Kamo Intermediate Year 7 students Claire Roberts, George Henderson and Lilly Soole, all 11 years old. Photo / Tania Whyte
Kamo Intermediate Year 7 students Claire Roberts, George Henderson and Lilly Soole, all 11 years old. Photo / Tania Whyte
Schools are opening across this week and next week. Reporter Brodie Stone spoke to students about how it felt to be back at kura, or for some, to be beginning their school journey.
The 2023 school year was off to a strange start as Northland was thrust into a state of emergency on Tuesday, but Wednesday morning saw some Whangārei schools open their doors for tamariki.
Kamo Primary School principal Sally Wilson was determined to open despite the uncertain weather.
“The water would have to be over the top of the school [to not open]. We needed to be here to receive our students.”
Students came walking through the gates with a “spring in their step”, Wilson said.
For new entrant Zoe, Wednesday marked an exciting start to her schooling journey. The five-year-old was asked how it felt to be a big girl at school, to which she replied, “Yeah, I’m five!”
She spent the morning drawing pictures with her new friends and teacher, Nicki White.
Whaea Nicki White's class of Year 1 students - Kiwa, Zoe, Alize, Harper, Tai and Rhylan. Photo / Tania Whyte
“We have fun, and now we’re drawing pictures. I like doing all of the things.”
The principal said it has been great seeing new and old students come into school.
“For the ones that are growing up and come in as Year 6, it’s so cool to see how much they’re ready for the challenge,” she said.
It was a new step in their schooling journey for students Claire Roberts, George Henderson and Lilly Soole, experiencing their first day at Kamo Intermediate.
Soole, 11, said she was excited to start the new chapter in her schooling career.
“I love being at a new school, meeting new people and experiencing the new opportunities it has to offer.”
While many schools chose to hold off their opening days due to the weather warnings, Kamo Intermediate chose to open its gates, welcoming new tamariki with a pōwhiri on Wednesday morning.
“It’s a sunny day and I’m glad it’s sunny,” Soole said.
Kamo Intermediate Year 7 students Lilly Soole, Claire Roberts and George Henderson, all 11 years old. Photo / Tania Whyte
For fellow student George Henderson, starting school “feels a bit scary”, with him joking that he’s shorter than the older students.
“It feels new. The school is a lot bigger,” he said, but one of the main things he’s looking forward to is P.E class.
“I have more opportunities than in primary school. It’s quite fun, and it’s a bit scary being around the older kids, I guess, but I feel quite happy. It will give me more opportunities to do more with my sport, because [the school is] quite a lot bigger.”
Principal Kim Sloane said 2023 was about moving “onwards and upwards”.
With a new deputy principal, three new teachers and 800 students enrolled, she’s excited to see what’s in store.
“[The] intermediate years can be the best years of their life, really. Some are excited, and some are nervous.”
Year 8′s Nikau Hunt, Ropata Stephens and Bensen Walters told the Advocate they were excited to be back in class.
For Hunt, he’s looking forward to camp, te reo Māori, and “being around my friends”.
Stephens said it was a bit boring in the holidays.
Walters agreed.
“Yeah, I kinda started to miss school. It started getting pretty boring, to be honest.”
Kamo Intermediate Year 8 students Nikau Hunt, Bensen Walters and Ropata Stephens. Photo / Tania Whyte
All three are looking forward to upcoming trips, P.E and food technology classes.
While some schools are beginning this week, others are starting Term One next week. Many held off Term One opening days on Wednesday as a precaution, but are now poised to open and welcome their students through the doors.
Statistics showed about 31,230 students attended kura across 153 schools in Northland last year.
