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Free Holiday Programme
WaterSafe Auckland are running a free holiday programme for 14-17 year olds at The Olympic Pools in Newmarket. Activities include learn to swim/improve your swimming fitness; water safety activities and fitness classes including zumba; pump class; boxing for fitness; and boot camp style workouts. Dates for this are 9th to the 13th January 10am to 2pm/
Water Sport Mania
What a fun action packed time all the students and teachers had on Water Sport Mania, as part of Wider Education.Activities involved learning to windsurf, kayak, paddle boat and for the extra adventurous, Jet skiing and Banana boating. We would love to thank Anton from Mission Bay water sports and Ryan the Jet ski instructor who provided hours of entertainment and learning for Mt Roskill Students. We will be back for year number 11 in 2012.
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MRGS Music - Busy November with Junior Groups
We are proud of our MRGS Juniors who started learning to play brass and woodwind this year. Already they are playing well and have been over to the Intermediate and Primary schools performing their pieces. Thanks to tireless work from Miss Steedman and Miss Dekker we have students learning a huge range of instruments which now include Euphonium, Tuba, French Horn, Trombone, Oboe, Bassoon, Cornet, Bass Clarinet, Alto Clarinet, Tenor and Baritone Sax in addition to the usual Trumpet, Flute, Clarinet, Saxophones, Strings and Percussion. We look forward to 2012 with great expectations!
Uniform Shop has Moved
The uniform shop has moved. The new location is at the MRGS Gate 3 car park, Frost Road. The shop will reopen on Friday 25th November 8 – 9am, 3 – 4pm, Monday 5th December 8 – 10am, 2.30 – 4pm, then Tuesday 6th and Wednesday 7th December 8.00 – 9.00am and 3.00 - 4.00pm. The shop will reopen in the New Year on Tuesday 17th January. Check the MRGS website for 2012 opening days and times. This information will also be published in the Central Leader.
Peace Week
Last term was full of many highlights. One of them was Peace Week. This is run by the School Mediators with the support of the Body Image Leaders and the Peer Sexuality Support People. This year along with the usual activities of face painting, peace ribbons, peace quotes competition, peace assembly presentation, peace T-shirts and Peace with Your Body Day, the Mediators included four new initiatives. Instead of the Mediators creating the Peace Banner students and staff were given the opportunity to create a School Peace Banner by writing their own messages of love and peace. Two Random Acts of Kindness boxes were set up, one for staff and one for students. Many students and staff acknowledged each other for their acts of kindness and these were in turn rewarded by the Mediators. The Mediators also held a sausage sizzle and raised $140 for Amnesty International. The final event of the week was our Peace Walk into the Roskill community. This was an amazing celebration of love, peace, positivity and unity.
Science Fair
Congratulations to our young scientists for putting so much work into some great Science Fair 2011 projects.
Finalists in the Mt Roskill Grammar competition were:
Korine Rosarine, Alfred Reuben, Hugh Huang, Vilia Li, Chloe Haigh, Vanessa Thong, Jairaj Modak, Abin Thomas, Ayushi Pillai, Joel Raichur, Scott Caldwell, Balu Mallela.
Winners in the Auckland wide science competition were:
- Jairaj Modak, Year 9, “The Most Aerodynamic Building” 1st place Physical World Y9-10
- Shreya Handa, Year 13, “Cosmetic Controversies” 3rd place Senior Science
Shreya’s project also won the following prizes: Silver Award, Dairy NZ Excellence in Biological Science Silver Award, University of Auckland Faculty of Science, Junior Scientist Award. Nomination to Royal Society of New Zealand “Realise the Dream” competition.
Japanese Speech Festival
Congratulations to Veronica Lumauig who took part in the recent Japanese Speech Festival. Veronica gave a dynamic and humorous speech about her life in the Philippines and the huge adjustments she had to make upon her arrival in New Zealand. Her speech won over the judges and she was awarded second prize in the Year 11 category.
Duke of Edinburgh
On Sunday 30th of October, some of our Duke Of Edinburgh Group went to Motutapu to join the Weed Eradication Programme. They were Abdur Saeed, Fahad Ali, Mahamed Aden, Diini Isse, Saqawe Isse, David Aung and Jack Chu. Working on a slope best suited to goats, the boys worked very hard, earning the praise of the coordinators. In particular, Jack was ‘a machine’ according to the other people there.
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13APY Kayaking
Week one of term four all year 13 Applied Physical Education were completing a Unit Standard on Kayaking.
They had practised in the school pool all the skills and rescues they needed to do before venturing out to Lake Pupuke and to Takapuna Beach to perform these new found skills which had to be performed in moving water.
Day 3 they expanded their water skills and learn windsurfing, stand up paddle board and sailing.
Mr McKenzie and Mrs Bennett were very proud of the process made by all students. Their confidence and skills improved a great deal throughout the module.
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Language Perfect World Champs
2011 Language Perfect World Championships
Well done to our amazing MRGS pupils!
80,000 pupils + 1,000 schools + 11 countries + 36 million questions answered!
Mt Roskill Grammar participated in this Worldwide Languages Competition by internet and gained the following impressive results:
* 5th school in World overall (2nd in New Zealand)
* 2nd school in World for French (Top in New Zealand)
* 9th school in World for Japanese
* 12th school in World for Maori
* 1st school in World for schools entering between 251-500 pupils
* 39 Gold Medallists (3,000+ points)
* 12 Silver Medallists (2,000+ points)
* 45 Bronze medallists (1,000+ points)
* 42 Excellence Certificates (500+ points)
Ziwei Zhuang of 902 was not only a Gold Medallist for Japanese, but she won the top prize in the whole competition – a 32GB iPod Touch!!
Padmini Nunna of Y11 French gained 2nd place in the World for French, 13th place overall, with a staggering 16,802 points! Well done Padmini!
Next year’s competition dates are out: 21-31 May 2012 – Cost = $5, please see www.languageperfect.co.nz
MRGS Gold Medallists are: Padmini Nunna, Venkat Prakash, Emma Bos, Karen Dias, Ally Graves, Pauline Najoan, Pooja Patel, Jiantao Shen, Krithika Prahallad, Srishaa Iyer, Ilaisaane Mafi, Miriam Albadrawi, Shilpan Patel, Jenny Lee, Vanessa Wang, Emman Rahimi, Anandita Umapathy, Alice Ng, Cindy Ou, Diana Qiu, Soo Ling Tran, Roza Ridwan, Pebble Varela, Rachel Fan, Gandhar Paranjape, Angie Sun, Rachel Sun, Abhay Vaidya, Ziwei Zhuang, Daniel Christev, Ishank Sharma, Benny Chun, Jordan Chen, Gary Zhang, Mildred Wong, Aimee Matthews, Linda Zhou, Rayner Rebello, Theodore Loretz
Alliance Française Competition
2011 Alliance Française French Speaking Competition for Auckland Region:
- Year 13: 4th Audrey Tay
- Year 12: 2nd Taina Puloka
- Excellent Ayesha Nadat
- Très Bien Shilpan Patel, Roza Ridwan
- Bien Hannah Yang, Arnab Sen, Daniel Christev
- Assez Bien / Encouragement Grace Wang, Meghna Shelke
Room changes/bell times for juniors during exams
During the senior exam period (5th-13th September) there are scheduled room changes and a different routine for bell times during the day. Temporary bell times are listed underneath and room changes are provided in the PDF document available for download below.
Bell Times Monday 5th Sept – Tuesday 13th Sept
- Form Period: 8.40
- Period 1: 8.50–9.50
- Interval: 9.50–10.10
- Period 2: 10.10 –11.10
- Period 3: 11.10–12.10
- Lunch: 12.10–1.00
- No SSR
- Period 4: 1.00–2.00
- Period 5: 2.00–3.00
Rotation
- Tuesday 6th Sept: 3-1
- Friday 9th Sept: 3-1
- Tuesday 13th Sept: 4-2
n.b. 8.40am Start time on Wednesday. No assemblies or SSR during exam period
Gateway
What a great success Gateway has been in 2011!
PJ Automotive, Strachan Group Architects, The Warehouse Balmoral, Farmers St Lukes, St Patricks Resthome & Hospital, YMCA Mt Albert, McDonalds Royal Oak, Lynmall and St Lukes, New World Mt Roskill and Green Bay, Wiri Timber, Woodstar, Richardson Road Care Chemist, Mt Roskill Primary School, Westpac and Axis Projects.
Thirty students from Year 13 have been successfully placed in various work experience opportunities including banking, automotive, architecture, retail, sports and recreation, healthcare, building, education, food and hospitality and pharmaceutical.
We would like to say a huge thank you to all those employers who took these students on for work experience. We are now looking towards 2012. We will open applications for Year 13 students to the Gateway Programme early in Term One.
ATTENTION EMPLOYERS!!! If you would like to offer a life changing work experience opportunity for a Year 13 student in your company in 2012, we would love to hear from you!! Please contact Luen Matthews-Ward on 621 0050 x847 or email her on luenmw@mrgs.school.nz.
What some Students had to say!
- “Taking up the Gateway programme has been one of the highlights of my school year. It has shown me the real life possibilities of my trade, plus it is fun”. Sheik (Woodstar)
- “I got to find out if this is the kind of industry I want to carry on with in the future. It was an unforgettable experience”. David (PJ Automotive)
- “One of the best things that has ever happened in our lives”
Japanese Speech Festival
On the 20th August two students from MRGS took part in the Auckland Regional Japanese Secondary School Speech Festival run by AUT. Veronica Lumauig of Year 11 came second in her level and Isaac Chen Year 13 came fourth in his. It was a great effort on the part of both students as they had very little time to prepare.
ICAS Computing Exam Results
Pleasing results were gained by Year 9 and 10 students sitting this optional assessment in May. Congratulations go to the following students for gaining Distinction. These results place them in the top 5% of results in New Zealand.
Year 9
Year 10
- Saviduruu Mohan
- Aaron Wong
- Victor Xie
Health Curriculum Consultation
Every two years, Mount Roskill Grammar School conducts a community consultation on our Health Curriculum. Health is compulsory in the NZ Curriculum for Years 9 and 10 and can now be chosen as an NCEA subject in Year 11, 12 and 13. Health has an important role in the New Zealand Curriculum, teaching our students life long skills and knowledge.
The MRGS Community Health Consultation will take place from now until the 12th September 2011. This year we have made it very quick and simple to complete; an online survey that will only take a few minutes of your time. The survey is anonymous and we value your input and look forward to receiving your feedback.
Please click on the link to go directly to the survey Health Curriculum Survey
If you cannot access the survey online, paper copies are available from the school office.
A copy of the MRGS Junior Health Curriculum outline is available on the school website. Click here
Health Week
In the second week of term three the Student Health Council ran Health Week at school. This has become an annual event to promote the importance of health and well being of students and their families. On Tuesday lunchtime a Zumba class was held and was enjoyed by lots of participating students. On Wednesday at lunchtime Lynfield Recreational Centre and Cameron Pools came into school to promote fitness and swimming. Students were able to try out equipment supplied by the gym and took part in a “Tug of War”.
Thursday saw the Health Week “main events” with the year 9 “Big Breakfast” that took place in the hall for some lucky year nine classes and their teachers. This was held to raise awareness of the importance of eating breakfast and was a fun event as well as having a health message. There were prizes and give aways and lots of students and teachers joined in the fun events. At lunchtime the Health Expo was held in the hall. There were lots of groups from school such as PSSP and Interact. The School Health Council also had a stand with quizzes, prizes and give aways. Lots of outside agencies also attended. Some of these were the Police, Heart Foundation, Youthline, Mt Albert YMCA and Auckland Watersafe.
Our thanks to everyone who took part in Health Week- agencies, sponsors, students and school staff, as well as the Student Health Council and School Nurses.
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Campus Music Concert
For the third year the three schools on the campus; Grammar, Intermediate, and Primary, took part in a full evening of musical performances in the Grammar School hall. The event was opened by the Grammar School Kapa Haka group and pieces were performed by the MRPS orchestra, the MRGS concert band, the MRIS orchestra, the MRPS ukulele group. Choral, string orchestral and jazz ensembles also entertained the large and appreciative audience. The evening’s music culminated in a sing-along combined performance of ‘Proud Mary’. There were many positive comments by those attending and acknowledgement of the work of students and staff to create such a marvellous evening: another example of the MERGE campus co-ordinated ventures.
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Open Day
The school held a successful Open Day on Tuesday 5th July when parents of students who are intending to enrol at Mount Roskill Grammar in 2012 were able to listen to an introduction to the school, visit classrooms displays and speak with staff. School prefects were guides for the evening and it was a great opportunity for our community to see much of the work we do in teaching and learning.
College Herald
Roskill Writers in Print Again!
Once each week, The New Zealand herald publishes a ‘College Herald’ section which is made up from articles, pictures, even cartoons that are created solely by Auckland secondary school students. These chosen pieces are representative of the best writing on topical issues in our schools. On a number of occasions in the past MRGS has had student submissions chosen but this term three of our students Shilpan Patel, Karyn Dasgupta and Nigaah Khan have had articles published and Nigaah has received a special award after having a second article appear. It is encouraging to see the writing of our students reaching such a professional level and being enjoyed by fellow students as well as the reading public of Auckland.
Māori Language Week
Māori Language Week took place from the 4th to the 10th July. Every year since 1975 New Zealand has marked Māori Language Week. This is a time for all New Zealanders to celebrate te reo Māori (the Maori language) and to use Māori phrases in everyday life. This year the theme was Manaakitanga – how we make people feel welcome when they are in our company, and how we give regard to and care for others when we are hosts. During the week MRGS challenged its kaiako (teachers) to show their students elements of manaakitanga during class. Some examples of how teachers did this were by writing the date on the board in te reo and greeting students in Māori as they entered class. The school also held wero (competitions) involving nominating teachers who were using te reo and also locating select Māori phrases that year 13 students had placed in notices around the school. This was a great opportunity to spread our awareness of te reo and make it a part of our daily school life.
Art Award
The award is for a Year 13 student who demonstrates “outstanding commitment and passion for the visual arts and community awareness”. The recipient was Hala Finau. Tautai Contemporary Pacific Arts Trust will also sponsor nominated Pacific heritage students to pursue their Art studies.
Letter to Parents 30th June
30 June 2011
Dear Parents/Caregivers
This letter is to notify you of some changes to normal routine next week and to remind you of forthcoming school events.
Changes to School Routines:
Tuesday 5th July – Open Day – early school finish
School will finish at 2.45pm on Tuesday 5th July. This is to enable the school’s preparation for its Open Day where parents of prospective students for 2012 will have the opportunity to visit the school from 3.30pm until 6.30 pm.
NCEA Teacher Only Day – Friday 8th July
School will be closed for students on Friday 8th July. The school staff will be taking part in Professional Development for the aligned NCEA standards. This is a teacher only day that the Ministry of Education has designated to be used by schools to work on their preparation and consolidation of courses for NCEA next year.
(If any caregivers are unable to provide arrangements for students on this day, the school will have supervision available – in this case please contact Mrs Wills at reception with the details of the student/s.)
Forthcoming Events:
Senior Report Evening Thursday 7th July
Parents and caregivers have the opportunity to meet with staff to discuss senior student reports and progress between 4.00 and 7.00pm. Booking sheets and instructions were sent home with students on Thursday 30th June. An online booking system has been set up for the use of parents – details are given in information issued to parents and are also available by clicking here.
Junior Report Evening Wednesday 13th July
Parents and caregivers have the opportunity to meet with staff to discuss junior student reports and progress between 4.00 and 7.00pm. Booking sheets and instructions were sent home with students on Thursday 30th June. An online booking system has been set up for the use of parents – details are given in information issued to parents and are also available by clicking here.
In addition can I also remind parents that the last day of term two is Friday 15th July.
Yours sincerely
JOHN WILKINSON
ACTING PRINCIPAL
Niu Sila Production
This year our school production was Niu Sila, written by Dave Armstrong and Oscar Kightley. We started our rehearsals mid term 1, and instantly the students connected with the text. It is a very funny story about two boys growing up during the dawn raid era in Ponsonby. It is a journey of them growing together, and forced apart by a changing community. The students have been heavily involved in the process and the final performances were run only by students (acting, technical, management – everything) which is a great feat. Their hard work and beautiful story was performed in week 8 of term 2, to large and appreciative audiences who were very generous with their praise for the production, which we all appreciate. Thank you to the Mt Roskill community for attending Niu Sila, and supporting our budding actors and technical crew. The students have done us very proud and we are so happy to be able to show off their amazing talent. The Performing Arts Department look forward to bringing you a musical in 2012!
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Campus Concert
This Thursday evening we are holding our third annual whole campus music celebration. This event showcases a wide range of groups from Mt Roskill Primary, Intermediate and Grammar Schools, and includes nearly 200 students performing and sharing musical items which they have been working on this year.
6.30pm Thursday 30th June, MRGS Hall. All students, staff, friends and family welcome. Gold coin entry.
Top Scholar Awards
On the 10th of May the ceremony for the New Zealand Scholarship Top Scholar Awards was held at Government House in Wellington. This event celebrated the top students in the New Zealand Scholarship examinations of 2010. Awards were given to students who were top in subjects at the highest level in school examinations and also the top nine candidates – Premier Scholars – with combinations of top in subject, outstanding scholarship and scholarship passes were honoured.
At this ceremony two Mount Roskill students from 2010, William Quach and Jordan Zi were presented with their Premier Scholar medallions by the Governor General The Right Honourable Sir Anand Satyanand. The Prime Minister Mr Key was also present to honour the achievements and spoke individually with our two scholars. Mount Roskill was the only school in New Zealand to have two Premier Scholars and the success of Jordan and William is a fitting reward for their hard work and further evidence of our community‘s commitment to powerful learning. A number of those present including the Minister of Education and the Chief Executive of the New Zealand Qualifications Authority complimented the school on the achievement of our two top students and the consistency of our top performances.
Matariki Celebration
Matariki – Mt Roskill Campus, 8th June - TE Tau Hou
He mihi ténei ki ngā tauira, ngā whānau, ngā kaiako me ngā mema o ngā BOT
Nau mai haere mai ki te whakanui i te tau hou Māori arā ko Matariki.
Ka whakatū ténei hui kei te Mt Roskill Intermediate Hall, a te RāApa 8 o Pípiri. Ka timata a te 5.30pm, ko te tumanako ka mutu a te 7.00pm.
Ka whakaatu atu ngā tamariki o Puketāpapa a rātou momo mahi Māori, hei tautoko hei whakanui i ténei wā tino whakahirahira ki te iwi Māori.
Ténā koa me mauria mai he pereti kai hei whānagai i te whānau
“Nou te rourou, nāku te rourou, ka ora ai te iwi”.
To the students, families, Staff and BOT members
This is an invitation to attend the Mt Roskill Campus Matariki celebration.
- Venue: Mt Roskill Intermediate School Hall
- Date: Wednesday 8th June
- Time: 5.30pm – 7.00pm
The students from the Campus will showcase their work relating to Matariki in support of this very important time of the year.
The three Kapahaka groups will also perform.
Please bring along a plate of food to share.
Wātaka/Agenda
- Opening and Welcome
- MRPS – Kapahaka
- MRGS - Presentation
- MRIS – Kapahaka
- MRPS Presentation
- MRIS – Presentation
- MRGS - Kapahaka
- Matariki Waiata
- Karakia kai
- Kai
ECE Family Day
Family is at the core of Mt Roskill campus life. The Early Childhood Education (ECE) Department held its 10th Family Day on Friday 20th May. For many, attending the ECE Family Day was time well spent. It meant renewing old ties among ex-class mates and building new ones between current students, ex-students and our school family.
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Orange House
Since the new House System started Orange have held the position of ‘first’, ‘winner’ and the best. We are a strong team with a common goal, we are proud of who we are and we currently hold the House Shield. Our winning weapon is to have fun, get involved and stand proud knowing you count.
Our Deans, house captains and committee members meet every two weeks and come up with competitions that make our house different form the others (check out our photo’s showing our newspaper fashion show). There is something really special about cheering on your form class and feeling part of a team.
We challenge the other houses to step up! Come on you lot, what are you waiting for!!
THE BIGGEST FAN OF ORANGE HOUSE
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´Duke of Edinburgh´ Award Sponsorship
A group of 14 boys from African backgrounds have been sponsored to complete their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award. The kind men from Bluelight are assisting them with meeting the requirements. Here is their first community service day, working on the garden of a retired school teacher. They all did well, and are off to the military base in West Auckland on the 23rd May for a week.
Green House Term 1 Blog
Green House began the year with the dominance that we have known to expect from the best House in the school. We were the outright champions in the Swimming Carnival and came second for Athletics. Interhouse hockey was a third and that places us 2nd overall on the points table behind Orange. Our best events are still to come so we are expecting big things during the up coming Touch competition and also the Cross Country in Term 3.
The only reason we are being so successful in these activities is because of the 450 students we have in our House that are so willing to get involved. We recently held our House Captain Vote and are pleased to announce that Warren Duncan and Khyati Sharma are our Senior Captains for the year and Daniel Walls and Eleanor Mulrennan have been voted in as Junior Captains.
The Green House Form Teachers continue to do a superb job supporting our students . They are the first point of contact for both Students and Parents if you have any concerns or issues.
The student committee have plenty of things lined up for the House this term and we look forward to seeing which Form Class will take out the Grand Prize for the ongoing competitions that will be run.
Blue House Term 1 Blog
Blue House has made a rocking start to 2011! Term One has been filled with some AWESOME enthusiasm from everyone in the House. Although we didn’t win Athletics or Swimming Carnival, we showed all the other Houses exactly what we’re made of, showing our amazing team spirit and togetherness. Everyone had fun times getting it on with Blue House and showing our true colours.
Once we got to the real business, with inter house Hockey, our team showed just how competitive we are, reaching the finals undefeated. Unfortunately our Hockey guys and girls couldn’t quite close out the comp, losing narrowly by a penalty shot in extra time to Orange (which was totally UNFAIR! Boo Mr Buckley! Lol!)
We’re now looking forward to an even better Term Two, and starting our charge further back up the House Overall Standings.
Have an awesome holiday Blue!
Himani Bhatia and Simran Sandhu
Mr David Lett
In his 32 years at the school David has fulfilled leadership roles at Middle and Senior management level. His work has always been characterised by tireless and methodical effort and an abiding approach which facilitates learning and service within the Roskill community.
In 1979 he joined Mount Roskill Grammar school as HOD of the Languages Department and during his conscientious stewardship he oversaw the introduction of Japanese as a taught option and the establishment of Classical Studies in our curriculum. He was also instrumental in moving the teaching of his subject from a disparate group of rooms to its present location in the A block and R block area. During the latter year of his tenure as HOD he worked as a Senior Master in a leadership role deputising at senior management level on a number of occasions and gained valuable experience of wider school operations at the same time as running a successful and developing department.
In 1995 he joined the senior team as a Deputy Principal. In his 16 years of leadership he has been the Senior link with a range of departments including Commerce, the MacLean Centre, Food Technology, Performing Arts, Languages, Visual Arts and Physical Education. He has always taken a keen supportive part in their promotion of teaching and learning. He has held a number of portfolios over the years and brought to each of them a meticulous and collaborative approach.
In Community Liaison areas he has managed the presentation, communication and profile of the school with thoroughness and a practised eye to the effective and productive placing of information to give present and prospective students a clear appreciation of Roskill’s qualities. He has been a major mover in successive school prospectuses, advised on updating logos and re-introduced the school’s annual Open Evening which has proved so successful in recent years.
His organisational skills have also been utilised in his work on prizegivings, parent report evenings, jubilee celebrations, community events and the Excellence Awards evenings which have become essential to the school’s honouring of the achievements of its students.
David’s clear sense of the school’s place and responsibilities within the wider community has also seen him forge links with Kiwanis, local traffic safety consultations and an enduring student relationship with catering for the Ronald MacDonald house at Starship hospital.
Other involvements have been his promotion of the school’s cybersafety practice and as a result of that his close working with the Netsafe organisation. As the school’s Principal’s Nominee David set-up the school’s external examination arrangements and ensured that student entries and assessments were accurately reported to NZQA. He was instrumental in this role in supporting the school’s smooth and successful establishment of NCEA and the expanded National Qualifications Framework.
As is typical of the staff at Roskill, David has had an abiding interest and involvement in the extra-curricular life of the school: he has coached girls cricket, supported netball on the coldest of winter mornings, co-managed the 1st XI boys’ soccer team and was, early on in
his career at Roskill, coach of an Auckland championship winning tennis team which boasted amongst its players Brett Stevens.
David’s enduring legacy of service and commitment to the school will be his exhaustive work on Property. He has guided the Development Plan for many years with his oversight of the new buildings of the administration area, the Science and Physics blocks, the new gym complex and T block area, the new C block and the refurbishment of the Commerce area and Year 13 common room. This work has involved many, many hours of meetings, consultations, negotiations and a relentless attention to detail. The presentation of the fabric of the present school environment, its facilities and ultimately its support of teaching and learning are testament to David’s professional stewardship. The school community as a whole is grateful for the work he has done over the years and wishes him a long and enjoyable retirement.
SURSUM Trust
Looking Back, Moving Forward
Owen Glenn, an international billionaire. Tony Ray, a world renowned sailor. Two successful men who both share a common root; they are both former students of Mount Roskill Grammar School.
Both of these formidable men and 30 other influential and powerful past students visited Mount Roskill Grammar School on March 24th to speak to students and staff about their lives at Mount Roskill and beyond.
Mr Ray, who explained to us how he had to wait four years before he was accepted to sail with Sir Peter Blake around the world, showed us the need for resilience and passion. Mr Glenn told us of the many jobs he had worked throughout his life and showed us that drive and determination were what he needed to build up his multi-million dollar empire. It was an inspiration to hear their life stories of perseverance; they showed us that no matter who are and where we come from, we can achieve great things.
Many of these past pupils, led by Mr Nick Tuialii have endeavoured to set up a Sursum Trust foundation with the aim to support our school for years to come. Once set up it will be a major asset for our school, its students, their families and the wider community. It is something for all of us to be proud of. While funding will be available, more important will be the invaluable experience of having many more past pupils visiting our school, sharing their life stories, and offering their support which is so important.
Acknowledgment must be credited to Mr Tuialii who has given up a lot of his time and effort to bring this project to fruition. It is much appreciated by administration, staff, and, above all, students. We can be assured that this project will help our school and its community strive for their aspirations, and reach for the heights.
Shilpan Patel
more photos
French Exchange
Two weeks. 26 French exchange students. One amazing time! 20 MRGS ventured to France last year, and this year, it was our turn to host not 20 but 26 French students for two weeks! We all stood, huddled together at the airport, complete with welcome balloons and gifts. Some of us had no idea who to look for, even though we pretended we did. Suddenly the sound of screaming turned all heads as our Roskill girls greeted the first of the French students entering the arrival lounge! It was the reunion of old friends and the making of new. The next day, we introduced them to our school. It overwhelmed them a little, and we had the Powhiri.
The weekend was one of fun fun fun! As we went out far and wide across Auckland and the North Island, and in some cases, as far as Wellington! A popular and quite fascinating attraction for the first weekend was the lantern festival. The next week was a hype of sightseeing, trying to fit everything into a very short amount of time! They spent some time coming into daily classes, meeting our teachers. In fact, some teachers were so taken with our guests they insisted on relating the entire lesson to the French culture and its people. Some teachers even organised special events: Miss Kojima and Miss Robertson got the French group making sushi rolls; Mr Davis had them make chopping boards in his technology workshop; Ms Tawhai taught them how to make Poi and the songs that go with it; Mr Lett prepared them for their Tiritiri Matangi visit, and a number of teachers lent us their rooms for other activities. Thanks to Mr Gipps for again allowing some “Frenchies” to attend Y13 Camp; Mr Hall for sailing some French students back from Motutapu Island and to Mr Buckley for organising the international sports event. The French students had their own trip planned for Tuesday and sadly, missed our Athletics Day.
Wednesday was a group trip to Tiritiri Matangi, a bird sanctuary. We were all a bit skeptical of the weather, some of us turning up in tracks and hoodies only to change on the ferry as the weather cleared up. The walk with our guides was amazing as we learned many new things about birds in NZ. Lunch was eventful, as we tried to save our food from Greg the Takahe – the quick fingered (or toed), lunch stealing bird. We headed home tired, and some of us sunburnt, only to realise the French students were leaving for Rotorua the next day. For a one night trip, who would’ve thought some would take suitcases, while others only took backpacks?
Our friends returned on Friday where we spontaneously decided to go to the movies to watch “I am Number Four”. We took up an entire row in the cinema, with one unfortunate man sitting right in the middle of about 20 hyper teenagers. No doubt, we got told off a few times but that didn’t stop us. Second weekend came around and once again it was a flurry of activity.
Saturday was our (planned much in advance) BBQ at Cornwall Park, where almost everyone managed to get to! Hayden and Andy- we missed you! Ninja tag got slightly violent (no surprises there!), and we were all a bit amused when a few of the French boys decided to “herd” sheep! The weather was amazing, a bit too amazing really, and again, we had a few sunburn casualties. Some of us decided a whole afternoon together wasn’t enough and decided to go ten pin bowling and pool… till 1 in the morning! Talk about making the most of it! The weekend passed in a haze and most of us were finally able to tick off our sightseeing destinations, but the party never stopped! Every day after school we had little events in small groups to the pools, a park or just hanging out.
Wednesday was shopping day in the city, for the French only! Yeah, we thought it was for us too, and we were all geared up to go! Poor Mr. McAlpine had to break the news to us, yet some of us- namely Hayden, Richelle, Nirusha and Patrick- decided to sneak onto the bus and hide! A desperate attempt considering EVERYONE knew where we were. Many shopping bags returned, accompanied by the French students! We decided we ought to have our farewell party for our “Frenchies” that night.
Thursday came along- even though we didn’t want it to! We spent an entire day with everyone in A3 saying our goodbyes, taking a million pictures- especially Patrick and Benoît- and signing each other’s books, folders, shirts and eventually hands and faces! And then came the temporary tattoos. Even a game of naughts and crosses on Richelle’s face courtesy of Arthur and Benoît. Oh the joy. We finally managed to get a group picture with all 52 of us! (Us Roskillians and the Frenchies) Our goodbyes were sad with almost all of us crying. It was hugs, kisses and "faire la bise festival". But we had the time of our lives; making friends we’ll keep for a lifetime and enjoying it all the way. Thanks so much to the MRGS Host families who made their stay so wonderful. We would also like to thank the New-Zealand France Friendship Fund for helping both schools involved in this exchange (MRGS & Lycée Jean XXIII), the MRGS Board of Trustees for supporting the Exchange and all the teachers and support staff who helped us. We are sure that the French teachers also had fun - Mr Frédéric Hyvert and Mrs Françoise Marotel. We hope to see them next year!
Richelle Fernandes
more photos
Campbell Live Coverage of Mt Roskill Grammar
Principal’s Response To Campbell Live – March 17th
I have received a great deal of feedback from members of the school community and the wider public after the screening of the Campbell Live segment last evening. It has ranged from condemnation of the way we are portrayed as handling harassment and bullying to encouraging support. Many others simply want to know if the coverage represents the truth.
I want to leave no one in any doubt that this school does not tolerate harassment and bullying, and that we deal with it firmly, decisively and fairly. While such words are easy to say, ultimately we know the school community will judge us on our actions.
Campbell Live has put our actions on ‘trial’ and found us wanting. Even though the coverage was unbalanced and sensationalised, it highlights the challenges all schools face in modern society.
Our commitment is that this school will be a safe environment. We will not overreact to publicity or criticism, nor will we be indecisive. Achieving a safe school environment requires the school’s leadership to be firm and fair, and the community to support us when we take action to deal with students who breach our guidelines and policies.
We are dealing with a situation at present. Our school will remain a safe place for students and our students will meet the standards of discipline the school sets.
Greg Watson
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March 16th
Yesterday, during my absence, the school received a call from TV3’s Campbell Live programme about a claim of harassment and bullying. I became aware of this call this morning.
Also this morning the following statement was on the Campbell Live website:
What is happening at one of our top schools? Bullying has got so bad for one student she now spends her days locked in the Dean’s office – not for being naughty, but to protect her from gangs of girls.
Later this morning the following email was received from Campbell Live:
[edited] We are currently working with a few families who are concerned with the level of bullying at Mt Roskill Grammar.
One family in particular has approached the school many times, her local MP, the police and the MOE still with no results. I have spoken to her child and it is clear she is currently in a distressed way. She feels isolated and afraid at school and is currently not involved in classes.
I'd like to interview you in regards to these families and this issue.
As I am still working through a resolution to this issue with students and parents, I have decided it would be inappropriate to be interviewed. I am not prepared to be placed in a position where I may inadvertently say something that hinders a resolution.
Instead I have issued the statement below to Campbell Live.
You have my assurance that this school does not tolerate harassment and bullying, and that every student who comes here will feel safe.
Statement to Campbell Live
Mt Roskill Grammar School does not tolerate harassment and bullying and has a proactive approach to prevent and deal with incidents. Some 200 senior students have undertaken a voluntary course on harassment the school has developed, and are qualified student mediators. We also run anti harassment classes for all our 13 year-old students.
We have a clear, detailed policy as to how claims of harassment and bullying will be resolved.
I am presently dealing with an issue involving a small group of 14 year-old girls.
In line with our policy we initially conducted a class conference, had separate interviews with the parties concerned, and then arranged for mediation between the parties.
On two separate occasions, one or both parties, failed to attend these organised mediation sessions.
In line with our policy, I then acted on the information I had. I have stood down one girl for three days and two girls have been given a Saturday detention, which involves their attendance at school to do chores.
The parents of the girls involved have been informed of the actions I have taken, and why, as has the Board of Trustees.
One of the students informed me that she did not feel safe in class, and in her interests I acted on this concern by arranging for that student to join other classes where possible, and when not for her to study under supervision in the Dean’s office.
The Campbell Live website of Wednesday, March 16, claims that “one student spends her days locked in the Dean’s office”. This is factually incorrect. No student would ever be locked in a room for any reason.
The student in question spent no more than 12 lessons in the Dean’s office or the administration area across a 7-day period, she was under supervision at all times, and the Dean’s office is incapable of being locked from the inside.
We have today conducted interviews with two students at the centre of the dispute, and both have informed us they have resolved the issue between them.
We will continue to work hard to ensure there is full resolution of this situation, and make it clear to all parties that the safety of students is non negotiable, and that harassment and bullying will not be tolerated.
I have the full support of the Board of Trustees to continue to take whatever actions are necessary to uphold that principle.
Greg Watson
Principal
New Classroom Block In Use
Last year the building of a thirteen classroom block to replace the ageing single-storey building was completed and over the vacation the external works such as steps, seating and pathways were finished. Teachers in Social Sciences and Media Studies Departments prepared their rooms for the new year and students are enjoying the clean, bright, modern environment.
Physical Education
Physical Education is a compulsory subject at Mt Roskill Grammar from year 9 – 12 where all students have two periods per week. All students are expected to wear correct PE uniform for all lessons. Please ensure your son/daughter has their uniform clearly named in full. They may wear a combination of the new or old PE uniform but not uniforms reserved for sport teams.
We all know the benefits of exercise and eating properly, we have read it, most of us have acted on it, yet we still get many parents signing letters to get their child excused from PE. Please think about what you are doing before signing – there are many things in life we do not feel like doing but most often, once we have done them we are glad we did.
If your child is well enough to be at school then they can still take part in some of the PE lesson. The Physical Education curriculum area is often referred to as having the most valuable skills you can learn for life – teamwork, sportsmanship, peer friendships, cooperation, leadership, self esteem, self confidence, personal identity and self worth. Even though students may be fully involved in sport outside of school they can still benefit in these areas during PE.
Interpersonal skills: (Respect for diversity and cultures, care and concern for others, social justice, communication skills, tolerance):- These are many interpersonal skills and qualities we want to instil in our students as well as the idea of being physically active.
Most of these benefits are not measurable but clearly lead to a more productive and healthy life style.
We hope as parents you can help us to help you instil these skills in your child while they attend Mt Roskill Grammar. So please next time your son/daughter asks for a note to be excused from Physical Education, think twice before giving it. Physical Education is no different to any other subject – you wouldn’t think of asking your child to be excused from Maths or English, why PE?
Are your child’s medical records with the school up to date, has their PE teacher been informed of any medical issues that might need to be recognised in a PE class? When you enrolled you gave us good information about your child’s health. Please keep it up to date.
Please contact Mrs Bennett HOD Physical Education ext 824 if you have any areas in the Physical Education curriculum you would like to discuss.
Excellence and Merit Endorsements in 2010 NCEA
The high quality of academic achievement at MRGS dominates the statistics. An impressive 19% of all Year 11 students gaining Level 1, received an “Excellence Endorsement” for achieving more than 50 credits at excellence level. At level 2, 9% and at Level 3, 10% of students gaining an NCEA certificate received excellence endorsements. These figures are well ahead of national averages and the highest the school has ever achieved. In addition, merit endorsements were gained at rates well above the national levels.
MRGS Gains Two Premier Scholarships
Jordan Zi
Mt Roskill Grammar School is very proud of two of its students who are among the nine winners of Premier Scholar Awards nationwide.
Students from the school gained 57 scholarships in a wide range of subjects of which 12 were at the outstanding level.
In 2010, 9,670 students participated in NZ Scholarship exams, with 2,264 students receiving a total of more than $3.4 million over the next three years. Only nine of these students will receive a Premier Award worth $30,000 to be paid over three years. These students will take part in the Top Scholar Awards ceremony in Wellington in April/May.
Jordan Zi, MRGS Dux in 2010, gained four scholarships, all at outstanding level. This was the pinnacle of a year of superb academic achievement in which he gained 116 Excellence credits in NCEA Level 3, was awarded a University of Auckland Jubilee Award as well as topping the school in French, Classical Studies, History and Geography and winning the Lacy Cup for Senior Literature.
William Quach was Proxime Accessit (runner –up to Dux) at Mt Roskill Grammar in 2010. He gained seven (7) scholarships in the examinations at the end of the year, three of those at the outstanding level. He was awarded scholarship in Accounting, Geography, Mathematics with Calculus, and Physics and outstanding scholarship in chemistry, Statistics and Modelling and Technology. William earned 96 credits at Excellence Level in NCEA Level 3.
Campus Schools Get Together
On Monday 14th March the teachers, therapists and other staff from Mt Roskill Primary, Mt Roskill Intermediate and Mt Roskill Grammar will be meeting to review the exciting links and innovations we are developing on our Campus.
The three Campus schools have been working closely together for three years now and the development which has taken place is having a huge and positive impact on the learning of our students.
We are all learning together and this meeting on Monday 14th is an opportunity to review the successes we have had and to confirm our direction for the next three years.
The three schools will close at 2.30 on this day (Monday 14th March). Any child who cannot be picked up is able to wait at school and will be supervised in the normal manner.
New Students Welcomed
On Friday 4 February we welcomed all our 450 plus new students. They were called into the Hall, challenged and greeted by our Kapa Haka Group, Mr Watson and senior students. Mr Hays replied on their behalf. Students were then sent off to meet with their House leaders and the Year 13 students in their House. They were taken on a tour around the school and shown how to read their timetables before going of to lunch and their first Peer Support session in the afternoon.
Parental Donations
The invoices were sent out late February for the parental donation, sports and activity fees. The parental donation remains at $150.00 per student or $250.00 per family. Every effort is made to keep school costs to a minimum but to ensure that we offer quality educational opportunities we encourage payment of these costs. The parental donation assists in meeting the costs of providing classroom and sports equipment. If you have difficulty in paying the total cost at the beginning of the year, please contact the Accounts Office to make alternative arrangements.
New Staff in 2011
We welcomed 10 new teachers for the start of 2011 year:
- Naomi Dekker (Music)
- Felicity Mayne (Social Sciences)
- Nina Hood (Social Sciences)
- Emma Gillies (Performing Arts)
- Louise Moore (Maths)
- Katrina Corrigan (Maths)
- Tina Jerabek (English)
- David McGerty (English)
- Emma Monigatti (MacLean Centre)
- Bridget Broughton (MacLean Centre)
2011 Prefects
The School Prefects appointed for 2011 are:
Head Prefects: Joseph Windsor & Audrey Tay
Deputy Head Prefects: Warren Duncan & Manasi Deshpande
The School Prefects are:
- Isaac Chen
- Ruth Auapaau
- Krishant Dharan
- Samantha Collings
- Jayden Hickman
- Gloria Fraser
- Primo Huang
- Shreya Handa
- Sigmund Kaufusi
- Khadija Khan
- Aarun Li
- Casablanca Kowk-Heon
- Jeffrey Liang
- Swatna Lal
- Sufiyaan Mitha
- Palu Malu
- Abhishek Pillai
- Leilani Marshall
- Vincent Rhodes
- Ye-Eun Nam
- Samuel Saunders
- Priyali Patel
- Zachary Tagomoa
- Tina Rahimi
- Harry Thomson
- Mattie Tuialii
- Loketi Toutai
- Hannah Widjaja