to continue the work that is being done around the world in terms of sustainability. Thanks so much to all of the parents who have come along to take small groups of students through the exhibits and help them to get the most out of their learning. Many more of our students have been engaging with Maths Whizz this week which is fantastic to see, keep up the good work at home, we know it is not always easy. Children these days are so busy with sports, activities and extra classes that trying to get them to do homework when they are tired, hungry or just don’t feel like it can be a mission. Try using a timer or stopwatch and set them a ten minute task to do a part of their homework and then they can play for five minutes. Reset the timer and they can do ten minutes more reading or Maths. Young children need to be set up for success and whilst some are very motivated to complete their homework, others are not and it can be a battle of wills to get them to do it. Try to add some fun and let them feel like they have a bit of choice and control if you are struggling with homework on a regular basis. Congratulations to our number one Chess team who are off to the finals in New Plymouth later in the year, they came second, only narrowly missing first place and are through to the New Zealand championships. It is great to see so many students taking up the opportunity to attend after school classes. There is something on every night including Performance Net drama classes, Art4Kids, Chinese and Bricks4Kids, look out for the posters around school if you would like to sign your child up or talk to your child’s teacher. Stay warm this weekend! Ngā mihi Sian Coxon, Principal of Primary Super Cluster BasketballOn Wednesday, selected Boys & Girls Primary Basketball teams attended the inaugural Super Cluster Basketball tournament at the Eventfinda (formerly NSEC) stadium. The teams, made of up Year 5 & Year 6 players, enjoyed exciting and fast paced Basketball games over the course of the day! Our boys team, including a number of Year 5 players, gained a lot from the experience and finished in 7th place. Our girls team, many of whom were playing Basketball at a tournament for the first time, finished in 3rd place overall – well done girls! A huge thank you to Coach Jesse, Student Coach J’aimee, Manager Tarnya and our student referees Kevin, Alex and Ted for your support at this event! Would your child like to play basketball?We have limited spaces available for Year 5-6 students in Semester 2. Games will be on a Tuesday night. If your child is interested or you would like more information please email Teacher in Charge of Basketball – Ms Stacey McIntosh at stacey.mcintosh@pinehurst.school.nz . Netball Win!Netball 6/2 (Year 5-6) play at Netball North Harbour on Wednesday night. It was freezing cold and pouring down with rain but the girls managed a win 7/6 over St Josephs. Thanks to coach Jo Heighton. Primary MusicTerm 3 has started with a hiss and a roar in the music room. The New Entrant class have so much energy and enthusiasm and LOVE to sing, dance and perform with no inhibitions whatsoever. Mrs Du Toit has enjoyed hearing all the holiday stories from students coming back to her room these last two weeks and hearing about some of the musical experiences they have had too. Whether it was hearing interesting music in other countries or experiencing music in shows or movies they attended. “The Lion King” was definitely a highlight for some. Classes continue with their ukuleles and recorders this term (the students have made great progress so far) plus they'll be revisiting some basic theory around notes and their values. Look out for some of our talented performers on Seesaw! Primary ChessOur three Primary chess teams competed on Tuesday against teams from 10 different North Shore schools. It was an exciting day with six rounds of chess matches being played. Our Pinehurst C team came 7th out of 32 teams, Pinehurst B came 6th and Pinehurst A came 2nd! Placing in the top three wins us a place in the finals. Congratulations to all our players and Coach Alex who has helped with all the coaching. Thanks to all the parents who supported on the day. P2 think Science is fun and delicious too!In P2 Science we have been learning about ‘What melts?’ Firstly, we brainstormed to see how many things we could think of that melted and we were surprised at how many we could find. We learnt that for something to melt heat had to be added. The part we loved the most was when we experimented with melting butter and made some Rice Bubble Slice. We melted butter and marshmallows, then added rice krispie cereals. Finally, we pressed it into a tray and put it in the fridge to cool. “It smelt so yummy,” said Claire. “Yum yum, I want to eat it straight away,” said Sarah Everyone agreed, it tasted “Delicious!” This week in P7P7 are learning about how materials can change shape. We carried out several investigations to test our hypothesis and answer questions about materials. We tested a variety of balls which were made of different materials and had to make a hypothesis which ball would bounce the highest. We then had to decide how we would test this. Once we tested our theory we recorded the results. Year 2 students listened to the story “Traction Man is Here” by Mini Grey. We drew a story map to help us retell the story. At our big writing session we rewrote the story. Our focus was to use interesting vocabulary and a variety of punctuation. Enviro ClubA group of fantastic girls in P11 have been learning about conservation and are using their initiative to create a new club called the Enviro. Club. Here are some of our members telling you a bit more about it..
Year 4 in the Tread Lightly CaravanYear 4 were very excited about the Tread Lightly Caravan visiting our school. In preparation for the visit, they took part in an interesting activity called ‘What would you take’ which really got them thinking. In this activity, they had to think carefully about what they would take with them from earth if they had to leave due to an environmental crisis. If we want the world to be sustainable we need to look after the environment! From doing this activity I learnt that it would be better to take sustainable items with me to help me survive. This made me think about how important is it that we look after the earth and think carefully about our needs versus our wants. One sustainable thing I would take with me to another planet would be seeds from a plant. - Isabel Ramdhari, P15 If I was going to live on another planet, I would take a lamb with me. The lamb would grow into a sheep then it would produce milk for me to drink and wool to keep me warm. This activity made me think about the things we need to survive on earth and the importance of looking after these things or else they will not last. - Miley Wu P15 On Wednesday the Tread Lightly educators helped us learn about what goes down our drains, how pollution affects the ocean and where our household rubbish goes. At the end, students made a pledge of how they could implement changes to help our environment. These ranged from switching the light off when leaving a room to having a short shower instead of a bath. I Spy in the PrimaryI Spy…A perfect rainbow over the Primary top fields! I Spy...Experimenting with friction on the soles of our feet in Year 3 Science! I Spy...Reading and writing in P4! I Spy...Persuasive speech writing techniques in Year 4! Kapa HakaLast week the Kapa haka group were part of the powhiri which welcomed new students, families and staff members. The powhiri was also a welcome for our sister school in Korea, Imae middle school. We sung and performed a welcome haka. The Kapa haka group were also entertained by some excellent K-pop dancing from students of Imae middle school. The Kapa haka group is made up of students from Year 3 upwards. We practice every Friday at lunchtime in the after-school room. In Music this WeekYu Zhang Wu enters and wins a series run by Waikato University Congratulations to Yu Zhang (Year 8), who over the holidays entered a series of competitions. Playing the piano, she won the concerto prize in the category of all ages, run by Waikato and on the violoncello, she entered the WAPAC string competition and achieved two second prizes. Click here to view her piano performance. Click here to view her violoncello performance. Seina MurakamiSeina Murakami (Year 8) was awarded with a ballet scholarship earlier this year. This scholarship was offered to attend Annette Roselli Dance Academy based in Brisbane for one week in the Elite Training Programme which is designed for full-time students. Seina attended during the school holidays and found it an eye opening experience to be with so many other talented and dedicated students. Seina gained a lot through the programme and is now looking forward to the RAD ballet exam which she will be sitting at Vocational Intermediate level next week. Good luck Seina! Veronica XiaCongratulations to Year 7 student Veronica Xia, who recently represented North Harbour Badminton at the New Zealand Junior Team Championships, where her team finished 6th out of 15 teams in the U13 Grade. Veronica also took part in the North Harbour U13 Opens, where she was runner up in the girls doubles event. Well done Veronica! 'Have a Go' Beach VolleyballHarbour Volleyball is holding a FREE ‘Have a Go’ Beach volleyball development programme over the next 7 weeks. This programme is an introduction for beginner and intermediate athletes to learn the game and brush up on skills before the up and coming summer season. ‘Have a Go’ will feature guest coaches from the Volley Ferns and Volley Blacks. The programme is running on Friday and Sunday afternoons. The Friday afternoon session is run from 4pm - 6pm. This session is aimed for Year 10 and 11 and athletes with an understanding of the game. These sessions are run from August 2nd to September 13th. The Sunday afternoon session is broken up into two blocks. The 2pm - 4pm session is aimed for year 7 and 8 and beginner athletes. The 4pm - 6pm session is aimed for year 9 and 10 and athletes with an understanding of the game. These sessions are run from August 4th to September 8th.” The programme has limited spaces. To confirm a spot, athletes need to sign up HERE. The programme is held at the Mairangi Bay Beach Volleyball Centre, 65 Maxwelton Drive. |