As a result of the changes to our timetable we are using the “25th hour” as time to connect as a whole school. This time will be a mixture of full school assemblies, year level meetings, house meetings and house events, guest speakers, careers education and other opportunities that come our way during the year without having an impact on learning time.

I am very intentional in how these assemblies are structured and the material that we cover. One of my main aims is for our student leaders to be visible and have the opportunity to show their leadership skills and to inspire other students. As they become more confident and are more involved in school life, full school assemblies should be mostly student led.

I also want to celebrate the achievements of our students and have them acknowledged in a formal way. Many students are whakamā - shy or embarrassed to be on stage being recognised. My aim is to normalise this, become part of what we do and the students of Te Aroha College acknowledging and celebrating success with their peers.

There are also key messages that I want the whole school to hear at the same time. Below is a brief description of the content covered in each assembly.

Assembly 1 - Friday 1 February

This was our first assembly and a short, to-the-point meeting to get the school underway. A summary of what was covered.

• Welcome to all new students

• Recognition of how well the Year 13 students supported our Year 9 students on their first day

• 2024 is about lifting our aspirations for what we can achieve at school and what lies ahead for your future. Our expectations will be different than last year, far higher than in the past

• We expect students to turn up in the right uniform every day

• A clear message about behaviour expectations

• Acknowledgement of some very good NCEA endorsement results

• A reminder that attending school has a major impact on academic and social success

• Some initial information to students about the upcoming no phones at school regulations

• Encouraging students to get involved in school life with the upcoming about swimming sports

Assembly 2 - Monday 12 February

• Mrs Wade provided an overview of sport and the opportunities in Term 1. A copy of the presentation was posted on our Facebook page.

• Ms Hagan presented information about our 2024 school production - The Little Shop of Horrors. She encouraged students to become involved, there are lots of opportunities to contribute to this show

• I presented Excellence badges to our Year 12 and 13 students that gained an overall Excellence endorsement in NCEA

• I presented a highlights package of the Year 13 camp to Waihi Beach

• Some further reminders about our expectations for 2024 - being in the right place at the right time doing the right thing

• Explanation about the lesson structure at Year 9 and Year 10. In almost every class there will be Must Do, Should Do and Could Do activities. These are designed so all students can feel some degree of success as well as ensuring that we can see what learning is happening

• I finished with a game to help reinforce some of the key messages and have some fun. Four students had lucky tickets under their seats. To win a prize they had to be in the right place (assembly), at the right time (assembly), doing the right thing (in correct school uniform). They also had to be confident enough to come up on stage and open their prize. If they couldn’t do that then they need to hand the lucky ticket to someone else. I am very pleased to say all four winners came up, in the right uniform and proudly shared what they had won with the school. The prizes were, a box of doughnuts, some pens, a pair of new school sandals and a $50 movie voucher.

Monday 19 February

• Jess Bray (Head Student) opened with a whakatauki. We are introducing a new whakatauki at each formal assembly. This whakatauki was selected by our Manukura (School cultural leader) Sarfyre Watts-Tokona. This weeks whakatauki is He ora te whakapiri, He mate te whakatakariri - There is strength in unity and defeat in anger. She explained that this meant, in our context, that it is better to work together, to get along rather than be hindered with arguing with each other.

• Mrs Schuler, our school counsellor introduced herself to the school again and provided an overview of the work she does and the support she can help students with

• We watched a presentation of some photos taken by our student media team from the swimming sports - a great representation of the day and some classic photos

• The House Captains spoke about how swimming sports went for each house and then awarded some prizes to students that made a significant contribution to their house spirit or their results. The selected students came up on stage to receive their rewards from their House Captains

• I informed the students about the Engagement Reports, what they might look like, what they will cover and why we are introducing them

• I informed the school about the possibility of the Drug Detection Team returning to our school

• I presented information about the dangers of marijuana use and the serious impact on the teenage brain

• Mrs Wade spoke to the school about the recent volleyball results form the previous weekend and some information regarding Athletic Sports

• Mr Higgins spoke about rugby opportunities and was supported by a Thames Valley Rugby Union development officer.