Category: Bulletin

Bulletin

𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗯𝗼𝗮𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗵𝘆𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗺

As of Tuesday, 11 October, Union High School boasts probably the most modern science classroom in the Eastern Cape.

The recently refurbished classroom was unveiled to learners and staff at the start of the 4th term and, going forward, will help create many a “wow moment” in education for Union’s learners.

As the school’s Physical Sciences classroom and laboratory was decades old, 𝙖 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙟𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙮𝙚𝙖𝙧, 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙖 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙫𝙞𝙨𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙪𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙨𝙪𝙘𝙝 𝙖 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙨 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚.

“Our dream was to convey the study of chemistry and science with as much enthusiasm as possible. It is so much easier with the right tools, technology and infrastructure,” said Mr Langmead, Union’s Governing Body vice-chair. “What we now have is a visually stimulating high-tech space, where we can place special emphasis on experimental learning, enriched by media and electronic support.”

𝙄𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙖 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙢 𝙨𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙞𝙣. It is light, embracing, crisp, and colourful. The space celebrates the spirit of science and chemistry, the cobalt blue, the flame of the Bunsen burner, the array of the periodic table, and the endless chains of chemical compounds.

It is geared perfectly for practical demonstration. This is further complimented by an interactive digital teaching screen with excellent audio features. 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙢 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙐𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙣’𝙨 𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙚 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙙𝙜𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙚𝙙𝙪𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙨 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙖𝙣 𝙚𝙭𝙘𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙪𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚.

The feedback from learners and staff has been extremely positive and all are tremendously excited about this new addition to the school’s campus.

Bulletin

𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝟭𝟮:

1. Matthew Basson

2. Kendall Krige and Grace Merifield

4. Amber Binney

5. Marli Brummer

6. Tamsin James

7. Matthew McNaughton

8. Chloe Shires

9. Kathryn Odendaal

10. Lauren Waddelow

𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝟭𝟭:

1. Caitrin Spence

2. Siphosethu Malotana

3. Cadee Arends

4. Tayla Kingwill

5. Trinity West, Jenna-Leigh Jansen and Brigette Oelofsen

8. Gemma Naude

9. Andrue Victor

10. Sinazo Soyana and David Venter

𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝟭𝟬:

1. Joy Merifield

2. Na’eem Mahomed

3. Caytah-Leigh Koeberg

4. Sarah Wilmot

5. Ethan Linch

6. Charlize Vorster

7. Joshua Neill

8. Max Price

9. Tyra Binney

10. Joshua Basson and Sobuhle Nyambali

𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝟵:

1. Erin Gedult and Sasha Cochrane

3. Tara Ferreira and Sarah Jacobs

5. Kenza Neill

6. Trystan Hulleman and Megan Nortje

8. Alastair Imrie

9. Farronique Booysen and Aaminah Steele

𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝟴:

1. Katelyn Trollip

2. Amber Bezuidenhout

3. Anebel Norval, Ciara Kivedo and Samantha Charles

6. Jade Palmer

7. Taegan Hamid and Misha Newton

9. Ashleigh Shell

10. Lisa Vutula

𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝟳:

1. Aimee Short

2. Amber Slater

3. Richard Murray and Elizabeth Houseman

5. Jade Slater

6. Kirsten Collett and Tara Piercey

8. Zach Verwey and Sixolile Singeni

10. Nasreen Foster

𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝟲:

1. Isabella Hulleman

2. Owen Paxton, Antonia Adams and Zunaida Deysel

5. Gerda Clarke and Philip Kayster

7. Thomas Taylor and John-Henry King

9. Cate Cochrane and Alyssa Trollip

𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝟱:

1. Clea Clarke

2. Chanté Bezuidenhout and Adriaan van Jaarsveld

4. Rachel Wenham

5. Aidan Ferreira and Helen van den Heever

7. Connor Te Water Naude and Kira Hector

9. Miley Burger and Jordan Maritz

Bulletin

The next time you drive the 54kms between Graaff-Reinet and Nieu-Bethesda, take cognisance of just how far the distance is and how long it takes in a car. Then imagine walking this distance (in fact – walking 65km), carrying all you need to survive on your backs for 5 days!

This year’s instalment of this annual adventure saw 61 excited, well equipped Grade 10s journey by foot down the Gats River Canyon between Nieu-Bethesda and Graaff-Reinet carrying all they needed to survive on their backs. Upon conclusion of the five days, they emerged as stronger, wiser young adults on the other side, having learned so much along the way.

𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙊𝙙𝙮𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙮 2022 𝙥𝙝𝙤𝙩𝙤𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙫𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙡𝙤𝙖𝙙 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙤𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙠: https://theunionschools.pixieset.com/odyssey2022/

Bulletin

𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗨𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 and 𝗕𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗟𝗨𝗖𝗞 to Union High School chess players, Karl Venter (Grade 11) and Jasmine Abercrombie (Grade 7), who were invited to represent the Sarah Baartman District at the Eastern Province Chess Trials being held in Queenstown, this Friday and Saturday, 30 September and 1 October.

Bulletin

𝗪𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆!

Today, to mark this year’s 𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗔𝗚𝗘 𝗗𝗔𝗬 which was celebrated nationally on Saturday, 24 September, our campus was awash with various outfits and food celebrating the wonderful diversity of our staff and learners, together with the fact that we are #proudlysouthafrican

𝙁𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙢𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛𝙛𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙩 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙠 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙙𝙚𝙙, pancakes, milk tart, breyani, samoosas, mngqusko, mphokoqo, steam bread, amarhewu, vetkoek, chicken feet, ginger beer, muffins, mealies and koesisters.

𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘴 𝘢 𝘸𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘢𝘭𝘭.

Union extends its grateful thanks to all cooks who so generously contributed to this celebration: Sasha Cochrane, Jovandre Samson, Mrs Lizet Crankshaw, Mrs Tercia Moos, Mrs Sharon Samson, Mrs Nomandla Singeni, Mrs Tokwe-Dayimani and Mrs Fauzia Mohammed.

‘𝘐𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘎𝘰𝘥’𝘴 𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦?’ – 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗧𝘂𝘁𝘂

Bulletin

𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗨𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 to the senior marimba band, consisting of Sbusisiwe Gcinisa, Precious Nobula, Ayabulela Goliath, Lisakhanya Mvandaba, Shona Zana, Ambesiwe Tokwe, Simamkele Soyana and Harly Qina, on being awarded a 92% (cum laude) – a Triple Gold Award – for their piece ‘𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘉𝘺 𝘔𝘦’ during this year’s Karoo Eisteddfod. Here they can be seen playing the song during Union High School, Graaff-Reinet’s recent Music Evening.

https://www.facebook.com/unionhighschool/videos/626585815671602

As part of our extra-curricular programme at Union, the school offers a marimba band programme. Learners are introduced to the programme as early as Grade 5 and are taught the skills necessary in an exciting and fun environment by our music educators, Mrs Sanette Brink and Ms Zelda Oosthuizen.

𝙐𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙡𝙮 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙬𝙤 𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙢𝙗𝙖 𝙗𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙟𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙧 𝙗𝙖𝙣𝙙. Marimba is an amazing tool for learning, team building and morale boosting and serves as a fun and interactive way for our learners to build their confidence while demonstrating their unique talents.

𝘈𝘵 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭. 𝘞𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘶𝘮𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.

Bulletin

The recent Karoo Eisteddfod was a wonderful experience for our learners!

𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗨𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 to pianists Joy Merifield, Vivian McEwan, Brigette Oelofsen, Caitrin Spence and Arno Nell on having been awarded Triple Gold certificates for their respective performances.

𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮!

Bulletin

Each year, Union’s Grade 10s spend months anticipating the Odyssey hiking adventure which takes them on a physical, soul-searching journey down the Gats River Canyon, starting in Nieu-Bethesda and ending in Graaff-Reinet five days later.

Bright and early this morning, Friday, 23 September, it was the Grade 10 class of 2022’s time to set off on this adventure.

𝘞𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘶𝘤𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴. 𝘔𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘨𝘳𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩!

Bulletin

𝘚𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯! 𝘐𝘵 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦.

What better time of year to focus on some of the “new growth” at the Union Schools!

Over the past couple of weeks, visitors to our school would have seen that there are several areas under construction, with builders hard at work in every nook and cranny of our campus.

• We were excited to break ground on the new junior school classrooms on the corner of Donkin and Caledon Streets a short while ago. The 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗦𝗘 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗜𝗡𝗡𝗢𝗩𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗩𝗘 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗘𝗖𝗛𝗡𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗚𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗟𝗟𝗬 𝗦𝗢𝗣𝗛𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗗 𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗦𝗥𝗢𝗢𝗠𝗦 is taking shape at an incredible pace and is on track for completion before the end of the year.

• The radical 𝗥𝗘𝗙𝗨𝗥𝗕𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗢𝗨𝗥 𝗦𝗖𝗜𝗘𝗡𝗖𝗘 𝗟𝗔𝗕 is also well underway. Once completed, Union’s science lab will be a tech-forward, bright, friendly and comfortable educational space, second to none in the province.

• The 𝗟𝗘𝗡𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗦𝗖𝗛𝗢𝗢𝗟𝗦’ 𝗦𝗪𝗜𝗠𝗠𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗣𝗢𝗢𝗟 is also nearing completion. Once finished, the elongated pool will measure exactly 25 metres in length, which will allow the school to host formal swimming galas and in doing so, generate, and allow for, renewed commitment from our swimmers and coaches to take swimming at Union to new heights.

We are incredibly excited about these projects – 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺’𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘴 – and are exceptionally grateful as a school for the innovative thinking and collaborative teamwork of the Union Schools’ Governing Body members in realising these enormous undertakings and the support of the generous sponsors backing the various projects

Bulletin

This past Tuesday afternoon, 6 September, learners from 10 schools in Graaff-Reinet competed for fantastic cash prizes at a 𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗧𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗡𝗔𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 held at the Botanics Sports Club – hosted by 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗼 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘀.

• In the Primary School’s A-league, Union placed first through Grade 7 learner 𝗝𝗮𝘀𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗔𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗯𝗶𝗲, who won all five her matches.

In the category for high schools, Union’s senior players did exceptionally well in both the A and B league, coming out tops in both.

𝗪𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀!

𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘕𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳

Union extends a special 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗗 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗞𝗦 to the following sponsors for their contribution to the event: Würth, Haslop & Mason, Mynhardt Construction, Montego Cares and Steel Pipes & Fittings.