Year 9s' First Day

Yesterday we welcomed our new cohort of Year 9s with a Pōhiri in the F.W. Gamble Hall before they were assigned their mentor classes, undertook orientation and had their first assembly.
Te Puna o Wairaka students performed a haka as new staff and the Year 9s were welcomed into the hall – before Matua Peter Walters gave a whaikōrero on behalf of tangata whenua while Mr Drumm welcomed the Year 9s and their parents, and spoke of the rich history of Mount Albert Grammar and this year's celebration of 25 years of girls at MAGS.
Representing the manuhiri, English Teaching Intern Matt Tihi spoke for the new teaching staff while Year 9 parent Daniel McKessar spoke on behalf of the new students and their caregivers.
It was a busy day for the Year 9s as they were assigned mentor classes and introduced to their Mentor Teachers before being taken on tours of the school by their Peer Support Leaders, who also played some games with them so students could get to know each other.
The Year 9s attended an assembly where they were briefed on the values of MAGS and the protocols for assemblies. Year 13 students also helped them to lean the school song, which is performed at every assembly.
You can see more photos from the day here

Staff Welcomed Back

In preparation for school starting up again this week, staff gathered outside Te Puna Wānanga on Tuesday for a welcome from Matua Peter Walters and Headmaster Mr Drumm (as pictured above).
Staff then adjourned to the W.O.H. Gibbs Room for morning tea, followed by new staff introducing themselves to their colleagues (as pictured below).
Mr Drumm also gave an overview of the year ahead, and emphasised that high expectations of students around issues such as punctuality, behaviour and uniform would start from day one.

Year 9 Class and ID Photos Next Week

Year 9s have their Mentor Class and ID photos next Tuesday, February 4, in the F.W. Gamble Hall as per the schedule below.
Students should arrive a few minutes before their class is due to have their photos taken. Line up in the MH Quad near the side hall entrance (the piano side), shortest to tallest.
8.45am – Foundation English Students only.
New Internationals from 12.40pm.

Make Sure You Sign Up With Kindo

Make sure you are signed up for a Kindo account so you can keep on top of payments for things like sports and school trips.
MAGS is no longer taking payments directly into our school bank account. If you have an automatic payment already set up to our bank account, please cancel this as soon as possible and create an automatic payment to go directly into your Kindo Wallet. 
For more instructions on automatic payments, please click here
Any outstanding credit on your MAGS account will be added to your Kindo Wallet once a Kindo account has been created.
Please see this link for a copy of the document above to help you to sign up to Kindo, whether it is on your computer or using the app on your phone. There is also a Kindo tab on the MAGS website's Parent Portal that can be used to access or set up an account.
You can also click here to set up a Kindo account for MAGS payments.

Parents who have a Kindo account already through another school can use that for MAGS payments using the instructions here

Need assistance? The Kindo Helpdesk is open 8am to 4pm weekdays.
Freephone: 0508 4 KINDO (0508 454 636)
Email: [email protected]
Online Tutorials: support.mykindo.co.nz

Albertians on Currency Committee in 1964

By the time the Committee was in full swing, there had been some changes.
Sid Moses was the Chairman and Rob Muldoon was Minister of Finance. These two Albertians got the business done and everything went well on the big day. There were 1c, 2c, 5c, 10c, 20c and 50c coins and $1, $2, $5, $10, $20 and $100 notes ($50 notes came much later).
This photo is part of Set 99, recently added to the Historical Images page on our website.
You can see more photos from MAGS' rich history here

Sports Update

Breaking Out Ninja Moves

During the term break, Riley Hobbs was named in the New Zealand Ninja Warrior squad.
The team travelled to the Australia Ninja and OCR Nationals in Melbourne across January 25-27 after Aotearoa was invited to compete for the first time.
TIC Ms Hobb said, "With no dedicated ninja facilities in New Zealand, our athletes were faced with new obstacle challenges against the well-practised Aussies. Riley competed in the U15 Ninja, in which the youth athletes attempt the same course as the Elite competitors, finishing his run just a few points short of making the second stage, and in the 100m obstacle sprint where he set a commendable time of 1 min 12 sec.
"The squad are looking forward to more international opportunities in this growing sport that will feature in the 2028 Olympics as part of the Modern Pentathlon."

Sign Up for Athletics Day

The School Athletics Day will be taking place at Mount Smart Stadium on Thursday, February 27.
Students must be registered on Kindo by Thursday, February 20. There will be NO late registrations. 
MAGS will also be running the following distance events at Lovelock Track:
3000m: Thursday, February 13 at 7:15am
1500m: Monday, February 17 at 7:15am
800m: Friday, February 21 at 7:15am
Students wanting to do the distance events must sign up at least one day before these events take place. They must also be able to get to the Lovelock Track at those times. 
Age Groups:
Juniors: Under 14 at 1^st of January (Born in 2011 or 2012)
Intermediates: Under 16 at 1^st of January (Born in 2009 or 2010)
Seniors: Under 19 at 1^st of January (Born in 2006, 2007 or 2008)
Cost: $25
If you have any questions please contact Mr Crossan on 846 2044 ext. 8136 or email carlin.crossan@mags,school.nz