News

November Newsletter

Here is our November 2019 Newsletter  

Well-Being Garden Project

In the last week of term, our Sustainability class collaborated with MIT's Horticultural Department  to create a well-being garden for the mental health unit at Auckland Hospital.
The girls working with MIT students built and planted planter boxes  before they were transported to the hospital at lunchtime.

In the afternoon, the Year 12 students completed their report on how this collaborative action contributed to a sustainable future, while the Year 13 students used what they learned in the collaborative project to develop and report on how this could be developed into personal action for a sustainable future. 

• Our Sustainability prefects Claudia and Gwyneth also participated in the day and reported on the project as evidence for AGGS Green Gold Enviroschools certification.

The project is now complete and planters have been relocated to Auckland Hospital Well-being Garden. 

Prizegiving 2019

At our Prizegiving on 5 November our students received a record number of scholarships and awards totalling over $350,000.  Prestigious scholarships included two First Foundation Scholarships, a Waikato University Pacific Excellence Scholarship, four   University of Otago Scholarships including a Top Academic Excellence Award, four AUT University scholarships, two University of Auckland top Achiever Scholarships and two U of A Pacific Academic Excellence Scholarships, two Prime Minister's Awards and a very prestigious Sir George Elliot Trust Scholarship which will be presented to the recipient at a ceremony at Government House. We are so proud of all our Prizewinners who have worked hard and done so well. 

FOUNDING DAY 2019

On Thursday 5 September we were delighted to welcome back to our school two very special guests, former students; Tiana Epati, newly elected President of the NZ Law Society and AGGS student from 1989 to 1993 and Raukura Turei, Architect, Actress, Artist and AGGS student from 1989 to 1993. Both women gave inspiring and motivational addresses.  A special speech award in memory of Dame Dorothy Winstone, after whom our school theatre is named, was presented to Year 12 student Odille Maeata'anoa, who delivered her winning speech.   Founding Day awards, generously provided by the Auckland Grammar Old Girls' Trust and our Board of Trustees, were presented to individual students chosen by their Deans in Years 11 to 13 and to one student from our Kahurangi Whanau Unit.  It was a wonderful day of connection and celebration of our school and of our students, both past and present.  

Visit from Our Japanese Sister School

Last week we were delighted to host a group of students from Ohtani Junior and Senior High School, Ohtani High School is in Osaka, Japan and has been our sister school since 2006.  Over the years we have hosted many students from Ohtani and our students have in turn visited Japan and been warmly welcomed there.  During their visit our language students had a chance to use their Japanese language skill and our visitors took the opportunity to practise their English, as well as to share some of each others cultures. 

Passing Exams Seminar - July School Holidays

• 42 girls from years 11-13 found the 'Passing Exams Seminar' facilitated by Patrick Sherratt engaging and informative and the girls all left with a toolkit of strategies to help them with their upcoming exams and for their study in general.
  Patrick went through his five step Exam Preparation Strategy:
  
  Releasing your potential
• Relaxing comes first.
• Reviewing and rewriting your notes
• Remembering with pictures and patterns.
• Rehearsing for recall and performance.

Patrick included excellent strategies for (e.g) helping to stay relaxed before and during examinations and ways to stay focused and not procrastinate when studying.

It was awesome to see in the student feedback the range of tips and strategies each student had picked up, for example: It's all about preparation; I can't do it YET rather than saying I can't do it; the importance of the first 5 minutes in getting started; have an intention before attention; no small screen 1 hour before you want to go to sleep as there is research that the bright screen light keeps you awake; the importance of nutrition and sleep to help you study.

Geography Trip to Muriwai

Our Level 2 Geography students field trip to Maori Bay and Muriwai Beach was to collect data supporting the aeolian and hydrological processes in dune formation at both locations for a 5 credit Research assessment.
The girls collected data  and studied the vegetation, but also viewed some of the geographical phenomena such as the cave, arch, shore platform,  the headland, Oaia Island, Motutara Stack and then they  walked to Otokamiro Point to view the gannet colony (there were only a few gannets at this time of the year).  The girls collected data in a variety of weather conditions on the day and also enjoyed themselves making Geography come to life.