HGHS September eNewsletter 2015 by Hamilton Girls High School

HAMILTON GIRLS’

2015

HIGH SCHOOL

SEPTEMBER

NEWSLETTER “A wise woman shapes her own destiny”

THE HGHS OPTIONS EXPO WAS A GREAT SUCCESS - Pg. 3

SADD WEEK: Students Against Driving Dangerously - Pg. 18

IT’S A BURGER OFF ! - Pg. 7

Wilson House Charity Week - Pg. 22 TOUGH GUY TOUGH GAL - Pg. 10 Business Studies $MONEY$ Week - Pg. 6 SOCIAL ACTION: FREEDOM DAY - Pg. 12

PRINCIPAL’S COMMENT

Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou An article from Education HQ Hamilton Girls’ High School (HGHS) principal Marie Gordon is a firm believer in single sex education, and lives by the school’s motto that “a wise woman shapes her own destiny”. “With a total of 24 years’ experience in the secondary school sector, she has worked at both co-educational and single-sex schools. After 10 years as deputy principal (and one year as acting principal) at Palmerston North Girls’ High School, Gordon says she felt she had served her apprenticeship and was ready for her next challenge. That challenge came in the form of principal at HGHS in the heart of the Waikato, a role she embraced in 2013. “Having visited the school during the open day and researching the school in more depth, I was excited by the opportunity to bring my experience, qualifications, personality and energy to HGHS to continue to build and lead a community of learners and staff with the common interest of improving student outcomes,” Gordon says.

academic mentoring, schools within schools model, rigorous data analysis and high expectations of our students.” The need for improved uniform standards was recognised by the HGHS Board of Trustees in 2013, and so a blazer and tie have been added to the traditional uniform, while mufti for Year 13 has been abolished. “We’re seeing a shift in culture because we’re now a blazerand-tie school, but also because all students are now wearing uniform. The girls have really stepped up to it; they love looking smart.” Improvement to student code of conduct and attending to community complaints quickly have also been implemented by Gordon and her staff, who are intensely passionate about learning. “We have a commitment to quality professional development and this means we are always exploring current research, thinking and new developments in education.

The school has faced multiple challenges in the past, such as trying to lift its community profile; raising achievement; and instilling school pride, self-belief and fostering high expectations.

“How girls learn and how it impacts on what and how we teach are questions that promote innovation within our curriculum - we encourage students to focus on choice not chance,” she says.

But on her arrival, Gordon immediately actioned a plan to make HGHS the school of choice for girls’ education in the Waikato.

Gordon loves working at HGHS, where the approach is to ensure girls are keen to learn and to extend themselves and that they seek out opportunities, as well as be solution focused in their thinking.

“It required deliberate planning - building a collaborative leadership structure and empowering leaders has meant that it is a team approach,” the principal says. “Changes have included senior management, pastoral and guidance, curriculum leadership, support staff restructure and student leaderships.” Further changes and improvements have taken place at HGHS during Gordon’s time at the helm, which have all contributed to an essential strong sense of school pride.

Leading HGHS, which focuses on developing young women with confidence, skills and experience to excel in life beyond school, is a privilege according to Gordon. “I am extremely lucky to be in a position where I can influence others in a positive manner through shaping ideas, processes and people.”

“Academic achievement has improved from 2012 to 2014 with a change in timetable structures, a continued focus on

Marie Gordon 2

Principal

Deputy principal’s corner YEAR 11 – 13 ACADEMIC PRIZEGIVING Senior Prizegiving is on the evening of Wednesday 4 November, 7.00pm, at Founders Theatre. We invite you to join us on this occasion to celebrate the successes of our senior students. Year 11 to 13 students are expected to attend in the evening and accordingly school finishes at lunch time on this day.

HAMILTON GIRLS’ HIGH SCHOOL OPTIONS EXPO 2015 On 10th September we held a ‘new look’ Option Expo evening. As well as staff from all subject areas offered at school we had representatives from Universities, Wintec, Industry organisations, and NZ Defence Force. This meant students and their parents could explore careers they might be interested in, then see the displays about the required subjects for those careers. Students and parents found this a very helpful way to be better informed when choosing subjects for next year and planning for the future. If you missed out this year, look out for this event next year!

Academic

NEWS

STUDY TIPS FROM THE ACADEMIC COUNCIL - Make flash cards of key terms. Colour coding the flashcards is a good idea to help you remember better. - Look through past paper and list the question types that the examiners give out. This will allow for you to predict what question types will come up in your exam. - Space out your studying, you’ll learn more by studying a little every day instead of waiting to cram at the last minute, as the material will only reside in your short-term memory which is easily forgotten. - Clean your study space before you start because it helps clear your head and makes studying easier. - Get rid of distractions. - Read notes aloud. - Record yourself reading the notes and play it back - actively listening and fully understanding what has been recorded. - Have a conversation with someone about the topic and allow them to ask questions. This will deepen your own understanding. - Make wall posters that have a summary of your notes for each exam papers. Go over these each day. - Once you feel confident in a topic, quiz yourself and do past exam papers. This way you find your weaker areas quicker and can work on them. - Make your notes as neat as possible and use as many colours as possible. - Remember that everyone learns in different ways. The best study method for your friend, may not work best for you. How to make a Mind Map Mind maps can be used to organise your topics and subjects. Start by going onto the NZQA website (www.nzqa.govt.nz) and find the standard that you want to make the map for. Use the assessment specifications and your notes to plan more about each of the sections, the definition of terms and the equations. Build up this map using different colours, pictures and arrows and lines. This picture shows how to build your mind map as well as some tips and tricks: http://mind-mapping.co.uk/mind-mapping-information-andadvice/how-to-make-a-mind-map

How to make a study schedule Check your exam times and make a weekly timetable template. Start by filling in exam dates and other commitments such as work, classes, sport and socializing. Keeping up extracurricular activities and social commitments during exam time will help keep you motivated and sane. It’s important to have waking hours where you’re not studying. Work out which subject(s) need the most work. This will depend on how close the exam is, your current level of understanding. Working back from the exam dates, allocate time to study for each subject every day.You should be covering multiple subjects each day. The closer it gets to an exam, the more time you should spend studying for that particular subject. By doing little bits each day, you’ll avoid information overload and make the most of both your short-term and long-term memories. Plus, studying one subject for days on end gets boring fast. Having different subjects to work through means that when you get sick of one, you can switch to another. It gives your brain a change of scenery while still getting work done. Instead of simply allocating a few hours to “equity study” each day, specify what you want to achieve. Regular breaks will help you to stay focused and motivated. Depending on how dense the material is, take a short break every 20-45 minutes. Unlike meal breaks, don’t schedule these breaks into your timetable, simply take them as needed: whenever you feel your focus declining.You’ll only need a short break from your work – long enough to make yourself a cup of tea, go sit outside for a few minutes etc. Don’t forget to tick items off your study timetable as you finish them – it’ll make you feel like a study saint. Websites to help you study http://www.chem.canterbury.ac.nz/.../paperversion.shtml www.studyit.org.nz www.nobraintoosmall.co.nz ncea.tki.org.nz

English The Rugby Game This is it. Not in a Michael-Jackson’s-last-performance, finalexam, last-chance-to-impress-the-in-laws kind of way, but much more important. So much of my future is on the line it’s crazy. My man-hood; that’s what has brought me here tonight, has painted my face with Waikato stripes, had me buy a cow bell, and has adorned my body with red, yellow and black striped clothing. An only-daughter’s manhood is very important to her. Trust me, I know. One of the biggest frustrations in my life has always been the unwillingness of the males in my household to share their favourite sport with me. “You’re just a girl.You don’t even like it,” my younger brother would say. I try to explain gender equality, but am granted only insults. “You only like watching Sonny Bill.” Who doesn’t love to watch my future fiancé run around in shorts and a tightfitting rugby jersey? But that was not my only motivation! I too have pride in my country’s sport! The commentary began calling the names of the opposing team and I booed loudly. Then the Chiefs ran out one by one and I rang my bell to the point of nearly dislocating my wrist, and waved my flag so vigorously I lost control and it went soaring, hitting a large bald man several rows in front of me. A moment of embarrassment was interrupted by the starting horn. Cruden gave the opening kick, a member of the opposing team catching it and taking off in a sprint. He passed, then the ball was passed again, but was intercepted. “Yes!” I screamed, jangling my cow bell in admiration. My dad looked over at me, his bushy eyebrows raised in a moment of surprise at my enthusiasm. (I learnt a while ago not to offer to pluck them if I was to be accepted into the male club.) That’s right, I thought. He’ll see. More of that to come. This was much more than a qualifying round between my home team and the Christchurch’s Crusaders, this was a battle for the right to attend future rugby games unquestioned, to revel in the glory of victories, and ultimately be accepted as more than “just a girl.” Half-time came all too quickly. I still felt I hadn’t done anything significant enough to earn my Waikato stripes. I heard a boozed-up old man swearing and grumbling something about knock-ons behind me when I thought of the perfect solution: trash talk. I always hear my uncles cursing individuals during half-time, so I leaned over and said to my brother, “If only Messam would pass the bloody ball!” “Yeah man, what the hell is going on with him tonight?” he replied. I snorted in return and leaned back on my seat, trying not to let him see my grin: I’d made a comment he agreed with AND I’d received trash-talk in return! It was about this time that I let myself relax and took a look around, taking in the fellow Chiefs’ supporters surrounding me. While doing so, I noticed two boys sitting a few rows in front of me. They were gorgeous, one with curly brown hair, the other blonde with sky blue eyes which I saw as he turned towards the scoreboard. Not that I was staring. But alas, we could never be together for they had sinned - they were dressed in red and black checked shirts. Crusader supporters. I sighed at what might have been, then started to mentally

prepare myself for the second half. We were already winning by six points, so things were looking up. When the horn sounded it was all back on. I cheered and waved, content with the ever increasing score of my team, and mentally cursing the other team with butterfingers. It was the last thirty seconds. We had possession, but our players were getting tackled left and right, getting no more than a step forward before being pulled down again. “Come on boys! One last try!” Support from the crown rang in my ears. If we get this, we’ll triple our opponents’ score! Then, ten seconds to full time, Hosea Gear pushed through two players, shoving one by the face. He made a one metre leap towards the try line and was tackled. A pile of players formed on top of him, then the ball escaped in the hands of Big Ben, who was tackled after two steps… but it was over the line! Yes! I jumped out of my seat and screamed, ringing my bell with more enthusiasm than ever, ripping my scarf off and waving it in the other hand. It was after my initial shout of joy that I heard a ripple of laughter from the people in the crowd around me. I looked to my side, where my brothers and dad were seated, practically exploding in hysterics. It hit me. I knew what had gone wrong before my brothers confirmed: “You idiot!” he exclaimed, between gasps of laughter. “That was the 22 line!” Nothing has changed since that cursed game. I have been the laughing stock of all gatherings. I’ve overheard my brothers retelling the story to his friends, my father to his clients, my mum even, the traitor, has informed her friends of my stupid blunder. I am once again just a girl. No rugby privileges allowed unless I’m fetching the ginger-beer from the fridge. Unless I make them half-time snacks. Unless I refill. No more rugby games. I’m just a girl. And girls can’t like rugby. By Raine Pearse

LANGUAGES

The French Trip 2016 students would like to thank everyone who participated in, attended or donated a prize to the Quiz night on Tuesday 15 September. It was a very successful event with raffles and silent auctions along with a fierce competition to be crowned Quiz Champions.

Student travellers have also been meeting regularly to learn about the history of France. We are currently learning about Versailles and the many Louis. Did you know that Louis XV became king at the age of five?

BUSINESS STUDIES PRODUCT LAUNCH AND MARKET DAY

As part of the Business Studies Department $Money Week$ we were proud to bring you the: Great Year 10 Enterprise Studies and Economics Product Launch and Market Day Held on Wednesday 2nd of September and Thursday 3rd of September. It was such a lot of fun. The girls worked incredibly hard and were rewarded well for their efforts. There were five judges on the Product Launch evening and they awarded five awards. The prizes were for: Best Dressed Team, Most Innovative Product, Best Customer Service, Best Stall Display and Best Marketing Strategy. We were very lucky to have the following sponsorship for the awards: Farmers Centreplace: Make up, facial products and a make-up bag worth over $150 for each student. The award was for Best Customer Service and was won by Plansty (Madalaine Finney, Georgia Hayward, Savannah Mattyasovsky and Brooke Pegden).

Over the 25 businesses that competed in the Product Launch we had a total of $5, 124.65 worth of sales, and a total of $3,012.70 of NET PROFIT. The three highest profit businesses were: Home Sweet Home Sales: $506.00 Profit: $462.00

Plantsy

Sales: $565.50

Profit: $405.50

Candletopia

Sales: $410.00

Profit: $383.00

The Darling Room: Make-up and an eyebrow shape gift voucher for each student. The award went to the business with the most innovative product. The award was won by Home Sweet Home (Alissa Sills, Sian Potter, Willoe Philps, Jazmin Middleton-Wood and Sophie Williams). ANZ: A waterproof picnic blanket in it’s own carrier bag, water bottle and cap for each student. The award went to the business with the best customer service. It was won by OutlineMe (Megan Clement, Sarina Esteves, Mwewa Kasongo and Madison Parker) PWC: A water bottle, bag, pencil case and chocolate bar for each student. The award went to the business with the best marketing strategy. The winning business was Candletopia (Lauren Clothier, Ashleigh Stoupe, Hodan Gurhan and Kaly Harcourt) Cadbury: King sized chocolate bars went to the business that was the best dressed on the night. The award was won by iCases (Mikaela Ford, Monique Gooch, Lauren Poole and Grace Roffe)

The girls got to keep all of the profit that they made. We were VERY proud of the work that they put into this highly successful endeavour. Not to mention all of the fun that was had!!! Well done girls!!!!

Thank you to our sponsors who made the night just that much more exciting and all of the students who made an extra effort. We were all winners on the night regardless of the awards. A lot of lessons were learnt. Product Launch and Market Day was a chance for students to show off their creativity, hard work, ability to work as a team, and their entrepreneurial spirit. The fact that they got to keep every penny of their profit wasn’t too bad a driver either!!!

Business Studies Department would like to thank everyone who took part in the Year 10 Economics and Year 10 Enterprise Studies Product Launch and Market Day and we look forward to even more fun (and $Money$ next year!!!).

DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY

Jessica Goldsack and Courtney Druett

MaKey MaKey Session

Sarah Baker and Rebecca-Rose Ngatai

On Thursday 19 September, Nilesh Kanji, a Senior Tutor from the Computer Science Department at University of Waikato, together with his assistant, Mariah Atutahi, ran a one hour MaKey MaKey session for two Year 9 Digital Technology classes. Using MaKey MaKey you can make anything into a key just by connecting a few alligator clips. The MaKey MaKey is an invention kit that tricks your computer into thinking that almost anything is a keyboard. This allows you to hook up all kinds of fun things as an input. For example, play Mario with a Play-Doh keyboard, or play a piano with fruit! It was a wonderful opportunity for the Digital Technology students to turn a steering wheel into a controller for an MP3 player, by designing their own icons for the different MP3 player functions and connecting the many alligator clips. Nilesh also encouraged the students to consider IT as a career path and gave examples of the opportunities available in the IT industry. Interested in attending a web coding workshop in the holidays? University of Waikato - Computing Workshops for Girls during school holidays

Lauren Poole and Georgia Hayward

Food Technology IT’S A BURGER OFF!

Recently, the Year 10 Food Technology classes held their own in class Burger competition. They made their own breads, fillings, sauces and patties in the space of an hour, and presented them for a couple of hungry technology teachers who judged the burgers. The winners from each class went on to then have an overall Year 10 championship burger off. The competition was hotly contested with all three teams putting in some fantastic creativity and flair with their presentation, flavours and skills. The overall placings were: 1st 2nd 3rd -

Jessica Goldsack and Courtney Druett Sarah Baker and Rebecca-Rose Ngatai Lauren Poole and Georgia Hayward

Event: Code the Web Workshops Location: R.G.12 (R Block) University of Waikato When: Web Coding Workshop 1 (HTML and CSS) - Friday 2nd October Web Coding Workshop 2 (Javascript) - Friday 9th October Both workshops are from 12noon to 3pm Who: Any female student from Year 9 to Year 13 who wants to learn how to create websites. No previous programming experience is necessary. Cost: Free, zip, nada, nothing! Limits: We have space for 30 students in the first round of workshops. If you miss out, don’t worry they will be repeated again in the future.

To attend Workshop 2 you should have attended Workshop 1 or have already learnt about HTML and CSS at school. Therefore if you already know HTML and CSS you can skip Workshop 1 and just attend Workshop 2, or you could still attend both if you want a refresher. All computing resources are provided, you may wish to bring a USB drive to take your work home with you. Come and learn how to code for the web in a fun and safe environment with other girls interested in IT and technology. Gain some great real life skills that can be put to use today! Much fun and chocolate will be had. To register or ask a question please send an email to Nilesh Kanji at nkanji@waikato.ac.nz with your first and last name and the school you attend and say that you want to register. You will then get a reply back with further details.

ART HGHS ART ATTACK!!!

Year 10 Snap Shot This month has been an extremely productive time in the Art Department with Senior portfolio deadlines just around the corner. All Year 10 students have begun credit banking and are using wet and dry media to produce artworks. When asked how they felt about beginning Level 1 NCEA in Year 10 the general feeling was one of great excitement and getting a head start on NCEA. Certainly the works being produced show great skill and maturing of understanding in preparation for Level 1 in 2016.

I am interested in ideas, not merely in visual products. - Marcel Duchamp Taking a banal, everyday object and turning it into a piece of art was something that made French artist Marcel Duchamp world famous at the turn of the 20th century. Students in Mrs Avril’s Year 10 class went a step further. By painting on objects such as a kleenex tissue box, an infant gumboot, a paint brush and ballet shoes, students transformed the function and meaning of both the object and original artwork. The student responses to this project were widely provocative and original. The viewer questions ‘when does an object become an artwork?’ Students truly pushed the ‘ideas’ around with enthusiasm and engagement with excellent outcomes.

Year 9 Maori Arts and Craft Pepeha and Mihi are both integral to knowing where we are from and from whom we originate. Closely linked are understandings of whakapapa and history. This project gave students the opportunity to connect with those elements that make them unique. Each students explored how they are connected to whanau, whenua and community, those things that matter to them. Students created designs using Maori symbolism, colour, letters and layout. The resulting artworks were original, vibrant and highly personal. Ka rawe te mahi o nga tauira!

Why Art? Option evening was held on Thursday 10th September. This was a great opportunity for students, parents/caregivers and art staff to speak about the courses on offer in the Art Department. Equally exciting was having the institutions along to endorse the Visual Arts, particularly for students wanting to continue with Art and or Architecture post High School. In 2016 new Visual Art courses will be introduced to offer students more options and the chance to specialise earlier at the Senior Levels. There was great interest around the Level 1 Photography with Design course and the Level 1 Practical Art. Most wanted to know if they were eligible to get into the course, not taking art in Year 10, and questioned how the courses differed. It was great to say all Level 1 Visual Art courses are open entry. Also gaining attention was the Level 2 Art History course and the optional field trips involved. In all the evening was an enjoyable opportunity to help plan and map the future for students.

Maths

MATHS TUTORING TIMETABLE: Maths tutoring continues be offered to all students during the first half of lunchtime in M11. We encourage all students to take advantage of these tutorials, especially with NCEA exams not too far away for the Seniors and Junior Placement exams very early in Term 4. The schedule is as follows: WEEK 1 Monday (Day 1) Yr 9 Tuesday (Day 2) Yr 10 Wednesday (Day 3) Yr 11 Thursday (Day 4) Yr12 Friday (Day 5) Yr13 WEEK 2 Monday (Day 6) Tuesday (Day 7) Wednesday (Day 8) Thursday (Day 9) Friday (Day 10)

Yr 9 Yr 10 Yr 11 Yr12 Yr13

We hope to see more students, who need help, attending. Maths teachers commit to these. MATHS WEEK Maths week has been very exciting with many activities such as daily maths questions for juniors and seniors and tutor group questions. Many lollies have been given out to enthusiastic participants. Many thanks to our Maths prefect, Bronwyn Kirby and her amazing team for planning and running the activities during lunchtimes. We had selfies in the “Maths frame”, the Amazing Race, a wonderful guest speaker, Cara Lauder and a Kahoot competition. All very exciting and we had lots of fun with Maths in Maths Week!!

MATHS REVISION RESOURCES D&D revision books are still available through the stationery shop ($5 each) for Levels 1, 2 and 3 External assessment practice. The last paid orders for these will be at the end of the term and no more orders will be taken next term. The Maths department will be printing parallel assessment papers early next term for senior revision also. These will be about $1 or $2 per achievement standard and can be purchased from their teachers. EXAMS, EXAMS, EXAMS…. Tutoring will be available prior to the external exams and the schedule for these tutorials will be in the student notices so watch out for these even when you are on exam leave. COMING AND GOING…. Halana Leith has gone on maternity leave and we await the news of her new baby. And in the meantime we have the lovely Monika Cross back with her wealth of experience and knowledge lending great support to our students in Ms Leith’s absence. LEVEL 1 EMCAT HGHS participated in the eMCAT - with a range of different responses from the 2 classes of students who sat this. Some of their thoughts are… “I ran out of time” “It was hard trying to type and think at the same time” “I needed to keep scrolling up and down (when there were multiple lines), that was annoying!” “I liked not using paper” “It was OK” It will be interesting to see the response we will get from NZQA. Thank you to all the students who have submitted their responses as this provide valuable feedback for NZQA. EDUCATION PERFECT: REVISE AND WIN PRIZES!! Education Perfect has offered HGHS Senior students entry into their Maths website for the rest of the year. If you do not have your login details, speak to your Maths teacher urgently. Use it to boost your grades and get a better understanding of the subject. Students are greatly encouraged to use Education Perfect for revision and doing practice questions and assessments. These are formatted optimally to meet NCEA standards and requirements. Don’t miss out on this exceptional revision and practice resource FREE for your benefit!! And to top it off, the current school competition on Education Perfect has some great prizes to be won...... which class is going to win the Class Pizza Party?

PHYSICAL EDUCATION & HEALTH

TOUGH GUY TOUGH GIRL

On Thursday the 20th of August 2APO and 2APS went to Lakes Ranch, Rotorua to participate in Tough Guy Tough Girl Challenge. It was a bumpy start to the day with the APO’s bus breaking down halfway through the trip to Rotorua meaning around 50 nervous, excited girls were all crammed on one bus. Even though we had this delay we still managed to get to the event on time. We had all been training for the past 6 weeks for this event and hoped to all do our best in the 12km run of giant hills, mud swamps that came to our waist and higher, ice cold lakes and obstacles that involved crawling under barbed wire, going through electric wires and climbing and jumping off walls. APO had a class theme of fluro aerobics but were not so fluro by the end of the race, while the APS class went as various things such as the Incredibles. Everyone had heaps of fun and were super tired and cold by the end of the day and finished off with a soak in the hot pool after washing off in the showers. Everyone did really well. We had Katie Lush come 2nd overall with a time of 1:24:05 hours and Amelia Penfold come in 4th overall with a time of 1:33:19 hours. With these results we came away with the trophy for the Toughest Girls School! On behalf of everyone we would like to thank Mrs Hita and Mrs Morast for making the event happen and for letting us have this great experience.

CAMBRIDGE 10KM RUN Both 2PTR classes had the challenge of completing the 10km run in Cambridge on Sunday 23rd August. The girls had been training for the event in the build up to it. It was fantastic weather and a great turn out. Thank you to the PE department members who came to run alongside our students. Well done to all the girls who competed. You can be proud of your efforts. Mrs Perry

By Ashleigh Jeffcoat and Charli Ansley

10 SPORT JUDO This term 10 sport have had the opportunity to participate in a judo competition with 5 weeks of preparation. In this 5 weeks of preparation we have learnt skills not only to help us within in the competition but out on the streets as a form of self defence. We have learnt to flip others, land correctly, and we have also learnt that Judo is really tiring and that we only train for what need for our sport, so when it came to judo not many of us could do some of the skills as we either weren’t flexible enough or didn’t have enough upper body strength. Doing Judo has really opened our eyes to what our weaknesses really are and what are strengths are. Well done to all the girls who competed in the interclass challenge. By Gemma Clunie Judo winners in class HAL: 1st Kelsey Phillips 2nd Tianna Mckinnon 3rd Sian Potter

POEM:THE NGURU

Who recognises this intricate sound? Go on ask around! Without a doubt you will find, That all the class can identify this sound in their mind. Its heritage is known too, The great land, Oh yes Spain is at hand, So how is it that we recognise this sound almost instantly? Even if it’s distantly But yet when it comes around to our very own land No instrument comes to mind no matter how bland!

2PED - WINTEC SPORTS SCIENCE DAY On Friday 4th September we took 21 students out to the Wintec Sports Science taster day at the Rotokauri Campus. This was an opportunity for students to explore what courses are on offer at Wintec in the Sports Science field. Students took part in practical workshops within the following areas; Biomechanics, Personal Training, Sports Nutrition, Reaction testing, Heart Rate and Blood Pressure measuring, Fit Lights, Injury Rehabilitation and Sports Psychology. All the students who took part in this day really enjoyed what Wintec had to offer and the facilities they had for use. Each of the workshops were either run by the lecturers or second year students so it really gave our girls the chance to get to know the types of graduates who come through their programmes.

SCIENCE STAR LAB

Year 9 students have recently had the opportunity to go to Starlab in the school library. Starlab is an igloo like tent that has the stars and planets projected onto its walls. The stars and planets move slowly about the walls, showing students how our night sky changes during the night and at different times of the year. While looking at the stars, the students listen to an informative presentation about astronomy. Students also have the opportunity to ask the presenter plenty of questions about space. Another interesting factor in the starlab experience is how sound moves within the tent. Whispers in one side of the tent are amplified and sound loud on the other side of the tent.

So listen up to this tune That played among our native forest during every full moon. As the tide shifted and the kiwi made its way out of its den This music was played by some very wise men The beauty of this music travelled and echoed far and wide It captured the attention of the Tui Kakapo and Moa alongside They All marched to the source of this sound so majestic They found a sight rather festive The man and his family were gathered around a fire In his hand he held an instrument that from its sound you could never tire

This instrument is called the Nguru or otherwise known as a nose flute. They are unique and originate here in Aotearoa. Nguru are a type of flute which can be played with both your nostrils and your mouth but are most commonly played with the mouth. They have a curved shaped which is slightly higher at one end, Nguru obtain their shape from the materials they are made of.

Nguru are made from many different things but the most common materials include Niho paraoa which is the sperm whale tooth, wood and sometimes they’re carved out of stone. Nguru are usually from 2 to 6 in. in length, wide at the blowing end and getting slimmer to the lower end where it is slightly turned up. Nguru usually have two or three finger holes and an extra hole under it near the curved end. This so that you can send a string through it so you can hang it around your neck. Nguru are usually used during moments of sorrow. An example of this is during a funeral. The sound a Nguru makes is deep and echoes a lot but when played masterfully it’s a lovely instrument.

Social Studies SOCIAL ACTION - FREEDOM DAY On Friday 11th September, three Year 11 Social Studies classes hosted Freedom Day. In class, they had been working in small groups organising a social action to promote and raise awareness for human rights. Across all classes, the students planned for and carried out an array of social actions on Freedom Day and some prior to this. Each group had a stall to help promote the human rights they were advocating for and students and teachers could come and show their support by participating in the actions. This year, Miss Campus’ class worked with and focused on many agencies including Amnesty International, Women’s Refuge, Kids Can, The Innocence Project, Build On, Black Lives Matter, Salvation Army, Saint Vincent de Paul, UNICEF and NAACP. Students raised money by playing games for a donation or selling badges, walking dogs, others volunteered at charity shops, created Facebook pages, handed out pamphlets and ribbons and gathered signatures for a range of petitions. Miss Healy’s Social Studies class supported a range of causes for this year’s Freedom Day. The Red Cross - the Nepalese earthquake, Women’s Refuge, Amnesty International - my body my rights and the refugee quota, and The It’s not OK campaign. Actions included sausage sizzles, petitions, attaching information to lockers, lolly guesses, hand prints, giving out pamphlets, and facebook pages.

Mr May’s class found Freedom day to be a huge success. The class supporting a wide range of causes from UNICEF (with a specific focus on human trafficking) to child soldiers, working with the organisation A21 to looking at child abuse and working with the Hamilton organisation about child matters. Some of the actions the class participated in included cupcake and cookie sales, signing petitions and running a ‘guess how many lollies are in the lolly jar’ competition. On Freedom day, during lunchtime and period 5 several classes throughout the school came to take part in the social actions offered. The classes that came really enjoyed learning about each social action and participating in the various causes. The three classes raised over $1200 across the various social actions as well as gaining many signatures for petitions and raising awareness of a range of human rights abuses. Well done to all students involved! It was a fantastic day and a culmination of a lot of hard work.

sports AT HGHS

1ST ELEVEN HOCKEY - CHICA GILMAR COMPETITION The 1st 11 Hockey squad heading off to Pukekohe this year for the Chica Gilmar. The squad headed out on Sunday 30th August eager to get into the competition. Day 1 brought with it a 4.50am start, a 5am team walk and an 8am game against Carmel College. The game proved to be a good way to ‘blow out the cobwebs’ with the team being tested at various points throughout the game but finally coming away with a 3-1 win. After the morning game, the weather began to deteriorate and this resulted in our afternoon game being postponed to the following day.

The fifth and final day of competition brought with it the final of the Chica Gilmar Tournament against a tough Iona school team. Despite their best efforts the team finished the tournament losing the final 2-0. The entire team can be very proud of the way they conducted themselves throughout the week, bonding as a team and playing multiple games of tough hockey, unfortunately falling just short in the final but they can now look ahead to the Fed Cup/Marie Fry tournaments next year in Whangarei.

Day 2 started with all games being pushed back 2 hours due to the bad weather so the team spent the morning relaxing and preparing for the games in the afternoon. After a 7 hour delay due to weather the team began our first game of the day against Te Kura Kaupapa Ruamata with an abundance of energy and enthusiasm. The opposition were a physical and determined team and the team eventually came out deserving 3-1 winners. After a short break the girls returned to the turf for an 8.15pm game under lights. This added an extra level of excitement and energy to the contest against Woodford House, the team who had beaten us in the play off for 9th and 10th in 2014. The team played well after a long day and finished the game with a 4-1 win, finishing top of the pool and in the top 8 for the tournament. Day 3 began with an improved weather outlook and a clear level of confidence and enthusiasm among the team. The girls played a quarter final game against a strong John Paul College team. After a tough, intense game the team came out with a 2-0 win and confirming a semi-final game against Wellington East College on Day 4 and now being one win away from a finals match up on the final day and a place in next years Fed Cup Competition, the top tier of High School Hockey in New Zealand. The fourth day of competition was the biggest so far and the biggest game some member of the team have played in so far in there Hockey careers. The team took on a strong Wellington East College team, the winner was guaranteed a spot in the final and next years Fed Cup competition. After a scrappy semi-final game the team finished with a 3-1 win, a spot in this year’s final and, for the first time in 15 years, Hamilton Girls High School had a guaranteed place in next years Fed Cup/Marie Fry Competition. This was a huge achievement by a young team and for our three departing year 13 students it was the culmination of 4 years of hard work. A special congratulations must go to coaches Maurice Payne and Jack Clayton for achieving their goals and getting HGHS back into the top tier of school hockey in New Zealand.

Congratulations to Kaly Harcourt and Baylee Luttrell! Congratulations to Kaly Harcourt and Baylee Luttrell who both competed in the BMX world 14 year old Age Group Championships that were held at Zolda in Belgium Both girls competed well. Special congratulations to Kaly Harcourt who carried on through to the finals, and eventually was placed 2nd in the world. This was a fantastic achievement.

PREMIER NETBALL

2015 was an awesome year for the Premier Netball team. The Upper North Island Secondary Schools’ competition was held here in Hamilton. All year the girls had been preparing themselves for the big week and knew it would take a massive effort by all to get back into A grade after last year’s disappointing drop to B grade. They started the week off will a few good wins and really grew quickly as a team. As combinations began to develop, confidence enhanced and the girls started to believe that we could achieve our goal of making A grade. We had a loss on the Wednesday afternoon, and following that the girls played one of the best games we had ever seen. They were super positive and gave it everything they had. After a hard week of netball, unfortunately they did not make the A grade like they were hoping too but showed massive hearts and determination. They can be proud that they gave it all they had and came away winning 7 out of 10 games. A great success also this year was that Renee Gudgeon made the B grade tournament team amongst some tough competition.

LAWN BOWLS STAR SHINES AT COMMONWEALTH YOUTH GAMES While the rest of us were dealing with a mixed start to Spring Ashleigh Jeffcoat was facing the challenge of representing New Zealand at the Youth Commonwealth Games in Apia, Samoa. The Commonwealth Youth Games are very much the springboard to future Commonwealth Games success. There were 26 athletes participating in Lawn Bowls and Ashleigh was able to take away a CYG Gold Medal to add to her list of accolades. Congratulations Ashleigh on another amazing achievement.

NATIONAL SECONDARY SCHOOLS CHAMPION 2014 U21 Kittyhawk Champion 2014 and Runner Up 2015 New Zealand Trans-Tasman Development Team 2015 Heartland Bank National Open Championships 2014/15 Women’s Fours Finalist. CHEYENNE UTIKERE REPRESENTS COOK ISLAND’S AT CYG IN RUGBY 7’S Cheyenne Utikere also headed to Samoa for the Commonwealth Youth Games representing the Cook Islands in Rugby 7’s. Cheyenne who was a member of the 1st XV all season missed out on the Top 4 event with her school team so that she could take up this amazing opportunity with the Cook Islands.

NEXT LEVEL FOR YOUNG HOCKEY PLAYER Olivia Scotland has been named in the NZ Hockey Juniors Squad. Olivia will attend the NZ Juniors Camp in December and work towards games against rivals Australia in January 2016. Congratulations Olivia on another great achievement. NZ U15 LACROSSE TEAM Congratulations to Keita Perry and Josie Cox who have both been selected for the New Zealand U15 Lacrosse Team. CHALM DAVEY SELECTED FOR OCEANIA RIFLE SHOOTING TEAM Chalm Davey goes from strength to strength in her shooting and has just been named in the NZ Rifle Shooting Team to attend the Oceania Championships. YOUNG SWIMMERS TAKE HGHS TO 5TH PLACE AT NZSS SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS Congratulations to all the girls who swam at the New Zealand Secondary School Swimming Championships in Hamilton from 11-13th September. With a combined total of 5 sessions, early starts, late finishes, 12 medals, and 28 personal bests, the girls did themselves, the school and parents proud. A huge thank you to the parents/grandparents that came along and helped with timekeeping, team management and supporting the girls. Summary of Results: Kayla Ansley 13yrs 50 back 23rd 200 back 20th 50 free 26th 50 breast 12th 100 back DQ 100 breast 14th - qualified for Div 2 2016 Kaitlyn Sosa 13yrs 50 back 6th 100 free 3rd - bronze medal 200 free 1st - gold medal 200 back 4th 400 free 1st - gold medal 200 IM 8th 100 back 7th Katlyn Steedman 15yrs 50 fly 2nd - silver medal 50 fly 4th in the skins race 200 IM 6th 200 fly 1st - gold medal 100 breast 8th 100 fly 3rd - bronze medal Alpha Tan 18yrs 50 back 31st Brooklyn Tofaeono 14yrs 100 free 21st 200 free 21st 50 free 29th 400 free 14th

Peyton Tofaeono 13yrs 100 free 1st - gold medal 50 fly 1st - gold medal 200 free 3rd - bronze medal 50 free 1st - gold medal 400 free 2nd - silver medal 100 fly 3rd - bronze medal Relay team Kaitlyn, Katlyn, Brooklyn & Peyton 15&under 200 free 5th 200 IM 7th FIRST XV RUGBY TEAM SECURES TOP NATIONAL SPOT Rugby have had another great season topping it off with an outstanding final at the New Zealand Secondary Schools Girls Top 4 tournament. The first XV had an outstanding season that resulted in firstly securing the Vanessa Cootes Cup as winners of the Waikato Secondary School Girls 1st XV championships. This enabled us to set our next goal which was to contest the Chiefs region against Opotiki. This was a hard fought battle against a talented team which we were also able to win and meant we had qualifed to go to the New Zealand Secondary School Top 4 Championships. First up in the Girls National Top Four we faced Southern Cross Campus from Auckland. A physical team who challenged us up front and who also possessed speed and talent in their back line. Our fitness, tactical kicking game and brilliant work at the breakdown saw us come away with the win 46-12. We knew the final against Southland Girls was going to be tough. They are a talented team who have also progressed through their season unbeaten. A nail biting first half where we fought a blustery wind, good set piece from SGHS who monopolised territory. The second half the girls remained calm, focused and used their strengths to take the win and the title with a 27-5 win.

ROWING Million Metre Row & Gallagher Great Race On Sunday 13th of September, our rowing squad headed down to the Gallaghar Great Race on the Waikato River in Hamilton. The schools compete in an event called the Million Metre Row, where all schools row on indoor rowing machines until it accumulates up to 1,000,000 metres. This was a fun day held by all, with the coaches getting involved and a good day for some extra training. To add some extra flair in the day, 1min sprints are also run throughout the morning for the school age groups. Alison Mills got second in the U15 girls by only 2metres, Anna Gallahar took out the u16 girls easily, and Charlotte Whitham came in a close second in the Queen of the river race. We also loved the experience of watching the Waikato University Women’s crew take out the Byron Gould Cup in the Gallagher, with ex Girls’ High student Georgia Allen in the boat. A fantastic morning held by all!

ARts AT HGHS

Music

This month we have been very busy in the music department, with two major events: the Waikato Orchestra Festival and the Barbershop Nationals. Also this month we have had a singing workshop with the New Zealand Youth Choir, and an upcoming workshop for our senior singer/songwriters with Ruby Frost.

The Waikato Orchestra Festival was held on Friday 28th August, and HGHS had three groups performing. First up in the morning was the HGHS/SHGC Orchestra, who played a repertoire of five pieces and came away with a Silver award. Next up was Wahine Aulele, our Pasifika Drumming group, who came away with a Bronze award. Last in the afternoon was the HGHS Samba group, who performed two percussion pieces and came away with an impressive Gold award and the Merit award for the best percussion group of the festival. We are super proud of all the girls who performed! The Barbershop National Finals was held in Hamilton’s Founder’s Theatre on Wednesday 9th and Thursday 10th September. The first day was the quartets competition, with our two quartets competing against quartets from all over the country. Bella Musica came away with 6th place, and Tiger Lily came away with 14th place. These are both extremely impressive results as both quartets are novice quartets and have only been together since earlier this year! The second day was the chorus competition, with our chorus, Uptown Girls, coming in at 4th place in the country! We are very happy with this result and thankful for all the effort from all the girls involved as well as our Barbershop coach, Lynn Jamieson.

PASIFIKA Talofa and Warm Pasifika Greetings, This is the final newsletter from Pasifika for Term Three. It has been a very busy term for us and we are pleased with the way in which our Pasifika girls have participated in the wider aspects of high school life. There is not much to report except to say a hearty malo aupito to Ms Sharpe’s 9W1 class for giving Tongan Language Week ago. Two of her students have written a report, with photos attached, explaining how the class embraced the opportunity to learn another language. Ms Sharpe reports that the class are now using the phrases they learned during this time. In addition, we take this opportunity to express a big fa’afetai tele lava to Vanessa Baledrokadroka and Tava Tyrell, in their capacity as members of the Pasifika Cultural and Service Committee for the on-going service they and their team have provided this year in helping St Peters School Cambridge, establish their Pasifika identity. In particular, by helping them prepare for their Cultural Assembly and also their recent Dance Festival. The accompanying photo is of the Cultural and Services team at St Peters, enjoying the festival. Finally, we extend an invitation to all Pasifika families to attend the annual Maori and Pasifika Awards Evening. This year it will be held Thursday, 15th October, beginning at 6:30 p.m. For seating purposes, we ask that families RSVP their attendance to administration@hghs.school.nz Girls, have a safe yet relaxing break. We look forward to seeing you next term.

TONGAN LANGUAGE WEEK Malo e lelei! During Week 7 of Term 3, our class, 9WA, celebrated Tongan Language Week. This activity was led by Melekoula Ahofono who taught us a variety of Tongan vocabulary and phrases that can be used in daily conversation. During our activity, Melekoula was a confident leader, and supportive of those who had trouble with pronunciation. She was good at being patient with her classmates as many of them were giving this a go for the first time. She and many others wanted to educate our class about the Tongan language and culture. After teaching a few basics, Melekoula opted to teach her classmates a few slang words such as calm-lalo and hella-vela. Now, whenever the class want to inform someone that they are either getting too excited or can’t take a joke they can say calm-lalo, which means to calm down. It’s nice to hear a bit of Tongan used in class sometimes, even if it’s just for fun. Melekoula was pleasantly surprised and found it interesting to see her class responding in a positive way and trying their best to use the phrases throughout the school day. She also admitted to enjoying the facial expressions of her fellow classmates as they were filled with fascination, when they realized how much similarity there was between Maori, Samoan and Tongan. “I had fun teaching my class about where I come from and my native language because it’s always good to keep in touch with your roots,” said Melekoula.

From the learning experiences we had with Tongan Language Week, we believe it would be good to continue with some inclass learning from our Pasifika students, across the school. By Melekoula Ahofono,Tepola Finau and Denae McCread

MAORI AND PASIFIKA AWARDS EVENING

Thursday, 15th October. All welcome; however, please send through numbers attending to administration@hghs.school.nz

SADD WEEK (STUDENTS AGAINST DANGEROUS DRIVING)

On Friday September 11, the Students Against Dangerous Driving Committee (SADD) along with the help of the New Zealand Police, Ambulance and Fire services staged a car crash in order to highlight the threat of dangerous driving to the students of Hamilton Girls’ High. This was done in conjunction with the SADD week at Hamilton Girl’s High School. With the help of two student volunteers, (Tessa Hodge and Tara Given) a car was driven into school and set as a car crash involving two teenage girls. As the bell for lunch rang, the school was alerted to the scene by the combined sirens of the emergency services as they set about their duty to help and free the two crash victims. During the course of lunch the surrounding spectators were able to witness the time, effort and skill that was on display as the rescuers worked hard to not only cut the car in half, but to free and help the two girls trapped in the car. This event was staged to highlight the threat of dangerous driving and also to show the students of Hamilton Girls’ how noisy, scary and dangerous it can be to put yourself in this position by driving dangerously. It is our hope that the students who witnessed this event will think twice before texting and driving, speeding or other dangerous behaviour. The SADD committee would like to extend a special thanks to those involved including the New Zealand Police, Fire and Ambulance services, Fairway Transport Recovery, the National SADD organisation and to Hamilton Girls’ as well for letting us run this event.

DRAMA It is a busy time in the Drama Department with all year levels preparing for final assessments. Level 3 Drama gave very good performances in the last week of term in their NEW ZEALAND THEATRE performance, while Level 1 delighted audiences with their MELODRAMAS. Year 10 classes are preparing for their end of year production of Shakespeare’s A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM and Level 2 classes will present THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST in Week 2 of Term Four. Year 9 devised charming CLOWNING routines. For the simulated car crash which SADD organised in the penultimate week of the term a Year 9 Drama class did SPECIAL EFFECTS MAKEUP on the girls who took part, creating very realistic looking wounds, bruises and gashes. Never a dull moment in the Drama Department!

SKIN CANCER PRIMARY PREVENTION Skin cancers are primarily caused by too much exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation (UV) either from sunlight or from artificial sources. Melanoma skin cancer has risen steadily over the past 20 years. Knowledge has not translated into behaviour changes for most teenagers. Consequently some do not understand that one bad sunburn can increase their risk of skin cancer. Throughout New Zealand, sun protection is required from September to April inclusive, especially between the hours of 10am and 4pm. Students are spending time during the peak UV radiation at school, when the UV index is above 3. This is the time when best practice for sun protection in schools is a comprehensive approach. The UV index is a measure of the intensity of UV radiation. Higher the number, more intense the UV. The maximum summer value is largely about 12 in New Zealand. In the far north it can exceed 13. It reaches peak values of 1 or 2. Therefore students should be encouraged to actively enjoy sun exposure more during winter months while UV radiation is less. The possibility to get heatstroke is also less during winter than during summer months. There are benefits to sun exposure such as better vitamin D absorption which is important for healthy development of bones, muscles and teeth. In winter we can enjoy fun activities like skiing, ice hockey, snowball fights and much more. In fact, the earth is farthest away from the sun during winter than in summer months and that is why sun exposure is safer on our skin.

It is important to educate students about sun protection behaviour and the risk of how to reduce skin cancer by becoming Sunsmart. • Increase student and community awareness about skin cancer and sun protection • Encourage the entire school community to use a combination of sun protection measures during Terms 1 and 4 • Encourage students to use available areas of shade when outside. • Assist students to be responsible for their own sun protection and recommended water resistant sunscreen for swimming Research studies show that sun protection is only needed when UV radiation levels are UV index 3 or higher during term 1 and 4 between 10am and 4pm.

We can just hope that our teenagers will realise the impact of sunburn on their physical appearance.

CAREERS WAIKATO TRADES ACADEMY

The students involved in the Service Sector classes of the Waikato Trades Academy were lucky enough to go on a field trip to Hobbiton on Friday the 4th September. This was part of the Tourism module they are currently working on. The students thoroughly enjoyed the experience. “It was a good experience to be in a place famously known around the world. I enjoyed seeing the scenery from Sir Peter Jackson” “I liked the view at Hobbiton and I think the little houses were cool. It must have taken a lot of money and time to build it” “I enjoyed learning about the hobbit and how they maintained the scenery” “ It was really fun and the landscape was breathtaking”

WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING IN THE CAREERS DEPARTMENT • • • • •

CV workshops run every Monday P3 in the Careers Office. Red Cross First Aid course for any Yr13 student – 28th / 29th Sept. Student Loan and Allowance help sessions – Week 1 Term 4. Yr13 students enrolling for tertiary study can register with Student Job Search for holiday work www.sjs.org.nz www.careers.govt.nz for assistance with subject choice, job and training information

GuideMe Student App New App developed by NZ Post for Secondary School students GuideMe is a free start-to-finish checklist for getting your university study sorted. It’s based on advice and tips from first-year uni students, with links to essential websites and services they recommend. Getting from school to uni is a whole lot easier with this clever app. It’s designed to help students make decisions, get things done and stay right on track. As students work with GuideMe to narrow down what they want to study, where they’ll live and how they’ll pay for everything, it remembers their profile choices and sends them deadline reminders. Who’s it for? At the moment GuideMe is mainly for domestic students intending full-time, undergraduate study at a New Zealand university. We plan to expand this soon. How you access it? GuideMe is free and easy to download to your phone. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/guideme-student/id1032636081?ls=1&mt=8 https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nzpost.guideme Available in iTunes and Google Play stores.

GATEWAY

HEALTH AND SAFETY COURSE All Gateway students had the opportunity to do a Health and Safety Course at the beginning of September. Students learnt about the requirements of Health and Safety in the workplace. Each student was required to attend for a full school day. Vertical Horizonz tutor, Alan Timms, led the one day courses which were held at Sonninghill Hostel. The information was delivered in a fun and relevant way, providing students with the skills and knowledge to help prepare them for the challenges they will face in the work environment. Students who completed the training not only gained useful knowledge, but were able to gain 8 credits towards their NCEA Level 2 and 3. Positive feedback about how wonderful the students were was well received - well done girls!

GATE

GIFTED AND TALENTED EDUCATION

SIRJANA SINGH On Tuesday 18th August we had a speaker come in to talk to our Photography students. Her name was Sirjana Singh, from Tinted Photography, and she spoke about how to start a business from her Photography hobby. Sirjana also spoke about her journey into her Photography career and how she uses photography to promote anti-bullying. The room was full with keen photographers who wanted to hear her engaging story. Sirjana inspired others to share their own stories through their own photography.

ACNE TREATMENT TRIAL Do you or someone you know have facial acne? Clinic Trials NZ in Hamilton is conducting a research study with a new medication for people who have moderate to severe facial acne. You must be aged 16-44 years. You will receive reimbursement for time and travel. You will be seen by a Dermatologist and a nurse and all study related care will be provided at no cost. If you are interested in this opportunity and you would like to know more please contact: • Clinical Trials NZ , Anneke or Heather (07) 843 0105 or 027 252 0990 • School nurse for Participant information sheet/consent form (Clinical Trials NZ) This study has been approved by the Northern A health and Disability Ethics Committee.

SERVICES COUNCIL

WILSON HOUSE CHARITY WEEK! Wilson House Charity Week was held in Week 8 of this term. From the 7th-11th September the Wilson Committee were selling Daffodils for $2 during tutor group and at lunch time to support The Cancer Society. They also gave the opportunity for students to make pinwheel daffodils with a message, for a donation, to support those who have been affected by cancer. All proceeds have been donated to The Cancer Society with a total of just over $400 being raised during this week. Thank you to Celeste Rakena, the House Captain, and the Wilson Committee (Amber Lewis, Hannah Black, Hannah Potter, Selena Timings, Sasha Dee-Babbington and Thida Cheum) for encouraging students and staff to get behind such a great cause.

SONGFEST!

ACADEMIC MENTORING!

Songfest is coming up in Week 10! All houses are involved. It is a competition for Year 9’s and the senior leaders from each house where they had to choose a song from the 1990’s and have to perform the song and produce a dance to go with it. They are judged on accuracy, style, group work, lyrics and movement. Each house has carried out rehearsals from Week 8-10 and the finals is on Thursday 24th September during lunchtime and period 5. Best of luck and may the best song and dance win!

Year 13 Academic Mentoring has just been completed. This is where each Year 13 student met with her tutor teacher, the Head of House or another mentor to have a conversation about her academic goals, successes and endeavors for the future.Year 13 students are encouraged to start planning for next year and ensure they are on track to achieving the goals they set for themselves.Year 11 Academic Mentoring is now underway and we look forward to tracking all students and monitoring their progress.

KEY DATES october 2015

12 OCTOBER 15 OCTOBER 21 - 22 OCTOBER 22 OCTOBER 23 OCTOBER 24 - 26 OCTOBER 26 OCTOBER 27 OCTOBER 30 OCTOBER

Term 4 Begins Maori and Pasifika Awards Arts Exhibiton Arts Awards 13APO/APS Multi / Tri Race Hostel set leave Labour Day Sports Awards 2APO HGHS/HBHS