Newsletter No. 9 - 7 June 2012
NEWS HEADLINES ...
Education Policy Reversal; Expectations at Somerville; Mufti Day; Cyber Safety Evening; Grandparents Day; Somerville Music Festival; Reports/Portfolios; Scholastic Book Fair 16-27 July; Science Fair; Urgent Host Family Appeal; Student Success; Kids' Lit Quiz; Year 7 Interzone Girls' Soccer; SEZ U55kg Rugby; Wrapper Free Wednesdays - starting next week; Parent Help Needed - Fundraiser Term 3; Entertainment Books; Counsellor's Comments; Community Notice
Dear Parents/Caregivers,
 EDUCATION POLICY REVERSAL
Thank you for your support.
There was great news for schools today with the government announcement that they will reverse their policy to increase class sizes and do away with technology and specialist programmes in intermediate schools. The policy had caused a great deal of anxiety in schools and among parents.
The collective opposition of parents and education professionals has brought about the change in government thinking and I would especially like to thank those of you who emailed me and our local MP to express your views. Our board of trustees also took the time to meet with Mr Ross MP and point out the impact of the cuts on Somerville and the mismatch between the government's stated intention to raise student achievement by increasing class sizes and cutting specialist programmes.
We are pleased that we will be able to continue to provide our students with a rich, high quality education that meets the needs of this special age group. Thanks again for your support.
 EXPECTATIONS AT SOMERVILLE
At Somerville, we take great pride in the fact that our school is a happy and safe place for students and view any incidents that impinge on this very seriously.
We would like to remind parents that students are expected to travel directly to school and home again and are not permitted at the local dairy or supermarket before and after school, unless they are with a parent/caregiver.
We would also like to remind parents that we take great pride in our school uniform and believe that presentation is very important. Please support us by ensuring that all uniform items are neat and tidy (including polished school shoes) and that the uniform is worn correctly at all times. Please note, hair styling products and make up are not permitted, nail polish, if worn, should be colourless and students with pierced ears may wear one small plain, silver or gold, stud in each ear lobe.
There are high expectations regarding behaviour and presentation, not only when students are at school, but also when travelling on the school bus and when students are in the community.
We request your support in ensuring a high standard of behaviour and presentation is maintained at all times.
MUFTI DAY
A school Mufti Day will be held on Monday 11th June. Your child may receive an invitation to this event. The cost per student for mufti is $2.00. Mufti Day guidelines will be sent home tomorrow.
CYBER SAFETY EVENING - Wednesday 13th June: 7-8 pm
An evening for parents and students to interact and be informed about some key issues around cyber safety and digital citizenship. A great opportunity for parents and children to gain a shared understanding and learn some valuable strategies.
This evening will be held in the school hall from 7-8 pm. I look forward to seeing you there!
GRANDPARENTS DAYThis is to confirm that we are holding an "Open Day" for all 'Grandparents' and other significant elders in students' lives, on Wednesday 27th June 2012 and we would like to invite all 'grandparents' to visit from 9.30 am through to 12.30 pm.
Separate invitations will be sent home shortly.
SOMERVILLE MUSIC FESTIVAL
Preparations are continuing with the choir and orchestra for this year's Somerville Festival which will be held on Wednesday 27th and Thursday 28th June in our gymnasium. Both performances begin at 7.30 pm, with an anticipated finishing time of 9.00 pm. Tickets are $7 each and will be available from Monday 11 June through the school office.
Members of both the choir and orchestra will be bringing home ticket notices and order forms which can be returned through the classroom 'green bag' system.
Mark your calendars for an evening of outstanding music and singing!
REPORTS/PORTFOLIOSYour child's report and portfolio will be sent home on Thursday 28th June 2012. Parent/teacher/student 3-way conferences will be held early in Term 3. A separate letter will be sent home later this term.
Please keep your child's report in a safe place as they will be needed when enrolling your child for College.
If your child's report is misplaced, you can obtain a copy from our school office at a cost of $10.00 each. Please allow three school days for re-printing and signing.
SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR: 16th - 27th July in the School Library
 Mark these dates in your diary!
An amazing selection of books is headed our way. At the Book Fair, you will find the latest and best titles for all ages. Students will have a chance to check out the incredible range of books on offer and families will have the opportunity to come together and make purchases.
There will be exciting events to take part in, competitions and great prizes to win!
SCIENCE FAIR
Those students who are completing Science Fair projects should ensure that they are on track and using the guideline booklet provided. Check the science wiki http://sisscience2011.wikispaces.com/ for information, dates and presentation.
Science Fair Boards are on sale in the Science Lab at 1.00 pm each day at a cost of $10.00 each. Colours available are black, yellow and green.
URGENT HOST FAMILY APPEALWe are looking for families to host Korean students who will be attending our school from the start of Term 3 for 3-4 weeks. This experience can be hugely rewarding for you and your family. As Koreans come to experience our unique Kiwi lifestyle and culture, we require families where English is your first language. It is easier to have two Korean students per home - they need their own bed and can share a room.
Families will be reimbursed at $240.00 per week, per student.
For further information, please contact our Homestay Co-Ordinator, Kate Roberts of Student Care, email kate@nzstudentcare.com or phone 274 7802.
CONGRATULATIONS TO ...
 Holly Ancliffe of Room 23 who won the prize for best overall entry in 'The Vitality Code' competition for her stunning artwork.
Author of 'The Vitality Code', Michael Oehley, spent five weeks in April and May touring schools around New Zealand. He spoke to 7,000 students at 35 schools in Auckland, Waikato/BOP, Hawkes Bay, Wellington and Christchurch.
Holly's artwork was judged against entries from all of the schools included in Michael's book tour. Well done Holly, we are so proud of you!
Holly's award winning artwork is on display in the library.
Reported by: Mrs Annemarie Hartley
KIDS' LIT QUIZ
Do you know how many stripes are on the hat worn by Dr. Seuss's Cat in the Hat? If you were to ask any one of the members of the Somerville Intermediate Kids' Lit Quiz teams, they would very quickly tell you that there are five.
On Tuesday 5th June, the Somerville A team: Max Calvert, Jessica Bennett, Grace Goodwin and Alex Miller, and the Somerville B team comprising Megan Hall, Aika Tully, Abigail Feng and Ishani Mathur, with reserve Khushi Ohri, travelled to St Cuthbert's College to match wits with teams from the greater Auckland area.
For three hours, quiz master Wayne Mills, asked question after bamboozling question; extorting greater and greater feats of literary recall from the teams involved.
Both Somerville teams produced credible performances, with Somerville A scoring 68 points and winning two of the competition rounds.
Well done everyone for your hard work and thank you very much to all of the parents for your support on the night.
Reported by: Mrs Annemarie Hartley
YEAR 7 INTERZONE GIRLS' SOCCER On Tuesday 29th May 2012, the Year 7 Girls' Soccer team represented the South Eastern Zone at the Interzone tournament in Riversdale Reserve, Avondale. We were drawn in pool A with Glen Eden, Pukekohe Christian and St Thomas Intermediate schools.
The girls played all three pool games with determination and commitment which resulted in convincing wins in each game. The games were of 20 minutes duration and followed each other with 10 minute breaks in between. The team then proceeded to the semi-final where they took on Auckland Normal Intermediate. This proved to be the toughest game of the tournament and with no score, had to be decided with a penalty shoot out. After 3 penalties each, both teams were locked in battle with the match still drawn. We then proceeded to sudden death penalties. On the fifth penalty our team was defeated in which could only be described as a titanic battle. Auckland Normal went on to win the tournament and we were placed third.
The team was represented by Rebecca Jeromson, Amy Waters, Courtney Huff, Hinemoa Watene, Celine Dam, Corrina Rahm, Victoria Carrod, Teagan Moroney, Gemela Reynolds, Elise Conway, Maddison Gilbert, Lauren Lambert, Hannah Gilmore, Olivia Brinsden and Tegan McDuff. Congratulations to all the players - Well done!
Mr Naidoo and the team wishes to thank all the parents who assisted and supported the team during the tournament.
Reported by: Mr Nesan Naidoo SEZ U55KG RUGBYOn Wednesday 30th May 2012, the U55kg rugby team went to St Kentigerns College for the South Eastern Zone rugby tournament. We played four games - won two, drew one and lost one. Some of the boys who scored tries were: Tommy Wild, Quentin Hill, Correze Nepia and Freddie Boot.
A great day was had by all and the boys showed courage and determination.
Reported by: Mr Nico Van der Merwe
WRAPPER FREE WEDNESDAYS - Starting next week
The Somerville Enviro-Council would like to inform you all that on Wednesday each week for the next three weeks ie Wednesday 13th, 20th and 27th June, we will be trialing a Wrapper Free Lunch Wednesday.
Somerville Intermediate is looking to the future. We would love to see our school more environmentally friendly and having less of a carbon footprint. To support this direction, ridding the school of litter is one of our focuses. The first step to that is minimising the amount of litter that enters the school.
HOW THIS WILL WORK:
For the next three Wednesdays (dates specified above), all food coming into the school must be wrapper free. Snap lock bags, glad wrap and paper wrap are all included in this ban of wrappers.
We encourage you to keep hold of empty plastic containers so that during these trial weeks, your family is well prepared.
We look forward to our first 'Wrapper Free Wednesday' next week and we thank you for your support!
PARENT HELP NEEDED - FUNDRAISER TERM 3
Our main fundraiser for the year is commencing early next term with the sale of Cadbury chocolate bars and we need your help! Assistance in the initial stages in getting product to the classes, counting money, checklisting and other administration will be required.
If you can spare some time (even a few hours) during August and would like to help us, we'd love to hear from you! Please email Tamsin Davie at tdavie@somint.school.nz or call her on 535 1070 between 9.30 am and 1.00 pm.
Your help would be very much appreciated.
ENTERTAINMENT BOOKSEntertainment books were sent home for viewing on Monday 7 May and the final payment/return date was Monday, 21 May. As this fundraiser has now come to a close, please return all book orders and payments, as well as any unsold books to the school office urgently!
Many thanks for your support with this fundraiser.
COUNSELLOR'S COMMENTS
Friendships
At Intermediate school age, friendships are very important to our pre-adolescent young people. It is not uncommon for our counsellors to be spending time with students concerning friendship issues, changing friendships and making new friendships. Certainly the meaning of 'Friend' has been challenged with the advent of Facebook and social networking sites where people can acknowledge they have hundreds and sometimes thousands of friends! It is useful then to have the discussion around what actually does it mean to be a friend, and what qualities might be evident in a true friend.
Some useful guidelines that might help if you are having such a discussion with your young people are:
1. A good friend is honest.
A good friend may not share every detail of every second of their life, but they do try to be clear about their intentions. When something doesn't seem right, they let you know.
2. A good friend is fun, unique and interesting.
As for fun, it depends how you define it: Some friends are fun because they're the life of the party, others are fun because they notice every strange little detail about a situation. Some people are fun simply because they see life like no one else does.
3. A good friend is attentive.
A good friend is at least a fairly good listener and notices how little, day-to-day things affect you.The chances are they can usually tell when you're happy, sad, excited, shocked or upset. If they're aware that they're doing something that annoys you, they try to change their ways or at least talk to you about it.
4. A good friend is supportive of you and your goals.
A really good friend will know what makes you tick and help you become the person you want to be. They won't try to change who you are or drag you into situations that make you uncomfortable or put you at risk of losing something that matters to you.
5. A good friend is a friend you can trust. They will let you know when they're concerned and do their best to stick up for you when you're in trouble.
6. A good friend makes it clear that they care about you.
Although people have different ways of showing they care about you, a big clue that someone cares is that they talk to you fairly often and, in general, know what's going on in your life and act interested about it.
7. A good friend sticks with you in good times and bad.
Loyalty is a quality almost everyone lists when asked what they look for in a friend. They don't change allegiances when the going gets a little tough.
8. A good friend accepts you for who you are, even through the challenging times.
In friendship, being accepting goes hand in hand with being loyal. A true friend rolls with the punches as you grow and change and knows how to deal with your quirks and faults. They are also patient with you when you make mistakes -- even big ones -- and learn how to forgive you when you hurt them. In other words, they treat you as you'd like to be treated, even when you aren't at your best.
(Adapted from http://teenadvice.about.com/od/friends/tp/qualities_of_good_friends.htm)
If you are experiencing problems with a friend, or your young person is upset, check these basics and determine whether the person in question really fits the criteria of being a 'friend'. Look at which area is causing some concern, and if the person is a good friend, you will be able to discuss your worries with them.
Remember: A true friend never gets in your way, unless you are going down. (Arnold. Glasgow)
Kind regards
Gay Gallagher
ggallagher@somint.school.nz
Kind regards
David Ellery
PRINCIPAL COMMUNITY NOTICEKnight Piano For Sale
Very good quality, ideal for students learning piano.
Currently the piano lives at the Somerville Intermediate School Music Suite.
Best offer by the end of Term 2.
Contact Oliver: oliver.gilmour@gmail.com
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