The right way to compete and looking ahead to term 3

With the start of another exciting term I wish to reflect on one of many outstanding achievements last term. At our Champions’ Assembly we acknowledged the remarkable achievement of our athletes who attended a Sports Camp in Matamata. For the first time in the history of the camp one school received unanimous votes for the Sportsmanship Trophy. That school was MHJC and we bask in the reflected honour the trophy brings to us. Credit to the students, their parents, coaches and managers who have shown the right reasons for playing sport – to develop resilience, win with grace, lose with dignity, compete with all we have got to give and enjoy the game.

 

I am sure the athletes competing at AIMS Games later this term will bring similar honour to the school and we look forward to their achievements as have the many winter sports teams who have represented the school so well.

 

We are also very excited to present the musical “Back to the 80’s” in week 3 this term. Cast, crew and staff have been working hard since the start of the year to produce a polished and professional performance which will showcase the acting, singing and dancing talents of our students.

 

Inter Whanau Cross Country, Mathex and the first MHJC School Haka Performance (by each whanau) plus many other activities along with engaging learning contexts will all make for a busy term.

 

Growing greatness – Kia mana ake!

Futsal Winning Team Impressive!

Breaking news! MHJC’s SEZ Futsal team impressed with outstanding teamwork, application of feedback and tactical play today, beating Farm Cove Intermediate 5-1 in the final, at Sancta Maria College.

Congratualtions to Mr Nutt and our boys for their tournament win. The team was: Brenan Naidu 8M1, Xiao Rui Lin 8M1, Lucas Sue 7M2, Lachlan Hendry 8C2, Luke Jefta 7W2, Daivik Naidu 8M1, Ishveer Singh 7C2.

Talking About Living Through the War

Yr 10 History students host World War veterans from The Bruce McLaren Retirement Village.

The students have been learning about the origins of World War I & II. Today they hosted Milton and Bill from Bruce McLaren and both gentlemen shared their experiences and memories, from when they were 14 years old during WWII – in Auckland and in England. The stories were a mix of sad and funny and the students came away with a deeper understanding of living through those times. We thank both men for taking the time out to enlighten our young people.

Working Hard During Time Off Pays Off!

Congratulations to our winners of the 2018 Chinese Bridge Speech Competition Auckland region! Nikhilesh Prasad (9W2) won the second prize and Arushi Suneel (10C1) won third prize.

This is the best result for our school in this prestigious annual competition. We had previously won merit prizes.

Although these two students are not currently studying Mandarin, they used their holidays to draft their speeches and used their spare time to practise strenuously. All their hard work has paid off!

Singapore Young Leaders Convention

Earlier this month, 12 Year 10 students from Mission Heights Junior College, flew to Singapore to participate in the Hwa Chong Institute’s 24th Young Leaders Convention. This year’s theme, Media – Connecting the Dots, investigated the role various aspects of the media play in our digitalised world. The annual convention also aims to forge strong bonds across international borders between future leaders.

Held in Singapore – the site of the heads of Government G8 Summit a week later – many of the students said the experience enabled them to discover new cultures, grasp new concepts, ideas, values and practices and learn how to put these into action.

Probably the most significant personal achievement for the group was the ability to exercise their leadership skills in a foreign and challenging environment. The convention allowed them to share their knowledge and experiences among their international peers as well as identify relevant issues occurring in the digitalised world.

The MHJC team were asked how this convention has affected or changed how they will conduct future group planning and mentoring. All agreed it has enriched the notion of “think global and act local” and they are excited about their own upcoming MHJC Student Leaders’ Convention in September. They now have a solid foundation and a framework to build on.

The students were able to forge strong friendships with other delegates and intend to stay connected. All came away from the convention with a myriad of new ideas and concepts to integrate at Mission Heights Junior College as well as fond memories of their visit to Singapore’s tourist attractions.

The MHJC team were asked how this convention has affected or changed how they will conduct future group planning and mentoring. All agreed it has enriched the notion of “think global and act local” and they are excited about their own upcoming MHJC Student Leaders’ Convention in September. They now have a solid foundation and a framework to build on.

The students were able to forge strong friendships with other delegates and intend to stay connected. All came away from the convention with a myriad of new ideas and concepts to integrate at Mission Heights Junior College as well as fond memories of their visit to Singapore’s tourist attractions.

For one MHJC student the week was even more memorable after receiving a very special award out of the 400 attendees:

“MHJC was honoured to receive the accolade of one of its students, Harjot Singh Dharni being voted the Best Delegate of the conference. The award is presented to one student who has best displayed qualities of enthusiasm, teamwork and passion for all the activities and contributed to the spirit of unity and collaboration. – MHJC Principal, Ian Morrison.

Caption: Harjot Singh Dharni receives his Best Delegate 2018 Certificate

 

Travelwise – safety around schools

There has been some publicity recently about safety concerns relating to parents dropping and picking up their children at local schools. While we appreciate the high number of our parents who ensure their and other children are safe during these busy times it is worth reminding everyone of some basic advice and road traffic laws. While we seek to educate and inform parents and students, at times the police may have to enforce road rules and we will cooperate with them should the need arise.

It is important for me to remind parents that students are expected to be at school at 8.15 and interestingly this is not a busy time for students to be dropped if they have to be.

Do’s

  1. Encourage your child to walk, cycle or scooter to school – this is a healthy option and would reduce the traffic congestion currently experienced around the school (remember helmets!);
  2. If the walk to and from home is too far, try dropping or picking up your child a few minutes away from the school – this will have a similar positive benefit. There are several viable options for you to drop off: along Norwood Drive on the approach to Jeffs Road, in access roads to Valderama Drive or along Valderama Drive near the Staff Entrance (not at the crossing!);
  3. Try a lift club with a friend – that would halve the number of vehicles at peak times;
  4. Respect and exercise extreme caution near the level crossing – our students and duty staff as well as the students and parents crossing are at risk here and need your complete focus and attention;
  5. Do not worry about your child being late – it is better s/he arrives safely than being involved in or causing an accident.

Dont’s

During one week earlier this term teachers provided me with photographic evidence of some parents transgressing road traffic laws and putting their and other children in danger. Examples are including in this list:

  1. Stop or park illegally – stopping in the bus bay and over the no-stopping yellow lines is illegal;
  2. Let your child out of the car in the middle of the road (on any side of the car);
  3. Double park;
  4. Drive over the speed limit – particularly between 8.15 – 8.40 a.m. and 3 – 3.30 p.m.

I would also advise that you work with your child regarding punctuality which is an important life-skill and indicates a high degree of self-management necessary for success. In most cases the excuse we are given for students being late to school is that they overslept or the traffic was heavy that morning. Tough love and an alarm clock in the first instance as well as sorting out what is needed the night before and leaving a few minutes early to arrive at 8.15 is my quick and easy advice.

Our Travelwise team will continue its positive work with students regarding exercising safe and healthy choices about travelling to and from school. It will also be working with the local police when necessary to ensure that everyone contributes to a safe environment for our students.

Growing greatness – Kia mana ake!

Collaboration in Flat Bush

Tuesday 5 June, 2018 was an important day in the history of the seven schools that serve the Flat Bush Community. The Principals agreed to the day being an opportunity for the teaching and support staff to come together and share their journeys, innovative practice and inquiry. We started the day with an inspiring speaker – Kaila Colbin who spoke about the new educational landscape we are entering which fitted well with the rest of the day as we presented or attended presentations from every school which reflected the future-focused ethos we all share.

This was an important opportunity for us to learn more about how we all  deliver the curriculum in exciting ways which engage the students in our care. Importantly an insight into our contributing schools’ programmes will help us to transition students into MHJC as well as support students as they transition to Ormiston Senior College.

We return to our schools with new learning, new connections and new commitment to our vision: “Growing greatness through innovative, constantly evolving personalised learning”.

Applications Open: Y9 OPC Hillary Outdoors Trip

Are you interested in participating in a week-long Outdoor Education trip that promises adventure and new experiences? Well then, this opportunity is for you!

OPC 2018 is a week long Outdoor Education trip taking place in Tongariro National Park.You will go caving, skiing/snowboarding, abseiling and so much more. It is an incredible opportunity to push beyond your comfort zone and experience all that the New Zealand winter has to offer.

When: 
Depart Sunday, September 23rd (12:00 noon).
Return Friday, September 28th (after 18:00).

Where:
Hillary Outdoors Education Centre – http://www.hillaryoutdoors.co.nz/

Activities:
Some of the activities include:
Low-ropes course, high ropes course, team building games, abseiling, skiing/snowboarding, caving, tramping, overnight expedition. These activities will be taught and supervised by experienced, fully qualified instructors.

If you are interested in joining this awesome trip, please read the details in the email that has been sent to your school account, then ‘Turn In’ a letter of application with the below information to our OPC Google Classroom page (class code to join is jr1xg1d) by Wednesday, May 30th at 16:00.

Your application letter must include the following:
• Why you want to attend OPC 2018.
• What you will gain from OPC 2018.
• How active you are/your ability to partake in active endeavours.
• Parental approval/signature

Click below to see Programme and Activites:

Tongariro Activities Sample 5-Day Programme

Tongariro Activities

Kind regards,

Mr Dino Gardi, PE and Health Teacher, Forest Whanau
dgardi@mhjc.school.nz

Young Leaders Convention, Singapore

Our globally connected learners are currently at the Hwa Chong Institution in Singapore to contribute to the 24th Young Leaders Convention.

Harjot Singh Dharni; Kyle Anderson; Aditya Nair; Anav Ramsing; Paul Chan; Victoria Kree; Ayushi Narayan; Annie Man; Henrik Hout; Kashvi Vij; Aathif Mobin Basha; Kathleen Tieu and Ronak Lal (supported by Mrs Neelam Taneja and Mr Tashi Hishey) have enjoyed their adventures at Universal Studios, Sentosa Island, Garden by the Bay, and ‘ice-breaker’ + scenario challenges at Hwa Chong, with students from a host of other countries.

We wish the group safe travels as we look forward to their arrival back to Auckland airport at 10:25pm on Saturday evening. 🌏

Greening Auckland with ‘Million Trees’ Programme

On Wednesday 30th May 7M1 & 7M2 traveled to the Puhinui Stream to move and plant 1200 native trees, plants and shrubs as part of their learning about biodiversity. The plants were provided courtesy of the Auckland Council’s ‘Million Trees’ programme.

‘Million Trees’ is a programme for greening Auckland that will plant a million trees and shrubs, mostly native, across the region over three years. The programme will green our city, offset carbon emissions, protect our water quality by planting along rivers and coastlines and improve our living environment.

Students not only learned more about bio-diversity by taking part in this hands-on EOTC experience but by working as a 50+ person human chain – to transport the plants from the top of the reserve to the planting location – they demonstrated great teamwork and communication skills!

Ka Rawe Mountains Year 7’s, we are very proud of you and your service to our community!

The home of Mission Heights Junior College, Auckland, New Zealand