RONGOTAI COLLEGE PRINCIPAL’S NEWSLETTER September 2019 COMING EVENTS As Term 3 draws to a close, and we study skills to work with Year 11 break for the September/October students this year. John Horrell of Friday 27 September vacation, it is time for all students to Knowledge Shop will work to Last day Term 3 reflect on their progress. Year 11-13 provide practical ways to study and students have completed formative achieve success in NCEA. This will Monday 14 October First day Term 4 exams and they should be a happen on Tuesday 15 October. signpost to where they are currently Friday 18 October positioned. End-of-year reports will At 6.30pm that evening in the Sports Assembly 11.30am in the Renner Hall be posted home and visible on the Renner Hall, John will present a Thursday 24 October parent portal for senior students in workshop for parents outlining Parents’ Association Quiz Evening Week 2 of next term (25 October). things that you can do at home to assist your son with revision and Friday 25 October study. John will also help you Sports Assembly, 11.30am in the Renner Hall understand some of the challenges Senior Reports posted home that your son may go through as he Last day for Testimonial applications gets ready for external assessments, and ways that you can help him Monday 28 October Labour Day Holiday manage himself. Entry to the Parent Seminar is free, and we Thursday 31 October encourage you to attend. Both the Board of Trustees’ meeting 6pm in the student and parent workshops are Mackay Library NCEA external exams begin on kindly supported by the Rongotai Friday 1 November Friday 8 November, so these College Parents’ Association. Last day for selected seniors who qualify for study leave holidays are an ideal time to rest for a week and then begin preparation In staff news, Tuesday 7 November for externals. Mr Venkat Testing day for Year 9 students for 2018 Reddy started at Rongotai Friday 8 November Next term, teachers will be running NCEA External exams begin study and revision classes for College on 26 students. Please encourage your August as our Thursday 5 December son to seek help from his teachers new Deputy Prize Giving Principal – in areas where he is unsure. Director of Teaching and Learning. I would also like to point out that Mr Reddy was previously Acting Junior Examinations for Year 9 and Deputy Principal at Heretaunga 10 students are scheduled to start College. Welcome Mr Reddy! on Friday 15 November. An 2019 TERM DATES examination timetable will be issued Term 3 ends Friday 27 September BREAKFAST next term, but your son can begin Term 4 Monday 14 October to Breakfast is the most important his preparation for these important Friday 6 December meal of the day. exams by ensuring that all his notes are complete and up-to-date. 2020 TERM DATES We understand that for a range of Teachers will be giving students Term 1 Monday 27 January to reasons, boys may not come to advice on what material will be in Thursday 9 April school having had an appropriate Term 2 Monday 27 April to Friday the exams over the first few weeks breakfast. Consequently, we have 3 July of Term 4. Term 3 Monday 20 July to Friday partnered with Fonterra and 25 September Sanitarium (as part of their ‘Kick Term 4 Monday 12 October to STUDY SKILLS SEMINARS Start Breakfast’ programme) to Friday 4 December We have been fortunate to gain the provide breakfast for boys who services of an expert on revision and require it in the Hospitality Room each morning. Boys are able to have breakfast from 7.45 each morning. JUNIOR SPEECH COMPETITION Weet-Bix and milk are free, and The Junior Prepared Speech boys can purchase toast if they competition was held late this term. choose to. Ollie Brown (10JG) won the award for the Most Entertaining Speech We hope this allows all our students with his speech ‘Why You Should to have a ‘Kick Start Breakfast’ each Not Be a Vegetarian’ and Jamal day. Howell (10BK) won the award for the Best Overall Speech in Year 10 with his speech ‘One Love’. Andrew BIG BAND ALBUM Ikitogia (9GR) won the Most Our award-winning big band will be Entertaining Speech for his speech losing several key members at the on ‘Table Tennis’. Felix Steiner end of the year as they leave school. (9GM) won the Best Overall Speech The band recently recorded an in Year 9 for his speech entitled album’s worth of musical material – ‘Area 51’. quite an achievement for a school- ACADEMIC level band. The eighteen tunes are Congratulations to all speakers who being processed, mixed & mastered NEWS participated with special and will be available for sharing congratulations to the winners. sometime soon. GEOGRAPHERS’ SUCCESS Congratulations to the trio of Level NZ SCHOOL OF MUSIC 1 Geographers who came second CULTURAL Congratulations to three of our out of 12 Wellington school teams Music students, Hamish Goodhue (classical guitar), Leo Greer (piano) at the recent Maatangi Whenua NEWS Geography competition. Students and Thomas J. Moore (double Henry Allison, Ruairi Whittaker and bass/electric bass) who have been Joel Purchas had their geographic MUSIC EVENING accepted to study in 2020 at the knowledge tested across eight An evening was held recently to prestigious NZ School of Music. showcase a variety of genres and rounds at the annual event hosted styles. A particular highlight was the by Victoria University. With another LEAVERS’ BALL Rongotai College team coming sixth, addition of the combined WEGC/RC The highlight of the college social it was an impressive performance choir and special guest performer, calendar, the annual Leavers’ Ball, by the school. Nationally, the team Lisa Tomlins. The room finished the was held on Friday 20 September at came 16th out of 130 schools. night singing the anthem ‘Don’t The Pines. The theme this year was Dream It’s Over’ by Crowded House. ‘Spring of 2019’. WeBO It was an excellent event, attended WeBO (Wellington Band and Orchestra Festival) included the jazz by 180 senior students and their combo, the big band and the newly- partners. The behaviour of students was outstanding and I would like to formed chamber group, led by Ms congratulate them on the manner in Lindsay. All groups performed very well with the chamber group taking which they conducted themselves. a silver award, the big band a gold, From left - Daniel Gibbs, Henry Allison, Patrick and the combo winning the only Moore, Ruairi Whittaker, Archie Purchas platinum award of the festival. Great job! SCIENCE FAIR Rongotai students recently EASTERN SUBURBS SCHOOLS’ competed in the NIWA Wellington CONCERT Science Fair with several of our The Eastern Suburbs schools’ students winning prizes. concert was held at Toitu Poneke Congratulations to: Sports & Community Centre Frank Quigley and Felix Steiner recently and featured the big band (who won the Institute of and the jazz combo. A dynamic Environmental Science and presentation made for a fantastic Research prize; performance, especially in the Reuben Campbell (Engineering NZ combined item at the end of the prize); night. It was great fun and it is Mikey Lemon (second place in Year hoped this will become an annual 9 and a Victoria University award); event. I would like to thank Mr Norman Blake Shepherd (runner up for the and the Ball Committee for a very best overall exhibit and a Victoria University award. well-organised and successful event, and students (16 years or older) to St Patrick’s Silverstream in their enjoyed by all who attended. were invited to donate blood. 58 final play off to finish 6th overall – a units of blood were collected on the really promising outcome from our day with 57 coming from first time juniors! UNIVERSITY REQUIREMENTS donors. We hope to make this an MoneyHub, a consumer finance annual event at Rongotai College. The Senior Basketball team lost website, has published a guide to their Wellington semi-final to hundreds of scholarships for any eventual champions Tawa College, student planning to start university so finished 3rd in Wellington. In the in 2020. The comprehensive list Regional tournament, they topped includes scholarships offered by their pool and eventually finished every NZ university as well as those 6th overall, which gave them specifically available to local qualification into the Nationals. students. A list of privately-funded, They will head to Palmerston North Maori, Pacific and International in the first week of the holidays to university scholarships completes Jamal Fiso makes his donation battle it out for national glory. the list. Applications close at varying times, with tens of millions of dollars SPORTS available. MoneyHub has also published a list of tips for NEWS scholarship success. For more details and to find suitable With the winter season finished we now switch our focus to the scholarships, visit the MoneyHub Scholarship website summer codes. It’s a good time to reflect on what we have achieved in CROQUET (www.moneyhub.co.nz/scholarships). Two Rongotai teams attended the sport over the past term. Many of our teams achieved well in local NZSS Nationals held in Christchurch, Accommodation - applications must College Sport Wellington finishing in 9th and 13th place. be completed on line this month for University Halls of Residence competitions, and eight Rongotai teams attended National or FOOTBALL The 1st XI, after finishing 8th in the Enrolment - applications to enrol at Regional tournaments as part of a very successful Winter Tournament CSW Premiership, then travelled to University (for 2020) open on 1 Taupo to compete in the Rex October 2019 for Victoria and Week.