August 2016 Newsletter

Transcription

1 August 2016 Newsletter Dear Parents The last couple of weeks have been a time of questioning in the schools around our country. This is not a bad thing. At Wynberg, we commit ourselves to educate learners to have an opinion, to be prepared to stand up for what they believe and be counted. We must not then be overly concerned when they do just that. One overriding experience of this time is that education has continued and every class has been taught. I believe that the Wynberg learners value their education, it is the pathway to becoming useful and successful citizens. For a school, it is not wrong when we are challenged to re-evaluate policies and re-think traditions. It does not mean that everything we hold dear will disappear we must just know why we do it, and know that it is fair to all. We are fortunate to have the diverse community we have in our learners and parents. We can learn from each other and become more tolerant, more respectful and more aware of our actions and how they can be interpreted. The Representative Council of Learners has come to the fore and they are discussing current issues in their in their council meetings and debating forcefully as members of the School Governing Body. We salute them for the work that they are doing. The discussions which will take place under the guidance of facilitators from Smart Choices are an opportunity for each person (learners, parents and staff) to represent themselves and their culture and needs let us embrace this opportunity to make WGHS a leader of the future. Thank you for your support for Wynberg Girls High School in the words of our school song we look forward to a future yet untold. Warm regards Shirley Harding Principal

2 SPORTS RESULTS: NETBALL SPORTS RESULTS: HOCKEY PGSGU Netball On 19 and 20 August, Wynberg Girls High Schools netball teams participated in the annual PGSGU netball tournament. The tournament took place over a period of two days: The U14 and U16A teams played at Rustenburg High School for Girls on Friday and the U19A team played at Herschel Girls School on Saturday. This tournament consisted of six schools who all played against each other in matches of eight and a half minutes. For the full result listing of this tournament, click here. U14 Results Well done to Wynberg Girls U14 Netball team who participated in a tournament hosted by Sans Souci. Our girls did us proud by bringing home gold! Results for the games were as follows: WGHS vs Voortrekker: won 26-0 WGHS vs Sea Point: won 18-2 WGHS vs Rustenburg: won 7-4 WGHS vs Pinelands: won 22-3 WGHS vs Norman Henshilwood 2: won 18-1 These results meant that we went into the final against Fairbairn College and what a tight game it was! While Wynberg was in the lead at the end of the first half with a score of 4-1, Fairbairn College fought back, until there was a one goal difference. At the sound of the final whistle, Wynberg were declared the winners with the score at 7-6. Well done to our U14 players. We are immensely proud of you. U14B vs.bloemhof - 13 August 2016 This week the U14Bs played an intense match against our Derby opponents, Bloemhof. While we lacked communication in the first half of the game, we made up for it in the second half with renewed focus and stamina. Our spirits were lifted by parents and fellow hockey players cheering us on throughout the game. The goal was scored by Kelly Blake to give us a 1-0 win. Most importantly, the girls had a lot of fun! U14B vs St Cyprian s - 2 August 2016 Our match against St Cyprian s Girls High School was nail-biting! We were neck to neck throughout the whole game until Jordan Louis scored the one and only winning goal. This was a great way to end our second last match. Third team vs Milnerton - 30 July The Wynberg Girls third team played against the Milnerton second team on 30 July in a fantastic game of hockey. Both sides were evenly matched and displayed huge efforts to win a goal for their side. Wynberg did not falter in the attack after Milnerton scored the first goal of the game, giving them the advantage. The team pulled together and came back with even more determination. After many shots at goal, Wynberg was finally able to catch the keeper off-guard and scored a fantastic goal. The game ended with a 1-1 draw and reflected our teams skill and determination. The girls look forward to their next match, ready to earn a rightful victory. NATIONALS FOR KIRSTEN ROODMAN Just a few days ago, we reported on the achievements of Kirsten Roodman. At that stage she was about to participate in the Western Cape Cross Country Champs in Worcester. We were delighted to hear that she was placed fourth. Well done Kirsten and may you continue to build on your remarkable athletic talent!

3 CROSS COUNTRY - 11 SELECTED FOR ZONAL CHAMPS FAMILY FITNESS CHALLENGE! 5KM FUN RUN On 2 August Wynberg Girls Cross Country team took part in the Zonal championships race at Milnerton High School. The Zonal Champions are the races before Western Province Champs. Only 20 girls from each age group are able to make it through Zonal rounds to Western Province. The girls who participated included: Sasha Petersen, Kirsten Roodman, Karen Roodman, Sarah-Jane Deary, Camryn Beaton, Qailah Daniels, Mikayla Gray, Beth Goode, Charlotte Gumunyu, Svenja Schonweiss and Lelethu Mzaza. This race is a fun flat course. As the season has progressed, Wynberg s cross country team has grown in numbers each week and many have improved on their times. The results of this race should be announced soon for those girls who are privileged to then participate in Western Province Trials, but we congratulate all who were selected to participate in these trials. TUNE IN TO OUR LATEST PODCASTS HERE! SABINE ELLIS BRINGS BACK FOUR MEDALS! In August Sabine Ellis travelled to Bloemfontein to compete at the Goju Kai Karate National Championships. We were delighted to hear that she has come home with four medals. She won Silver in Kata; Gold in Unison Kata and Gold in Bunkai. She also won Gold in the Kata Division when competing against Botswana. We congratulate her on these excellent achievements! A FABULOUS NETBALL FAREWELL On 23 August the Netball girls had their first celebration dinner in the Ballet hall; an event which the Netball team will now hold annually. The girls arrived to a beautifully decorated hall which clearly demonstrated the time, effort and attention to detail put in by their coaches. The evening began with a video by Michaela Pinkham, an U19 player, who presented moments captured throughout her netball career at Wynberg. She also thanked her fellow U19s for so many wonderful memories. The food was delicious and we were impressed by the culinary skills of our coaches. The highlight of the evening was definitely the awards ceremony where amusing prizes such as the funny faces award were handed out. The event ended with the U19s welcoming the new U19 team of 2017 with special certificates. Thank you to Ms Williams for putting in so many hours of her time to make this dinner possible. It was a successful and unforgettable evening. `Ms brown teaches students how to collagraph

4 PROUD MOMENT FOR YOUNG SCIENTISTS AT WYNBERG SANGE SAMPI-MXUNYELWA DELIGHTS WYNBERG CLASSES While SangeM is doing her teaching practical at Wynberg Girls High, we are taking full advantage of her enormous talent, expertise and knowledge of African Musical instruments. Word has spread quickly that these lessons always involve active participation, and are at once liberating and empowering. We couldn t resist asking her to be a guest performer at our recently held inter house singing competition a performance which was enormously appreciated by the school. Every year the Science Department, under the guidance of Mr Peter Bodenstein, Mrs Nazeeba Moerat and Mr David Machado, encourage students from Wynberg to part UCT i bi ts a h x e ticipate in the Royal Society s National School Science n a o t t om Essay competition. Fl o ra B It was a very proud moment for them, for Wynberg, but particularly for the five prize winners when Professor Tom Scriba attended the school assembly for a prize presentation. We congratulate the following girls who won awards for their essays on these challenging and thought provoking topics: Meg Anderton was awarded second prize for her response to the topic: What advances in robotics and artificial intelligence could impact on youth employment in South Africa? Chelsea Terry was awarded first prize for her essay on the topic: How can South Africa address the challenges of water conservation? and Aa isha Dout was awarded third prize. M at r ic L i fe S c ie n ce s H o sp Ou t i ng t o Tyg i tal Addressing the topic: Given the recent palaeontological discoveries in South Africa, why is it important for us to study and understand human origins? Chloë van Niekerk was awarded first prize, and will have her work published by the Royal Society and Nicole Chineka s work was awarded a merit prize. All of these girls are in Grade 12, and we commend them on their very fine achievements. CULTURAL HIGHLIGHTS FROM AUGUST DRAMA PRODUCTION AND DANCE SHOWCASE Check out the website for stories posted soon! e r be rg

5 AASHIQAH REGAL AWARDED MOST DIPLOMAS IN THE GUITAR SECTION MATHS COMPETITION REPORT: On 31 July, the Cape Town Eisteddfod Prizewinner s Concert took place at Rustenberg Girls Junior School. There, Aashiqah Regal was asked to perform one of the guitar pieces she had played at the Eisteddfod, because she was awarded a prize for being awarded eight diplomas in the guitar section. While Aashiqah modestly acknowledges that although she might have received the most diplomas, she attributes a significant part of her success to the amazing musicians who performed with her. As the Head of Guitar Ensemble, she was asked to collect the diplomas as a representative of the whole group. She says that the Eisteddfod Competition and Concert were both fun and exciting. She received R220 at the end of the day as a reward for being awarded the most diplomas and hopes to inspire other members of the Guitar Ensemble to strive to do the same! INTERACT: ONE-TO-ONE This year s One-to-One was an unforgettable experience filled with laughter, bonding and happy memories. We arrived in high spirits at the Bellville Velodrome early on Sunday morning to start setting up our stalls. Along with the Interactors from Wynberg Boys High School, we set up various games stalls which included a colouring-in station, icing Marie biscuits, miniature bowling, fishing and pin the nose on Olaf. The crowds started filling up the hall and people from all ages and backgrounds with special needs attended, together with their partners and carers. It was delightful to see so many smiling faces enjoying a morning of play and creativity. Our blood donors doing their good deed of the day! Several teams of girls took part in the annual Math competition at Wynberg Boys High School. With over 50 teams of students from all over Cape Town, the night was filled with exciting energy and friendly competition. Not only were our WGHS girls competing against the other schools, but were also up against each other. The teams consisted of four students from the same grade, with more than one team taking part in each grade. All teams were given the same level tasks, tests and activities to complete under certain time constraints. In order to complete the majority of the tasks, the students in each team had to work together, assigning different parts to each of the different members. It was evident that the competition was not only about the teams math skills, but also the teams ability to work as one whole. Halfway through the competition, the students were all given a doughnut and a drink, to keep their energy levels high for the next round of activities. The girls all had a blast and came back with some great results. One of the WGHS Grade 11 teams placed third in the entire competition, and a Grade 10 team placed fourth, receiving the highest score out of all of the Grade 10 teams participating in the competition. The girls look forward to joining more of their peers at next year s WBHS math competition.

6 CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR NEW LEADERS FOR 2017: MATRIC TECH TEAM FAREWELL Our Grade 12 tech team wish the new techhies good luck for the year ahead! G TO A LOOK IN F Y ET UTU R E D... UNTOL