Trash2Fashion

How to draw a realistic eye

Measurement Activities Monday 31st March

We all want more space on a plane right?!

Who'd have guessed? The airline bean-counters are working out that their biggest money-spinner isn't first class with its showers and private bathrooms or business class with its lie-flat beds, which has led to the abolition of first class for many of them because it is so lavish.

No, in an industry where "yield" is measured in square centimetres, the airline accountants are in a lather about premium economy class.

If you're over 30 years of age, you may remember seeing it on your first trip on a plane with your parents. In the 1980s, it was that quiet little space at the front of the plane they called business class: 38 to 40 inches (96 centimetres to 102 cms) forward space between seat rows and a slightly wider seat and better meals.

"Premium economy is kind of the new business class," Kent Craver, a Boeing direct of cabin experience and revenue analysis at Boeing, told the Wall Street Journal last week.

That's because it is virtually identical to the business class of the 1980s and 1990s in both comfort and price pitched at twice to four times the best discount economy fare compared to up seven times the best discount economy rate for today's business class.

The fact that there is now such a price chasm between the premium passenger experience and the increasingly squeezed and torturous cattle class down the back was destined to cause more creaking in the airline revenue model as the flying business searches for elusive profits.

One of the biggest holdouts against premium economy as an affordable compromise between a bed and a sardine seat finally folded last week when Euro giant Lufthansa decided it was going to finally bite the bullet.

Like Qantas before it, Lufthansa was worried that premium economy would simply cannibalise its business class market.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the latest was Lufthansa's third internal attempt to justify a premium economy class after twice previously concluding that it would simply encourage its existing business class customers to spend less on the cheaper option.

The Wall Street Journal reports that, only after Lufthansa in 2012 began upgrading its business class to lie-flat beds from almost-flat ones was it confident of not cannibalising its own premium traffic.

"You ask yourself: isn't there a down-sell risk?" says Lufthansa's chief commercial officer Jens Bischof. "I see the upsell potential as significantly higher."

Lufthansa premium economy (96 cms per seat row) will be installed between October this year and the northern summer of 2015. An estimated 10 per cent of Lufthansa's long-haul seats will be premium economy.

It's strictly a mathematical equation: Lufthansa's new premium economy seats occupy 50 per cent more floorspace than standard economy, but can be sold for multiples more. Even allowing for the value-added perks like china meal service, amenity kit and an extra checked bag, the airline is way in front.

"It will be a very profitable product," says Bischof.

Who could forget Qantas's decade-long equivocation about what traditional airline people regarded as a radical departure from the set-in-stone rules of airline passenger class division?

As airlineratings.com publisher Geoff Thomas reminded us recently, Qantas chief executive James Strong was adamant in 1997 that he "couldn't make a case for" premium economy.

It wasn't until after Qantas's then-partner British Airways had made a smash hit of premium economy that Qantas CEO Geoff Dixon finally gave the green light in 2008, not long before he left the airline and Alan Joyce took over.

Premium economy is well-entrenched in our part of the world, with Qantas, Virgin Australia and Air New Zealand among the true believers.

But significantly Singapore Airlines is holding out, as are the three big Gulf carriers, Emirates, Etihad and Qatar, and the US carriers flying to Australia, United and Delta, although a number of US carriers offer varying standards of premium economy domestically.

Do you consider premium economy value for money? Have you used it in your recent travels? What was your verdict? 

Student Leader Voting

Hi team,

Please follow the link to vote for this year Balmoral Student Leaders.

https://docs.google.com/a/balmoral.school.nz/forms/d/1XBkeMiB_tEKcEu71Oifw5KXeJ94cmKlNQkDXGVJ6ZSc/viewform

The power is in your hands!

Face Painting Attack

Students From Lifou, New Caledonia visit Balmoral!!

This morning we welcomed 3 teachers and 11 students from Laura Boula School in Lifou, New Caledonia to Balmoral. Even though the weather wasn't playing nice, our school band performed and we received some gifts from our new friends. I am sure they will have a great time visiting Balmoral and New Zealand.

So, what is the importance of cultural exchanges between schools? Write a comment and share your thoughts!

R Rates Movies And Songs With Inappropriate Content.... What's The Big Deal??!!

Hi Team,

So what is the big deal? We are gonna be old enough to watch and listen to them eventually so why does it matter when.... Censorship.
Often in the media you hear about people who behave in a certain way based on what they see at the movies or on TV and what they hear through lyrics of songs. Mainly it is a result of excessive violence and bad language. But if it doesn't affect you does it matter how it affects others?

Post a thoughtful comment about your views on this issue. If you don't care too much and think you're cool for doing these things all the time that is fine but think about the bigger picture...

Mayor Len Brown visits Balmoral

This week we were lucky to have Len Brown visit our school to talk about the "Tick For Kids" campaign. He spoke to us about kids being a very important part of society. After he spoke he met with a small group to discuss issues that affect kids living in Central Auckland. 

Post a comment about the visit or leave a question that you may have had for Len or a concern about Auckland City. The photo above is of Seamus and Len having a stare off:-)

Ch..Ch..Ch..Ch..Ch..Chopper Challenge!!!

Hi team,

It's nearly time for the Chopper Challenge and so you all need to get online and register!
Click on the link below to register and have a good look around the website. Remember this is one of our charities for the year and also a great way to get fit!
http://support.arht.org.nz/bal-pri  

A WRINKLE IN TIME

Madeleine L'Engle

Summary

A Wrinkle in Time is the story of Meg Murry, a high-school-aged girl who is transported on an adventure through time and space with her younger brother Charles Wallace and her friend Calvin O'Keefe to rescue her father, a gifted scientist, from the evil forces that hold him prisoner on another planet. At the beginning of the book, Meg is a homely, awkward, but loving girl, troubled by personal insecurities and her concern for her father, who has been missing for over a year. The plot begins with the arrival of Mrs. Whatsit at the Murry house on a dark and stormy evening. Although she looks like an eccentric tramp, she is actually a celestial creature with the ability to read Meg's thoughts. She startles Meg's mother by reassuring her of the existence of a tesseract--a sort of "wrinkle" in space and time. It is through this wrinkle that Meg and her companions will travel through the fifth dimension in search of Mr. Murry.

On the afternoon following Mrs. Whatsit's visit, Meg and Charles Wallace walk over to Mrs. Whatsit's cabin. On the way, they meet Calvin O'Keefe, a popular boy in Meg's school whom Charles considers a kindred spirit. The three children learn from Mrs. Whatsit and her friends Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which that the universe is threatened by a great evil called the Dark Thing and taking the form of a giant cloud, engulfing the stars around it. Several planets have already succumbed to this evil force, including Camazotz, the planet on which Mr. Murry is imprisoned.

The three Mrs. W's transport the children to Camazotz and instruct them to remain always in each other's company while on their quest for Mr. Murry. On Camazotz, all objects and places appear exactly alike because the whole planet must conform to the terrifying rhythmic pulsation of IT, a giant disembodied brain. Charles Wallace tries to fight IT with his exceptional intelligence but is overpowered by the evil and becomes a robot-like creature mouthing the words with which IT infuses him. Under the control of IT, Charles leads Meg and Calvin to Mr. Murry and together they confront IT. However, they, too, are unable to withstand IT's power; they escape only at the last minute, when Mr. Murry appears and seizes Meg and Calvin, "tessering" away with them (traveling via another tesseract) to a gray planet called Ixchel inhabited by tall, furry beasts who care for the travelers. Charles Wallace remains possessed by IT, a prisoner of Camazotz.

On Planet Ixchel the three Mrs. W's appear once again, and Meg realizes that she must travel alone back to Camazotz to rescue her brother. Mrs. Which tells her that she has one thing that IT does not have, and this will be her weapon against the evil. However, Meg must discover this weapon for herself. When standing in the presence of IT, Meg realizes what this is: her ability to love. Thus, by concentrating on her love for Charles Wallace, she is able to restore him to his true identity. Meg releases Charles from IT's clutches and tessers with him through time and space, landing in her twin brothers' vegetable garden on Earth, where her father and Calvin stand waiting. The family joyously reunites, and the Mrs. W's visit the happy scene en route to further travels.

Shinano Junior High School at Balmoral - 2013

Hi team,

So we have just had another group of students visit our school from our sister school Shinano Junior High School in Seto, Japan.

Although it was a very brief visit, we had the chance to interact with students from a very different culture and also give them an insight into the "Balmoral Way" and our Kiwi way of life.

What do you think are some of the differences between Japanese schools and New Zealand Schools?

Leave a comment:-)