This newsletter accompanies the first semester report. This gives you an indication of the level of work achieved by your daughter and must be used to help her set realistic goals and work schedules for the remaining five months of the year.

The survey report on the Wynberg schools, commissioned by the Governing Bodies last October, was recently presented to the four schools. The objectives of the survey were to determine the extent to which Wynberg is fulfilling the needs of the community we serve and to encourage interaction with all stakeholders on our vision for the future. Thank you to the many parents, learners and staff who completed questionnaires and formed part of discussion groups at the end of last year. Although this is the beginning of the reporting process and plotting of the future path, it is indeed encouraging to note that the Wynberg schools were highly rated by the community for, among other things, excellent academic and high moral standards, stimulation and motivation for learners and a good range of extra-mural activities. We are seen as a school that is representative of the peoples of South Africa and which offers a holistic education. Parents were complimentary of the accessibility of the staff and felt that Wynberg girls were a credit to their school. Our first goal is not to rest on our laurels – to keep these areas of excellence and to address, with the Governing Body and Wynberg community, any areas where there is room for improvement such as the traffic problem experienced by the parents of our students and to move towards a greater sharing of resources.

Our hockey girls beat the Aussies! I was privileged to accompany the girls on this trip to Perth and Sydney and was able to visit some of the private Australian schools and meet with various staff members. I returned confident that Wynberg Girls’ High offers our students an education comparable with that offered in these schools and a far wider variety of extra-murals.

Our buildings are progressing well and we hope to be using them within a few weeks of the start of the new term. The girls will be able to enjoy a magnificent new Art Centre, large classrooms useful for group and project work, and a wonderful Lifeskills and Counselling Centre.

Wynberg girls have again excelled in many areas (reported in detail in this newsletter) earning Western Province colours in a variety of sports codes, excelling in Olympiads in various subjects, representing the school in the Eisteddfod, dance and drama competitions and producing the amazing show “Grease”.

My thanks again are extended to a truly magnificent staff, wonderful School Governing Body and parents who support their daughters in many areas of school life.

May you all have a wonderful holiday, travel safely and return refreshed for the remainder of 2002.

Warm regards

Shirley Harding

May the sun smile richly upon you both, Sara

We wish you great joy in your retirement

Mrs Hyland, we wish you great happiness and good health – please do visit to see your “little” girls grow up into fine young women!

S Harding

Felicitations and Jubilations at Girls’ High

Not so recently we shared the joyful marriage of Mrs Janet Hyland. Now it is the high school’s turn. Amidst the flurry of marks and reports, and learning the ropes in a new school, Ilse Fourie has had a few other considerations to bear in mind: she has been preparing for her wedding day, which is to take place during the holidays, on Saturday 29. We wish her great happiness on this most significant day in her life, and much joy in a shared life with her husband.

We wish you and Pieter a wonderful life together, Ilse

P Orpen

Sara Keel celebrates her engagement

While Ilse was planning for her wedding, Sara, too, must have been doing some pretty serious thinking about the man in her life.
In the past, women had some very, very good practices. For example, in Elizabethan times, men, in order to prove their worth, had to
show how high they could jump into the air before women would even look at them, let alone consider dancing (at a distance) with
them. Clearly, Dolan Cochrane has passed any tests, which we’re sure someone like Sara must have mustered up for him to endure,
in order for her to become engaged to him!

Congratulations Sara, we wish you and Dolan great happiness!

P Orpen

Hasta lavista, Shari

But besides her nails and lessons on the finer details of life (“Remember girls, always have make-up on and do your nails – you never know who is going to walk through the door!”), those girls who sat in one of the desks in Room 7 are going to be losing the genuine and sincere concern that Mrs W showed for each and every one of their lives, in and out of school. In many ways, her other children were the girls at Wynberg and it is these “children” who will be saying goodbye to someone very close to their hearts.

But it is not only the girls who are sad. We, too, will be saying goodbye to someone very special to us. As a teacher, Shari has shown dedication and enthusiasm. Everything with Shari needed to be planned meticulously. Work needed to be completed long before it was due, long before many others in her department had finished their work, which kept the pressure up for some of us. Shari showed a passion for teaching History and she worked to create an excitement and enjoyment in the subject. The Mexicans, whom Shari will be teaching later this year, are as privileged as the girls at this school have been.

Shari has become a close friend of the teachers at this school. There is going to be spot in the staff room no longer filled by her
youthfulness and effervescence; by her charm and sense of humour. Shari went out of her way to make those of us who worked with
her feel happier and brighter. Her generosity and unselfishness have always made us aware that there was someone out there who
was looking out for us. Someone who cared.

We at Wynberg Girls’ High School do not know much Spanish. If we did we would wish you all good things in the language of your new home – all fortunes, all love and all happiness. But we can leave you with at least one phrase that we do know. We hope it brings you back to us a little later on down the line.

With our love and our memories,

Hasta lavista, Baby!

D Wray

Tribute from the Afrikaans Department

Shari Wucherphennig het in 1998 by die Afrikaanse departement aangesluit. Sy het defnitief ‘drama‘ en opwinding in die departement  gebring. Daar was nooit ‘n rustige oomblik met Shari nie vernaamlik as dit by haar twee “kinders” kom. Ons sal al die lewendige vertellings van Frikkie en Talula Belle se streke erg mis.

Haar bydrae op akademiese vlak was van ‘n baie hoë gehalte en alles was altyd “ twee jaar voor die tyd beplan en nagesien.” Haar borrelende persoonlikheid sal beslis gemis word.

Ons wens haar alle voorspoed in Cancun en in die toekoms toe. Hopelik sal ons per e-pos met mekaar in verbinding bly. Tot weersiens Shari, van ons almal!                                                

A Cope

ACADEMIC DEPARTMENTS

SCIENCE IS ALIVE AT WYNBERG GIRLS' HIGH.

Learners have had a range of topics from which to choose to produce construction projects. The Grade Tens made electric motors of many different designs and the remainder of the senior scientists constructed hot-air balloons, kites, model yachts and even a steamboat. The testing of these projects was obviously weather-dependent. Wind posed a hazard for the balloons, particularly those with a fuel-source attached! No wind did little to test the sail setting of the model boats, and exhausted those attempting to launch the kites!

A "Science-Fi" programme has been introduced in the Grade Nine area of Natural Science to whet the appetite of the budding young scientists. Once a fortnight, exciting topics, not necessarily part of the syllabus, are introduced with relevant bangs and smells.

A Science Club is in existence to encourage learners to do simple research. Hopefully, a couple of these investigations will go forward to the Science Expo at UCT in August. It is interesting to note that Mark Shuttleworth entered, in all, five expo projects while he was at school, and won three major awards.

Awards already achieved by our learners include prizes in the Science Essay competition sponsored by the Royal Society of South Africa and exceptional success in the Science Olympiads of 2001 and 2002.

Congratulations to Lauren Hartmann, who for two years running, has achieved exceptionally high scores in the second round of the
Science Olympiad. In fact, last year, she was third in the country (out of 12000 entries) and was flown to Pretoria to be officially
congratulated.

Professor Chinsamy-Turan came to a special assembly to honour the impressive group of young scientists at Wynberg

Congratulations also go to Kelli Futter (3rd Prize) and Faseegha Adams (Merit Award) in the Senior School Section (208 entries from
34 schools) of the RSSA 2001 essay competition.

D Jaaback

Our brilliant young scientists, Kelly, Faseegha and Lauren
with their teacher Mrs Jaaback

Lauren Hartmann (centre) at the Awards Ceremony
in Johannesburg

The National Science and Technology Forum and the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology hold an annual Awards Ceremony in Johannesburg to honour scientists in many different fields. This year, as a result of the government's drive to promote careers in the Sciences, especially amongst young women, twelve high school girls and nine university students from all over the country were invited to attend this event and to witness "Science in Action".

The nine first-year students had all attained the top marks in Science and Mathematics out of the previously disadvantaged students in their provinces, while the twelve high school learners were honoured for their achievements in either the Maths, Technology or Science Olympiads or the Expo for Young Scientists. As I came third in the National Youth Science Olympiad in 2001, I formed part of this group, which assembled in Johannesburg on the afternoon of 3 May 2002.

The trip included a return flight on British Airways, overnight accommodation in Sandton and, of course, the highlight - the awards
ceremony at the five-star Hilton Hotel.

Unfortunately, the Minister of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology, Dr Ben Ngubane, was unable to attend. However, we were still treated to a number of speeches, traditional dancing, and the opportunity to meet a few of the scientists nominated for awards.

It was an enjoyable evening, which culminated, for us at least, in the recognition of the young women attending. All of us received
certificates citing us as role models for the youth of South Africa, as well as a small prize and an official photo. We also had the privilege of being mentioned in Dr Ben Ngubane's commendation of the event, which appeared in newspapers and on the Internet a few days later.

It was an incredible honour and an amazing experience and I am grateful to the Department for inviting us to attend.       

L Hartmann

AFRIKAANSE DEPARTEMENT

Ons is baie tots op Lauren Hartmann wat twee van haar gedigte ingestuur het vir die Poetry Institute of Africa-wedstryd. Sy is aangewys as een van die top inskrywings. Haar gedigte “Lewensreis” en “ Onthou” kom ook vir die finale kompetisie in aanmerking. Boonop word die twee gedigte onderskeidelik in die samestelling van verse “Hartseer Troebadoer” en “Woorde van Waarheid” opgeneem en gepubliseer.

Lauren, dit is werklik ‘n uitsonderlike prestasie om as een van die talentvolste jong digters in die land herken te word.

A Cope

W Thomson and H McDade
(French Teachers)

ART DEPARTMENT

FAIRMONT HIGH SCHOOL FASHION SHOW: “ANOTHER WORLD”

Fairmont High School has hosted this Student Designer Competition since 1999. Their intention in doing so is to give high school students an opportunity to experiment with the idea of following a career in the fashion design industry. Entrants were encouraged to let their imaginations run free in expressing their ideas about fashion. They did however face an unusual restriction, as all clothing had to be made from recyclable materials. Perhaps this idea is not dissimilar to our own idea, when we required that the dresses made by the art girls for the “Nautical Rhythms” fashion show in 1999 should be made from waste materials.

A portion of the proceeds went to the Reach for a Dream Foundation. Initially the competition was only open to Fairmont High students, but after enormous growth within the first two years, it has been opened to all high schools within the area. Schools from the Southern Suburbs were invited to participate this year. The theme this year was titled “Another World” and the Wynberg Girls’ High students did us proud with their keen participation and original outfits made from materials ranging from different types of plastic to bottle tops!

Girls who entered include Keely-Ann Barrett, Camilla Gillman, Hayley Griffiths, Eve McKerchar, Amelia Wickenden, Liesl Kriel, Lee-Ann Sharpe, Olivia van den Heever, and Maxine Kruger all of whom are in Grade Ten. Our Grade Twelve entrants included Andrea Bryant and Melanie Gericke.Three pairs from Wynberg also entered: they were Jaclyn Teubes and Kate Russell; Portia Seheri and Thina Zibi and Dominique
Anderson and Kerry Beetge. Three of our girls were amongst the twenty finalists in the competition: Andrea Bryant (Grade Twelve), Melanie Gericke (Grade Twelve) and Eva McKercher (Grade Ten) but it was Andrea Bryant who came second in the competition. Her dress had a very innovative design and was made from mirrors.

The event was sponsored by Topco Models and organised by a past pupil, Sean Loots (Events Organiser) and a committee of Grade Eleven students: Carla Ancilotti, Claudia Cole and Taryn Blackwood. The first round of the competition was held on the Wednesday, May 1 and the finals on Friday, May 3.

ART DISPLAY AT FRANK JOUBERT CENTRE

The Art Department was invited by the Frank Joubert Art Centre to display some of the finest art work produced by our Grade Ten to
Twelve students for three weeks at their centre. The purpose of this group display from various institutions around the peninsula was
to enable the schools to learn from each other – both the students and their teachers!

Art work was selected from some of our top achievers from the Grade Twelve class of 2001 such as Alex Wiid, Beth Durham, Rushda van der Westhuizen and Kim Hutton as well as some of the talent from the Grade Twelve class of 2002 - Leanne Johannson’s exceptional conceptual work, and the outstanding two-dimensional work and paintings of Candice McKenzie, Sylvann de Robillard, Lauren Seaman, Catherine Hutton-Squire, and Katharine Tromp were amongst those selected.

One of Leanne's displays at the Arts Festival

The Grade Eleven class also had an opportunity to reveal some of their very fine work, when their innovative fantasy hats were
displayed, together with the Grade Ten’s Woman’s Day projects on International Women’s Day.

C Vosloo

CHOIR

Once again the choir started the term with a workshop. This included a braai, which was enjoyed by those who attended. It also proved to be an opportunity for parents of choir members to become more involved.

CAPE TOWN OPERA

We were fortunate to have a visit from the Cape Town Opera at our school. Our Grade Twelve Music Students really benefited from this visit as they demonstrated various ways in which the composer puts the musical ingredients together. This was also a valuable learning experience for all the other students. They sat attentively and responded very positively. We hope to have another visit by this opera company soon.

JAZZ ENSEMBLE

The Jazz ensemble gave an impressive performance at the Dream Auction held earlier this term. We commend all these girls for their performances and their professionalism on this occasion.

LUNCH HOUR CONCERT

This was held just before the Music Department Practical June Exam. We are very appreciative of the staff who attended it and showed their support. Some Grade Eights and Nines used this opportunity to have their supporters cards signed. We look forward to having at least two more concerts next term.

SECOND TERM MUSIC CONCERT

This music concert has been moved to take place during the second term instead of the third term. The reason for this is that the music staff felt that our musicians would give a more polished performance, as they had just completed their practical examination. The concert was well attended by parents, staff and learners. It was a great success and we thank all the students that participated in this event and made it so enjoyable.

ARTS & CULTURE

The Grade Nine’s must be relieved to have finished their presentations on Swan Lake. We commend them on all the hard work and effort that went into each performance. This has not only been a challenging and demanding discipline for them but also has enabled them to grow in confidence and self-esteem. These important life-skills are fostered in this particular learning area.

E Lith

DRAMA REPORT

This has been the term of the Cape Town Speech and Drama Eisteddfod. We have had great fun working on various projects in groups and individually.

Unfortunately the Eisteddfod took place right in the middle of the exams, and so some of the girls withdrew from performing. Those who persisted however, did brilliantly. We will publish a list of the results in next term's newsletter, but I do need to mention that two of our groups were invited to perform at the Prizewinner's Concert at the Nassau Centre on Wednesday evening on 20 June.

The Grade Ten Wednesday afternoon group were awarded the cup for the “Best Group Experiment”, and Lindy Anderson, Tina Zibi, Aimee Valentine and Tarryn Blows were awarded the cup for the “Best Group Dramatic Performance”. Once again the adjudicator commented on the exceptionally high standard of work from Wynberg Girls' High School. Well done to all those involved.

In May, our girls were involved in the Wynberg Boys’ High School production of Grease. What a fabulous show it was! So much
energy was put into it, and it was obvious the cast loved every moment of it. I am sorry for those of you who missed it.

The Grade Elevens have auditioned and cast the house plays to be presented next term. The scripts they have chosen are varied and interesting, so we look forward to an evening of excellent entertainment. The date is still to be finalised, but we promise to give you fair warning. We have very talented girls at Wynberg and are pleased that they have so many opportunities to show off their talent.

Next term, we will be preparing for the South African Speech Teachers’ Guild examinations. Once that work is complete, we hope to present an evening of Eisteddfod and exam work. We will keep you posted.But now we look forward to three glorious weeks of holidays during which we hope to replenish our creative energy.

P Glover

The Senior Team received topics such as whether Active Euthanasia should be instituted in South Africa, and The extent to which HIV drugs would solve the AIDS problem. We considered whether Human Cloning is detrimental to Society as well as whether Third World debt should be forgiven by First World Countries. A "Toss of the coin" determined that the seniors would oppose each of the above topics.

Fortunately the role of opposition seems to have served us well, and we were able narrowly to beat Camps Bay, who had previously remained unbeaten, to finish first in our group. We eagerly anticipate the challenge of the next round.

Our Junior Team was given the incredibly difficult task of proposing that Pregnant Teenage Girls should be Expelled from School. As a result of thorough preparation and excellent speaking, they were able to win that debate, as well as beat Camps Bay in the debate regarding the justification of money spent on space exploration. The Junior Team also did us proud and finished second in their group.

It has been a greatly rewarding experience to see the results of the hard work of all our debaters and debating teachers, Mrs Sparks and Mrs Kourie.

K Futter

WEB COMMITTEE

This term has not been a particularly busy one in terms of covering the events taking place in the school, but we have been extremely busy working towards the transforming of the website into a database-driven one, which will enable us to serve you and the interests of the school in a more satisfactory way.

The 2002 Web committee

We are extremely fortunate to have enlisted the expertise of Marcus Collins of www.writeclick.co.za  who has given generously of his time and energy in enabling us to specify precisely what it is that we have, and the direction that we want to take. We look forward to bringing you the fruits of our discussions by the end of the year.

P Orpen

ICDL MAKING STEAM

Candidates for the International Computer Driver’s Licence have been attending regularly on Mondays and Fridays. We set ourselves target dates to complete Modules 5 (Databases) and 6 (Presentations) and arranged a visiting examiner.

He arrived on 24 May. Ashleigh Smith was the only candidate brave enough to attempt Module 5 and she notched up 80% to pass. This is probably the most difficult of all 7 modules, so she is to be congratulated.
Andrea Meyer, Eve McKerchar, Alana Heynes, Amelia Wickenden, Kate Reeves and Danielle Alexander were also successful in their PowerPoint exam, Danielle achieving a 100% pass! We commend the Friday group.

In the last week of term, all those who feel up to the test on Module 3 (Word Processing) will be taking on the examiner again. We look forward to another 100% pass: after all what else can you expect from a Wynghs learner?

J Richardson

Our chess players get in a practice session

Slowly but surely, the girls are gaining in confidence. We thank Mr Cowie for his time in assisting with the coaching of our chess players. We also thank Ms Lawrence for her assistance at our home matches.Our B-team has not succeeded in winning a match yet, but they have managed to win a game every now and then. Our A-team, on the other hand, won a match against Bergvliet High, and continues to win games at each match. All our players need to be commended. At the time of going to print, we had not completed our fixtures for this term and will only be able to include a final summary of the season’s matches during the third term.

E Lith

LIBRARY

The library has run more efficiently than ever this term, thanks to the willing help of all the pupil librarians. We have acquired a new photocopying machine, which accepts all coins, instead of the usual old 10c-piece tokens, which has made the job of photocopying   quicker and less frustrating for the many who make use of the machine.

We have also expanded our "reading corner", which now runs along the length of one side of the upper floor, and comprises three additional comfortable armchairs, which were generously donated by the A-Levels college. The new carpets have been laid and, owing to the work of the librarians, have not yet been strewn with popcorn and litter!

We continue to acquire new books, in both the fiction and non-fiction sections and we also have many popular titles, including some of the books which have recently been made into movies, such as the 'Harry Potter' series, the 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy and 'Captain Corelli's Mandolin'.

Unfortunately, as seems to be the case after every end-of-term stock-take, as many as twenty-nine of our books, including several new titles, have disappeared off our shelves. We appeal to anyone who finds any of these books to return them to the library via the book box, as your continued co-operation is essential to the smooth running of our library. If you have any suggestions regarding improvements to the library, please let us know.

We wish you many hours of happy reading during the forthcoming holidays.

L Hartmann

Lauren Kent and Tyra Hoosain make themselves comfortable
in the new Library armchirs.

SPORT

Staff sporting achievements

Michelle Edwards – first woman to captain a South African side!

In between teaching, training and the numerous other administrative tasks which Michelle Edwards has embraced this term, she has also found the time to squeeze in a trip to Melbourne, Australia to play in the Altona International. On this occasion, she made it to quarterfinals in the Ladies’ Doubles, Mixed Doubles and Singles matches. In the Singles, she lost to the number two seed. Following this prestigious event, she went to Auckland, New Zealand and played in the North Harbour International and again progressed to the quarterfinals in the Singles. These two tournaments have pushed her Singles Ranking up to ninety-third in the world.

Recently, she played in the SA International held in East London, and won the Ladies Singles and Doubles, but lost in the semi-finals for the Mixed Doubles. This tournament pushed her ranking up to seventy-fifth in the world - the highest she has ever been.

She will be competing in the All Africa Games, which is going to be held from 14-23 July in Casablanca, Morocco. Furthermore, she has been named Captain of the South African team to compete at these games. The first woman ever selected to captain a South Africa side!

Well, Wynberg understands why! Michelle Edwards, we are extremely proud of you.                 

Wynberg leads the way with role model Michelle Edwards:
the first woman to captain a South African Team

Comrades – Lucille does it again!

Comrades Marathon was the inspiration of Vic Clapham, who ‘had been haunted by the pain, agonies, death and hardships of his comrades which he witnessed during the First World War. He felt that all of those who had fallen in during this time should be remembered and honoured in a unique way. Thus it was that the first Comrades Marathon took place on 24th May 1921, Empire Day, starting outside the City Hall in Pietermaritzburg with thirty-four runners. It has continued since then every year with the exception of the war years 1941-1945, with the direction alternating each year between Pietermaritzburg and Durban, the so called “up” & “down” runs.’

‘Arguably the greatest ultra marathon in the world this year there was a field of approximately 12000 athletes who quite literally had come from all over the world to combine muscle and sinew and mental strength to conquer the approx 90 kilometres between the cities of Pietermaritzburg and Durban.’ Once again, Wynberg’s own Lucille Damon completed the Marathon, this time in 8 hours, 47 minutes and 53 seconds and was the 109th woman home amidst a field of 8988 runners who finished the marathon.

We salute your efforts, Lucille!

(Information about the Marathon obtained and quoted from www.comrades.com   )

Student sport

Hockey

After a very successful overseas tour to Australia, the 1st Hockey team have continued their good form to remain unbeaten this term. With five matches still to be played, the Firsts have a great chance of winning the Premier League!

The U14 B's have also had a great season, remaining unbeaten to date, whilst the U14 C's have only lost 1 match!

A plea to all parents to support their daughters, especially at home games, where the best egg and bacon rolls can be bought!

A Bernstein

INTERSCHOOLS' DATES

U14 and U16 at Rustenburg on 7 September
U19 at Hartleyvale on 14 September

AUSTRALIA HOCKEY TOUR 2002

On Wednesday 20 March a very excited Wynberg Hockey team departed from Cape Town International airport and jetted off to Perth, Australia. Included in the five days spent in Perth, the team, armed with their cameras, visited places such as Perth Cricket Stadium, Kings Park, Rottnest Island, various shopping malls and enjoyed a ferry ride down the Swan River to Freemantle. The team was also fortunate enough to attend both a men’s and ladies Interstate Hockey Match at the Curtin University Astroturf.

We played against and were hosted by three schools in Perth and the results were as follows:

One thing was discovered very quickly on this tour: the Wynberg Girls Hockey team puts any shopoholic to shame and we were very glad to have expandable kit bags to accommodate all the new clothes, fluffy toys, presents and a Matric dance dress that was bought on the tour!

Wynberg Girls High’s second overseas hockey tour was a great success. We won all seven matches with a total of forty-nine goals being scored and only conceded five!

The tour was an incredibly memorable experienceand undoubtedly the highlight of our school careers!

This time we could say that we beat the Aussies!

L Seaman

A du Toit

Congratulations Deidre, on being selected as a
Western Province Tennis Player Wynberg is extremely proud of you!.

P Bodenstein

Congratulations, Michelle and Mariëtte
on your recent successes!

DEIDRE EISPE SELECTED FOR WESTERN PROVINCE

We were delighted to receive notification that Deidre Eispe has been selected to the Western Province USSASA Tennis team, to
participate in the USSASA Inter-Provincial U14 Tournament to be held in Pietermaritzburg from 9-14 July. May the sun smile on your
endeavours Deidre!   

P Orpen

LEADERSHIP

Young Leaders Dreaming
       Imbizo Yolutsha
             - A conference for Young Leaders

Here is a tree rooted in African soil
Nourished with waters from rivers of Africa
Come and sit under its shade and become, with us
the leaves of the same branches and the same tree

Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe

We were delighted when we were given the opportunity to send four delegates to the Young Leaders Dreaming workshop. They were: Christina Blom and Jessica Jones (Grade Eleven) and Pranisha Maharaj and Leanne Johansson (Grade Twelve). Involving 21  government schools from diverse backgrounds from around the Peninsula, it was an extraordinary day, not least of all because of the way in which it started.

The first session was a drumming workshop run by The Rhythm Workshop. What was so extraordinary about this session was that without saying a single word to the 88-member group, the leaders were able to enable us to drum and make music for an hour. Secret smiles of pleasure crept over the faces of the participants as harmonies and rhythms were explored. But apart from the pleasure it gave, there was so much that was surprising about it: there were thought- provoking lessons to be learnt about leadership, leadership styles; co-operation and mutual dependence. There were lessons about trust, listening and mutual respect. And because it was pre-verbal, it could be rooted in any context the participants chose. Equally surprising to this disparate group was the extraordinary synergy it created. Quite simply, it was marvellous!

Students receive their cues from the leaders of
The Rhythm Workshop

We were privileged to have speakers such as Mrs Naledi Pandor (Chairperson of the Council of Provinces) Brian O'Connell (Vice-Chancellor of UWC) and Colin Hall (Executive Chairman of Wooltru).

Mrs Pandor encouraged us to reflect on great leaders of our world, and our own definitions of leadership. Further than this, she
encouraged us to become leaders by volunteering our services in order to effect change in ways that we wanted to see happen. Mr
O'Connell challenged us to think about our goals, the kinds of decisions we need to make in order to effect those goals and to avoid
the kinds of behaviours that encourage a dependence on others to bring about solutions.

Leanne, Christina and Pranisha learn
some lessons about trust

Mr Hall encouraged us to think about the differences between leadership by dominating, coercing and destroying, and a leadership that enlisted the energy of others. He talked about the significance of finding our "authentic selves," our siriti, and of the importance of trust.

At lunch time there was chatting, eating, bead-making and a little jazz to listen to, played by the Westerford Jazz Trio - an informal
relaxed session. There was much food for thought. The pity of it was that this was only a day long!

P Orpen

Collin Hall addresses the group

P Maharaj

ROWENA WILLIAMS WINS BURSARY

We were delighted to hear that Rowena Williams was mentioned in the SACEE March newsletter. We include an extract from the
article:

“Western Cape Bursary Mrs Terrill Nicolay, the Chairperson of the Western Cape branch said that the standard of bursary applications this year has been "exceptionally good". A shortlist of four was drawn up and the selection panel had a difficult job deciding on the eventual winner. The recipient of the R2,500 bursary is Rowena Williams. Rowena matriculated from Wynberg Girls' High School with overall distinctions and is now registered for her 1st year BA degree at the University of Cape Town. She is majoring in English and linguistics. The bursary is renewable over three years of tertiary study with increments, depending on progress and continuation of English major.”

Extract quoted from SACEE March News.

Entries must include your full name, class, address and telephone numbers. Winners will be announced at a formal Assembly after the next executive meeting of the WOGU held in the second week of August.

Entries should be handed in to Ms Orpen on a disk or e-mailed to her at porpen@wynghs.co.za, before, or by the end of, July 2002.

PLEASE NOTE:

• The competition is open to pupils currently at Wynberg Girls' High only
• Entries must be in digital format
• It must be A4 size
• It must have the school badge on it
• It must be accompanied by a signed declaration that it is your own work
• Entries must be in by the end of July 
• The WOGU executive members' decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

1992 Reunion of Past Pupils

Remember Theresa le Roux? She's organising a reunion for 1992 Matriculants and is asking all past pupils from that year to email their contact details to her so that a tenth year reunion can be organised.

Her email address is theresa@alcantara.co.za. Those organising the event with her are thinking of having a Breakfast Reunion on Saturday, 21 December, which will allow many of our “overseas residents” to be home for Christmas. She's looking forward to hearing from you soon. Please contact the school should you not have access to e-mail and leave a message with our secretaries.            

The girls’ appearance, their impeccable manners and, especially, their healthy competitive spirit and ability have made Wynberg Girls’ High School extremely proud. Leila Gardner, Charis Oliver, Rebecca Blundell and Ondine Corewijn all deserve our congratulations!

M Lawrence

Three of the members of our Wynberg team

NOW IS IT ART? FASHION? OR JUST PLAIN FUN?

Once again, Wellington Quad was the scene of something extraordinary. On 17 April, a spirit building activity was organised by the
Junior Prefects for the Grade Eights.

With little more than the newspapers, black bags and the rubbish of others, they worked busily for thirty minutes to create some wonderful garments. Some, we think, were more successful than others!! On the right is one of the creations of our Grade Eights.

Members of Grade 12EL show off their talents!

One innovative class had "This is a cake" written on the top of it. Another simply sprayed the top with jelly tots and smarties. Others were more creative: with flowers and butterflies – all of which were beautifully arranged. But the winning design was the Spider Cake.

The Grade Eight spirit builder:
oh, to look this good in newspapers and black bags!

We took up the challenge of creating gourmet meals from packets of noodles and spaghetti-in-a-can while trying to avoid Michaela's
dried fruit, and a trip to the scary-looking "longdrop".

The views were amazing and the experience incredible. Bonds were formed which can only be understood by those who have braved
the perils of a rickety canoe for nine kilometres of hazardous river, just to see a beautiful sunset; or by those who have fought their
way through the spectacular, thick Wilderness forest, just to see the magnificent waterfall, or the flush toilet, at the end of their day's
journey.

Many philosophical conversations were held around the braai, under the stars and we all acquired a deeper respect and understanding
of nature, especially after sleeping in a windowless hut on the side of the mountain, and waking up to the hoarse cries of Mr
Bodenstein, who had just encountered a mole-rat sniffing at his sleeping-bag, with him still in it!

Despite the challenging nature of the hike, which we quickly renamed the "Wilderness Trans-Lake Kayak Adventure Challenge", with
the help of our guide, Wayne, it was an adventure that none of us will ever forget, and we extend our sincere thanks to Mrs Wilding
and Mr Bodenstein for this wonderful experience.

L Hartmann

CALENDAR DATES

July

August

September

P Orpen

Jessica Roffey appears on the right
of this Hip2b² poster.

WATERLOO HOUSE

The second and longest term has been dominated by the May /June examinations. The weather has gradually cooled and weekend entertainment has been arranged accordingly. Videos and pizza evenings as well as trips to Cavendish square for shopping or to watch movies as well as an ice-skating outing have been popular.

Mrs Cheney returned to work in the last month of the term on a part-time basis and will return full-time next term. Thanks must be  extended to our Head Matron, Mrs Grotjohn and Mrs Harding who ran the hostel while Mrs Cheney was away.

Many suggestions were submitted to the prefects, who discussed these with Mrs Harding at a prefect meeting. Some changes have been implemented (including new soap dispensers in the bathrooms) and there is a possibility of our own Representative Council of Learners being elected in the hostel.

The entire hostel has worked together to make this term as stress-free as possible. As the term draws to a close, the hostel is being prepared for accommodating an u-13 hockey tournament in the holidays. All funds raised in this way are used to renovate and refurbish the hostel. All at Waterloo hope that the well-deserved holidays are relaxing and appreciated with their family and friends.

L Kent