EMAIL ADDRESS CHANGE

Gisborne Boys' High school has changed its email system. All email correspondence with the school should be @gisboyshigh.net not .school.nz

TU TANE CERMONY THREE The Following - Tane Uetika
Three hundred men and Year 10 boys joined together in the school hall on Wednesday 30th of June for the latest Tu Tane ceremony, The Following – Tane Uetika. It was fantastic to see so many good men from our community join together to celebrate the growing up of our young men at school. The general feeling was that this is something that will empower our young men and the support and strength that came from the evening is something that we dearly hope will continue in Tu Tane in the future. The Following (Tane Uetika) was a chance for each of the boys involved in Tu Tane to bring a male mentor from home. It enabled the staff and police mentors to share with the families / whanau what Tu Tane is and what we have been doing in Tu Tane classes so far this year. Mr Mackle and Mr Derek Lardelli welcomed the group of men to the hall. Mr Lardelli has been a key figure in advising and supporting the Tu Tane programme. Mr Cairns introduced the programme and spoke about where the idea had come from and how we have developed this into a programme with the support of the police and people from the community. The programme was outlined, the ceremonies, that are really markers of leaving boyhood behind, were explained and the units of learning outlined. Mr Murphy and Mr Gander spoke to the group about how Physical Education / Health is the perfect vehicle for Tu Tane and talked to the values that we as a school are teaching in the programme.
Inspector Sam Aberahama the Gisborne Area Commander of the New Zealand Police has visited the school and been part of a Tu Tane class with members of the local force. He was glowing about what he had seen and experienced and challenged all the young men to grow with the programme, and the mentors they had brought with them to help them to do so. The ceremony itself was simple. The mentors handed each young man their Tu Tane t-shirt. The ceremonies are symbols of growing into manhood and accepting the t-shirt is a symbol of their continuing commitment to ‘be a good man’. The night was coming together of men from our school and our community. “A good man contributes to his school and his community”, and three hundred good men did just that on Wednesday night.

Principal’s Message:
Term 2 has been, as usual, very busy. It has been one of the longer Term 2’s that we have had for some time at school, and has been used very productively in our classrooms to ensure that Teaching and Learning is maximised both in quality and quantity. We can all look forward to an equally productive Term 3.
After some considerable delay, we are finally into our new Gymnasium/Sports Complex ! The unexpected delay has been caused by rectifying a number of minor defects that became evident when the final inspection was done. There was obviously great frustration from the PE/Health staff, eager young men, and the BOT in the time taken to finally occupy the fantastic facility… but we are there now.

We have also experienced a major problem with our heating system. At the end of Term 1 we fitted pressure release valves to the boiler to prevent an explosion the same as was experienced at Orewa College. Unfortunately when the boiler was started up, we found that the pumps which circulate the water around the school were not working. It has taken a considerable amount of time to isolate this problem, and then get it fixed. In the meantime our classrooms have not had any heating. Once again, staff and students simply got on with the job of Teaching and Learning in very trying, often cold classrooms. It would be nice to say that problems like this are quickly fixed, but as has been the case with the boiler, finding and getting expertise at short notice is not always possible here is Gisborne.
Throughout Term 2, our young men, staff, and many parents/caregivers, have once again stepped up to the mark to coach, manage and generally support our co-curricular teams and groups. It is no small measure of the culture of our school that we provide a wide range of co-curricular activities as a significant and very important learning opportunity for young men. We are also able to compete at the very top level against much larger schools, who often have much more resources available to them.

This would not be possible without the willingness of our young men to step up to the challenge, and our staff and Cornerparents/caregivers who always support them. We all need to say “ well done “ in this respect. We also need to carry on with the great work right through to the end of the year.

Term 3 simply gets faster and faster. The focus for every one of us must be on the end of year NZQA Assessments. There are only 14 weeks until these start. These 14 weeks are filled with many other “ things “ that have to be completed, organised and implemented. Around all of these, the preparation for every NCEA L1-3 student must take priority.

The Core Business of our school is the achievement of our young men in their academic study or preparation for leaving school. It is a focus of our school that we all take seriously. By applying the same commitment and giving the same support that all of us give to the co-curricular activities there is no doubt in my mind that we can be as successful.

One of the most important factors that is a barrier to success or otherwise in academic achievement is absence from school. There are too many parents/caregivers who allow their sons/wards to pick and choose whether they come to school or not. It is very obvious that if it is raining for example, our attendance rate is markedly lower than on fine days. Similarly, allowing sons to take time off for overseas holidays during the term, or at the end of term is simply not good enough. While the school accepts responsibility for “ wagging “ class or school, parents/caregivers also need to accept that they have a legal and moral responsibility to ensure that their sons are at school. The BOT and staff of Gisborne Boys’ High School have made considerable efforts to provide relevant and appropriate courses of study for all of our young men that engage them in learning. Nobody can benefit from these Teaching and Learning opportunities if the young men who are the focus of these courses are not present at school.

Term 3 is a the most important term for every person in our School Community to step up to the challenge in this respect.

S.A.V.E
Students Against Violence Everywhere.
SAVE is a student organisation to help stop bullying in schools and to help victims of bullying and other such things. So far it has been going well with the guys starting activities in the classes. One of the activities is ‘it’s not ok workshop’ with the year 9 boys.So far we have taught them what is right and what is wrong. We have learnt to help the kids if they have small problems and also most of our SAVE group is involved
in the Little Cuzzy programme (student mentoring).

NCEA FEES
All boys who are doing NCEA this year must pay their NCEA fee by the end of August. The fee is $75 unless you qualify for financial assistance – then it only costs $20. Financial Assistance forms are available on the NZQA website. We will post a copy to you, with further information about NCEA and the NCEA fees, early next term.

PTA NEWS
GISBORNE HIGH SCHOOLS IDOL
The PTA is helping with the organisation and running of this exciting event. GBHS teacher, Peter Derby is the driving force behind the show.
Auditions have been held at each of the Gisborne Secondary Schools, to select the best students from each school. Those students will then compete for the right to represent their school in the grand final, to be held at The War Memorial Theatre on Wednesday 22nd of September. Each school will run an evening competition to select their finalist – so listen out for details and come along and support the Boys’ High show (probably to be held in the 3rd or 4th week of term 3). Turanga FM are sponsoring the competition, so listen in for updates. At the grand final there will also be a finalist from Wairoa College and from ‘up the coast’. If you would like to help the PTA, give Margaret Gardner a call on 867 9885 or send her a text on 0274 858 658. Otherwise you can phone the school on 868 8159 and ask for our staff representative, Peter Ray.

TE KOTAHITANGA NEWS
Improving the Educational achievement of Maori students in Mainstream Education

Te Kotahitanga at Gisborne Boys’ High School has completed its second cycle of classroom observations, feedback sessions, co-construction meetings and shadow coaching with our first cohort of volunteer teachers.
In support of the practices of Te Kotahitanga within the school, the facilitation team attended a 3 day Hui in Hamilton. The focus of this Hui was to refine our practices around co-construction and shadow coaching. We had an opportunity to workshop with facilitators from previous phases of Te Kotahitanga in schools that have been part of the project for 3 or more years. They brought with them evidence of the positive change Te Kotahitanga had had within their respective schools and the positive impact it had in raising the achievement of all students, but in particular Maori students as evidenced by NCEA results.

The previous article in the last newsletter explained the second stage in the Te Kotahitanga cycle which is the feedback meeting. This article will focus on the next part of the cycle which is the Co-construction meeting. The Co-construction meetings that we hold as part of our Te Kotahitanga core business is a meeting across different curriculum areas with teachers who teach a common group of students.

The purpose of co-construction meetings is to give teachers an opportunity to reflect on their practice, share successes and problems, and collaboratively develop solutions. Reasons why students were successful learners in one setting but failing learners in another can be openly and professionally shared in order to improve teaching and learning practice. As a group, teachers are given the opportunity to reflect on evidence from their classroom practice alongside Maori students’ participation and achievement. The emphasis is on the use of evidence to support you to critically reflect how you are adding value to the Maori students in your classes.

Finally, in the last week of this term we have been administering e-asTTle testing with our year 9 students. E-asTTle stands for Assessment Tools for Teaching and Learning which is available online. It is an educational resource for assessing literacy and numeracy (in both English and M?ori) developed for the Ministry of Education by the University of Auckland. Quite simply e-asTTle will provide teachers, students, and parents with information about what our student’s know and how we can use the information to better improve our teaching practices, engagement and learning within the classroom.

Police Party Register
Police in Gisborne are now running a Party Register. It's a new initiative that will give police a "heads up" on where parties are being held and where they might be needed if trouble occurs. The register records details such as who is hosting the party, where it is and who is invited. While the register isn't a guaranteed private security service,
Police will patrol the area during the evening to check how things are going and hopefully help to prevent unwanted
guests. Anyone who registers a party will receive a party pack containing information on things like good host responsibility, advice on what to do if trouble brews, discouraging viral texting, Noise Control and informing neighbours. So if you're planning a party, let the police know. To register your party just phone Gisborne police on 8690200.

International Students
My name is Christian Tafu and I’m from Vanuatu. I’ve been at Gisborne Boys’ High for 5 months and I’m one of the rectory boys. My first day here was very scary but after a few weeks everything started to go smoothly. I like being at Gizzy Boys especially hanging out with the boys here. I play for the 1st XI soccer and I enjoy it. There’s a lot of opportunities for me here to continue my studies.

My name is Junior, I’m 17 years old and I’m from Vanuatu. I go to Gisborne Boys’ High and I’m in year 11. I like playing rugby and soccer. I play for the Gisborne 2nd XI soccer team. I live at the rectory where most of the boarders live in as well. The difference I see comparing Gisborne to Vanuatu is that their learning standard is higher that the school I usually go to in Vanuatu. They also have good sporting activities on Wednesdays and also at the weekends. I feel comfortable living at the rectory with some other school mates.

New Staff Member
Mr Tarsicio David comes from Zimbabwe. I hold an Honours Degree in Mathematics from the University
of Zimbabwe and a Masters Degree in Mathematics Education from the University of La Habana in Cuba. After qualifying as a teacher, I taught for a year at Antonio Maceo Pre-University in Cuba, after which I went back home and taught for 8 years at Chinhoyi High School in Zimbabwe. I then moved to Botswana where I taught at Shoshong Senior School for 9 years. In 2009 I chose to come and settle in New Zealand. I chose New Zealand because of the better family life that the country offers compared to other developed countries.
I prefer Gisborne to any other place in New Zealand . “ I am enjoying my stay in Gisborne ; I really appreciate the people’s friendliness and hospitality. This is really home away from home.”
I am married to lovely Victoria and we have two children, Collen and Pamela. The family will be joining me in Gisborne any time now.

14th IVF-Va’a World Sprints – Noumea 2010
Akiwa waka ama squad members Slade Samuels, Simone Akurangi, Bruce Taiapa, Rikki Terekia, Treivaan Taiapa (GBHS) and Tylah Wharehinga(LHS) along with the Nu Era squad Daniel Leach, Waylon Williams, Henare Walker, Sean Ruru, Dylan Ngatoro (GBHS) and Keanu Pere (LHS) attended the World Va’a Championships in Noumea last month. Arriving to the tropical temperatures and stunning beaches of New Caledonia was a welcome reward after many weeks of training on the dark and cold Gizzy rivers. However adapting to the cultural differences with regards to: food (too much of it), language barrier (French), weather (hot), sights (beautiful people but not wearing enough clothing!), traffic (wrong side of the road), money (380 for an ice cream!) meant that staying focused for racing was not an easy task! Added to some very difficult race conditions, 20 countries competing and some very exciting and closely fought finals. The boys were happy to finish up with Akiwa - 5th placing in both the 500 and 1000 Nu Era - 7th and 8th placing. V6 races metre races . A close final with only milliseconds separating of the top 8 and a photo finish ended with a 4th placing when both teams combined in the V12 race. Other highlights of the 10 day trip included windsurfing , snorkeling on a coral reef, island hopping on water taxis , interacting with the local kanucks (native New Caledonians) and being in hot demand to perform haka each night for the many international guests at the hotel.

Super 8 Soccer Tournament, GBHS July 5-7
Gisborne Boys’ High School is hosting the Super 8 Football Competition at the beginning of the July school holidays. Our 1st XI will be playing their counterparts from some of the top secondary school football teams in New Zealand, including Palmerston North Boys’, Napier Boys’ and Hamilton Boys’.
Pool-play games for the eight teams start on Monday July 5, morning and afternoon, with the final pool matches played on Tuesday morning. Semi-finals are played on Tuesday afternoon , with finals on Wednesday morning. In all there will be 20 scintillating games of soccer played – all on the rectory field. If you’re enjoying the World Cup Football, come down to the Rectory Field and support our boys in their quest for glory.

Library
Term two is when summer ends and winter begins, so one way or another, everyone wants to be in the library thanks to our air-conditioning. That is just one quite small reason why, the library is flat out busy from one week to the next. The main reason for our busyness, of course, is curriculum demands. So this term we have had bookings across all subject areas, from Maths to Social Studies, English to PE. Science and Te Reo are regular visitors, as well as Music and History. We get to see all levels too, from Year 9 through to Year 13.

On June 1 we hosted a debate to mark the New Zealand Post Children’s Book Awards. The moot was, “That social networking sites are detrimental to society”. Our team of Storme Hitaua, Danny Gibbs and Mitchell Stewart-Hill did well arguing the affirmative but the Girls’ High team led by Philippa Webb won by just two points. City Librarian Pene Walsh was the adjudicator. We started up a chess club which has been a great success. The school acquired a plus-size chess set some years ago and it’s good to be able to make use of it. Chess club meets every Wednesday at lunchtime. Nick Chapman is the teacher in charge of this club.

Book club continues every Thursday at interval. Rosie Cairns is the teacher involved here. We have a loyal core of about eight boys with various others who come and go and of course new members are always welcome.
We are going to set up a student librarian programme next term, and have asked for boys interested in being a part of this to fill out a job application form. A student librarian scheme has a number of benefits for all involved, including, for the students, developing a sense of ownership and responsibility about our library.

Other school-related activities in the library that are ongoing include meetings of the PTA, Board of Trustees, different curriculum departments, defensive driving courses. and the school’s sports council.
Mary-Jane Revington Librarian

Board of Trustees Report
The first meeting of the new Board of Trustees was held on 14/06/2010.
At the meeting Mrs Tania Buchanan was elected as the Chairperson of the Board.
This is a milestone for our school, as Mrs Buchanan is the first female Chairperson that our Board has had. All of the Board of Trustees are confident that Mrs Buchanan will easily and with her usual commitment to our school take over from Mr.Gordon Webb.
The Board also elected the following sub-committees:
Finance Committee: Mrs Buchanan, Mr Radburn, Mr Donaldson. Mr Mackle, Mrs Langdon (School Finance Manager) and Mr Anderson (Assistant Principal)
as members of the School Finance Committee are also members of the Board of Trustees Finance Committee, in accordance with the School’s Financial Policy.
Property Committee: Mr Radburn, Mrs Pepper, Trent Norman (Student Representative), Mr Mackle, Mr Hyde (Property Manager).
Disciplinary Committee: It was decided Disciplinary Committee would be made up of at least 3 members
of the full Board of Trustees, excluding Mr. Donaldson (Staff Representative) and Trent Norman (Student Representative).
The incoming Board of Trustees would also like to acknowledge the work done by the previous Board. Mr Gordon Webb, Mrs Kim Nikora, and Mr John Unverricht provided the school with excellent leadership
and governance over 6 years tenure. As a school community we owe them a very sincere vote of thanks.

CAPTAINS OF 1st TEAMS answer the hard questions
Questions
Goals for Team1)
Highlight of season so far2)
Upcoming Games3)
Motivating half time quote

Carl Riini - Volleyball Captain
Goals for this year: Develop
junior players for the future.
Highlight for the season: Coming 3rd at the super 8 competition.
Upcoming Games: Big ones are next season, looking forward to junior volleyball season next year.
Motivational half time quote: Passes two and a half….

Monsul Dewes-Tupara - Hockey Captain
Goals for this year: Make it to the final in the Poverty Bay men's league, and win!
Highlight for the season: Coming 3rd For the team it was beating Lytton Old Boys, and for me it was being named player of the day in that game.
Upcoming fixtures: The Super 8 Tournament at Levin is the next big feature.
Motivational half time quote: Keep it positive, go hard – we’ve got this….

Dillon Dolman-Tuhou - Basketball Captain
Goals for this year: Win at least 2 games in the Super 8 Tournament
Highlight for the season: Coming 3rd Beating SE Systems
in the men’s league.
Upcoming fixtures: The Super
8 Tournament at Rotorua.
Motivational half time quote: Defense wins championships.

Sports Council
The sports council and PE staff have been trying to encourage greater participation and activity amongst boys at lunchtime. So far a Touch tournament has been organised for year ten boys and a football tournament has been organised for the year nines. Next term we will be organising more tournaments and look forward to getting into the new gymnasium for lunchtime activity.

Eastland Secondary school Junior 7’s competition
23rd June 2010 On a cold frosty day, 36 Year 9 and 10 boys traveled to Ruatoria for the Eastland Secondary
Schools Junior Rugby 7’s competition. Accompanied by 2 teachers and 4 senior students who acted as coaches and Referees for the event. A large % of our schools year 9 and 10 Colts team were not involved in this competition as the focus was more on giving all rugby players at GBHS an opportunity to represent the school at a tournament out of the Gisborne district. GBHS entered two teams into the Year 9 competition and two teams into the Year 10 competition with GBHS winning both divisions. In the Year 9 competition Drew Martin, David Maxwell and Irie Noanoa displayed standout performances, while in the Year 10 competition Rico Walters and Ashley Porter played very well. The students behaviour was of a very high standard off and on the field, with outstanding sportsmanship shown by some boys in Boy’s High green in which the opposition were very aggressive and ended up getting 3 of their players sent off. A very successful day for GBHS junior Rugby and thank you to all those Senior students and parents who supported and helped with the teams on the day.
Final results
RUGBY Y9
1st GIS BOYS HIGH SCHOOL RED
2nd GIS BOYS HIGH SCHOOL BLACK
RUGBY Y10
1st Gis Boys High Green
5th Gis Boys High Blue

Liam Fitzsimons NZ Squash Team
We left New Zealand for our Squash Tournament in Kualalumpa on a freezing cold day on Saturday the 5 June at 12.00pm. We arrived in Kualalumpa, Malaysia at 11.00pm on 5 June. We arrived to scorching heat of about 28C, it felt like walking into an open oven.
Me and my uncle went for our first hit at 7.00am on the Sunday morning. The temperature at that time was 27C. I could not get used to the temperature and the speed of the court. My first game was on the Monday at 10.00am, which is the hottest part of the day, it was against a Malaysian boy who had played in this same tournament last year. I bet him quite easily, 11-0, 11-3, 11-1, this gave me confidence for my next game. My second game was against the number two seed who was from Hong Kong. I played him at the worst time of the day 12.00pm. The temperature was about 30C plus. I dropped the first set 7-11, won the next 11-8, lost the next two sets 4-11, 9-11. I was worn out after the second set, the heat just got to me. On Wednesday 9 June, I played the 9th seed from Singapore, he was a good player and liked to run a lot. I won the first two sets 11-9, 14-12, he won the next set in a big battle 7-11, 6-11 and lost the last set 14-16. I played again that day at 4.20pm against a young Malaysian boy, I bet him in the first set 11-3, lost the next set 6-11, then won the last two sets 11-6, 11-9. I ended up overall 23 out of 64.
Liam, along with Dylan Pahina, Chapman Kutia, Bruce Taiapa, Kingston Kennedy and Torin Donnelly
will represent Gisborne Boys’ High School in the 26th New Zealand Secondary Schools Squash Teams Tournament in Christchurch from the 6th to the 8th of August.