Friday, 20 December 2019
Monday, 16 December 2019
Athletics
I still haven't got around to writing about the ballet show, as promised. But anyway ...
On Saturday we were at Mt Smart Stadium for the Auckland Athletics Relay Champs. Mulan was in the Takapuna Club Grade 12 girls team.
This was the first time ever that Mulan had competed in an athletics interclub competition. (Miya competed last year in the North-West-Central Auckland zone day.)
The girls came third in both the 4x100m and 4x200m, and were awarded bronze medals. They also competed in the field events relay, where Mulan did the long jump (one girl did shot put and another did discus).
The organisers really don't make it easy for the competitors. The long jumpers are only allowed one run-through practice before attempting only two competition jumps. (In a normal competition jumpers would have a few practice jumps, and at least three competition jumps.) Understandably no one is at their best and it means that luck plays a huge part in who is able to hit the board well in one or other of their jumps. Too many field eventers got two no-throws/jumps.
I really hope that Auckland Athletics organisers consider changing this. It seems that their motivation is to hurry everything through and finish at lunchtime. In my opinion it would make for a more genuine competition if they stayed there a bit longer and allowed the children a fair attempt at their best.
Mulan's first jump was well behind the board, and while her second jump was on the board it was off her wrong foot. At 3.94m, the second jump was her best on the day, though still far from what she can do (in practice she has done around 4.50m). Nonetheless the other competitors were all in the same boat and Mulan came 4th out of 8.
Combined with the other two Takapuna girls this was good enough to get them another bronze medal.
Congratulations Mulan and the other Takapuna Grade 12 girls! Awesome effort from all of you!!
The funny thing was that due to a quirk in the points system, had Mulan jumped a bit further in the long jump they would not have got a medal -- they would have been given 4th place.
This was the points table:
So, if Mulan had have got 2nd in the long jump (jumping between 4.00m and 4.21m) then she would have got 8 points (giving Takapuna 18 points) and Waitakere would have got 7 points (giving them 19 points). So, Papatoetoe would have got 2nd (20 points), Waitakere 3rd (19 points) and Takapuna 4th (18 points).
When I showed this to Mulan she was delighted by her strategically perfect jump!
On Saturday we were at Mt Smart Stadium for the Auckland Athletics Relay Champs. Mulan was in the Takapuna Club Grade 12 girls team.
This was the first time ever that Mulan had competed in an athletics interclub competition. (Miya competed last year in the North-West-Central Auckland zone day.)
The girls came third in both the 4x100m and 4x200m, and were awarded bronze medals. They also competed in the field events relay, where Mulan did the long jump (one girl did shot put and another did discus).
The organisers really don't make it easy for the competitors. The long jumpers are only allowed one run-through practice before attempting only two competition jumps. (In a normal competition jumpers would have a few practice jumps, and at least three competition jumps.) Understandably no one is at their best and it means that luck plays a huge part in who is able to hit the board well in one or other of their jumps. Too many field eventers got two no-throws/jumps.
I really hope that Auckland Athletics organisers consider changing this. It seems that their motivation is to hurry everything through and finish at lunchtime. In my opinion it would make for a more genuine competition if they stayed there a bit longer and allowed the children a fair attempt at their best.
Mulan's first jump was well behind the board, and while her second jump was on the board it was off her wrong foot. At 3.94m, the second jump was her best on the day, though still far from what she can do (in practice she has done around 4.50m). Nonetheless the other competitors were all in the same boat and Mulan came 4th out of 8.
Combined with the other two Takapuna girls this was good enough to get them another bronze medal.
Congratulations Mulan and the other Takapuna Grade 12 girls! Awesome effort from all of you!!
The funny thing was that due to a quirk in the points system, had Mulan jumped a bit further in the long jump they would not have got a medal -- they would have been given 4th place.
This was the points table:
So, if Mulan had have got 2nd in the long jump (jumping between 4.00m and 4.21m) then she would have got 8 points (giving Takapuna 18 points) and Waitakere would have got 7 points (giving them 19 points). So, Papatoetoe would have got 2nd (20 points), Waitakere 3rd (19 points) and Takapuna 4th (18 points).
When I showed this to Mulan she was delighted by her strategically perfect jump!
Monday, 9 December 2019
End-of-year music concert
We had a busy weekend.
First up on Saturday morning Belmont Music Centre (BMC) had its end-of-year concert.
We were up bright and early for that, arriving soon after 8am to unlock and help set up before the concert started at 10am.
(I wrote previously about how we've recently got more involved at BMC. With still no manager as yet, my Big Sis has been helping out by doing the essential manager-duties to keep the Centre from closing. I've been there when needed as her assistant.)
A few dozen BMC students (and most of the teachers) performed in various ensembles and bands during the concert, which lasted an hour and three quarters. They all did an amazing job, and we were thoroughly entertained throughout.
The concert also doubled as a 50th anniversary birthday party for BMC, which first opened its doors in 1969. Apparently, BMC started when the headmasters of three local schools -- Belmont Intermediate, Belmont Primary and Bayswater Primary -- got together and set things in motion for a Saturday morning Ministry of Education-(partly-)funded music centre.
The schools' opinion was that the local children's music education would best be developed by the schools joining forces and recruiting specialist expert music teachers to teach their children out of school hours. Lesson fees were to be kept as low as possible to reach as many families as possible, with volunteers donating their time to help the kids. A committee was formed, and teachers and a supervisor (now manager) hired. The rest, as they say, is history.
It was all a bit like a Dr Who special, with previous supervisors and managers attending as VIP guests. It was inspiring to meet BMC's first supervisor Oonah Caldwell. Betty Dance, the supervisor when I was a student there in the mid-80s, also attended.
Mulan and Miya were also kept busy. Before the concert, in between band warm-ups, they joined in with several other children to set up the decorations.
They were also active participants in the concert:
Immediately after the string ensemble finished playing the final piece of the concert we had to pack and go, driving straight to the girls' end-of-year ballet show (we arrived at the ballet theatre less that 30 minutes before the dress rehearsal started -- we'd warned their ballet teacher in advance that they'd be a bit late!).
Unfortunately this meant that we missed the BMC prize-giving and party. Both Mulan and Miya were awarded prizes in absentia. Mulan, who will be too old to re-enrol next year, was one of a few students who were awarded medals for senior excellence.
(I'll write about the ballet show when I get time later.)
First up on Saturday morning Belmont Music Centre (BMC) had its end-of-year concert.
We were up bright and early for that, arriving soon after 8am to unlock and help set up before the concert started at 10am.
(I wrote previously about how we've recently got more involved at BMC. With still no manager as yet, my Big Sis has been helping out by doing the essential manager-duties to keep the Centre from closing. I've been there when needed as her assistant.)
A few dozen BMC students (and most of the teachers) performed in various ensembles and bands during the concert, which lasted an hour and three quarters. They all did an amazing job, and we were thoroughly entertained throughout.
The concert also doubled as a 50th anniversary birthday party for BMC, which first opened its doors in 1969. Apparently, BMC started when the headmasters of three local schools -- Belmont Intermediate, Belmont Primary and Bayswater Primary -- got together and set things in motion for a Saturday morning Ministry of Education-(partly-)funded music centre.
The schools' opinion was that the local children's music education would best be developed by the schools joining forces and recruiting specialist expert music teachers to teach their children out of school hours. Lesson fees were to be kept as low as possible to reach as many families as possible, with volunteers donating their time to help the kids. A committee was formed, and teachers and a supervisor (now manager) hired. The rest, as they say, is history.
It was all a bit like a Dr Who special, with previous supervisors and managers attending as VIP guests. It was inspiring to meet BMC's first supervisor Oonah Caldwell. Betty Dance, the supervisor when I was a student there in the mid-80s, also attended.
Mulan and Miya were also kept busy. Before the concert, in between band warm-ups, they joined in with several other children to set up the decorations.
They were also active participants in the concert:
- Mulan and Miya played recorder together as a duet (and trio with their teacher).
- Mulan played flute in the wind ensemble (with one other student and their teacher).
- Mulan played cello while Miya played violin in the string ensemble.
Immediately after the string ensemble finished playing the final piece of the concert we had to pack and go, driving straight to the girls' end-of-year ballet show (we arrived at the ballet theatre less that 30 minutes before the dress rehearsal started -- we'd warned their ballet teacher in advance that they'd be a bit late!).
Unfortunately this meant that we missed the BMC prize-giving and party. Both Mulan and Miya were awarded prizes in absentia. Mulan, who will be too old to re-enrol next year, was one of a few students who were awarded medals for senior excellence.
(I'll write about the ballet show when I get time later.)
Thursday, 28 November 2019
Book review: The dog who could fly
Usually I'm the one who passes books to Mulan and Miya as reading suggestions.
This time it was the other way around.
Lately, Mulan and Miya have got interested in fighter planes -- especially those of the First and Second World Wars, and they have been getting fighter plane books out of the library.
One book they learnt about was Damien Lewis' The Dog Who Could Fly, a true story about a dog who flew bombing runs during the Second World War. After they finished it the girls passed the book on to me and said I had to read it. So I did.
It was an excellent choice.
Lewis wrote a direct, easily readable, child-friendly account of Robert Bozdech, a Czech airman who escaped via France to Britain during the war. Flying for the French Air Force, Bozdech was shot down in no man's land, where he found a puppy in an abandoned farmhouse. He tucked the puppy inside his jacket and crawled to safety. From that time on Bozdech and Antis the German shepherd were inseparable. When Germany overran France, they escaped to Britain, where Bozdech again flew bombing raids against Germany.
For many of the bombing runs, Antis flew with Bozdech, usually sleeping calmly at his feet. A dog-sized oxygen mask was made for Antis, for when the unpressurised planes flew at higher altitudes.
Antis was injured on several occasions, but survived the war as beloved camp mascot and hero wardog.
It is a beautiful story of mutual loyalty between man and dog, and I highly recommend it.
My only complaint is that the narrative is a little too one-sided patriotic. We can surely all agree that Second World War German command was evil and the German population was far too compliant in following and actioning the evil. Nonetheless, the German people were still real people with real feelings. They were not mere objects to be blown up and eliminated. Too often, Bozdech came across as too single-minded in his determination to take revenge and kill as many German people as he could. In keeping the storytelling simple, Lewis' writing style created a simplistic narrative which dehumanised the many people who Bozdech killed.
Sadly, for a book which was readable for Miya-aged children, I felt the book glorified war a little too much, with heroic goodies and impersonal baddies. I think a better book would have been one that worked a little harder to emphasise the tragedy of war and acknowledge the shared humanity with those who happened to have been born on the other side of the border and consequently were drafted to fly the opposition aircraft.
This time it was the other way around.
Lately, Mulan and Miya have got interested in fighter planes -- especially those of the First and Second World Wars, and they have been getting fighter plane books out of the library.
One book they learnt about was Damien Lewis' The Dog Who Could Fly, a true story about a dog who flew bombing runs during the Second World War. After they finished it the girls passed the book on to me and said I had to read it. So I did.
It was an excellent choice.
Lewis wrote a direct, easily readable, child-friendly account of Robert Bozdech, a Czech airman who escaped via France to Britain during the war. Flying for the French Air Force, Bozdech was shot down in no man's land, where he found a puppy in an abandoned farmhouse. He tucked the puppy inside his jacket and crawled to safety. From that time on Bozdech and Antis the German shepherd were inseparable. When Germany overran France, they escaped to Britain, where Bozdech again flew bombing raids against Germany.
For many of the bombing runs, Antis flew with Bozdech, usually sleeping calmly at his feet. A dog-sized oxygen mask was made for Antis, for when the unpressurised planes flew at higher altitudes.
Antis was injured on several occasions, but survived the war as beloved camp mascot and hero wardog.
It is a beautiful story of mutual loyalty between man and dog, and I highly recommend it.
My only complaint is that the narrative is a little too one-sided patriotic. We can surely all agree that Second World War German command was evil and the German population was far too compliant in following and actioning the evil. Nonetheless, the German people were still real people with real feelings. They were not mere objects to be blown up and eliminated. Too often, Bozdech came across as too single-minded in his determination to take revenge and kill as many German people as he could. In keeping the storytelling simple, Lewis' writing style created a simplistic narrative which dehumanised the many people who Bozdech killed.
Sadly, for a book which was readable for Miya-aged children, I felt the book glorified war a little too much, with heroic goodies and impersonal baddies. I think a better book would have been one that worked a little harder to emphasise the tragedy of war and acknowledge the shared humanity with those who happened to have been born on the other side of the border and consequently were drafted to fly the opposition aircraft.
Friday, 22 November 2019
Book review: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
I'd had Muriel Spark's The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie sitting in my bookshelf for a few years, after picking it up cheap at a book fair. I'd heard of it as a worthy story, and thought it might be similar to the excellent movie Dead Poets Society (which the girls and I watched a few weeks ago).
Sad to say, Jean Brodie was a disappointment. I wouldn't recommend it. (Although I read that it is listed on the BBCs 100 most influential novels, for class and society.)
The story is set in a girls school in 1930s Edinburgh. Just like Dead Poets, it's about an influential teacher (Miss Jean Brodie) whose personality inspires a small group of students to stand out and be different from the rest of the conservative school.
But unlike Robin Williams' character in Dead Poets, Miss Brodie is, at least in my opinion, right from the outset unappealing in pretty much every way. She's an unprofessional bad teacher with wrong and ignorant ideas who arrogantly thinks she is right. Her teaching colleagues mostly don't think much of her, and it seems that it's only a small (but strong) group of her students who are inspired by her to the extent that they are known throughout the school as the "Brodie set." Presumably, her dozens of other students didn't find her inspiring.
Having an unlikable main character makes it hard, but not impossible, to be drawn into a story. If the characters are psychologically deep and interesting, then a character-based story can still be engrossing. But in the case of Jean Brodie, all the characters were presented superficially, as stereotypes with one-line descriptions, and throughout the story never rose much above that.
The back cover of the book informs us that "for comic observation and spicy dialogue it is impossible to outclass Muriel Spark." I disagree. Unless the comic observation was intended as bone dry and intensely self-depreciating, what social observations I saw were superficial. As for the spicy dialogue, as far as I could see this mostly amounted to attention-grabbing out-of-place immature sexual references. It was as if the author was trying to grab the reader's attention with light smuttiness.
The plot of the story jumped around oddly, with tension dissolved too early when it deserved to be built. What I thought to be the two big mysteries of the story -- who betrayed Miss Jean Brodie and why Rose was famous for sex -- were explained early and cheaply.
At 128 pages it's a short story, and easy to read in a few hours. So at least time-wise it's not a big investment in reading. But I won't bother keeping our copy, and I won't bother offering it to Mulan to read.
Sad to say, Jean Brodie was a disappointment. I wouldn't recommend it. (Although I read that it is listed on the BBCs 100 most influential novels, for class and society.)
The story is set in a girls school in 1930s Edinburgh. Just like Dead Poets, it's about an influential teacher (Miss Jean Brodie) whose personality inspires a small group of students to stand out and be different from the rest of the conservative school.
But unlike Robin Williams' character in Dead Poets, Miss Brodie is, at least in my opinion, right from the outset unappealing in pretty much every way. She's an unprofessional bad teacher with wrong and ignorant ideas who arrogantly thinks she is right. Her teaching colleagues mostly don't think much of her, and it seems that it's only a small (but strong) group of her students who are inspired by her to the extent that they are known throughout the school as the "Brodie set." Presumably, her dozens of other students didn't find her inspiring.
Having an unlikable main character makes it hard, but not impossible, to be drawn into a story. If the characters are psychologically deep and interesting, then a character-based story can still be engrossing. But in the case of Jean Brodie, all the characters were presented superficially, as stereotypes with one-line descriptions, and throughout the story never rose much above that.
The back cover of the book informs us that "for comic observation and spicy dialogue it is impossible to outclass Muriel Spark." I disagree. Unless the comic observation was intended as bone dry and intensely self-depreciating, what social observations I saw were superficial. As for the spicy dialogue, as far as I could see this mostly amounted to attention-grabbing out-of-place immature sexual references. It was as if the author was trying to grab the reader's attention with light smuttiness.
The plot of the story jumped around oddly, with tension dissolved too early when it deserved to be built. What I thought to be the two big mysteries of the story -- who betrayed Miss Jean Brodie and why Rose was famous for sex -- were explained early and cheaply.
At 128 pages it's a short story, and easy to read in a few hours. So at least time-wise it's not a big investment in reading. But I won't bother keeping our copy, and I won't bother offering it to Mulan to read.
Thursday, 14 November 2019
Ballet exams
I've been super-busy lately, and haven't had time to online-congratulate Mulan and Miya for their awesome ballet exam results.
So, Mulan and Miya both sat their RAD ballet exams last term. Results have been dribbling back. Mulan did Intermediate Foundation, and got a high Merit pass (almost Distinction). Miya did Grade 3 and got a solid Merit pass.
They also did their Contemporary dance exams, and both passed with Honours.
It's ballet show season now; they're busily preparing for their show on 7th and 8th of December. This year they are doing Coppelia.
(I wrote about their last year's exams here.)
So, Mulan and Miya both sat their RAD ballet exams last term. Results have been dribbling back. Mulan did Intermediate Foundation, and got a high Merit pass (almost Distinction). Miya did Grade 3 and got a solid Merit pass.
They also did their Contemporary dance exams, and both passed with Honours.
It's ballet show season now; they're busily preparing for their show on 7th and 8th of December. This year they are doing Coppelia.
(I wrote about their last year's exams here.)
Sunday, 13 October 2019
Mulan, swim teacher
School holidays are almost at an end. (Even though we homeschool, most of our activities follow the school term.)
During the first week of the holidays, Mulan was up early each weekday morning to catch the bus to work. (I didn't go with her, thinking it better for her to do it herself.)
We'd arranged with our swim teacher, Jean from Swim Lovers' Swim School, for Mulan to start learning how to teach swimming. So, Mulan was in the pool from 9 am to 11:45 am each day, observing alongside Jean and helping out.
It's early days yet, and Mulan still has several steps to take before she is independently teaching in the pool, but it was a great first time and we'll probably gradually ease into this over the next few years.
The thought is that eventually Mulan will be able to teach the preschoolers during the day in term-time. And since Mulan is fluent in Mandarin Chinese, Jean is keen to expand the business and have some swim classes taught in Chinese.
The main thing for Mulan to work on now is her communication. Or to put this more precisely, at home Mulan is very good at communicating, loudly and dominantly. But when she is out with others she is often very quiet. (I was/am exactly like this, too.)
To be a successful teacher Mulan has got to get into the habit of thinking of teaching as a form of acting, where she presents herself to her students in a way that is not entirely her natural personality. She has got to verbalise more, as well as smile and show excitement on her face. (Internally she is enjoying herself, but sometimes she doesn't show it.) This takes time, and it's a bit scary for those of us who are not naturally this way. But I'm sure she will get there in the end.
In addition to the swim teaching, Mulan is also continuing to teach Mandarin Chinese here in our home to paying students. For a few of Mama's preschool students, both Mulan and Miya work in our classroom as paid assistants. Again, they are both gradually learning the teaching business and are steadily taking over leading the activities in the classroom, as well as lesson-planning beforehand.
Who knows if Mulan will become a professional teacher, but learning to teach now is all good. It is a great skill to have, and is part of our homeschooler "socialisation" (!!).
(Miya also went with Mulan each day to the pool. She had a 45 min lesson, and while out of the pool she had fun entertaining Jean's new dog.)
During the first week of the holidays, Mulan was up early each weekday morning to catch the bus to work. (I didn't go with her, thinking it better for her to do it herself.)
We'd arranged with our swim teacher, Jean from Swim Lovers' Swim School, for Mulan to start learning how to teach swimming. So, Mulan was in the pool from 9 am to 11:45 am each day, observing alongside Jean and helping out.
It's early days yet, and Mulan still has several steps to take before she is independently teaching in the pool, but it was a great first time and we'll probably gradually ease into this over the next few years.
The thought is that eventually Mulan will be able to teach the preschoolers during the day in term-time. And since Mulan is fluent in Mandarin Chinese, Jean is keen to expand the business and have some swim classes taught in Chinese.
The main thing for Mulan to work on now is her communication. Or to put this more precisely, at home Mulan is very good at communicating, loudly and dominantly. But when she is out with others she is often very quiet. (I was/am exactly like this, too.)
To be a successful teacher Mulan has got to get into the habit of thinking of teaching as a form of acting, where she presents herself to her students in a way that is not entirely her natural personality. She has got to verbalise more, as well as smile and show excitement on her face. (Internally she is enjoying herself, but sometimes she doesn't show it.) This takes time, and it's a bit scary for those of us who are not naturally this way. But I'm sure she will get there in the end.
In addition to the swim teaching, Mulan is also continuing to teach Mandarin Chinese here in our home to paying students. For a few of Mama's preschool students, both Mulan and Miya work in our classroom as paid assistants. Again, they are both gradually learning the teaching business and are steadily taking over leading the activities in the classroom, as well as lesson-planning beforehand.
Who knows if Mulan will become a professional teacher, but learning to teach now is all good. It is a great skill to have, and is part of our homeschooler "socialisation" (!!).
(Miya also went with Mulan each day to the pool. She had a 45 min lesson, and while out of the pool she had fun entertaining Jean's new dog.)
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