trivial pursuits - birkenhead college, auckland, new … · trivial pursuits the famous birkenhead...
TRANSCRIPT
J O Mathewson, Principal
Term 2 Issue 1 6 May 2016
Monday 9 May is Day 1
We do hope you all had some positive
family time over the holidays.
This Term we welcome a number of
students, including Internationals from
Germany, China, Japan and Vietnam.
During Term 2 there will be Board
elections, Shrek - our musical
production, student academic reports
and ongoing property development.
Our gym and library are complete, and the science block
is on time to be completed at the end of Term.
Our Board I would like to acknowledge the
quality of our present Board and thank
them for overseeing one of the most
successful eras in the school’s history.
They are a skilled, quality team, led by
Mr Dobbin whose experience in
education and his wisdom makes such
a difference. They are incredibly loyal
to this school and its students, and have
overseen outstanding ERO reviews and
the strongest academic results our students have achieved.
At the same time music, art, drama and sport are
flourishing.
You will know them:
Mr Dobbin (Chair), Mr Cox (Dep. Chair), Mr Tawhai,
Mr Ashcroft, Mr Shaw, Mrs Sturny, Mr Pageau (Staff
Rep.), Rebecca Percy (Student Rep.).
Information about the elections will be posted to all
families this week.
Anzac Day
Three of our students were invited to participate in the
Anzac Day Service at the Birkenhead War Memorial
this year. Rebecca Percy (Head Girl) read a prayer,
Naua Manavahetau (Deputy Head Boy) laid a
wreath on behalf of the College and Gisela Theunissen
gave a very moving speech. Gisela spoke about the
meaning of Anzac day and the effects of war and how
important it is for us to remember and honour those
who have fought on our behalf.
Ex student Jake Howe (2005) has finished his
PhD at King’s College, Cambridge university (which
was funded by a Rutherford Scholarship) and
graduated on 23rd April. His
Mum travelled from New
Zealand, his brother from
Australia and one of his sisters
from Leamington Spa. Jake’s
chemistry teacher from BC,
Mrs Frith, was invited to
attend and says “It was an
absolute delight for me to
receive an invitation to the
graduation ceremony, followed
by lunch at the college with
Jake, his family and his
supervisor. It was a fantastic day, a ceremony that I
will always remember (although it was conducted in
Latin) and absolutely wonderful to see a student who
has worked so hard going so far.”
BIRKENHEAD COLLEGE
OPEN EVENING 7pm Thursday 19 May
Talk with Teachers and Students.
Tour our facilities.
Come and see our College in action
Rebecca, Naua & Gisela
Orienteering (April 2016) –
Auckland Secondary School Relay Champs and
North Island Secondary School Champs
BC had three teams compete at the Auckland Relay Champs, Ambury Park on 7th April and four Senior boys
travelled to Hawks Bay to compete at the NISS Champs 27-29 April.
Results Auckland SS Relay Champs: Junior boys
B team made up of William Hawkins (24:33), Austin
Melville (32:46) and Connor Thomson (24:06)
placed 8th and Junior Boys A made up of; Luc
Davenport (21:32), Luke Sale (50:40), Reece
Pratley (35:41) placed 14th.
Senior Boys team of Ethan Groom (30:59), Little
Alex (28:00), Matt Cox were mid field,
unfortunately a timing malfunction meant results
were unavailable.
Results NISS Champs: Day 1 Sprints – 3.1km in Napier : Winners time was
15.34 minutes. Matt Cox placed 16th in 19 minutes,
Andrew Bycroft 31st in 22.15 minutes, Alex Little
32nd in 22.23 minutes and Ethan Groom 35th in 23.54
minutes. (first Sprint Race Ethan had competed in).
Day 2 Individual Long Distance – 4.5km (230m climb) :
Quite a short course for long distance but very steep and hilly so
was very tough. Most of the top 10 senior boys are part of NZ teams
so pretty hard competition. Winning time was 41.59 minutes. Matt
Cox 17th in 1 hour 21.55 minutes, Andrew Bycroft in 1 hour 59.00
minutes.
Day 3 Relays – Te Awanga: Winning time 1 hour 17.26 minutes.
Birkenhead was 5th out of 16 teams. Individual results: Ethan
Groom 38.20 minutes, Alex Little 45.25 minutes, Matt Cox 30.52
minutes (3rd fastest runner in his leg).
Well done boys and a special thank you to David Cox who travelled with the team to the NISS Champs and is
always supportive of BC sport..
Relay Photo (L-R): Austin Melville, William Hawkins, Connor
Thomson, Alex Little, Matt, Cox, Ethan Groom, Reece Pratley,
Luke Sale, Luke Davenport
Sen Boys Photo: (L-R): Alex Little, Ethan
Groom, Matt Cox, Andrew Bycroft
Careers Corner
Important dates for your diary for Term 2:
Year 11, 12 & 13 students who may be considering
university study are recommended to attend
presentations which give a general outline of
programmes available, entry requirements,
scholarships and fees:
All careers talks are in T4 at lunchtime. Try to get
there for a prompt start, bring your lunch with you.
10 May Psychology talk
19 May UNITEC
26 May Canterbury University
2 June Defence Forces NZ
9 June University applications C6
16 June University applications C6
Massey University Information Evenings
Two information evenings for prospective students
and their parents, covering degree programmes and
the application process will be held at the Massey
University, Albany campus on 17th & 18th May
starting at 6pm. No registration required and free
parking. Go to massey.ac.nz/infoevenings for
details or contact Mrs Morris.
CV writing workshops
The following workshops are open to any students
who are looking to write a CV towards part-time or
full-time work. They are held in C6 at lunchtime
Thursday 23 June CV writing / cover letters
Thursday 30 June CV writing / cover letters
Netball : Hartley Cup
On Wednesday night Team 1 Netball challenged
Northcote for the Hartley Cup. 2013 was the last
time the cup was up for contention. With a
relatively new BC team this was going to be a
challenge, a challenge the girls were ready to
embrace!! The first whistle went and our girls
were outstanding, the score was 5-1 to BC and
we were going strong. Unfortunately Northcote
found their feet and the lead slipped away from
us. The girls fought hard but the final result saw
Northcote retaining the cup. I was so proud of our girls with the way they conducted themselves on and off
the court, they played with heart and passion and never gave up. The defensive duo of the two Graces, Grace
Tawhai and Grace Wichman was outstanding. They worked so hard contesting every ball that came
their way. The midcourt was led by Becca Percy and the shooting circle saw captain Hadassah Moreton sink
some wonderful shots along with sidekick Amy Brooksbank. Northcote were a lovely team to play against.
Both teams were passionate and demonstrated outstanding sportsmanship. Their second game of the evening
saw them come away with a great win against Orewa, well done girls. Ms Mexted
Parent Portal Logins
We are pleased that so many parents are now
using the KAMAR parent portal on our website to
check on their child’s absences, their assessment
grades or even just to read the school notices.
During the holidays, the technicians changed
some of the logins to just the student ID number
(a five digit unique code).
If you are having difficulties accessing the portal,
please try just your child’s student ID to login,
together with your usual password. If you cannot
get on, or would like your details sent again,
please email Kate Fuller
Basketball
Last weekend Birkenhead College hosted our
first pre-season ‘Blitz’ basketball
tournament. It was a full-on day of
basketball that gave all the teams a chance to
play several short games in preparation for
the up-coming season.
Four teams came to the tournament including
Bethlehem College from Tauranga, Pinehurst
School and Long Bay College.
The Birkenhead Senior A boys team ended
up playing Bethlehem College in the final,
this was each teams 4th game of the day! It
was a dominant performance from our boys
and we won the game 102-53. It was an
excellent team effort with every player filling their individual rolls to perfection.
It was the perfect end to a pre-season tournament for the team that included 10 games, and a record of 7 wins
and 3 losses. The team now looks forward to their first official game against Whangaparaoa on Friday at
7pm.
Trivial Pursuits
The famous Birkenhead College Trivial Pursuit
night will be held this year on 19 August. The
Parents Support Group has some fresh new faces on
board and we are keen to make it the best ever!
We are looking for donations for auction prizes
now. Do you have anything suitable that you could
access? Maybe:
* Electronics * travel *meals
* spa packages *a ride in a flash car
* a chance to be a TV star??
Please contact [email protected] if you
may be able to help, or come along to our meeting,
Tuesday 10 May 7.30pm in the staffroom.
SCHOOL CALENDAR 2016
TERM 2
Week 3 Thur 19 May Open Evening
Week 4 Mon 23 May School Production week
Week 6 Mon 6 June Holiday—Queen’s birthday
Tue 7 June 12 Geo Trip
Week 7 Sat 18 June Ball
Week 10 Fri 8 July Reports Home - Last day of Term 2
TERM 3
Week 1 25 July School starts
Week 2 Thur 4 Aug Report Evening
BC Leaver’s Jerseys
Leaver’s jerseys can now be ordered.
$22 long sleeved tee
$58 Winter Hoodie
Sexuality Education
As part of the Physical Education and Health
curriculum, Year 9 students will be doing a unit of
work on Sexuality. This will take place during Term
2. If you have any concerns or would like further
information please contact Mr Alderman (HOD
Physical Education: [email protected].