South Otago High School
Newsletter, 26th February 2016
Nga mihi mahana ki a koutou katoa
Warm greetings to you all
Dear Parents/Caregivers
Kia Ora Tatou
This week in assembly we announced and badged our
Head Students and the Student Council members.
Earlier in the week I attended a meeting with the
Student Council members to talk about their plans for
the year.
It was good to see the enthusiasm of students during
this meeting and to hear their ideas about what they
could build into the school year. Within this leadership
team there is a great deal of enthusiasm and desire to
leave a positive impression upon the students of South
Otago High School. They are also interested in
supporting their wider community.
I look forward to seeing these young leaders develop
their plans during the year,
Uniform
On Wednesday I commended students for their uniform
as they are once again looking smart. Well done to our
first three Uniform Gold Card winners for 2016: Jack
Dent, Eliana Nicol and Lachie O’Hara. However, I
would like to draw to the attention of parents that a
number of students are wearing canvas shoes. The
expectation is that students wear leather ‘polishable’
shoes.
This week I will be writing to parents asking that, as we
move into winter they provide the correct shoes for
students. The canvas shoes will be cold and wet during
the winter months. It is expected that by Queens
Birthday weekend all students will be in correct
footwear. This provides plenty of time for parents to
prepare for the expenditure of correct footwear.
Peer Support Leaders
This week we also acknowledged the support provided
by the Peer Support Leaders in Y13. These students do
a great job settling and welcoming our new Y9 students
at the start of the year. A full list of Peer Support
Leaders appears elsewhere in this newsletter.
Finally
This week Ginny Saunders spoke to the school about
her experience at Outward Bound last December. I
encourage all students to consider this opportunity.
Each year a scholarship provided by the Community
Trust of Otago, available which covers the course costs.
As Ginny said in her presentation, it is a ‘life changing
experience’ and one which will provide lasting
memories and provide personal growth which can
benefit young people when they go to employment.
Ka kite ano
Mr Mike Wright—Principal
Peer Support Leaders 2016
Brooke Barnett
Jordan Beck
Jessie Bennett
Tori Brown
Chantz Browne
Tarah Clark
Sophie Cook
Simon Craig
Bree Cross
Alyssa Cu
Caitlin Curtin
Tegan Duncan
Olivia Finney
Jackson Gardner
Kate Gold
Tegan Gouman
Laura Graham
Maxine Gray
Michaela Groenewegen
Beth Gunn
Tayla Hannah
Mitchell Hollows
Atawhai Hotene
Sarah Jessop
Reid Johnstone
Jess Kendall
Jesse Maher
Reese Martin
Beckie McKinney
Zena McLay
Hannah McLeary
Sophie Mills
Sophie Morrison
Jack Payne
Bailey Reichel
Olivia Richardson
Kate Robertson
Ginny Sanders
Sasha Scott
Joshua Sellwood
Henry Sly
Brodie Smith
Jayden Stewart
Ashton Tourell
Tasmyn White
Katie Willocks
Peer Support Ambassadors—Hannah Cornish and
Martyn Joyce
From Left to Right:
Head students for 2016
 Deputy Head Boy:
Josh Hill
 Head Boy:
Ashton Tourell
 Head Girl:
Sophie Mills
 Deputy Head Girl:
Olivia Finney
Payment of School Accounts
All payments, including the compulsory stationery
payments, can be deposited by Internet banking. Our
bank number is 020 918 0160198 00
Please remember to annotate the payment with the
student’s name and what the payment is for.
Regular payments of $10.00 - $15.00 per week for each
student is ideal to cover most costs throughout the year.
Please set up your own automatic payments. School
trips must be paid for at the time, unless you have
sufficient credit on your child’s account.
Blazers
Have you got a SOHS Blazer that you no longer
need? If it is in good condition the school would
consider buying it from you for our blazer hire here
at school. We need to replenish our stock.
Karen Wright
Uniform
Ph: 4180517 ext 214
Email: [email protected]
Change of Contact Details
Please alert the office if you have changed any of
your contact details: phone numbers (landlines and
cell); addresses; email addresses and emergency
contacts etc. It is very important in an emergency
or if a child needs to go home for any reason.
Netball
Opening day is the 2nd April. Trials begin next week.
The school gym is out of action at the moment so some
trials will be held at the Rec Centre. Netballers need to
bring $1 to cover court hire costs.
Senior:

Tuesday 1st 4:00 - 5:30 pm at the REC Centre

Wednesday 2nd 5:00 - 6:30 pm at the REC Centre
Year 10

Monday 14th March - New Gym

Friday 18th March - New Gym
Year 9

Tuesday 8th March - outside courts at high school
Jo Jory
TIC Netball
Library
This week in the Library has been another busy one
with an influx of new books and our first book club
meeting which I hope will become more popular as the
weeks go by. One that caught my eye is Anna and the
Swallow Man. A wartime story set in Krakow during
1939 and suitable for all ages, it tells the tale of Anna, a
girl of just seven who wakes up to find that Germans
have taken her father, leaving her alone until she meets
a mysterious man who takes her under his wing. The
two of them embark on a dangerous adventure in the
middle of a war where bombs are everywhere and they
do what they must to survive. A captivating read for
both young and old.
Katrina Pudney
Librarian
If you are not receiving the weekly Newsletter and
would like to, please send me you email address
and I will add you to the newsletter list.
Jackie Frisby
School Secretary
Ph: 4180517
Email: [email protected]
School Football (Girls and Boys)
We have begun sign ups for our school football teams
during this week. If your son or daughter has missed out
on doing this and wants to play then please have them
see Mr Beeby in D3 early next week or contact me on
the details below.
Absences/Appointments
Please phone in your absences and leave a message
on the absence line. Do not email the office.
We are looking for parents/guardians/caregivers/adults
who would be interested in helping coach one of the
four teams that we are expecting to have this year. If
you were interested in helping then can you please
email or phone Mr Beeby at the school to discuss this.
If you child has an appointment during the day,
please send a signed note or appointment card with
the student to Mrs Wright
Karen Wright
Attendance Officer
Training days are at the discretion of the coach so you
can coach the team on the day that suits you best. We
do recommend an after school training though as this is
most suitable for our students.
Year 13 Physical Education
The Year 13 Physical Education class will travel to
Queenstown on Sunday 3rd April to Tuesday 5th of
April for their current unit of work - Analyse
contemporary leadership principles and their relevance
for physical activity contexts. The cost of the trip will be
approximately $100. Further information will follow
within the next couple of weeks.
Anna O’Sullivan—HOD Physical Education
Competition games are played on Thursday afternoons
for the girls' teams and Saturday morning for the boys
(we enter the club competition under Balclutha AFC's
name). We have had coaching teams in the past where
one person has taken training's and the other has taken
the games so if you were interested in doing this then
please let me know.
Mike Beeby
[email protected]
(03) 428 0517 x240
Sports News
Golf Coaching - Students have an opportunity for some
coaching through the Balclutha Golf Club, during
daylight savings. Students need to contact Jeff Bisset
(021 065 7595) to organise a time that suits.
Winter Sports team Coaches & Managers
Traditionally we have teams representing SOHS in
winter regional competitions in the following sports Basketball, Football, Hockey, Netball & Rugby. We
are reliant on members of the community to assist us
with coaching and managing these teams. If you are
interested in being a part of any of these groups, please
get in touch with me and I will forward your details to
the Teacher in Charge of that sport.
Well done to the SOHS Mixed Touch team who
qualified for the South Island Tournament when they
won the Otago Secondary School Champs last
Saturday.
All the best to the SOHS Tennis team, heading away to
the South Island Champs next week in Timaru.
Athletics Day is this Thursday 3rd March, and the long
range forecast looks great. I have gone digital this year,
and the entry form is to be completed online. Please
encourage your child to get this done at the weekend so
we can set the programme. It is compulsory to do three
events - Long Jump, Shot & Discus are proving to be
the most popular so far. If your student signs in to their
SOHS account, and types start.sohs.school.nz into the
tab www address, the entry form is in the bottom right
corner. So far I have 322 entries - still a long way off
the total roll. Please put the date in your diary, we
would love to have some parents and friends cheering
on.
Rachel Heller
Sports Coordinator
Rugby
It seems very early to be thinking about school rugby in
February, but with Super Rugby kicking off this weekend,
there is a keenness amongst the players to get started.
The good news is that other than the 1st XV (Sat Apr 30),
competition rugby for our boys’ teams doesn’t begin until
Saturday, May 7 (the first Saturday in Term Two). The bad
news is that means a longer pre-season!!
At this early stage, only the 1sts and 2nds are underway
with their weekly fitness with Mr Palmer. The juniors are
champing at the bit, so to that end I will have some sign-up
sheets up in school next week.
We are hopeful of maintaining our 5 boys’ teams, and at
least one girls’ team. The 1st XV will play in the SWRE 1st
XV competition once again, while the 2nds will play in the
U18 grade below. We are looking at creating an U16 Colts
team, who may follow the 1st XV around and play the same
schools as a curtain raiser. We will also have our traditional
Under 14 and Under 15 teams. The Girls will continue their
involvement in the midweek Otago competition.
To that end, we are seeking coaches and managers for the
2nd XV, Under 16 and Under 14 teams. Expressions of
interest can be made to me on 0274184032. Ideally, we
would like to have a solid crew of parents involved with
these teams.
Greg Heller (TIC Rugby)
Touch
The South Otago mixed touch team played in the Otago
Secondary Schools Touch Championship last Saturday in
Mosgiel. They got off to a great start running around
Kaikorai Valley College, beating them 8-0. Their
dominance continued for the rest of the day, only having a
few issues against old foes, Tokomairiro High
School. The score line was close at half time
but South Otago’s experience and skill allowed
them to extend the margin with a final score of
7-3. Winning the tournament has given the
team the chance to compete in the South Island
Tournament held in Christchurch, March 1920. Thank you for all those supporters who
travelled to Mosgiel for the day. The team
looks forward to representing themselves and
the school at the South Island Tournament.
Jared Peacock
TIC Touch
Term One Upcoming Events

Tuesday 1st March......................................................... Lockdown Drill

Thursday 3rd March ...................................................... Athletics Day

Friday 4th March........................................................... Athletics Day (Reserve Day)

Monday 7th March - Friday 10th March...................... Year 10 Tautuku Camp

Wednesday 9th March ................................................... School starts at 8.45am—No late start today

Thursday 17th - Friday 18th March ............................. Year 13 Geography Trip

Monday 21st March ...................................................... Anniversary Day - School is closed