From this week our prefects and student council are running the Kickstart Breakfast programme. Fonterra and Sanitarium have provided the school with milk and Weetbix so that students who come along can have a breakfast before school. Breakfast will be served from 7.30am to 8.15am in the Food Technology room every Monday and Wednesday. For further information about the programme in schools please use the link below. https://www.kickstartbreakfast.co.nz/
This year we are using a new web based tool with students to survey them about their well-being. This tool is called Goodspace. It takes less than 10 minutes for students to answer health and well-being questions. The survey is used by the Student Services team (that is the counselors and the nurse) to ensure we are offering support to students as needed. This is a part of our well-being plan to protect and enhance the hauora of our rangatahi. The survey begins next week with Year 10's but will roll; through all year levels in Term Two.
A couple of weeks ago, right in the middle of my summer break, I got on a plane to Dunedin to be part of the annual Hands-On at Otago programme. Having researched summer science opportunities earlier in the year, I came across this, and after some research, was really attracted to the concept. Successful applicants from across New Zealand all gather at the University of Otago for 6 days of immersion into the university life. The application process enables applicants to choose 5 of 36 available projects in order of preference, that they will spend the week studying. They are…
The following is an excerpt from my address at the Sports Dinner on Friday, 26 October. Sport, like life, resembles the game of snakes and ladders. There are wins (ladder moments) and losses (snake moments). There are triumphs and disasters, but either way the game goes on and you just have to carry on rolling the dice. Sport can help create a growth mindset and through pursuing personal excellence, we can do anything if we want it enough. Success is all about handling what is in front of us. As sports people we learn so much from the diverse situations…
The 2018 Senior Prizegiving was held on Friday, 2 November at the Rutherford School Hall. At Rutherford we know that we get to choose our attitude and this is the most important thing we can do with our mind; to choose our attitude. Our attitude is the critical element in the pursuit of personal excellence and our happiness. Here is a quick snapshot of the year of 2018. Early in term 1 we had the year 9 Powhiri, Swimming and Athletic Sports events, and then the new to Rutherford Family and Whanau BBQ. Our premier Touch Boys and Girls teams…
NCEA Exams run from Wednesday, 7 November to Friday, 30 November. All NCEA (levels 1–3) and New Zealand Scholarship examination sessions are three hours. All exam sessions start at either 9.30 am or 2.00 pm. The information below is from the NZQA website and includes a link to the 2018 Exam Timetable. Exam timetable The NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship examination sessions are three hours. The exam sessions start at either 9.30 am or 2.00 pm. To find out the date and time of an exam, see the Exam timetable. Exam materials Students are responsible for taking the correct equipment to the…
Junior exams are on Friday, 16 November and Monday, 19 November 2018. Friday, 16 November Session One - 8:40am to 11:am Year 10 | English Year 9 | Mathematics Session Two 11:40am to 2pm Year 10 | Science Year 9 | Social Studies Monday, 19 November Session One - 8:40am to 11:am Year 10 | Social Studies Year 9 | English Session Two 11:40am to 2pm Year 10 | Mathematics Year 9 | Science School will finish at 2pm on both days.
The selection of the 24 prefects for 2019 has been finalised. Congratulations to the following students. We look forward to you helping to lead the school and student body in 2019. Tayla-Lee Bainbridge - Deputy Head Girl Fiona Blaser - Head Girl Emma Brown Josh Burte Caz Chiba Matt Darrah - Head Boy Aleesha Faatea Abby Ferrall Fern Fuimaono Eden Holdaway-Young Rachel Jeung-Mcintrye Andrew Mom Dean Phommahaxay - Deputy Head Boy Juana Pita Nikisha Sharma Devyn Smith India Smith Josh Smith Ruby Stroud Mollie Tagaloa - Deputy Head Girl Luka Vlasic Kelsi Ward Brooklyn Wheeler Stefan Zdravkovic - Deputy Head Boy
Each year Rutherford holds an election to vote a student onto the Board of Trustees and the School Representative. Nominations have been received and voting starts on Tuesday, 11 September and closes at 4pm on Friday, 14 September 2018. Any student enrolled full time in Year 9 and above, under the age of 20, is eligible to stand for election and vote in the school election for a student representative. Student representatives have equal standing, voice, accountabilities and vote as other board members, but they can't be the board chair (neither can the principal nor staff trustee). They're not just…
On Friday, 24 August we celebrated the 56th Annual Rutherford Memorial Day. It was an absolute privilege and pleasure to have as our guest speaker Sir Pita Sharples. A man of huge mana, wisdom and a man with strong links to the west and Rutherford College. So, why do we have a Rutherford Memorial Day? There are three reasons. Firstly, on this day we pause to remember that our school is named after one of the world’s foremost scientists of not just his generation but of all time – Sir Ernest Rutherford, Nobel prize winner. Secondly, Rutherford Day is a…