Magazine 2020

73 2020 | Edition No. 23 | SECONDARY Sylvia Steyn Principal The 400m run in the Secondary Faculty Most people will agree that the 400m event can be one of the most chal- lenging events to race in track and field. The track athlete has to have a great combination of power, accel- eration, speed, and long speed endur- ance in order to be successful in this event. The race is divided into four parts, very much like this year has been for us in the Secondary Faculty: Quick out of the blocks for the first 100m (January - March), Cruise Con- trol over lockdown (April and May), Building back form to 100% with the start of face-to-face teaching (June - September) and finally All out! to the finishing line (October - December) QUICK OUT OF THE BLOCKS The importance of the 400m start cannot be underestimated. It has to be a strong and fast start to set you up for success in the race. Although we had no idea how this race would turn out at the start of 2020, in retrospect we are happy and proud that a great start set us up for surviving the most unpredictable time of our lives. The year started on a high note with the 2019 mat- ric results. Parklands College was announced to be the top achieving school in Metro North and was invit- ed to the NSC Awards as one of the Top 20 schools in theWestern Cape. When everyone set out for our an - nual grade camps in January, it creat- ed the opportunity for forging strong relationships. New learners got to know the rest of the group and staff accompanying the learners could get to know the learners they were going to teach in an informal environment. Our sports programme kicked off in high performance mode, as our First Cricket Team and Senior Girls Hockey Team put in additional train - ing time in preparation for their highly anticipated tour to India. Sadly, the tour had to be cancelled, but the camaraderie which developed between the players lasted through- out the year. Our excellent sports programme in the Preparatory Fac- ulty meant that the Grade 7s arrived, already highly skilled in the summer sports, resulting in our Girls Wa - terpolo team remaining unbeaten throughout the season! The cricket, softball and tennis teams played nu- merous matches and we even started with pre-season rugby and netball practices before the big halt.The un - disputable highlight of the first quar - ter was the long awaited opening of the Innovation Centre. The reaction of all learners, staff and parents when first walking into Grand Central was a sight to behold! When we started lessons and collaborative projects, Reference:“HowTo Run The 400m” by Track Star USA (trackstarusa.com )