MIDDLEMORE MAIL

NEWS FROM INSIDE THE HOUSE AND AROUND THE COLLEGE

Term 3

2019

Housemaster’s Report – Ms Bridget White

Term 3 has been another full and eventful term and it has been a real pleasure to see the way in which the girls have continued to cope with the variety of demands on their time over the past nine weeks. This term in particular has demonstrated that these girls are exceptional when given an opportunity to lead and work together as a team to get things done.

I was incredibly proud of the work done by the Pink Ribbon Breakfast Committee in organising our annual Pink Ribbon Breakfast. The event was a huge success and this was largely down to the girls’ can-do attitude and initiative. Middlemore House was well represented in top runners in Cross Country this year and I was pleased with the way most girls got out there and gave it their all on the day. Congratulations to the three ladies from Middlemore who made the top ten this year: Charlie Francis (2nd place), Ana

Gibson (4th place) and Tess Porter (6th place). I have also been quietly impressed by the majority of girls who took the Senior Exams very seriously, investing a huge amount of time in their revision and preparation. The high number of Academic Endeavour Awards is a testament to the effort that has gone into this term. I have no doubt this will see the girls in good stead for the CIE and NCEA exams. I wish them all the very best for these important examinations.

It’s that time of Year where Year 13 girls who applied for a Hall of Residence are beginning to receive offers and the reality of life after secondary school will be starting to set in. I know there are also girls in the process of applying for exciting courses in a range of fields or simply taking some time out to plan their next step. This can be a stressful time but I have no doubt that boarding at King’s has equipped the girls with resilience and the ability to see the glass as half-full when faced with setbacks. As we all know, the journey of life does not always go as planned but these detours often provide rich life experiences and satisfying rewards. The girls should be safe in the knowledge that one thing will remain constant and that is the love and support of family and friends wherever they go. The Middlemore sisterhood is strong and the Year 13s will always have many sisters to call upon and, chances are, one of them will be just around the corner.

With the departure of our Year 13s just around the corner, we look to the Year 12s to step up and become our leaders for 2020. I really enjoyed the Year 12 Leadership Day where I was able to spend the day with the Year 12s and listen to their feedback and ideas for next year. They bring a lot of positivity and energy and I am already impressed with the way they are working together. Term 4 will see the announcements of positions within the College, which can be an exciting and, for some, disappointing process. I encourage the girls to be strong and supportive of each other, no matter the outcomes.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the boarding staff and Teacher Mentors for their support of the girls during Term 3 and acknowledge the House Prefect team, led by Dolly Innes, who has ensured the smooth running of the term. As you know, the end of term saw Karen Thompson’s departure and I would like to thank her for her outstanding service and commitment to Middlemore House and King’s College. She will be sorely missed by the girls and staff alike. Karen will be returning for our House Supper, when we will formally farewell her from Middlemore House.

I wish the staff and the girls a restful and restorative break.

Nulli Secundus, Bridget White

Term 3 Achievements

Academic Excellence and Endeavour Award: Annabel Hutchinson Academic Endeavour Awards (four or more A effort grades): Year 11 Year 12 Year 13 Mila Eric-Lawrence Caitlyn Browne Brooklyn Cross Charlotte Koerber Siena Edwards Sophie Giltrap Sue Friend Lina Kudrow Sarah Griffiths Leah Russell Phillippa Wallace Gloria Shi Angela Zhang

Full Colours Sports Community Service Service Sophie Giltrap (Hockey) Jade Bowater Alice Hailstone Brooklyn Cross (Hockey) Siena Edwards Nigella Anderson Jemma Charteris (Hockey) Ciara Brydon Hannah Caddie

Half Colours Sports Community Service Cultural Leah Russell (Football) Nigella Anderson Niki McLennan Emma Sanders (Hockey) Sue Friend Tara Swisa Brown (Football) Tess Porter Charlie Francis (Skiing)

Half Colours Patch (Half Colours in 3 areas) Sophie Giltrap Hannah Caddie Sue Friend

House Sports Colours House Music Colours Phillippa Wallace (National Shooting Champs) Claudia Linton (Choirs) Sarah Griffiths (National Cycling Road Champs) Jade Bowater (Choirs) Niki McLennan (Songwriting)

Other notable achievements: Angela Zhang was promoted to School Prefect Cross Country Placings: Charlie Francis (2nd), Ana Gibson (4th), Tess Porter (6th) Brooklyn Cross was selected to play for the New Zealand U21 Maori Wahine Team Football Prizegiving School Trophy for Most Improved Player in Girls First XI: Leah Russell Girls Senior B Most Valuable Player: Isabelle Clementson Hockey Prizegiving Spittall Cup for Most Consistent Keeper: Brooklyn Cross Harper Cup for Captain of Girls’ X1: Sophie Giltrap Girls Second XI Most Improved Player: Mira Odedra Music Prizegiving Kapella Leader - Jade Bowater

Head of House Report – Dolly Innes

Term 3 started off on a high with our Pink Ribbon Breakfast. The Pink Ribbon breakfast (an annual fundraiser run by Middlemore) had its most successful year to date. Our Events Prefect, Hannah Caddie, led the successful event with a team of Year 11s and 12s who did a fabulous job gathering up the most exciting raffle baskets and planing a beautiful breakfast.

Following this, came the girls favourite sporting event of the year, Cross County. The girls did the house proud by participating and giving it their all. Year 11, Charlie Francis, placed in the Top 3 of the Girls’ race, which was an impressive achievement. Something to

admire when faced with challenges that take us outside our comfort zone, like Cross Country, is that all the girls were able to participate the best to their ability. For that, we are proud. A full week before Senior Exams was taken up with Tournament Week, with a number of girls going off to compete for the school in their chosen sports. 

Lucky for us Year 13 Prefects, we started to get a helping hand around the house. This is an exciting time of year when the Year 12 girls start to get a taste of senior leadership. Starting off with Year 12 shadowing, it is exciting to see the growth in the girls who have been there since Year 11. We look forward to seeing the dorm working together as they start to step up into the senior roles.

Later on in the term, the girls had the challenge of sitting their first or last mock exams. With pressure high, everyone continued to study and maintain a friendly atmosphere in the House. I wish the girls who are now in the midst of their real exams good luck. With the knowledge that stressful times are ahead, keep in mind that summer isn't far off.

International Night – Caitlyn Browne

International night this year was an extreme success, and possibly one of the best years yet, in my opinion.  This night aimed to immerse people into certain cultures through food, music and activities. We had stalls ranging from French to Japanese to Italian and even a year abroad table. I am extremely certain that everyone who came along was itching to buy something from one of our vast array of stalls. Some key performances from two internationally recognised Chinese Drum

players as well as the Kapa Haka group, helped to captivate our audience before the infamous Spicy Noodle Challenge was reintroduced.

As the Spicy Noodle Challenge was extremely successful, we decided that it would be a detriment to society not to hold it again. Keep in mind that these noodles are so Spicy that most participants could not even complete a cup full. We had many Middlemore girls try their shot at this, including Leah Russell (Sports Prefect) as well as Alex Sullivan (Senior Sacristan), who really put up an amazing fight.

Another addition this year, was our use of a Photo Booth as well as bean bags. Ah, glorious beanbags. I would like to commend the Middlemore girls on all of their help, along with the International Committee on just how much work they put in to make the night as successful as it was.

Year 12 Sleepover - Caitlyn Browne

Our Year 12 stay-in night was one full of laughs, bonding and fun. This is something that was newly introduced into the boarding house, but I think was a great opportunity for us to bond even more.

We began the night with a game where everyone wrote something about themselves on a piece of paper, and then it was read out and the separate groups of us had to explain who we thought it was and why. This was a great bonding experience for us as, although we have been together as a dorm for over a year, it was still great to find out some quirky facts about some of the girls we possibly did not know as well. 

Then we moved into cupcake decorating. I am sure many can say that this was incredibly fun to do, with all of us girls hovering around a table trying to tell a story or make our cupcake pretty. We definitely need a massive shout-out to Clare (House Manager) who made all of the delicious cupcakes, as well as cookies for anyone with dietary requirements. After all of our tummies were full, and we were bouncing from the sugar, we took a small break for everyone to get comfy and ready for a movie night.

Personally I love movie nights, and I know that our group of girls loved just sitting around watching a movie together.

Although this night was not exceptionally eventful or crazy, it was extremely enjoyable and I loved getting to know the girls I thought I knew well, even better. I believe that we as a dorm get along incredibly well and this night only solidified our friendships, as well as our sisterhood.

Junior Drama - Sue Friend

This term’s Junior Production was a successful take on “Sherlock Holmes”, directed by Ms Clayton. As someone who has been a part of Backstage and Costumes for all three shows this year (Glee, Senior and Junior Production), I can honestly say that this term’s Junior production tested my patience. Nonetheless, the adorable Year 9 and 10 students made the few weeks of preparing their costumes worthwhile and very entertaining. My role, as a part of Costumes, began last term as we scavenged the Costumes Room for

Victorian themed apparel. Working alongside the Juniors encouraged me to present myself as a role model. This has helped prepare me for next year’s duties as a Senior. As it was an all-boys cast, we were forced to be creative with costumes for the female roles. From fitting cute dresses to putting on wigs and makeup, the boys and I had a lot of fun backstage. Sarah Griffiths, from Year 12 Middlemore, worked extremely hard alongside Ms Clayton to produce such an exciting production. The boys looked up to how organised, caring and involved Sarah was as their Senior in charge. At the end of every production comes the feelings of relief and accomplishment, which is why I thoroughly enjoy being a part of the Costumes Committee. I am very proud of the talented boys for pulling off such a wonderful production and I look forward to next year.

Chapel - Sophia Hall

After almost a full week of busy work, Friday mornings are a little escape from it all. Yes, a 10 minute earlier wake-up is difficult but because it’s for chapel it’s really not too bad. It is a tradition for all boarders to go to a morning Chapel service on Fridays. I personally have never had to do this at any previous school I’ve been to, but I wish I had. Plenty of people get stressed during the week over assignments, assessments and lots of homework but Chapel is a great way for us all to come together and take a breather. Chapel is in no way repetitive, as every week a fresh topic is talked about. Sometimes we even have a fun singing competition with the other houses with a hymn from our hymn books. This lets our competitive sides come out while having a good time. Girls are given the opportunity to sometimes read out a prayer or Bible reading which is great practice for self confidence and just great for getting that little bit more involved. Overall, myself and others love chapel as a Friday morning refresher.

IHC Social - Sue Friend

On the Friday of Week 3, a group of 14 girls from Taylor and Middlemore helped to host the College’s annual IHC social. The IHC supports people with intellectual disabilities and assists them to live satisfying lives in the community. This organisation's humane intentions influenced us to take on this role with a mindset to honour the guests. Our goal was to provide the guests, who came from various associations, the best outing of their year. As a well-communicated team, we started planning themes, roles and decorations as soon as the term started. The theme we decided upon was Hollywood, as we wanted the guests to feel like the dazzling star they are. I took on the role of setting up the photo-booth and helping out at the snack bar. Setting up for the night was truly an eye-opening experience. We had to consider the type of snacks we would provide to the Hollywood stars as the majority of them could be heavily influenced by a sugar rush. We also made sure that everyone went home with a much deserving award, including ‘Best Smile’ and ‘Being a Superstar". The number of King’s students who turned up on the

night was remarkable. In no time, the students and the guests were dancing and singing their hearts out together to DJ Rev Onosai's entertaining music. Everyone was incredibly welcoming and friendly towards each other, making it a very successful night. Seeing the smiles on everyone's faces made our part in the IHC Committee a gratifying experience. “It was so special to see many of the students having such a great time and making all the guests feel so welcome. I believe that this was such a rewarding experience for all of the King’s students and I know it will be a night to remember” says Emma Sanders who held hands and danced with David (one of the guests) for most of the night. They were truly inseparable. I definitely look forward to attending next year’s IHC social.

Pink Ribbon Breakfast - Sarah Griffiths

A much anticipated event on the Middlemore Calendar is the annual Pink Ribbon Breakfast which was held on the 12th of August. The Pavilion was decorated in all things pink and the girls sat down with parents and staff to a scrumptious breakfast of croissants and kombucha. The committee raised a very impressive $2,157.60 for the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation, through ticket sales, donations and generous raffle prizes such as: jewellery, beauty vouchers, movie tickets, wine and much more. But most importantly, we had Jenny Wagener (Breast, Thyroid and General Surgeon) at

Middlemore Hospital as our guest speaker. She was an incredibly knowledgeable and insightful speaker who educated us about the seriousness of breast cancer and the increasing prevalence of this condition. It is safe to say that we Middlemore girls enjoyed our special breakfast and the opportunity to gain some very valuable knowledge while raising money for a very worthy cause.

Community Service - Nigella Anderson

Term Three has been busy for everyone, but most girls in Middlemore have still been able to give up some of their time to take part in Community Service. Some of the Community Service Programmes we can get involved in are: Middlemore Hospital, After School Care and Women’s Refuge. While volunteering at Middlemore Hospital, we have the chance to visit patients and lend a helping hand, while at After School Care and Women’s Refuge, we get to spend time with the children. These different programmes offer a humbling and valuable experience.

There have also been Community Service events within the House and school that Middlemore girls enthusiastically took part in. The Middlemore Pink Ribbon Breakfast was held at the beginning of the term and the IHC social followed later in the term. Both of these worthwhile events were enjoyed by all who attended.

Boy House Netball -

The 2019 Boys’ House Netball Competition took place at King’s College on the 11th of August. The competition is a friendly and competitive game of Netball between all 11 houses within the College. This was a good opportunity for us girls to interact with our

Boy House, as t h e t e a m consisted of four girls on court the entire time. Both boys and girls worked together as a team as they took on the other Houses of the College.

I played in my Boy House, St John’s, alongside three other girls and three boys. We worked hard as a team, encouraged by our sideline support of St Johns boys who we were playing for. All 11 Houses of the College were very competitive and ready to win for their own House and, although some people did not know how to play, this made it

more fun as most boys played as if it was Basketball. All Houses had their own strategies and St John’s plan was to pass the ball to the tall boy in Goal Shoot.

Overall, every house had a good attitude towards the competition. Both boys and girls in each team supported each other and worked hard to win. In first place was Averill, second place was Marsden, third place Major and in fourth place St Johns. No matter the result, everyone who played and supported enjoyed the experience.

Middlemore vs Taylor Football - Tara Swisa Brown

House Football was one of many competitions between the two Girls’ House, Middlemore and Taylor. Although the game got postponed a couple of times, we still ended up going down and having a fun and exiting game of football. In the first half of the game we used great defensive skills and managed to keep the score 0-0, which was very impressive because almost the whole 1st XI team is from Taylor. However, during the second half, Taylor got got through our defence and made the final score 3-0 to Taylor. Middlemore girls played exceptionally well considering some have never played before but still took one for the House and gave it their all. There was a lot of sideline support from the two houses bringing down their maroon and purple support gear. but also with boys coming down and cheering us all on. Although Middlemore didn’t come out with the win, the girls still had fun and Midddlemore appreciated the effort and determination everyone put towards the team.

Cross Country - Tess Porter

Every year, all the girls have to participate in Cross Country. We all do weekly runs in order to prepare for the big day. All the girls contribute and represent their Boy Houses in this competition. It’s a day filled with nerves and adrenaline. We run 3.4km around the

school while the boys support us on the side lines.

This year, we had outstanding results from the Middlemore girls, including Charlie Francis who finished in 2nd place!

This year, we had sunshine and great spirit. Cross Country is an event that all the girls get nervous for, but are relieved and feel accomplished once it’s completed. It begins when the gun blasts and all the girls sprint off past the boys and go around the field. We then come back around and all the boys chant their houses on. The race then finishes near the Pavilion and, as soon as you see the finish, line you are relieved it is over and you can catch your breath. It is an amazing experience that we all get to participate in.

Tournament Week

Going away on Tournament Week with the 1st XI Hockey Team was a really awesome experience. We stayed out in Buckland’s beach at a Youth Christian Camp with two other teams from the tournament. A highlight from the week was definitely becoming closer with the team. Whether this was through our makeshift ocean ice baths, the fines sessions or trying to become Tiktok famous! Even though we didn’t place in the position we wanted, the losses were short lived and our spirits were regained. Overall, I had such a great time and thanks to the coaches, parents and especially the team who made it such a memorable

Exam Advice - Lily Zhang

1.They are important...like, REALLY important if you plan to go to uni after school, so treat them seriously.

2. That being said, DO NOT stress yourself out. Don’t overstudy by staying up super late, cramming every single day, living on coffee and having frequent nervous breakdowns (yeah, some of us have been there…) Going out for a run after prep or in the morning would be a nice thing to do.

3. Make a plan. I know it sounds cliché and I know there’s only around 1% of chance that we’d actually tick off every single thing on it, but it helps in the sense that you will know that you have a finite number of tasks instead of a gazillion things floating around.

4. Smaller sessions (around 30mins to 1 hour, NOT 5 minutes!) work better and walking around a little between your sessions also helps. Shutting yourself in one single room for the entire day WILL stress you out.

5. I know it’s much easier said than done, especially during exam seasons while everything pivots around marks and grade boundaries, but if possible, think about why you took each subject in the first place, which topic/aspect of the subject do you LOVE the most — try to approach the contents with curiosity instead of seeing them as hard work. LEARN instead of STUDY.

6. Make yourself cozy while studying! Make yourself some tea, maybe get a blanket, put down the blinds if the sun is too much...small things like this can make you feel much better while studying .

7. Lastly, have an early night before each of your exams. Get everything ready (statement of entry, multiple pens, calculator...), get plenty of sleep, and if you are a coffee person, have one in the morning… Basically, make sure you are fully charged and feeling great before going into the exam

8. GOOD LUCK!!