Rāroan roving reporters have been checking in with students to find out what teams have been up to in these first 2 weeks of the term...

Mōhio

The Rāroan team met with Year 8 students Niamh and Thea from Mōhio to talk about how the first two weeks have gone. Both girls have really enjoyed the start of their school year and spoke enthusiastically about the many highlights they’ve both had, including getting to know the Year 7 students - who, they said, appeared to be relaxed and positive people and enjoying the fun team culture the teachers are creating. Niamh and Thea said they have enjoyed learning new skills in preparation for the next week's school athletics day - throwing the vortex was a particular favourite event. Other highlights the girls spoke of included learning about our school taonga, attending cricket and football trials and starting some of our extension-learning programs, such as Extreme Writing. It was awesome to hear and see our students out there enjoying their learning experiences and living the school values. 

Motuhake

The Rāroan team enjoyed catching up with a group of mates out there doing shot-put this morning. The lads were fizzing about the start of the year in Motuhake, their shared highlights included loving meeting the teachers in Motuhake and being part of an exciting curriculum focused on building relationships and having students develop a sense of belonging. This has included art projects with Whaea B, athletics rotations, team building in their classrooms and across the team, and developing positive attitudes to literacy and numeracy through shared activities and getting to express themselves through their writing. Finally, they’ve all enjoyed meeting new people and the excitement and energy of the various sports trials this week. 

Manawanui

The Rāroan team had a korero with Imogen & Shaun from Room 11 in Manawanui. Both students have very much enjoyed returning to school as Year 8s and felt the Year 7s have settled into life at Rāroa. Shaun spoke about enjoying the chance to win "Cooper Tickets" in class as being a positive incentive for the class to self-manage their behaviour. Imogen spoke enthusiastically about organising her group of friends to catch the train together and attend Fit-45 this morning, as well as having Mr Cooper's dog Teddy in for a day this week. She is also looking forward to getting involved in Mathletes this year. Finally, both Imogen and Shaun felt the teachers were doing a great job and were looking forward to more opportunities over the coming weeks.  

Whakaute in DPE/Pārekareka

Whakaute has finished its week strong with a first session in DPE/Pārekareka. The students have enjoyed their introductory Taster Sessions, where they experience different aspects of Design Production Education in order to get a sense of where they might like to deep dive later in the year for their extended projects. Other highlights for Whakaute this week have included their collaboration rotations, in which the classes have spent time with each teacher getting actively involved in learning about working together through fun and interactive learning experiences, such as making catapults.