General - 2011

Emily was Club Champion Optimist Green, was placed First Optimist Green post-Christmas and First Crunchie racing (first year sailing) pre-Christmas. Emily was also named Most Improved Girl.

Ebony was Runner up Club Championships Optimist Green and Runner Up Optimist Green post-Christmas.

May 2011
Funakoshi Karate New Zealand held their grading on May 7th, with Andrew Bolton successfully achieving his next level – 1st Degree Junior Black Belt.

Andrew has been training at the club since 2005, and has grown from strength to strength. Grading is completed over a 3 hour period with Andrew being required to remember 9 Grading Forms and 9 Kata’s (sparring against imaginary opponents.)

Andrew also had to complete a self study – he elected to do this using a weapon called a B0 – he learnt a Bo Kata and demonstrated a good level of competency. Also necessary for grading is several Kumite (sparring) bouts and a 20 min fitness test.

A great effort Andrew, well done.

Sensei Luke (Chief Instructor Funakoshi Karate New Zealand)

March 2011
Hobie 16 Nationals
Room 8 has a very talented sailor amongst their students!
James Wilson recently competed in the Hobie 16 Nationals off Takapuna Beach over the weekend of the 18th and 19th March. He crewed for Andrew Springford and they finished first overall in the Senior Open Class. That’s Adult sailors!
They also won the Rose Bowl, which you win for winning the opening race of the Nationals, it has never been the case that a crew that win the Rose Bowl then go on to win the Trophy!
James and Andrew also sailed last year in the Nationals and finished 3rd. James may sail in a regatta in the Fiji islands next term and James’s win qualifies him for the World Champs next year in San Francisco. A very talented young man!

December 2010
Onepoto Cultural Festival: Friday 19th November 2010
We were very proud of our two groups of students who took part in the recent Onepoto Cultural Festival, held at Onepoto Primary School.

Our Kapa Haka group, - the smallest group who took part – were superb! Their mana, their presence on stage, their singing, their poi and haka were all performed to a particularly high standard, drawing great applause from the large audience. Many thanks to Matua Gary Parata for preparing our students so well for this event. Also, a big thank you to Stacey Haig for her commitment to this group.

Our 14 Korean dancers also did us proud with their exquisitely beautiful fan dance. The audience roared their approval as these talented girls synchronised their fans in a complicated dance on the indoor stage. Many thanks to Alex Olney for preparing our girls so well for this event. It was a lovely day, with so many different performances from a great number of schools. Our students’ behaviour was exemplary throughout the day. Congratulations to all of them for awesome performances and a great attitude.

November 2010
Choir
The Notables (and wonderful parents!) braved the Friday night commuter traffic over to the city on the 26th November to join the Auckland Girls’ and Auckland Boys’ Choirs. Along with another three school choirs they presented a programme of Christmas music in a “Youth Celebrates Christmas” concert at Holy Trinity Cathedral. The choir presented their items very well and were great ambassadors for the school. They also joined with the other choirs for two massed choir items at the end. This was a very different experience for the choir and it was an honour to be invited to perform. Once again, the Notables upheld the tradition of high level choral music.

October 2010
Rock Climbing
Moya McCarthy Rm 8 has had great success in climbing. The National Cup Series took place over 4 weekends this year in Christchurch, Wellington, Rotorua and Tauranga where Moya Finished 2nd overall in the under 14 age group. During the last school holidays she competed in the Oceania series to gain a 4th place.
In the photos Moya is climbing the indoor overhang at Birkenhead. The outside rock climbing shot has Moya in green at the top of the climb.

October 2010
Lecturing in New York
Emma Caisley Rm 31 and Jacqueline Caisley Rm 19 travelled to New York recently and during their stay visited four different schools in the area. The girls had prepared a PowerPoint Presentation 20 minutes long on New Zealand and then answered questions. They did six presentations over two days. They spoke to 5 year olds and up to 14 year old students, adapting their presentation to each different audience. They did MBIS and New Zealand proud. Well done girls!!

October 2010
Rebecca Wan Rm 13 has been awarded 1st place in the YDA Living Environment, Garden Concept Design.
‘A few months ago, I was asked by my Art Teacher to compete in the national Young Designer Awards. I had to design a backyard complete with elevations, cross-sections and illustrations that were all to scale. On the 25th September, I flew down to Christchurch to attend the prizegiving and won first place in the Landscape/Garden concept design. It was a lot of fun and I can’t wait to do it again next year.’ This is a fantastic achievement. Well Done Rebecca!

September 2010
Two groups from Murrays Bay Intermediate went to the New Zealand Choral Federation’s THE KIDS SING competition at the Auckland Town Hall on the 27th July.
36 girls in the Notables, 55 boys in the Guys’ Group along with three staff and fourteen fabulous parents spent the day at the competition. With 19 choirs in the competition, the circuit of Supper Room, Green Room then onto stage to perform meant that there was little time to waste. The Guys’ Group was one of the biggest groups and impressed many people and the Notables also sang really well. Lunch down at the food court with the parents was a fun time. That evening, both groups were back at the Town Hall for the Gala Concert where all choirs performed one piece. These had been selected by the adjudicator who presented the awards. The Notables gained a Silver Award and also the award for the Best Performance of the test piece and the Guys’ Group gained a Bronze – which was actually very close to a Silver. Once again this event provides choirs with the opportunity to work towards a high quality performance and receive helpful feedback. Thanks to all the parents who assisted in so many ways and congratulations to all the students who have worked hard to achieve these results and for their great attitude and behaviour.

September 2010
Disney's “Beauty and the Beast Jr.”
This year’s production of Beauty and the Beast JR. has been a thrilling experience for everyone who took part. Right from the beginning, sitting in a circle reading through the script for the first time, to watching the set all come together as a small glimpse of provincial France. Production has been an exciting ride and it has been worth all the hard work. I remember at every Day Talent, we would sit on the bleachers and learn the songs, bit by bit, time after time, until we got it right. At times, we would feel like it was too much and be tempted to leave, but then we would remember: we were the 100 chosen students, out of the 400 who auditioned, to be part of something amazing!

He has a great work ethic and it is great to see such endeavour at a young age.

July 2010
Chinese Common Knowledge Test
Helan Sun Rm 45, participated in the Chinese Common Knowledge Test organised by the Chinese Council recently.
She had to answer questions about the History, Geography and Culture of China. She did so well that she came 3rd in New Zealand and 13th in the World!

Her prize is a tour of China for 15 days. Well done Helan!

July 2010
Man On Fire - David Walker - Rm 8 Teacher
‘I would like to thank everyone who was personally involved in this campaign, from all the company sponsors of product that allowed me to perform at my best to all the donations made to this cause and to all the well wishers along the way. The energy during the event as my crew updated me with new totals and new emails was awesome and certainly made the difference when things got tough. This is an outstanding event and one that tests physical fitness, emotional strength, planning and strategy. If anyone is considering a goal like this I thoroughly recommend it.’

‘It has been a privilege to be involved in the campaign with The National Burn Centre in raising awareness for burn prevention in New Zealand. But, it doesn't stop here; we have set ourselves a great goal and must continue to strive to assist burn victims where ever we can.
If you have any ideas about how you can further assist this cause please don’t hesitate to contact me or The Burn Centre.’
For more info about the event go to http://www.manonfire.co.nz/

June 2010
MBIS Speech Competition
Congratulations to the speech finalists who represented their Mini School at the MBIS Speech Competition.

Year 7: Nicole Fletcher, Joshua Young, Jackson Trim, Thomas Rangihuna, Thomas Sheppard, Soo-Myoung Jang, Edward Yoo, Helena Moore.
Year 8: Liam Andersen, Kiera Manuel, Jillin Yan, Hayleigh Scott, Ihtishaam Muhammed, Kiri Graham, Emma Clelland, Amanda Yap.

Impromptu: Alex Campbell, Jacqueline Caisley, Mitchell Hazelhurst, Joe Jackson, Maddison Jorgensen, Madison Bullock.
Congratulations to the overall winners:
Thomas Sheppard Yr 7and Hayleigh Scott Yr 8

June 2010
ELIP Speech Competition
Congratulations to all our competitors. The standard was high and the decision to select a winner was difficult. Thank you to Margaret Ellett our Executive Officer who assisted Mrs Braithwaite and Miss Opera in the judging.
1st Place: Tae Min Lee(Kevin)
2nd Place: Ho Baek (Jim)
3rd Place Equal: Han Ul Moon and Qi Li (Karen)

June 2010
Blast from the Past
A number of past musicians from Murrays Bay Intermediate School secured a place in the North Shore Regional Finals for the Smokefree Rockquest, which were played out on Friday June 4th at the Bruce Mason Centre.

“Get off the Grass” with Julius Hattingh, Matt Neale and Flynn Roser took 3rd place and Matt (guitarist) also won the MAINZ musicianship award.

“Ultra Violet” won the People’s Choice Award and Katie McNair (drummer) took the Female Musicianship Award. Our very own Gareth Kendon mentors Ultra Violet and they are now getting ready to submit their entry with the aim of securing a place at the National Finals, to be held in Hamilton later in the year.

We send out huge congratulations to both bands and their mentors.

May 2010
Kids for Kids Concert
On Monday 3rd May, 48 students from MBIS travelled to the Bruce Mason Centre in Takapuna for a dress rehearsal in preparation for a concert that evening. World Vision’s “Kids for Kids” concerts are a regular feature for many schools’ choir performances and this was no exception. The concerts ran for 4 nights at the theatre with different schools performing the show each evening where Suzanne Prentice led the singing.

This year, selections of songs entitled “Top of the World”, contained a variety of styles and included the serious and the hilarious. Suzanne entered into the spirit by dressing up and putting in false teeth for one number while the Massed Choir performed with movements and enthusiasm. MBIS students obviously knew their pieces and performed very well. Two of our students were chosen by the Music Director to perform solos. This selection was only made after auditions were held during the morning tea break of the dress rehearsal – so it didn’t give a lot of time to perfect delivery! Rachel Lee and Madison Vellekoop performed extremely well with their solos in “Tomorrow”. During the concert, the audience were made aware of the work that World Vision achieves in developing countries. The school’s involvement in the “40 Hour Famine”, which is coming up soon, is a relevant follow-up to the efforts of the choir. Thanks go to the many parents who supported their children.

April 2010
Wai Care Awards – to encourage and inspire
Charlie Fairs Rm 40 has won a prize at the annual Wai Care Awards event. This is held to celebrate and honour hardworking volunteers. Charlie’s passion and commitment last year with the organisation of this class to help out a Wai Care planting in Torbay and the follow up weeding session was ‘worthy of an award’ says Megan Beard of North Shore City Council.

April 2010
Equestrian Day
Murrays Bay Intermediate was represented by 5 promising young riders in the recent Equestrian Day at Greenhithe Pony Club.
The team and ribbon count is as follows:
Katie Hunter Rm16 and pony Kazzo (Prince Caspian) - 2 x 2nd
Sophie Cocks Rm 29 and pony Angel (Parklands Angel) - 1 x 2nd 1 x 3rd 1 x 4th
Brie Crosweller Rm 30 and pony Bonnie (Shake your Bonbon) - 1 x 1st
Saraya Turner Rm 21 and pony Amiyah (Firecracker) - 1 x 3rd
Olivia Watt Rm 25 and pony Smokey - 2 x 2nd 1 x 3rd
The girls were great ambassadors for MBIS. They all demonstrated a positive attitude and were most supportive of each other. Many thanks to the families of the girls who made sure both ponies and riders were beautifully turned out at Greenhithe Pony Club for a 9.30am start. Special thanks to Mrs Watt, Mrs Turner and Mrs Cocks who acted as Team Managers for the day.