Kia orana parents, caregivers and whānau

This week is Cook Islands Language Week Te 'epetoma o te reo Māori Kūki ‘Āirani which celebrates the languages spoken by the people of the Cook Islands; Cook Islands Māori, the Western Polynesian language Pukapuka, and the distinctive mixture of Cook Islands Māori and English spoken by the people of Palmerston Island. Cook Islands Māori has a number of distinct dialects, the most widely used of which is Rarotongan. The theme for 2020 (Teia te tumu tāpura) is

Kia pūāvai tō tātou reo Māori Kūki ‘Āirani i Aotearoa.
That the Cook Islands Māori language may blossom throughout New Zealand.

The Samoan language is definitely blossoming at Christchurch Girls’ High School / Te Kura o Hine Waiora. We are very proud that Temukisa Fetūao, Year 13 won the national FAGASA senior Samoan speech competition. Because of COVID the competition happened online this year. We are very proud of Temukisa’s achievement at such a high level and I know our Samoan and wider Pasifika community will be very proud as well to have a language champion in our midst.

This week we also celebrate International Students’ Week at school. Our 17 students from Thailand, South Korea, China, Hong Kong China and Japan presented a very interesting and colourful assembly with a Kendo demonstration and Indian and Nepalese music and dance. The assembly was led by YouRim Kang, our Global Relations prefect, who spoke very eloquently about difference and diversity – the negatives she has experienced, the positives and the beauty of difference. I want to acknowledge YouRim and all our international students who make such a valuable contribution to the school by enabling us to learn about other cultures and languages. We have recently appointed a new International Director, Ms Megan Kong and she is supported by Ms Kate Riddell our International Liaison. They are a great team and look after our international students with care and dedication. The outlook is very uncertain at the moment regarding international student entry to New Zealand but we look forward to the day when borders are open again and we can welcome more students.

Year 11 have their formal this Saturday. I know the students will be looking forward to this after so many other things have been lost in lockdown. I hope the night is enjoyable for all and I extend a big thank you to the PTA who do such an amazing job of running our social events.

It is nice to see the sun today! I think we have turned the corner from winter and can start looking forward to spring and summer. Let’s all stay vigilant about hand hygiene and contact tracking so we do not land up in another lockdown. We are very privileged to be having a normal life at the moment in New Zealand!

Ngā mihi nui

Christine O'Neill