Kā Hui | Teacher Only Day
On Friday 31 May, Lynfield College hosted the first Kā Hui (formerly CoLference), since the interruption of Covid. Teaching and support staff from eight of the nine kura in the Lynfield Kāhui Ako came together to share their research, inquiries and strategies implemented across a range of kura, and to learn and be inspired. The Lynfield Kāhui Ako include our local primary and intermediate schools, so being able to work together with our young people over 13 years of schooling is an exciting opportunity.
The Lynfield College kapa haka, members of the student leadership team and senior kaumatua from Ngāti Whatua Orakei officially welcomed manuhiri onto the College grounds.The fantastic keynote speech from guest speaker Dr Keri Milne-Ihimaera DMDA (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Mamoe, Waitaha) was recognised with a standing ovation. Sharing examples of Māori students being authentic and confident, she provoked thinking on how education can be transformed to see our tamariki thrive and prosper.
With background music from the Lynfield College Moa Jazz combo, and a delicious morning tea from the hospitality students under the expert guidance of staff from the Technology department, staff were refreshed before attending workshops on the Aotearoa / New Zealand History curriculum, numeracy and literacy, integration of values based learning and recognition, zones of regulation, dyslexia in the classroom, integration of the hui mai pastoral programme and risky play, among others.
Facilitated by curriculum leaders, a range of workshops provided the opportunity to discuss curriculum specific learning. In particular the teachers of Mathematics. Music, BSLA (teaching practice to support spelling) Numeracy and Literacy met to share their experience and understanding to best facilitate continuity of learning in these key learning areas for our ākonga from year 1-13. Dr Keri Milne-Ihimaera’s workshop on diversity followed on from her keynote, with notions of ‘other’ and the impact of labels on minority groups within our kura.
A range of external providers supplemented our learning with sessions on specialised strategies and approaches for neurodivergent learners, relationship based teaching, capturing the learning in Mathematics with digital tools, and strategies to best capture our Pasifika learners were shared by the RTLB cluster 7 staff, the Ministry of Education and other agencies. They also provided a Sāsā workshop, for those of us who prefer a hands / practical approach.
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Samoa Language Week Celebration: 26 May – 1 June
The 2024 theme for Samoa Language Week is:
Tautua i le alofa, manuia le lumana’i – Serve in love for a blessed future'.
The Ministry for Pacific Peoples says this year’s theme was chosen by the community and acknowledges that the maintenance of gagana (language) is achieved with consistent tautua (service) and particularly through the values of alofa (love), fa’aaloalo (respect) and vā fealoa’i (respectful relationships).
Samoan is the second most spoken language in Aukilani (Auckland), which is regarded as the biggest Polynesian city in the world. It is also the third most spoken language in Niu Sila (New Zealand), following te reo Māori and English.
We have planned some fun activities during Lunchtime to acknowledge the start of this special week a summary of which can be found at this link: Samoan Language Week at Lynfield College
Pink Ribbon Breakfast
Lynfield College’s Hospitality Department held a Pink Ribbon Breakfast on 24 May 2024 to raise funds for breast cancer awareness month. With so many of our colleagues, friends and whanau effected by this disease we felt it was important for us to contribute in any way we could ... Everyone was up early and in high spirits. Mrs Van Niekerk was channelling Gordon Ramsey as she handed out the tasks to her willing sous chefs (our wonderful students) and, as the morning progressed, tables were laid, chef jackets were donned, and prizes were displayed.
The delicious aromas of sizzling bacon and coffee brewing wafted through the kitchen and into the dining room as our first sitting arrived at just after 8.00 am. Orders began flowing in and were greeted in the kitchen by excited students, ready to put their learning into practice as they produced delicious breakfasts for our hungry diners. Mrs Hardy gathered her service team of students, and like a well-oiled machine they collected the meals from the kitchen and delivered them with flair to the waiting customers. All that could be heard after that was the clink of knives and forks and the soft hum of contented conversation as meals were enjoyed and atmosphere soaked up. A wonderful time was had by all. 51 meals were prepared and served by our awesome students who not only got to give back to their community, but also had an amazing learning experience. WELL DONE TEAM! In total we raised $1534.00 for Breast Cancer Awareness.
The Hospitality Department would like to thank Harpreet Sandhu from Woolworths Countdown Lynfield for their generous support in providing most of the ingredients for our breakfast. Thanks also to Hassen Boulares and Madina Halal Meats who provided Halal products for the breakfasts, and to Leah Greenall from Gilmours.
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Huge thanks to Vini Laga'aia' for his great pics ...
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Student Leadership Exchange at Mt Roskill Grammar School
On Friday 24 May, over 40 of student leaders travelled to Mount Roskill Grammar School as part of a shared leadership exchange. Two guest speakers, both former students of Mt Roskill Grammar, shared their inspiring stories which everyone involved was able to take something from. We were then able to participate in numerous fun and interactive activities, giving us the opportunity to mix and mingle with the student leaders of Mount Roskill Grammar.
This was a great chance to meet fellow leaders and share ideas for our own schools. Everyone had a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon which was beneficial to our own leadership journeys. We would like to say a huge thank you to Mt Roskill Grammar School for hosting us!
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2OED Tāwharanui Camp
From Monday 13 to Friday 17 May, all three Year 12 Outdoor Education classes experienced their first practical assessments, camping outdoors at the beautiful Tāwharanui Regional Park north of Auckland. Split between two camps, one from Monday to Wednesday and the other from Wednesday to Friday, we spent the days learning, building and developing our outdoor skills, surrounded by the environment.
Each day had its own list of activities, experiences and assessments, starting with pitching tents, going on a navigation exercise to get to know the area and going on a kiwi lookout walk on the first night. Trekking along the rolling hills during an eventful 13 km hike, further tested our navigational skills as well as our teamwork on the second day. Ending the camp with our final navigational assessment on the last morning before packing up the campsite and returning to school.
As being prepared was one of assessments, we knew the weather would take a turn as the camps went ahead. While we were lucky enough to have mostly calm and still weather throughout the week, there were a couple times the weather took a turn as a low came through bringing wind and rain especially on Tuesday night. But this definitely didn’t stop anyone from making new memories. Some highlights experienced by both camps were the seals seen by the rocks at Takatu point, our national kiwi making appearances throughout the nights, and the picturesque sunrises Camp 2 were able to witness.
A big thank you to Mrs Reynolds and Mr ‘Ilaua for planning this camp as well as Mr Revell and Mr Christie for putting up with us, helping us through this first OED camp and sacrificing your time. Special thanks to Mrs Reynolds who spent the entire week down in the bush with both camps! Srinidhi Totha (12ISD)
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Ipu Ti Wednesdays
Is your schoolwork or homework overwhelming? Are you struggling with the finer points of allegories and allusions – confusing your formulas with your equations, or can only remember up to No. 3 on the Periodic Table? Then this is for YOU!
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Pink Shirt Day 2024
Pink Shirt Day is about working together to stop bullying by celebrating diversity and promoting kindness and inclusiveness.
It’s about creating a community where all people feel safe, valued and respected, regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, religion or cultural background.Pink Shirt Day is the day Aotearoa comes together to take a stand against bullying. The Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand (MHFNZ) has run the campaign since 2012, inspiring tangata to Kōrero Mai, Kōrero Atu, Mauri Tū, Mauri Ora – Speak Up, Stand Together, Stop Bullying!
Celebrated annually around the globe, Pink Shirt Day began in Canada in 2007 when two students took a stand against homophobic bullying after a new student was harassed for wearing pink.
Everyone enjoyed Pink Shirt Day especially the staff. Thank you all for your beautiful photos
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Sports or Creative, Innovative Scholarships
On behalf of the Lynfield College School Board we are delighted to announce that the following students have been awarded a Sports or Creative, Innovative Scholarships:
Hola Afasa, Sohail Asyaban, Harry Baker, Rio Carron, William Hooper, Arnav Kumar, Markus Maertzschink, Troy Maka, Oliver Mun, Fiona Siaopo, Isaac Sun, Kevin Zhang.
Their certificates were awarded at their respective year level assemblies.
Any student who is representing their chosen activity (sport or creative, innovative) at regional, national or international level may apply for a Lynfield College School Board funded Sports or Creative, Innovative Scholarships. Recipients may use the scholarship to assist with expenses directly related to the activity in which they excel while they are representing the College. |
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| For Athletics: Troy Maka | For Robotics from left to right: Arnav Kumar, Hola Afasa, William Hooper and Oliver Mun |
Innovative Learning Whanau Evening
On Thursday 16 May, IL (Innovative Learning), students collaborated with their teachers to showcase their Term One learning and demonstrate what makes Innovative Learning a unique approach.
It was an engaging evening where parents visited various stations and displays to listen to students proudly presenting their work. At the end, parents were invited to enjoy tea and biscuits prepared by 9IL students.
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Aurora Australis
Lynfield College students watched the wonders of the skies during the Aurora Australis display last weekend, and shared wonderful images. One of the best was by Thinara Karunamuni (13PSD) which caught the different colours of the aurora reflecting in still waters.
The Aurora are caused by particles from the sun emitted during a solar storm, sliding down the Earth’s magnetic field to the poles, hitting the atoms in the atmosphere, and causing them to glow a bit like a fluorescent tube. Different atoms at different altitudes glow different colours. The sun is currently building to a period of ‘solar maximum’ when solar storms like this are more common, so if you missed them there is a possibility we could get another display later in winter, fingers crossed! See other students’ photos (and a very cool timelapse video from Nabeeha Kamran (11BGS) at this link: https://sites.google.com/lynfield.school.nz/lcaurora/home |
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Tickets Now on Sale
Lynfield College's annual school production is BIG this year! So big that we have to keep it under wraps. Due to licensing restrictions, we can't publicise the name of this well-known show. Featuring a live band and a huge cast of singers, dancers, and actors; let's just say that you'll be bopping to that beat the whole night long ... because you just can't stop the beat!
Tickets for this year’s musical production are now on sale at the following link: https://www.trybooking.com/nz/events/landing/12327
DATES: Wednesday 19 June 2024 to Saturday 22 June 2024
Education Perfect Global Language Championship
In Early May, our Lynfield College international language students competed in the Education Perfect Global Language Competition. This competition is entered by over 50 countries worldwide. This experience enhances learning motivation of various language skills (vocabulary, grammar, reading and listening strategies.
Congratulations to all our students, who achieved excellent results:Lynfield College came 13th overall globally
Lynfield College came 4th overall within New Zealand
1st overall in Chinese in New Zealand
2nd overall in Japanese in New Zealand
3rd overall in German in New Zealand
Marcus Moore, Daniel Li and Jieun Kwon (Level 3 Japanese) were awarded Elite Medals (0.5% globally).
Daniel Li came 6th and Marcus Moore came in 12th in the global ranking (0.5% globally)
Boran Lin, Ella Zhuang, William Lee, Carter Huang, Shaheem Riyas, Harrison Lowe.
Gold Award (5% globally)
Joanne Kuang, Jacky Zhou, Yuri Higashiyama, Kelly Chen, Dorothy Chang, Ethan de Lange, Keiziah Rajapakshe, Doris Tan, Cyrus Zhang, Yuxin Li, John Wu, Ray Chen, Denise Zhong, Yew Wei Huang, Yining Fu, Chen Fan, Lucas Liang, Amina Karimi, Kanishka Parikh, Ram Veerappan, Raima Rattan, Evan Huang.
Nico Zeng, Ahmed Afridi, Rio Carron, Jaimee Chow, Saima Rao, Clennon Wang, Selitema Gallaher, Jaime Ray, Ian Zhang
Bronze Award (20% globally)
Ellie Yan, Di Wang, Shaurya Kuma,r Mallesh Chetty, Ada Fang, Eric Liu, Milla McLean, Trishona Adhikari, Seth Foster, Archer Pan, Dorothy Taogaga, Haiqing Feng, Dwayne Vyas, Linda Liu, Daniel Hu
Youth Engagement Leader and Kaiāwhina
Introducing two special people at Lynfield College! If you see them around be sure to give them a wave and say hi! They are very friendly people. Here is some information about them:
| SAM FELETI | YOUTH ENGAGEMENT LEADER
My role at Lynfield College is Youth Engagement Lead. I journey alongside students encoraging them to be just as engaged and vibrant in the class as they are outside of class. I am new to the staff team, only starting this year and my time so far has been awesome. You may often find me cruising around the school during breaks, otherwise I share a space with Whaea Bonny in the Student Services area (just behind Health Centre Reception). I am just another Christian Polynesian who loves sports (rugby league greatest game ever), music (hip hop/rnb), and anything creative. Malo!! |
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WHAEA BONNY | KAIĀWHINA Ko Ongaro, Ko Hinerakei, Ko Makora ōku maunga Ko Rotokakahi, ko Pawarenga ōku awa Ko Whangapē tōku wāhapu Ko Mamari tōku waka Ko Mōrehu, Ko Ōhaki, Ko Taiao ōku mārae Ko Te Aupouri, ko Te Rarawa ōku iwi Ko Te Uri o Tai tōku hapu Tēnā koutou katoa. This is my second year working here at LC. Initially I worked in Learning Support as a Learning Assistant before being offered the opportunity to teach Te Reo Māori as well as operate as Kaiāwhina. These roles have given me the absolute privilege to connect with so many ākonga and their whānau as well as provide a platform where I can continue to support ākonga navigate this thing called ‘college’, be successful and reach their goals - whatever they may be! You can find me either down at the whare teaching Te Reo or also sitting in the same space with Sam Feleti – behind Wāhi Hauroa Reception. Our door is always open. |
Phones Away for the Day
Students have responded very well to the Phones Away for the Day rules. We have noticed much more chatter at breaks and more students playing games. Teachers have also reported that the pouch system is working well so that students remain responsible for their phones.
To help students find things to do at breaks, Ms Grant and Ms Hunt have brought in board games that their Hui mai classes can use. Students are enjoying reliving childhood memories and learning new games!
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