Hero photograph
Oscar Robertson displays his composition her created for the Dunedin Symphony Orchastra  
 
Photo by Maggie McGarry

Oscar Roberston composes a standout performance as part of the Presentation Evening 

Maggie McGarry —

Oscar and seven of his Gifted & Talented classmates awed an engaged audience with their diverse topics, depth of research and outstanding presentations skills. Oscar's project was creating a musical composition that was then performed by the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra.

As the pinnacle of the 2017 Opportunity Class, this week saw the Project Presentation evening, where students presented on a range of topics from their year of research.

When students first applied for the OC programme, they highlighted a passion project that they wish to research. From here they work on the project for an hour a week, researching and gathering information through a diverse range of applications. Where possible, students utilised support via the University of Otago, Saint Mary's school and gained assistance from experts in their field.

The projects were diverse; ranging from coding, New Zealand vs American politics, children's willpower, the effects of animal excrement on our rivers,  musical composition, the history of ice hockey, false memories, nuclear weapons and a study on protons and neutrons.

The students did an outstanding job in presenting their research and communicating their messages to the audience.  It has been a pleasure guiding the Opportunity Class this year through their range of learning styles while at the same time finding challenging new methods to engage the students beyond the classroom framework.  Each student has an exciting and promising future ahead, of which I will enjoy watching them fulfil their potential and beyond.