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Wakatipu High School

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47-49 Red Oaks Drive
Frankton QUEENSTOWN 9300
Subscribe: https://wakatipuhs.schoolzineplus.com/subscribe

Email: office@wakatipu.school.nz
Phone: 03 442 7370

Wakatipu High School

47-49 Red Oaks Drive
Frankton QUEENSTOWN 9300

Phone: 03 442 7370

  • WHS Website
  • WHS International Website
  • Student Notices
  • School Calendar
  • Newsletter Archive
  • Contact Us

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Upcoming Events

23 May
Writing Corequisite (Opportunity 1)

All day

26 May
Numeracy Corequisite (Opportunity 1)

All day

27 May
'Parenting in Partnership' - Parenting in the Basin Series Term 2

7:00 PM - 8:30 PM

28 May
Reading Corequisite (Opportunity 1)

All day

30 May
Teacher Only Day

All day

2 Jun
King's Birthday (No School)

All day

20 Jun
Matariki (No School)

All day

2025 Term Dates

Term 1: Monday 27 January to Friday 11 April
Term 2: ​Monday 28 April to Friday 27 June
Term 3: Monday 14 July to Friday 19 September
Term 4: Monday 06 October to Tuesday 09 December

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WHS Newsletter | Issue 2.1 | 02 May 2025

  • Principal's Message
  • Senior Next Steps Tuesday, May 6
  • The Importance of Attendance – Working Together for Success
  • Literacy and Numeracy Corequisite Support
  • ANZAC Commemorations
  • Celebrating Sporting Success
  • A Message from Your New Alumni Coordinator
  • House Competition - Netball
  • Leadership Speaker Series
  • Join the WHS Environmental Council for a Community Planting Day
  • Gifted Education
  • Adverse Weather
  • WHS SZ App
  • Sport and Active Recreation News
  • Arts Department News
  • The WHS Foundation Winter Gala
  • WHS Foundation
  • Community Notices

Principal's Message

Kia ora koutou,

The term has got off to a stellar start with 2024 National Results confirming that WHS had the second highest University Results for public, co-ed schools in New Zealand in 2024. Additionally, NCEA Level 2 and Level 1 endorsement results placed WHS in the top 10 in the country. These outstanding levels of achievement mean that individual students have as many doors and opportunities available to them beyond high school. We are very proud of our hard-working students and everyone that supports our students to achieve to the best of their ability in and out of the classroom. 

Today, we had the opportunity to celebrate with parents and student-athletes the achievements from the summer sports season. Our student athletes-achieved amazing results, including multiple national championships in the water, on the track and in the field. See below for the full list of achievements from the 2024/2025 summer sports season. 

On Tuesday and Wednesday evening, we held our Literacy and Numeracy corequisite information evening for parents. Please see below for more information for anyone who was unable to attend this important presentation. A reminder that most Year 10 students and approximately half of Year 11 students will be sitting at least one of these three corequisite assessments. Parents of students sitting these exams have been emailed directly, but please see below for more details. 

Last Friday, Wakatipu High School students played a significant role at the ANZAC Day Commemorations with Lachlan Kidd and Joseph Hurndell delivering speeches at the Queenstown and Arrowtown Service, respectively. Brian Yang was a stand out playing the ‘Last Post’ and ‘Reveille’ at both services, more on this below.  

Senior Next Steps are next Tuesday, May 6 with bookings closing at 5 pm on Monday, May 5, so please be sure to make an appointment now. A reminder that school will finish at 1:50 pm on Tuesday, with buses running at this time. See below for more details about Senior Next Steps. 

With the weather changing and snow starting to top the mountains, a reminder that we use the WHS SZApp to notify parents and students of any changes to the school day. See below to add the WHS SZApp to your phone, and also below regarding how we will communicate with you in cases of adverse weather. 

A full and comprehensive newsletter follows, including an introduction to Ang Gibson, our new Alumni Coordinator, as well as highlights from the House competition, Arts, Sports – including Central Otago Sports Awards nominations, and much, much more so be sure to have a read. 

Don't forget to get your ticket for the WHS Foundation Gala dinner (details below). Have a great weekend, and I look forward to seeing many of you next week at the Senior Next Steps.

Ngā mihi nui,

Oded Nathan
Principal/Tumuaki

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Senior Next Steps Tuesday, May 6

Our Senior Next Steps conferencing (teacher/parent/student) are on Tuesday 6 May from  2:15pm - 7:30pm  at school. 

Next Steps bookings are still open - please click on the link below. Please note that we will be closing bookings at 5 pm on Monday 5 May.

These parent-student-subject teacher meetings are very important for discussing students’ learning, progress and achievement, and we strongly encourage all senior students and their parents to attend. 

When making your bookings, you’ll need to know your students' subjects and teacher and you can check the Portal for these details.  Please try to leave five minutes between each of your interviews (eg. 3:40, 3:50), as this will give you time to move to the next teacher and will help prevent people running behind schedule.

If you find that a teacher that you would like to see has no more interview times available, please contact them directly via email to arrange an alternative time to discuss your students learning progress and achievement. 

School will finish at 1:50 pm for all students on Tuesday 6 May, with buses running from this time. 

Please click on the link below to book your interviews.  If a code is requested, use crnth.

Senior Next Steps 6 May https://www.schoolinterviews.co.nz/code/crnth
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The Importance of Attendance – Working Together for Success

At Wakatipu High School, we view regular attendance as one of the most important factors in student success. Being at school every day helps ākonga stay connected to their learning, build relationships, and make steady progress toward their goals.

The New Zealand Government has set a national goal that 80% of students should attend school more than 90% of the time by 2030. This is because the evidence is clear—students who attend regularly do better academically, socially, and emotionally.

Currently, 65% of our students are meeting that 90% attendance mark, and 88% are attending more than 80% of the time. These numbers show strong engagement across our kura, and improvement from 2024, but we know there is more we can do together to support attendance and reach the national target.

We understand that students may need to be away from school for valid reasons, particularly when unwell. In line with national health guidelines, students should stay home if they have a fever, vomiting or diarrhoea (and remain home for at least 48 hours after the last episode), or have been diagnosed with a contagious illness. However, if symptoms are mild (such as a slight cough or runny nose) and students are otherwise well and able to participate in learning, they are encouraged to attend.

We also remind whānau that family holidays and non-essential activities during term time are not supported. These absences can have a significant impact on learning. If your child does need to be absent for an unavoidable reason, please make sure to contact the Attendance Team, their Kaiārahi, and Dean as early as possible.

Thank you for your ongoing support in making attendance a shared priority. By working together, we can ensure every student has the opportunity to reach for their heights.

For more information, please visit our website - click here.

James Field-Mitchell
Assistant Principal

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Literacy and Numeracy Corequisite Support

Year 10 students and their parents/caregivers were emailed about their corequisite entries. Senior students (Years 11-13) were emailed if they are required to complete any corequisites.

The corequisites will take place across Weeks 4 and 5 of Term 2:

  • May 23 - Writing
  • May 26 - Numeracy
  • May 28 - Reading

We are providing support after school to help students achieve the corequisites. Support for Literacy is available after school every Wednesday, 3:15 - 4 pm in Mātuitui and support for Numeracy after school every Thursday, 3:15 - 4 pm in the Maths Learning Area.

To reinforce the skills required to achieve the corequisites we have created a slide show and supporting video of how you can support at home.

To practice Corequisite assessments, please visit the NZQA link - click here. Once there, you can select from the following assessments:

  • Literacy (Reading), Term 2 2023
  • Literacy (Reading), Term 2 2024
  • Literacy (Reading), Term 3 2024
  • Literacy (Reading), Term 4 2023
  • Literacy (Writing), Term 2 2023
  • Literacy (Writing), Term 2 2024
  • Literacy (Writing), Term 3 2024
  • Literacy (Writing), Term 4 2023
  • Numeracy, Term 3 2024
  • Numeracy, Term 2 2023
  • Numeracy, Term 2 2024
  • Numeracy, Term 4 2023

If you are asked for codes, please use:
MSN: View2024
Verification code: Tw3nty/24

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ANZAC Commemorations

This ANZAC Day, we school paused to honour and remember the courageous individuals who served and made sacrifices for our country. Wakatipu High School students actively participated in the Dawn Service in Queenstown as well as the Glenorchy and Arrowtown Services. Lachlan Kidd, the talented winner of the RSA speech competition, presented a fantastic speech in Queenstown, Joseph Hurndell spoke in Arrowtown, and Brian Yang once again performed the Last Post and Reveille with great competence at both commemorations.

Adding to this important act of remembrance, a team of conscientious Air Cadets from 50 (Alexandra) Squadron, comprised of several WHS students, dedicated a day to raising money for the RSA. With a small team working in Arrowtown and the main group in Alexandra, the cadets sold poppies throughout the business districts for donations. Several cadets also visited aged care homes, offering poppies to veterans and residents. Poppy Day proved to be an incredibly enriching experience, with cadets hearing many poignant war stories and the amazing experiences of our community.

We commend all our students for their contributions, both in honouring ANZAC Day and supporting the vital work of the RSA, representing our school with pride and respect.

Lest we forget.

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Celebrating Sporting Success

Our Summer Sports Assembly was a wonderful occasion to celebrate the sporting achievements of our ākonga from the 2024/2025 Summer Sports season. They have shown great talent, dedication, and sportsmanship across many different sports, reflecting our values and representing our school with pride. Well done to all who took part and achieved success, keep reaching for your heights!

A special thank you to all of our coaches, managers and volunteers who dedicate their time and effort behind the scenes to support Sports at WHS. 

WHS Summer Sports Assembly 2025
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A Message from Your New Alumni Coordinator

Celeste Collie of the WHS Foundation with Ang Gibson 

I am thrilled to join the Wakatipu High School team as the new Alumni Coordinator, connecting our past, present, and future students with each other and the school.

I have a deep passion for the Queenstown community, having lived in the region since 1990. Most recently, I served as administration support staff at Queenstown Primary School. I currently hold the position of Trustee for Baskets of Blessing Charitable Trust, a volunteer organisation dedicated to sustainability, compassion, connection and care within the Wakatipu community.

The vision for the Wakatipu High School Alumni is for: A connected, engaged, and proud community. United by our past, we invest in our future.

The Wakatipu High School Alumni is dedicated to maintaining and strengthening relationships between each other and the school, and working towards the following goals:

  • Facilitating networking opportunities for professional and personal growth.
  • Fostering a sense of community among alumni, current students, and staff.
  • Preserving and promoting the school's history, achievements, and traditions.
  • Encouraging mutual support to the benefit of all involved.

We will be sharing more information in this space during the term. 

Ang Gibson
Alumni Coordinator

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House Competition - Netball

House spirit is in the air! Our second House sports competition for 2025 is underway this week, with students battling it out in netball.  We're looking forward to the finals next week, and of course, the always entertaining Staff versus Students game!

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Leadership Speaker Series

The 'Leadership Speaker Series' is underway again this term, offering a valuable opportunity for our student leaders. This initiative invites inspirational leaders from diverse fields to share their experiences and perspectives on leadership. It's a chance for students to explore the many facets of leadership, hear compelling stories, and engage in meaningful Q&A sessions.

If parents or community members are interested in learning more about the series or have leadership expertise they would like to share with our students, please contact Sarah Hill, Deputy Principal: shill@wakatipu.school.nz .

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Join the WHS Environmental Council for a Community Planting Day

This Saturday, the Wakatipu Reforestation Trust plans to plant 1500 new native saplings at our Lake Hayes site we’ve been slowly chipping away at these past few years, concluding the ending of the planting season

Lake Hayes Pavilion planting site enjoys some of the best views Queenstown has to offer. Nestled on the edge of Lake Hayes, people like you have planted 3500 native trees and shrubs here so far, and we are excited to be adding to the count this autumn to raise it up to 5000 with your help. We will be starting a new area to start working on soon as we have already filled up a lot of what was originally the goal from a few years ago, which is amazing, and it has blown away the WRT just how much help we’ve had from the community to help us organise making our natives restore their homes as they used to be.

Time | Location | What to wear:

It’s drop-in style so join us when you can between 9.00 - 12.00
Wear sturdy shoes and comfortable outdoor clothing
*Bring a pair of gardening gloves and a water bottle
*Parking is next to the Pavilion/Lake Hayes Trail.

Oliver Turner
Environmental Council

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Gifted Education

University of Canterbury CAM KIWI Competitions

Calling all Year 9 and 10 students looking to flex their academic prowess in Mathematics, Science, and / or English! 
The annual KIWI Mathematics, Science, and English competitions are skills-based and closely aligned with the New Zealand Curriculum. The tests are designed by New Zealand teachers for New Zealand students. Results are provided to schools in Term 3. All participating students will receive a certificate and a prize will be awarded to the top student nationally in each competition. The competition will also provide parents / caregivers with an Individual Pupil Report of the student's performance in that subject. 

Fill out this form to register for the competitions. The form must be completed by Monday, 5 May. 
Each competition costs $9.90 and this must be paid via the WHS Portal by Friday, 13 June to participate. The competition assessments will be sat at WHS in Week 8 of Term 2 (16 - 20 June)  Click here for more information.

University of Otago Junior Mathematics Competition

This mathematics competition is for students in years 9 to 11. Every student throughout New Zealand sits the competition on exactly the same day, which is Wednesday, May 7 this year. More information can be found here.
To register for the competition, complete this form by Monday, 5 May. Students will sit the paper next Wednesday after school. The competition costs $5 to enter, and this must be paid via the WHS Portal  by Wednesday, 14 June. 

Huna Māhirahira - Curious Minds

Hunga Māhirahira Curious Minds is a Google Classroom where teachers from all Learning Areas post about competitions, trips, and other opportunities for any student to get involved with.  This includes ICAS and CAM competitions, university trips, Mathematics, Science, and Writing competitions, and local presentations, to name a few. 
To ensure your child has access to all of these exciting opportunities, make sure they are signed up to Google Classroom using this code: 4oq3bvh.

ICAS 2025

ICAS is an online academic competition that gives students the opportunity to challenge their higher order thinking and problem-solving skills in English, Mathematics, Science, and Writing. The competition is open to all WHS students, Year 9 through to 13, with test dates throughout August. Every student who participates is celebrated and recognised with a printed certificate in each subject area, and an online results report to track development each year. Top performers are eligible for one of the highly coveted ICAS medals. 
 
If you wish for your child to participate in ICAS this year, please:  
1. Read about ICAS subjects and prices here.
2. Read the terms and conditions here. 
3. Go to the Parent Portal to sign up to chosen subject areas here.  
4. Enter our school’s access code – QFN331.  
5. Enter your child’s details, select the subject areas your child would like to participate in, then proceed to payment.  
 
After payment is made via the Parent Payment System, you will receive an order confirmation email. Please keep this for your records. Applications need to be in by Monday, 28 July. 

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Adverse Weather

With winter fast approaching this piece is regarding ‘adverse weather’. The most important point to note is that again this winter in the case of adverse weather we will communicate through the following channels: 

  • To parents - via the WHS SZApp (see below if you don't have it on your device) and the WHS website
  • To students - via normal school email

On a morning with adverse weather (which particularly includes snow and/or ice on the roads) we liaise with QLDC’s roading contractor and the school bus coordinator and make a decision regarding school for that day. If it is not a normal school day, the common options are either a delayed start or school closed, in which case we will communicate through the channels above, endeavouring to do so by 7:15am. 

Please note that if we do get adverse weather during the day we will not normally close the school - this is primarily because school buses are not normally able to run early. However we do monitor adverse weather and conditions very carefully and make decisions and communicate accordingly, through the channels above.

Please also note that we do liaise with the other schools in the basin and decisions are generally coordinated. Although sometimes conditions vary for different schools and some primary schools do not have school buses - which are a key consideration, and ultimately each school will need to make its own decision, which will be communicated by the individual school.

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WHS SZ App

All parents, caregivers, and students should download the SZapp to receive timely urgent and important alerts. SZapp also provides convenient access to our absence form, the weekly newsletter, school calendar, and a collection of handy links. Find download instructions for the WHS SZapp below.

 Apple Devices

  1. On your device, open the App Store.
  2. Search the App Store for SZapp.
  3. Download and install SZapp.

 Android Devices

  1. On your device, open the Play Store.
  2. Search the Play Store for SZapp.
  3. Download and install SZapp.
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Sport and Active Recreation News

Welcome back to Term 2! We are excited for the official start of the winter sport season with basketball, netball, rugby and hockey competitions starting up this or next week. Go Waka!

Orienteering 

The South Island Secondary School Orienteering Champs were held over ANZAC weekend in Cromwell and Alexandra. Wakatipu High School had 3 students competing. Congratulations to Stanley Boyens who won both the Junior Boys Long and Sprint events. In the Intermediate Girls Victoria Underwood came in 3rd in both the Long and Sprint course, with Audrey Austin 6th in Sprint and 7th in the Long. Well done all!

Adventure Racing

WHS had not 1, but 3 student teams enter the 6+6 Maxis Projects Adventure Race at Teratonga Raceway, Oreti Beach, Southland last weekend. Team “Mud Don’t stop us” consisting of Seb Watson, Finn McCaw, Caitlyn Purdue and Lexie McLeod came 1st in the Student Team category. The team’s time of 11:11:53 also placed them 2nd overall against the Mixed Teams. “The Bery Eergs” team consisting of Emily Messingham, Evie Tamariki, Gwyn Baldwin and  Rilee Young came in 3rd. “Mud don’t stop us Either” consisting of Oli Watson, Charlie Manser, Hadyn Carter and Neive McLeod placed 4th, with an unfortunate injury on the first day meaning they couldn’t provide the required 4 team members on day 2 of the competition. The weekend weather was perfect for adventure racing and it was great to see our students getting in amongst the action!

Central Otago Sports Awards
The 2025 Forsyth Barr Central Otago Sports Awards will be held next week on Thursday 8th May at the Lake Wānaka Centre. Congratulations to the following students who are finalists, with a number of former WHS students also named.

Gallaway Cook Allan Junior Sportsman of the Year
- James Weber – Athletics
- Lewis Laird – Mountain Biking
- Charlie Manser – Rowing
- Noa Milburn – Tennis
- Dan Milburn – Tennis

Health 2000 Wānaka Junior Sportswoman of the Year
- Siena Mackley – Running
- Zara Hazledine – Equestrian
- Rosa Dawson – Gymnastics

Jennian Homes Team of the Year
- Wakatipu U18 Coxed Quad Scull
- Wakatipu U17 Boys Double Scull
- Wakatipu Boys U18 Double Scull 

Representative Volleyball Message from Haru

On May 30th, I will be travelling to Wellington with eight other students to represent the Southland region at the Volleyball Inter-Provincial Championships (IPC). This national tournament brings together teams from across New Zealand to compete for the national title in their respective categories.

The following WHS students will be representing Southland:

U17 Boys
Nhico Bigcas
Jaxon Lawton
Tai Te Paa 

U19 Boys
Haru Kuroe 

U17 Girls
Marian Navasca 
Luana Kirchoff Pereira
Cerys Phillips
Holly Coutts

U19 Girls
Sheana-Huia Solomon 

We’ve trained hard to earn our spots on these final teams and are excited to compete in Wellington. To help cover travel and accommodation costs (over $700 per person), each of us are running individual fundraisers. If you’d like to support us, feel free to contact any of the emails listed above. Any donations are deeply appreciated!

Ngā mihi nui,
Haru Kuroe

Basketball - Nuggets Clinic

Otago Nuggets will be holding a clinic at WHS on Saturday 10th May from 2:30pm - 4pm. Please Fill in this form to register. If you have any questions please contact Angela from Otago Nuggets angela@otagonuggets.co.nz

Keep Us Informed

The Sports Department would love to hear from you if you know of any awesome sporting achievements from our students! Please send through details/results and photos to Sian at shorn@wakatipu.school.nz so we can share and celebrate these as a school.

Support Sport at WHS

Support the team by liking the Wakatipu High School Sports Facebook page. This is the best way to stay up to date with the successes of our athletes and teams and celebrate their great achievements!

https://www.facebook.com/WakatipuHighSchoolSports/ 

Sian Horn
Director of Sport

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Arts Department News

Songwriting Group
This week we started our songwriting sessions for the term on Wednesday morning and these will continue to run throughout the term. We will have a mix of student-based workshopping sessions along with visits and workshops from musicians working in the industry. Next week we look forward to a great session with ex-student Josh Mehrtens from the band Mild Orange who will zoom in from England to talk about his songwriting process.

Upcoming competitions include:

Play It Strange Peace Song Competition 
The theme of peace and non-violence is open to broad interpretation – from personal inner peace, peace at home, to unity among people around the world. We invite young songwriters to explore what peace means to them. The lyrics are the heart of each entry.

1st place receives a 1:1 mentor session with one of our competition judges and a $1,000 gift card from the Rockshop. All finalists will have their song recorded in a professional recording studio (one day to the value of $800 plus gst) to go on the 2025 Peace Song digital album.

If you are interested in applying to this competition, please see Mrs Price for more details. More information can be found here: https://www.playitstrange.org.nz/competitions. Entries close May 30

National Lion Foundation songwriting competition. 
This is the main Play It Strange competition open to all year levels and can be on any topic.

Write a song on any theme and in any language. Open to New Zealand secondary students Years 9-13, this flagship competition encourages creativity across genres and styles.

How to enter: Submit your details, a recording of your song and the lyric sheet. This year's competition will be judged by a panel of judges. The recording and performance quality of the entry is not taken into account in the judging process. .1st place receives a 1:1 mentor session with one of our competition judges and a $1,000 gift card from the Rockshop. ALL finalists will have their song recorded in a professional recording studio (one day to the value of $800+GST) to go on the 2025 National Songwriting Competition digital album plus a $50 Rockshop voucher

Band Hub
Band Hub was running in Term 1 as a way for incoming Y9 Music students to learn their way around the Music area and meet other like-minded students. As we lost a couple of sessions due to illness and school events, we will run two final sessions next week and the following week. 

The Jazz Band Raffle
The Southern Jam Youth Jazz Festival is set to take place in Blenheim over a week in August. It's an amazing opportunity for the 20+ band members of the WHS Jazz Band to perform in public at venues of all types and sizes, in competition and in workshops led by some of New Zealand's most respected jazz professionals, and alongside peers from other high schools across the South Island. Our raffle is raising money to help get them there.

Check the poster for all the details and fantastic prizes donated by some awesome local businesses. There will be 25 winning tickets!

Good luck to all who enter, and thank you for supporting this incredible growth experience for our young musicians!

String Group
This term we are starting a string group at WHS, which will be run by Rakuto Kurano. Rakuto has recently arrived in Queenstown and is a highly skilled musician and we are very lucky to have him on board here.  The group meets on Thursday morning before school at 8.00 am in the Music area.

Here’s a link to his bio: https://rakutokurano.com/. Please contact Alison Price at aprice@wakatipu.school.nz for more details. 

Wednesday Morning Arts Time
This is again underway at 8.00 am on Wednesday mornings. It is a chance for arts-minded students to engage in activities before school. We will be adding more groups. At this stage, we have live sound/lighting, songwriting, jazz combo. Students are also welcome to use the practice rooms to practice.

SIX Teen Edition Musical 
Meet the SIX queens who’ll be taking the WHS stage by storm! Check out our official poster to see the full cast bringing these iconic Tudor tales to life. From Catherine of Aragon’s fierce spirit to Anne Boleyn’s sharp wit, this powerhouse ensemble is ready to rock your world!

Tickets go on sale next Tuesday, 6th May – don’t miss your chance to secure a front-row seat to history (with a seriously pop-concert twist!). Follow us on Instagram (whsartdepartment) to grab yours as soon as they become available on Tuesday. 

Get ready to laugh, cry and cheer as history’s most formidable queens reclaim their stories. See you at SIX!

YAMI
The Youth Arts in Music Summit is underway this weekend and will be an amazing experience for the students who have signed up. The programme covers all aspects of music and features some great NZ artists. We look forward to hearing from the students about their experiences next week. Link to the programme for anyone who might want to see what it’s about. https://wanakasounz.nz/yami/

Exciting visits in Arts
Being able to access a visiting artist is an incredible opportunity for our students to get first hand input from established artists. We hope to welcome more artists and professionals in the arts space in the future. If you would like to share your experience and knowledge please get in touch with Arts Coordinator Stine Cooper scooper@wakatipu.school.nz.

Extracurricular groups
These will be restarting in the next few weeks - all updates will be posted on the All Things Arts Classroom Group.
If you would like to sign up the code is: sijw2gw

Or you can sign up for the Classroom Group here:  https://classroom.google.com/c/MTMyMjY2Mzg5NjMw?cjc=sijw2gw

Upcoming for Term  2 - 

3-4 May - YAMI - held in Wānaka
11 May - Rockquest heats (if needed)
24 May - Big Break (Bands and solo/duo)
30 May - Entries close - Play It Strange - Peace Song Competition 
09 June - Toi/Showquest
14 June - Rockquest finals
20 June  - SIX
16 July - Entries close - Play It Strange - Lion Foundation National Songwriting Competition (Yrs 9-13)
31 July - Entries close - Play It Strange - Waiata Māori Competition

    Te Atamira - is a multi-purpose arts and cultural space at Remarkables Park Town Centre - check out what is happening at Te Atamira here

    Te Wahi Toi - Nau mai, haere mai, Te Wāhi Toi is the meeting place and online directory for Queenstown and Wānaka’s creative community.  Find them here

    Let us Know
    The Arts department would like to know about any artistic achievements that students have attained outside of school be it in Drama, Dance, Music or Visual Arts. Please send details and photos to scooper@wakatipu.school.nz

    Support the Arts
    We are always looking for local professional performing and visual artists to visit our school and run workshops for our students. If you or someone you know is interested, please contact Mrs Cooper the Arts Coordinator at scooper@wakatipu.school.nz

    Instagram Page
    Follow our school’s Instagram page for recent successes or news within the school’s Arts Department at whsartdepartment.

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    The WHS Foundation Winter Gala

    Join us at The Grille by Eichardt’s for an elegant evening of fine food, local wine, and inspiring community spirit. This special night supports youth education at Wakatipu High School, with a four-course dinner, premium Central Otago wines, and live and silent auctions. Celebrate connection, culture, and learning in a stunning lakefront setting - while helping raise $540,000 for student programmes in 2025. An unforgettable night for a remarkable cause.

    Winter Gala - Tickets Available Here
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    WHS Foundation

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    Community Notices

    Tickets are easy to access at only $25 per adult and FREE to school children (no ticket required) available at:

    •     www.undertheradar.co.nz
    •     UNICHEM Pharmacy, Alexandra
    •     Paper Plus, Cromwell
    •     Arrowtown Museum
    •     UNICHEM Summerfields Pharmacy, Frankton
    •     Cash door sales also available

    This concert is a rare combination – bring your children/grandchildren come and enjoy it while you have the opportunity!

    Promotion Dates : Thursday, 24 April 2025 at 8:00 pm - Tuesday, 29 April 2025 at 1:59 pm

    FREE $30/$50 Gift Card with an Entertainment Membership purchase

    From Thursday 24th April to Tuesday 29th April, supporters can snap up the below:

    Multi City Membership – Just $120 + a FREE $50 Activ Visa Gift Card (AU) / $50 Woolworths Gift Card (NZ)
    Single City Membership – Only $70 + a FREE $30 Activ Visa Gift Card (AU) / $30 Woolworths Gift Card (NZ)

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