Jazz Band - GUITAR

JACOB PRITCHARD ON GUITAR FOR THE JAZZ BAND

Blokes night

Blokes night was a successful night with over 200 blokes and boys attending. The All Blacks did their part by giving us a great game to watch. It was quite stiring hearing the boys and men sing the national anthem. The Blokes consisted of dads, uncles, brothers, grandads and family friends. The naming of blokes night wasn't just a whim. I thought long and hard about it because I wanted the night to be a time when boys could identify with a significant male in their lives. Originally I had thought of calling it "Lads and Dads" but immediately I saw the problem with this; not all boys have dads immediately available to them. The idea for Blokes Night came after a conversation with Celia Lashlie who suggested that rights of passage such as this are important for boys in their progress towards manhood. I'm currently reading Maggie Hamilton's book, "What's happening to our boys?" (2010) she devotes a chapter to exactly this type of event called "Young boys in need of good blokes". In this she explores a lot of what I believe is good practice for our boys. Things like the importance of one on one dad time. Making sure that boys have access to good male role models. Encourage boys to enjoy the excitement of boyhood, but also provide the wisdom of approaching manhood.

Lessons on Life from Nelson Mandela

 Over Queens Birthday weekend I read a book called Mandela's way: Lessons on life
I then went through and pulled out the pieces of advice I found thought provoking. These are some of them:

The rarest thing in the world is to come out as a truly mature man.

Courage is not the absence of fear. In fact absence of fear is not to care about consequences. Fear is the day to day facing of ones frailties.

Pretend to be brave and very soon you become brave.

Control, self control, is the mastery of self. Taking measured steps. Self Discipline, and the ability to remain calm. Don’t hurry; think analyze, then act.

His view is that leaders must know when to be seen leading from the front. Sometimes admitting you were wrong when no one else knew you were wrong is the right thing to do.


Leadership at its most basic is making sure people are heading in the right direction-usually by changing their direction or their thinking.

Ubuntu, the ideal that people are empowered by other people, that we become our best selves through unselfish interaction with others.

The greater wisdom of the group compared to the individual, always achieves better results.

Look the part. To be a true leader you have to first look like one. Wear the right clothes be meticulous with what you wear. Stand up straight and command with your presence.

You only have one chance to make a first impression.

One cannot be completely open about ones emotions. Yes, emotions may be authentic and this a modern virtue but one can be authentic without fully showing all emotions.



Have a core principal; Every one has equal rights, regardless of race, class or gender. Pretty much everything else is a tactic. Be prepared to change and adapt as long as it is heading towards that principal.

Seeing the good in people will encourage the good to come out in people.

He assumes other people have integrity and honour and because of this it attracts people with integrity and honour. It can however lead to being taken for granted or a ride.

Know your enemy. Research thoroughly your closest rivals and keep them close to you.

A young man could not decide who he should marry so travelled the world and on return to his village saw the girl; who had grown up in the next hut. “That will be my wife.”
Did he know this because he matured and realised because of his travels that this was the right women for him? Or was he stupid and naïve not to see the beauty living right beside him? Both thing are correct. In life their can often be two truths that seem somewhat opposing but it doesn’t mean they are not both correct or achieve a similar end. Cultivate a custom to think of both or even several sides to a problem. Often leaders think they have to be strong and say yes or no when “Maybe” is the correct answer.

Saying no is something that must be done and when it is better to say it early. Always ask yourself am I putting this off for the right reasons or because I don’t want to have to face the truth.

Think long term. Have a long term vision and continue to aim for it.

Find your own garden a place that brings peace to your soul. (He was given a place for a garden while in prison) For me this is the beach.

Meet my needs first!

In an informal study in Newsweek (Tyre, Scelfo, & Kantrowitz, 2004) found that children expect to nag parents nine times before getting what they want. In today’s culture boys expect to get what they want when they want it. They do not intend to wait. They come first.

Many schools unknowingly aid this assumption by giving out rewards for dubious efforts because it is that boys turn to get something. This “everyone must feel good about themselves” attitude is exactly what these children don’t need! They get everything at a push of a button, Ipod’s, PSP’s, DVD’s. When boys realise that effort grades are just not given out that they have to earn them there are a fair number who think this is unfair. Who are you as my teacher to expect me to have to put in any effort? Why do you think you should be able to keep me accountable when my parents have never tried?

The boys at Huntley very quickly learn that they don’t always get what they want. They learn to appreciate that some things are worth trying for. They realise that Mum and Dad aren’t always going to be there to make excuses for them, so they face up to their shortcomings and move on. It is very rare for parents not to back the school in this way. Parents that make excuses for their son’s behaviours all the time are generally the reason their son is in the trouble he’s in. In my time as Headmaster, I know of one parent who didn’t believe us when we suspected their son had stolen something. “My son would never do that!” If we had the back up of that parent at the time he may not be now attending his third high school.

Jacob is an example of boy who responds to authentic praise!

At Huntley when boys get praise it is authentic. It means something to him because he knows we don’t just hand out awards to every boy. As I write this I have just had five boys from Mr McAlley's room sent to me for their outstanding effort in the recent examinations. They weren't the top of the class but they all realised that for their ability they had out performed their own expectations. How exciting is that for a boy! This is how you build true self esteem. Don’t get me wrong I am all for praise and guidance. I believe in the inherent good in every boy and work hard to make sure that the boy knows exactly what I think his strengths are. He also understands what his weaknesses are and what I feel he can do to improve. I was horrified a number of years ago when I heard a staff member say I can’t stand that boy. I took that staff member aside and explained that the boy was 10 and had problems. He had social problems but he would never get better if that staff member wrote him off. In other words they had to be the bigger person. As a consequence that boy went on to succeed and I was delighted that he was made a prefect in his last year of secondary school. It was one of the nicest letters of congratulations I have ever had to write. A learning healthy school uses discipline as a learning process rather than a system of retribution. If a staff member really wants to earn the respect of the boys they must be unwaveringly fair and consistent. Boys have a righteous sense of fairness, some of it misguided, but there just the same. A staff member or parent who takes the time to explain what the boy did wrong is a long way down the road to earning that boys respect.

I guess the purpose of this written piece is to emphasise to parents, boys and staff that it doesn’t hurt anyone of us to see the best in all of us. We all make mistakes and this is where real learning takes place. If we live by values, like the Huntley Values: Tolerance, Responsibility, Kindness, Enthusiasm, Service, Respect, Honesty and G.D.P then we can truly “Prepare boys for the adventure of life.”