This is itThis is itThis is it
The Horse's Mouth
Thomas More College
News from the Horse's Mouth
 14 August 2017
Newsletter 26
Letter from the Editor

Please find the Scripture for the week here.

    Some points of particular interest in the expanded sections below include:
  • Shane Cuthbertson -  congratulates the Grade 6 and 7 pupils on a superb tribute to Michael Jackson last week; and shares the plans of introducing an additional Grade 000 and Grade 7 class in 2018.
  • Dave Wiggett - bids farewell to Mrs Burnette Taylor who joins her husband in the  ministry and welcomes Mr Peter Jubber to the TMC family.
  • Barbara Taljard - congratulates and thanks all involved in the SP play, and wishes families well for the half-term break this coming weekend.

 

 

Editor Picture

Have a great week,
Kim Hooper
Marketing Manager

Physio at TMC - Beth Cairns is based behind the Music School. To book an appointment contact - 031 268 5292

physio

 

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Whole School Events Calendar
 

Scripture for the week

ScriptureThen God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”27 So God created mankind in His own image, in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them…” Genesis 1:26-27

A little girl told her parents what she had learnt at Sunday school about the creation of Adam and Eve: "The teacher told us how God made the first man and the first woman. He made the man first. But the man was very lonely with nobody to talk to him. So God put the man to sleep. And while the man was asleep, God took out his brains and made a woman of them. "What a wonderful story! But what is being made in the image of God all about?

When we speak of being in the image of God we might want to ask, "Just what is the image of God? What does God look like?" The Hebrew writer says, "The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation (exact image of His person) of His being, sustaining all things by his powerful word…” Hebrews 1:3. Jesus told Philip that if " . . . you have seen me you have seen the Father." (John 14:9)

We are made in God's image. A personal relationship with God is what being made in the image of God is all about. This is a relationship that God places Himself into in regards to human beings. It is a relationship in which we become God's counterpart, His representative and His glory on the earth. “We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making His appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Corinthians 5:17-21).

Jesus is the one who reminds us of whom we are and that He came to this earth to make us His new creation. Jesus is the one who reminds us that when we see the least of these hungry and give them something to eat, we feed Him. When we look in the face of a beggar, Christ wants us to see God. (Matthew 25:41-46) When we look into the face of an unwanted child, Christ wants us to see God. When we look into the face of someone who has been relegated to a non-human existence in the back of our minds, Christ wants us to see God. By doing this we are giving that person their proper place, is giving God His proper place in this world. God came to this earth living and dying like man to make a declaration about our dignity. It makes a statement about the relationship He desires to have with each of us.

Shalom (peace)
God bless
Rev. Martin Easson
Chaplain
measson@thomasmore.co.za

Whole School News

I must admit that when I heard that the Senior Primary wanted to stage the Michael Jackson story, “This is it”, I was somewhat sceptical. How does one hope to do justice to the unique talents of this iconic figure? They did a fabulous job of “Frostbite” last year, so perhaps they would cope. My fears were unfounded and it turned out to be a wonderful evening. Even the more conservative of us were dancing in our seats. Cultural activities at Thomas More College are certainly booming! The much anticipated High School “Supper and Song” is the next item on the cultural agenda. This takes place on the evening of Wednesday 23rd August.

In the light of high demand for Grade 000 and Grade 7 we have decided to explore opening an additional class for each of these grades next year. The Grade 7 class will be for one year only. Together with some additional enrolments, the existing three Grade 6 classes will be divided up into four groups, resulting in smaller classes than we had this year. There are sufficient venues as the Senior Primary has just acquired three new classrooms.

With larger numbers of pupils coming up from the Crèche, it seems that Grade 000 could be oversubscribed for the next two years. If so, we will run two small groups for 2018 and 2019. While the overall Grade 000 enrolment may increase, the individual classes will actually be smaller. The rondawel will be used as a common area with each class in its own facility.

 Shane

Shane Cuthbertson
Executive Principal
scuthbertson@thomasmore.co.za

High School News

The following was written on the community chalkboard at Fish Hoek beach this weekend:

Don’t be preoccupied with your child’s academic ability, but instead teach them to sit with those sitting alone. Teach them to be kind. Teach them to offer their help. Teach them to be a friend to the lonely. Teach them to encourage others. Teach them to think about other people. Teach them to share. Teach them to look for the good. This is how they will change the world.

How simple is that? Coincidentally, I will be addressing our children in assembly this week about simple choices we make daily: how we speak in any situation; how we choose our appearance in any situation; the responsibility we carry daily with regards to the above by being in the high school at TMC. Simple manners, values and awareness of others, despite the challenges of adolescence, are non-negotiables. If parents, alumni and educators are all role-modelling and encouraging these for our young people, perhaps they’ll be positioned to change the world indeed.

Our South Korean visitors left our shores this past Saturday. It was wonderful hosting them at TMC. I must extend a special word of gratitude to our host families for affording these young folk a taste of South Africa. I look forward to facilitating further interactions between TMC and South Korea next year. We are also planning a reciprocal visit for TMC children to South Korea in the September holidays in 2018.

Mrs Burnette Taylor will take her leave of us this Friday. I know you join me in thanking her for her service to Thomas More College, and we wish her every success, blessing and joy as she joins her husband full-time in the ministry. We are grateful to have secured the services of Mr Peter Jubber for the remainder of the year. He is an experienced Physical Sciences teacher who will add value to our Science department during his time with us.

Finally, I want to congratulate and thank the Grade 6s and 7s (and their teachers!) on their outstanding tribute to Michael Jackson, This is it. It was a delightful, toe-tapping evening which showcased incredible dancing and singing talent. A massive tip of the hat to all involved.  

 

David Wiggett
High School Headmaster
dwiggett@thomasmore.co.za

Primary School News

Thank you to all those parents who once again hosted touring pupils, this time for our hockey matches against Felixton on Thursday- it is much appreciated. Boys and girls you did us proud in your games, especially as you were still hectically busy with our SP Play, “This is it”.

I was humbled yet again by the magnitude of our SP production, “This is it” and the way ALL staff, very much including our interns, went way beyond the call of duty in the best interests of each and every child and our school. This ambitious project, which truly lit up the stage, was superbly directed and produced by our own Mrs Roberta Ramasamy, supported by Mr Sherwin Ganasen with the sound and musical arrangements and Mrs Lizana Watson, our always smiling choreographer mom, for teaching the dance moves to the pupils and staff- including me! Huge thanks also go to our HOD: Culture, Mr Gary Balarin and to all those who supported in so many various ways as commented on our last performance and highlighted in our programme. It was tremendous fun and quite a feat, both in terms of choreography, complexity of movement and technology using pyrotechnics. The script was superbly handled by our Senior Primary Grade 6 and 7 cast who did justice to this tribute to Michael Jackson, the King of Pop! I thank them for all their efforts and commitment, knowing that the life skills learnt in taking part in a production of this magnitude will long be remembered when the academic lessons they missed will not be. It has been rewarding to see all of them involved and to uncover some acting and singing talent we did not know existed, as well as to see them grow in confidence and maturity. We will notify you when the DVD is ready as to the cost involved for placing orders to purchase it.

I was also very proud of our athletes who took part on Saturday in the Christian Schools zonal athletic competition, which was slick and well organized. Well done to all those who took part and to the many who excelled and will be going through to the next round (district) on 2 September at Kings’ Park.

Best wishes to our boys and girls who will be travelling to Cape Town on Thursday this week to play hockey, returning to school next Thursday. Once again a massive thank you to the teachers (Mr Gary Balarin (tour leader), Mrs Tracey Meikle, Mr Graham Hooper, Mr Rogan Lang, and Mr Jason McGarry) who will be accompanying them. They will be playing hockey against a number of top schools in the Western Cape and also doing some sight seeing. We wish them good hockey, travelling mercies and a worthwhile and enjoyable experience.

We are delighted to inform you that there will be a fourth Grade 7 class next year to reduce the class sizes exacerbated by pupils returning from remedial school, whom we commit to taking back once they are ready to return, and due to popular demand. The Grade 7 classes in 2018 will thus not be bigger than 24 pupils in each. This will be the only grade in the Senior Primary to have four classes- all the others will have the usual three.

Thank you to you the parents for your ongoing support. May you have a most enjoyable mid-term break this upcoming week-end. The SP will close at 11:30on Friday and will re-open on Tuesday 22 August.  

 

Barbara Taljard
Primary School: Headmistress
btaljard@thomasmore.co.za

Academic Achievements

Weekly Achievers  Wetrock

 

Kindly sponsored by Wetrock Adventures - visit www.wetrockadventuresco.za for further info. 

 

Please send us photographs of your children enjoying their Weekly Achiever vouchers at Wetrock to tmc@thomasmore.co.za.

 

1B

Yun Mulder - for a wonderful improvement in the presentation of his tasks this term.

1K

Kyle Fouché - for being so brave and doing his best to work with a fractured arm.

1S

Siya Madubela - for always being a polite, well-mannered member of the class and giving of his best in all his tasks.

2D

Tyron Hancock - for his continued perseverance in the classroom and never giving up.

2J

Roxanne Storm - for working well and for the kind, gentle way she interacts with all her peers.

2R

Daniel Buccimazza - for the pleasing improvement in the presentation of his work and his good use of adjectives in his sentences.

3B

Fiki Dlamini - for making a concerted effort to work carefully and at a good pace.  Keep it up!

3M

Rhys Maritz - for an excellent work ethic, producing work of a high standard and for always making everyone laugh.  Keep it up Rhys.

3R

Milla Douglas - for having such a good attitude to learning and always persevering.

4dP

not awarded due to the public holiday.

4P

4dL

5vL

5M

5L

6J

6M

6F

7M

7H

7C

 

 

Academic Achievements

Mathletics

Congratulations to Kai McCormick and Ethan Pieterse for achieving gold in Mathletics.

 

Cultural Achievements

HS Debating

A huge congratulations to our Senior team (Nicholas Leisegang, Jordan Pieters and Reece Jeacocks) who won their semi–final Durban and District League debate against Kingsway. They will be facing Glenwood in the finals at Clifton on Thursday, 17th August. Well done team!


Sporting Achievements

Gymnastics

Earlier this year Michael Lang was awarded a bronze medal for Gymnastics.  This Saturday he upped the standards and received a silver and is now placed 2nd in KZN in his age group. Well Done Michael!

 

SP Cycling

Congratulations to Anvia Bredenkamp who represented TMC in the 2nd race of the KZN Spur School series and won her age category.  Well done Anvia.

 

Congratulations to Miguel Fitzgerald who attended a Jujitsu/MMA training camp with Morne Swanepoel (one of SAs leading Brazilian Juijitsu/MMA coaches) and yielding a very unexpected reward for all his hard work. Miguel was awarded 2 stripes on his belt!! He had no idea that he was going to be graded at all, never mind get 2 stripes instead of the usual 1. Well done Miguel.

 

SP Boys' Hockey vs Penzance

U10A 3 - 2 TMC won

U10B 4 - 2 TMC won

U10C2 - 5 TMC lost

U10D 1 - 3 TMC lost

U11A 1 - 2 TMC lost

U11B 0 - 0 draw

U11C 4 - 1 TMC won

3rds 0 - 1 TMC lost

2nds 0 - 4 TMC lost

1st 2 - 1 TMC won

 

SP Hockey vs Felixton

1st Boys 4 - 4 draw

1st Girls 3 - 0 TMC won

 

HS Hockey

Congratulations to Carmen Vicent who was selected for the SA U16 High Performance Hockey Team chosen at the Inter-Provincial Tournament during the past holidays.  Well done Carmen.

 

SP Boys' Soccer vs Northdene Preparatory School

U10A 2 - 1 TMC won

U10B 2 - 0 TMC won

U11A 2 - 4 TMC lost

U11B 4 - 0 TMC won

4ths 4 - 2 TMC won

3rds 3 - 1 TMC won

2nds 2 - 0 TMC won

 

HS Girls' Soccer

TMC U14B vs Hillcrest - Lost 0-1

TMC U14A vs Hillcrest - Won 2-1

TMC U16B vs Hillcrest U15A - Lost 0-6

TMC U16A vs Hillcrest - Won 4-2

TMC 2nds vs Hillcrest - Lost 1-2

TMC 1st Team vs Hillcrest - Won 2-1

 

Congratulations to Ilé Bothma, Savanna Daubinet, Gabriella Greeff, Lola lee, Kimberly Lerwick, Tatum Olivier, Danielle Rockey, Courtney Sim, Isabella Velleman and Carment Vicent who have all been selected for the Highway District Soccer teams in their various age groups.  Well done ladies.

 

HS Boys' Soccer

TMC U14B vs Hillcrest - Lost 1-2

TMC U14A vs Hillcrest - Won 2-0

TMC U15B vs Hillcrest - Lost 0-4

TMC U15A vs Hillcrest- Lost 1-2

TMC U16B vs Hillcrest - Won 2-1

TMC U16A vs Hillcrest - Won 4-1

TMC 2nds vs Hillcrest - Lost 0-2

TMC 1st Team vs Hillcrest - Lost 1-2

 

Congratulations to the following boys who have been selected for the Highway District Soccer teams in their various age groups:

U14: Kellen Coombs; Luthando Ndlovu; Mathew Davey

U16: Sphesihle Masondo

U19: Sibaphiwe Khanyile

Well done guys.

 

SP Girls' Softball

TMC 1st Team vs Maris Stella - Drew 9-9

TMC U16A vs DGHS - Won 11-8 

 

SP Hockey Captains

Congratulations to the following boys who have been selected as SP Boys' Hockey Captain and Vice Captain:

Captain: Buhlali Mhlanzi

Vice-Captain: Luke Riddle 

 

HS Cross Country

The following three girls have made the ward cross country team:

Julia Butler

Kaitlyn Woods

Bridget Theunissen