|
WHAKATANE HIGH SCHOOL NEWSLETTER
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
Titiro atu ki runga o Te Rae ō Kohi ki te tihi o tō tātau maunga, he maunga pupuri kōrero rere tika iho ki tō tātau kura o Te Mānuka Tūtahi, te puna o te mātauranga mō ā tātau tamariki, mokopuna, nei rā te mihi nui atu ki a koutou katoa.
|
Congratulations and thank you to all of our students, staff, and whānau who represented and supported our school at sporting events across the North Island during National Tournament Week. It was great to see our athletes wearing our colours with pride on the national stage and competing hard together. A special mention goes to our Rugby 10-a-side team, who took out the competition in Napier, finishing off a very successful season in style!
|
With Winter sport now finished, a big mihi once again to all of our coaches, managers, and supporters for all you have done to support our students this season.
|
The final three weeks of term are always busy, with assessments being a major focus across the school.
|
This week, a number of our ākonga sat CAA exams for Literacy and Numeracy. For students who were unable to attend earlier in the week, a catch-up session will be available tomorrow.
|
In addition, Virtual Learning Network (VLN) exams were held this week for students completing subjects remotely through online classes.
|
|
We hope all of our students felt confident and that their hard work pays off.
|
CAA results are released on the following dates:
|
-
-
|
October 27th: Writing, Numeracy, Te Reo Matatini
|
|
Senior students will be on study leave for school exams from September 15th through September 23rd. They will return to school for the final two days of term on September 24th and 25th.
|
During study leave, senior students are not required to be at school unless they have an exam or a pre-arranged tutorial with a teacher.
|
-
|
A schedule of available tutorials running throughout the week can be found here
|
- The exam timetable can be found here
-
|
All students coming to school for exams or tutorials must be in full school uniform.
|
We wish all of our students the very best for these important assessments and encourage them to make good use of their study time to prepare as best as they can.
|
|
Teacher Only Day: November 13th
|
Please note that school will be closed for students on Friday, November 13th for a Teacher Only Day. This dedicated time will allow our teaching staff to begin planning for Phase 4 of the new curriculum, which will be implemented across all Year 9 and 10 subjects starting in 2027.
|
Over the next two weeks, our Year 11 and 12 students will be participating in Noho Marae at Rewatu Marae. Now in its tenth year, this programme has been a real success in supporting student achievement and strengthening our ties with our local Marae, Hapū, and Iwi. At the conclusion of their stays, our students and staff look forward to presenting four hand-built bus shelters to the local community.
|
A big thank you to our senior student leaders for recently running a Hauora Expo for our junior students. The focus on seniors leading juniors in activities to support wellbeing had a powerful impact. We are also very grateful to Te Puna Ora o Mataatua for the mentorship they provided to our student leaders throughout this kaupapa.
|
The final day of term is September 25th, and we look forward to wrapping up the term with our annual School Cross Country. It’s not too late to start training and everyone is encouraged to get involved and give it their best!
|
Ngā manaakitanga ki a tātau katoa
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽
|
A number of WHS students stepped up as role models, actively encouraging younger athletes and helping to keep events running smoothly for the Apanui School Sports Day yesterday. It was great to see these students even getting involved in some of the sports alongside the younger students, bringing plenty of energy and positivity while showing our Whakatāne High School values in action.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Turning Dreams into Reality
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
New Student Rep
Congratulations to Braydon Sharp, who has been voted in as our new Student Representative on the Board of Trustees.
|
|
Thank you to outgoing Student Rep Jiko Bryant for all her hard work and contribution to the school.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Silver Medal Winners at NZSSC
Four of our Level 3 Hospitality students put their culinary skills to the test at this year’s National Secondary Schools Culinary Competition, with Caiden Simmons, Anwen Brown, Aaria Boynton and Cody Murch taking part in June.
|
For over a month, the students spent lunchtimes and after school developing and perfecting their dishes before submitting them, along with a written entry, to the judges. As part of the challenge, each entrée had to feature Silver Fern Farms Beef Medallion as the hero ingredient, as well as include at least one Kapiti, Mainland or Anchor product and Rescued Kitchen’s Rescued Bread Flour, a New Zealand based company repurposing food products heading to landfill, minimising food waste.
|
|
Caiden and Anwen were named regional runners-up, scoring 88/100 and receiving a Silver Award for their dish:
|
|
Silver Fern Farms Beef Medallion
|
|
‘Kikorangi’ espuma, hazelnut, broccolini, red wine grapes
|
Blue cheese foam, hazelnut crumbed broccolini, red wine glazed grapes, pomme purée
|
|
Aaria and Cody also received a Silver Award, scoring 80/100 for their dish:
|
|
Silver Fern Farms Beef Medallion
|
|
‘Rescued Bread Flour’ gnocchi, mushroom, black garlic
|
Charred spring onion, fried enoki, mushroom purée and jus
|
|
Well done Caiden, Anwen, Aaria and Cody! A great result and a reflection of the time, effort and skill you put into developing your dishes. We’re proud of you all!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mt John Trip 2027
Ms Nolan is taking a group of senior students to the South Island during the Term 1 holidays (11-16 April) where they will visit the Antarctic Centre, Air New Zealand’s Engineering Department, the University of Canterbury and the Mt John Observatory.
Any senior students interested should email erin.nolan@whs.co.nz for more information.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Careers News
Toi Ohomai Tauranga and Rotorua campuses are having Open Days coming up:
|
- Saturday 12 September Windermere Campus, Tauranga from 11.30 am
- Saturday 19 September Mokoia Campus, Rotorua from 11.30 am
Toi Ohomai has also announced that they will offer free fees for school leavers who study in 2027 at the Mokoia, Rotorua campus in selected areas of study. Visit the website for further details - Toi Ohomai
|
|
Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi has an Open Day on the Whakatāne campus on Tuesday 15 September. See their website for details - Awanuiārangi Open Day
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Vote for the Tīeke !
Do you have a favourite New Zealand bird? Would you like to help support an endangered bird in our local community? Bird of the Year is back, and everyone across New Zealand has the opportunity to vote for their favourite native birds and help recognise the species they care about. Everyone is able to choose up to five different bird species in their vote, and HALO Whakatāne would really appreciate it if as many people from Whakatāne High School as possible included the Tīeke as one of their five choices.
|
The Tīeke is an endangered bird species important to our local community, and HALO Whakatāne has an ongoing mission to help protect our local environment and support the recovery of species like it. By voting for the Tīeke, you are not only supporting one of New Zealand's incredible native birds, but also recognising the conservation journey taking place right here within our own community. HALO Whakatāne would love to see the Whakatāne High School community get behind the Tīeke and show its support, as it would be amazing to come together and help give this endangered local bird the recognition it deserves.
|
|
Every vote can help raise awareness and show that our community cares about protecting the wildlife around us. Voting is open now and closes at 5pm on Sunday the 20th of September, with the final Bird of the Year results being announced on Monday the 21st. You can vote for up to five birds, so while you are choosing your favourites, make sure you consider giving one of your votes to the Tīeke. HALO Whakatāne would greatly appreciate your support, and it would be amazing to see our school community get behind one of our own local endangered birds. Get involved, get voting, and help us support the Tīeke in this year's Bird of the Year! Vote here: Bird of the Year Voting Website
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cross Country - 25 September
|
The last day of Term 3 is our WHS Cross Country. We look forward to a great final day of the term, and seeing if any of these records are broken.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rugby Co-Ed 10s Champs!
Last week, the 1st XV travelled to Napier to compete in the annual Co-ed Rugby Festival 10s Competition—a relatively new addition to the winter sports calendar that the squad was eager to attend. The three-day tournament featured eight teams from across the North Island.
|
On Day 1, the team fought through windy conditions to win all three opening games against a combined Onslow/Newlands College side, Whanganui City College, and an Otumoetai/Bethlehem College combined team. Day 2 brought better weather and three more victories against St Peter's College (Palmerston North), Wairoa College, and Morrinsville College. On Day 3, the boys completed a close win over Havelock North High School, sweeping the round-robin with an undefeated 7–0 record.
|
The semi-final provided a tough test against an Onslow/Newlands side that had improved significantly throughout the tournament. After a slow first half, the boys rallied strongly in the second to prevail and set up a rematch against Otumoetai/Bethlehem College in the final. Just like their earlier meeting, the final was an intense, back-and-forth battle with neither team giving up much field position, but a standout defensive effort secured a 19–12 victory.
|
|
Maseo Adlington, Blake Shipton, Te Mauri Stevenson, and Poirangi Pohatu-Ruha performed brilliantly throughout the tournament, with Poirangi earning the overall tournament MVP award for WHS.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Squash selection
Congratulations to Year 12 student Marley King on her selection to the BOP Junior Squash team.
A fabulous achievement Marley.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Magic in the Making
|
Congratulations Ariana Dawson, Nevaeh Morris and Rongomai Williams on their selection to attend the Magic in the Making Development Sessions. Well done ladies.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
BOP Rugby Selections
Congratulations to Asaiah Kinghazel, Misty Mika and Alesi Boteiviwa, who have all been selected to represent Bay of Plenty in Rugby, with Asaiah selected for the U16 Girls and Misty and Alesi for the U18 Girls.
|
The girls all had a fantastic Youth Development Cup, stepping up into leadership roles for their Eastern Bay of Plenty teams with Asaiah named Captain of the EBOP U16 Girls, while Misty was named Vice Captain of the EBOP U18 Girls.
|
Their leadership, commitment and performances throughout the tournament are a great testament to their selection to go on and represent Bay of Plenty.
|
BOP League Selection
Asaiah has been extra busy lately. After playing with the Rotorua Girls at the NZSS Nationals during tournament week for League and helping the team to 2nd place, she has also been named in the tournament team!
|
Congratulations to all of these talented ladies - a fantastic achievement and well deserved!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Big news from the Margaret Mahy Library!
We’ve been fine-tuning our Holiday Book Bundles, and we are SO excited to roll it out to everyone!
|
Want a personalized box filled with awesome reads for the whole household—from the little ones to the oldies? It’s super easy:
|
-
-
|
Sit back while librarians Lisa & Claire work their book magic!
|
-
|
Pick up your custom family read package and dive into your next favorite story!
|
|
Make a librarian’s day and claim your family’s holiday box today!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Request from Science
|
If you have an excess of chinese takeaway containers with lids, our Science department would be very grateful to take these off your hands!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
