N E W S L E T T E R

Dear parents, staff and learners
This is very true and applicable to all of us and something we should all remember:

A 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud man, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with his hair fashionably combed and shaved perfectly, even though he is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today.

His wife of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, he smiled sweetly when told his room was ready. As he manoeuvred his walker to the elevator, I provided a visual description of his tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on his window. I love it,' he stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy. Mr. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait.'
'That doesn't have anything to do with it,' he replied. Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged ... it's how I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it.

'It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do.

Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open, I'll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I've stored away. Just for this time in my life. Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in. So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories!

Remember the five simple rules to be happy:
1. Free your heart from hatred.
2. Free your mind from worries.
3. Live simply.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.

Have a nice day, unless you already have other plans.

PROCEDURE FOR TUESDAY 8 JUNE 2010
On Tuesday the high school will go to the Cathedral to enjoy Mass after which the learners will write their examinations as scheduled. This means that exams will start at 09:30. Please take note of this arrangement to ensure that your child can be collected after their exam.

ILLNESS DURING EXAMINATIONS
As a result of the change of weather we have had many learners missing examinations due to illness. It is important to remind parents and learners that in the event of learners missing ANY assessment, a medical certificate
must be produced. If no certificate is submitted, the learner will receive
zero for the exam.

DRESS CODE ETC
It is important for parents to assist the school as far as the image we portray is concerned. Daily we find learners who are either dressed incorrectly or boys not cleanly shaven etc. We have rules at the school as far as attire is concerned and will not tolerate any child not abiding by them. I wish to inform parents that if ANY child arrives at school with hair too long, not cleanly shaven, incorrect attire etc, that they will be sent home IMMEDIATELY! I trust I can rely on your cooperation in this regard. I need to make a special mention as far as the boys are concerned: I will NOT accept any excuse on the 1st day of the 3rd term regarding hair appointments that could not be made etc. Please make sure your son’s hair is cut and in order before he comes to school.

TEAMWORK
The best way to limit your accomplishments is to try doing everything yourself. But when you work with others, you multiply your effectiveness. You probably learnt the adage as a child: “Many hands make light work.” It’s true. More often, “lone rangers” tire before they triumph.

“Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is a process; working together is success.”

EXAMS & TESTS
Thank you to the learners for working so hard. We trust that your dedication will be rewarded with good results.

R100 DRAW – ENVELOPES
Just a reminder for you to send these back as soon as possible. Fantastic cash prizes to be won!

NETBALL
Congratulations to the U/15 Netball team and their coach who won their Kenneth Kaunda playoff game on Saturday against Sephemelo Secondary School. They will be playing on Saturday 5 June in Potchefstroom in the North West Finals. Good luck girls!

HOCKEY
League results:
The 1st Boys’ team played against Ferdinand Postma on Saturday morning and won 6 – 2. Well done to the team!

The 1st Boys’ and the U/16 (1) Boys’ teams have qualified to play in the quarter finals of the North West League on Saturday 17 July 2010 in Rustenburg. To prepare for these finals, their coaches have requested that the players please attend the following practices:

NORTH WEST TOURNAMENTS:
St Conrad’s College is extremely proud of our twenty three provincial players who will be participating at the various National and Regional Tournaments during the holidays. Good luck and may all teams play good hockey and be true ambassadors to our school and province.

TENNIS
Shana Beeton has been selected to participate in an Interprovincial Tennis Tournament that will take place in Sun City from 7 to 11 June 2010. Six provinces will be competing and we wish her everything of the best.

These learners will represent NW in the Primary School National Tennis Tournament in Pietermaritzburg from 11-15 June 2010.

CROSS COUNTRY
The NW League took place in Hartbeesfontein on 29 May 2010. The results of the 4th North West Cross Country League are as follows:

The next league will be on Saturday 5 June 2010 at Klerksdorp Recreation Centre (Westelikes) hosted by Laerskool Goudkop. This is the last league if you want to be considered for the North West team competing in an Inter Provincial Tournament on 10 July 2010.
Results for Africa Duathlon Championship held in Bloemfontein 29 May 2010:

Well done to all our learners and good luck with upcoming tours and tournaments. We are very proud of you!

Parent ........................................... Parent..................................

Child.............................................. Child.....................................

WORLD CUP - SAFETY FOR OUR CHILDREN
The security brief for the World Cup, held at the BHC, and presented by
Mr Aubrey Pieters emphasised the following point among others.
For those with children, the World Cup is going to be a particularly bad time for child abductions. In South Africa there are 15 abductions/kidnappings every day and they see this as a crime which will get out of hand over the World Cup period. Human trafficking gangs know that the schools are all
closed for the duration of the tournament. They will target shopping malls, cafes, cinemas, public toilets and toy departments in shops. Babies will be abducted for scrupulous adoption agencies. Children aged 4 - 8 will be targeted for the porn industry and children around 9 – 13 years of age for prostitution.

Keep an eye on your children! Do not send them off to the toilets alone. Do not let them go to the toy section while you do the rest of your shopping.

VALUE FOR THE MONTH: SELF-CONTROL

EXCITING LITTLE SAINTS NEWS FOR 2011

In 2011 we will be introducing our very first Afrikaans medium class at
St Conrad’s College. The first class will be a combination class of Grade RRR and Grade RR (3 and 4 year olds). The class will be taught in Afrikaans, but will share all facilities and playground equipment with the current English medium classes.

More exciting news for Little Saints will be the new revised fees. An amount of R 1100 per month over a period of 11 months will be charged and it will include the following:

These fees are similar to what the fees were in 2008! Please spread the good news to all your friends, family and colleagues at work. Our aim is to increase the number of learners in our school, and we need you, our parents to assist us with the marketing of these two exciting ventures!

During a recent Governing Body meeting two boarding related issues were discussed and approved. We are excited to announce that our Boys’ boarding establishment will be re-opening as of 2011. This is a wonderful opportunity for us as we believe that the care boarders receive is exactly what they need irrespective of age. We are also attempting to give boarding parents peace of mind, knowing that children are in a safe and secure environment. Another exciting decision taken was that the boarding fees for 2011 will be reduced to R40 000 p.a. This is in an attempt to assist our parents with financial strains currently experienced.

We request that parents please inform as many people possible regarding this and would also like to know if there are any parents who wish to donate any furniture to the school. If you wish to do so, please contact the school in order for arrangements to be made for collection.

It is with regret that I inform you of Mr Thomson’s resignation.
Mr Thomson, the head of our Primary School, will be leaving us at the end of the year. He has been offered the Head Position at an Independent Preparatory School in Johannesburg. St Conrad’s has been fortunate to have a person of his calibre, and with his integrity and leadership ability heading our primary school for the past two years.

The exposure, experience and professional development that
Mr Thomson has received at St Conrad’s, has provided him with the opportunity to move on in his career, and even though we are heart sore, we are very proud, that we could be part of this development. His wife, Mrs Thomson, will also be sorely missed in the foundation phase, where she has instilled a passion for schooling and an exciting sense of learning through exploration, involvement and creative thinking amongst our young scholars. We will have the opportunity to bid them farewell at the end of the year, and wish to inform our parents, staff and learners that the School Executive and the Governing Body, together with Mr Thomson, will be discussing and planning for 2011 and beyond. The exceptional solidity and structure that Mr Thomson has brought to our primary school has brought about a sense of confidence and stability, and this will be used as a foundation in our planning process.

Since March 2009, we have continued our relentless pursuit of our three goals, fiduciary, strategic and generative. These goals have remained paramount in all we do and you can remain assured that our focus has not shifted.
In our fiduciary mode we have successfully become partners in leadership and members of the teamand are constantly looking at avenues to make the school financially sustainable.

In our generative mode, we engaged in deeper inquiry, exploring optional courses and new ideas. We asked the question “Do we know what the real problem is?” Strategically we asked the question “What is the plan to solve the problem?” We have come to the following conclusion:

As an independent school, St Conrad’s College is heavily reliant on school fee income to meet the day to day expenses necessary to maintain and manage the school. This includes expenditure on sectional budgets, employee’s salaries, ground and building maintenance, outreach projects etc.

Thus, in partnership with the school Executive, we have embarked on an approach to identify ways in which we, as a school, can supplement our annual budget in an attempt to obtain financial assistance for projects which strengthen the school as an Independent Educational Institution.

St Conrad’s strives to remain one step ahead in education. State-of-the-art technology, experienced, dedicated and specialist educators and excellent facilities, all come at a cost. We would like to be in a position in future to continue to offer this quality. For this reason, we have established a Board of Patrons (BP) at St Conrad’s College.

The Board of Patrons consists of influential people (decision makers) of our community, with first hand knowledge of our school, who have become ambassadors of our school. This committee will open doors for us to prospective donors. They are able to provide ideas of possibilities on budget supplementation as well as possible avenues as to where and how assistance can be obtained for envisaged projects.
By lending their credibility & high profile support to the school the BP will put us in a position to elevate our school to new heights. We are excitedly pursuing this new vision and look forward to reporting back to you with more good news in the future.

By maintaining regular communication with our parents we hope to empower you with knowledge that will enable you to become positive ambassadors of our school and which will foster in you the same sense of pride which we have to be associated with Saint Conrad’s College.

Mrs A. Michaelides
Chairperson
From the Primary School Head's Desk.....

TODAY I RESIGN FROM MOTHERHOOD! - Ann Morrow Lindbergh.

“I’m having an ‘I resign from motherhood day today’,” announced my sister last Sunday. I clearly remember another friend saying the same thing this time last year, and I have definitely felt that way myself from time to time. No matter how much you enjoy motherhood, there are just days when you feel like it doesn’t matter what you do, it is never enough, apart from the fact that there are never enough hours in a day for most mothers anyway!

These feelings are normal (from time-to-time) and they go hand in hand with feeling so proud of your child you could burst, feeling as protective as a lioness, and feeling your child’s pain so much that it hurts, among others. Motherhood is no abstract experience it is a real, live, concrete one, and not something you can exit from when you have had enough. It doesn’t happen in black and white it happens in techni-colour, 24/7!

While some people are energised by being with people, others need to withdraw to re-energise themselves. I think all mothers get to a point where they wish for some alone time regardless of how social they are, and we shouldn’t have to apologise for it. Perhaps this should be the gift you request next Mothers’ Day because it’s priceless and so essential to healthy mothering of yourself and your children.

Time alone also gives you the opportunity not just to recharge your batteries and recover, but to get some much needed perspective on your children, their development, their needs and your life. As their mother you are the one person who instinctively ‘knows’ what your children really need. Remember the times when you’ve been fast asleep and you’ve woken up because you know your child is walking down the passage at three in the morning even though there is no audible sound (your partner doesn’t even stir)? That’s the connection I’m talking about and it’s called germ plasma – that deep energetic bond between mother and child that doesn’t exist in other relationships, that even enables us to mother in our sleep. It really is a 24/7 connection!

Mothers really do make the world go round.

“Certain springs are tapped, only when we are alone. The artist knows he must be alone to create; the writer, to work out his thoughts; the musician, to compose; the saint, to pray. But women need solitude in order to find again the true essence of themselves; that firm strand which will be the indispensable centre of a whole web of human relationships.”

KUM☺N
Congratulations to the following learners who are currently working on gold level and have been invited to attend a special awards ceremony in Johannesburg on 29 May 2010:
Michelle Harmse - Grade 6
Mickey Copeland - Grade 2
Keep up the hard work! You have done St Conrad’s College proud!

NATIONAL SOCIETY OF DANCE
Congratulations to Shaina Gossayn for receiving two A’s for her Dancers Badge Test as well as to Michelle Harmse who received two B’s. Dancing is like dreaming with your feet! ~ Constanze - Well done girls!

LE DANCE SCHOOL AMERICA - CLASSICAL BALLET EXAMS RESULTS
Exams were held on 12 May 2010. The two dancers that took part were:
Lara Baeta Grade 1 - Level 1 - Bronze
Rebecca Skudder Grade 2 - Level 2 – Silver
Well done girls!
SPORT PARTICIPATION
Please ensure that in the event of your child having flu, they do NOT take part in sport as this can affect their heart.
The well being of your children are of the utmost importance to us and takes priority to any sport or match taking place. Please assist us in this matter.

EXAMS
Feedback regarding the exams has been positive thus far and it sounds as if learners are doing the necessary preparation for the various exams. I trust that all learners will remain focused and will persevere until the end of the examinations.

MRS VAN DEVENTER
It is with regret that I have to inform you that Mrs. van Deventer has tendered her resignation. Mrs. van Deventer has been offered a promotional position at a government institution which she cannot pass by. We wish her all the best in her future endeavours. I want to assure parents that we will find a suitable replacement to fill Mrs. van Deventer’s capable shoes as soon as possible.

VISIT TO JOHANNESBURG THEATRE COMPLEX
“Le Grande Cirque Fantazie” performance is on 21 July 2010. The cost is R150-00 per person. Please book and pay as soon as possible so that we can finalise the bookings with the Johannesburg Theatre Complex. There are still 7 places available. Do not miss out on this wonderful opportunity!

Dear parents, staff and learners
OUTREACH: Term 2 – beginning next week (Primary school).

“Hi all my dear friends, (a letter from one of our parents)
A very unfortunate incident happened over the weekend (15/05/2010) to Maria, a lady who works with me. Her sister died 6 months ago, and she opted to look after her children who were left behind. This weekend past, the shack that they live in burnt to the ground and a young child of 5 years passed away due to smoke inhalation etc. This left them with nothing, no clothes, no cups, no blankets, no food; nothing at all has been saved due to the fire. We are all so fortunate to have all we need to fulfil our needs and wants, unlike Maria and family.

Please, if you have anything to spare, old blankets, a tin of food, clothing etc. Please contact me in order to help this family. Thanks for reading my mail.
Kind regards.”

As you might have gathered, calls like this are all too common. Our communities in the poor areas are all dealing with extra burdens such as extended families, no jobs, elderly parents, neighbours with no parents alive etc.
A call has gone out through your children’s teachers for their particular outreaches, but I fear that many adolescents do not even mention this to you as parents. I am pleading with you to do your winter changeover of clothing this weekend and to donate this to our ventures. Not one of us can imagine the joy when receiving a jersey or towels or shoes or socks or blankets and food.

A wonderful donation has been made by our Interact club for Haiti. They raised R6000 for a shelter box which contains everything a family of 6 would need to exist for 6 months. This includes tools to rebuild a shack, such as crockery, clothing, basic foodstuff, pots and bedding. I was so amazed to even hear of this concept. Well done to Interact and to the High school who buy their wares every day.
I hope this reaches your hearts and if you can, possibly help us.
Thank you.

God is love.

Upcoming Events

22 May
Primary School: Soccer Festival

8 June
End of term Mass - Cathedral

9 June
School Closes

10 – 12 June
National Hockey Festival
(Girls’)

14 – 18 June
U/16A Boys’ Hockey Tournament

21 – 25 June
U/18 National Hockey Tournament

1 – 4 July
U/14 Boys’ Hockey Festival

4 – 7 July
U/16B Boys’ Hockey Festival

13 July
3rd Term commences

St Conrad’s College

School of Excellence

It’s interesting to note that when we divide our attention and multi-task we think we can get more done but we are not necessarily being more efficient. Neuroscientists at the University of Michigan have found that switching back and forth between two tasks, may decrease brain efficiency by as much as 50 percent, compared with separately completing one task before starting another one. Source: iBrain (Collins, 2008). Yeah right, I hear you chirp, gone are the days! There is mounting evidence that multi-tasking leads to stress and anxiety if not managed, and it also impairs our memory ability because it distracts us from paying full attention to what we need to learn and recall later.
Interestingly, the coping strategies for managing your technological multi-tasking, reducing the stress caused by it, and improving your attention, are fairly low-tech:

According to Gary Small and Gigi Vorgan, authors of iBrain, the key is to manage new technology and control the power it wields, rather than it controlling you. “All of us, Digital Natives [our children] and Digital Immigrants [ourselves], will master new technologies and take advantage of their efficiencies, but we also need
to maintain our people skills and humanity.”
Sage high-touch advice. After all, isn’t that what parenting is really all
about?

GRADE 7 EXAMS
To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream,
not only plan but also believe. Best wishes for your exams.
To the rest of the Intermediate Phase who have already begun with
their term tests, continue to study hard. Remember this month’s value: Perseverance!
May God bless you all!

OPEN DAY AND SCHOOL REPUTATION
Our annual Open Day was most probably one of the most successful Open Days we have had over the last 4 years. We hosted more than a 100 learners during our afternoon session. Although few parents attended this session, the objective was always to create interest among the learners and in doing so get the parents to attend the evening session. I am happy to say that we did just that. We had more prospective parents attending our Open Day than we anticipated. It was wonderful to see that learners from Afrikaans primary schools also attend. This is an indication that our school has a good reputation and that people in the community are talking about St Conrad’s. Yes, I will be the first to say that there is no such thing as a perfect school. Every school has its areas to be improved upon, but I am of the opinion that there is NO better school than St Conrad’s.

EXAMINATION ISSUES
As you are aware our mid-year examinations have commenced and I pray that all learners will perform to the best of their ability and achieve to their potential. I trust that all necessary preparations have been done and that this will be reflected in the results.

On a logistical point: The Grade 8 and 9 learners have to come to school at the usual time and will be allowed to go home at 09:45. Even if an exam of 1 hour is written, the leaving time will remain the same. If you wish for your child to remain at school to study, please contact us at school so that arrangements can be made.

It seems as if numerous learners are coming onto the school property over the weekend for various purposes. The learners have been spoken to in this regard, but I ask where at all possible, that learners do not access the property over
weekends if they don’t need to. If it is to collect something from the locker
or for group projects, it is a different issue.

Apart from the security issues it brings about, it is more a case of each learner’s protection. If a learner gets injured, that child might not be attended to for a long time due to the fact that there is no one else around.

REPORTS BEING ISSUED
A reminder that the 2nd Term reports will only be issued at the start of the 3rd Term as exams are written until the very last day.

GRADE 10 MATRIC FAREWELL COMMITTEE.
The Grade 10s will be selling Father’s Day gifts. Orders can be placed with the respective class teachers; pricing for the gifts vary from R 10 to R35. The Grade 10s will be going around to all the classes to show the respective gifts that are available to purchase. All orders need to be placed before Thursday the 27th May 2010.

The following learners will be taking part in the NW Trials on Friday 21 May and Saturday 22 May 2010:

CROSS COUNTRY
The second leg of the NW League took place at Western Reefs Primary School on 15 May 2010. The 2010 Cross Country season has kicked off, boasting the biggest season ever. Races in various ages have had between 40-90 athletes competing. St Conrad’s College athletes performed well and our top athletes finished in the top half of their field. Our learners in the Top Ten were:

The 3rd leg of the NW League takes place in Wolmaransstad on Saturday 22 May 2010. Own transport is essential should athletes want to participate on Saturday.
Just a reminder that extra-mural practices have stopped for Grades 4-7. Matches will still take place. Grades 1-3 will still continue with their extra murals.
Well done to all our teams. We are very proud of you. Good luck in the exams and tests that lie ahead.

Classical Ballet Exam Results
Congratulations to the following two dancers on their achievements with last week’s ballet exams:
Lara Baeta Grade 1 Level 1 – Bronze
Rebecca Skudder Grade 2 Level 2 – Silver

A reminder to all our parents to keep the Head of Extra Murals, Mr Paterson, informed of any achievements attained by our learners. It is wonderful for us to hear of such news and it is important for the learners to know that they are recognized for these achievements.

NORTH WEST HOCKEY TEAM SELECTION
Congratulations to the following boys who were selected for the North West Teams:

NORTH WEST JUNIOR TENNIS – INTERPRO
Congratulations to Devon O’Brien who was selected to represent North West at the Interpro Tournament that took place from the 22 April to 27 April 2010 in Bloemfontein. Only the top three merit players per age group are invited to attend this tournament.

RAFFLE - R100 Draw

This initiative started by the school in 2009, has been a project generally poorly supported by our parents. The objective of this fundraiser, was not only to afford parents an opportunity of winning cash, but also to raise money to plough back into education. All funds raised thus far have been utilised towards education and thereby benefiting your child directly.

This cannot be seen as a waste of money even if you do not win the raffle. You are assisting the school in purchasing new software or educational aids, thereby enhancing our educational approach.

We urge parents to come on board with this fantastic project. Buy your ticket now and stand a chance of winning R5000, R2000 or R1000.

Extra track suit trousers are already available at AK Bazaars for the Primary School. The extra trousers for the High school are in the process of being manufactured. The cost will be between R140-180.

Dear parents, staff and learners
RAFFLE - R100 Draw

I urge parents to purchase their ticket and stand a chance of winning R5000, R2000 or R1000. Remember that all funds raised will be ploughed back into the education of YOUR child.
Life is a journey, not a destination
Life is a journey, not a destination is a phrase that has become popular. Have you pondered the true meaning of this statement? If you have, you no doubt, recognize that, life is a journey with many steps on your unique personal journey that takes you down a winding and sometimes bumpy road of constant evolution. Each day, you are provided with a myriad of opportunities that allows you to transform into your next best self--more of whom you truly are.
Each moment on your journey, you are presented with an opportunity to react differently when yet another someone or something in your life rubs you the wrong way, or you may find yourself wanting to walk away from a circumstance, but are not sure if that is the right thing to do. However, you may find yourself stuck in a rut that seems impossible from which to extricate yourself. You may even make the same choices over and over again because you do not know how to choose otherwise.
Rather than moving you forward, your present path may take you in a seemingly never-ending circle where your actions and choices lead you, not only, nowhere, but to where you've been before. It is during these repetitious moments that awareness becomes the first step to change.
Awareness is the moment when you are able to recognize what you are doing at the deepest level. You observe yourself, noticing your actions, reactions and choices in real time. Awareness is the first step to change because you cannot make a change unless you are aware of what needs to be changed.

EXAMS
Exams are now two weeks away. Please encourage your child to make a concerted effort as far as preparation is concerned.

RETURN LETTERS
Each learner in the school has received a letter where you have to indicate whether your child will be returning to St Conrad’s in 2011 or not. Please assist us in our planning and send this letter back to school. It is important to remember that a FULL term’s notice must be given.

BOY’S BOARDING
A decision was made to reopen the boys’ boarding house as of next year. If you know of any boys wanting to come to St Conrad’s but couldn’t due to the boarding facility not being available, please let me know or alternatively inform them of this decision.

SPEECH CONTESTS
Congratulations to all the participants in the senior and junior speech contests. All the speeches were of a very high standard. At the Inter-House speech contest the results were:

At the Inter-Schools’ Contests, Vitu Phiri came 1st and Dylan Gouveia 2nd in the junior section, while Daniel Shahim came 3rd in the senior section.
Thank you to all those who supported the speakers.

Attack, defend, strategy counts. It’s a tactical game where you have to take into consideration what your opponent might do. You have to play out various scenarios – what if this then that, what if that then this – before making your move.

I bet you thought I was talking about soccer when in fact, it was chess! Today, it’s very cool for girls and boys to play chess – to pit their brains against another. My eldest son blew me away when he came home from school in Grade 0, able to play chess – a game I had never even looked at – and proceeded to teach me how to play as well as beating me after just two lessons!

The value of chess in boosting the brain cannot be underestimated. This is the view of high school and primary school teachers as well as educational psychologists. It’s about thinking, planning, consequences, cause and effect and using memory skills – much like real life.

Good chess players are often good at maths. Chess involves holding the big picture of checkmate in your mind (the ultimate goal in chess because this is how you win) while at the same time being able to work out all the small moves you need to make to get there, adjusting your strategy as your opponent makes each of his/her moves (you have to be very focused and awake). In chess you need to be able to work out your moves both forwards and backwards. Much of maths problem solving is done forwards and in geometry you work backwards, according to maths teachers, so a child who is a chess player is getting good practice!

Educational psychologist and remedial teacher Sonja Richards, says that chess is fantastic for the development of visual perception skills. “It involves all the skills – spatial awareness, direction, planning, visual memory and more. It definitely involves higher order thinking and is a whole brain activity that requires creative thinking for the planning of moves and logical thinking in the execution of moves.”

If you’ve never played before, pop out and buy a set called Chess Teacher for under R60.00. Each chess piece sits on a base that shows you exactly how you are allowed to move it. You will be able to play from game one. Another fantastic game on the market (I call it a hip, modern version of chess), is Blokus. It involves chess-type thinking, can be played by 2 – 4 players, takes only 20 – 30 minutes per game, and has only one rule. If you’ve never heard of it, do visit my website for more info. It is a must for every family.

Between winter and the extended World Cup school holidays, now is the time to play family games with your children. May the games begin!

Congratulations to the following learners who took part in the Inter-Schools Speech Contest on Wednesday, 5 May 2010.

Grade 7 – Dylan de Gouveia         1st place
Grade 6 – Joshua Berry                  3rd place
Grade 5 – Genevieve Johnston    3rd place

Six schools took part in the contest and the adjudicators were impressed by the standard of the speeches.
Well done!

NORTH WEST TEAM SELECTION
Congratulations to the following U/16 girls who were selected for the NW U/16 B Team:

NORTH WEST WOMEN’S GOLF
Congratulations to Chantelle and Roxane Schmidt who participated in the 2010 Nomads S.A. Girls Golf Championships held at Orkney Golf Club from the 24th to 27 April.

CORNWALL HILL SPORT FESTIVAL
Congratulations to all the players on their outstanding behaviour and sportsmanship displayed during this tournament. All teams played exceptionally well and enjoyed the day.

EQUESTRIAN
Well done to Taylor Smith who competed in the Winter Show at Harties Riding Club and received her provincial Colours for all four of the disciplines – Showing, Dressage, Equitation and Showjumping. She will be competing at the SA Championships to be held in June at the Kyalami Equestrian Park.

SOCCER
Our 1st Team played against Strathvaal and drew 3 all.
Our 2nd Team played against KPS (A) and received points.
Our U/11 Team played against Pinnacle and lost 3 - 2.

HOCKEY
Our 1st Team Girls’ played against L/s Mooirivier and lost 5 – 0.
Our 1st Team Boys’ played against L/s Mooirivier and lost 3 – 2.
Our 1st Team Boys’ played against KPS (B) and won 15 – 0.
TENNIS
Our Jnr A Team played againt Saamtrek A and lost.
Our Jnr B Team played against Saamtrek C and lost.
Our Snr B Team played against Saamtrek B and lost.

CROSS COUNTRY
NW League 1 – Potchefstroom
1km Boys’ U/8 Regio Mendonca 2nd place.
1km Girls’ U/8 Louise Zacharia 7th place.

Well done to all our teams. Thank you for playing with so much passion and determination. You have done our school very proud. Good luck for the upcoming matches.

MY SCHOOL CARD:
Don’t forget to use your My School card at Pannarotis, Woolworths, Engen Convenience Centre/ Bimbos, Engen – in Kerk Str Ellaton, Waltons, Tile Africa, John Dory, Zenex Flamwood . Apply for a card at Woolworths.

SECOND HAND SHOP
We appeal to our parents to make use of our second hand shop to buy jerseys and winter shirts, culottes and blazers for the winter. All have been dry-cleaned and are perfectly clean. Prices are so reasonable and we have a huge stock. There are also many Little Saints sweatshirts and T-shirts available. I am in the process of moving a lot of the stock for PAX.
If you have tracksuits (white and brown) and would like to donate it to our sister school in Polokwane, the parents there would be so grateful. It can be brought to school by your child and dropped off at the secretaries’ office. I will collect everything and give them to Bro. Jos who regularly visits both of our schools.

Meaning of persevere: To work hard and steadily until one is successful:
To keep trying and not give up no matter how hard things get.

MISTAKES ARE NEW BEGINNINGS nikki@brightideasoutfit.co.za
Your child knocks over a glass of milk in the preschool years. Your response to this little accident will determine how he/she views their mistakes moving forward. Is making a mistake, such as accidentally spilling the milk, about being wrong or imperfect, or is it about the teachable moment – the lesson learnt?
If we create a scene, as if it is the end of the world, then making mistakes will bring up fear for our child. However, if we take such ‘accidents’ confidently and in our stride (they are going to happen to every child), and help our children to learn from them, then the outcome is usually quite different. “Oops, come quickly, let’s get a cloth and wipe up the milk before it drips on the floor! Now when the cloth is very wet, squeeze it into the bowl like this and then you can carry on wiping up the rest of the milk. Well done!”…….and life carries on.
As adults, we make mistakes everyday too. We are not perfect. We grow through our mistakes – they are one of the ways we learn how to master life. For children, making mistakes helps them to learn about how the world around them works, where their bodies are in relation to each other as well as objects, such as the glass of milk. Mistakes are not the end, they are about new beginnings. They are personal experiences, concrete learning opportunities, that allow our children to make different choices so that the same mistake is not made repeatedly.
What the world needs now are millions of solutions-orientated, “can do” children rather than children who don’t even try because they fear the wrath of their parents or their own imperfection. Most of the issues facing our planet are the result of unintended consequences (or should we say “mistakes”) made by us and even the generation before us. Empower your children by celebrating what they learn through their own little mistakes and you will go a long way to encouraging creative problem solving and resilience, essential qualities as our children mop up the mess caused by mankind’s big mistakes and solve the problems of our planet.

IBT Core Skills – Gr 3
In 2009 the Gr 3 learners wrote this exam for the first time. We are proud to announce that four of the learners received certificates of distinction for this exam:

Congratulations to all these learners, you have done St Conrad’s College proud!

Donations to SPCA
Please let your child bring a tin of dog or cat food to school. We would like to donate this food to the SPCA in Klerksdorp as the need at this organisation is dire!

Netball
Our U/13 A team played against Alabama and lost 20 – 1
Soccer
Our 1st team played against P A Theron (B) and won 4 – 2
Our 2nd team played against KPS (B) and lost 8 – 2
Hockey
Our 1st team Girls played against H/S Gimnasium and lost 2 – 0.
Our 1st team Boys played against Potchefstroom Boys High and won 3 – 0.
Well done to all our teams. Thank you for playing with so much passion and determination. You have done our school very proud. Good luck for the upcoming matches.

Dear High School Parents
Mother’s day
"Mother carries the child in her womb for nine months and in her heart for the rest of her life".

These few words sum up the meaning and significance of the word Mother. Mother is undoubtedly the most beautiful and lovable word in any language. This goes to show the importance of mother in our lives. Mother stands for millions of things she gives to her children; it also stands for sacrifices pain, grief and sorrows which she has to undergo to keep her children happy and secure. No joy can match the joy of a mother looking at her child, those craving eyes-deeper than a whole ocean. The most important woman in an individual's life is her/his mother. Her presence affects us our entire life and she can't be replaced by anyone.
Happy Mother’s day to every High School mommy. The role you play in your child’s life can NEVER be underestimated. May you have a wonderful mother’s day where you will be spoiled...because you deserve it!!!!! J

Talent Show
I mentioned last week the possibility of having the talent show moved due to the late response from the other schools. It seems as if the other schools have now come on board and will be joining our search for the next big talent. Final dates will be confirmed as soon as our neighbours have sent us all their confirmation slips. I apologise for any inconvenience caused, but assure you it will be worth the wait.

High School Open day
We will have our annual Open day on Friday 14 May. We will be running two sessions: 12:00 – 14:00 and 17:00 - 18:00. Although both parents and learners are invited to the first session, we will focus on the learners predominantly that morning as an excited
“St Conrad’s Amazing Race” has been planned. The second session is to accommodate working parents.
At any school the biggest marketers are the parents. If you know of any grade 7 learners looking for a school, I urge you to please sell our school to them and invite them to visit our school. Alternatively, you can send their details to me and I will contact them personally and invite them.

Mid-year Examinations and Extra-murals
Exams are upon us and it is important for learners to have started preparing to afford themselves the opportunity of performing to their potential. I realise that the learners’ schedules are extremely full at the moment with various and numerous matches etc taking place. We are doing our utmost to play all the schedules matches as quickly as possible to allow learners time for preparation. Unfortunately, due to the short term, it does occasionally happen that more than one match is played in a week. In the event of this taking place, there is a big possibility that the practise for the week will be cancelled. I trust you will find this arrangement in order as it only benefits your child in terms of academic time available after hours.

Have a blessed week
Kind regards
Mr. J. Nel

GENERAL
RAFFLE – R100 Draw:
I urge parents to purchase their ticket and stand a chance of winning R5000, R2000 or R1000. Remember that all funds raised will be ploughed back into the education of YOUR child.

RAFFLE - R100 Draw:
I urge parents to purchase their ticket and stand a chance of winning R5000, R2000 or R1000. Remember that all funds raised will be ploughed back into the education of YOUR child.

Dear parents
A warm welcome back after a long weekend, I trust that you had a good break, and are now ready to take on WINTER!
As most of you are aware we had staff resignations in Term 1. I am very pleased to announce that as from 3 May 2010, we will have Mr Paterson taking over from Mrs Engelbrecht as Head of Extra Murals and Mr Ferreira will be joining us teaching Grade 6 and 7 EMS. Mrs Engelbrecht will continue with her Afrikaans classes as well as Grade 4 and Grade 5 Natural Science.

A reminder that all the Primary School learners must be in winter uniform from Monday, 3 May 2010. If you are not sure if your child has the correct uniform you are more than welcome to contact the school or refer to the document that was sent home at the end of the first term.

Lastly, I want to urge you to come and support your child when you possibly can. The support that you show them in any activity at school means a lot to them.

If you are concerned about an issue or feel the need to communicate with the school, I want to encourage you to do so. It is very important for us to keep the line of communication open between the school and the parents in order to make St Conrad’s College an even better educational institution.

Inter-House Speech Competition
Congratulations to the following learners who took part in the Inter-House Speech Contest.

Grade 7                                                                     Grade 6
Dylan de Gouveia    - 1st Place                              Joshua Berry                        - 1st Place                                                                                   Alexio dos Santos                                                    Michelle Harmse                                                                                                            Victor Mendonca                                                      Lesego Shakung                                                                                                              Boipelo Ralekgetho                                                 Nosizwe Madoda
Grade 5
Genevieve Johnston           - 1st Place                                                                                                        Vasilis Michaelides                                                                                                       Ashwin Luke                                                                                                                            Emma Skudder
Congratulation to Dylan, Joshua and Genevieve who will represent St Conrad’s College in the Inter-Schools on 5th May in the St Conrad’s Library at 14:30.
Monkey see, Monkey do! nikki@brightideasoutfit.co.za
                                                      www.brightideasoutfit.com

Picture the scene. “Five minutes to dinner!” I yell from the kitchen. My husband, busy catching up some work on his laptop is sitting out on the patio. He passes the message on (without so much as looking up from what he is doing!) to my youngest son who is playing with the dogs in the garden and to my eldest who is engrossed doing his homework on his newly acquired computer. The lamb chops are ready – cooked to perfection – a delicious aroma wafting out of the kitchen. I dish up and find I am the only one sitting down to eat at the dining room table.

Did no-one hear me? Did I not say dinner would be served in five minutes? Where are they? I did hear my husband pass on the message, but therein lies the problem: he passed on the message but took no action. He continued working on his computer. The children heard him but they could also see that dad wasn’t moving so they carried on with what they were doing, why do anything different?

The minute my better half stood up and boomed, “To the dinner table boys, did you not hear me! Your mother has cooked a delicious dinner, now show some respect!” there was a flurry of movement in my direction. Previously my children had heard him, but they hadn’t seen him taking action. Lesson one: this is a generation of watchers not listeners. Their ears just confirm what they are seeing, and if what they see and hear differs they go with what they see. Lesson two: we are the role models, our children are watching us. If we want action we have to model it for our kids because words so often just pass right over their heads.

So, if you want to reduce the amount of television your children are watching, you can’t be seen lounging in front of the small screen for hours on end every day. If you want your children to have self-respect you need them to see you looking after yourself (mind, body and soul). If you want to leave the house on time, you have to be ready first and moving in the direction of the front door. Children don’t evacuate the house just because you told them to, although that would be really helpful on a busy day when you are multi-tasking ten to the dozen.

Our words and actions have to be congruent for our children to take us seriously today. Actions definitely speak louder than words, so do save your voice and lead by example. Remember: monkey see, monkey do.

KLERKSDORP [KENNETH KAUNDA] DISTRICT HOCKEY TRIALS – PRIMARY SCHOOL
Well done to the hockey players – 24 players were selected for the district teams to participate in the regional tournaments where the selection for the different North West Teams will be:

Girls’ U/12A District Hockey Team:
Candice Silent Lerato Mahole Tanya Schmidt
Remofilwe Morutse Omphemetse Phetoe Amber Dineen
Monica Ferreira

Boys’ U/12A District Hockey Team:
Victor Mendonca                  Tristan Edwards                   Resego Kgomongwe
Deo Mulamba                       Vasilis Michaelides             Joshua Berry
Enrique Gomes                    Rowan Blair Hook               Wesley van Rooyen

Girls’ U/13A District Hockey Team:
Stacy Gossayn                     Tshegofatso Seilamashi     Soso Tshwene

Boys’ U/13A District Hockey Team:
Dylan de Gouveia                Andre Mendonca                 Mbulelo Matunda
Dylan Kruger                                    Gregory Silva

Congratulations to the following educators and staff selected for different portfolios for the Kenneth Kaunda District Hockey Teams:
Mr Eddie Walker [Coach – District U/12A and U/13A Boys Teams]
Mrs Cathy La Grange Lombard [Manager – District U/12A and U/13A Boys Teams]
Mr Dallas Noble [Coach – District U/12A and U/13A Girls Teams]
Mrs Marietjie Noble [Manager – District U/12A and U/13A Girls Teams]

HOCKEY
Results of U/14A League:
Girls’ 1st Team drew 0 – 0 against Volkskool.
Boys’ 1st Team got points from Ballistix Club

Dear High School parents
I trust you enjoyed the long weekend and spent some quality time with your families. There are a couple of issues I would like to inform you about and for some of them I really need your assistance and support:
Attendance of various practices:
We have brought in a new policy regarding extra-murals with a dual purpose:

The problem, however, is that despite our motivation it seems as if some of the children are doing as they please and being allowed by parents not to attend practices. I find it embarrassing to answer to a parent why there was only 1 child at a hockey practice out of a group of 14. This issue has been dealt with at school, but, if this is the level of commitment displayed by our learners, I fear we are missing the point of the extra- curricular programme completely. I urge and plead with parents to assist the various coaches and myself to ensure that your child is where he/she is supposed to be in the afternoon. It is not just the school’s image, integrity and credibility which is being tarnished, but also that of your child.

SANBS:
The response from our senior learners regarding our blood donation drive was phenomenal and I would like to thank them for that. Unfortunately, the blood bank had a crisis yesterday and could not honour their commitment. A new possible date will be forwarded as soon as it has been discussed. It will most probably take place in the 3rd term due to various constraints.

Readers and Leaders Reading Programme:
We are very excited about our reading programme at school. It certainly will benefit our learners in their reading ability, but more importantly, their academic progress. We have, however, experienced some problems with the software. This is being addressed at the moment. The provider will be visiting the school within the next week to resolve the problem. I apologise for any inconvenience.

Exam preparation:
Exams are 3 weeks away and I trust that learners have started preparing for this very important exam. Please motivate and encourage your child to start with his/her preparation which will still allow him/her time to discuss any problems with the relevant educators.

‘St Conrad’s Has Talent’:
This initiative has really been an exciting venture and the learners have enjoyed it tremendously. At the start of the 1st Term we challenged the other schools in the KOSH area to come on board and have their own talent show, with the top 5, from each school, proceeding to the finals at St Conrad’s. Unfortunately the other schools have been tardy in their approach and have delayed the process. We will know by Friday where we stand with all of the other schools after which it will be communicated to you. In other words....there is a possibility that the process might have to be delayed until the 3rd term to allow the other schools to finalise their approaches. We will give you finality on this issue in the next newsletter.
God bless
Mr J Nel
Head of High School

NETBALL:
Our girls played league matches against Lofdal last week and unfortunately both teams lost their games. Results were: U/15 lost 10 - 12 and U/17 lost 7 – 9. Well played, girls!

TENNIS:
The Boys’ 2nd team playing in the 3rd league played Stilfontein Hoërskool’s 1st team and even though each team won 4 of the 8 matches, they lost 34 – 38 in games. Well done to these boys.

NORTH WEST TEAM SELECTION:
We are proud of the following learners who were selected for the various North West Teams:

Tylor O’Shea, Dwayne Ratzlaff, Devin O’Brien, Charles Lebone and Rembu Takalani

The NW Teams for the U/18 Boys, U/16 Girls and Boys have not yet been finalised. We will announce the players as soon as we receive the team lists.
KARATE:
Congratulations to Sergio Jardim who qualified to participate in the KWF South African Championships that will be held on Saturday 29 May in Johannesburg. He obtained 2 first places in his division at the North West trials held recently.

PRIMARY SCHOOL

Discipline - Community Service ( Detention )

The High School has implemented community service as part of their detention and disciplinary system with much success. They have noticed a more positive effect on the learners and a general improvement in discipline. We are therefore planning on implementing the same kind of disciplinary action in the Primary School. Please feel free to contact the school; Fax : 018 462 6375 or E mail:paula@st-conrads.co.za, with any views or suggestions regarding this issue.

Little Saints Soccer Raffle Lists
Your child has received a raffle list from his/her register educator. Please support
us in this project as the funds raised will be used for the benefit of your children.
Thank you for your continued support.

Primary School - Reading Programme:
Please encourage your children to read as the reading programme that was introduced last year is still up and running. It is very important that all of us cultivate a love for reading in our children. Thank you for your co-operation and support regarding this very important cause.

GAUTENG NORTH DUATHLON CHAMPIONSHIPS
Joshua Berry - 2nd place U/13 Boys [2,5 km running, 10 km cycling, 1,25km running]

Joshua qualified for the North West Duathlon Team to go to the South African Championships in Bloemfontein during May 2010. Well done, Joshua!

NATIONAL BIATHLO CHAMPIONSHIPS
The following learners participated in the above mentioned event and did very well.
Tanya Schmidt [U/11 girls] 1 000m running, 100m swimming, 500m running.
Dylan Kruger [U/13boys] 1 000m running, 100m swimming, 500m running.
SWIMMING – LEVEL 1
Dylan Kruger                                    Gold medal – 100m Backstroke
                                                Silver medal – 50m Backstroke
SWIMMING – LEVEL 2
Alexio dos Santos                Silver Medal – 400m Freestyle

SWIMMING – LEVEL 3
Level 3 is the highest level a primary school swimmer can qualify for and it is the most prestigious gala a swimmer can attend. Well done to Dylan de Gouveia, the only Primary School swimmer in the North West who was able to qualify to participate oat this high level against the best swimmers in South Africa.

KLERKSDORP [KENNETH KAUNDA] DISTRICT HOCKEY TRIALS – PRIMARY SCHOOL
Please take note that the Klerksdorp District Hockey Trials [P/S] will take place on Friday, 23 April 2010, 14:00 at St Conrad’s College. Only players who are invited will attend these trials.

Girls’ 1st Team won 4 – 2 against Ballistix Club.
Boys’ 1st Team won 4 – 3 against Hoërskool Gimnasium.

NETBALL
There will be a Primary School Netball Practice Clinic on Saturday, 24 April 2010 at St Conrad’s College Netball courts from 15:00 – 17:00. There will be a coach from the Free State, Elna Geyer to assist the players. Mrs Erika Newberry and Miss Lodize Deysel will also be attending.

PRIMARY SCHOOL NORTH WEST TENNIS TRIALS
            Date:               21 + 22 May 2010
            Venue:           NW Tennis Stadium Klerksdorp
            Time:              08:30 till late afternoon

TENNIS
Results:
Senior B Team lost 46 – 66 against Laerskool President’s Senior A Team.

Dear parents
With the first week behind us it feels as if we have never been away. I am certain all parents, learners and staff are feeling the immense pressure the second term brings. I sincerely believe that people perform and achieve to the best of their ability when the pressure is on. It might sound like an old cliché but I am of the opinion that the same principle applies as to how diamonds are formed....only under extreme pressure.
I trust that this term we will see many diamonds forming with the grace of God.

Erratum:
I would like to apologise for a technical gremlin which crept into the order of our Top 10 achievers for the 1st Term. Carma Horwood in Grade 10, is in fact second in grade for the term and not 10th. I apologise for any inconvenience caused and would like to congratulate Carma on her outstanding academic achievements.

Proudly St Conradian:
I have been on a drive the last couple of weeks/months to get learners to realise how blessed, fortunate and privileged they are. This focus was not necessarily on the materialistic things our children have, but rather on the gift of life. There are so many people who do not have the physical ability to play sports or just even to make a difference wherever that may be. This has been one of the reasons why we have been attempting to motivate the children to participate more in the extra-mural programme as well as putting in the necessary effort with their academics.
Over the past week our learners have once again shown why St Conrad’s is the school of choice. I have been exceptionally proud of our learners who participated in the following functions and or events:

Standing next to a field or sitting in an audience where our learners’ exceptional conduct shone made me so proud. The sportsmanship displayed was such that other schools commented on our learners’ good behaviour.

Extra-Mural Policy:
A reminder to all Grade 8 – 10 parents regarding this new policy focusing on extra-mural participation. Please support and assist the school to ensure that we can continue being a school where we have many teams excelling the way they are at the moment.

High School Inter-House speech Contest:
This will take place on Thursday evening, 29th April at 18:00 in the Media Centre.

Long weekend:
I trust that all staff, parents and learners will enjoy the long weekend and will return safely to school on Wednesday.

NORTH WEST HOCKEY TRIALS:
To date we have not received any of the results of the trials for the various age groups. As soon as we receive the information we will inform all the players. Thank you to all our parents for their support.

SOCCER
The results of the soccer tournament that we hosted on Saturday 17 April are as follows:

BIATHLON
The results of the SA Biathlon Championships held on the 3rd of April are:

These same athletes then competed in the Biathlo Competition on the 4th April. The results are:

GENERAL
General
Here follows a story on stress management:

A lecturer, when explaining stress management to an audience, raised a glass of water and asked 'How heavy is this glass of water?'

Answers called out ranged from 20g to 500g.

The lecturer replied, 'The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long you try to hold it.

If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem..
If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm.
If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance.

In each case, it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.

He continued,

'And that's the way it is with stress management. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won't be able to carry on. As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden.

So, before you return home tonight, put the burden of work down.
Don't carry it home. You can pick it up tomorrow.

So, my friend, put down anything that may be a burden to you right now.
Don't pick it up again until after you've rested a while. Here are some great ways of dealing with the burdens of life:

The Governing Body AGM was held on Wednesday 17th March. Congratulations to the following who have been nominated to the following positions:

GOVERNING BODY REMINDER
A reminder to parents to purchase Saint Conrad’s parking discs for 2010. They cost R10.00 each and are available at the front office. Cars not displaying these discs will be charged a R5.00 parking fee at certain sports fixtures and events from January 2010.

Dear parents
Welcome back to the 2nd Term of 2010 and I sincerely trust that the short Easter break was enjoyed by one and all.
Parents may notice additional security measures in the form of palisade fencing (in construction at the moment) in the Primary School quad area and access control at the Little Saints Section. This has been initiated after careful consideration, and bearing in mind the inevitable build-up of excitement which is bound to occur leading up to the commencement of the Soccer World Cup in June, as well as the ongoing effort from the school to ensure that your children will be educated in a safe and secure environment. I reiterate that this action is merely a proactive and precautionary decision on behalf of the school and I do not wish to instil any type of alarm in the minds of parents as to the safety of their children.
For the remainder of 2010 we are in a very fortunate position that all the music in the Primary School will be done under the guidance and expertise of Musikon. Musikon is a focus school for music. They are contracted to develop your children’s music skills and expose them to the experience in what they have to offer. With Ms Arbuthnot’s resignation towards the end of Term 1, we had to ensure that the process of teaching and learning continues in the classroom, and it is for this reason that we contracted Musikon. We had to make internal changes to educator’s timetables to cover the academic side of Ms Arbuthnot’s timetable, and we are positive that from 3rd May a newly appointed educator will start teaching at the school.
I received notification from Mrs Engelbrecht (Head of Sport) that she wishes to “step down” as Sports Head. I want to thank her for all she has done for the school and the learners on the sport field; she is a huge loss to this department but we are still very fortunate to retain her as an educator. The position has been advertised and we will keep the parents informed as to whom will be stepping into the shoes of Mrs Engelbrecht, who has served the school for many years in this role. I wish her all the best and I am sure that she will enjoy her “new” role as full-time educator.
We welcomed to the Primary School staffroom Mr Fielding and Mr La Grange-Lombard. They are student teachers and will be joining the staff for the month of April. Then lastly I want to thank the parents for the support of the R 100 fundraiser. It was very well supported in Term 1 and we are hoping that we will have the same type of support in Term 2.

HOUSE POINTS – 1ST TERM 2010
Best Achievers
Conrad House                       Jack House                   Michael House       Patrick House
Gr 4 – T Palani                       D Selomane                   T Silva                         E Gomes
Gr 5 – T Schmidt                    V Michaelides                 L Mahole                   G Johnston
Gr 6 – M Harmse                   A de Freitas                     A Dineen                    J Berry
Gr 7 – D Kruger                      D de Gouveia                 A Ford                       S Gossayn

Overall results:
1st Place – Conrad House                  3 694 points
2nd Place – Jack House                    3 668 points
3rd Place – Patrick House                   3 291 points
4th Place – Michael House                 2 802 points

Well done to the following 3 girls in Patrick House who were selected to the following positions:
Stacy Gossayn          [ House Captain]
Boikanyo Diseko        [House Vice-Captain]
Soso Tshwene           [Cultural Head]

NORTH WEST INDOOR CRICKET
The following two boys participated for North West in a provincial tournament during the holiday: Joshua Berry and Adriaen de Freitas

NORTH WEST DUATHLON
Dylan Kruger competed for North West on Saturday, 10th April [2,5km running, 10km cycling, 1,25 running] and received a silver medal for 2nd place. Well done, Dylan!

NATIONAL BIATHLON CHAMPIONSHIPS
Tanya Schmidt [U/11 girls - 1 000m running, 100m swimming, 500m running]
Dylan Kruger [U/13boys - 1 000m running, 100m swimming, 500m running]

NATIONAL LEVEL 1 SWIMMING
Dylan Kruger participated in the National Level 1 Gala in Sasolburg from 27 – 29 March. He swam in 5 final events [top ten in South Africa].

He received 2 medals:                        Gold medal – 100m Backstroke
                                                            Silver medal – 50m Backstroke

ABSENTEES
Just a reminder to all learners and parents that when a learner is absent from school for the
whole school day, he/she may not participate in any extra murals; play any league matches
for any sports code or swim in any gala; that also includes participation in NW trials or
qualifying for any district team.

KLERKSDORP [KENNETH KAUNDA] DISTRICT HOCKEY TRIALS – PRIMARY SCHOOL
Please take note that the Klerksdorp District Hockey Trials [P/S] will take place on Friday, 23 April, 14:00 at St Conrad’s College. Only players who are invited may attend trials.

HOCKEY
The Primary School has entered a Boy and a Girls’ team in the High School U/14A League.
The girls have already played 3 matches and the results were:
Girls’ U/14A vs Technical High: we won 4-0
Girls’ U/14A vs Potch Girls High: we won 5-0
Girls’ U/14A vs Wesvalia: we lost 1-7

Winter Uniform – Learners will be expected to be dressed in winter uniform by Monday 3rd May. However, should it get cold before then, learners are welcome to wear winter uniform.

Photo Day – Learners should wear Summer Uniform for the photos. Primary School Photo Day – Wednesday 21st April.

Reports – Please return the reports as well as the tear-off slips of letters as soon as possible to the register teachers.

Top Ten Achievers Congratulations to all the Top Ten Achievers. You have done the school as well as your parents very proud.

Grade 4                                             Grade 5
1. Filipa Mendonça                          1. Ashwin Luke
1. Rozhina Salimi                            2. Vasilis Michaelides

2. Thivan Palani                               3. Emma Skudder
3. Dimpho Selomane                      4. Deo Mulamba
4. Talya Kebonte                              5. Kutlwano Moshugi
5. Shaina Gossayn                          6. Lerato Mahole
6. Aqil Variava                                  7. Tanya Schmidt
7. Uzair Adam                                   8. Wesley van Rooyen
8. Daniel Chedrawy                                    9. Tumelo Moagi
9. Enrique Gomes                            9. Remofilwe Morutse
10. Michaela Crerar                         9.Keke Mothoane
                                                            10. Onthatile Selomane
Grade 6                                             Grade 7

Keep up the hard work. Einstein once said: ‘A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.’ To those who didn’t make the Top Ten, keep on trying and work hard.

Welcome back to the 2nd term. This term is going to be incredibly challenging as we have sport fixtures commencing, as well as, the June examinations that will take place. This term has been regarded as one of the most difficult terms by learners in the past. It is therefore imperative that learners prioritise from the start of the term and that parents play an active role in supporting, guiding and assisting when and where ever necessary.
I believe that together we can make this term even more successful than the last.

6. Bernadette Chedrawy 7. Tekanyo Ketsile 8. Nathan Edwards
9. Vasili Moutzouris 10.Alex Silva

4. Shannon Kruger 5. Laone Matshediso 6. Roxane Schmidt
7. Michael Penny 8. Daniel Chedrawy 9. Joana Silva
10.Sergio dos Santos

Extra-Mural Policy
All Grade 8 – 10 learners have received our new extra-mural policy. I trust all parents have received this document and agree to the importance of the content therein. If you have any concerns, please contact me at school.

Parents’ Evening
A reminder to all parents of our Parents’ Evening on 19th May, from 18:00 – 20:00. Please ensure that you attend to afford yourselves this opportunity to discuss your child’s progress especially those learners who have received possible failure letters.

Promotion requirements
I feel it is important to remind parents regarding minimum requirements for promotion at the end of various grades. Please take note that we encourage learners not to aim just to achieve the minimum but rather to endeavour to reach their full potential. It is also important for parents and learners to realise that there is a VERY strong possibility that legislation regarding promotion requirements might change in the new future, making it more difficult to pass.
Grade 8 – 9: Moderate achievement (Level 3: 40-49%) in four of the eight learning areas including English and Mathematics
Grade 10 -12:            40% and above in three subjects of which one must be English
                                    30% and above for three other subjects
                        A learner may fail one subject provided that a portfolio of evidence can be produced

Congratulations
Michael Harmse in Grade 8 has been invited to attend the J+GII+Day in Johannesburg after qualifying as a higher level Kumon Mathematics student. Michael has done exceptionally well and we are very proud of him. Well done.
The University of Stellenbosch has sent us correspondence in which they congratulate the school for the exceptional learners the school produces. Two of our past learners have finished their studies at Maties and have done very well. We are very proud of Babette le Roux and Kabi Lekhoaba.

HOCKEY:
LEAGUE RESULTS:
The girls played Wesvalia on Tuesday 13th April. Even though the teams played well, they unfortunately lost. The results are:

NORTH WEST HOCKEY TRIALS:
Please take note that the next round of the North West trials will take place on Sunday 18 April in Potchefstroom on the Astro. Final arrangements will be given to all concerned on or before Friday.

SOCCER
St Conrad’s College will be hosting a Soccer Tournament for 1st teams on Saturday 17 April. The following teams will be participating:

Pastoral Department
Value for April - Forgiveness
God so loved the world that He gave his only Son - John 3:16

The last words of Jesus:
“Forgive them Father; they know not what they do.”

Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us -The Lord’s Prayer.

Term1 Sectional Written Reports 2010
The school executive will, as per agreement and policy, have the sectional written reports ready on Tuesday, 23 March. This details developments and achievements at the school from the start of the year. These reports will be available either in hard copy or on email. Should you wish to get a copy of this report please contact Mrs Peirce in order for her to make the necessary arrangements for you to receive this document. Please note that these are not the learner’s academic reports.

NIKKI BUSH
Creative parenting expert, inspirational speaker and co-author of Future-proof Your Child (Penguin, 2008) and Easy Answers to Awkward Questions (Metz Press, 2009)

Face-to-face communication is on the decline. Not only are we spending less face-to-face time with our children, but they are equally spending less face-to-face time with their siblings and their friends as technology plays a bigger role in their lives.

A Stanford University study found that for every hour we spend on our computers, traditional face-to-face interaction with other people drops by nearly 30 minutes. Ouch!

With regard to childhood this has important implications because the evidence is suggesting that the brain’s neural circuitry controlling human contact is weakening. According to Gabi Small and Gigi Vorgan in their fascinating book iBrain: Surviving the Technological Alteration of the Modern Mind (2008, Harper Collins) when this happens, our social interactions may become awkward, and we tend to misinterpret, and even miss subtle, nonverbal messages. “Imagine how the continued slipping of social skills might affect an international summit meeting ten years from now, when a misread facial cue or a misunderstood gesture could make the difference between escalating military conflict or peace,” they say.

If this sounds scary, it should. From birth to age 12, when these neurological pathways are being laid down, it is our responsibility to balance hi-tech with as much high-touch and face-to-face interaction as possible. We need to make sure that our children get the best of both the real and virtual worlds, so that they can learn to read and understand the subtle nuances of human communication.

Preschoolers are so spontaneous and on the ball here as my four year old nephew reminded me when he came for a sleepover this weekend. On waking up the next morning he launched himself onto his 14 year old cousin’s bed, clambering onto his chest and crying out in a face wreathed with smiles, “Are you happy to see me?” Let’s face it, such a visual message of human love and adoration could never have been conveyed in quite the same way if not face-to-face!

RAFFLE - R100 Draw:
The draw will take place on Wednesday, 24 March 2010. I urge parents to purchase their ticket and stand a chance of winning R5000, R2000 or R1000. Remember that all funds raised will be ploughed back into the education of YOUR child.

Diskonto Books Sale:
Diskonto will once again be visiting the school on 18 and 19 March. They have promised to bring many new and exciting books for all ages. They will also be on display before the Arts Festival on 18 March at 18:00.
Please diarise this and support them.

Sunscreen and Caps:
We urge parents to please ensure that the children wear sun block every day when coming to school. Please provide them with the school cap as well. There are still a few caps available from the Second Hand Shop at R25 per cap.

TRIANGULAR GALA
Congratulations to all our swimmers who participated in the recent Triangular Gala against KPS and Potch Central. We received numerous compliments regarding the organizing of the gala, the enthusiasm of our captains and vice-captains, Dylan de Gouveia, Stacy Gossayn, Dylan Kruger and Danielle Bennett and the sportsmanship displayed by our swimmers.

Results:
33 Records broken: Potchefstroom Central           5 new records
St Conrad’s College                9 new records
            KPS                                      19 new records

Best in age groups :
U/8 Girl            -           Louise Zacharia [St C]                        42
            U/8 Boy           -           Christopher de Freitas [St C]              50
            U/9 Girl            -           Alexia Duarte[KPS]                             55        3 records
            U/9 Boy           -           Damian Lagoa[KPS]                           55        3 records
U/10 Girl          -           Andreia da Costa[Central]                  59        3 records
            U/10 Boy         -           Peter Mansfield[KPS]                         55        3 records
            U/11 Girl          -           Jessica Schaap[KPS]                         60        4 records
            U/11 Boy         -           Scott Rowland[Central]                       42
            U/12 Girl          -           Sheniz Rabbaney[KPS]                      50
            U/12 Boy         -           Lemeul Chellens[KPS]                        51        3 records
            U/13 Girl          -           Stacy Gossayn [St C]                         62        4 records
            U/13 Boy         -           Dylan de Gouveia [St C]                     48

The best swimmer for the day [from U/8 – U/13]:
Stacy Gossayn [St Con]                     62      4 records

Total Scores

1st Place:                     St Conrad’s College                866 points
2nd Place:                    KPS                                         784 points
3rd Place:                     Potch Central                          575 points

A huge thank you to all the parents who helped out with a gazebo or umbrella at our ISSA Gala – it certainly kept all the officials and swimmers away from the sun.

NORTH WEST BIATHLON
Well done to the following athletes and coach who were selected for the North West Biathlon
team:
Dylan Kruger                           Boys U/13
Adraien de Freitas                   Boys U/11
Amber Dineen                         Girls U/11
Stacy Gossayn                       Girls U/13
Mrs Des Berry                                    Veteran Ladies

BROTHER JOHN CROSS COUNTRY
Well done to all our athletes for the good spirit with which you participated in the Brother John Cross Country. A total of 275 athletes participated.

Results:
7 Records broken:      Thando Ncwana [Co] Girls U/6          1:54;66
            Lelethu Botlhoko [Pa] Girls U/7          1:45;43
            Louise Zacharia [Co]   Girls U/8          1:36;39
Regio Mendonca [Co] Boys U/8         1:28;84
            Michelle Harmse [Co] Girls U/12        6:45;60
            Joshua Berry [Pa]       Boys U/12       5:31;41
            Dylan Kruger [Co]       Boys U/13       5:38;63

Best in age groups :
U/6 Girl            Thando Ncwana [Co]
U/6 Boy           Nathan Beukes [Ja]
U/7 Girl            Lelethu Bothlhoko[Pa]
U/7 Boy           Nuzah Moolla [Co]
U/8 Girl            Louise Zacharia [Co]
            U/8 Boy           Regio Mendonca [Co]
            U/9 Girl            Jenna-Marie Lee [Co]
            U/9 Boy           Nthokozo Mdanda [Mi]
U/10 Girl          Boiplelo Serape [Ja]
            U/10 Boy         Rowan Blair Hook [Ja]
            U/11 Girl          Lerato Mahole [Mi]
            U/11 Boy         Deo Mulamba [Pa]
            U/12 Girl          Michelle Harmse [Co]
            U/12 Boy         Joshua Berry [Pa]
            U/13 Girl          Vuyo Mbewana [Mi]
            U/13 Boy         Dylan Kruger [Co]

            Total Scores: 1st Place:         Conrad House 558 points
                                                2nd Place:        Jack House                 437 points
                                                3rd Place:         Patrick House             382 points
                                                4th Place:         Michael House            377 points
HOCKEY
There will be trials to select the Primary School Boys Hockey Team on Tuesday, 23 March 2010 on the B Hockey field from 14:30 – 16:00. Good luck to all the boys, may you all play your best hockey ever!

Good luck to the girls and boys 1st Hockey Teams with the High School U/14 League. The girls will be playing against Potch Girls High on Wednesday, 24 March 2010 at 15:00 at Girls High in Potchefstroom.

EVENING GALA

The Evening Gala against KPS will be on Wednesday, 24 March 2010 from 18:00. We invite all our parents to our last gala for the term. There will be 4 swimmers per event for each school participating. This promises to be an exciting, nerve wrecking gala, and an excellent way of finishing off the term.

Extra Murals:
Should any parent be interested in helping out / coaching with any of our sport activities, please contact Mrs Ronel Engelbrecht.

I wish to share a perception-changing story with you, which I read some time ago in the SAALED News Volume 29 No 3 of June 2009:

What teachers make
The dinner guests were sitting around the table discussing life. One man, a CEO, decided to explain the problem with education. He argued, “What’s a kid going to learn someone who decided his best option in life was to become a teacher?”
He reminded the other dinner guests what they say about teachers: “Those who can, do and those who can’t, teach. To stress this point he said to another guest, “You’re a teacher Bonnie...be honest...what do you make?”
Bonnie, who had a reputation for honesty and frankness replied, “You want to know what I make?” She paused for a second and then began... Well, I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could. I make kids sit through 40 minutes of class time when their parents can’t make them sit for 5 without an IPod, Game Cube or movie rental.
“You want to know what I make?” (She paused again and looked at each and every person at the table). “I make kids wonder. I make them question. I make them apologise and mean it. I make them have respect and take responsibility for their actions. I teach them to write and then I make them write. Keyboarding isn’t everything. I make them read, read and read. I make them show all their work in math. They use their God given brain, not the man-made calculator. I make my students understand that if they use the gifts they were given, work hard, and follow their hearts, they can succeed in life.”
Bonnie paused one last time and then continued...
“Then, when people try to judge me by what I make, with me knowing money isn’t everything, I can hold me head up high and pay no attention because they are ignorant....You want to know what I make” I MAKE A DIFFERENCE.”
“What do you make Mr. CEO?”
His jaw dropped, he went silent.

Each and every educator at St Conrad’s chose this profession as it was a calling and we want to make a difference. I sincerely hope that the story above will change the perceptions many people have of educationalists.

Excursions:
Our grade 9 and 10 learners are currently away on their annual excursions. Theses excursions serve as an extension of our academic approach as it educational in nature. These events are also things that learners remember for the rest of their lives as it is always memorable.

End of term:
We have one week to go before the end of this incredibly hectic term. I might be hasty, but I wish to thank all parents at this point for all their contributions and support during this term. This term has been extremely busy and has served as a good indication of what is to follow next term and for the rest of the year. The children are taking strain due to numerous pressures and it is important that parents and the school continue to offer support and guidance to assist them in carrying the load in their journey.
Have a fabulous week.

SOCCER:
We appeal to our parents who have the expertise and can help with coaching our High School Soccer Teams to please get involved and to make your self available to coach. If interested, please contact Mr Nel or Mrs Gates at school. Any help will be most appreciated.

HOCKEY:
Over the past weekend we hosted a very successful pre-season tournament. Results of the games played for the various teams are:

Lost 0 – 1 vs. THS
Lost 0 – 2 vs. St Con U/16 (1)
CROSS COUNTRY:
On Friday 12 March we held our annual Bro John Cross Country Competition. The top three athletes in every age group are:

Congratulations to Shannon Kruger, Chantelle Schmidt and Mwila Mwitumwa who broke records.
The winning house will be announced at the next assembly.

Don’t forget to use your My School card at Pannarotis, Woolworths,
Engen Convenience Centre/ Bimbos, Engen – in Kerk Str Ellaton,
Waltons,    Tile Africa, John Dory, Zenex Flamwood . Apply for a card at Woolworths .

Second hand shop:
We appeal to our parents to make use of our second hand shop to buy jerseys and winter shirts, culottes and blazers for the winter. All have been dry-cleaned and are perfectly clean. Prices are so reasonable and we have a huge stock. There are also many Little Saints sweatshirts and T shirts available.
If you have tracksuits (white and brown) and would like to donate it to our sister school in Polokwane, the parents there would be so grateful . It can be brought to school by your child and dropped off at the secretaries’ office. I will collect everything and give them to Bro Jos
who regularly visits both of our schools.

Memorial service for Bro Dius Andile Gilike in the Cathedral on Thursday 25 March 2010 at 7:45:
Bro Dius was born at Essen (Belgium) on 3 November 1917, consecrated a Brother of Charity on 15 August 1935 and died in St John’s rest home at Zelzate (Belgium) on 5 February 2010
Andile Gilike was a Matric learner who was killed in December.
Please invite any former parents or Old Saints and past learners who knew Bro Dius if they would like to attend as well as any former Matric who knew Andile.

Value for the Month: Responsibility and Accountability. Related words- leadership, duty and dependability.

As you are well aware, a school such as ours is in constant need of repair / maintenance. I would like to ask our parents please to come forward and give us their business details as we would like to approach you first for quotes on maintenance, etc. Should you be interested, please e-mail me your details so that you can be contacted in future. Listed below are the areas for which we require maintenance.

The draw will take place at the end of the term. I urge parents to purchase their ticket and stand a chance of winning R5000, R2000 or R1000. Remember that all funds raised will be ploughed back into the education of YOUR child.

Diskonto will once again be visiting the school on 18 and 19 March. They have promised to bring many new and exciting books for all ages.

St Conrad’s against KPS on Tuesday, 23 February 2010 - St Conrad’s won the match by 136 runs.
We made 225 runs – good batting performances by Dylan de Gouveia 50 runs, Tristan Edwards 33 runs not out and Mbulelo Matunda with 27 runs not out. With a good overall bowling performance,
KPS only managed to get 89 runs. Well done, U/13 cricket team!

St Conrad’s against Newton Primary – we lost the match by 8 wickets.
We only managed 54 runs in 30 overs due to a very tight bowling attack by Newton Primary.
Newton Primary reached the target in the 15^th over with only 2 wickets down.

St Conrad’s against Newton Primary on Saturday, 27 February 2010 – St Conrad’s batted first and made 37 runs all out. Rowan Blair Hook made 8 runs. Newton then batted and made 38 runs for 2 wickets. We lost the match by 8 wickets. Well tried, boys.

Well done to Kimberly Botha and Dylan de Gouveia who participated for North West in a tennis tournament against Northern Cape. The team beat Northern Cape. Kimberly played nr 2 for the province and won all her games.

Total Scores

A huge thank you to all the parents who helped out with a gazebo or umbrella at our ISSA Gala – it certainly kept all the officials and swimmers away from the sun.

Well done to the following athletes on good performances at the North West Biathlon

The following schools participated in the Prestige Gala on Tuesday, 2 March 2010 :

Newton Primary School [ Kimberley], St Andrew’s College [Welkom], St Dominic’s [Welkom],

Lebone II [Rustenburg], KPS, International School of South Africa – ISSA[Mafikeng] and

Thank you to all our parents for the support and help with time-keeping and officiating, and

to our two captains, Stacy and Dylan. Congratulations on a job well done! Your motivation

and assistance on the side with our relays, definitely had a big influence on our success!

We invite all our parents and supporters to join us on Wednesday – our swimmers need all the

Just a reminder that there will be no extra murals on Wednesday, 10 March 2010 because

On the important date list, we have scheduled a Parents’ Evening for 18^th March. We have decided that we will postpone the meeting until 19^th April to accommodate the Arts Festival hosted by the primary school, which will be held in the School Hall. Also, this will ensure that parents would have had an opportunity to peruse their child’s report and to ask relevant questions. Parents are ALWAYS welcome to contact the school at any time if there is any concern. If you wish to discuss any matter with the school please feel free to bring that to our attention so that the necessary meetings can be arranged.

I am certain you have been informed that Brother Mothobi has left the teaching staff at St Conrad’s College. His absence has caused some logistical problems for us as it has been exceptionally difficult to find a suitable replacement. We have appointed Miss Victoria Johnson until the end of the term to assist in this department. We are in the process of making final decisions as far as the rest of the year is concerned. I ask for your patience and thank you in advance.

We have decided to put together the above based on the reality show screened on SABC in 2009. On 23rd March learners will be given the opportunity to show off their talents in front of their peers. 20 finalists will be chosen from this group of contestants. These 20 contestants will then perform on 7^th May at an evening function. At the end of this round, the Top 5 will proceed to the “Gala Evening” where contestants from other schools will also participate and an overall winner will be announced. The primary objective of this is to afford learners, who do not necessarily participate in school activities or sports, an opportunity to show what talents they have, which most of us might be unaware of. I ask parents to encourage their children to enter this competition and to show Klerksdorp that St Conrad’s DOES HAVE talent!

I urge parents to support their children in the last couple of weeks of the term. It is usually during this time that they take more strain emotionally and become highly irritable and unmotivated. Please contact the school if you suspect any problems or if you need any assistance with anything. The emotional wellbeing of our children is exceptionally important to us!

It is of huge concern that it seems as if fewer and fewer learners are willing to take part in our extra-mural programme. I understand that the academic demands and pressures are high and that academics should be every learner’s first priority, BUT there should be a healthy balance between academics and “stress relievers”. In the workplace and at university a huge emphasis is placed on academic performance, but well-rounded learners, with other interests, have been considered more favourably over the last couple of years. In my humble opinion, this is owing to the fact that too many employees are suffering from stress and emotional disorders due their inability to deal with pressure. Well balanced people have been proven to manage themselves and stress with far more success than those who are “one-dimensional”.

Children need to get their focus away from academics 24/7 and get involved with other things in order to relax and stimulate their brains on a different level. I trust parents will make an informative decision as to what you believe is best for your child.

We are in the process of re-constructing our website and the information on it. We want to make our website far more informative to parents and learners. We have added, and will be adding articles worth reading on our website under certain tabs, for your perusal. We have recently added relevant information such as: Study habits, study diets and information regarding technology and the use thereof by children. Please access our site at:

www.st-conrads.co.za and make use of this medium of communication. If you have any suggestions on how to improve our website, please e-mail me at:

Congratulations to all our swimmers who participated in the recent gala against the International School of Mmabatho. We received numerous compliments regarding the enthusiasm and sportsmanship displayed by our swimmers.

Once again we appeal to parents to ensure that their children have the correct sport attire and costumes for this event.

The gala will start promptly at 14:30. Supporters to be dressed in their school clothes or white golf sport shirt with blue jeans / brown shorts.

Over the past weekend only 25 out of a possible 100 players attended the clinic. Although there was a cost involved, it is unfortunate that so few learners made use of this opportunity of being coached by staff from the NWU Hockey Academy.

Holi: March 1: A Joyous spring festival to offer penance for misdeeds or renew vows- Hindu Festival

Judaism: Pesach (Passover) Feast of unleavened bread to commemorate the deliverance of the Jewish people out of Egypt.

Easter Eggs

The egg is a symbol of new life after death and resurrection. Christianity took this symbol as a sign of rejoicing at rebirth and applied it to the resurrection of Jesus.

Easter parade

Newly baptized people in the early Church wore new white robes at Easter as a symbol of a new life in Christ. They wore these new robes in the Easter week and would then take a long walk after Mass on Easter Sunday, dressed in these white clothes. This developed into the Easter Parade.

Don’t forget your MySchool card: We raised R985 in December. Some partners are Waltons; John Dory; Panarottis; Engen garages. Take your card when you buy from these places.

Yearbook 2009: There are still some books available. Contact Mrs Karen Holleran should you wish to buy one.

Lent is a time when many Christians prepare for Easter by observing a period of fasting, repentance, moderation and spiritual discipline. The purpose is to set aside time for reflection on Jesus Christ - His suffering and His sacrifice, His life, death, burial and resurrection. After all, if Jesus died on a cross for us, we can surely spend a little more time in prayer or study?

Eastern Orthodox churches observe Lent or Great Lent, during the 6 weeks or 40 days preceding Palm Sunday with fasting continuing during the Holy Week of Easter.

Lent for Eastern Orthodox churches begin on Monday and Ash Wednesday is not observed.

The Bible does not mention the custom of Lent, however, but the practice of repentance and mourning in ashes is found in 2 Samuel 13:19; Esther 4:1; Job 2:8; Daniel 9:3; and Matthew 11:21.

So, even if you aren't observing Lent, it's still a good time to reflect before the Easter celebrations begin.

In an ideal world where traffic lights work all the time, where meetings don’t run late, and where we always keep our promises and commitments, there is no need to think beyond Plan A. But this is not an ideal world. We are human beings living in a warp-speed world, and things do not always happen as we would like them to, despite our best intentions. This includes collecting our children from school at the agreed or prescribed time.

For some parents this means being outside the classroom or in the parking lot exactly when the school bell rings at lunch time, or when an extra-mural activity ends. For others it means picking up children from aftercare mid afternoon or early evening, or from a bus stop. Whichever scenario applies to you, does your child know what Plan B is, should the wheels fall off? This applies to children of all ages from preschool through to primary school.

If you are going to be late, for whatever reason, you can help your child feel more secure if they know:

By going through the school office, you can get confirmation that your child did receive the message versus leaving a message on your child’s cellphone. I personally feel that under the age of about 11/12, children are not that overly reliable when it comes to cellphones because they are too busy playing – as they should be! The school office is still my most reliable port of call.

Do educate your children about stranger danger and never to get into anyone’s car who is not cleared by you and teach them to trust their instincts (80% of acts of crime against children are actually committed by friends and family that they know!). It is very important that you network regularly with other parents so that you get a ‘feel’ for whom you could trust with your child in an emergency situation and with whom your child naturally connects. Make sure you have a list of their numbers in your diary or cellphone as well as the number for the school office. Once these relationships are established it is also easier to get messages to your child in times of need.

Do empower your child to go a teacher or the school office if he/she should ever feel for any reason that you have forgotten to collect him/her. A quick call from the office to you will alleviate their feelings of anxiety. Make sure your child knows your cellphone number (by 6 he/she should just about be able to handle this memory task) and that the school records are up to date.

While regularly being late for our children erodes their trust in us. Having a back-up plan that works, goes a long way towards instilling a sense of both security and resilience in your child, because not everyday goes according to plan. If they can trust Plan B then they learn to handle changes to the daily schedule confidently instead of having a meltdown.

Diskonto will once again be visiting the school on the18 and 19 March. They have promised to bring lots of new and exciting books for all ages.

Should any parent be interested in sponsoring gazebos with your business’ or company logo printed on it for our galas, sport days, etc , the school would be very grateful. Please contact Mr Shawn Thomson – shawn@st-conrads.co.za regarding this matter.

The following Primary School Swimmers were selected for the North West Team to participate at the South African Schools Swimming Championships from 5 to 6 March 2010 in Cape Town:

Total Scores [Primary School] :

Combined Scores [Primary and High School] :

A huge thank you to all the parents who helped out with a gazebo or umbrella at Sports Day – it certainly kept all the officials and athletes away from the sun.

Participating schools : Newton Primary School [ Kimberley], St Andrew’s College [Welkom],

St Dominic’s College [Welkom], Lebone II [Rustenburg], KPS, International School of South

We invite all parents and supporters to join us on Tuesday – our swimmers need all the

A reminder to all learners and parents that when a learner is absent from school for the

whole school day, he/she may not participate in any extra murals, play any league matches

for any sports codes or swim in any gala. That also includes participation for NW trials or

qualifying for any district teams. This is a safety precaution as the school cannot be liable

We often find ourselves being critical about various areas of the school. We do this with good reason: we want to be the best we can possibly be!

In this week’s newsletter I want to share my feeling of inner joy, belonging and pride of being associated with St Conrad’s. We often forget about all the good things that happen at our school and focus on things we want or on the things that aren’t available at present. There are so many good things being said about our school in the community, ranging from our exceptional level of discipline; outstanding academic practices to the respect learners have for each other.

Over the past two weeks I have been filming various areas of school life as these video clips will form part of a marketing DVD which we will be using soon. It was when I was looking through “different eyes” that I was reminded how great and exceptional our school and in particular our learners and educators are. Some might feel this comment is arrogant.....yes it may be, but why should we not feel proud of what we stand for; what we believe in and most importantly, of what we, as a small school has accomplished over the past number of years.

At the Inter-House Gala the enthusiasm and spirit displayed by the learners was tangible. This continued at the Sport’s Day where learners thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Yes, we even had more than half the high school participating in the 800m on Thursday afternoon. What made this even more special was that we had learners with various medical conditions taking part....because they wanted to! How great is that to have such an attitude towards the school. Yes, we are struggling to fill some sports teams at the moment due to lack of numbers but I trust that this will soon become a problem of the past. The number of learners on detention has decreased exponentially, which proves that learners are taking their academics seriously and want to achieve.

Having been part of the school for 11 years, I am proud to say that I don’t want to be anywhere else. This is my family and I trust that all the people associated with the school can say the same. Here, we care for each other, as we hold hands in our pursuit of excellence.

I wish to thank every educator, parent and learner for his/her contribution to St Conrad’s in making this a school of excellence. Irrespective of what contribution you have made, even if it feels insignificant, THANK YOU!!!!!

We appeal to parents, who have old school tracksuits that are no longer being used, to donate them to the school as we would like to send them to our fellow Brothers of Charity school in Polokwane. There are many learners who don’t have any clothing for the upcoming winter and we would like to make a difference in their lives. If you have any items, please send it to school with your child. Any assistance will be greatly appreciated.

Congratulations to the following 11 High School swimmers who were chosen to represent North West at the SA Schools Aquatic Championships on the 5^th and 6^th March:

The North West Championship takes place on Monday 1^st March in Potchefstroom. Good luck to all our athletes who have qualified to participate. We wish you well.

Thank you to all participants, staff and parents who contributed towards our successful Sports Day.

All teams will be exposed to an extensive coaching clinic hosted by the North West University Hockey Academy on Friday and Saturday at Wesvalia Hoërskool. Besides the various tactics and skills that will be practised, team building exercises and motivational sessions have been planned as well. For details please refer to the letter that the players were given.

On Wednesday, 3^rd March our 1^st Girls’ Team will be participating in the above mentioned event. Details regarding this day will be forwarded to players when we receive the programme. Good luck ,girls!

According to our date list, we were going to be hosts to Woodhill College from Pretoria, but unfortunately as they have a major fundraising event planned for that weekend, they will no longer be visiting us.

A 22m truck [a museum on wheels] that has been fitted out with all the rugby trophies that the South African teams have won, is touring the country – over 7000 km. This truck will be stopping in Klerksdorp at the Klerksdorp Rugby Club on Thursday 4 March from 15:00 to 20:30 for all to see.

On Monday 1^st March there will be a Saints Alive meeting in the book room at 18h00. All parents are most welcome to attend.

Words related to acceptance are: unity, service to others; justice; obeying the laws of the country

St Conrad’s College is a smoking free school. We wish to inform all our parents, and possible visitors to our school, that any person(s) wishing to smoke on our school premises may do so in the ‘designated smoking area’ only. This designated smoking area is situated in the garden outside the main (general) staff room, under the lapa. Signage relating to the regulation of smoking on our premises will be erected at the front entrance of the school and at the designated smoking area.

Smoking of tobacco products is harmful to the health of children, pregnant or breastfeeding women and non-smokers. We urge all parents to adhere to this regulation on school property.

There have been numerous email, sms and media reports of abduction attempts on young children in our country. Some media reports have mentioned that South Africa will be a major focus point on possible child trafficking before, during and after the World Cup of 2010. Alarmingly many of these recent reports are of incidents which are very close to home (even in Klerksdorp). Whether there is truth to all of these reports or not, we have decided that as a school we need to be extra alert and aware of what is happening around us. Our security company has been contacted and stringent measures will be enforced regarding the access to our property, especially during the course of the school day. Our educators and staff on-site, have been addressed on the matter and have been told that any strange or suspicious vehicle or person seen on the school premises will be immediately reported to both security and to the school management. We would like to request that our parents assist us in this manner in order for us to be in a position to follow up on any strange or suspicious activities on school grounds.

Our childrens’ safety is of paramount importance to all of us, and with your assistance and vigilance, we can maintain our sense of security consciousness and continue to instil a sense of awareness amongst our precious children.

Please ensure that you drop and collect your children on time for extra-mural activities. Children will not be left unattended at school, but we urge parents to play a vital role in this process.

What there is to buy: Lots of yummy eats! (Pizza, samoosas, cake, interesting sweets, cupcakes and much more!!)

The Grade 8 orientation program was concluded on Friday 5^th February at a meet and greet function with all parents and learners. I wish to thank the parents for attending this function. This year’s program was extremely successful and beneficial to all parties concerned. A new initiative was started where a Grade 12 learner was assigned to a Grade 8 learner to serve as a “buddy” or mentor. This partnership will be for the entire year and not just for the orientation program. We want to create an atmosphere where learners care for each other and assist each other in good and tough times.

High School educators attended the annual IEB User Group Conferences on Saturday

6^th February in Johannesburg. The staff found it extremely beneficial and came back with a sense of affirmation in terms of strategies implemented in class. Our next group of educators will be attending the conference pertaining to their subjects this coming weekend.

A reminder to all Grade 10 parents that there will be a Matric Dance meeting on Monday 15^th February at 18:00 in the High School staffroom. Please attend this very important meeting.

I wish to remind you of the following important events coming up in the next couple of weeks:

The North West Swimming Trials took place on Friday 5^th and Saturday 6^th February at the Klerksdorp Swimming Pool. Congratulations to all our swimmers who performed well. The North West Schools’ Team list will be forwarded to the schools in due course.

Our Inter-House Gala takes place on Friday 12^th February with the march past starting at 10:30.

This is a compulsory school day and learners will be able to go home at the normal time [14:05].

Please take note that the long distance events for the sports day will take place on Thursday 18^th February at 16:00 and all the other events will take place on Friday 19^th February starting with the march past at 07:30. A friendly reminder that all learners will be expected to wear their house shirts with jeans or brown PT shorts.

We urge parents to please ensure that the children wear sun block every day when coming to school. Please provide them with the school cap as well. There are still a few caps available from the Second hand shop at R25 per cap.

Please make sure that all information going home is returned to school by the cut-off date. This information is for your own child’s benefit which means it’s of the utmost importance to us. We would appreciate your co-operation regarding this matter.

Diskonto will once again be visiting the school on 18^th and 19^th March. They have promised to bring lots of new and exciting books for all ages.

TENNIS ROUND ROBIN

The Primary School’s Tennis Round Robin will be on Saturday, 13^th February at the North West Courts from 08:00 – 13:00. This is arranged in order to rank the players for position in the senior and junior school teams before the Primary School League starts in the 2^nd Term. The teachers involved will be Mrs Ansu McArthur (organizer and jnr coach) and Mr Eddie Walker (coach).

Well done to all our swimmers who participated in the North West Swimming Championship over the past weekend. We will submit the results as soon as we receive them.

Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent which is a time of repentance for most Christians and in particular for those who belong to the Roman Catholic faith.

At the Mass for Ash Wednesday, the palms from Palm Sunday, from the previous year are burnt to ashes. During the procession to receive the ashes, the Celebrant, in this case our chaplain for St Conrad’s College, Father Michael, will place the

sign of the cross on the foreheads of all Christians present saying the words, “ Turn away from sin and return to the Gospel. “

Lent lasts for40 days, a biblical number, and is done in memory of Jesus’ withdrawal into the desert to pray before the beginning of his ministry in Palestine. He was 30 years old.

Mite Boxes are handed out to the class Captains of each Grade and these are filled by the learners in that register class. Last year we collected over R1600 for the Lenten Appeal.

The NETS production, at the end of the term has been cancelled owing to the illness of the owner of the company . NETS will resume performances again next year.

On 19 February, there will be a WOW civvies day and the proceeds will be sent to the Haiti Disaster Fund . The amount payable will be R5 per child and parents are invited to send a donation as well should they wish to do so.

If you are interested in becoming a member of the Governing Body of the school OR know of anyone you would like to nominate, please fill in the form below and return to the Secretary (Mrs Nola Pierce) by 17:00 on Friday 12 February 2010. Please include a short CV.

For more information on the role and responsibilities of the Governing body, please contact Mr Anthony Edwards anthony@st-conrads.co.za or Mrs Angela Michaelides 083 252 9283 / angmic@gds.co.za) or speak to anyone else on the GB.

We need parents to seriously consider making themselves available for election to the Governing Body. Parents with expertise in general management, human relations, accounting, law, or anyone with common sense and passion could make a valuable contribution to the school. We implore parents to consider standing for elections or even making themselves available to be co-opted when vacancies occur. Involvement at this level brings insight and understanding of the complexities of education. The future of the school depends on the parents to a large degree. Serving brings its own profound rewards!

………………………………………….……………………………………………………………..……..

YES, I am making myself available as a parent representative for the Governing Body elections.

Name:……………………………Signature:……………………………

I nominate ………………………………. as a parent representative for the Governing Body elections.

Proposer: Name:…………………………..Signature:…………………………

Accepted: Name:………………………Signature:…………………………........

All parents or guardians have a vote. Voting takes place at 18:00 on 24 February 2010 in the school hall. As in the past, voting must be done in person. Unfortunately, no proxy votes will be accepted.

A reminder to parents to purchase Saint Conrad’s parking discs for 2010. They cost R10.00 each and are available at the front office. Cars not displaying these discs will be charged a R5.00 parking fee at certain sports fixtures and events from January 2010.

KINDNESS
Some years ago there was a new eighth Grade class at the local parish school, and they were trouble! Negative and sniping, they were down on everything and everybody, most especially themselves. Nobody wanted to teach this class, until finally, old Sister Ambrose volunteered.
She was a wise old nun, so she did something very simple. She gave each student a list of their classmates. “Next to each name,” she said, “write down all the good things you know about that person. Don’t exaggerate or make up anything. Just write the good that you see and give me your papers on Friday.” And so they did.
Over the weekend, Sister read the students’ comments and then typed for each one a full page of all the good things the class saw in him or her. On Monday she handed them out. The students were astonished. “Is this me?” asked some. “I didn’t think anybody noticed,” said others. “Wow, I can’t believe I’m this good!” others still said and so it went.
Years later, when the class had been scattered to the four winds, many of them returned for the funeral of one of the boys who had been killed on the border. After the burial they were clustered around old Sister Ambrose when the dead soldier’s father came along. “Thank you, Sister, for all your help with my boy,” he said. “He grew up fine, just as you hoped, and he made us very proud. Now I want to return to you something you gave him long ago in the eighth grade.” With that he pressed into her hand a yellowed piece of paper, folded very small to fit into a wallet, and falling apart now from being folded and unfolded, read and reread many times. It was the list Sister had typed for that shy boy so many years before!
Silently and tearfully each of his classmates reached into his/her wallet or purse and produced his/her own worn and yellowed sheets, which were falling apart from being folded and unfolded, read and reread many times across the years.
A small kindness cast its light like a beacon across many years. It pierced the darkness, and no one could put it out.
May our light shine, and bring light to all we meet. And may it never grow dim.

RAFFLE
The draw will take place at the end of the term. I urge parents to purchase their ticket and stand a chance of winning R5000, R2000 or R1000. Remember that all funds raised will be ploughed back into the education of YOUR child.
GRADE 11 COMMITTEE NEWS:

VALENTINE SHOP (MATRIC DANCE FUNDRAISER):
THE VALENTINE SHOP IS OPEN!
Buy a gift for the special person in your life! The shop will be open from 09:45 to10:05; 12:00 to 12:35 and directly after school.
The prices of the gifts range from R3.00 upwards.
SEE YOU THERE!

Assistance:
If there are any parents who can assist us with old computers or fridges which are not being used, we humbly request that they be donated to the school. Your assistance in this regard will be highly appreciated.

Past Pupil Success:
We are very proud of one of our past Head Boys who has been selected to represent South Africa in biathlon. Justin McLean was recently bestowed the honour of being awarded national colours. Congratulations to Justin on this exceptional achievement!

Grade 8 Camp:
The Grade 8 learners experienced an enjoyable three days at Maraneman-on-Vaal. The days were jam-packed with a variety of activities led by experienced facilitators. They were exhausted when they returned but all agreed it was a worthwhile experience. A special word of thanks to Mrs Bailey and Mr Strydom who accompanied the group.

Congratulations:
We wish to congratulate Daniela Gouveia on qualifying for an Academic Merit Award during 2009. We are very proud of you!

Examinations and Reports 2010:
I wish to inform parents of some minor changes, as far as our academic approach is concerned, for 2010. Due to a variety of reasons we have decided that reports will not be issued at the end of the 2nd Term, but rather at the start of the 3rd Term. This decision was taken owing to exams being written up to the very last day in the 2nd and 4th Terms. Reports will be issued as usual, on the last day, for terms 1 and 3.
Parents are hereby given ample notification regarding this matter to ensure that holiday bookings do not fall within the examination period. Learners who miss exams will be given zero. I trust you will find the above mentioned in order.

KLERKSDORP DISTRICT BIATHLON NO 1 HELD ON 25 JANUARY:
Results:
GIRLS U/15                                                               GIRLS U/17
Roxane Schmidt      2075 points   1st                    Chantelle Schmidt   2055 points 1st
Kristen Lee                1400 points   3rd                    Shannon Kruger      1985 points   2nd

BOYS U/15 BOYS U/17
Sergio dos Santos 1685 points 1st Resego Kgaje 1275 points 1st

NORTH WEST SWIMMING TRIALS:
The following 15 High School Swimmers will attend the NW Swimming Trials:
Brandon Bennett                 Bradley Chan           Reabetswe Chabedi
Sergio dos Santos               Ryan Gossayn         Carma Horwood
Sergio Jardim                       Caitlyn Lee                Kristen Lee
Tylor O’Shea                         Roxane Schmidt      Chantelle Schmidt
Josh Silent                            Keanu Silent                        Karli van der Merwe
Date:             Friday, 5 February 2010 and Saturday, 6 February 2010.
Venue:           Klerksdorp Public Pool

OUTREACH
With Christmas 2009 almost being a distant memory and with parents using time to “spring clean” we would like to encourage our parents and learners please to send any toy, no matter how big or small it might be, that is not used and has been shelved, to the school. We want to collect the toys, bicycles or even old clothes and distribute it amongst our immediate community members who can benefit from items we no longer use.

Valentines Civvies Day 12 February 2010
Learners are to wear red, pink or white. An amount of R5.00 is payable
to the register educators for this event.

The Primary School Gala will be held on Thursday, 11 February 2010.
The march past : 08h00
First event : 08h30
All parents are invited to attend the gala and we ask you please to bring your own chairs
and umbrellas because the stands will be filled with our learners.

The programme will be handed out to the learners next week Wednesday, 10 February.
If any parent is free to help at our House Gala, please contact Mrs Ronel Engelbrecht
at 082 576 8042.

The following Primary School Athletes are through to the Klerksdorp Championships :
            Dylan Kruger                                    Amber Dineen
            Joshua Berry                                    Michelle Harmse
            Obotseng Serake
Date : Thursday, 4 February 2010 and Friday, 5 February 2010.
Venue : Hoërskool Wesvalia

The following 14 Primary School Swimmers will attend the NW Swimming Trials at the Public Pool in Klerksdorp :
            Danielle Bennett                  Stacy Gossayn                     Dylan de Gouveia
            Alexio dos Santos                Dylan Kruger                                    Adriaen de Freitas
            Tumelo Moagi                       Onthatile Selomane                        Emma Skudder
            Enrique Gomes                    Tanya Schmidt                     Tiago Silva
            Dimpho Selomane              Jenna-Marie Lee

Date : Friday, 5 February 2010 and Saturday, 6 February 2010.
Venue : Klerksdorp Public Pool

Intermediate Phase [Grade 4 – 7]
We have decided to change the soccer boys’ practice on Wednesday into 2 sessions because the group is too big.

The 2 sessions will be:
13:45 – 14:45            Grade 4 – 5 [Mr Walker + Mr Kgokong]
                        15:00 – 16:00            Grade 6 – 7 [Mr Walker + Mr Kgokong]

The Cricket U/11 practice on Tuesdays will have to start later because their coach, Mr Paterson teaches until 14:05. The new times will be from 14:15 – 15:15.

The U/13 cricket practices with Mr Marcus on Tuesdays will have to start later owing to a
few clashes. The new time will be 15:00 – 16:00.

VACANCIES EXIST FOR TWO PARENTS.
Would you like to serve the school?
Do you know of anyone who could add value to the Governing Body?

YES, I am making myself available as a parent representative for the Governing Body elections.

Name:……………………………Signature:……………………………

I nominate ………………………………. as a parent representative for the Governing Body elections.

Proposer: Name:…………………………..Signature:…………………………

Accepted: Name:………………………Signature:…………………………........

At the start of a new year with various challenges it is important to “strategise” what your approach will be to ensure that your year will be memorable. We wish to share the following with you to aid you in your journey:

Health:
1. Drink plenty of water.
2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is

manufactured in plants.
4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy.
5. Make time to pray.
6. Play more games.
7. Read more books than you did in 2009.
8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.
9. Sleep for 7 hours.
10. Take a 10-30 minute walk daily. And while you walk, smile.

Personality:
11. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
12. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead, invest your

energy in the positive present moment.
13. Don't overdo. Keep to your limits.
14. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.
16. Dream more while you are awake.
17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the

past. That will ruin your present happiness.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.
20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of

learn will last a lifetime.
23. Smile and laugh more.
24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree...

Society:
25. Call your family often.
26. Each day give something good to others.
27. Forgive everyone for everything.
28. Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.
29. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
30. What other people think of you is none of your business.
31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

Life:
32. Do the right thing!
33. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
34. GOD heals everything.
35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
37. The best is yet to come.
38. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.
39. Your Inner most is always happy. So, be happy.

I ask parents please to be patient regarding the commencing of field sports as the fields are saturated and inaccessible. We need to ensure that the fields are not damaged to such an extent that we sit with sub-standard fields for the rest of the year. We are monitoring the situation carefully and the learners are being informed on a daily basis.

I wish to share some important information with you this week which I believe will benefit you greatly. Recently I have had numerous questions and concerns regarding the fact that our matriculants write the IEB examination at the end of their schooling career.

The Independent Examinations Board Matriculation is written each year and our learners consistently achieve excellent results. The majority of our learners continue with tertiary education in South Africa or abroad. The IEB examination is accepted internationally which offers learners a myriad of choices.

The philosophy of the IEB is that assessment drives teaching and learning. The IEB believes that it provides assessment that stimulates and encourages teaching that develops the skills needed for success in life - clear thinking, analysis, evaluation, unambiguous communication, substantiation of opinion as well as a strong grounding in the fundamental skills and knowledge that underpin the subject curricula.

The IEB aims to conduct valid and reliable assessment, ensuring that the results achieved by learners are an accurate indication of their performance and a reliable indicator of potential success in tertiary study. A study by a top university in South Africa indicated that of the approximately 2,721 Bachelor’s degrees awarded at the December graduation ceremonies, 673 were to ex-IEB students - almost 25%. If one considers that only approximately 8000 learners sat for the final IEB examinations compared to the 600 000 writing the state examinations, 25% is a clear indication of the success rate IEB schooling offers.

It is the preparation of learners for life after school and the development and conditioning of skills, which go beyond subject–specific knowledge, that makes an IEB school different.

Anne Oberholzer, CEO of the IEB, believes that it is the short term investments that produce the long term benefits. In other words, the skills taught at an IEB school will stand any learner in good stead when he/she leaves school.

The orientation programme being implemented has proven to be fun-filled and exciting. The Grade 8 learners are being taught what it means to be a St Conradian and are being groomed to be a member of the fold. Presently the Grade 8s are on a camp designed specifically to suit their needs. Emphasis is placed on getting to know one another and becoming a unified group.

All new parents are reminded of the new parent/learner information and get together evening on 5 Feb at 17:00. Please inform your child whether you will be attending to facilitate catering arrangements.

A friendly reminder that house shirts must be worn for all Inter-House events. These shirts can be purchased from the book room.

With Christmas 2009 almost being a distant memory and with parents using time to “spring clean” we would like to encourage our parents and learners please to send any toy, no matter how big or small it might be, that is not used and has been shelved, to the school. We want to collect the toys, bicycles or even old clothes and distribute it among our immediate community members who can benefit from items we no longer use.

The Grade 4 learners went on their first outreach outing on 26 January. Janie Schneider School hosted a sports morning to celebrate Special Schools Week.

The learners of Janie Schneider School were very grateful for our participation and we felt extremely privileged to be a part of the interaction.

With the resignation of Mrs C van Niekerk in December 2009, a position has become available as an Aftercare Educator for 2010. If you feel that you have the energy and the passion to work with our learners from Monday to Friday (13h00 – 17h00) you are more than welcome to submit a CV to the Primary School office or alternatively you can e-mail the CV to shawn@st-conrads.co.za. Please note that only the short listed candidates will be contacted for an interview.

dress up in the colours of the team they support. This event will be free of charge.

pink or white. An amount of R5.00 is payable to the register educators for this event.

Parents must please check these info sheets and make the necessary changes to ensure that our records are kept up to date. These must please be returned to the register educators no later than 2 February 2010. Please ensure that the contact numbers are correct.

The following Primary School learners were selected for the North West Triathlon Team : Dylan Kruger [Boys U/13]

For more information on the role and responsibilities of the Governing body, please contact Mr Anthony Edwards anthony@st-conrads.co.za o