2018 WELCOMES International students from Japan, Hong Kong and Germany, for stays of several terms or the whole year.

Students, Kaigi and Yuta, from Japan are returning to complete their studies, which is great to see.

All students are settling into a different learning environment to what they have been used to and are thoroughly enjoying the new classrooms, teachers and their facilities.

Improvement in English is a key for many students. Therefore our ESOL class sees them working together, sharing experiences and building on their skills to understand, engage and improve. It doesn’t take long to see some changes in their English, in both written and oral form, and a boost in confidence to them all. 

Many students are involved in sporting endeavours, some trying sports for the first time.  Athletics day and House Challenge day provided lots of fun and new experiences. Mia, Mo and Mao are loving Touch Rugby, Nanami, Ruka and Hikari are enjoying Archery and Mo is participating in Cactus.

Group Visits

We welcomed 40 female students from Kanagawa High School in Japan for a short three day visit in early March. This had them billeted throughout the community with our wonderful host families, enjoying the kiwi lifestyle, sights and activities. Then they joined us for a day at school, where they enjoyed Maori culture, a powhiri, arts and sports. It was a brief, but enjoyable, taste of school life.  They are keen to come back!

Our longer term groups have included:

Keiai High School from Tokyo, who stayed 14 days and again enjoyed being in class with their special buddies. They took part in P.E., Hospitality, Crafts, Maori culture and many outings. A highlight was the Antarctic Centre, where they spent time with the huskies and saw little blue penguins.

UCE – Universal Cultural Exchange from Thailand, who stayed 20 days and were also involved with class integration with selected buddies and took part in many activities.  P.E., Crafts, Hospitality and Dance were enjoyed by all. The group had a visit to a working 1500 hectare sheep and beef farm, which gave them an appreciation of open space and size. To run up a ‘big’ hill and be in the open space, playing in the grass and being with animals, was a huge highlight for many, as well as learning backyard cricket, brushing a horse and drenching a sheep. Other visits included Willowbank, Canterbury Museum and the Botanic Gardens.

All our groups enjoy learning about our diverse culture, as well as being able to promote their own through exhibitions and information.

We look forward to another busy term and seeing the development and engagement of all our Internationals as they participate in school and kiwi life.

We wish our HOST FAMILIES all the very best and thank them wholeheartedly for all they do in ensuring our students are safe, cared for and enjoy their time with us!!  We couldn't do with you!!