Kia ora whānau. These are exciting times to be a student (or a teacher) at Hornby High School!

Athletics Sports: Our Athletic Sports were held at the beginning of this month and it was a really great day for both the competitive and the social participants. Mōhua was well represented at the sports and it was a great opportunity for us to show our “true colours”. Despite our best efforts we came third in the points for the event, and my congratulations go to Riroriro and Tīeke for their brilliant performances on the day. As a school we had 49 students from Year 9 - 13 who were selected to represent us at the “Zones” athletics.

Ka Ora, Ka Ako: On Monday we were lucky enough to start our school lunches programme at Hornby High School. Each child from Year 7 - 13 is now given a free lunch which we eat together at the end of period 2. We start this time with karakia mō te kai (a traditional Māori “grace”) and it is a great time for our students to sit in our Wānanga class groups and share food together. This is a wonderful addition to our culture at Hornby.

Whakanuia ngā Ahurea: This week our Year 7-9 Wānanga classes started our new kete called Whakanuia ngā Ahurea (Celebrating Cultures). This kete celebrate our cultures, and asks the question:

"What are some ways that your culture is different to others?" It is a celebration of the distinctiveness of the cultures that make up our multicultural society at Hornby High School, and we will finish the kete with our Cultural Festival in the last week of the term. More on this later!

Learning Conferences: On 25 March we are holding our Learning Conferences. Students will not be expected to attend school on this day, apart from when they come in for their meeting with their Wānanga Learning Advisor (teacher). You will need to make an appointment with your child’s teacher and bring your child with you for that meeting. Watch for more information about this on the school’s facebook page and the school app (SchoolAppsNZ).

Ngā mihi

Terry Mitchell

Mōhua Kahui Dean