Newsletter
23 March 2012
Dear Parents
The first term of 2012 has been a very positive one for our school and the academic tone and focus of our learners has been very pleasing. The learners, staff, parents and supporters have all been very involved in the activities of the school and a real sense of community has prevailed. As you read through this newsletter, I am certain that you will be amazed by the depth of activity that has occurred at our school this term and well-satisfied that your children are receiving the best possible opportunities. It is appropriate at this time, to express our thanks to the many people who contribute so positively to our school. I would like, in particular, to thank the staff, both non-teaching and teaching, for their willingness to always go beyond the call of duty and for making the past term such a resounding success.
Staff
Matters
The year started off with the uncertainty surrounding the position of temporary
staff, whether the three temporary teachers on the staff would, in fact, be
re-appointed. I am pleased to report that Mr. Gerrit Olivier, Mrs. Belinda
Grewar and Mrs. Nelia Read are now being remunerated by the Eastern Cape
Education Department. In addition, Mrs. Janine Kemp and Mrs. Rozanne van Wyk
are now both on the state's payroll.
Mrs. Catherine Pringle and Mr. Hanno Sparrius joined the teaching staff at the beginning of the term. Both have settled in well and are working well. Mrs. Pringle's transfer to Union was successfully approved with effect from 1 April 2012. Mr. Lee Joseph has taken on more teaching responsibilities, Mr. van Wyk is teaching some classes and Mrs. Kemp has moved to a position where she is teaching some classes while assisting in the Sports Department and coaching in the mornings. Mr. Nyaniso Goqwana, sponsored by the Karoo Mission to work among the youth of Graaff-Reinet, has joined the staff and has immediately involved himself in a variety of activities.
Academic
Matters
I was delighted with the matric results, and particularly with the 100% pass
rate, of the class of 2011. There were 44 subject A's and Stuart Welman was
placed first in the Graaff-Reinet District and attended the Provincial
Prizegiving in East London on 5 December 2011. He received a study bursary of
R50 000 per annum. He also received the annual Rupert-Achievement Award,
awarded by Die Rupert-Onderwysstigting in Stellenbosch, to the value of R10
000.
A significant change this term has been the adoption of a new academic timetable, a shift to a seven-period day as opposed to the six-period day that was previously in place. The lessons are now 44 minutes each and still allow for adequate teaching time and time for the learners to ask questions of their teachers. We have also introduced a Class teachers' period on a Tuesday to Thursday, a chance for more effective pastoral care to occur.
Note: As the volume of work in the first term is still limited, marks gained in the first term are often a little inflated. Please consider this when analysing your child’s report. It is important that you check your son or daughter’s report very carefully. The school report contains important information. No parents should be able to claim to be unaware of their children’s academic progress (or lack thereof). Parents are encouraged to stay in touch with the school with regard to the academic challenges facing their children.
Please note that should you feel that it is necessary that your Grade 10 son/ daughter make a subject change, this will be possible at the very beginning of term 2. Your request for a change will necessitate a letter from you (the parents) motivating your request, a letter from the learner involved and a letter from the school which acknowledges and agrees to your request if the school deems the change of subject to be feasible and in the learner’s best interests. Mathematics is a subject which comes to mind as a number of learners express the wish to change once they have had the opportunity to consider their progress at the start of the year. No Grade 11 or 12 learners may change subjects as the deadline has passed.
I would like to urge you as parents to play an active role in encouraging and helping your sons and daughters to achieve as well as possible. Your motivation and interest is vital if your children are to be successful in school. Please encourage your children to co-operate with teachers and to do their best. The more time teachers have to spend disciplining children, the less time they have available for positive teaching.
We are moving forward with our project to install Mimio whiteboard technology in the classrooms. With the introduction of Mimio white-boards, one of many variations of modern technology, teachers now have assistance in getting their message across to the learners, who take in more on a visual basis. These boards also lead to a thorough preparation of lessons that can be shared by staff and other schools. A huge source of information is available and the system can be connected to the Internet, and programmes, such as National Geographic, can be downloaded. These boards are more interactive, there are more in the pipeline, and assignments for learners can now be placed on CDs and the learners can e-mail their work to their teachers. Teachers and learners are very excited about the opportunities this system provides and the learners enjoy this method of receiving instruction. We have upgraded our computer network with fibre-optic cables and this is proving more efficient. The school has a new network administrator in ICT Consulting under the reliable hand of David Harris.
This term, a Grade 5 Life Orientation excursion was undertaken to the Camdeboo Municipality's water purification plant. The learners learnt about all the steps of getting dam water clean enough for us to drink.
Eighteen of our learners from Grades 3-7 will be attending the Despatch Kunstefees from 14-18 May and will participate in Poetry and Monologue sections.
Cultural
Matters
Term one has also been busy on the cultural front. A number of our music
pupils, M. Heunis, R. Light, C. Putter, C. Heunis, E. Wessels, M. Marais and K
L. Crankshaw, took part in the Rocco de Villiers High Performance Music Concert
that was hosted by UPS. The standard of the pieces that they played ranged to
ABRSM Grade 8. The production of The Sound of Music, our high school
musical, provided another special moment this term. Mrs. Avrille Putter, who
produced and directed the show, is to be congratulated on a truly fine
production, as are all the music teachers, learners and parents who contributed
so much to the success of the musical. Noticeable features were the great
performances by the actors, particularly Kara Lynn Crankshaw as Maria Rainer and
Sifiso Dube as Captain von Trapp, the beautiful costumes and the well-designed
sets. Clubs and societies have operated as planned this term. The Interact
Club has met this term, but activities have been slightly curtailed by so many
of our members' involvement in The Sound of Music.
Congratulations are extended to Xhamla Dyantyi (first runner-up) and Sifiso Dube (second runner-up) on their excellent performance in the YCA Speech Competition. They were invited to participate in the next round in Grahamstown on 17 March.
Sporting
Matters
A very successful cricket tournament, hosted by UHS in January, set the tone for
a busy term. On Saturday, 14 January twenty runners represented UHS at the Ed
Lunnon Fun Run in Port Elizabeth. The race was in aid of raising funds to do
research on a degenerative neurological disease. Ed Lunnon was diagnosed with
this disease, corticalbasal degeneration and was told that this disease would
progressively melt down his body to the extent where he is severely
incapacitated. He has since started a private blog site and a weekly radio
programme on Wednesday mornings on Radio Algoa where he encourages people to
live life to the full! Ed is a huge inspiration to thousands of people! All
the Union participants did us very proud.
At the annual Founders' Day and Old Boys' Weekend, we celebrated the school's 93rd birthday in style and the Founders' Weekend was a wonderful success. The Founder’s Assembly, a combined effort with the Preparatory School set the tone for the events to follow. The annual Triathlon, held on Friday afternoon, was a great success. Despite the heat the competitors managed some noteworthy times. Stegman van Zyl won the Iron Man in a new record time and Bronwen Jacobs won the ladies' event. Our thanks are extended to Mr. Nel of the Graaff-Reinet Traffic Department for his assistance during the triathlon. Saturday saw the dads and Old Boys challenging the Union cricket teams. The Old Boys 1st team won a closely contested and exciting match. The 2nd Team also went down to the Old Boys, while the U15 boys gave their dads a lesson in how the game is played. Two U11 matches were played against the dads and a spirit of friendly competition prevailed. We also watched approximately 110 keen hockey players enjoying mini-matches on the Astroturf, many of whom were playing on this surface for the very first time. There was also tennis, for those who were keen to participate. It was a very successful day for all who participated in the sporting events.
On Friday and Saturday 24-25 February, twenty-four of our hockey girls attended a coaching clinic run by Jeanette and Michelle Makkie on the Union Astroturf. Jeanette, who has previously coached South African U/19 and U/21 sides, shared valuable insights with the girls. Michelle, her daughter, represented SA at U/19 level and spoke to the girls about the importance of mental preparation before any game. Five very keen goal keepers were coached by Chris Rembe, the Eastern Province men's goal keeper and a well-known goalie coach. All the girls learnt a lot and look forward to building on the foundation that has been laid.
On Friday 24 February, ten girls left for Middelburg to attend the annual SPAR Netball Development Clinic. There was much laughter, and the girls learned much about the game. The girls must be commended for the way they conducted themselves and their enthusiasm. Thanks to Mrs. Rose-Innes for driving the girls and Mrs. van Wyk for accompanying them to this valuable clinic. Our Netball Club hosted a most enjoyable and worthwhile Netball outreach to the Biggs Primary Farm School on 19 March. Zonal Junior and Senior Netball trials will be held at Laer Volkskool on 12 April.
At the MEGA District Senior Athletics Meeting held in Humansdorp on 3 March, the following results were recorded: M. Mdlokavana 3rd Long Jump girls U17, J. van der Merwe 3rd Shot Put boys U15, K. Ansah 100m Boys U15, N. Cona 1st 100m Boys U17 in 10.93 (New Record), B. Nobula 3rd High Jump boys, T. Van Rooyen 2nd Discuss Boys U15, K. Ansah 1st 200m Boys U15. Naledi Cona, Kwezi Ansah and Tristan Van Rooyen qualified to compete at the Eastern Cape Championships. The following athletes represented the Cacadu District at the E.P. Primary Schools' Athletics Championships in Mthatha on 10 March:
Kelsey Minnaar: Girls' U13 Long Jump - 5th; Mike Krige: Boys' U11 Shot Put - 2nd; Kwezi Ansah and Naledi Cona are congratulated on their selection to the Eastern Province Athletics team.
The senior boys and girls competed in the Graaff-Reinet and District Summer League this term and acquitted themselves well. Jessica Charles has been selected to represent the Eastern Province U/15 tennis team. She will be participating in the 2012 S.A. High Schools tennis tournament in Pretoria at the end of March. We are extremely proud of her and wish her well for the tournament. Amy Charles was selected for the EP U13 Tennis Team taking part in an inter-provincial tournament in Cape Town. Gift Johnson has also been selected to represent Eastern Province U15. On 2 March, the top 8 Tennis Girls took part in the Clover Sports Day in Bloemfontein. Tennis teams were divided into an A and B section. Seven schools competed in each section. The top 4 girls Donnae Broeksma, Jessica Charles, Charlotte Rubidge and Michaela Harris had seven wins in their section. They played against Upington High School, Goudveld High from Welkom and Diamantveld High from Kimberly. As the winners of their section they played against Noordkaap High School in the play off for the 1st and 2nd place. They won the match in a nail-biting tie-break match. The 2nd four girls also did us proud placing 6th out of a total of 16 schools. The annual Quadrangular Tournament, where we compete against St Andrews College, Kingswood College and Graeme College, was unfortunately abandoned after persistent rain. The following players represented the Eastern Province Country Districts team in a fixture against Albany this term: Donnae Broeksma, Charlotte Rubidge, Michaela Harris and Kayla Hobson.
Our swimmers,
who have competed regularly, have had a good season and have excelled in many
areas. Jessica Charles was a record breaker at the Inter-house Gala, the
Inter-schools Gala and winner of two gold medals at the Top 8 Gala. The
following were awarded medals:
Samantha Warner - Girls 17 and over 50m butterfly - GOLD MEDAL; Jessica Charles
- Girls 14 years 50m Freestyle - GOLD MEDAL, 50m Butterfly - SILVER MEDAL and
50m Backstroke - GOLD MEDAL; Mieke Marais - Girls 15-16years - 50m Freestyle -
BRONZE MEDAL; Christie Putter - Girls 17 and Over - 50m Breaststroke - GOLD
MEDAL, 50m Freestyle - BRONZE MEDAL, 50m Butterfly - BRONZE MEDAL.; Sage Strydom
- Girls 11 years - 50m freestyle - SILVER MEDAL; Paige Hyland - Girls 13 years
- 50m Freestyle - BRONZE MEDAL; Jason Rossouw - Boys 17/over - 50m Backstroke -
SILVER MEDAL; Kabelo Tala - Boys 13 yrs - 50m breaststroke - BRONZE MEDAL; Johan
Vorster - Boys 12 Yrs - 50m Backstroke - BRONZE MEDAL; Mieke Marais, Chrisie
Putter, Jason Rossouw have done themselves proud; Elizabeth Murray has
progressed to the top echelons of 'A' Group swimming. Our senior girls won the
Inter-schools High School Girls' section at the Inter-schools Gala; Jason
Rossouw and Jessica Charles, our top long distance swimmers, won the boys' mile
and girls' half-mile respectively. The Redhouse River Mile saw a number of our
swimmers complete the race and again Jessica and Jason were our top swimmers.
On 10 March, our swimmers fared well at the Top 8 Gala in Port Elizabeth.
We were very pleased to have Christie Putter and Imke Marais entering for their Lifesaving Gold Diploma exam. Both successfully completed their practical exams and will soon be writing their theory components.
Our rugby teams travelled to Bloemfontein on Saturday 10 March to tackle St Andrews School. The U14A's won 27-0, the U15A's were pipped 5-10 by the St Andrews U16A's, the 2nd XV won 57-8 and the 1st XV won 19-8. On Saturday, 17 March our 1st XV travelled to Porterville to compete in the Porterville Festival and went down 11-22 to HTS Drostdy in a hard-fought match.
We will be hosting the annual Union Rugby and Hockey Festival, sponsored by Supa Quick and Midland Auto, from 23-26 March. We extend our most sincere thanks to Mr. Dawie Putter for his kind sponsorship. We are very pleased to be hosting fourteen rugby teams and eighteen hockey teams. Many of the top Eastern Cape girls' hockey teams will be attending, after an absence of a few years, because the tournament will be played on the Union Astroturf for the first time! It looks set to be the best festival in many years, so please do come along and support our teams.
Our Junior hockey players will be travelling to Knysna from 21-24 March to participate in the U13 Girls' Hockey Festival and we wish Mrs. Beagley and her girls everything of the best. The U16A and 1st Hockey Squads will be attending the Elsie Coetzer Hockey School Coaching Tournament in Bloemfontein during the March-April vacation and will certainly return to school primed for the season ahead.
From 27 July to 12 August we will have our very own representative at the London Olympic Games in the form of Sulette Damons (Class of 2007). Could there be a prouder moment for a school than to see this young lady, with her humble beginnings, represent her country at a world event in a sport in which she learnt the fundamentals on our very own fields? On Saturday 25 February, the SA Investec Hockey side defeated India 3-1 to qualify for the London Olympic Games. We have had a request form Sulette's mom, Francis Buffels, for assistance in any way, no matter how big or small to help her raise funds for a plane ticket for her to watch her daughter in action. Mrs. Buffels has already been offered accommodation by a South African family in London for the duration of the Olympic Games. For a mom who has spent endless hours devoted to the success of her daughter's career, we appeal to our Old Unionite family to contact Sharon with any donation, and we say again no matter how big or small, alternatively deposits can be made into the OUA Account as follows:
Standard Bank, Graaff-Reinet Branch: (05-01-16); Account Number: 082526346; Old Unionite Association; Reference: Francis Buffels. Would it not be wonderful if we could all stand together to realise this remarkable woman's dream, as she helped realise her daughter's dream? For more information, contact the OUA secretary, Sharon Shell, at shells@unionschools.co.za.
Governing
Body Matters
Governing Body elections were held nationally in March. The elections for
teacher members and non-teacher members were held on Friday 24 February and Mrs.
I. Beagley, Mr. C. Bezuidenhout and Mr. R. Sullivan were elected, while Mr. D.
Kingwill was elected as the non-teaching staff member. The learner
representatives are: Laszlo Maya, Christie Putter and Lauren Stanley. The
election for parent members was held on 2 March in the school hall. I am very
pleased to inform you that we achieved a 15% quorum of the voters' roll and were
able to proceed with nominations and elections. My congratulations are extended
to the following parents who were elected: Mr. Derek Light (Chairperson), Mr.
Arland Stanley (Finance and Vice-Chairperson), Mrs. Tiani Marais (Secretary –
co-opted), Mr. Harry Hobson, Mrs. Lesley Welman, Mrs. Elaine Stanley, Mrs.
Maralise Minnaar, Mrs. Lynn Rose-Innes, Mrs. Liesel de la Harpe and Mr. Joe
Kroon. On behalf of everyone at Union, I wish you a happy and rewarding term of
office.
I would like to extend my sincerest thanks to the outgoing members of the Governing Body, Mrs. Ros Krige, Mr. Chrisjan Maya, Mr. Albert Melvill, Mrs. H. Harris and Mrs Karin Marais (Chairperson). I extend particular thanks and the appreciation of the entire Union community to Mrs. Marais for the leadership that she has given and for the example she has set for all to follow. Our school is truly blessed to have parents of this calibre serving its needs.
Grounds
and Buildings
We have purchased lockers which are available in both the primary and high
school sections at an initial rental fee of R35, which will cover the rent for
terms one and two. Thereafter, the fee per term will be R25. Larger lockers
have been ordered for the high school section and will be available at a fee of
R70 for terms one and two. Thereafter the fee will be R50 per term. Learners
must provide their own padlocks and the school reserves the right to search all
lockers at any time. All doors throughout the school have been labelled with
new, modern signage, which has significantly improved the overall appearance of
the buildings. The quad nearest the hall has been re-gravelled and new
geraniums have been planted. The new hot water storage tank for Herby Arnott
House will be installed in the forthcoming vacation and will greatly improve the
hot water capacity of the girls' hostel.
A significant amount of work has happened in the grounds this term and I would like to thank Mr. Kingwill for his advice and hard work. The Astroturf project has necessitated that a number of other projects be undertaken. The Murray Field cricket pitch and the side-screens were moved over by 5m, an enormous undertaking. The "B" field hockey scoreboard was demolished and another built closer to the Astroturf. The Astroturf scoreboard has been constructed and an electronic scoreboard, operated from the Technical Area, was installed. Our thanks go to Mr van der Westhuizen and Nashua Mobile who made this possible. A number of trees, Wild Olive (Olea Europea) and Karooboerboon (Schotia afra ) and hedges (Pyracantha) have been planted around the Astroturf, while the banks and lawns surrounding the facility have been grassed. The area under the trees next to the swimming pool has also been cleared and grassed and will provide a lovely shaded area for spectators.
The furrow under The Union deck was covered and is now far less of a hazard. The Puttick field has moved to a position which is far more central with The Union and will make for far better viewing from the deck, while a junior rugby field will run parallel to Caledon Street. A Sheena's Gold hedge has been planted around the second fountain in front of the school to match its partner.
A major project has been the construction of the gates outside the playing fields and Max Kroon House. The gates will be known as The Arnott Gates and carry a plaque which reads: "May these gates erected in memory of Herby and Joy Arnott be an ever present reminder to scholars passing through them of loyalty to country and alma mater and a lasting reminder that they should devote their adulthood developed by study and play in these surroundings to the nation and its needs." I believe it is a most appropriate message. The internal hedge has been removed, a water hydrant buried, three telephone and electricity poles moved, a section of the interior wall has been removed and the remaining interior wall and pillar were plastered and painted white. A low fence will also be erected along the curbing next to the field to ensure that no vehicles are able to access the fields. This project has given the area a much-needed facelift and has opened the campus up beautifully.
Winter UniformNote that as from the start of May it is compulsory for all scholars to wear winter uniform. Please ensure that this is the case.
MySchool
Card
MySchool raises over R1.7 million every month for schools and charities. Union
High only gets about R200.00 of this. I would like to urge you to register for
a MySchool card. The card does not cost you anything and can be accessed
on-line at
www.myschool.co.za
. The download is very quick and very easy. Once you have the card you can
swipe it at various shops – Woolworths, Waltons, SupaQuick, Engen, Reggies and
others. The school will get between 0.25% and 5% of the value of your
purchase. Once again, at no extra cost to you – this is paid by the business
involved. May I also ask that, if you have a Woolworths account card, you ask
them to link it to Union High School on MySchools. I would like to encourage
you to make this little effort as it is a very painless (and cost free) way for
you to assist our school fundraising efforts. You would also do well to
encourage others (friends, uncles, aunts, etc.) to do the same – the more people
we have involved, the more meaningful the fundraising will be.
Facebook
group
Union has its very own Facebook group which is a very useful medium through
which parents and past learners of the school can receive up-to-date reports on
the school's activities, as well as news of past learners. The group is called:
"Union High School, Graaff-Reinet". Please do make use of this facility.
Assembly
devotions and parental support
I would like to thank all of our parents and local ministers who have assisted
us in leading Friday assembly devotions this term. Thanks too to all those
involved in the Moms-in-touch Prayer Group held on Monday mornings. I would
also like to thank the many parents who make themselves available to drive
school buses to sporting and other events. The support of these parents is much
appreciated.
Alcohol
use on grounds
I request all parents and supporters to adhere to my appeal not to bring alcohol
onto the premises at any time, particularly during sporting fixtures.
Important 2nd term dates
| 10 April 21 April 27 April- 1 May 2 May Winter school times |
School reopens
08.00 to 13.20 Matric Farewell Long weekend (no extra-murals on 26 April) School times: 08.00 to 13.20 Monday: 08.00 to 14.00 Tuesday - Friday: same as for summer |
If the first school day attached to a long weekend is not a Monday: 08.00 to 13.20.
After a public holiday - not attached to a weekend: 07.15 to 13.20.
School closes 22 June.
Junior Rugby and Hockey Festival: 22-25 June.
Clothing Shop Hours
Monday: 09.00 – 15.00; Friday: 09.00 – 12.00.
Yours faithfully
W.E.PRINGLE
HEADMASTER