Newsletter & Calendar

NEWSLETTER & CALENDAR

Issue 17

HIGH SCHOOL - Mrs Pat Fitzsimons

The end of the school year and Christmas holidays are almost upon us, but in the short time left there is much to do in order to finish this year and to be properly prepared for next year.

ACADEMICS

Final examinations are less than a week away and the boys should be well into their studies. I have mentioned this in previous newsletters and can only stress again the importance of these final examinations and proper preparation for them. These last few days in the classroom are extremely important, as teachers will be emphasizing important points for the exams and if possible, where syllabus is finished, be going over some of the more difficult aspects of the work. Students, as their study has progressed, should be able to bring specific problems to their teachers and get clarity on any sections of work which confuse them.

TEXT BOOK RETURN

A letter has been given to the boys explaining how the collection of text books will be carried out. Parents please ask your sons for this letter and help them to comply with the instructions. This will mean less inconvenience for both you and them. I stress to you they will not leave school on a particular subject day if their text book has not been returned to the proper person at the proper time, as stated in the letter.  It is very important for them to check within the next week that they have the exact text book issued to them at the beginning of the year. Each book is bar coded to their name, it does them no good to return someone else’s book, they are responsible for the one issued to them. 

LEADERSHIP

The Year 11 group, as the new leadership class of the College, has started off exceptionally well. We were all impressed by the Heads of Houses first address at assembly and we hope they continue to maintain this high standard. Also thank you to Deryck and Claude the Head Boy and Deputy for the efficient way they ran the assembly.  They have not yet been officially inducted into their roles as this is done at the Awards Morning, but they have certainly already started to set a wonderful example for the rest of the school.

LITUTGICAL LEADERSHIP

The following boys have been appointed as the Liturgy Leaders for 2009.  We thank them for their willingness to promote God–centeredness within our school and pray that through their example we may all become the Disciples God created us to be.

Paul Dos Santos;  Charles Singleton;  Vincent Fernandes;  Bennati Kapowo;  Wesley Volschenk;  Craig Spitaels;  Jean-Claude De Abreu;  Kyle Thompson;  Dominik Mon;  Ryan Kichenbrand;  Wade Beckett .

CULTURAL

Well done to the Year 10 group who completed their Toastmasters Course last week. Their dinner, at which prepared and impromptu speeches were presented, was excellent. The standard of speeches was extremely high; the topics were well prepared and well presented. Thank you to Ms Dolman for giving of her time so that these young men could learn such a valuable skill. Also thank you to Mr Wermuth who supported every week and, of course to the Toastmasters, who guided and trained the boys.

BAND

This group of young men has accompanied us at assemblies all through the year and I thank them. The group has grown in number this year and spent a great deal of time in practice every Thursday with Mr Askham and Mr Flood. Thank you to all of you for making our assembly, and other occasions when we gather together, so special.

PIPE BAND

The pipe band has been very successful this year and they held their final get together on Monday evening of this week. Congratulations to all those who received certificates of recognition and progress. Thank you to Mr Askham for all his hard word and drive which has seen the pipe band grow from strength to strength. Also a big thank you to the teachers who work with these boys and who attend every gathering with them. 

SPORT

The summer sports season is almost over apart from a final tennis fixture. The inter- house volley ball competition was held this week [results to be announced]. I thank all the coaches who have given so much time to training the boys and, of course, to the boys who go out every week and play for their College, a big thank you.

EDMUND RICE SOCIETY

This society continues to encourage us to reach out to those in need. The following boys have been appointed in leadership positions in this society for 2009 - Lesedi Modise (President);  Samkeliso Mhlongo;  Thokozane Zwane.

We pray that they follow Christ’s example and open their hearts to those oppressed by poverty and injustice and that they be granted courage as they seek to live lives of love and service.

AWARDS MORNING

This is one of the most important days in our school year, as it is a time when we recognise the achievements of the College and its students. It will be held on Wednesday 12 November in the Aquinas Hall starting at 08h30. Parents you are invited and we ask you please to be seated by approximately 08h15. We look forward to seeing you there.

APPRECIATION FOR OUR SUPPORT STAFF

At the end of each year we give each of our support staff members (maintenance & cleaning) a hamper of goodies to show our appreciation for all that they do for the boys behind the scenes.  We ask that each boy bring an item for these hampers, for example tinned foods, sugar (1kg), flour (1kg), soap, biscuits, coffee, tea bags, rice, etc.   Thank you, in advance, for your generous donations for these hampers.

PIPE BAND  (Mr Askham)

On Monday evening, 3 November 2008, The Pipe Band had their annual Year-End function at the Old Boys Club.  This is a social evening which provides an opportunity for our band members, learners, tutors, and parents to get together and appreciate the achievements & progress of the band over the past year.  As has become the custom, certificates were awarded to our players and learners.  Six levels of proficiency are identified and acknowledged.  They are—

Level 1 – Mastery of basic scale/grip and a few basic rudiments

Level 2 – Mastery of all rudiments

Level 3 – Proficiency at playing basic rudimentary tunes

Level 4 – Mastery of 6 tunes / advanced tunes

Level 5 - Competition standard (1 Set)

Level 6 – Competition standard (2 Sets)

The following certificates were awarded—

Piping

Kgotso Motaung – Level 5

Jared Vorster – Level 5

Phillip Jones – Level 3

Khabonina Motaung – Level 3

Sharon Maher – Level 6

Damian Maher – Level 6

Cameron Lloyd – Level 1

Torick Hatha – Level 2

Scott Schultz – Level 2

Side Drumming

Keegan McGregor – Level 4

Steven Hughes – Level 2

Kevin Schultz – Level 5

Michael O’Donoghue – Level 2

Liam Hermanus – Level 1

Bass Corps

Sheldon Joubert – Level 6

Edward Verrall – Level 6

Warwick Vorster – Level 5

Monica Vorster – Level 5

Marciano Teixeira – Level 1

Kieran Schell – Level 1

Congratulations to all awardees!  Keep up the good work!  Special thanks to all parents, staff and tutors who attended this function.  Your presence was appreciated.

HOUSE REPORTS

Aquinas  (Mr Rindfleisch)

Time in class for the third term is coming to an end.  Final exams are almost upon us.  I hope that your exam preparation has been going according to plan.  Best of luck for the exams!  Remember that these set of exams are the most important ones for the year.  Although the temptation is to slow down in anticipation of the December holidays, it is actually time to knuckle down to serious work.  These exams are particularly important to the Year 11 boys, who will be asked to forward these marks to universities on application next year.

Well done to all the Aquinas boys on a successful 2008.  It was quite an achievement to win the overall house competition in the second term.  This is the first time that Aquinas has achieved this since the introduction of the house system.  Hopefully we can carry this through and win the annual house trophy in the near future.

Thanks to the Aquinas boys who contributed to the house, whether academically, culturally or on the sports field.  Your efforts were much appreciated.  Remember to ”grab the bull by the horns”!

Edmund  (Mr Barnett)

This week the volleyball teams are in action in the inter-house competition.  This is the first event led by the 2008/2009 “matriculants” and we wish them well as they are very motivated.

It is the “lull” before the storm as exams begin shortly.  I hope that the boys are working to a revision schedule.

As this is possibly the last newsletter of 2008, I would like to take the opportunity, on behalf of the tutors, to wish all boys and their families a restful and peaceful festive season.  See you in 2009, recharged and raring to compete!

Regards from Mr Testa, Ms Ramhith, Mrs Caldeira, Ms Dolman and Mr Barnett.

Founders  (Mr Muller)

The one message I tried to relay through the newsletters is that time waits for no man.  I tried to encourage the boys to make sure they give of their best from day 1, so that they do not fall behind and have to play catch-up.  Three days—that is how many school days are left to exams. 

It is ironic that, in these important times when teachers deal with exams, give hints and make sure all the work covered in exams is done, there is a group of boys who see this time as the best time to disrupt lessons.  They are being selfish as they don’t want to give anybody a chance to do the best that they can do.  To these boys I have just one message  -  the wheel has now turned, the final exams are here, and it is too late to start doing something about the marks you are not happy about.

To the boys who have tried their best, to those who listen in class, to the ones who co-operate and do what is expected of them, I wish you all the best for the exams.  I pray that God will give you peace before exams and wisdom so that you can do well.    A reminder that teachers are available for support lessons for that one last concept not understood.

I also wish everybody good luck for the prize-giving on the 12th.  I know that you will be recognised for your efforts.

Revill  (Mr Phiri)

We are on the last stretch of our academic programme for this year, and coupled with this are end of year exams which I presume all the boys are already preparing for.  Talking of exams, the Matrics started this Monday and we wish them all the BEST in all their papers.  For the rest of the school the exams are looming on the horizon and the boys know where they stand with regards to their year mark and as such I encourage them to consolidate on these year marks.

This week saw us take part in our last House event, volleyball. The boys acquitted themselves well and I commend them for their efforts. Special thanks must go to Calvin Dias and Blaine Richards together with sport portfolio team for all the organisation. Last week saw some of our boys take part in the speakers’ course, and these boys really raised the bar this year.  Well done to all our representatives in this regard.

I would like to share the following joke with you.

A linguistics professor was lecturing to his English class one day. "In English," he said, "a double negative forms a positive. In some languages, though, such as Russian, a double negative is still a negative. However, there is no language wherein a double positive can form a negative."

A voice from the back of the room piped up, "Yeah, right."

DATES TO REMEMBER