Kristin School Newsletter Issue 26 2016

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From the desk of...
David Boardman, Senior School Principal

What a week. I have to start this piece with a huge thank you to the school community for making possible two very complex and successful events over the past week.

Tournament Week not only brings together teams from across the country to play some outstanding sport but also requires the organisation and commitment of parents, managers and coaches from within all those schools to make this the success it is. Congratulations to all teams who took part in this busy week and special mention to the Boys 1st XI Hockey, who in the space of five days gained promotion to the Rankin Cup and fought a hard battle to finish second in the Auckland Schools Final.

Henry Ford once said that “Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success.” What better example of this success could there be than the Middle School Production of Shrek Jr? Once again the tireless dedication of Lorna Rood, Nick Duirs and their team of parents, staff and students has ensured Kristin sets a bar for its performances that few could hope of matching. Watching the opening night, it was difficult to remind oneself of the age of the performers and that they had only been working together on this incredible performance for several short weeks. Outstanding.

I hope that as many of you as possible had the opportunity to view the Visual Arts exhibition in the LIC Foyer last week. This culmination of work from our Year 13 students was a clear reminder of the talent and dedication present in our student body. To have such a high standard across all pieces, not just a few, was something I have not had the pleasure of experiencing before and bodes very well for their final marks. Congratulations.

Finally, there has been a noticeable change in the air, as Spring has officially arrived bringing with it a lightening of the mornings, an increase in birdsong and a definite warmth to the sun. This change in the seasons also marks the beginning of one of the busiest and most stressful times for students in the Senior School, with preliminary examinations and final preparation for November, which is not too far away. I ask that all students look after their well-being and remember to plan their time effectively, allowing for rest, sports and a measured lead into the examination session.

Just to let you know...
We have written to Junior and Middle School parents to let them know Kristin is introducing a new lunch ordering service in partnership with www.ezlunch.co.nz.

The new Ezlunch service will replace the existing nutriSmart system from Term 4 and is being trialled in Weeks 8 and 9. Information on the new system is detailed here.

What's been happening?

Junior Open Debating Success
The Junior Open Team of Nathan Hall, Kunli Zhang, Fraser Brant and Daniel Yee are into the final of the Auckland Schools Debating Competition. They are coached by Max Ramsay in Year 11 who has been superb in enhancing their skills. There were over 100 schools in the competition from all over Auckland. The final is on Monday at (and against) St Peter's. Good luck to the team.

Double Silver Medals for Hockey

Our 1st XI Hockey Boys have completed a successful season, placing 2nd in the Auckland Supercity competition after competing in a final against Auckland Grammar on Tuesday.

At the Mayhill Cup in the NZ Secondary School competition last week, they had a very close 1-0 win against Kingsway in the semi-final. Playing Mt Albert Grammar in the final they earned a silver medal and entry into the Rankin Cup top tier of the NZSS competition.

They placed 3rd in the North Harbour competition, with Rosmini and Kingsway ahead of them, and three strong wins against Westlake Boys under their belt.

Poetry Competition
On Tuesday the Junior School held their annual poetry competition hosted by Leo Clancy and Maya Harrison. Classes in Year 4-6 all took part with the top two students from each class progressing to the finals in the Auditorium.

Competition was fierce with David Shaw, Head of the English Faculty and Sarah Hartley, Kristin Speech and Drama teacher, left with the final decision.

It was fabulous to see each year group on stage to perform a choral poem (a type of lyric poetry that was created by the ancient Greeks and performed by choruses). The children all enjoyed being a part of this special literacy afternoon.

After hearing the engaging and well rehearsed finalists for 2016, Griffin Kilfoyle (Year 5) with his poem ‘ Excuses, Excuses’ was the overall winner. Isla Lewis (Year 6) was second with ‘The Dentist and the Crocodile’ and Caitlin Sly (Year 6) came third, with her humorous poem ‘The Whoopee Cushion Waiting on the Teacher's Chair’

Congratulations to the place-getters. The standard was exceptional this year and all finalists can be very proud of their achievements.

Father’s Day Lunch
By Ada, Alana, Alex, Corban
On Monday the Junior School celebrated Father’s Day by inviting our dads to share lunch time. We were amazed at how many dads were there. The Year 3 lunch area was full.

Fathers came and loved having lunch with their children. They enjoyed playing with children around the school. Fathers loved it so much that they wanted to stay. We could really see that they were filled with joy and didn’t want to leave. We thank all of the dads for coming to celebrate Father’s Day with us.
Father's Day photos >>

Japanese Speech Competition
Year 13 student Jung Woo Bae recently won the Auckland Regional Secondary School's Japanese Speech Competition held at AUT. This was not Jung Woo's first success at the event. Two years ago, he participated in Year 11 category coming first and last year he won the Year 12 category. This year, Jung Woo challenged himself by entering the open category for native speakers which makes his achievement even more commendable.

NZSS Fencing Championships
The Kristin fencers participated at the NZ Secondary School Fencing Championships, which also included some strong high school fencers from Wellington and Christchurch.

Overall, our fencers achieved good results with all teams finishing in the medal ranks. The girl’s Epee team came 1st and the boy’s Epee 2nd, while both Foil teams finished 3rd.
All results >>

GATE Photography Workshop
Photography, as perceived by the public and photography as an academic subject, is very different. Recently a group of students were lucky enough to take part in a workshop for the day here at school with Mr Lim. This workshop was to conduct academic research through the medium of photography. This included learning the basics of a manual camera. The students could work on Photoshop to post edit or to re-shoot the photo as they desired. Final images were all spectacular.

What's coming up?

Key Dates

PYP Exhibition - 12-16 Sep, LIC Foyer
Year 5 Colenso Visit - 12 Sep
JS Speech Cluster Finals - 13 Sep, Auditorium, 1.30pm, selected students
PYP Staging - 14 Sep, Auditorium, 1.30pm
Year 1-3 Parent Teacher Interviews - 15 Sep, selected students
Year 10 NCEA Prelim Exams - 12-16 Sep
Year 8-10 House Assemblies - 15 Sep
MS Recital - 15 Sep, Auditorium, 7pm
Year 11-13 NCEA & IB Prelim Exams - 12-16 Sep
Victoria University Excellence and Achiever Scholarship Applications - 15 Sep
New York University Presentation for Prospective Students and Parents - 16 Sep, 12.45pm

Things to note...

Year 0-3 Parent Teacher Interviews
Year 0-3 students who have a birthday in Term 1 or 3 and all of 0B have been invited to an interview with their classroom teacher by email. Please login to myChild to reserve your interview time.

PYP Exhibition
The PYP Exhibition is being held next week in the LIC Foyer and Auditorium. Should you wish to join in on an Exhibition tour in the LIC Foyer the schedule of year level visits can be found here. Assemblies will be held at 7pm on Tuesday 13 September and 1.30pm on Wednesday 14 September in the Auditorium.

Volleyball

All Year 9-10 Girls and Boys interested in playing Volleyball please contact Mr Goldsworthy. Boys play Wednesday after school, girls play Thursday after school at AMI Stadium, Onewa Courts. Volleyball Registration >>

Wednesday Walking Group
This week we will be exploring one of the many native bush walks in the Birkenhead area, the maori "pipi walk". Meet at 9:15am outside the Birkenhead library. The walk will take approx 45 minutes. Wear comfortable walking shoes. We will finish up with a coffee in Highbury. Please park in the Rawene Rd carpark (opposite library) or the carpark under the Highbury Mall. Lucy will lead this walk and can be reached on 021 0275 8210. All welcome. It is on rain or shine.

IoG Golf
Year 2-6 students wishing to participate in IoG Golf sessions on Wednesday lunchtimes in Term 4 should register now. Those registered in Term 1 who wish to continue, please email Fiona Ackroyd.
Junior School IoG Golf Registration >>

Junior School Golf Championship
The championship will be held Monday 17 October at the North Shore Golf Club. This is a really lovely afternoon on the golf course where students gain the experience of playing a game within a peer group of similar ability. All students who have played a round of golf are welcome. Tee off 10am (tbc), modified course, 9 holes. Students should have their own clubs and golf balls. Clubs can be hired in special circumstances. For further information, please email Fiona Ackroyd.
Junior School Golf Championship Registration >>

Sports Awards Dinner: Thursday 20 October
Our guest speaker this year is Kent Johns, the host of “The Sports Vox” on radio sport. We are looking forward to seeing you at QBE Stadium (North Harbour Stadium) to celebrate the 2016 sports achievements.
Buy your tickets >>

Writers' Workshop - Junior and Middle School
Registrations are now open for the Writers' Workshops being held in the next school holidays.

The Middle School workshop is a four-day event for Year 7-10 students, run from 26-29 September.
The Junior School will be hosting a one-day event on Friday 30 September for students in Year 4-6.

This is an opportunity for keen writers to develop their writing skills with new friends in a creative, open, fun environment under the tutelage of acclaimed author and experienced writing workshop presenter, Brian Falkner. Please email nclayton@kristin.school.nz to register and obtain further details.