Term 2

It's the time of the year where we look at Cross Country running at Maungaraki School.  We are excited to say that our annual cross country event is going to look a bit different this year. We have been reflecting on the purpose behind this event as we look for events to allow children to develop a broad range of physical skills, qualities like perseverance and resilience, and allow them to have fun and feel successful in the process.  We are also extremely focused on giving our competitive runners as much to strive for as possible as they look to push themselves.

In reflecting on the above we have looked back at successful events we have had in the past that encourage these things, a few stood out in particular. Our annual Cross Country events have given our students a chance to train and compete as they push themselves. The Colour Run we had in 2017 was one of the most well attended and supported events and also motivated students to keep on running. 

Therefore this year we are going to hold two separate events, a Cross Country race and a Fun Run.

The Cross Country will run much like our previous events of this type. In this more traditional form of a cross country, years 4 - 8 students who are keen to compete will run in this Cross Country as they test themselves and aim for qualification into the Zone Events. We will be encouraging students to push themselves and have a go at this event.

This event will be run around the school grounds with a course based on the distance the athletes would run at the zone event. This will be held on Monday 10th May (Week 2, Term 2) and we invite whānau of those running to come along and cheer them on as usual. 

The Fun Run will be a whole school event on the afternoon of Friday 21st May (Week 3, Term 2). For those who remember it, this will be similar to the Adidas Fun Run we ran with huge success in 2017 which included obstacles such as tyres, a cargo net, a foam pit, slip n slide, colours, a music station, and more. This race is about incorporating the run and having fun. It’s about teamwork, it’s about getting involved, it’s about participating, it’s about the kids supporting each other and having a go. This event can provide an opportunity to explore physical activity outside; to get terrifically muddy; to balance, crawl, jump, climb; to encounter physical obstacles and overcome them. 

We invite whānau to join us for the afternoon - we'd love to have you there, cheering your child on and even having a race around the course!

Please do contact me if you have any questions around these two events.

Ngā mihi nui,

Alle Pollard-Smith
Year 7/8 Teacher/Health & PE Leader
Maungaraki School