We have had an excellent term three in sporting arenas; in the many cultural activities; in pastoral care situations such as the Poutama activities, careers and options day and in the classroom. The solid groundwork has been laid for student success in November. It is at this time of the year that we begin to get really focused on external examination success and that is determined largely by student attitude, student focus, and student self-discipline.
The upcoming study break gives our senior students time to prepare study plans, to complete outstanding internal credits, and to look forward to external examination preparation. How students do these things in the next two weeks will largely determine how successful they are in November.
At an assembly earlier in the year I read out a poem by Tom Clark called ‘The Light’:
The tough part
of the ball game
is when you can’t breathe any more
That’s when conditioning takes over
and leads you by the hand – the heart! –
through the tunnel
It’s dark in there and you don’t know the score
but at the other end
you perceive the bucket
We have been engaged in confidence building conditioning all year and this needs to continue for the study break and the remaining four weeks of term 4 (yes – only four weeks before prize-giving week). ‘The bucket’ is the reward and for students it is getting what they deserve in external examinations.
Elsewhere in the newsletter you will find the opportunities for tutorials and extra supervision available to students in the lead up to externals. Please encourage the students to attend to make the most of their conditioning period.
I hope all of the school community can also have a well earned break and come back refreshed for term 4.
My final thought: The focus on dreams (the ‘D’ in Stratford) has also been a constant this year. As Michael Phelps, the outstanding American swimmer, says, “Dream big!”
Nā Warren Purdy
Principal
