Principal News

The Importance of the Arts

We wholeheartedly agree with the Ministry of Education's emphasis on reading, writing, and mathematics. These foundational skills are crucial for our student's academic success and future endeavours. We appreciate the time that the Ministry has provided to improve our literacy programmes, and we are constantly trying to improve our mathematics programme.  A significant amount of our teacher’s time is spent on professional development in these areas.  Thank you to all of our parents for your support of our two teacher-only days this year.

While we acknowledge the importance of core academics, we also recognise the vital role of the Arts in our students' education. The Arts—music, drama, visual arts, and dance—are not merely extracurricular activities; they are integral to developing creativity, critical thinking, and emotional intelligence.   Next term, all classes and students will be involved in designing, creating and presenting a pantomime to the juniors in one of the local primary schools.  

The Arts allow our students to express themselves and connect with their humanity. As Albert Einstein once said, “Creativity is intelligence having fun.” The Arts make us uniquely human, fostering innovation and empathy in ways that other subjects often cannot.  The Arts Evening held on Wednesday night was a highlight of the term for me.  The amount of pride in the room from the students, parents and teachers was palpable.  Thank you to the teachers who organised this memorable evening.

Intermediate school is a time of tremendous growth and self-discovery. These years are crucial for our students to explore their interests, identify their passions, and begin to shape their identities. We encourage our students to try new things, join clubs, participate in sports, and engage in various activities. It's through these experiences that they will discover what they love and what they are good at. This is a time for them to find their voice, build confidence, and lay the foundation for a fulfilling and purposeful life.  If your child hasn’t taken part in anything on offer at Tahuna yet, please encourage them to consider joining something in term 2.

We're delighted to celebrate the achievements of our summer sports teams and activities! Congratulations to all the students who participated, and especially to those who made it to the finals. We extend our gratitude to all parents, teachers, and volunteers who support our sports and extracurricular programmes, and a special thank you to Tom Hume, our dedicated sports coordinator, for his efforts.

A special well done to the futsal girls' team who won the junior high school tournament, Charlotte Evans, who won the golden boot in the girl's year 8 futsal competition, the Year 8 touch boys who came second and the Year 8 girls who came first.   Congratulations also go to the Epro 8 team, who made it to the final this week and came third.  Good luck to our Volleyball and Waterpolo teams, who are in finals.

We wish all students a happy and safe holiday and I hope that you all get time to connect as a family over the next two weeks.

Kā mihi nui

Simon Clarke