General News - Parktown High School for Girls
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
Issue no. 1 15 February 2021 General News WELCOME All be it somewhat delayed, we are delighted to welcome all the girls back to school. It has been a while since we have had everyone at school and the vibe this morning was one of excitement and a real ‘readiness’ to get the school year started. Obviously, it is important that all safety procedures and protocols are followed and we urge all girls and staff to ensure they wear masks at all times, wash and sanitize hands regularly and maintain social distancing as much as possible. We can assure you that we have done everything possible to ensure the safety of your girls at school and we look forward to a good 2021. A special welcome to our new learners (the grade 8s and the girls in other grades) as well as new staff members: Mrs Ryan (Afrikaans), Mrs Nkosi (Mathematics) and Mrs Teixeira (Mathematics). We also welcome two new administration staff members: Mrs Armstrong joins us as the PA to Mrs Megom and Mrs Wood joins us as our new Admissions Administrator. We hope their involvement in the school is a long and happy one. SCHOOL COMMUNICATION AND IMPORTANT SCHOOL DOCUMENTS Please note that all school communication will be done via the sms system and the d6 communicator. Please ensure you have access to both and are receiving the school communication. The following information for 2021 has been uploaded on the d6 Communicator and the school website. This is important information that should be referred to throughout the year. 2021 GDE Amended School Calendar Extramural Timetable Term 1 Assessment Schedule (Term 1) Please understand that dates/times are subject to change and further documents and events may be added. Check our d6 Communicator regularly. MEDIA PERMISSION FORM This is a form where parents/guardians sign given permission that photographs of learners may be used on the school website/Facebook page. Some photographs could be sent to the newspapers. All new learners for 2021 have been given these forms which need to be completed. If you would like to change/alter the permission given to us in 2020, please complete a new form which can be found on our website or d6 Communicator and return it to Mrs Liss, by Friday 26 February 2021. PARKING AROUND THE SCHOOL For reasons of safety and general courtesy, all parents/guardians are asked to adhere to all road rules around the school. This includes not parking in the main entrance, on yellow lines, across the pedestrian crossings, on corners or on the side of the road opposite the school (you may only park next to the pavement which is on the same side as the school).
Please adhere to the one-way system in the mornings and the afternoons and ensure that your
daughter/ward is dropped off and collected at the correct gate.
No parent will be allowed to drive onto the school property between the hours of 06h30 - 16h30.
Please understand that the school is located in a residential area and we ask that you refrain from
hooting in the streets around the school.
We understand that the traffic congestion around the school in the mornings and afternoons is bad but
we ask that all parents/guardians remain patient and act in a courteous manner to avoid any incidents
that could compromise the safety of our learners or members of the public.
PUNCTUALITY AND LATE ARRIVAL AT SCHOOL
Screening will start at 07:00 in the mornings at the respective grade gates
(grade 8s and 9s: Kildare gate and 10s – 12s: Main gate). The teachers are
having to do the screening and is the girls are late, the teachers are late for
class. We are pleading with parents to please ensure the girls are on time for
school. The school gates will be closed at 07:40 sharp. Please ensure that
your daughter/ward arrives at school in time to be screened by 07:40 as she
is required to be in registration by 07:45.
If a learner arrives late, she needs to see Mrs Forrester in the Finance Office
to be screened in and marked present. This is essential as no learner may
go to class before being screened and she will be marked absent for the day. Lateness will be
excused only in exceptional circumstances. We regret we cannot excuse learners because of bus and
taxi problems. It is a pre-condition of enrolment at the school that parents/guardians will enable and
ensure their daughter/ward's punctual arrival at school. When we are aware of strikes, accidents or
bad weather, we do make exceptions.
Learners who are late for school and miss a part of their lessons are hindering their own and their
classmates' progress. Teachers are not obliged to teach the missed work to learners who arrive late.
Please assist us in teaching the girls that being punctual in an important life-skill.
UPDATING OF INFORMATION
Please note, if you are needing to correct any information pertaining to change of address, contact
number or email address, please send this information to Mrs Wood; wood@parktowngirls.co.za. The
school works from one main central database. Any updates done to details linked to your d6 do not
carry through to SMART. The school must be contacted directly, as in the case of an emergency it is
essential we have correct contact details on our school system.
SMS COMMUNICATION: SECOND PARENT OPTION
Due to cost, only one parent is loaded onto our SMS system. If you are not receiving our
communication via sms, please email Mrs Liss at liss@parktowngirls.co.za for assistance. Should both
parents wish to receive sms’s, this is at a cost of R50-00 for the year. Please contact Mrs Liss.
REMINDER ABOUT RECEPTION AND VISITORS TO THE
SCHOOL
Please do not leave articles for learners to collect at Reception and
learners are not to leave anything to be collected by
parents/guardians. Mrs Thomas, the Receptionist, cannot be
expected to facilitate this as she does not have permission to call
learners out of class. The school will not take responsibility for the
loss of such items. Please note, that unless there is an
emergency, parents/guardians will not be allowed onto the
property unless you have an appointment.
LOCKERS
Lockers will be available from Monday, 22 February 2021, from the Finance Office for R30-00 (payable
by ALLXS card or debit/credit card). Please note that due to Covid protocols the number of lockers
available will be limited. Please ensure you bring your own sturdy lock and two keys. One key must be
left at the Finance Office as a back-up if needed. If the lock is a combination lock, the combination
must be given to Finance. Learners are encouraged to get lockers as the school cannot be held
responsible for stolen items, including lunch.
COMMUNICATION WITH THE SCHOOL
We ask all parents/guardians to kindly note the following points:
Always quote the learner's Grade, Academic Class, House and Family Number:
e.g. Grade 8B/A1 (Grade 8B Academic class, Alseids House, Family 1);
Grade 12G/N3 (Grade 12G Academic class, Nereids House, Family 3)
For all personal and general matters contact the House Head. Unless this is an emergency
situation, please do this in writing.
HOUSE HEADS
Ms Moreira Alseids
Ms Gibbons Dryads
Mrs Roos Hesperides
Ms Eckhardt Nereids
Ms Jurgens Oreads
Mrs Barnes Pleiades
For academic matters contact the Academic Head. Unless this is an emergency situation, please
do this in writing.
ACADEMIC HEADS
Mrs Fourie Grade 8
Mrs Linde Grade 9
Mr Lezar Grade 10
Mrs Bouwer Grade 11
Miss Halley Grade 12
For requests to leave early on a particular day a letter must be placed in the House Head's drawer
in the Reception Office before 07:45.
Absentee letters for one or two days’ absence due to illness, must be addressed and handed to
your daughter’s register teacher on the day she returns to school.
For matters concerning absence from school because of holidays in school term time, long illness
and any unusual circumstances, please contact the Headmistress, in writing.
Letters concerning withdrawing girls from the school must be addressed to the Headmistress.
The Headmistress and Deputies will assist with urgent issues and matters of a general nature.
Should you wish to have a meeting with any staff member (including the Headmistress and the
Deputies) it is necessary to make an appointment.
Please note that all the Academic Staff members are Subject Teachers with classes to teach
during the school day and will not be able to respond immediately to emails and messages. Please
allow at least 24 hours for a response.
A NOTE FROM THE FINANCE OFFICE
Please ensure the correct reference is used when paying into the school
account. A first name only does not help as there may be six learners with the
same name. Parents/guardians need to check their statements and use their
unique account no. when making deposits. Deposits made for anything
other than school fees, please use the specified reference for that activity.
Please email proof of payment to williams@parktowngirls.co.za. If Finance
needs to phone the bank to find out who the deposit is from, the bank charges
R50-00. This expense will then be charged to the account in question. Statements will only be
available early March 2021.
Dates to Diarise
15/02 Start of Term 1
20/02 Water Polo Clinic
22/02 Grade 12 Information Evening (details to be confirmed)
24/02 Grade 11 HPM Career Choice (tbc)
27/02 Swimming Clinic
02/03 English Olympiad (tbc)
SCHOOL CALENDAR FOR 2021
Pease note the amended school calendar for 2021. Please do not book
holidays during school terms. We write examinations/tests until the end of
every term. Attendance is expected from 15 February for every school day
up to and including 15 December.
No of Public No of actual
Duration No of weeks No of days
Holidays school days
15 Feb - 23 Apr 10 50 3 47
3 May - 9 Jul 10 50 1 49
26 Jul - 1 Oct 10 50 2 48
11 Oct - 15 (15) Dec 10 48 0 48
Total 40 198 6 192
PUBLIC AND SCHOOL HOLIDAYS
1 January New Year's Day 16 June Youth Day
21 March Human Rights Day 9 August National Women’s Day
22 March Public Holiday 24 September Heritage Day
2 April Good Friday 16 December Day of Reconciliation
5 April Family Day 25 December Christmas Day
27 April Freedom Day 26 December Day of Goodwill
1 May Workers’ Day 27 December Public Holiday
EXTRAMURAL TIMETABLE 2021
The Term 1 Extramural Timetable has been uploaded on our school d6
(under Resources – Extramurals) and on the website (under Downloads).
Cultural News
DEBATING
Every season is Debating season (including the festive season.) Throughout the December holidays,
Aaliyah Cassim, Micaela Smith, Ammaarah Cachalia, Christina Vaudran and Tiger-Anne Cupido took
part in the South African National Schools Debating Championships as part of the Gauteng
Delegation, which was captained by Ammaarah Cachalia. Our girls performed exceptionally well, both
in their individual capacity and within their teams, which was evident by the excellent results in the
tournament. As a province, Gauteng had a clean sweep, winning 3 out of 4 finals and having many
top-ranking speakers. In the junior division, Christina’s team ranked 4th, and as an individual Christina
ranked 9th. Tiger-Anne’s team ranked 2nd, and as an individual Tiger-Anne ranked 2nd. Both Christina
and Tiger-Anne were selected for the South African junior team trials which took place in early
February. Following the trials, both Christina and Tiger-Anne were selected for the SA A junior
debating squad, which is an incredible achievement.
In the senior division, Micaela’s
team ranked 16th, Ammaarah’s
team ranked 13th, and Aaliyah’s
team ranked 2nd. As an individual,
Ammaarah ranked 3rd and was
selected for the South African
Senior team trials which took place
from 15 - 17 January where she
was selected for the SA A debating
squad. A special thanks must go to
our coach, Bella Mkhabela, for her
constant love and support
throughout Nationals; we could not
have done it without you! We are
exceptionally proud of every single
debater, not just for their
achievements, but also for the hard
work and commitment they
continue to display.
From left: Aaliyah Cassim, Christina Vaudran, Ammaarah Cachalia and Tiger-Anne Cupido
Sports News
The Sport Corner
Brought to you by the Sport Portfolio…
Written by Erin Helling
In this week’s edition of ‘The Sport Corner’…don’t miss out on hearing
about the amazing start Parktown Sport has had to this year!
Our tennis girls are back and better than ever, and the captain,
Tasmiyah Suleman, definitely agrees - “Tennis has been ‘serving’ smiles this year with the girls being
extremely excited to get back and start practicing for our ‘season’.”
The swimmers have made a grand entrance into their ‘season’ and have made a splash at every practice.
A brand new swimmer, Bontle Semela in Gr8, gave a very happy report about her swimming experience so
far, “Swimming has been really great, I’ve made great friends and I especially love the drill with
backstroke!”
Our divers have dived into this year with lots of enthusiasm! “Being back at diving means that I am able to
throw myself off the board again, which sounds crazy but it’s like throwing myself back into life again!” –
Ashlyn Hayter, Gr10.
“From seeing old faces to welcoming new ones, touch rugby has started
off on such a good note and is really looking forward to the start of an
excellent ‘season’.” This report from touch rugby captain, Jenissi
Mondaoko, perfectly describes the positive energy in touch rugby this
year.
Lastly, all the water polo girls loved being back in the water and have
been training very hard for the upcoming ‘season’! One of water polo’s
new Gr8s, Ashleigh Annandale, said that she has “enjoyed the people
and learning a new sport.”
Please note that all practices are taking place in terms of regulations and all the relevant safety protocols
are in place.
Uniform Shop
Please note that we accept debit cards, credit
cards and cash; however, we
are encouraging learners to use their ALLSX
cards in lieu of cash.
Your co-operation in this matter is appreciated.
Parents’ Association News A special thank you to our Passionate and Proud parents who enthusiastically welcomed our new grade 8s and their parents. We hope to see many new faces at our various fund raising events and at PA Meetings.
You can also read
