Inspiration from the past, learning, contributing, empowering for today and tomorrow ISSUE 12, 4 august 2017

Message from Our Principal Tēnā koutou katoa Welcome to Term 3. A special welcome to staff who join us this term: Mrs Kelsey – Assistant HOD English Mr Genet – French Mrs Loach – PE/Health for Term 3 A special welcome also to our students and staff who took part in overseas adventures in the holidays. A great time was had by all and I commend our students who were fabulous ambassadors for Napier Girls’ High School, as well as NZ. They were a real credit to themselves. Such opportunities assist our students in becoming globally connected citizens. We look forward to hearing about their adventures. There are now only 11 academic weeks left for our senior students and this brings a most important challenge – preparing for the school derived grade examinations this term and for the external NCEA examinations next term. This challenge requires selfmanagement skills, consistent hard work and a commitment to a study programme. Persistence and determination are key traits required to face this challenge as well as the additional challenge of not just passing but of gaining Merit and Excellence awards. I wish all our students the very best as they meet this challenge and remind them that nothing worthwhile is every truly achieved by accident. I encourage you to have a conversation with your daughter about how she intends to set herself up for success – what plans are in place and how these are to be executed. This conversation can be adapted for all year levels as it is a dialogue of shared intentions and understanding: a stated attitude that is aspirational. Many of our senior students are also contemplating next year. They will soon be issued with their senior course booklet and will engage in the process of choosing courses for next year. We remind them to select what they are passionate about and keep as many pathways open as possible. Our school ball was held on Friday last week. It was a night of glamour and fun – a great success. The success of such an event reflects the hard work and a lot of organising from Mr Gregory, Ms Downs, Ms Lassen and Mrs Mannering along with our Ball Committee and parents. I would like to thank all of those involved for all that they did making for a great night. Wishing you all the very best for the term. Nga mihi nui

Mrs Dawn Ackroyd

HEALTH AND SAFETY

Shakespeare Road Roadworks Please note that access to Shakespeare Road is limited only to down hill traffic due to works on storm water upgrading. Pedestrian access as well as availability for parking is also reduced. These works will continue for the next four weeks. We ask that you take due consideration of this when coming to and from school. Your cooperation is much appreciated.

Phone: 06 835 1069 Fax: 06 835 8164 Web: www.nghs.school.nz Principal's Secretary Email: [email protected] Main Office email: [email protected]

NEW CALEDONIA FRENCH TRIP On Thursday the 6th of July 2017, 27 excited French students and three teachers left Napier Girls’ High School for Auckland. After a long bus ride and Mr Otto forgetting his wallet, we spent our first night of the trip in the airport hotel, sleeping little in anticipation for the trip. We took an early flight to Tontouta International Airport in New Caledonia, and were instantly overjoyed to be in the sun and 25 degrees celsius, even though it is winter in the French island. Our first full day in New Caledonia was spent on the island of Phare Amédée situated in the biggest lagoon in the world (a world heritage site), with swimming, snorkeling, stand up paddle boarding and sunbathing. A delicious feast welcomed us to the new country and we got involved in the island culture including various dance performances (Mr Otto impressed us with his island dancing too!) On return, our host families came to meet us at the hotel, and we were taken to their homes to settle in for the weekend. Some activities we took part in during the weekend were swimming, boat trips, shopping, hunting, mountain biking and of course trying new food. Our billets showed us around their school. It is different to New Zealand especially getting up before 6 o’clock and on the road by 7am for many of our families. There were some fun activities during the three days of camping in Bourail (three hours north of Nouméa. While away for two nights we had beautiful views of the shark-inhabited waters, singing around the campfire, and lots of potatoes! We became closer to our billets in preparing food, performing in the talent show and sharing tents together. Upon arriving back in Nouméa, a lot of our billets took us to celebrate the 14th of July. Many of us took part in the big lantern parade and enjoyed the fabulous entertainment of music and dance on the central square, Place Cocotier. The highlight of the evening was the spectacular firework display off the roof of the city hall. It was a new and exciting experience to walk in unity through the lit up streets with our friends. The rest of the long weekend was spent with our host families, and too soon it was Monday morning- our final day at College Normandie and with our families. We shared pizza and said some very emotional goodbyes to our new friends. After performing our school Haka for the last time, it was time to pack our suitcases and head back to New Zealand. Overall it was an amazing experience, and I really enjoyed making new friends and trying new things. Thank you to our teachers M Otto, Mme van der Linden and Mme Brondel, for putting so much time into organising the trip and looking after us. It was a huge success and an unforgettable experience!

Zarah Otto, Year 11

MUSIC NEWS ARTS EVENING

On Wednesday Evening we held our annual Arts Evening. This event is always an enjoyable evening where parents and friends have the opportunity to experience items from our talented students. The audience was treated to items from music, dance, drama and Pasifika groups along with some visual art displays. The variety and level of performance was outstanding and all those who performed should be so proud of their achievements. Teilah Ferguson and Jarna Alexander, our Music Prefects, were the comperes for the evening and ensured the evening flowed in a very slick and organised manner. Thanks to everyone who performed and the support from the staff for making this such a successful evening.

AUSTRALIA CHOIR TRIP

In the first week of the school holidays our choir attended the Australian International Music festival in Sydney. The choir was formed in Term 3 of last year and started preparing for this event. This is a very committed group of students who worked hard to produce a programme of twelve songs to a very high standard. The Australian International Music festival is an annual event involving choirs, orchestra and concert bands from all over the world. This year our students were participating along with musicians from Australia, Philippines, China, USA, Hong Kong, Canada, Croatia and New Zealand. Our choir attended workshops with professional conductors, joined in mass choir rehearsals and performances, and performed in amazing concert venues such as the Sydney Opera House, Sydney Conservatorium of Music, St James Church and Sydney Town Hall. The students also had fun exploring the sights of Sydney and, of course, some shopping. This was an experience so full of highlights for everyone involved. The choir’s performance in Sydney was outstanding and they were awarded a Gold Award which was an amazing achievement at an international music festival. Thanks to the wonderful staff: Mrs Megan Mannering, Miss Louise Clarke and Mrs Jane Stone for giving up a week of their holidays to enjoy this experience with us.

Mrs Suzanne Purdy

BARBERSHOP On Saturday the Hawke’s Bay Barbershop competition was held at Napier Girls’ High School. In this competition we had both our Barbershop Quartet and Chorus competing. Our chorus and quartet have worked very hard over the last couple of months preparing their two songs for these performances. Both groups gave outstanding performances and were awarded first place in both the female quartet and chorus sections. They have both qualified to attend the National Barbershop Competition which will be held in September in Auckland. Congratulations to Miss Clarke and all the Barbershop students on this excellent achievement.

NZ Hospitality Championships Four girls competed at the NZ Hospitality Championships at ASB Stadium in Auckland on Friday. All students did extremely well Brenna Lee

Gold and Top/ First in NZ for Soup Silver Team Challenge

Sim Kaur

Gold and Top/ First in NZ in Quiche Silver Open sandwich

Alannah Grant

Gold and Second in NZ Pasta Silver Team Challenge

Chloe Ashton

Gold in Pasta Silver in Soup

Next Brenna Lee and Alannah Grant compete in the Vegetables.co.nz Challenge in Auckland on the 29th August. We wish them all the very best.

Sea Week Poetry Competition Alexi Neville (Y10) recently placed 2nd in the Secondary School Section of the Sea-week Poetry Writing Competition 8th June

Week - Healthy Seas, Healthy People Before and After Colourful clouds of coral, alive Just out of the sunlight’s grasp Beneath the sapphire sea Lights from fishing trawlers Making underwater aurora Australis A beautiful calmness beneath the roaring waves Until Black clouds of coral, dead Where no sunlight ever reaches Beneath the charcoal sea Deep endless lifeless blackness Like a maze with no escape Suffocating silence underneath the rolling sea Unless

Only footprints litter the sand Where rubbish no longer reigns Nets stop swooping down into the deep No plastic swimming free Trading ships stop giving ‘riches’ for free No gift for the deep black sea Surely We must help Realise our mistakes Fix our wrongs Now it's not too late Before the fish are gone and we have no life Before the big black sea Is completely void Toiora te moana Toiora te tangata Healthy seas Healthy people

Year 12 Oral Language Competition Dramatic Monologue

This competition saw seven students, one representing each 12ENG class, perform the dramatic monologues they had written based on their class text. The audience were variously moved, inspired, and horrified as they met: a frightening Old Nick (Selena Porter ) and a brave Ma (Jane Maa) from ‘Room’ by Emma Donoghue; a guilt-ridden Mayella Ewell (Terina Wardley) from Harper Lee’s ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’; the indomitable Jeffrey Lu (Pitchaya Tangtanawirut) from ‘Jasper Jones’ by Craig Silvey; and ‘desperate housewife’ Emilia (Kiran Pannu), and two modern versions of Bianca (Jess Dean and Serena Rowe) from Shakespeare’s ‘Othello’. The high standard made for a fiendishly difficult decision for judges Amy Edwards and Jess Radich. Congratulations to Terina, the winner!

Manaaki Learning Support For Exams Starting in Week 2, we will be offering exam support sessions for our senior students in the Te Reo classroom (R2) after school on Thursdays from 3.30-5. This is in addition to the services currently offered by the Homework Centre in the school library. For the first few weeks, our focus will be solely on essay writing skills, using the structure of the marae to help students understand how to write essays with structure and depth. Teachers will be on-site to help. Warm drinks and a light kai to keep students fuelled will be available. If you would like additional support with essay writing in a way that links to the culture of the marae, please come along.

Languages Week During Languages Week girls were able to enjoy many different language-related experiences including the annual M&M and chopsticks competition, les boules, Māori games and bashing a Mexican piñata.

Maline van der Ven, Year 10 Winner of Languages Poster Competition

PASIFIKA

The NGHS Pasifika dance group wowed spectators during a dance performance at the Bluff Hill Bowls club for a South Pacific themed night during the recent school holidays.

SPORTING ACHIEVEMENTS HOCKEY

Rileigh Knapp and Kaitlin Cotter were members of the Central Hockey representative team that returned with GOLD from the 2017 Vantage National Under 18 Women's Hockey Tournament, held in Whangarei during the first week of the recent holidays. The two NGHS 1st XI team members joined players from Whanganui, Taranaki, Horowhenua, Manawatu, and Hawke's Bay to take the Central team through the tournament undefeated. Victories over Northland, Midlands, Canterbury, North Harbour and Auckland culminated with a decisive 4 - 1 win over Canterbury in the final. Both girls contributed to the success in contrasting ways. Kaitlin scored 3 goals as part of the Central attack that amassed a total of 23 and at the other end Rileigh, in the defence, limited the opposition to a total of 7 throughout the tournament. Congratulations girls!

MORE HOCKEY

Napier Girls’ High School was very lucky to have the opportunity to play a Hockey match against a touring Argentinian U16 side from St John’s School, which is located near Buenos Aires. We fielded an U16 team comprising of girls invited from our 1st and 2nd XIs. The game was played at fast pace and with grit by both sides and ended in a 1 – 1 draw. The exchange concluded with afternoon tea back at school where the girls mingled and chatted, learning a little about each other’s culture. Well done and thank you to all involved.

ORIENTEERING

Well done to our Orienteering team of 23 girls, who over the holidays competed at the New Zealand Secondary School Orienteering Championships in the Wairarapa. Napier Girls finished 3rd overall in the Top School Competition, with excellent individual placings by Carolyn Nel (3rd and 6th in the Senior Championship grade), with Hannah Rawnsley and Emily Dunn placing 1st and 3rd in the Standard grade, Rosie Burns 3rd in Juniors, along with several top 10 finishes for NGHS from both divisions. Napier Girls placed 2nd overall school in the Relay Championship, with a very strong Senior Girls team who came 2nd, and a promising Junior team who just finished off the podium. Well done to Carolyne Nel for her selection into the New Zealand Secondary Schools team!

BASKETBALL

In the second week of the holidays Melika Samia, Janaya Preece, Amelia Swann, Chalee Whuinui and Maia Young Pomana represented Hawke’s Bay in the U15 girls Basketball team at the Nationals Championships in Dunedin. Their team placed 7th and Melika Samia was named in the National Tournament team.

BADMINTON

Congratulations to Toni Austin and Lola Gibbs who were both selected for the Hawke’s Bay Under 17 Badminton team to play in the national teams event held over the holidays.

NETBALL

The HB Under 19 team that included NGHS students Briana Stephenson and Jaydi Taylor-Chaffey competed at the Nationals in Wellington. They had some good games and even got to play against the visiting team from England. They finished in 16th place with a nail biting 45-44 loss against Nelson in their last game. The HB Under 15 team that included Kiah McCorkindale, Janaya Preece, Shyan Murpy, Angel Tehiko, Parris Petera, Ashleigh Poi, Brianna Lee and Charlotte Turner competed in Taranaki at their National Tournament and finished 10th. Well done!

INTERNATIONAL NEWS We welcome seven new Internationals this term. From China, we have Lijun Fang and Zeyu (Yvonne) Jin. We have Hei Tung (Koby) Tsang from Hong Kong and Mana Hattori from Japan. We also welcome Paula Dietz, Isabelle Muempfer and Chiara Volkmar from Germany. A special thank you to the International buddies who have done a great job of helping our new girls of the “White and Blue” settle into school life. Our Year 12 and 13 students enjoyed the glamour of the school ball held last Friday night. As can be seen, the girls looked stunning in their ball dresses. Two of our International students joined the New Caledonia French trip with 25 other Napier Girls’ High School students and teachers Mr Otto, Mrs Brondel and Mrs van der Linden. Kendra Benkendorf and Clara Ortin from Germany, (pictured with Mrs van der Linden), enjoyed a taste of a French-speaking South Pacific Island for twelve days during the school holidays.

Ana van der Linden, International Dean

Hillary Outdoor Education The Hillary Outdoors trip was an amazing experience that 20 lucky Year 11 students were able to attend during the last week of Term 2. The five night trip was filled with team building activities, decision making, facing fears, and stepping out of your comfort zone. I was one of the twenty girls who attended and was in Group 6. In groups of 10, we shared chalets (Group 6 winning cleanest chalet) and stayed in these groups for daily activities which included caving, canoeing, tramping, abseiling and many other exciting journeys. Every day began at 7:30 am unless your group was on breakfast duty. We were accompanied by another school, a group of Year 9 students, who made the experience a lot more interesting. We would head back to our chalet after breakfast and eagerly pack for our day (local or activity). If you were local you would stay around the site, whereas activity days were out and about. With new friendships forming and new leadership skills showing, everyone was able to take something away from this trip. I would definitely recommend everyone to give it a go if you are given the chance to do so, as you learn that above all, life is a funfilled adventure. Zoe Wood, Year 11

Subject Information Evening Year 10, 11 and 12 students and their parents/caregivers are invited to a Subject Information evening from 4.00-6.00pm on Wednesday, 9 August. This is an opportunity for students and whanau to talk to teachers from each Learning Area, as well as members of the Future Focus team, and learn more about subjects offered and what they might lead to. Subject Selection for 2018: All students currently in Year 10, 11 and 12 will receive a course booklet detailing subjects available. They will each have an interview with a senior member of staff between Week 5 and Week 8. This is to help students select a suitable range of subjects for 2018. Following this interview, students will take home their completed form to discuss this information with their parents and caregivers. This form must be signed by a parent or caregiver and returned to school by the date indicated on the form. If you have any questions about this process, please email [email protected].

SPORTS AND CULTURAL PHOTOGRAPHS

Photographs of students in top school sports teams and cultural and service groups will be taken at the school on Monday, 18 September.

CAREERS UPDATE A number of Year 12 and 13 students and parents attended the Massey University (Manawatu) Open Day on Wednesday 2nd August. The students enjoyed exploring their future options on campus. Students who attended the open day now have a greater insight into particular programmes and courses, accommodation, and student life. A big thank you to the PTA for funding this trip. Most scholarships websites are now open and it is important that students are proactive and organised in order to reap the benefits. Year 13 students have been busy applying for their halls of residence. Most universities opened their accommodation portals on the 1st August, 2017. We have all the universities and EIT visiting school this term. We encourage students to attend these sessions to help with their course planning in 2018.

Mrs C Johnson - Careers Advisor TERTIARY OPEN DAYS

Tertiary open days give students and parents the opportunity to explore the campus and experience first-hand what the tertiary environment is like. You are invited to visit special displays and presentations and explore the various facilities students use. We strongly recommend that the students go to the tertiary open days as it is an important part of the decision making process. See below for the dates of the University open days this year: 8 August - EIT Year 13 Experience It Day (For students looking to study a Bachelor’s degree with EIT in 2018) 12 August - Massey University – Auckland 1 September - Massey University – Wellington 1 September - Victoria University 2 September - Auckland University 2 September - Auckland University of Technology

YEAR 10 FUTURE FOCUS

On Friday 28th July, Year 10 participated in a Future Focus morning. The purpose of the morning was to give students the opportunity to think about possible areas of interest for future career paths. The areas of interest were: Science, Animals and Engineering, Health, Tourism and Travel, Art and Design, Media, Law and Protection, Sport and Leisure, Business, Armed Forces and Education. 30 presenters came in from the community to inform our students about what their job involves. We were delighted to see the level of interest and engagement at the various sessions, and on speaking to a number of students afterwards, the feedback was most positive.

RIGHT SUBJECT CHOICE KEY TO CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

Subject selection for Year 10, 11 and 12 is fast approaching and with so many careers on offer, it is a difficult process for young people. Mark Wardle believes that the three simple steps below will help guide a career decision: Step 1: Check current status Step 2: Explore subject choices Step 3: Create a subject choice action plan Click the link below for the full article and for more information on the three steps: https://www.careers.govt.nz/articles/right-subject-choice-key-to-career-opportunities/

WORK EXPERIENCE

At the end of last term, I went out on work experience with an Agri Manager from Ravensdown. This was a really great day for me. I wanted a bit of guidance to whether I should proceed in a career in that field before commencing a degree in Agriculture Science. While out with Wade, we went to a range of different farms in the Crownthorpe and Patoka area. Here I was able to do soil tests and a herbage test and learnt what can be found out with just a look of an eye. This hands on experience and knowledge has allowed me to realise that I am heading in the right direction. I learnt that not only will I be working out in the field with farmers deciding what is the correct fertiliser to use and what crop to put in but I would also be able to help them decide on future plans for areas of their farm and how that can increase profits by changing some practises they use. By Maddie Drew

School Derived Grade Examinations These examinations will take place from Friday 25 August through to Friday 1 September 2017. These examinations are very important as they will be used for the Derived Grade Process for the NZQA examinations at the end of the year. A student may apply for a derived grade if they: • Attend an NZQA external examination session and consider their performance has been significantly impaired for an approved reason. • Have been unable to attend an examination for an approved reason. • Have been unable to submit a completed portfolio (Design and Visual Communication, Technology, Level 3 Education for Sustainability or Level 3 Visual Arts) for an approved reason. • Have been selected for national representation in a sport or approved activity. This is a pre-approval process. See your school’s Principal’s Nominee for a pre-approval form. Schools in recent years have had to also use the derived grade process when natural disasters occur and students are unable to sit examinations. Any student who is absent for an examination must provide a doctor’s certificate. These examinations provide essential preparation for external examinations. Please stress to your daughter the importance of the School Derived Grade Examination and encourage her to prepare fully for these examinations. If you have any questions about the process, please feel free to contact me at school.

Suzanne Downs

NZQA Principal’s Nominee

Preparation for NCEA Preparation for NCEA External Examinations Most senior courses will finish timetabled classes on Friday 3 November. This gives students some time to finish their preparation for NCEA examinations which begin on Thursday 9 November. Students may be required to work at school after their timetabled classes finish. This will include any student whose performance indicates she is at risk of not achieving in external examinations as well as any student who has class work to complete.

Term Dates and Holidays 2018 The school year is divided into four terms. These are the term dates and holidays for 2018. TERM DATES Term 1: Wednesday 31 January – Friday 13 April Term 2: Monday 30 April – Friday 6 July Term 3: Monday 23 July – Friday 28 September Term 4: Monday 15 October – Friday 14 December HOLIDAYS School will be closed in 2018 on Saturdays and Sundays and the following public holidays: Waitangi Day: Monday 5 February, Tuesday 6 February Good Friday, 30 March Easter Monday, 2 April Easter Tuesday, 3 April Anzac Day, Monday 25 April (in school holidays) Queen’s Birthday weekend, Friday 1 June Queen’s Birthday, Monday 4 June Anniversary Day, Friday 19 October Labour Day, Monday 22 October