No images? Click here

 
 
 

Message from the Executive Principal

 

Kia ora koutou, good afternoon, 下午好, 안녕하세요  

 
 
 
 

Time flies when you’re having fun! It’s amazing to think we are already more than halfway into the term with so many amazing events and activities still to come.  

Our lower primary students had a chance to learn about road safety on Wednesday with a visit from our Police School Community Officer, Senior Constable Louise Nicholas. She was able to support the children learning to cross the road safety and to build awareness on aspects such as hidden driveways. We are grateful for the support of the Police in offering many opportunities across the school for our students to learn from experts in their field. 

As you will have seen in a separate message, I was very pleased to appoint a new College Deputy Principal this week, following a rigorous interview process. We are now nearing the end of the recruitment cycle for 2024 with two more teacher positions and a small number of non-teaching roles to appoint. I am very happy with the quality of all the staff that will be joining us and in coming weeks I will share a list of those who will be leaving as well as the names of our new staff. 

At the moment, there are many students across the school receiving assessment feedback and will soon see end-of-year reports. Through this process, there are inevitably going to be some areas of success and some for further development. With that in mind, I share with you this quote that I think is important to keep in mind “If the first time our child faces a major setback is in college, they are unlikely to be as resilient or have as large a toolkit of ways to respond to the failure. Therefore, it’s better that they fail and learn how to respond earlier in life.”  

From next week until early January 2024, there will be council work done on the footpaths on Bush Road between Rosedale Road and Tarndale Grove. While this area will not have a direct impact on the school, it may have a ripple effect due to parking restrictions and traffic management in that area. I ask for your patience during drop-off and pick-up during this time. 

Over the coming weeks, there are a large number of celebration events across the school. One piece of advice I always offer is to make sure that students and parents enjoy these moments because each one of them is unique and never to be repeated. It is easy to wish time away and think of the end of the year but taking time to appreciate the moments, big and small, is so important for all of us. 

I hope you enjoy the weekend ahead. 

 

Best wishes, 

Mike Waller 

如需阅读校长的中文留言和重要事件日期,请点击

 
 
 

Dates for your Diary

 

Monday 13 November

  •  Year 10 IGCSE PE Athletics Assessment (selected students)

  • North Harbour Golf Zone Day (selected students)

  • APO Visit: Primary Orchestra

 

Tuesday 14 November

  • Year 10 Commerce Trip - Tip Top (selected students)
  • Year 0-2 Showcase Concert
  • 2024 Year 6 Camp Parent Information Evening
 

Wednesday 15 November

  • Year 10 Physics Trip to Stardome
  • Year 6 Waterwise - P20
  • Valedictory Dinner
 

Thursday 16 November

  • Year 8 Students v Wild Camp (selected students)
  • Year 9 Commerce and Social Sciences Trip
  • Year 6 Waterwise - P19
  • Year 3-4 Movie Night
 

Friday 17 November

  • Girls Mean Business Trip (5 selected students)
  • Year 8 Students v Wild Camp (selected students)
  • Year 9 Commerce and Social Sciences Trip
  • Busy Bean Barista Trip - Rainbows End
  • Primary Teddy Bears Picnic
  • Year 10 Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Qualifier
 
 
SEE MORE DATES
 
 

Message from the Principal of Primary

 
 
 
 

Kia ora,

Lots of smiling faces at my door this week, holding up their medals and certificates from gymnastics competitions. They were proud to represent our school and happy to have achieved so highly. 

It has been a pretty sporty week with Year 5 and 6 students visiting Millenium stadium for their athletics day. It was very windy at times but there was plenty of enthusiasm from the children and support from parents during what turned out to be a very successful event. Participation levels were high, and our students were supportive of each other, cheering their classmates on to jump higher and run faster. 

Road safety was a priority in Year 2 this week with lessons on crossing the road, run by our community Police officer Louise. We frequently remind all our Primary students about using the crossing correctly and it is something we want them to do even when we are not there guiding them across the road. Reinforcing this at home sets up great habits for life and helps to keep children safe. Sometimes the quickest way is not to use the crossing, but it is unlikely to be the safest way.

Year 5 finally got to complete their water sampling this week with Watercare. The last few attempts have been rained off and made the bank too slippery but with a run of dry weather creating safe conditions Year 5 were able to collect samples and gather data on the water quality of our local stream. This is important work for the whole of Auckland as healthy waterways contribute to the eco system and the fantastic natural environment that we are so lucky to live in. What an interesting and practical way to learn about our local waterways.

Next week we are looking forward to our New to 2 performances on Tuesday afternoon, a second attempt at Waterwise for Year 6, Movie Night for Year 3 and 4 at Event Cinema and the much-anticipated Teddy Bears Picnic. How exciting!

My weather app says its going to be a sunny weekend so I imagine we will all want to get out and enjoy the sunshine.

Ngā mihi, Sian

 
 

Primary News

 

Surf to School

Year 2 and 3 students took part in the Surf to School programme run by Life Saving New Zealand. The programme was delivered by a fully trained surf lifeguard. It was a fun, interactive learning experience that gave our students the opportunity to gain awareness of surf safety.

An important message for our parents
When your child is in the water, be at arm’s length from us (not standing on the water’s edge).

Important messages we have learnt.
We learnt that it is important to choose a lifeguarded beach where possible and always swim between the flags. The surf lifeguards are constantly monitoring the conditions and won’t put flags out where a rip is present.
If you do get caught in a rip, remember the 3 R’s.

  • Relax and float to conserve energy. Stay calm, relax, and float.
  • Raise your hand to signal for help.
  • Ride the rip until it stops, and you can swim back to shore or float until help arrives.

If you need help dial 111 and ask for the police. The police will contact and co-ordinate the search and rescue team.

We are looking forward to visiting the beach this summer and keeping ourselves safe in the water.

 
 
 

Water Sampling Year 5

Year 5’s Global Perspectives unit inquired into water. As part of this unit, students investigated their own water footprints, and access to and use of water around the world. To connect to water in a local context the Year 5 teachers invited in an educator from Watercare, who conducted both an in-class lesson and a stream sampling lesson. Students participated in a scientific investigation analysing the water quality and life with the stream that runs alongside our schoolgrounds. Working collaboratively, students examined the streams surroundings, tested nitrate levels, pH level, water turbidity, checked the temperature, and then looked for bugs. Students then took those results and analysed their results to determine stream water quality and health.  

 
 
 

P2 Science

In this Science lesson, P2 students learnt about the concept of buoyancy and how it determines whether an object floats or sinks in water. We explored the factors that affect buoyancy, such as the weight, volume, and density of an object.

Students were asked to discuss and predict whether each object would float or sink in water. They placed each object in the container and observed what happened. They explained why each object floated or sank and had time to think about how they could change the properties of an object to make it float or sink.

This activity helped them understand the concept of buoyancy and how it relates to the features of an object. It also encouraged them to think critically and creatively about how they could manipulate these properties to achieve a desired outcome.

 
 

Year 2 Trip to Kelly Tarlton’s

We as a year group had a fantastic opportunity to visit Kelly Tarlton’s for our EOTC (Education Out The Classroom).
In the science curriculum this term we have been covering:

Polar Explorer and looking at ways to:

  • Identify similarities and differences between local environments in terms of hot, cold, dry, wet, many plants, few plants, many animals and few animals
  • Know that an environment in which a plant or animal naturally lives is its habitat
  • Compare how animals, including humans, are similar and different in their external body parts and skin covering
  • Know that humans need to manage diet, maintain hygiene and move regularly to be healthy.

This trip allowed students to have the opportunity to build up a good understanding of what carrying out scientific investigations in the Antarctic would be like and how it would differ from their own everyday lives. It also allowed students to create an imaginary journey to the South Pole, assisting students to be able to apply their science learning in a motivating ‘real life’ context.

Students will also learn to:

  • Know that everyone uses science and identify people who use science professionally. 
  • Understand exploration provides many opportunities to think about scientists who carry out research in harsh environments and/or those who develop technologies associated with exploration e.g. insulated clothing designers, tent/shelter designers. 
  • Find out more about investigations that are currently being carried out in the Antarctic and the scientists involved.

There was so much to be explored and just so much to do. The children all had a wonderful day out and thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity. 
Thank you to all the parent helpers that came along with us.

 
 
 
 

Highlighting Spanish Success

Our Years 4, 5 and 6 students had an amazing Spanish learning journey. They have worked hard, learned about different cultures and celebrated their achievements. Here is what our students would like to share. 

 

I have always enjoyed Spanish. I learnt a lot of wonderful things, such as how to answer different questions. It’s amazing that everyone gets to enjoy the experience of learning different languages. Oh, the joy of experiencing a language that not everybody knows!  - By: Miranda L. 
 
My favourite memory in Spanish was learning about the body parts. I enjoyed these sessions because of the interesting pronunciation. And they made me even more curious about the Spanish language and biology.  - By: Martin H. 
 
In Spanish, we have been learning a variety of things. It has been very fun learning new words. I really enjoyed the buddy work and talking to my friends about Spanish. I would LOVE to continue Spanish in College. - By: April Q. 
 
I have learnt various things in Spanish this year. The best bit was the Spanish speech! And we play fun Spanish games to make us happy in no time. This way of learning helped us all to have the words hammered right into our heads. Experience this only at Pinehurst! - By: Jasmine Z.  
 
In Spanish, we like working on translating sentences. We can even translate in third person!! And we really like learning about feelings and numbers. This term we have been preparing for our presentation all about our family, we had to talk about where we live and introduce our family members. ¡Adiós! - By: Chantelle C. and Lauren Y. 
 
We think Spanish is really useful because it’s a new language. We like Spanish because we have fun with activities, songs and lots more. When we first started school, we didn’t even know a single Spanish word and look at us now. Our favourite topic in Spanish is emotions. If someone asks you ¿Cómo estás? We can now answer with many different choices and not just one answer. - By: Jayden W., Lucas Z. and Vincent M. 

 
 

P19 Art to Raise Awareness

We have been finishing our unit on printing inspired by Andy Warhol’s Endangered Species series. We started the unit by learning about Andy Warhol’s work and his passion to create change. We learnt that he painted this series to bring attention to the world’s endangered animals. 

Having researched endangered animals we chose one that interested us and drew it. We then traced it onto foam board and carved out the lines using a blunt pencil. We created a series of prints using different coloured ink and paper and highlighted our finished pieces with oil pastels. We are now in the process of compiling a concertina style book from our designs, which will also include a short biography of Andy Warhol.

“I choose to make a print of the Iberian lynx. It is endangered as their homes have been destroyed by humans, and there isn't enough food for them to eat.” - Lexi

“I choose the Philippine Eagle. There aren’t many places left for it to nest because of deforestation, they can attack harm animals so farmers also  hunt them illegally.” - Peter

“I enjoyed experimenting with different ink colours.” - Olivia

“Making the foamboard print was difficult, you had to carve out enough to make a print, but not press to hard, otherwise the foamboard might break.” - Owen

“Learning about Andy Warhol's endangered animal series was interesting it made us realise that art can carry an important message. Andy Warhol used his art to bring attention to animals that need our help to survive. It's a creative way to raise awareness about the environment and the animals that share our planet.” - Martin

 
 
 
 

P11 Learning

This week we have reached a very exciting part in our class novel “The Iron Man”.

The text is very rich and full of wonderful writing techniques such as repetition, alliteration, and similes.

We have used this rich text to visualise scenes from the book. We also wrote our own menus designed perfectly for the Iron Man.

Wouldn’t you just love metal-filled cannelloni and oil shake?

We have focused on using some of these techniques in our writing about our Halloween experiences.

Click here to view the students work. 

 
 
 

Message from the Principal of College

 
 

Kia ora e te whānau o Pinehurst School 

Students have had a very busy week 5, working through their examination feedback and reflecting on the work they have completed so far this year. There was lots of effort put into preparation for the end-of-year examinations, and college teachers have been pleased to see this coming through in student responses to questions. Examination papers should now be with students, and these should be used to consider next steps in this part of the students’ learning journey.  

One of the Teaching Council requirements of New Zealand teachers is that they continue to practise and develop te reo and tikanga Māori. On Tuesday afternoon, teachers from across the school met together to work on this important aspect of teaching in New Zealand. Part of the professional development included a discussion about the meaning of pōwhiri and how the pōwhiri process enables a person to connect with a new community. This was an excellent opportunity for everyone to engage in some critical professional development.  

Sports teams have continued to excel and last week, Volleyball, Waterpolo and Girls’ Touch Rugby teams all had very convincing wins. I enjoyed watching the Girls’ Touch Rugby team play this week; this team is so far unbeaten and played strongly on Tuesday, winning both matches. On Thursday, I watched our Girls Volleyball team win their final against Westlake Girls’ School. It occurred to me whilst watching these games that our values of Respect for Self, Respect for Others and Excellence were clearly demonstrated by our wonderful students who showed outstanding sportsmanship and consideration and regard for both teammates and competitors.  

Year 10 students spent time yesterday preparing for their bronze Duke of Edinburgh qualifying trip which takes place at the end of next week. All students are encouraged to complete the Duke of Edinburgh award which supports young people to develop new skills and independence, build resilience and problem-solving skills, and engage in service. Next week, students working towards their bronze award will spend two days tramping and camping on Motatapu Island. 

Whilst Year 10 were preparing for their coming camp, students in Years 7-9 had an assembly led by Inyoung Joung and Zac Solomon at which we celebrated students who had received their bronze and silver service awards. We were also treated to some fantastic musical pieces including a performance on violin from Yicheng Wang from Year 9.  

Our College Art Exhibition takes place this evening. We have some exceptional artists at Pinehurst School and their work will be on display to be viewed and enjoyed. I hope to see you there.  

Ngā mihi nui  

Dawn 

 
 

College News

 

Year 9 Mathematics

Year 9 students are learning how Trigonometry can be used outside of the classroom. They are calculating the height of the building by using a measuring tape to measure 4 metres away from the building, and a clinometer to measure the angle to the top of the building. Once this was complete, they went back inside to calculate. They decided that they should not have the same answers as the roof is sloped. 

Once every group had finished, they used Pythagoras to calculate the hypotenuse of the right angled triangle. 

 
 
 

Year 10 Geography Trip

This week, our Year 10 Geography students had the opportunity to experience coursework at Orewa. During this trip, they have learnt about techniques to measure and understand coastal processes such as erosion and long shore drift. As well as understand the human side of geography looking at public surveys and land use. Its a fantastic day that takes geography concepts and applies them outside of the classroom!

 
 

Australian Mathematics Competition

In the Australian Mathematics Competition, we participated with only Year 12 and 13 students. Out of the total 172,000 students who took part in the competition, we achieved remarkable results. Three of our students, Junyang (Michael) Ma, Kevin Xu, and Yunyao (Bobby) Zhang, received High Distinction awards, placing them in the top 5% of all participants. Additionally, our team secured seven Distinction awards (top 20%) and six Credit awards.

This outstanding performance reflects the dedication and talent of our students in mathematics.

 
 

Junior Volleyball Season comes to an end!

It has been a busy season but a positive one for all teams.  The students have improved their individual skills and they are playing so much better all-round.  The Boys 1st  team won their division without losing a game – what champions.  The Girls 1st team also won their division only conceding 1 game and can be really proud of their achievement.  The Girls 3rd team won their first match this week – well done girls! 

Thank you to coach Terina and all the managers (Mr Jaques, Mr Fickling, Ms Jackson and Mrs Edson) for their support, positivity and driving skills. Keep on peppering and see you all   next season. 

 
 
 

8RA/LC

Year 8's in 8RA/LC are working hard at the moment. They have been honing their geography skills each morning by trying to guess the mystery country. In Global, they are planning a lesson for their Year 4 buddy class, which they are very much looking forward to. 

 
 
 
 
 

Community News and Events

 
 
 

Pinehurst Christmas Hampers

It is traditional for Pinehurst to present Christmas Hampers to those in need.

This year we have chosen to donate to residents of some of our local aged care centres. These Care Centres are homes to the elderly as they move through their most vulnerable stage of life. Only some of the residents will have regular family visits, and some may not be able to leave the care facility, so we’d love to help as many of the residents enjoy Christmas this year.

We would appreciate contributions such as edible Christmas treats, vouchers for local supermarkets/shopping centres, as well as personal gifts of toiletry items (e.g.: soaps, handwash, diffusers, hand/body creams, aromatherapy…).

Your contributions may be given to your child’s homeroom teacher from Monday 30 October onwards. We will take your generous contributions and make them up into beautiful hampers to present at our Pinehurst Christmas Concert. This will be held on Thursday 7 December and parents are warmly invited to attend this traditional Pinehurst event, so book it into your diary!

Pinehurst Christmas Hamper Helpers Needed!

Once we have all our lovely, donated gifts we will need some Parent Christmas Helpers to generously donate some of their time to wrap these into amazing hampers. We will provide all the necessary materials to make these beautiful but will need your help to put them together. These will be presented to the various Aged Care facilities at our special Christmas Concert at the end of the term.

Our Christmas wrapping day will be held on Thursday 23rd November, in the Dance Studio and we would require help for a few hours to get everything together.

Your help would be greatly appreciated, and this will kick-start the Pinehurst Christmas festivities. If you can help with this, please email sylvia.lum@pinehurst.school.nz 

 
 

2023 Swimming NZ Junior Festival

Over the previous weekend, April L took part in the 2023 Swimming NZ Junior Festival. Her remarkable performance led her to secure ten first-place ribbons, one second-place ribbon, and two third-place ribbons. We are incredibly proud of her accomplishments.

Furthermore, April will be representing the 10&U Auckland Swimming team in the upcoming Caro Cup competition held in Hamilton next weekend.

Congratulations April!

 
 
 
 

Notices and Events

 
 

Bricks 4 Kidz National Competition

 
 
 

If you have any news or submissions you’d like considered for our newsletter, please contact news@pinehurst.school.nz

 
 

Pinehurst School
75 Bush Road,
Albany,
Auckland.
+64 9 414 0960

news@pinehurst.school.nz
www.pinehurst.school.nz

Preferences  |  Unsubscribe