Newsletter - Term 2, Week 10

Kia ora koutou katoa

It’s certainly been a busy term with a huge amount of interesting events and a great deal of new learning for the students to engage with in their classes too. Just to give you a quick snapshot of the term, we’ve had Matariki, sporting opportunities, staff and students with Covid, students doing speeches, making films, going outside the classroom to learn about all kinds of of things, and it’s not over yet as the seniors still have a school ball to enjoy on Friday.

If your child is anything like mine, then you're probably not completely aware of just how much they have done this term. With the holidays coming up, I want all of the students to make sure that they relax and use the time available as best they can. My little piece of advice would be that they make some time for themselves - where they do some things that they love to do. I'd also encourage them make some time for their family, by doing something that brings them closer together. Finally, they should make sure that they don't forget about their friends. The regular school day makes it easy for students to get together with each other, but the holidays are obviously less structured making it just a little bit more challenging. Doing something with or for others is a great way to feel better about yourself too.

It wouldn't be a newsletter without talking about Covid. Just a reminder that nationally the number of cases is on the rise. There is every possibility that by the time we return from holiday that we may have a rise in case numbers in Te Anau. Can you please continue to let us know if your child gets Covid during the holiday. It will just help us make sure that we can quickly see any trends that we may need to prepare for.

Ngā mihi nui

Steven Mustor

On Monday 20 June 2022, a group of 62 students left the Te Anau basin in order to compete in the Southland Otago Showquest competition. This competition is regarded as New Zealand / Aotearoa's biggest performing arts contest.

This year Fiordland College took on the relevant theme of Farmers' Mental Health. Throughout a 10 minute performance we took acting and dancing hand-in-hand to speak volumes about the topic and pay tribute to those struggling in our rural area. Fiordland College obtained three awards throughout the experience, Best Costume and Enhancement, Best Theme, and Lily Newcombe got an award for her rooster costume she entered in the Wearable Arts Competition - Toi!

We also received glowing reviews from the official Showquest judges and our community. The Showquest leadership team is hoping for the same student body support and impact in future years as we have received for this ‘showquest season’. The leadership team thanks everyone for their copious amount of effort and support, and we are already working on a theme for next year!

By Mia Macrae

9HD have had a few creative technology lessons making ugly creatures out of recycled fabric. They had to design the creature based on two animals, and include a button in their final product. Some new hand sewing skills were developed, and some awesome creatures created.

On behalf of all students, staff and whānau of Fiordland College we would like to extend our gratitude to Kate for being our Sports Coordinator for the past year.

Kate has done an enormous amount of work behind the scenes to give all students a huge amount of different opportunities and allow them to follow their interests. Her passion for rangitahi (young people) and encouraging them to be active has driven many initiatives. We appreciate the time and effort, often above and beyond, that you have put into this role. We wish you all the best for your new adventures.

"A group of Fiordland College students puts the FIRST Litter Intelligence freshwater beach site on the map"

Thanks to a passionate and determinate group of Fiordland College students, the FIRST Litter Intelligence freshwater beach site in Aotearoa is on the map: Lake front site - Faith's Jetty Lake Te Anau! https://litterintelligence.org/data/survey?id=1566 A huge thank you to Bronwyn Graham from Litter Intelligence (LI) / Sustainable Coastlines for training the students, and to WWF New Zealand and The Tindall Foundation for their generous funding.

If you are at Fiordland College and would like to get involved, please approach Gwylam, Ianthe, Matai, or Nina (they are all LI Lead Citizen Scientists, part of the KRTK Litter Bugs).

If you are a student or a teacher at Te Anau School or Mararoa School or a member of the community and would like to get involved, please contact alessandra.krtkeduco@gmail.com.

The first survey happened in May under the Fiordland Litter Monitoring Group name, who surveys a beach in Milford but, from next survey on, the LI lake front site will be under the KRTK Litter Bugs name.

Junior School Reports will be issued on Thursday 28 July 2022. This is for all students in Years 7-10.

There will also be a Parent-Caregiver / Teacher Evening on Tuesday 02 August 2022, for you to discuss your child's progress with their teachers. A letter will be emailed home with booking details the first week of Term 3.

Well done to Nicole Green who finished 3rd in the U18 girls grade with Paige Grieve 4th.

Jemima Hoskin and Jazz Braaksma were our top performers at the annual school championships in Invercargill last weekend. They won the Year 7/8 Girls Experienced Grade.

Also placing were Cody Molloy and Josh Smith winning the Year 9/10 Novice Teams section.

Congratulations to our Year 13 (and a couple of others) Volleyball team who finished 2nd in the Te Anau basin competitions held in Term 2 at the Events Centre.

The same team had recently competed in a Southland one-day tournament where they finished 5th.

On Wednesday we hosted seven students from Otago and Auckland Universities who are training to be dentists, doctors or nurses.

30 of our students listened to a presentation then took part in a range of practical sessions.

Our A Netball team recently participated at Stadium Southland in a competition against five other Southland Schools. This is a great competition, held annually, before schools head off to the South Island Secondary Schools' Netball Tournament. The girls had a great day and achieved 2nd Place. Good luck for tournament week!

Photo Back L-R : Brooke Scott, Natalie Spence, Sophie Willans, Noah Cockburn, Maddie Wilson, Brooklyn Day.

Photo Front: Tessa Gamble, Franki Campbell, Alice Meskauskas

Sports Co-Ordinator (permanent, part-time)

Fiordland College

This exciting and rewarding role will include: developing an annual sports and recreation calendar of events; facilitating school sports fixtures and exchanges; providing support for organised sports teams and promoting a wide range of sporting opportunities. A key aim is to increase student participation and enjoyment in sporting activities.

Key attributes

• Extremely well-organised, with good computer skills
• Good interpersonal skills and communicates well with students and adults alike
• Works well without direct supervision and uses initiative to solve non-routine tasks
• Recognises the importance of sport and physical recreation in the development of young people.

Flexible working hours (15 hours per week during school terms only).

Applications close at 5 pm Wednesday 20 July 2022

Application Form and Job Description available from:

School Office, Howden St, Te Anau

Phone (03) 249 7819

Email s.mustor@fiordland.school.nz

Roast Dinner and Quiz Night

Ray White are hosting this fundraising evening, in support of a very good cause.

Get a team together for a fun night out!

Fiordland Families Network

Here is the link to the latest newsletter: https://mcusercontent.com/35b17634750e6117810f587c1/files/c86f5ec8-8840-238f-5c67-45211c6fa484/Issue_39_FFN_July_2022.pdf