MAGS Blog!

To our wonderful music teachers we hope you rest in peace with the angels <3

Exams are fast approaching, looming ominously over the free time of all and every student here at MAGS. We all have a simple choice. To study or not to study. It all begins weeks before the dreaded event with a simple thought, "Oh, it can wait.", "it doesn't really matter anyway", "I'll just do this one thing first". Sounds familiar? Then the loathsome monster crawls ever closer and closer, day by day. Its best friend is procrastination, defined by the Oxford dictionary as the action of delaying or postponing something. In this case; study. And then the big day arrives, faster then you expected it and catches you off guard as you stumble through a mess of  the forgotten details and misconceptions that makes up the entirety of your knowledge of the topic. That is to say, that your exam does not go well and you probably failed. As you leave the exam room you ask yourself "Now why didn't I study earlier?" We all know this feeling and n...

Hello! It is that time again the time when young teenagers are pressured to make choices about things that won't even be happening for THREE more years! Yes. that's right. I have to choose subjects that will take me all the way through to university. A university that I may or may not be attending in 2 or 3 years. That is a very big weight on my shoulders - a big weight on all our young shoulders! Personally I have chosen, Design for Print Music English ( Enriched ) Maths ( 11MT1) Chemistry ( Enriched ) Biology ( Enriched ) Just to be clear: I DID NOT choose any of theses subjects because of my FRIENDS. If you are worried about variables like that, then you should just eat some concrete and toughen up. You are bound to know someone in your new class or there will be someone else in your new option class with no friends, AND then you can make a new friend and BAM a whole new group of friends. Remember a stranger is just a friend you haven't met yet... but don...

TV 10. Doctor Who - 7.30PM Sunday's - This show has already aired a bit, but if you want to jump on to this series, this is the best season to start in the middle of as all but two episodes of the show are single story, one-shots. This series has been my all time favorite shows since I was four years old, all around this has been a great show 50+ years in the running (well, not really since it was canceled for 16 years before 2005) falling on a few rough patch's as anything does during the sixth (Colin Baker), seventh (Sylvester McCoy) and eleventh Doctor's (Matt Smith, yes, Matt Smith... that series 6 was appallingly bad) run, but it has picked itself up in stride this season with a great new Doctor (Peter Capaldi) and a great new companion - Danny Pink. This is on of the best sci-fi shows of all time and you have to watch it a least once in your life. It is a mix of horror, sci-fi, comedy, adventure and historical fiction and a 88 percent great show. 9. Arrow - ...

10. 1984 By George Orwell If you hated Animal Farm then this is the book for you, a book by George Orwell that is actually interesting and fresh. This book feels modern and so much different from Animal Farm and is also interesting story-wise.  9 . Batman The Long Halloween By Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale It's nearly Halloween so... why not a delightful story about a serial killer starring Batman? The art is amazing and very different from other styles. The mystery is intriguing and the final chapters are amazing as the the story comes to the conclusion. 8. Mockingjay (The Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins I have never been a fan of the Hunger games but the final movie is coming soon so it might be good to catch up on the series to be ready for the movie, which does actually look pretty awesome. 7. Guardians of the Galaxy (Series) By Brian Michael Bendis and Multiple Artists The movie was the biggest movie of this year and probably one of the best of it as well. ...

Holiday Posts    Do not fear! The MAGS blogging team will be putting up new posts over the holidays. School may be closed but the blog will never die!     Vive le blog! (Long live the blog)

Here at MAGS we have a thriving writers club that meets every Thursday after school with our fantabulous teacher Mrs Cutfield. Each week we are presented with yet another devious task of which to test our writing prowess (or lack of). This week we had to describe a place we know well but change its atmosphere i.e. how it feels to be there, through changing the weather and the use of an extended metaphor. Hilarious antics ensured. Who knows what we will do next week? Links to read the writing of students (both in the club and throughout school) Website run by the English Leaders containing writing of a whole range of students: Wattpad of year 13 student Gina Holden: http://www.wattpad.com/user/Wolfwhistle Other links to be added later.

Twice a week for the past five weeks, a number of students have been turning up to have some training to earn themselves a babysitting certificate with Plunket. Throughout this course, they have been learning many skills including how to keep children safe in the house. Thursday, a week ago and tuesday this week some preschool aged children visited our school where MAGS students got to try out some of their new skills and have a bit of fun playing with the children. Quite a few nappies were changed, bubbles were blown, balloons were tossed – each participant had to create a BABYSITTING kit which they then tried out during the practical session. Plunket certificates will be ready for those who managed to complete the course within the next two weeks. Ms Todd is very pleased to announce that there will be a THIRD babysitting course later on during Term 4 to cater for the seniors and also any juniors who were unable to attend  Special thanks to Julie Arrowsmith who was the Pl...

Recently I attended the MAGS fine arts show 2014, these are some of my personally favorites. I think some of these names are wrong so if you know please leave a comment below. Georgia on my Mind Nandini Bagraniya The Joker by Shivani Karan Dotts of Life by Brooke Nihill Noir Cowboy by Ashlee Ridgway-Keena Taniwha by Aisha Bobby Miracle Maka Life and Death Liya Kesete Depth by Toby James Ploeg Jetty Oh So Tired by Shirley Cresswell. It's wheely good Shelter from the Storm by Barry Ross-Smith In Retreat by Dean Proudfoot Red Calf Mt. Eden by Russell Jackson Some Velvet Morning - Pink by Anita Glucina My absolute favorite -- Sun-shower in Mt Eden by Claudia Slaney Wings and Men by Lorene Taurerewa Badger with Purple Grapes by Haser Squirrel with Nut by Haser Weasel with Grapes - Yellow by Haser Weasel with Grapes - Pink by Haser Sexy Kitty by Haser Hedgehog with Apple by Haser Goo...

Today Has been a day full of blue and yellow and school pride! Coming to school felt a bit weird this morning though, armed with a school bag and casual clothes when we usually only wear uniform. There were quite a few onesies, and the odd costume wandering around the school. It was all for fundraising for Cancer society and the theme was blue and yellow which are the school colours. #MAGSpride The school in mufti in A-block quad. People posing for the camera

"IT'S ALL GREEK TO ME" See Europe on a shoe string with the MAGS' Classics trip 34 Mount Albert Grammar Students are eagerly looking forward to the end of the term. Just as school is finishing for the majority of our students, these lucky 34 will be checking in for an exciting two weeks in Greece and Italy. This will be the fifth time that Mr Cave has taken a group of Classical Studies students on a two-week tour to see in person many of the things which they study in class. In addition they will experience a little of Greek and Italian culture, experience new taste delights and perhaps come home with some souvenirs of their time away. The flight to Athens takes about 24 hours and we arrive on the Saturday afternoon. We spend three nights in Athens visiting many of the ancient sites and museums – the Acropolis, the ancient theatre, and the agora which was the centre of democratic life. Then we travel to Delphi which was the home of the god Apollo, to Olympi...