Kia ora koutou

I hope that everyone is enjoying the added freedoms of Level 3 and that every day brings us closer to Level 2!

Teachers and students have settled into a productive pattern of online learning and are to be commended on their organisation and commitment to this. As long as students are attending their Zoom sessions and keeping up with notifications in their Google Classroom they should be able to progress well. Extra support can be provided including peer tutoring.

The School-Wide Google Classroom is an important source of information as many things are coming up including subject selection and senior parallel examinations. Please ensure that students are in this classroom - the joining code is p4ymzkb. Wellbeing messages and information are also posted there. The Prefect Instagram Lockdown posts are also a good source of entertainment and inspiration during lockdown: www.instagram.com/otagogirlshigh.

The Careers Team have been working hard to bring you the revised Careers website which contains all you need to know for subject selection. The subject selection portal will open on Sunday night and close on 27th September. There will also be a special whānau time next Friday (either by Zoom or in person) where students will meet with their mentor to go over this. Year 9 students will be allocated a mentor shortly. We are hoping to be able to provide some parent forums as well in the coming weeks if levels allow. 

Parallel examinations for students in Years 11 to 13 are now scheduled for Week 9 (20 to 24 September) of this term, with some papers held over into Week 10 or next term. There will be a reduced examination schedule released early next week. Some papers will be tested during normal class time and teachers will advise of this in advance. Examination formats will be amended if required. In the unlikely event of students remaining at home, parallel exam assessment will be online where possible. This examination period includes the MCAT Mathematics examination for all Year 11 students. There will be specific preparation for this at school prior to the exam. We are pleased that students in portfolio subjects such as Art, DVC and Textiles will have extra time to submit their work in the delayed NCEA.

The Year 13 Graduation Ball date is now Tuesday 14 December, the final day of the NCEA examinations. We look forward to Year 13 parents joining us at the Otago Museum between 7 and 8pm on this evening to celebrate.

As always, reach out to Deans, Counsellors or Whānau teachers if students require any help or assistance at all. We are very focused on supporting every student to achieve success this year.

Ngā muhi nui