Celebrations of Learning
Halloween Party
Pikitia pictures from our recent Halloween Party. Ngā mihi thank you to everyone who came, we loved kanikani dancing and seeing all the costumes!
Disability Play Partnerships
Halberg Foundation with Primary Sports Canterbury have teamed up with 9 Round, Mainland Football, Canterbury Hockey, Christchurch Netball Centre and Bowls Canterbury to run an amazing afternoon of sport for our primary students to come together from across Canterbury.
Safety first!
Ākonga students at TRH look forward to learning woodworking skills with Howard each week. Safety is number one priority and is taken very seriously by the students!
Kapa haka
Ka pai ō mahi koutou Great work everyone! Our Kapa Haka group at the recent Whiria ngā Tāngata o Waihora. Ngā mihi nui big thanks to Matua Steve, our ākonga and whānau who supported us on the night.
Waitaha School Matariki Festival 2023.mp4
Cultural Leader
Our cultural leader at Te Tupu Harakeke- Tarriq (back row) was involved in the planting of natives for the King's Coronation
A fabulous end to a year
2022 WSPrizeGiving.mp42022 Ski Trip
In Week 8 and 9 of this term a group of students and staff participated in 2 ski trips. The first being to Mount Hutt with Adaptive Snowsport Canterbury where Madi had her first opportunity to go Bi Skiing. In Week 9 we then went up to Porters Ski Field where we had a fantastic day where all students managed to zoom down the hill.
Minister Williams Visit
On the 16th of September Waitaha School had a visit from the disabilities Minister Poto Williams to discuss students inspirations, voice their opinions and share their outlooks.
Visit_Minister.MOV2022 Production - Here Come the Heroes
On the 14th of September, Waitaha School put on their 2022 production at Rolleston College. This was an original story, illustrated and written by Waitaha school. This story celebrates everything unique and super about our students. All classes participated by choreographing dances alongside fantastic acting and narrating from various students across Waitaha spaces.
Taumutu Marae
On Tuesday the 16th of August 17 Waitaha students got the amazing opportunity attend a discovery and planting day run by Te Ara Kārāriki at Te Pa o Moki/Taumutu Marae.
They learned valuable lessons such as; Planting eco-sourced seedlings,
Investigating fish and invertebrates in the awa, Learning to weave harakeke, with Taua Daphne O'Connell and Native trees and their value to wildlife.
Lou and her team lead engaging and interactive activities. These lessons were invaluable and inclusive. They allowed for all of our students to learn in their own way and still gain an incredible amount. They showed Whanaungatanga by giving the students a sense of belonging, Manaakitanga by extending aroha to us, Maramatanga by understanding our diversity and our super powers and finally Mohiotanga by sharing the information and knowledge.
It was incredibly valuable, and we are grateful for this opportunity.
Waitaha KDP report - 16 August 2022 - Reana Instone.pdf
Bob - West Rolleston Talent Quest
On the 19th of September, Bob from Te Pā Harakeke competed in the West Rolleston Talent Quest Finals. He played the drums to Get Back by his favourite band, The Beatles. Bob made us all very proud by being so brave and confident. He received an honourable mention award for his performance. Bob is very musical participating in singing lessons at school and drum lessons with his tutor, Ryan. Go, Bob!
YES - Young Enterprise Scheme
On the last Thursday of Term 2 the Waitaha's Young Enterprise Scheme team, Atawhai, ventured to Ara Institute of Technology to pitch their business idea to a panel of judges. This was the second challenge of five that the team will complete throughout this year that relates to establishing and running a business. The team were amazing at expressing their idea and won the judges over with their genuine compassion and concern for other people.
Alex S: "I was a bit nervous, but after I felt a bit of independence"
Patrick "The pitch went good, and it made me feel really, really happy to have done it."
Eric " I was excited to go and I really want to do it again next year."
Edward " It made me feel happy and strong like a man."
Scarlet Presenting at Youth Parliament at The Beehive
Scarlet Shannon recently attended Youth Parliament in Wellington as part of her work as a Youth MP for Duncan Webb. It started with the Governor General summoning all the Youth MPs in and welcoming them to Parliament. Scarlet was also part of the Social and Community Select Committee. In this committee, they heard submissions from various groups around Housing and then as a group, wrote a report that was presented to the Youth Parliament with recommendations. In this group, Scarlet was a big advocate for those with disabilities and ensured her views were heard and her ideas included. On the last day, Scarlet gave a 3 minute speech as part of the General Debate in the Debating Chamber. She spoke clearly and confidently, making us all extremely proud. In her speech, Scarlet recommended that foster care providers such as Oranga Tamariki give more training to caregivers on disability and be consistent in their training. This was an amazing experience for Scarlet. She thoroughly enjoyed her time at Parliament and is looking forward to continuing her involvement in politics
Selwyn Primary Cross Country Zones 2022
Congratulations to Jamal and Seth who recently competed in the Selwyn Cross Country Zones event at Nga Puna Wai. Both Jamal and Seth showed determination and endurance as they ran alongside their West Rolleston Peers. We are very proud of them.
Senior Camp 2022
Monday 14th February - Wednesday 16th February
In week 3, we journeyed to Woodend to embark on our camp adventure! The three days spent at camp were filled with lots of laughs, some incredible opportunities for growth, and most importantly… marshmallows! It was so cool to see our students step out of their comfort zones (as well as discover who talks in their sleep!)
videoplayback.mp4Waitech 2021
Count on Me
The Waitech crew has put together a compilation of photos and videos from their work in 2021.
Silver Duke of Edinburgh Award Takapō
Wednesday 24th November - Friday 26th November.
The Silver Duke of Edinburgh group planned an exploration trip to Takapō to explore the area. We walked the Hooker Valley Track, learned about the stars at the Dark Sky Project, and enjoyed the lake and hot pools. The students planned the whole trip by dividing different jobs among them. Some of the tasks included research and booking accommodation, map skills, trip planning, budgeting, shopping, ringing activity providers, and many, many more tasks.
Intermediate Camp
Wednesday 20th October - Friday 22nd October
In the first week of term 4, our intermediate students attended Living Springs Camp for 2 nights and 3 days. Students challenged themselves, persevered, tried new things and made themselves very proud. The smiles say it all!
Rata and Miro visit Chipmunks
Tuesday 6th July
Rata an Miro had an amazing morning out at Chipmunks to celebrate the end of term. Our Students enjoyed playing with their friends, running, climbing, sliding and having heaps of fun!
Canterbury Primary Boccia Championship
Thursday, 1st July.
Alex and Anton competed in the Canterbury Primary Boccia Championship. Both students had a great day full of boccia games. Well done on a great day, 8th place for Alex and 10th place for Anton.
Duke of Edinburgh's Hillary Award Ceremony
Thursday, 24th June.
Huge congratulations to our Bronze and Gold Duke of Edinburgh's Hillary Award recipients who received their pins and certificates today to acknowledge their perseverance and hard work over the last year. We had 15 students receive their bronze award and 5 students receive their gold award.
Thank you Chris Allan from the Joshua Foundation for facilitating our students and Sophie McInnes, Selwyn District Councillor, for presenting the awards.
3 Little Pigs - Stop Motion Movie
Nic, Jonty & Brock. Starring Maureen Allan.
Nic, Jonty and Brock worked together over a whole term to take over 3000 photos, edit the movie, and add sound to produce this movie.
3 Little Pigs-HD 720p (1).mov2020 Waitaha School Prize Giving
Thursday, 17th of December. Rolleston College Auditorium.
Congratulations to all our students at Waitaha School for a fantastic year.