Message from the Executive Principal
Kia ora koutou, good afternoon, 下午好, 안녕하세요 We’re sailing in a reasonably straight line towards the end of the school year right now. As I write, around 45 Year 9 students are quite literally sailing home: I think it’s fair to say that the sailing experience for our intrepid sailors has felt less than straightforward this week, but there have been dolphins and penguins as well as a touch of seasickness, so there will be plenty of stories to tell! As you know, we made the decision to reschedule as much as we could from Term 1, when we still had Covid restrictions, for Term 4. I’m very pleased we did this – it’s meant that
the students have had experiences they wouldn’t otherwise have had – but it has led to a sense of even more constant activity than usual. This week, apart from the Year 9 ‘Out There’ Camp, we have had IGCSE, AS and A Level exams, Year 8 and 10 exams, the ‘Tread Lightly’ Environmental Caravan in the Primary School, a Super Cluster Touch Day, Boys and Girls Badminton Zone Days, a very cool Year 3 Surf Lifesaving event (in the Arena!), two Gymnastics Zone Days, a Ukulele Jam, involving students from Years 5 and 6, as well as students from other schools (and Suzy Cato! In person!), the Year 5-6 Athletics Day at the Millennium Centre, and a Year 7-8 Zone Day as well… And, amongst all of the activities, we have also been doing some teaching! The focus changes a little next week: we postponed the Year 7
exams because we had a number of Covid cases connected with last week’s Year 7 Camp, so they will take place from Monday. On Tuesday, we have both the Primary and the Junior College Sports Prizegivings, which always feels like the beginning of the end-of-the-year season, followed by the Year 8 Boys and Girls vs the Wild overnight tramp and the Year 10 Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award tramp. Year 9s head off to Howick Historical Village and Chelsea Sugar Factory at the end of the week too. And, on Friday evening, we hold our second ever Garden Party: posh frocks, bubbles, nibbles, music and fire-eating contortionists (or something like that…). There’s also a Year 7-8 Golf Zone Day on Monday. I will also be attending my last Association of Cambridge Schools in New Zealand (ACSNZ) Board meeting on Monday. I’ve been on the
Board since soon after my arrival at Pinehurst, and Mrs Penman-Walters was also on the Board. I’ve nominated Mr Waller to join it when he arrives as well, sustaining our position as one of NZ’s leading Cambridge schools. You might be interested to know that Mr Wiggin is the Chair of the Curriculum Committee of the ACSNZ as well: he knows more about Cambridge in NZ than pretty much anyone! Have a lovely weekend and see you on Monday. Ngā mihi Alex 如需阅读校长的中文留言和重要事件日期,请点击
Monday 14 November - Bronze Practice Training (all Year 9)
- Year 7-8, Golf Zone Day (selected Students)
- Year 10, Enviromental Management Whitebait Connection
Tuesday 15 November - Year 1-6, Sports Prizegiving
- Year 10, Enviromental
Management Whitebait Connection
- Year 7-8, Sports Prizegiving
Wednesday 16 November - Year 7-8 NH Zone Day Top Team (selected students)
- Primary Music Concert
- Year 8, Student vs Wild (Silver Service and Leadership Award) - selected students
Thursday 17 November - DoE Bronze Qualifier Tramp (all Year 10)
- Year 9, Social Sciences Trip - Howick Historical Village Trip
- Year 9, Business Trip - Factory Experience
- Year 0-2 Social
Friday 18 November - Year 9, Social Sciences Trip - Howick Historical Village Trip
- Year 9, Business Trip - Factory Experience
- Primary
Orchestra, APO Visit
- Garden Party (Alex Farewell)
Message from the Principal of Primary Kia ora tatou, It would be hard to pick just one highlight this week because there have been so many. Our final athletics competition of the year was held at the Millennium stadium on Wednesday. The weather held out for us and was cool enough to enjoy the day. Track and field events were fiercely competitive, and records broken. Once again, we were so proud of our Year 5 and 6 students for their efforts and their behaviour, leading to a successful event for all. A visit from Suzy Cato and the Kiwilele musical event on Thursday was hosted by Pinehurst in the Arena. Over 100 students joined us from local schools and the music choices were varied as everyone played the ukulele. Our kapahaka group sounded amazing especially when they sang the song Pepeha by kiwi band Six60. Suzy Cato recorded them singing and posted to Six60's instagram account for them to watch. Year 5 and 6 have been learning the Guns and Roses hit Sweet Child of Mine and played magnificently. They were helped along by some Y6 rockers complete with air guitars and long hair, also known as Alex Stanford, Henry Bell, Oliver Pendergrast and Xavier Lotze. The boys were a hit with the audience and had everyone dancing. Speaking of dancing, a slightly surreal experience this week with some Y6
students who were showing us the video on the Primary school they had put together. We were talking about the background music which led to a discussion about the social at the end of the term and the songs we might choose. Dancing ensued, to Rick Astley, their choice not mine, and we ended up dancing in my office with Mrs Jones Hill and Kirsty. It was fun and gave us great pleasure to be the leaders who dance with their students in the Principal's office! Year 3 are learning badminton skills in PE with Mr Taylor at the moment and they have some pretty amazing levels of racquet control. Badminton is a sport that possibly looks easier than it is but by the end of the lesson everyone could hit the shuttle back and forth over the net. We are looking forward to growing the sport next year to include more opportunities for Primary students
to play. Year 6 are exploring poetry this term and have been writing some poems of their own. I hope you enjoy these Animal in Me poems by Bosco and Emily. There is a golden eagle in me with
Broad wings like colossal arms and eyes like stars,
It whistles like the howling wind,
It stares like a ferocious tiger.
It lives in my brain and provides me with intelligence,
It makes me eager and energetic,
It makes me feel like accomplishing everything. Bosco Jin There is a fox inside me
With a tail like sunsets and eyes like blazing amber,
It shrieks like thunder and it sneaks like a rat.
It lives in my mind and makes me suspicious of those I know.
It makes me want to protect my secrets,
It makes me feel like I can be bold. Emily Xie Nga mihi Sian
Tread Lightly CaravanThe mobile environmental classroom is visiting Pinehurst Primary. Through fun, interactive exhibits and experiences it inspires our students to consider how the choices they make impact the natural environment. It challenges them to think about ways in which they can make a positive contribution to the world they live in.
The students were able to take part in the following activities: - My Environmental Footprint
Students used a computer touchscreen to answer simple questions about their lifestyles (e.g. what is in their lunch box, how they get to school). The result was expressed as the number of earths needed if everyone used the same number of resources the children are currently using. - Waste, recycling and litter
Using the specially designed slice of waste exhibit, they discussed what a landfill is and how they can reduce the amount of waste we send to landfill. They discussed the importance of reducing, re-using and recycling and were provided with a hands-on experience of sorting waste into specific bins.
Students pedalled a real exercycle or wound a hand generator to generate their own electricity to raise their awareness of electricity and the amount of energy used by different appliances commonly found in their homes. Students used a video microscope to get a closer look at nature. They learnt about creatures that are beneficial for the environment, such as worms and bees and what we can do to help
them. Students got the opportunity to use the microscope to zoom in on different body parts of each creature.
Students played a life size version of Snakes and Ladders, answering environmental and conservation-based questions to move through the game. This exhibit was a fun way to raise students' awareness of ecological issues in New Zealand. Students investigated how our use of water affects animals and organisms living in streams, with a special focus on stormwater, pollutants and litter. Students learnt all about the environmental impacts created during the lifecycle of a mobile phone, and other electronics, and how to minimise their effects. At the end of the session the students were challenged to create a tread lightly pledge – an action they will commit to, to make a positive difference to the environment.
Athletics Day - Year 5/6On Wednesday, all of the Year 5-6 students travelled up to AUT Millennium to participate in the Year 5-6 Athletics Day. Luckily, the rain held off and the students were thrilled to be out in the sun having some fun. The students have been practicing each athletic discipline in their PE classes and their practice paid off once it got to the competitive stage as many records were broken. The overall top 3 podium finishers for each age group/gender will be announced at their respective assemblies. A huge congratulations to the students who broke records last week, please see below: Athletics Records
2022 Year 5 Girls: 100M – Anna Lu (16.48s)
DISCUS – Elizabeth De Winnaar (12.68m)
SHOT PUT – Elizabeth De Winnaar (6.12m)
HIGH JUMP – Anna Lu (1.10m)
LONG JUMP – Jessica Wang (3.45m) Year 5 Boys: 100M – Ryan Li (15.69s)
HIGH JUMP – Ryann Wang (1.10m)
LONG JUMP – Ryan Li (3.32m) Year 6 Girls: 100M – Bonnie Huang (15.08s)
200M – Bonnie Huang (32.81s)
HIGH JUMP – Annie Su (1.20m) Year 6 BOYS: HIGH JUMP: Shawn Li (1.18m)
LONG JUMP: Bosco Jin (3.48m)
Marimba Extravaganza!On Saturday the 5th of November, the Primary Marimba Group alongside the North Shore Junior Winds and North Shore Youth Symphonic Winds Orchestra performed a collection of songs at the Marimba Extravaganza. Students played one of five parts for each piece. It has been tremendous to see students' growth in their ability to hold their parts, follow the conductor and play in time. A huge thank you to the parents for their support.
Competition in P12!This week P12 were given a up-leveling challenge in writing. Their challenge was to up-level a boring article into an exciting one. Together we decided on the success criteria/ checklist. Here it goes… 1. Use of persuasive language
2. Powerful openers
3. Strong adjectives
4. Varying punctuation
5. Strong connectives Once everyone finished writing their up leveling, we sat together in a circle to share the writing, mark it against the success criteria and vote for a winner! Here is a photo of the winning writing, although it was a very difficult choice! The winners, Lavender and Justin won a book of their choice from Mrs Nasir. Take a read of some of the other fabulous up-levelled reviews.
‘Excitedly the blissful bouncy children will arrive in the peculiar excellent Astroland. Extremely curious as to what they would do next! Quickly emerging after the most splendid entrance in a substantial shinning silver spaceship; I don’t blame them being so excited for their trip to Astroland! “Have you seen how many activities are there?” There are so many games like moon ball, as well as building your own Rocket! Also there are so many outstanding activities such as a mini beast zoo, intergalactic cooking and even making Meteor right sculptures! Are you really willing to miss out? It is clear the miraculous extraordinary Astroland is the place to book for the holidays!’ - Hayley
In strand maths we are learning to use coordinates to describe the position of a point on a grid in the first quadrant. We had a close up look at a grid, discussing the use of the x-axis and y-axis. We learnt this week how to read coordinates on a grid correctly and how to plot them too. The gold rule is, always find your crater, then, plot the x-axis followed by the y-axis! Lastly, we made connections with the real world, of where we can find and use coordinates! Alex said “ I can use coordinates on a map, and when I am out at sea with my dad.” This week’s maths lesson was a success!
News from P20Students are enjoying participating in a wide variety of activities at present. This week we have had Athletics Day, Ukelele Jam with Suzy Cato, students out at Super Cluster Touch Rugby and Gymnastics. However, there is still lots of fun, interesting learning happening in class. In English, the students are reading and writing Poetry and Plays. They have been experimenting with expanded noun phrases and making the ordinary extraordinary writing their own Personal Helicon. In Maths, students discovered a how to make their own compass to draw circles and create some amazing arcs
within circles. Check out some of our work below!
Beach Education Year 2-3 This week thanks to our health program our years 2-3 got the chance to participate in the Surf 2 school program run by Surf lifesavers from the northern region. During the program, our students got the chance to learn about sun safety and the 5 stages to staying safe in the sun at the beach. - slip on some clothes
- slop on sunscreen
- slap on a hat
- wrap on some sunglasses
- slide under some shade
Next, they learnt about beach safety and the rules to follow when spending a day at the beach, - Never swim alone
- Keep young children within arm's reach
- If caught in a rip – relax – see if you can stand up, raise your arm for help, ride the rip
- If in doubt – stay out!
- Don’t overestimate your own ability
- Choose a lifeguarded beach and swim between the flags
Finally, our students got the chance to learn how to spot a rip at the beach and then what to do if they are ever caught in one. Spotting a rip: - calm patches of water
- discoloured water
- debris floating out
- Criss
cross waves
What to do: - relax, try and stand up
- raise your hand
- ride with the rip, on your back, in ‘starfish’ position.
Overall, all our classes had a fun time, and I would like to say a huge thank you to the northern region surf life savers, Pippa Fleming our primary health teacher and the classroom teachers for helping our students learn a bit more around staying safe at the beach.
Music in Years 4-6This term, year 4 have continued their focus on rhythm and storytelling through music. We have brought back the bucket drums and have been recapping learning from earlier in the year as well as tackling trickier pieces. They have started learning the advanced piece 'Dance of The Sugarplum Fairy' by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky to extend their knowledge of note durations and complex melodies. They have learned the history of ballet 'The Nutcracker' and even learned the melody of the piece on the glockenspiel.
This term Year 5 and 6 have been focusing on preparing for the Ukulele Jam event which happened this Thursday. Thank you so much to all the children for their hard work, the parents who helped source costume items for those leading 'Sweet Child O Mine' and for encouraging your child's involvement in music.
Year 5-6 Super Cluster Touch TournamentOn Monday, the Year 5-6 Panthers touch team participated in the Super Cluster Touch tournament at Ashley Reserve. The team consisted of the following students: Dominic Baird, Lachlan Baird, Alex Garcia-Curtis, Shawn Li, Noah Shepherd, Alexander Stanford, Jack Van der Eijk. It was a very tough tournament however the team played well together, and they built from every match. There are some great athletes in this team, and we look forward to watching their progress in the future with their super coach; Kane.
Ukulele Jam! This week, Pinehurst School hosted the NZ Ukulele Trust Local Jam for the North Shore Schools. 350 students from Pinehurst, Murrays Bay School, Kristin, Wairau Intermediate, Browns Bay, and Pinehill School piled into the Pinehurst Arena with their ukuleles for a giant sing-and-strum-along. Our compere was the wonderful kiwi icon Suzy Cato who lead us through the 10 pieces along with teachers and select students from each school. The pieces ranged in genre and some were composed by students. All students in Years 5 and 6 at Pinehurst were involved, as was our fabulous Kapa Haka group who helped lead two of the songs
with actions and sign-language interpretations. A highlight for us was seeing Xavier, Cruz, Alexander and Oliver dressed up as members of the band Guns N Roses singing 'Sweet Child O Mine' accompanied by Henry and Bosco plucking the solo parts on the ukulele. We are so proud of each and every student for their participation and hard work and hope we have inspired students to keep rocking out for years to come.
Year 5-6 North Harbour Badminton Zone DayLast Thursday, the following students competed as a team in the Year 5-6 Badminton Zone Day; Bonnie Huang, Shawn Li, Sirui (Anna) Lu, Annie Su, Alice Yan, Jinseok Yeung. The team competed in the A division and played some of the best badminton players from around the North Harbour region. The team did exceptionally well, winning two out four pool games. All team members participated in singles and doubles matches. Unfortunately, the team was beaten in the play offs by a very skilful Sherwood Primary team who eventually went on to win the tournament. The team ended up in 6th place overall in the A division.
Message from the Principal of College Kia ora e te whānau o Pinehurst School Having Ms Hawthorn back from the Year 9 'Out There' Camp on Wednesday of this week gave us an insight into the experiences our Year 9 had been encountering on the water as they headed up to Whangarei Heads. As an insider at the camp for the first part of the week, Ms Hawthorn faced lots of questions when she arrived back at school. It seems that the campers had certainly been exposed to every kind of weather and seen some rough seas but the sight of a pod of dolphins playing around the boat must have been lovely. Our students will have formed many happy memories from camp and I am sure they will be looking forward to seeing their
families today and having time to rest and relax over the weekend. My own camp experience with Year 7 students at Raglan last week gave me cause to reflect on the incredible opportunities our young people are given as a result of living in this part of the world. The development of social skills, independence, decision making skills and environmental awareness are all part of the camp experience but the foremost thing I noticed in our Year 7 students was their empathy and determination to make sure everybody was being supported. The camp activities were certainly challenging for any person, and I was impressed with the way the youngest members of our College bravely and courageously tackled each activity. The coach journey on the way home was very much quieter than on the way there and it was evident that our Year 7 had given
camp their all. This and the fact that we did have some positive Covid cases during and after camp meant that we made the decision to postpone examinations for Year 7 until next week. Again, students showed resilience and flexibility by getting on with their schoolwork as normal on their return to school. Cambridge examinations have continued this week and our Year 8 and Year 10 students have also completed their end-of-year school examinations. Students have coped well with the examination process, showing maturity and perseverance. Next week Year 7 will sit their end-of-year examinations and we also see the last of the Cambridge examinations for 2022. Well done to all of our students for working hard and persevering through the examination period. As we move into the second half of
Term 4, many of our Year 7 and 8 students are competing in North Harbour Zone Days. This week we have had badminton but athletics was cancelled due to bad weather today. Next week we have students competing in golf and triathlon. Year 10 students will be taking their Duke of Edinburgh bronze qualifier tramp at the end of next week and some of our Year 8 students will attend the Students versus Wild adventure. We also have our sports prizegiving to look forward to on Tuesday and we finish the week with the Pinehurst Garden Party; I hope to see you there. I hope you have a lovely weekend and parents of Year 9 students enjoy having your children back home after their adventure. Ngā mihi Dawn
Assessment in Social SciencesAcross all levels of Social Sciences taught this term, assessment has been a very big focus. A range of skills and knowledge of the syllabus content is assessed. Skills typically include interpretation and evaluation, and ability to use evidence. It can be a super stressful experience, but the positives should be emphasised. The important message for students is to use the examination to recognise and acknowledge their strengths and weaknesses. Next steps can be reflected on, and improvements
made. It is useful to consider all assessment to be formative. Yes, even an end of year exam can give information to a learner of what areas are strengths. This confidence can be transferred to addressing areas of need. Teachers will use the information to plan and refine programmes, for both individual students and whole cohorts. Students will eagerly anticipate the return of papers to resolve next steps in their learning.
Year 10 Maths The Year 10s were calculating getting a basket when taking a free throw in basketball (Michael Jordan, one of the best-known basketball players, successfully shot 83.5% of his free throws during his career. Shaquille O'Neal, another famous basketball player, only successfully shot 52.8% of his free throws up to the 2008/09 season). Harry managed to get an 80% of his shots!
Year 10 Physics Students in Year 10 Physics visited the Stardome observatory this week as part of their studies. They started with a talk and slide show in the theatre and looked at comparing the planets sizes to the sun. From there they took a fly through space looking at the scale of the universe giving them an idea of how small they are in the scheme of things. They were shown the mapping of galaxies and the history of the universe. Then they looked at the stages of stellar evolution and the life and death of a star. The next section involved getting into groups and collaborating on an online quiz by looking at the interactive displays. Whilst most teams scored 100% Team Saturn
were the fastest. The last part was going into the planetarium to lie back and watch the stars unfold before us showing the birth and expansion of the universe.
North Harbour Softball RepsTwo Pinehurst College students have been chosen to represent North Harbour in softball: Aayoung Joung (Year 8) and Leo Ofakineiafu (Year 10). Aayoung (13) will be part of the u15 North Harbour team and will play catcher for the team. Leo (15) is part of the u17 North Harbour team and will play at 1st base, 3rd base or outfield. They will be competing at the Cameron Duncan Memorial Tournament on the 17th/18th Dec 2022 @Starling Park. We wish them both the best of luck and are very proud of them.
Year 7-8 North Harbour Badminton Zone Day – Girls & BoysThis week, the North Harbour Badminton Zone Days were held on Tuesday for the Girls and Wednesday for the Boys. The girls team consisted of Elsa Lu, Anna Lu, Michelle and Emily Prasetyo. The boys team consisted of Lewis Liu, Peter Shi, Ray Zhao and Wen Yao Zhong. The girls team got off to a great start with 3 out of 4 girls making it into the knockout stage of the singles competition. Elsa Lu made it through to the A grade final but was unfortunately beaten and ended up 2nd overall in the Girls singles. Both doubles teams made it through to the knockout stage
with Elsa and Anna Lu making it all the way to the final. The sister combination took out the final and were crowned champions of the North Harbour Zone Doubles Competition. The boy’s tournament was very tough, with only Ray Zhao making it through to the knockout stages. The boys tried their best and enjoyed every game. Unfortunately, we did not have any of our boys’ doubles teams in the finals however they enjoyed the tough competition and took it as development opportunity.
Milford Rotary North Shore Intermediate Schools Speech Competition
Year 8 student Linda Chen competed on Wednesday night in the Milford Rotary North Shore Intermediate Schools Speech Competition. Linda qualified by being placed in the top 2 of the year 8 speech finals at Pinehurst. Thirteen students from schools around the North Shore were vying for a top 6 placing to be eligible for the final at the Pupuke Golf Club in 2 weeks. Linda's speech on 'Fast Fashion' was beautifully delivered however she was not chosen among the finalists. Overall, Linda found it a great experience and learnt a lot by watching the other students give their speeches. Well done, Linda
On The Shelf: Library Book Blog Some of our College/Junior College students have written reviews about some of their favourite books this year. Click the image below to check them out!
Out of the Cocoon: the Pinehurst Theatre and College 5
On Tuesday last week, we were delighted to guide 25 of our Theatre donors around the new Pinehurst Theatre and College 5. Four classrooms will be ready for the start of Term 1, and the whole project is still on schedule for handover on March 7th, 2023. Everyone was very impressed: the size of the Theatre, with 253 fixed, tiered seats and the capacity for 150 more when we have Assemblies, is now clear, with a state-of-the-art acoustic treatment ready to be installed. The stage is wider than the stage at the London Palladium, and the Theatre is 9.2 metre high: that’s equivalent to two giraffes, for those of you who think in units of wild animals. Staying on that theme, the building contains 1000m3 of concrete, and the largest concrete slab is roughly the weight of two Tyrannosaurus Rex.
So quite heavy then. It’s a beautiful space, and our children are very lucky to be moving in. Aside from the Theatre itself, which will be used for College and Primary productions, and for College and Primary Assemblies, as well as performances and events of every kind; the Lobby space is perfect for chamber performances and has a viewing gallery too. The landscaped courtyard between the Theatre and College 5 will also become a performance space, as music and drama spill out from the huge fire station doors. The classrooms are light and well-designed, and the space will be used by the whole school. We’re all very excited! Thank you so much to all of our donors. There have been 163 separate donations, ranging in size from $10,000 to $200. A total of $192,000 has so far been pledged (nearly all of which has been paid - thank you!), and we have sold 92 seats ($500 each) and 89 bricks ($1000 each) on the wall. We have $55,700 pledged for our Grand Piano. All donors’ names will be displayed permanently, and larger donors will be recognised as well. Our target at the start of the project was $250,000 and for half our community to be a permanent part of our building: we’re nearly there! If you would like to donate, please either visit our website (Contact Us - Donate) or contact Sylvia Lum at the school. We kindly thank all our sponsors who have contributed to the Pinehurst Theatre. Your support is greatly appreciated and will be remembered. 'List of Sponsors’.
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