Kia ora tatou, 

I hope you have all had a peaceful and restful break. It was super nice to have some great weather and some quality time with friends and whānau.

You will notice, we continue to celebrate and acknowledge so many of our students as they grasp the different opportunities.

The road works along Centreway Road has caused a few issues this morning. We fully understand those students, parents and whānau who are navigating different ways to get to and from school. Safety is our number one priority here.

Next term is coming fast. I would like to mention again the “no phones for the day” policy and government legislation. Next week, we will be actively reminding students to try and not get their phones out. Encouraging them to think about what else they could be doing instead of sitting on their phones (or even their devices at break times). You can help us with this also, by having these discussions at home.

If a parent or caregiver needs to contact their child urgently during the day, they should call the office or contact their child via their school email address.

On a far more exciting note, term 2 brings us our new principal. Wiri Warriner, from Whangaparāoa College, an ex student of Orewa College. In case you missed the message from the Board of Trustees on the website - here is the link.

Enjoy our news and celebrations throughout the newsletter.


Ngā mihi

Anna Kenny
Acting Principal

Events / Information

April 2024

Saturday 6 April - School Ball
Monday 8 April - Year 8 HPV Vaccination
Monday 8 April to Friday 26 April - Dental Planet Visit Years 9-13
Wednesday 10 April - Academic Conference Day
Thursday 11 April - International Festival
Friday 12 April - ANZAC Assembly

** Monday 15 April to Friday 26 April - Term 1 School Holidays **

Monday 29 April to Friday 7 June - Auckland Regional Dental Van Years 7-8
Tuesday 30 April - Year 8 HPV Vaccination Catch Up

Level 1 Visual Art at the Auckland War Memorial Museum

On Tuesday 26 March, the Level 1 Visual Art ākonga had a day of drawing and learning at the Auckland War Memorial Museum.  Ākonga studied and sketched taonga of Aotearoa, learning about the role, use and value of taonga in Matauranga Māori.  From there we ventured outside in between sunshine and drizzle and experienced drawing en plein air, in the elements drawing our vista of the Ports of Auckland, followed by drawing the early nineteenth architecture of the Wintergradens. A great day of learning, drawing, experimenting, manaaki and developmenting their skills as young artists. This learning is now taken back into the classroom where we are applying this knowledge and responding to Aotearoa's unique history.

Public Transport - Fare Changes from Wednesday 1 May 2024

Free travel for 5-12 years old and half-price travel for 13-24 years old on AT bus, train and ferry services will end on 30 April 2024, in line with the government’s decision to withdraw funding for these concessions.

5-12 years old Will no longer travel for free on weekdays and will instead pay a child concession (at least 40% off adult fares). They will continue to travel for free on weekends. The child concession will apply to anyone aged 5-15, who has a registered AT HOP card with their correct date of birth.   13-15 years old  Will stop receiving the half-price child fares discount and instead switch to paying full child fares (at least 40% off an adult fare during weekdays, and free travel on weekends) from 1 May. The child concession will apply to anyone aged 5-15, who has a registered AT HOP card with their correct date of birth.     16-19 years old With a secondary student concession will stop receiving the half-price secondary fares discount and instead switch to paying full secondary fares (at least 40% off an adult fare). Students aged 16-19 should apply for the secondary student concession to ensure they are paying the cheapest fare possible.  More information about the discounts and what you may need to do next can be found HERE.

Pi-Day Challenge 2024

After being postponed by a week the Pi-Day Challenge went ahead on Thursday 21 March.  

Students could "qualify" by reciting an approximation of Pi (blindfolded) to 30 decimal places and then, if they wanted to, could return to room S10 at lunchtime to compete for the title of "School ChamPIon" by reciting Pi correctly to as many digits as possible.

We had some great performances from our Middle School students including, Lana Leng and Morgan Lee of 8WDA and Ryhan Gray of 8ODL getting to 116,113 and 113 respectively as well as Ethan Heke of 7ACR managing the 113 mark.

This year saw Maria Walker-Kinnell of 12CDC once again take out the title with a very honorable 182 decimal place correctly recited performance (with a Shakespeareanesque iambic pentameter to boot!).

Maria took home the family sized Apple Pie and a $30 Woolworths Gift Card.
Well done to all of the ākonga that gave it a go and pushed their memories to honour this very interesting mathematical concept!

It is attended by our Year 7 and 8 students, prefects, and senior leadership. The assembly runs for about 30 minutes.

We would like to offer an open invitation to any parents who wish to attend, especially those who have served, or are serving, in any armed forces around the world.

If you would like to attend, please contact Head of Year 7, Karl Buckley ([email protected]).

Year 7 & 8 Dental Van Visit

The Auckland Regional Dental Service van will be onsite at the college from Monday 29 April to Friday 7 June.

They will provide free dental check up and treatment for children who are due a consultation.  Students will be called up during class time.

More information can be found in this LETTER.

Coast Physio - Surcharge Increase from 2 April 2024

CASE Space School - Visit Nasa! Middle and Senior Students

All Orewa College students are invited to join CASE Space School International Study Program and visit NASA in the USA in July 2025.

Information Evening - 6:00pm, Thursday 4 April 2024, via Zoom or contact: Samantha Barkla: [email protected] For further information click HERE.

Information for Years 8-10    Zoom   6.00pm
Information for Years 11-13  Zoom   7.00pm

National Schools Poetry Award

The search for our best and brightest Year 12 and 13 poets is on again. The winner and shortlisted poets will be announced on National Poetry Day, 23 August. The Schools Poetry Award is run by the International Institute of Modern Letters, Victoria University of Wellington. Entries close on 8 July 2024.  Enter HERE. Remember the poetry kit which is full of useful writing exercises.

Careers Hub

Last week we had four Health Professionals come and speak to forty Year 11-13 students. We heard from a Surgeon, a Nurse, a Physio and someone who works alongside Opthomologists assisting those with low vision.  These four had interesting stories and insights into what they do on a daily basis as well as how they found their pathway into their chosen field.

This week during ILT, we have Queenstown Resort College (QRC) in to speak with Year 11-13 about their Business Management Diploma in Hospitality, Adventure Tourism & IT.  This is a great place to study that also entails the opportunity to do a paid internship in various places around the world. 

In May next term we have all eight Universities in to speak to Year 12 & 13 students in ILT Wednesdays - all eight of NZ Universities are in the top 3% of the world's universities, of which there are in excess of 20,000.

Orewa College Year Book 2024

In addition to the traditional print version, this year, we are also producing our Yearbook in a digital edition that you can view on all devices.

CAN ALL PARENTS/CAREGIVERS PLEASE CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW.

International Festival - Thursday 11 April

Centreway Road: Temporary Bus Stop Information

Due to a road rehabilitation of Centreway Road, there will be a northbound road closure for the duration of the works (approx. 4 weeks). 

Temporary bus stops will be set up on Hibiscus Coast Highway near the intersection with Centreway Road.

Maps and Full Information HERE.

Reminder: Academic Conference Day Wednesday 10 April

This will be an all day event for students and parents to meet with their ILT teachers.  The booking system will remain open for parent/caregivers to book their interview time.  Please click HERE for instructions on how to book.

Uniform Group - Term 2 Hours

Thursday 11 April is the last day of trading for Term 1, 2024

Please note that the shop is open for two days in the first week of the school holidays: 
Thursday, 18^th April: 10:00am – 2:00pm
Saturday, 20^th April: 10:00am – 2:00pm

Eligibility: Open to all Dutch-speaking and Dutch Heritage students currently enrolled in Years 7-13 at any New Zealand school.  
Submission Deadline: Pre-entry submissions, in the form of a video of the speech, must be received by 11:59 PM on 28 April.   Poster and Ambassador's Letter.
Full details and entry information HERE.

Keeping our Rangitahi Safe

A small $5 Koha/ Donation is appreciated either on the night or a deposit to:
Orewa College ASB 23 109 001266 00 (Include your name & ParentWorkshop as reference)

To Register click this LINK.

Our Sponsors - Proud Supporters of Orewa College