WHS Newsletter | Issue 4.01 | 21 October 2022

Principal's Message

Kia ora and welcome to the Wakatipu High School newsletter at the start of Term 4. While it is Thursday afternoon as I write (as I am at the Otago-Southland Principals’ Conference on Friday), the first week back has gone well. Hopefully you saw the WakaMaths post on our Facebook page yesterday - always the last event of the House competition and always exciting and entertaining. Today was the Breast Cancer Brunch fundraiser, which was well-supported.

The bulk of my words today are actually about the next two weeks, which have some quite different days as we accommodate public holidays, three senior prizegivings and junior exams.

Firstly, next week - Week 2:

• Begins with Labour Day public holiday on Monday 24.
• Cultural and Sporting Blues are on Wednesday 26 and Thursday 27, but both are in the evening so there is no impact on school.
• Friday 28th is Year 13 Prizegiving. It is school as normal in the morning until we gather as a whole school for the announcement of the Dux and our other most prestigious awards. School then finishes at 12:00pm and buses run at 12:15pm for Years 9-12 students, with Year 13 Prizegiving at 1pm (prize winners will be informed on Friday 21).

Week 3:

• Begins with Year 11 and 12 Prizegivings on Monday 31st, which means that Years 9 & 10 (& 13) students are at home on Study Leave for their exams (see below for more on junior exams). Year 12 Prizegiving is 11:15am until approx 12:30pm, when Year 12s finish and may leave school or study (in Ōtaka). Year 11 Prizegiving is 1:45pm until approx 3pm, with buses running at normal times.
• Junior Exams are Wednesday 2 and Thursday 3 - see below.
• Tutorial Week for seniors is Tuesday 1 to Friday 4, before NCEA exams begin on Monday 7.

As above, there are only days to go now until seniors depart. It is a very important time for them as they complete internal assessments and begin to look ahead and revise for external exams - please support them to be at their best during this time.

As you know, the WHS Foundation are incredibly generous and very important supporters of WHS, and their financial support makes a significant difference to our ability to deliver our great all-round education to our students. One of their key fundraising events is their annual Golf Tournament at Millbrook on Thursday 1st December. Please see below for details, and get a team together for a great day out for a great cause! 

Some wonderful weather to start the long weekend, with Saturday looking fantastic, Sunday should be pretty good, but Monday is currently looking like a good day to be at home studying :)

Steve Hall
Principal

Excellence/ Ad Alta Awards

The Ad Alta award recognises consistent effort by students in the areas of homework, classwork, organisation and behaviour. The awards are calculated using the Learning Engagement reports which are reported on every three weeks throughout the year. Below are the students who have averaged 3.55 or higher across all learning engagement reports during term 3. 

There are three levels to this award: Ad Alta, Ad Alta Blue and Ad Alta Gold. First time recipients receive an Ad Alta Award, second time recipients will receive an Ad Alta Blue Award, and third time recipients will receive an Ad Alta Gold Award. 

The Excellence award acknowledges students' achievement in NCEA. To gain an Excellence award, students must have gained more than 50% of their Internally assessed in Term 3.

Similar to the Ad Alta award, there are 3 tiers to this award: Bronze for 1st time recipients, Silver for 2nd time recipients and Gold for 3rd time recipients within the year.

Congratulations to all our award recipients! See the full list of students below.

School Photos

Parents were emailed a unique keycode to go online to view and purchase 2022 school photos. Please check your email account spam/trash folder.

 ***FREE DELIVERY has been extended to Midnight Sunday 30^th OCTOBER ***

For queries please contact Photolife on: enquiries@photolife.co.nz

Junior End of Year Exams

This year we have made the decision to split junior exams across Week 3 of this term (Y9 and Y10 Maths and English) and Week 6 (all other semester two courses). The Maths and English exams will assess content covered over the entire year, whereas all other exams will focus on the Semester 2 courses.

The timetable for the Week 3 exams is as follows:

The timetable for the Week 6 exams is as follows, NB. these exams run during timetabled classes over a 90min period in each case:

Parents and students can expect all subject teachers to carefully outline exactly what is going to be examined in each end of year assessment, and if possible provide opportunities for revision and/or practice of the relevant skills.

Students will, however,  also need to spend time at home (and during Ako Time) revising and preparing. These are very important opportunities for students to show what they have learnt within each course, and also gets them ready for the rigours of NCEA external assessments in particular.

If you or your student do have questions, in the first instance direct them to the relevant subject teacher, and otherwise the kaiārahi is a good next port of call.

Justine Duncan
Assistant Principal

Whakahaere whakamātautau | Managing exams

Kia ora koutou,

We are all aware that it is getting towards the most challenging part of the school academic year, exam time. Term 4 usually means one thing for senior secondary school students in particular - exams. But our juniors experience exams too. Pressure is almost inevitable when it comes to exams and study. The important thing is to not let the pressure turn into overwhelming stress which has a detrimental effect on your wellbeing. Be proactive about your wellbeing and be proactive about managing your stress during exam season. The biggest thing you can do to support your wellbeing during exam season is to be well-prepared.  

Exams are pretty much always stressful. You’re not weird if you often find yourself feeling particularly anxious or stressed before or during exams. Exams are nerve-wracking, period. It’s okay – in fact, normal – to feel daunted by the prospect of performing under pressure. As each exam gets closer, the stress and anxiety rises. But it's completely possible to manage some of the stress and it is important to remember that we all experience stress and anxiety differently, so ‘hoea tō waka, mahia tāu mahi - choose what works for you’. At the end of the day, it’s perfectly understandable to be anxious about exams. Thinking about why this is, and implementing strategies to combat it, are the best steps you can take to feel relaxed beforehand. 

How to manage exam-related stress and optimise your study:
An important aspect of our Ākonga Profile is the development of self. Key aspects of this are identified as awareness, confidence and wellbeing which are all relevant when we talk about managing ourselves in anticipation of exam season. We've pulled together some useful resources to help you ‘take notice’ in order to understand where stress comes from and optimise your study and keep yourself well during exam season. You've got the skills. Karawhiua, give it your all!: 

• Study to your strengths. Some study methods are more effective than others. For example, just looking at your notes won't help you learn them. Stick with strategies aimed at reinforcing the retrieval strength of the content (how well you’re able to recall it out of thin air), which will make a world of difference. The 4 R’s are key: Re-read, Revamp, Recall, Rehearsal. Mrs Ford has created a brilliant resource here with some wise words for students when it comes to preparing for exams: Preparing for Exams 2022
• Reward yourself and break your study up into bite-sized chunks. Use a Pomodoro timer - study for 20 minutes, then reward yourself with 5 on Tik Tok or go and get a snack. Schedule rewards and down time during your study day. Take time to relax and unwind. Ensure you exercise and practice self-care by listening to music, baking or cooking, taking some time for something you enjoy or simply just going outside for some fresh air.
• Talk with friends and older students who make you feel better and not worse about exam season. Find people who reassure you, aren’t catastrophizing, and listen to you and put your worries into perspective.
• Eat well. Ensure you eat breakfast each day. Eat smaller meals throughout the day, rather than big meals that take a huge amount of energy to digest. Decrease your sugar and caffeine intake to avoid energy crashes, and increase your water consumption.
• Say no to commitments that will make you more stressed, and think about some healthy boundaries you can set around catching up with your friends, part-time work, and sports.
• Even though they might not seem like they understand everything you’re going through, parents, caregivers and teachers totally know how it feels to be facing exams. Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for extra support. 
• Try to get eight hours of sleep a night. If you’re stressed about not being able to sleep, there are lots of ways to aid a good night’s sleep such as sleep apps, or journaling before bed.
• When you sit down to study, get rid of all distractions (phones especially!).
• Routines are the magic ticket to feeling “on top of things”, and constructing a routine is a strong tool you have in your arsenal to help you feel more on top of your exams. Routines are like putting up the infrastructure to ensure that all of the things that are inside your control (eating well, exercise, sleep and effective revision) are taken care of.
• Focus on the big picture – the reason you are sitting the exams; to get yourself ahead in life, to get into the course you want next year or whatever your goal is. A helpful activity is to visualise yourself being successful in your exams. Just like very few athletes genuinely love forcing themselves up early to train laps in the freezing cold at 5AM every day, very few people love entering exam halls for the thrill of it. But both parties do it for personal growth. The best athletes in the world still get anxious before they play, just like students. We’re all human. 
• You shouldn’t stress about being stressed – it might actually be good for you. We know that small doses of stress can propel you forward and enable you to meet a challenge. 
• Keep things in perspective. If something goes wrong in the exam, or if you miss some NCEA credits, it’s not the end of the world. There are always other options.

The role of whānau at exam time:
As whānau of students with exams, we can help by helping them set up a study space and making sure the rest of the family understands they need a wide berth when they’re studying. Give them time off activities and non-urgent family stuff, remind them to go to bed at a regular time each night, show interest about what they’re studying and their plan for study, and encourage them to get plenty of exercise.

Where to go if you need a little extra support:
If you’re really struggling with stress overload and feel burnt out, you’ve tried to make changes but it just isn’t getting any easier or if it's all feeling like it's getting too much,  it’s important that you talk to someone. Email 'guidance@wakatipu.school.nz' to talk to one of our counsellors and get support with managing exam-related stress and anxiety.

You can also check out www.smallsteps.org.nz for some tools or strategies which focus on positive thinking and mindfulness to manage stress or anxiety, and help when you’re feeling down. 

Good luck for the rest of the year and your upcoming exams. Kia kaha, Kia māia, Kia manawanui | Be strong, be brave, be steadfast.

Branches Update

Planning is now well underway for Branches Camp 2022. Currently students are being placed into Camp 1 (29 November - 5 December) or Camp 2 (6 December - 12 December). This information will be made available to students during week 4 of the Term and the actual groups will be announced on Friday 18th November. Currently students should be focusing on gathering key items of clothing and equipment for their 7 days at Branches. A gear list has been posted on the Branches google classroom for them (and parents) to reference.

The Student Work day is scheduled for Friday 11th November. Students should have filled out the form by today indicating their work choice or their need to be allocated to a job. Please note this is a very important event for fundraising to support the camp. It is coordinated by the Branches Camp Trust. Please email me if you have any questions about Branches 2022.

Regards,

Ken McIntyre 
kmcintyre@wakatipu.school.nz

Stars

Graeme Dingle Foundation National Youth Advisory Group (NYAG)
During the school holidays, Keira Jamieson attended her first NYAG hui for 3 days at Motu Moana in West Auckland. There are 12 members in total who have all been students in our Youth Development programmes nationwide who were selected to be Youth Representatives for their region. Keira is the Youth Representative for the Southern Region.  Youth Advisors provide a ‘youth's voice’ on processes and content in our programmes. In return, they are provided with opportunities for personal and professional development. 

Whilst away with the other NYAG members I learnt so much about the other programmes the Graeme Dingle Foundation run and what they have to offer for youth in NZ. We helped to provide the Foundation with a youth perspective on some of their new ideas and gave feedback on their current programs and how they are run. We also helped them to record some of their promotional videos which were really fun. The instructors facilitated lessons including advice around our careers and future which taught us more about ourselves. We all  became very close over the 3 days which was cool to see in such a short period of time.

Keira Jamieson
Peer Mentor & Southern Youth Representative

2023 Recruitment
Last term we invited all Year 11 and 12 senior students to a STARS assembly as we acknowleged the 2022 Cohort who graduated this year and opened up the recruiting process for our 2023 Peer Mentors, including our Peer Mentor Lead Prefect and Peer Mentor Council positions. 

Stars wouldn’t be possible without the generous support, dedication and commitment of Year 12 and Year 13 students who walk alongside their mentees for the duration of their first high school year. Their purpose is to create connections and relationships supporting the Year 9s transition to high school. Every fortnight Peer Mentors plan a 1 hour session with a predetermined theme reflecting the schools akonga focus for that week. The following week they deliver and facilitate their session with the Year 9 students during their ako period. On top of this, they also attend multiple training and upskill days throughout the year and are involved in the other 3 components of Stars (Adventure Camp, Community Adventure and Community Project).
Peer Mentors play a vital role in the success of the programme and I (with the help of Ms Jermy) have had the absolute privelage to see how far many of them have come along in their Stars/ leadership journey. 

Thinking of becoming a Stars Peer Mentor for 2023? Here's what some of our Peer Mentors had to say about their journey sofar. 

What attracted you to become a Stars mentor?
The opportunity to ‘give back’ and help Year 9s was a common theme motivating the mentors. Rochelle spoke about knowing “how it felt coming into Year 9 and how stressful it was,” while Keira and Elisa both talked about siblings being a consideration.

Keira shared: “My sister is coming to High School next year and I really hope that someone will do the same for her. Because I know she’s really nervous about it and worried about it, and I think it’s a really great idea to help show them there’s nothing to be scared of and bridge the gap between the seniors and the juniors.”

Elise said: “I thought it would be a really good way to give back and help my little sister and help her friends and anyone who feels very alone, someone who doesn’t have an older sibling in this school. I felt like that was something I’d like to take on.”

What have you enjoyed most about Stars so far?
Our mentors spoke of the reward coming from seeing Year 9s grow in confidence through the year, showing them their efforts are working, as well as the opportunity to interact and form friendships with younger students.

Elise said: “I feel that stuff that I enjoy about Stars comes from the reward – helping other people makes me feel really good.” She went on to say “It touched me one of my Year 9 peer mentoring girls came up to me after the lesson and followed up on some of the advice that I’d given. To me that was an indication of someone really listening, genuinely interested and taking on board the things I had to say… grounding the purpose and making me feel like I’m doing a good job in my role.”

Recalling a similar story, Rochelle shared: “The sweetest moment. One kid was a bit quieter than the rest so it was hard to get him to open up. And one time in the hallway he was like ‘Hey Rochelle’ and we stopped and we had a good conversation. And he said he wanted to say thank you because you helped me open up. It was the sweetest moment, I didn’t expect it and I was like ‘oh my goodness thank you.’ It was really heart-touching I’d say.”

In what ways has Stars helped you develop your own leadership and other life skills?
The mentors highlighted a range of important skills they have developed as part of their time in the programme that they will carry forward with them.

Elise said: “Someone told me that being a Stars peer mentor is really good for leadership in Year 13. Initially I thought that meant it looks good on paper – people would look favourably at it. But when I’m listing the skills in my [leadership] application that I have, I reflect and I see a lot of the skills that I have learned from Stars peer mentoring ingrained in how I am going to become a leader in the future. So learning how to influence a group, persuade a group, communicate and engage a group – especially of a group I do not usually communicate with (year 9s) – their teachers, my coordinator, my fellow peer mentors, it’s a really good way to learn how to communicate, coordinate, organise a whole group of very different people.”

Connor said: “Being able to know how to organise a group of people and different types of people as well because younger kids are kind of hard to control. As well as work with other peer mentors to make sure it happens properly.”

Keira shared: “The training days have helped a lot. With the lessons, we’re teaching them but we have to know about them to teach them. So in the process of planning, we learn a lot as well.”

Rochelle said: “I learnt all these different skills that I’m definitely going to be using in the future to become a teacher.”

How does Stars helps Year 9 students. Here’s what they said…
Keira: “It helps to teach them things they wouldn’t necessarily learn within the school curriculum. So a lot of life skills and things that will take on – hopefully – outside of High School as well.”

Elise: “The whole idea of Stars is to support Year 9 students. Everyone thrives on support. Whether the Year 9s acknowledge it or not (because often they won’t), we all know that it’s helped them.”

Rochelle: “It helps them open up more. At the start of the year they were these quiet kids, they only talked to each other in their separate little groups. As the year went on they started talking to each other, I saw everyone mixing and mingling. They talked to each other more, they talked to us more. Their teacher said ‘I’ve never seen the kids open up so quickly’, so it was good getting them out of their shells.”

Connor: “It gives them the confidence to be around older kids at school and they realise it’s not so scary to be around the seniors, and they’ll have older kids if they need help with something.”

Finally, what would you say to other students considering signing up as a Stars Peer Mentor? 
Their answer was a unanimous. “Do it!”.

You heard it yourself! Get on to applying! Applications close 11.59pm tonight! 

Cheryl Phillips
Stars Coordinator

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Waitangi Trip

Kia ora koutou, 

In the final week of Term 3 a small group of primarily Year 10 students ventured north to Te Tai Tokerau, Northland and particularly Paihia within The Bay of Islands. Though the weather took its toll, the experience was mīharo, amazing!

Over the week, we soaked in plenty of te Reo, recollections of the past, moments to contemplate layers of our history, and the sacrifices made by people before us. Really interesting to hear about the whakapapa of Aotearoa and the interactions between Pākehā and Māori over the years. As a whole the trip was a massive learning experience, although at times we absorbed a confronting viewpoint on the complex history of Aotearoa. 

Following our arrival in Northland, we relished many unique local opportunities and road trips. From a breathtaking cultural performance on the Waitangi Treaty grounds, to sandboarding through the beautiful dunes of Opononi. The biggest take away from the trip was how valuable it is to take a willing interest in learning about our complex history. Whether you are seeking to learn more about where you come from or what happened in this land before us. Then I would highly recommend you give this trip a go, to further your knowledge and broaden your perspective on Aotearoa. 

Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou, a big thank you to the kaiako who joined us including Matua Gilbertson, Whaea Emily Chirnisde, as well as Whaea Erin Sefo and Nic Proffit. Also a kia ora, thank you to Mrs Panapa for running all of the amazing ‘admin’ in the background which makes this trip a success!

Cate Howard
Year 11

Polyfest - Te Iti o Tāhuna

After 2 years of kapa haka competition drought Mīharo Polyfest finally returned this year and our hard working rōpū, Te Iti o Tāhuna, had a chance to showcase their mahi. They delivered a mīharo performance on both Wednesday and Thursday, and did themsleves and Whakatipu proud. Me poho kererū koutou! 

We'd like to send out a big mihi to our kaitautoko/those who support us, especially Steph, Emily, and Jason. Mei kore ake koutou. Also to our tutors Callum and Sydney who put in a lot of hours to get us here. 

Emily Chirnside
TIC Kapa Haka

Scholarship Geography

A group of our dedicated scholarship geography students gave up the last day of their holiday to travel to Dunedin to participate in a workshop. Students got to look at different aspects of scholarship geography, and then learn and practice writing at scholarship level. 

Students no doubt gained valuable insight into scholarship geography. I look forward to working with these students in their preparation for the end-of-year exam.

Mr Kendall
Assistant Head of Social Sciences

Sargeson Short Story Competition

Congratulations to Minna Zhu who received a 'Highly Commended' in the secondary schools' division of the 2022 Sargeson Short Story Competition. Named for celebrated writer Frank Sargeson, the Sargeson Prize is a New Zealand short story prize, sponsored by the University of Waikato. There were 165 entries in the secondary division (and around 1100 total including open division) with 5 Highly Commended awards in the secondary division, excluding first, second and third place. Well done Minna! Read her short story below.

Head Student's Message

Kia Ora Everyone! 

We hope you all had a fabulous holiday and are settling back into school to conquer term 4!

These next few weeks are going to be vital, in particular for our senior students. Exam time is definitely stressful but it is important to stay on track be focussed, organised, and plan well! We really encourage you to work hard in class and ask for assistance if needed from teachers, older students, and even your classmates. 

Seniors are not the only ones that have a busy term, our Year 10s are gearing up for the exciting branches camp. We wish you all the best with your preparations.

It is the class of 2022s final two weeks left at school. This comes with mixed emotions, excitement for new adventures to come but also sadness to leave a school that has done so much for us. Enjoy every moment of the time we have left in Year 13 and make the most of it.

We just wanted to say a huge congratulations to our newly elected head students, BOT rep, and lead prefects. You all are going to do incredible things next year and have full faith you will all make a positive impact on our school and the wider community. 

On Thursday morning we had our final leadership speaker series presentation and we had the honour to have Mr. Hall speak about his life and experiences. Mr. Hall gave us hot tips on leadership and life in general, which was super beneficial for our leaders. 

Once again, make the most out of these next few weeks, study, live in the present, and enjoy.

Remember to be kind to your peer's teachers, family, and yourself. 

Enjoy the long weekend everyone!

Sofia Taquet and James Scoles
Head Students

Arts News and Information

Aspiring Artist Award
Congratulations to Olivia Flight who was the recipient of the Aspiring Artist award at the 2022 Central Lakes Miharo Art Exhibition held at Te Atamira last week of Term 3.

Olivia produced a very powerful photographic piece of art that was based on a myth that she was told as a child. Her work responded to some of the findings she uncovered along the way. 

To see this piece and the other wonderful local entries head along to Te Atamira front gallery this week. 

Thank you to Miharo Murihiku for continuing to support and promote Māori and Pasifika through Art and Polyfest.

2023 Musical Auditions Are Happening Soon
We are now seeking interest in the 2023 Musical Cast. If this sounds like you or your mates, then click the link below and sign up now!
NB: 2023 will not have a dedicated dance troop; however, we strongly encourage keen dancers to apply for the ensemble. We require a mix of Actors, Singers and Dancers for 2023, so do not miss out!

Senior Art Exhibition
Senior art students will be displaying their completed folio boards here at Wakatipu High School for one night only. There will be over 150 senior folios at the exhibition, and it is always an amazing experience. Please join us from 5pm to 7pm to wander around the exhibition and enjoy the talented work on display. 

Congratulations to Jack Speedy who opened for Don McGlashan at the Sherwood gig last night. Don was the adjudicator for the national Play It Strange songwriting competition which Jack entered earlier in the year. Well done Jack!

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 through details and photos to mparker@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 Monica Parker the Arts Coordinator at  mparker@wakatipu.school.nz 

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

Sport and Active Recreation News

National Freeski and Board Champs
A number of WHS students competed at the Freestyle Nationals at Cardrona in the first week of the school holidays. There were some great results achieved from both skiers and boarders at this event, the highlights are below, congratulations to these students. 
Madeleine Disbrowe: 2nd - Open Womens SkierX, 3rd - Halfpipe, 4th - Big Air, 5th - Slopestyle
Brooke Hansen: 1st - U16 Girls Snowboard Slopestyle, 1st - BoarderX
Charlie Hansen: 1st - U16 Boys Ski Big Air, 3rd - Slopestyle
George Reddell: 1st - U16 Boys SkierX, 2nd - Big Air, 2nd - Slopestyle, 3rd - Halfpipe
James Weber: 1st - U16 Boys Ski Halfpipe, 3rd SkierX, 5th - Slopestyle
Keani Wilson: 3rd - U16 Boys Snowboard Halfpipe

NZ Schools MTB Champs
WHS had a number of riders compete in the NZ Schools Mountain Biking Champs in Bluff over the second week of the holidays. The weather was fantastic and made for some great riding. Some of our students finished with top 10 results in large fields and Malik Boatwright did superbly well winning the U15 Boys Downhill event and placing 3rd in the Enduro. WHS finished 9th best school in the motu. Top 10 results below.
Malik Boatwright - 1st U15 Boys Downhill and 3rd Enduro
Kerys Duffy - 3rd U15 Girls Downhill
Siena Mackley - 3rd U16 Girls Cross Country
Zara Mackley - 5th U20 Womens Cross Country
Dylan Collins - 8th U15 Boys Downhill
Josh Bonnar - 10th U20 Mens Downhill

NZ Alpine Ski Selections
Congratulations to Year 10 students April Bentley and Finn McCaw who have been selected for the NZ Youth Alpine Team (U16 girls and boys). This is a fantastic achievement and opportunity. 

National Short Track Speed Skating and Figure Skating Results
Three WHS speed skaters competed at the short track nationals last weekend in Auckland with Eva Hemingway winning the overall Junior Womens event and Daphne Ricketts finishing 2nd. Poppy Wearing placed 3rd in the Sub Junior Womens category. Two skaters also competed at the figure skating championships in Auckland this week with Sabine Edmonds placing 3rd in Basic Novice and Georgia Chinn finishing 4th in Intermediate Novice. Well done girls!

Interprovincial Champs Golf
Congratulations to three WHS students who were selected into the Otago Junior Boys Interprovincial golf team that competed at the Boys Interprovincial competition in the first week of the holidays (October 3-7) in Cambridge, Waikato. Nico Cheifetz, Josh Harris and Jan Ebbinge made up half of the team that finished 7th out of 12 districts nationally in NZ. Nico along with Noah Novacek also represented Otago at the NZ U17 Eagles Golf Competition last week. Each region sends three players and both boys did incredibly well with Nico placing 2nd and Noah 3rd. Well done!

Spring Challenge
WHS had three teams compete in the Spring Challenge event held in Te Anau at the beginning of the holidays. This is an awesome adventure race for women involving biking, running, paddling and navigation. It is so good to see some of our students involved in this event.
3 Hour Event:
Emma Andrew, Molly Shuttleworth, April Bentley - 3rd in School category
6 Hour Event:
Zara Mackley, Neve Bates, Phoebe Cavanagh - 1st in Junior category
Zoe Bennetts, Sara Warmington, Sophie Rasmussen - 2nd in Junior category

Hockey Umpire Recognised
Well done to Year 12 student Oliver Battrick who was selected as one of two youth umpires from Central Otago Hockey to attend and umpire the South Island Regional U15 tournament in the first week of the holidays. This was in recognition of his dedication to umpiring for Central Otago Hockey and he was provided mentoring and training to further develop as an umpire.

Touch Begins
It was great to kick start the touch season on Monday night with three competitive teams and five social teams all playing at the Event Centre. There are a couple of spots still open on the Year 9/10 mixed team if anyone would like to join, please email lnathan@wakatipu.school.nz

Junior Social Volleyball is Underway
The WHS Junior social volleyball competition began yesterday with 28 students in four teams playing for the next seven weeks on Thursdays after school in the gym. The more the merrier with this opportunity to develop skills and knowledge and play with your friends. Please see the sports department if you are keen to get involved.

Opportunities in Term 4 to get Active

Wakatipu Yacht Club
The Wakatipu Yacht Club has recently published a link for membership to the club, plus its calendar of events. Please check out the registration link below if you are interested.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe8ZjAaIj6o9k020cRQsqk0TDYGRoP0AMLiHCm2s4Iddx3b7Q/viewform

Athletics Training
Athletics training is kicking off next Wednesday 26th October for those who wish to compete at the Southland Athletic Champs on 12th November. Mrs Cross and Mr King will be taking sessions in running and throwing for the next four weeks. 

New to WHS?
If you have just recently joined Wakatipu High School and keen to find out more information about sport and active recreation opportunities please visit our website to see what is on offer and join the google classrooms of those activities you are keen to participate in: https://www.sporty.co.nz/wakatipu

Keep Us Informed
The sports department would love to hear from you if you know of any awesome achievements from our students so that we can celebrate these as a school. Please send through details and photos to lnathan@wakatipu.school.nz. 

Support Sport at WHS
Jump on board and support the team by liking or following the Wakatipu High School Sports Facebook page. This is the best way to stay informed and up to date with the successes of our athletes and teams and help celebrate their great achievements. https://www.facebook.com/WakatipuHighSchoolSports/ 

Laura Nathan
Director of Sport

Scholarships

Key Dates

Careers - Job Vacancies for Students

Student Job Vacancies can be viewed at the link below. Please join the google classroom with the code: 3spycgk

Branches Trust Fundraising

As Branches Camp becomes the focus for our Year 10 students this term, we here at the Branches Trust are also working hard at fundrising to contribute to the cost of the camp.

FIRST UP:  QUIZ NIGHT 
Friday 4th November, Lake Hayes Pavilion, 7-11pm  Dress up theme 'Sporting Legends'Tables:  
There are only two tables of 8 left so if you are keen to come email branchestrust@gmail.com to secure one now!  Tables of 8 are $200 which includes food served through the night, there will be a cash bar.  

Prizes, Prizes, Prizes!  
We are also asking for PRIZES for the silent auction we will be holding during the night. ALL the money we make at our events will go to this year's Branches Camp.   If you have any prizes to offer can you please email Belinda on belinda.crichton22@gmail.com or text 027 204 7011 with your offer. 

Parent helpers!
If you are willing and able to help out before or during the night then please email Belinda on belinda.crichton22@gmail.com or text me on 027 204 7011. 

Parent/Caregiver Contributions
The Branches parent/Caregiver contribution has been set at $350 for a number of years now. While the Branches Trust fundraises to help support the camp, the $350 camp donations are very important! We encourage you to please pay them if you are able.

NEXT UP:  WORK DAY
Friday 11th November
Work Day is a real highlight in the school year when the whole Year 10 cohort goes out into the community to work for a day and their wages go towards the Branches Camp.  Today (21 Oct) is the last day for Year 10 students to submit their work choice so please have a chat with your whānau and make sure this form has been submitted. 

Together we can keep this wonderful camp running for many more years to come! 
Ngā mihi nui
Branches Trust  

WHS Foundation

Community Notices

CATALYST TRUST: Space: The Next Generation

Noon,  Tuesday November 1

Queenstown Memorial Centre

As multiple new frontiers open up in space, Catalyst Trust welcomes NASA astronaut Dr Shannon Walker to speak in downtown Queenstown about humanity’s long arc towards the stars on Tuesday, November 1.

The space physicist has spent just short of a year (330 days) living in Earth orbit on the International Space Station.  In 2010 she piloted the Soyuz spacecraft that took her and her crew to the ISS where she served as a Flight Engineer for the next six months. 

In 2020, she was mission specialist aboard the Resilience for the first operational crewed flight of SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft to the ISS, where on arrival she became ISS flight engineer and Space Station Commander for another six months.  Soon after her return from orbit in May of last year, she started training the next generation, becoming the supervisor for the 2021 class of astronauts.

At noon on November 1, Dr Walker will join us at Queenstown Memorial Centre to discuss current and next steps in humanity's exploration of space.  A next generation of lunar astronauts is now returning humanity to the moon, through NASA's Artemis program; a next generation of spacecraft, space probes, and satellites are opening up space for new frontiers of exploration and discovery, while creating more opportunities for more people than ever before to have space-based careers. Our next generation - today's students - will be the astronauts who land on Mars within twenty years. 

Dr Walker holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Physics, as well as Master of Science and Doctorate of Philosophy degrees in Space Physics, all from Rice University in Houston.  She began her professional career with the Rockwell Space Operations Company at the Johnson Space Center in 1987 as a Robotics Flight Controller for the Space Shuttle Program and was first selected by NASA to be an astronaut in 2004.

Please register via our EventBrite listing.  Wearing of masks is welcome, in keeping with advice from the Ministry of Health that they are strongly recommended.  There will be the opportunity at the event to gift a cash koha, which will be donated to Wakatipu High School's Science Buskers Academy.

CATALYST TRUST: Shining Light in the Darkness

6:00pm, Tuesday October 25th
Rees Hotel & Apartments
377 Frankton Road

Scientists literally shine light in the darkness of our cosmos – the universe we all live in. Renowned cosmologist Carl Sagan described science’s critically powerful role of helping us understand and learn about our universe as a “candle in the darkness”.

Catalyst is privileged to be joined by distinguished astrophysicist, Professor Brian Boyle, who will talk with us about how discoveries in the fields of astronomy, astrophysics and cosmology – such as dark energy and expansion of the universe – are continuing to shine more light on the universe and our understanding of it.

Professor Boyle is a Scottish astrophysicist and founder of the Nobel award winning Supernova Cosmology Project, with primary research interests in the fields of quasars, active galaxies, and cosmology.  With a research career based in Australia since 1996, he was involved in science-direction setting in Australia for over 15 years and played a major part both nationally and internationally in the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) program - a project to build the world’s largest cm-wavelength radio telescope - as both CSIRO SKA Director and Project Director for the Australia–New Zealand SKA bid.  He was awarded the Centenary Medal for services to Australian Astronomy in 2003 and elected as a fellow of the Australian Academy of Science in 2006.

Please register via our EventBrite listing.  Wearing of masks is welcome, in keeping with advice from the Ministry of Health that they are strongly recommended.  There will be the opportunity at the event to gift a cash koha, which will be donated to the Winterstellar Charitable Trust.

Hi everyone, did you know that you can come to VTNZ Queenstown for all your driver licensing needs? This includes renewing your drivers licence, sitting your learners licence and doing your restricted or full licence. We’ll help you with the paper work, take your photo and do your eye test. Visit https://vtnz.co.nz/branches/queenstown/ for more information.

Mark, myself and the rest of the team hope to see you soon!

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