Kia ora te whanau o te kotuku,

For all of our sports teams or groups who will wear the Kotuku on their chest, there is a responsibility to respect your teammates, the opposition, the referee, and the spectators. You may not always get the same in return but at Rutherford, we don’t compare ourselves to the best that others can be only the best that we can be.

So what’s expected? Your must-do responsibilities are to be on time all the time, which means being five minutes early. Have the right gear; pack your kit the day before with everything you will need. Know what your roles and responsibilities are within the team. Understand that if you do your role in the team well and are encouraging to your teammates, the chance of the team being happy and therefore of functioning at the level of success you are capable of immediately rises. The harder you work and train and look to improve on things that you are not good at yet progress happens.

I have had a poster for 30 years in my garage and it’s very dog-eared, it’s of a US athlete running, and the caption states ‘if I cannot win then I make the one ahead of me break the record’. Effectively we compete with ourselves to strive for and deliver our personal best performance – look to be better today than you were yesterday. At Rutherford, we understand that’s what winning really is. That’s kairangi and striving for personal excellence. Nothing can take the place for creating successful teams over good culture, where the team or group is always put ahead of the egos of the individuals. At Rutherford, we understand that this means that we protect the nest and we bleed for the bird.

WINNERS AND LOSERS

The winner is always part of the answer
The loser is always part of the problem

The winner always has a programme
The loser always has an excuse

The winner says let me do it for you
The loser says that’s not my job.

The winner sees an answer for every problem.
The loser sees a problem for any answer.

The winner says it may be difficult but it is possible.
The loser says it may be possible but it’s too difficult.
The loser says you can’t lose a race you never enter.

The winner says I’ll try my best every time

“No one ever built a castle or cathedral by waving a wand and hoping it would just appear. Instead, magnificent castles and cathedrals were built one stone at a time. In the same way, we can build a solid structure of learning by taking positive little steps in the right direction each and every day.

Pursuit of personal excellence in academia, sport, culture, and the arts as well as just being a good and contributing member of society is based on above-the-line thinking and can be as simple as adopting the winner’s attitude. It doesn’t mean we are winning all the time but we will be taking those little steps in the right direction.

Nga mihi nui
Gary Moore

Assessment Calendar – Term 2, Week 3
due Monday, 17 May
13 History AS91437
13 Media Studies AS91494
13 Statistics AS91581 

due Friday 21 May
12 Classical Studies AS91240
12 Dance AS91206
12 Drama AS91218
13 Classical Studies AS91397
13 Dance AS01590
13 Drama AS91517