June 2016 Issue 3

The Anchor

FromthePrincipal’sDesk

DearParentsandGirls

Timepassesquicklyand it ishardtobelieve thatanothertermhasdrawntoaclose.Onceagain,thishasbeenabusyterm at Maris Stella characterised by an intensive sportprogramme, drama productions, awards ceremonies,sportsdays,culturalcelebrationsandsomuchmore.

I am always amazed at how busy our school is and howmanygirls andof course their teachers, are still here lateinto the evening, involved in our many after school pro-grammes.Iamsogratefultoeachstaffmember,(teaching,administrative and support) for their commitment to allthatwedoforourgirlshereatMarisStella.

Bynowtheparentswhohavedaughters inGrade7 to11willhavereceivedtheirContinuousAssessmentReports. Iurgeyou tohaveadiscussionwithyourdaughterregard-ing her results in order for her to plan her revision andconsolidationofworkdonethusfar,sothatshecanbewellprepared for the examinationswhich take place nextterm.

Iwishyouahappyandrelaxingholiday.

Withwarmregards

JoanSchmidt

Issue 3 September 2017 Faith, Family, Future

HeritageDayCelebrations!

OurHeritageDaycelebrationswerenotonlyaliteralfeast,but also a visual and cultural one aswell! Our girls andstaffembracedthisdaywithsuch love,dressed inout itswhich represented our heritage, and shared traditionalmealsatapicnic intheMPC,wherewewereentertainedby the incredibly talentedQadasiandMaqhinga.Our fes-tivities included a highly entertaining and culturally di-verse concert, inwhich all phases of our school, staff in-cluded, did us proud! "Sounds the call to come together,andunitedweshallstand"

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Grade6ExcursiontoSpiritofAdventureOurGrade6senjoyedanactionpackedtwodaysatSpir-itofAdventure, in theShongweniGameReserve.Theyfacedanexhilarating“SurvivorCourse”,aimingtoequipthemwithanunderstandingoftheroleoftheleaderinateam, the skills involved and the con idence to applythem. Even though someactivitiesappearedchalleng-ing at irst, theywere always fun and achievable,withthe “Snake Pit” and the abseiling emerging as de initehighlights!

Grade1ExcursiontoFlagAnimalFarm

OurGrade1girlswerebeyondexcit-ed to board the bus to go on theirirstoutingoftheyear.Afterasong-illeddrive,theyweregreetedbyallthe loving farm animals. Our girlsran around the farm; feeding thegoatsandhorseswhilesomeotherschased the chickens and the bun-nies. A few girls were fortunateenough toevengeta cuddle fromabunny! The girls enjoyed the talksaboutreptilesandwolvesandwereable to milk some cows. After the

exciting morning, they had a much quieter ride back toschoolwith44exhaustedlittlegirls.

Grade2ExcursiontotheAfricanBirdSanctuary

OurGrade2senjoyedafun- illedandeducationaldayat the AfricanBird of Prey Sanctuary. The girlsweregiven the opportunity to work in groups and walkaroundthesanctuary,discoveringnewandinterestingfacts about the different birds that are in the park.Theywatchedashowwhichdemonstratedhowafewof the different birds ly and catch their prey. Theseincludedowls,aYellowBillKiteandaneagle.Thegirlshad a wonderful time and were fascinated to watchthevulturesfeed!

Grade5ExcursiontoGreensleeves

Our Grade 5s brought their History syllabus to life withtheir visit toGreensleeves lastweek. Dressed up in theirmedieval inery (executioner included!), the girls lovedexploring the castle, sampling their sumptuous feast andgenerallyimmersingthemselvesinallthingsmedieval.

Grade11and12SoireeOurGrade11sand12sweretreatedtoarelaxedevening,combiningfunwitheleganceandencouragement,whereeachGrade11waspairedwithaMatric"sister",tohelpansweranyquestionsonschool,leadershiporlifeingen-eral. Thank you toourHeadandDeputyHeadGirls forputtingtogetherthisspecialevening!   

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Grade11Leaders

Our2018PortfolioHeadsandViceHeads,alongwiththeirPortfolios,havemadeanexceptionalstart to theirdutiesthis term. During a special Leadership Assembly, HeadGirlQondisaSibekoencouragedalltheGrade11stomakethe most of every opportunity, and inspire others todreammore, learnmore,believemore,anddomore.Fol-lowingMaris Stella's servant leadership style, the Grade11spledgedtoupholdthevaluesofintegrity,justice,com-

passion andrespect thatunderpin ourschool,andtoleadbyexam-ple, neverexpecting ofothers whatthey are notprepared todo them-selves.

Grade8CulturalEvening

ThehallwasalivewiththevibrantcoloursandsoundsofourbeautifulMzanziwhentheGrade8girlsentertainedtheir parents with a cultural experience of food, danceandmusicinaSouthAfricantheme.Dressedinsaris,tra-ditionaldancingbeadsandskirts,Bok jerseysandsafarikit, our parents and girls embraced the spirit ofMzanziandUbuntuintheireveningtogether.

Music@MarisStellaEvening

Our recent evening dedicated to the celebration of ourmusical talent was a wonderful way of bringing ourschoolfamilytogether.InthewordsofPlato,‘Musicgivesasoultotheuniverse,wingstothemind, lighttotheim-

agination,andlifetoeverything.’

Pre‐schoolGrandparents’DayOur Pre-school hosted a very special Grandparents' Dayconcert, a testament to the love and devotion our littlestgirlshavefortheirgranny'sandgrandpa's.Withacelebra-tion of songs embracing our heritage, we were all feelingthelove!

Please like our Facebook page,   

I heart Maris Stella,  for all the 

latest news and photos from 

our events. 

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RoaldDahlDay

“Ifyouaregoingtogetanywhereinlifeyouhavetoreadalotofbooks.”–RoaldDahlWednesday,13SeptemberwasRoaldDahl’sbirthdayandonce again this year the Grade 4s celebrated all thingsRoaldDahlinstyle!Matilda,Sophie,WillyWonka,andMrsTwit, tonamea few,couldbeseenstrollingaroundMarisStella.Thegirlsmodelledtheirout its,enjoyedtestingtheirknowledgeoftheRoaldDahlbooks,watchedTheBFGandicedMarieBiscuits.

Grade7MarketDay

OurGrade 7MarketDaywas the culmination ofweeks ofwork by our savvy Grade 7 entrepreneurs!With valuablelessons learned about market research, effective advertis-ing,competition,andexpensesvspro ittonameafew,ourgirls are to be congratulatedon their excellent efforts andinnovativeideas!

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IHeartMarisStellaMarket

A big thank you to ourMaris Stella Family and friends who supported our I Heart Maris Stella Market!Wewereblessedwiththemostgloriouswinter'sday,andhadsomuchfunenjoyingtherides,browsingaroundthecraftmar-ket,andrelaxinginthebeautiful(anddelicious!)teagarden.Thankyoutoourdedicatedteamofmomsanddadsfromour Parents' Association for all their efforts in putting together this special familyfundraiser,andmanythanksalsotoourstaffandgirlsforallyourhelpwiththestalls.

Sun lowerFundDay:MzanziMagic!

Oneofthemostanticipatedeventsinourcalendar,Sun lowerFundDay,wasawashwithfun,style, lairandmuch"MzanziMagic",ourthemeforthisyear'scelebrations.Frommusic,laughterandbubblesonarrivalatschool,tofacepaintingandteapartiesforourlittlestgirls,thedayculminatedinajawdroppingfashionshow,alivewithMzanziMagic,organisedbyourGrade11s.EachclassinourPrepandHighSchoolworkedtogethertocreateaunique, imaginativeout itmadefromtopes,andwewerefortunatetohaveFashionNanny,SabrinaMaingard,asourcelebrityjudge.Thisisthe10thyearthatMarisStellahashadthehonourofsupportingTheSun lowerFund,andwearesoproudofourMarisStellaFamily,forrais-ingR24250throughthepurchaseof970topes!

MatricArtExhibition

Somebeautiful, inspiredartpieces, painstakinglycreatedbyourtalentedMa-trics,areondisplayuntilthe16October.Everyoneismostwelcometovisit!

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There’sNoBusinessLikeShowBusiness!

Congratulations to the talented cast and crewof ourPrepProduction,'There'sNoBusinessLikeShowBusiness!'Thisexciting, colourful and entertaining showcase of themanydifferentskillsofourPrepgirlswasadelighttowatch,andinstilledrenewedrespect forthemanygiftsourgirlshavebeengiven.AbigthankyoutoMrsJoubertforallhereffortsinproducingsuchawonderful show,and forbeingsuchaconstantinspirationtoourgirls.

PrepArtExhibition

OurPrepArtExhibitionwasavisualfeastincelebrationofthecreativityofourGrade4to7girls.Whetheritwascre-atedusingpaint,pastel,pencilor clay, eachpieceofworkondisplaywasatestamenttotheimaginationanddetermi-nationofourgirls,aswellas theskillofPrepArt teacher,Mrs Andrew and locum, Ms Jennings. A talented ceramicartist,MsJenningshassharedherloveofceramicswiththegirls this term, who have so enjoyed creating their ownbeautifulbowlsand lowers.

Softball

Wearesoproudofoursoftballteam,whocame3rdintheSchools’ALeague,afterwinning theBLeague last season.Evenmore impressive is that 6 Maris Stella players havebeen selected to play for KZN Squads. Courtney Stuart,TraceyPowellandTeganSinclairhavebeenselectedfortheU18 KZN Softball Squad, and Caitlyn Gooding, SamishkaChetty and Jenna O’Brien have been selected for the U15KZNSoftballSquad.

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Pre‐schoolSportsDay

OurPre-schoolgirlshadsuchaballattheirSportsDay!Thegirls loved running, jumping and cheering together, espe-ciallywithalltheirmoms,dads,gransandgrandpasproud-lywatching!

JuniorPrimarySportsDay

OurJuniorPrimarygirlslovedeveryminuteoftheirSportsDay,participatingwholeheartedlyintheirraces,andcheer-ingtheirteammatesonwithmuchenthusiasm!Congratula-tionstotheoverallwinners,Ambrose,andtheSpiritTro-phyrecipients,Marian!Itwasaveryclosecontest,withtheresultsasfollows:1stplace:Ambrose,49points2ndplace:Marian,46points3rdplace:Patrician,42pointsAbigthankyoutoalltheMoms,Dads,GransandGrandpasforallyourwillingandcheerfulsupport!

Lifesaving

WecongratulateTeeganHard-wick,whohasbeenselectedfortheSouthAfrican2017Interna-tionalSurfRescueChallengeTeam,whichwillbehostedbySurfLifeSavingNewZealandinNovember.Teegan,whohasherColoursforLifesaving,hasbeentrainingforthissinceshestartedLifesavingattheageof7.Lastyear,sherepresentedSouthAfri-caattheWorldLifesavingCham-pionshipsintheNetherlands,winningaGoldMedal.

TeeganwasalsorecognisedasMarisStella’sSportswomanoftheYearatourSportsAwardsEveningon26September.

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HighlightingsomeofourMarisStellaSuperStars

In our special ThirdTermAwardsAssembly,the followinggirlswerecongratulated for theirexcellentachievements:

Certi icates of Recog‐nition:

ZoraMerkofer (Grade2Piano Trinity College ofLondonExam),IreneAn(Distinction forGrade4Violin examinationGrade5Pianoexamina-tion), Xoliswa Gcaba(Durban Central Soc-cer), Savannah Pa-penfus, (DurbanCentralSoccer),AmyRandelhoff(Durban Central Soc-cer), Survivor Gwala(Durban Central Soc-cer), Khwezi Buthelezi(Durban Central Soc-cer), Madison Briant(Durban Central Soc-

cer),ZinhleSithole(DurbanCentralSoccer),LauraMcAlister(DurbanCentralSoccer),TannahSmith(UmlaziCrossCoun-tryandKZNDuathlonTeam),CaitlynGooding(UmlaziCrossCountry),MiaVlotman(UmlaziU12Netball), CarlySmith(Umlazi U12 Netball), BabalwaMkhize (KZN Gymnastics), Ashleigh Prinsloo (KZN Gymnastics), MzuzuMhlongo (KZNGymnastics), Jaimee Coxwell (KZN Gymnastics), Holly Chelin (KZNU14BHockey), Sarah Proctor (KZNU14BHockey),ChloePillay(KZNKarate),MiaBlythe(SouthAfricanSynchronisedSwimming),ShriyaaSooklal(KZNJuniorDebating).

Certi icatesofRecognitionwereawardedtothefollowinggirlsforachievingDistinctionsintheirBallet,ModernorTapDancingexams:

Jordyn Lombaard, Tatum Stewardson, Jannah Winter, Olivia Elliot, Megan Grout, Lauren Walsh, Hannah Brannigan,RaevenPhillips,RyleighRutherford,LufunoChili,EyethuShabangu,JadeYoung,JamieleRoux,DivanyaPillay,TejalSood-yall.

Certi icatesofRecognitionwereawardedtothefollowinggirlsforwiningtheirForumDiscussion:

TiaMunsamy, JodiNobin,AndiswaGumbi, JodyRibbink,LuyandaMhlongo,OluhleNdlovu,RomaineCabusas,BayandaGumede.

ScrollsareawardedtothefollowinggirlsforgoingthroughtotheQuarterFinalsoftheDCDLDebatingLeague:

AlishaChutarpal,BronwynHarris,LuluMbanga.

HalfColours:

MeganLombard(KZNU16CHockey),LilaHeath(KZNU16BHockey),LuyandaNdlovu(KZNU17BNetball)

FullColours:

CourtneyStuart(KZNU18ASoftball),TraceyPowell(KZNU18ASoftball)

Honours:

Emma-LeighChisholm(SouthAfricanKarate)andGabriellaAlessandri(SouthAfricanKarate)