As we approach the end of the year, staff and students are still hard at work with tutorials, completing NCEA credits, completing junior curriculum and preparing for Year 10 Camp and Year 9 Programme.

Whether students are coming into school to sit NCEA examinations or for regular Year 9 and 10 classes, they should be in correct school uniform and we would appreciate your support with this. Blazers are a compulsory item of uniform and must be worn to and from school each day. Socks are to be plain white sockettes; low cut anklet and branded socks are not permitted. Only one pair of plain earrings is to be worn and dangly earrings and nose studs are not permitted. We are proud of how smart our students look in their uniforms and want them all to adhere to our expectations. Outside of school, students should be in their full, correct uniform or wear no item of uniform at all.

This week has been junior sports week and we have been very pleased with the level of participation by our Year 9 and 10 students in the events organised by the Otago Secondary School Sports Association. Students from throughout Otago took part in dodgeball, handball, three-on-three basketball, indoor cricket, volleyball and touch. Students enjoyed the opportunity to play both traditional and alternative sports and to compete against other schools.

Five of our Year 9 students took part in a gifted and talented programme earlier this week, pitching innovative solutions to world problems to industry leaders. The event was totally online and our students got to work collaboratively with students from Years 6 to 9 across New Zealand. Arrochar Voice picked up the prize in the Rationale Category for the idea of a magnifying glass attached to a supermarket trolley. They called their product “EyeSee”. Jordyn Tobin's team was also awarded a first placing in this category working with students from Wellington. Jordyn and her group came up with a “Bins on Buses” product with an environmental lens. A special mention goes to Bhavya Kalra for her work leading and guiding a team of much younger students throughout the process. Sophie Wong and Elizabeth Hollard also took part in this Inventionator event run by Core Education and we look forward to offering it to our Year 9 cohort of 2021.