The table below shows how tremendously well we have done with NCEA. The first column shows our % achievement of NCEA at each level, the second column shows what the national average % was and then the next three columns show the national averages for low, mid and high decile schools. Opotiki College is a decile 1 school but, as you can see, our figures put us in either the mid or, in many cases, high decile groupings. The achievement of Maori students in particular is well above the national levels.
The table didn't copy too well, but you shoukd be able to make sense of it.
ALL STUDENTS
Opotiki College National Deciles 1-3 Deciles 4-7 Deciles 8-10
Level 1 68 71 55 69 80
Level 2 81 75 60 73 83
Level 3 71 68 52 66 76
MAORI STUDENTS
Opotiki College National Deciles 1-3 Deciles 4-7 Deciles 8-10
Level 1 62 55 52 53 66
Level 2 83 62 59 61 72
Level 3 68 52 52 50 60
NON MAORI STUDENTS
Opotiki College National Deciles 1-3 Deciles 4-7 Deciles 8-10
Level 1 83 79 68 75 84
Level 2 75 81 69 78 86
Level 3 77 74 60 71 78
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
NCEA 2009
Once again we have punched well above our weight for a decile 1 school. With 66% of our Year 11s gaining NCEA Level 1, 81% of our Year 12s gaining Level 2 (with all but 4 of the rest gaining Level 1) and 64% of our Year 13s(!) gaining Level 3 (with all of the rest gaining Level 2) we have done wonderfully well.
The keys, I am certain, are strong leadership across the whole school, an emphasis on strong and positive relationships with our students, and a 'dog-with-a-bone' belief that everyone of our students can succeed.
When you consider that 60-67% of our students arrive at the start of Year 9 in the bottom quartile of nationally-normed literacy and numeracy tests I don't believe there would be many, if any, schools in New Zealand which 'add value' as much as we do.
Let's see what ERO's view is when they arrive in Term III!
The keys, I am certain, are strong leadership across the whole school, an emphasis on strong and positive relationships with our students, and a 'dog-with-a-bone' belief that everyone of our students can succeed.
When you consider that 60-67% of our students arrive at the start of Year 9 in the bottom quartile of nationally-normed literacy and numeracy tests I don't believe there would be many, if any, schools in New Zealand which 'add value' as much as we do.
Let's see what ERO's view is when they arrive in Term III!
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Curse on Valley Station Rd
Two weeks ago I was charging down Valley Station and my derailleur was snapped off by a branch and I ahd to single speed back with my chain breaking on the last hill at home. So I missed the stream ride.
One week ago I attempted the same loop and had to turn around at the stream and walk back up to help Kurt look for his sunglasses. So I missed the stream ride.
Today I was hurtling down Valley Staion at a section known, by me, as the dip which has a fast downhill followed by an uphill which I alwayas attempt to coast up using my downhill speed. Half way down I lost my front wheel on the edge of the rut (Aaron should have trimmed the grass from this!) and hit the ground hard on my head and right shoulder. I did the squirmy, writhy, groaning thing rthat Barry has witnessed before and was helped to my feet by Lea. I has a bar end brand on one knee, my right fingers were sprained, my head hurt (thank god for helmets!) and my shoulder and ribs were complaining.
It was an agonising walk ride back to Waiaua where Lea arrived with the car. The Boss and Amber stuck with me - sorry for wrecking your ride. So I missed the stream ride for the third time.
Leigh was not happy when I got home and had a view that I do these things on purpose! Coffee, anti inflammatories and ice have helped. I have a suspicion that my shoulder may be worse than I am accepting, but don't tell Leigh.
Very disappointed that George, Brian and Dennis couldn't spend last night drinking beer and still make the ride. You all need to do better, especially you George if you aspire to be a possum!
Great to see Paul (Tegel) join the real hard man's club by spewing after yesterday's time trial!
One week ago I attempted the same loop and had to turn around at the stream and walk back up to help Kurt look for his sunglasses. So I missed the stream ride.
Today I was hurtling down Valley Staion at a section known, by me, as the dip which has a fast downhill followed by an uphill which I alwayas attempt to coast up using my downhill speed. Half way down I lost my front wheel on the edge of the rut (Aaron should have trimmed the grass from this!) and hit the ground hard on my head and right shoulder. I did the squirmy, writhy, groaning thing rthat Barry has witnessed before and was helped to my feet by Lea. I has a bar end brand on one knee, my right fingers were sprained, my head hurt (thank god for helmets!) and my shoulder and ribs were complaining.
It was an agonising walk ride back to Waiaua where Lea arrived with the car. The Boss and Amber stuck with me - sorry for wrecking your ride. So I missed the stream ride for the third time.
Leigh was not happy when I got home and had a view that I do these things on purpose! Coffee, anti inflammatories and ice have helped. I have a suspicion that my shoulder may be worse than I am accepting, but don't tell Leigh.
Very disappointed that George, Brian and Dennis couldn't spend last night drinking beer and still make the ride. You all need to do better, especially you George if you aspire to be a possum!
Great to see Paul (Tegel) join the real hard man's club by spewing after yesterday's time trial!
Monday, January 11, 2010
Mangakirikiri Mystery
You really need a knowledge of this looped mtb track to fully understand this comedy.
Jarrod and Aaron thought they would clear the windfall from the Valley Station Road loop so..... Jarrod dropped Aaron off at the top of the hill at the start of Valley station and, armed with a hand saw, sent him along Valley Station on his mtb and told him they would meet somewhere along the stream. Jarrod then drove back to the skid site and hopped on his mtb with Shane's wee trailer and his chaainsaw in it and headed down stream clearing fallen trees.
When he had finished he had not seen Aaron so assumed he had backtracked to the skid site. Jarrod rode back up Mangakirikiri and at the skid site discovered the chain guard had come off the chainsaw so biked all the way back to find it then biked back to the skid site. But, no Aaron. Jarrod jumped in his truck drove up to Valley Station Rd and then along the newly cleared Valley Station as far as the truck would go without sustaining more damage than some scratches and a broken aerial. He the got on his mtb and carried on in the same direction looking for Aaron.
In the meantime Aaron, who had been meticulous about his clearing arrived at the stream and then rode up it until the skid site to find no Jarrod or truck. He assumed Jarrod had driven up to Valley Station Rd so he rode up this huge hill to get there but no Jarrod or truck. He then headed back down the hill, past the skid site, through the gate and ended jup at my plaace at aabout 6.00pm absolutely shagged and hanging out for a beer.
In the meantime Jarrod turned around at the little sisters, returned to the truck and drove baack out to Hermanssons cowshed and rung George who had no idea where Aaron was. Jarrod feared the worst and headed back to the skid site. At about this time Aaron rang George to come and pick him up who informed Aaron that Jarrod was back in the bush looking for him while swearing loudly.
In the meantime Jarrod rode back down the Mangakirikiri and near the first creek crossing saw Aaron's tyre marks so assumed he was out, rode all the way back to his truck at the skid site and drove out. Once he got cell phone reception he discovered Aaron and George were at my place drinking beer so turned up in quite a rage.
I was able to intercept him with a cold beer and was able to avert a family fall out!
When you are biking the newly manicured valley Station circuit please have a wee thought for the Teddy boys!
Jarrod and Aaron thought they would clear the windfall from the Valley Station Road loop so..... Jarrod dropped Aaron off at the top of the hill at the start of Valley station and, armed with a hand saw, sent him along Valley Station on his mtb and told him they would meet somewhere along the stream. Jarrod then drove back to the skid site and hopped on his mtb with Shane's wee trailer and his chaainsaw in it and headed down stream clearing fallen trees.
When he had finished he had not seen Aaron so assumed he had backtracked to the skid site. Jarrod rode back up Mangakirikiri and at the skid site discovered the chain guard had come off the chainsaw so biked all the way back to find it then biked back to the skid site. But, no Aaron. Jarrod jumped in his truck drove up to Valley Station Rd and then along the newly cleared Valley Station as far as the truck would go without sustaining more damage than some scratches and a broken aerial. He the got on his mtb and carried on in the same direction looking for Aaron.
In the meantime Aaron, who had been meticulous about his clearing arrived at the stream and then rode up it until the skid site to find no Jarrod or truck. He assumed Jarrod had driven up to Valley Station Rd so he rode up this huge hill to get there but no Jarrod or truck. He then headed back down the hill, past the skid site, through the gate and ended jup at my plaace at aabout 6.00pm absolutely shagged and hanging out for a beer.
In the meantime Jarrod turned around at the little sisters, returned to the truck and drove baack out to Hermanssons cowshed and rung George who had no idea where Aaron was. Jarrod feared the worst and headed back to the skid site. At about this time Aaron rang George to come and pick him up who informed Aaron that Jarrod was back in the bush looking for him while swearing loudly.
In the meantime Jarrod rode back down the Mangakirikiri and near the first creek crossing saw Aaron's tyre marks so assumed he was out, rode all the way back to his truck at the skid site and drove out. Once he got cell phone reception he discovered Aaron and George were at my place drinking beer so turned up in quite a rage.
I was able to intercept him with a cold beer and was able to avert a family fall out!
When you are biking the newly manicured valley Station circuit please have a wee thought for the Teddy boys!
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Surf's Up!
Yesterday Lucy and I went to surf lessons at Ohope and graduated successfully!
We had a one hour lesson on land taken by Beaver and the lovely Lucy. We learnt how to paddle through the waves, paddle to catch a wave, steady ourselves, get to our knees and then to stand and haka hula.
We then entered the water for an hour of surfing. Our instructions were to go out to where the waves were breaking and catch them after they had broken. To my surprise I stood up and stayed standing up right into the shore! Lucy proved to be as natural as I was!
After about 20 minutes of doing this we headed a little further out (still not quite over our heads!) and started catching waves before they broke. A couple of nosedives showed that it was important to stand quickly so both of us dispensed with the kneeling stage and got used to going straight to our feet. These rides were cool!
All too soon our hour was up and we got our certificate and headed home hugely pleased with our new status as surfies! Wicked dude! Lucy and I both agreed we were the two best surfers in the class of 10 and that she wasn't too far behind me!
Highly recommended dude! Now where can I get a board from?
We had a one hour lesson on land taken by Beaver and the lovely Lucy. We learnt how to paddle through the waves, paddle to catch a wave, steady ourselves, get to our knees and then to stand and haka hula.
We then entered the water for an hour of surfing. Our instructions were to go out to where the waves were breaking and catch them after they had broken. To my surprise I stood up and stayed standing up right into the shore! Lucy proved to be as natural as I was!
After about 20 minutes of doing this we headed a little further out (still not quite over our heads!) and started catching waves before they broke. A couple of nosedives showed that it was important to stand quickly so both of us dispensed with the kneeling stage and got used to going straight to our feet. These rides were cool!
All too soon our hour was up and we got our certificate and headed home hugely pleased with our new status as surfies! Wicked dude! Lucy and I both agreed we were the two best surfers in the class of 10 and that she wasn't too far behind me!
Highly recommended dude! Now where can I get a board from?
Spot X
Spot X delivered for Pete, Kurt and myself this morning. I was up at 4.00am and Pete picked us up at 4.30 and we were off to spot X. We drove for somewhere between 30 and 60 minutes and walked for somewhere between 30 and 60 minutes to find ourselves perched on a great rock, with great water and nice swell and got the berley out quickly. It was a bit slow for an hour and then Pete and Kurt landed fish between 4 and 6k and then 2 casts later Pete pulled in about a 3kg fish. I was a bit slow off the mark but pulled in 4 up to 2kg ( 2 were only 30-33 cm!).
It was great fishing and the walk in and out, while strenuous, added to the adventure. Snapper on the BBQ tonight.
Thanks for the guiding, Pete!
It was great fishing and the walk in and out, while strenuous, added to the adventure. Snapper on the BBQ tonight.
Thanks for the guiding, Pete!
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
New MTB!
I finally bit the bullet and bought a new MTB from Hedley. I got a Giant Anthem X2 and it looks pretty sharp. This morning Lea, her brother Danny, the Boss and Kurt and I went along Valley Station Rd with the plan to come back up the Mangakirikiri.
I felt really comfortable on the Giant. It climbed very well and it is a comfortable ride - once I get used to turning the shocks back on again!
When we got to the Mangakirikiri Kurt discovered he didn't have his sunglasses and he last remembered tucking them into his shirt before the big climb to Valley Station. Since it was his birthday I offered to go back the way we came with him while the others enjoyed a nice ride up the stream. This involved a 20 minute walk back up the track to the top of the little sisters and then a more pleasant ride along the top. We had a good idea they would be lying in the grass somewhere near he had a good fall and sure enough I spotted them in the grass.
We then charged down Valley Station and hurtled down the road towards the skid site almost colliding with the others coming back up to look for us. Kurt was a bit behind me so was chasing hard down the hill when he lost control, leapt over his handlebars, catching his foot on them, landing on his head and seeing his bike hurtle on by itself. Most of this was viewed by the boss who couldn't believe seeing an unmanned mtb heading through the trees!
What a great birthday treat for Kurt!
It was quite a slog home into a stiff wind but we had coffee, the Boss' homemade Xmas mince pies and Lea's Mud cake to dine on.
Danny biked strongly and technically very well, but it was good to see him stuffed at the end. He's certainly got those Vellenoweth calves!
The one drawback with the Giant is that it is a pain to clean as it has this complicated set of pivots and arms for the rear suspension.
I've been feeling great about last night's summer cycle race as we were caught early by the scratch bunch, but I was able to stay with them until hospital hill and was able to break from the rest of my group. I expected a fast time but was disappointed to have done 23.04, which is my fastest yet, but only by 2 seconds. That 23 min barrier is proving hard to break and I am not sure how I can go any faster!
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Time for a new MTB?
It was Lea's idea to do a Boxing Day ride in the Blue Mountains to justify her huge servings of Xmas pud. So I set the alarm for 6.30 and the Boss and Lea turned up for coffee and we headed to Vallet Stn Rd for a pleasurable, enjoyable ride.
All was going well until the top point of Valley Station when a windfall tree's branch hooked my chain and snapped off my rear derailleur! We expertly broke the chain and relinked the Kona as a single speed and I headed back while the other two carried on to the Mangakirikiri. However, I was so enjoying the single speed sexperience that I turned left at the creek to meet them coming up stream. I had a great time hurtling down the track, getting some air and coping with the windfall.
When I met them I noticed the chain was super tight and the pedals could hardly go around. After some tutuing we were off again, but by the time I got to Gaskill's Bridge I could hardly pedal again.
William Ellis stopped in his truck and delivered me to the bottom of Tirohanga Road so at least I could ride the last kilometre, but the strain of gettin up Hanaia Rd was too much for the chain so it snapped!
Is it time to give in?
Xmas Day
The fun syarted on Xmas Eve when Lucy and I conducted a great secret manouver to liberate a Xmas Tree to our lounge. A couple of bevvies for Dutch Courage and the complete action took less than a minute from stopping the car, leaping out, cutting the manacles and liberating it to the back of the car before speeding off with high fives!
You can see it in the photo with an awesome santa at the top.
The actual day was spent with Leigh, Lucy and Thomas, MumnDad, Janine and Emma and Adrian S who joined the Abraham Whanau. Pete and Lea and Maia dropped in for a drink and we all drank fine champers. gewurts, temparillo and cabernet sauvignon, threw the frisbee and had mussels off the BBQ and ham and chicken and spuds and Xmas pud. We had a great, relaxing stress free day and I was asleep by 7.30pm!
Lucy got me the Chris Knox tribute, Stroke, which I really wanted and Leigh bought me a trilogy of some dead guy's only novels which are hugely thick and will take months to read. I think she wanted them for herself.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Xmas MTB
Eventhough the ride was a bit more subdued than last year's (fortunately) it was still a great ride and a great time in the pub. And to top it off we had the annual semi-serious injury. This photo shows the gash to Ben's leg which required 5 stitches.
Most of the ride was heading south up the Waioweka river bed with 5 river crossings and a lot of bone jiggling time riding over the rocky river bed.
The highlight of the ride was the awesome swimming hole where we escaped from the heat of the day. The young bucks tried to outdo each other on the swing until Old Man Dennis showed them how to do it.
Heading home down hospital hill we were met with the high pressure hose from the fire engine. Somehow I knew there was going to be some skullduggery and escaped a major wetting.
Photos here.
The feed and beers at Craig's bar were great but because Leigh was hungover from the night before we headed home before getting caught up in the mayhem later in the night. Mark may have had a technicolour yawn in Kim's car and George would have woken up very thirsty.
Middle-aged Lea, who pulled out after one lap last Tuesday, didn't make Thursday's MTB at Te Waiti and missed the Xmas ride, Dennis, who made the Xmas booze up despite it being his 25th wedding anniversary, Brian, who really joined in on the festivities and myself met at the Waioweka Bridge this morning and had a great two hour ride around Paerata and Ohiwa followed up with coffee, cake and biscuits at Dennis'.
Holidays are great!
Most of the ride was heading south up the Waioweka river bed with 5 river crossings and a lot of bone jiggling time riding over the rocky river bed.
The highlight of the ride was the awesome swimming hole where we escaped from the heat of the day. The young bucks tried to outdo each other on the swing until Old Man Dennis showed them how to do it.
Heading home down hospital hill we were met with the high pressure hose from the fire engine. Somehow I knew there was going to be some skullduggery and escaped a major wetting.
Photos here.
The feed and beers at Craig's bar were great but because Leigh was hungover from the night before we headed home before getting caught up in the mayhem later in the night. Mark may have had a technicolour yawn in Kim's car and George would have woken up very thirsty.
Middle-aged Lea, who pulled out after one lap last Tuesday, didn't make Thursday's MTB at Te Waiti and missed the Xmas ride, Dennis, who made the Xmas booze up despite it being his 25th wedding anniversary, Brian, who really joined in on the festivities and myself met at the Waioweka Bridge this morning and had a great two hour ride around Paerata and Ohiwa followed up with coffee, cake and biscuits at Dennis'.
Holidays are great!
Te Waiti Pre Xmas
It's been a while but it is time to blog again. I've got heaps to post about but I'll start with the pre Xmas MTB ride up Te Waiti followed by BBQ and beers.
This track is in great condition and is one of the best single track rides in the district. And to finish off with some snags and beers was great.
Just a sit was getting a bit rowdy a young couple in a camper van drove down to the boulders and joined us. I think they thought they were going to a quiet secluded spot but came across a bunch of hillbillies and escapees.
Click here to see a few photos.
This track is in great condition and is one of the best single track rides in the district. And to finish off with some snags and beers was great.
Just a sit was getting a bit rowdy a young couple in a camper van drove down to the boulders and joined us. I think they thought they were going to a quiet secluded spot but came across a bunch of hillbillies and escapees.
Click here to see a few photos.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Swimming down the Mangakirikiri
After a hard night out fundraising for the school multi-sport team Lea, Boss and Teleri headed off with me from Hanaia to bike down the Mangakirikiri and out the Pakihi. This was the first time for me on a MTB for a few months and Lea was a bit hungover!
I have never taken on the 40+ creek crossing with it so deep or swift so it was outstandingly good fun. The Boss and I tried every crossing and some twice to nail them and we got most of them. The Boss' highlight was face plant over his handle bars into a deep pool emerging with his glasses still on. Some unkind people did a lot of laughing.
Teleri, to her credit, listened to my creek crossing coaching and was soon nailing most of them, but shortly after telling her it wouldn't hurt if she tumbled into a creek she promptly did so and landed on a rock and hurt herself. I told her if she had gone faster she wouldn't have fallen off.
Lea was pretty useless and talked herself out of most of them but did impress with one dive into a creek and another dive onto the hard ground.
We were all looking forward to the final hole which Sam O'Dwyer dived into last year (see NZMTB mag for photo). Not only was it deep it was very swift with an electric fence going across it just about where you would surface if you fell off and were swept doen stream. I was the only one who tried to ride across (twice!) and Boss and Lea kindly stood where the fence was to resecue me if I was swept towards it. I was ultimately unsuccessful but had great fun being swept off the bike.
It was a hard ride back to Opotiki into a strong headwind with Lea doing a lot of the work and then a mad dash from Opotiki to Hanaia with Teleri leading the charge all of the way home.
Even them we couldn't rest as Teleri interviewed us for one of her papers. Apparently we area sub culture and Andrew and I had to answer questions about why we did these sort of things, what people thought of us etc. If anyone has answers to these questions please put in the Comment area as I lie awake at night worrying about these sorts of questions!!
Great to be back in the saddle on one of our many great tracks! It was fun and sociable! Go the SOBs
I have never taken on the 40+ creek crossing with it so deep or swift so it was outstandingly good fun. The Boss and I tried every crossing and some twice to nail them and we got most of them. The Boss' highlight was face plant over his handle bars into a deep pool emerging with his glasses still on. Some unkind people did a lot of laughing.
Teleri, to her credit, listened to my creek crossing coaching and was soon nailing most of them, but shortly after telling her it wouldn't hurt if she tumbled into a creek she promptly did so and landed on a rock and hurt herself. I told her if she had gone faster she wouldn't have fallen off.
Lea was pretty useless and talked herself out of most of them but did impress with one dive into a creek and another dive onto the hard ground.
We were all looking forward to the final hole which Sam O'Dwyer dived into last year (see NZMTB mag for photo). Not only was it deep it was very swift with an electric fence going across it just about where you would surface if you fell off and were swept doen stream. I was the only one who tried to ride across (twice!) and Boss and Lea kindly stood where the fence was to resecue me if I was swept towards it. I was ultimately unsuccessful but had great fun being swept off the bike.
It was a hard ride back to Opotiki into a strong headwind with Lea doing a lot of the work and then a mad dash from Opotiki to Hanaia with Teleri leading the charge all of the way home.
Even them we couldn't rest as Teleri interviewed us for one of her papers. Apparently we area sub culture and Andrew and I had to answer questions about why we did these sort of things, what people thought of us etc. If anyone has answers to these questions please put in the Comment area as I lie awake at night worrying about these sorts of questions!!
Great to be back in the saddle on one of our many great tracks! It was fun and sociable! Go the SOBs
College Third at Secondary School Relay
On Saturday two teams travelled to this relay in Rotorua where teams tried to do as many laps as they could in three hours. Our senior mixed team of Gareth, Kurt and Lucy completed 11 laps and finished third behing Fielding and Trident. We did note that the female member in the Trident team only did one lap while lucy did three!
Gareth set the fastest time for the team of 15.36 with Kurt churning his out in 16-17 minutes and Lucy in 20-21.
The junior boys team of Kyle, Jared and Podge biked well with Kyle doing laps in 19-20minutes, Jared in about 20-21 ansd Podge in about 23.
It was a great day and more photos can be viewed here.
Gareth set the fastest time for the team of 15.36 with Kurt churning his out in 16-17 minutes and Lucy in 20-21.
The junior boys team of Kyle, Jared and Podge biked well with Kyle doing laps in 19-20minutes, Jared in about 20-21 ansd Podge in about 23.
It was a great day and more photos can be viewed here.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
The Motu Challenge 2009 - a real challenge!
Race winner, Richard Ussher described the conditions as most probably the toughest he has ever raced in. There were strong winds on both bike legs (head wind all the way on MTB and strong head wind to Matawai and strong side gusts from there, but also a lot of tail wind) and the strong gusts from behind and from the sides in the river tipped quite a few kayaks. There was cold rain at Motu, lots of slippery mud underfoot in the bush run, snow falling at the top of Traffords and a Waioweka River which was pumping at about 2.3 metres. In other words, conditions were perfect!!! If it was meant to be easy, everyone could do it!
Highlights were:
Barry forgetting his transponder and having to break a window at home to get it to just make the start.
Shane joining the hard man's club by completing his first Motu solo (Club membership includes myself, Hedley, Kurtis, Mad dog Scotty, Trevor/Terry and Legend Lea). If any one else feels they are entitled to membership let me know by commenting on the post.
Not falling out in the kayak!
All three Abraham whanau leaving nothing in the bank.
All three Taylor whanau with a whangaied Teleri leaving nothing in the bank.
Awesome first time paddle by College student Brooke (only 2nd time he had been in a kayak).
Lea's gutsy performance to get through a grueling run to finish strongly in just under 10 1/2 hours.
Relaxing with the Teddy's and others at Hunter's later in the evening.
The MTBers found the strong and cold head wind all of the way to Motu very challenging with many riders going slower than their normal training rides. The battle between Kids vs Parents and Parents vs Kids began immediately. Teleri (for the Kids) biked strongly for 3.39.22 and handed over to Amber for the run. In the meantime Sherpa Boss came in for the parents in 3.52.49 and handed on to me. Lea had come in at 3.27 13 and after a rapid transition headed off first.
I knew Lea was struggling when I caught her in the bush with well over 45 minutes to go. I was disappointed not to get Amber in my sights but found the muddy conditions in the bush difficult to deal with and despite finishing strongly over the last few ks never saw her. I was disappointed with my 1.32.58 as I did 1.29 in training a few weeks ago. Amber did 1.40.18 and handed over to Lucy who took off into the head wind about 6 minutes in front of her Mum, Leigh. In the meantime Lea came in after 2.16.17.
The wind was brutal to Matawai and sucked the strength out of those biking by themselves. Lucy was fortunate to get on the back of another bloke and they shared the work to part way up Trafford's. Just before the hill we came across a very cold Hedley who was attempting his second solo but was forced to withdraw bordering on hypothermia. While waiting at the top for Lucy and Leigh the snow began to fall! Both hurtled down to Oponae with a strong tail wind with Lucy clocking a great 2.04.36 in tough conditions to hand over to Nicole while Leigh finished in 2.13 23 after riding strongly and determinedly. Both had broken 2 hours in training two weeks prior but the head wind to Matawai took it out of everyone.
I was now in a forlorn chase of Nicole in the river and I had forgotten my drink bladder! Lea, meanwhile, finished the ride in 2.01.11 to hit the river not too far behind. I must admit when I saw Ted's car I was a bit nervous.
The paddle was out of this world. The river was really pumping and the pressure waves were huge. It really boosted my confidence to get through the top rapids while passing some swimmers. Unfortunately I came across Destry who had had a few spills. He seemed in good spirits but he had a few more and was pulled from the race at the gravel pit because he had turned blue.
The wind was the biggest threat on the river with the gusts being so strong I had to brace for long periods of time and get pushed along until it subsided. I came closest to tipping in one strong gust. One kayaker in front of me was tipped by the wind and there were stories of this happening to many others. A helicopter had to be called in to rescue one person trapped on the wrong side of the river.
My near death experience occurred in the rapids above the didymo signs. I was abit confused because the river was so high and I couldn't see all of the normal rocks. I ended up going right over the largest rock in the river, dropping a metre on the other side and then stopping in the backwash with huge pressure waves. My life flashed before my eyes as there was no one else around and I knew if I tipped there I would be trapped in the hole with little chance of getting out. A combination of sheer panic, maniacal paddling, loud swearing and tightening my sphincter I managed to pop out and keep going while yelling at the top of my voice with relief!
I did my first sub 2 hour paddle (1 55) and rode and ran like a maniac to the finish in 2.34.03. Nicole did the leg in 2.28.01 to bring the Kids vs Parents home in 9.52.50 to win the 4 person female category and $1000. The Parents vs Kids finished in 10.13.14. The College team of Gareth, Jared, Kyle and Brooke finished in 10.03.16 with Gareth continuing on to complete the Motu 160 and be the first local home.
Lea completed a strong day with a final leg of 2.43.16 to finish in her best solo time of 10.27.58 (only 10 minutes behind my best!!!).
There are lots of other neat stories from everyone else but they will have to tell them. A huge thanks to Jarrod and Rosalie and team who keep putting the event together.
Highlights were:
Barry forgetting his transponder and having to break a window at home to get it to just make the start.
Shane joining the hard man's club by completing his first Motu solo (Club membership includes myself, Hedley, Kurtis, Mad dog Scotty, Trevor/Terry and Legend Lea). If any one else feels they are entitled to membership let me know by commenting on the post.
Not falling out in the kayak!
All three Abraham whanau leaving nothing in the bank.
All three Taylor whanau with a whangaied Teleri leaving nothing in the bank.
Awesome first time paddle by College student Brooke (only 2nd time he had been in a kayak).
Lea's gutsy performance to get through a grueling run to finish strongly in just under 10 1/2 hours.
Relaxing with the Teddy's and others at Hunter's later in the evening.
The MTBers found the strong and cold head wind all of the way to Motu very challenging with many riders going slower than their normal training rides. The battle between Kids vs Parents and Parents vs Kids began immediately. Teleri (for the Kids) biked strongly for 3.39.22 and handed over to Amber for the run. In the meantime Sherpa Boss came in for the parents in 3.52.49 and handed on to me. Lea had come in at 3.27 13 and after a rapid transition headed off first.
I knew Lea was struggling when I caught her in the bush with well over 45 minutes to go. I was disappointed not to get Amber in my sights but found the muddy conditions in the bush difficult to deal with and despite finishing strongly over the last few ks never saw her. I was disappointed with my 1.32.58 as I did 1.29 in training a few weeks ago. Amber did 1.40.18 and handed over to Lucy who took off into the head wind about 6 minutes in front of her Mum, Leigh. In the meantime Lea came in after 2.16.17.
The wind was brutal to Matawai and sucked the strength out of those biking by themselves. Lucy was fortunate to get on the back of another bloke and they shared the work to part way up Trafford's. Just before the hill we came across a very cold Hedley who was attempting his second solo but was forced to withdraw bordering on hypothermia. While waiting at the top for Lucy and Leigh the snow began to fall! Both hurtled down to Oponae with a strong tail wind with Lucy clocking a great 2.04.36 in tough conditions to hand over to Nicole while Leigh finished in 2.13 23 after riding strongly and determinedly. Both had broken 2 hours in training two weeks prior but the head wind to Matawai took it out of everyone.
I was now in a forlorn chase of Nicole in the river and I had forgotten my drink bladder! Lea, meanwhile, finished the ride in 2.01.11 to hit the river not too far behind. I must admit when I saw Ted's car I was a bit nervous.
The paddle was out of this world. The river was really pumping and the pressure waves were huge. It really boosted my confidence to get through the top rapids while passing some swimmers. Unfortunately I came across Destry who had had a few spills. He seemed in good spirits but he had a few more and was pulled from the race at the gravel pit because he had turned blue.
The wind was the biggest threat on the river with the gusts being so strong I had to brace for long periods of time and get pushed along until it subsided. I came closest to tipping in one strong gust. One kayaker in front of me was tipped by the wind and there were stories of this happening to many others. A helicopter had to be called in to rescue one person trapped on the wrong side of the river.
My near death experience occurred in the rapids above the didymo signs. I was abit confused because the river was so high and I couldn't see all of the normal rocks. I ended up going right over the largest rock in the river, dropping a metre on the other side and then stopping in the backwash with huge pressure waves. My life flashed before my eyes as there was no one else around and I knew if I tipped there I would be trapped in the hole with little chance of getting out. A combination of sheer panic, maniacal paddling, loud swearing and tightening my sphincter I managed to pop out and keep going while yelling at the top of my voice with relief!
I did my first sub 2 hour paddle (1 55) and rode and ran like a maniac to the finish in 2.34.03. Nicole did the leg in 2.28.01 to bring the Kids vs Parents home in 9.52.50 to win the 4 person female category and $1000. The Parents vs Kids finished in 10.13.14. The College team of Gareth, Jared, Kyle and Brooke finished in 10.03.16 with Gareth continuing on to complete the Motu 160 and be the first local home.
Lea completed a strong day with a final leg of 2.43.16 to finish in her best solo time of 10.27.58 (only 10 minutes behind my best!!!).
There are lots of other neat stories from everyone else but they will have to tell them. A huge thanks to Jarrod and Rosalie and team who keep putting the event together.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Swimming in The Willows
Today I picked up Nicole from Lea's and we drove up to Motu with our kayaks in tow. It was pretty horrible weather but the river looked good - quite fast but clear.
After waiting for half an hour we were about to unhook the trailer and go and look for our cyclists but soon the muddly, bedraggled crew came in; Lea, followed by Barry, another bloke who couldn't find the car keys left by his dad, John, for about 15 minutes, Teleri then the boss.
Barry jumped on his road bike and started the ride home. The Boss, Lea, Nicole and I headed to Matawai where the boss and I had the standard fried sausage and coffee and we heded off to Oponae giving Barry some much needed encouragement.
Just before Nicole, Lea and I started our paddle Hedley and Shane turned up as well. I felt strong and paddled hard through the rapids and felt much more confident. Both Lea and Nicole headed up stream a couple of times and Lea took one dead end.
However, i was the only one to take a swim. I got caught amongst the willows just below the cottages and ended up tipping and taking a swim. It was good to get it out of the way!
Hope to get a couple of runs in this week and do both legs next weekend!
After waiting for half an hour we were about to unhook the trailer and go and look for our cyclists but soon the muddly, bedraggled crew came in; Lea, followed by Barry, another bloke who couldn't find the car keys left by his dad, John, for about 15 minutes, Teleri then the boss.
Barry jumped on his road bike and started the ride home. The Boss, Lea, Nicole and I headed to Matawai where the boss and I had the standard fried sausage and coffee and we heded off to Oponae giving Barry some much needed encouragement.
Just before Nicole, Lea and I started our paddle Hedley and Shane turned up as well. I felt strong and paddled hard through the rapids and felt much more confident. Both Lea and Nicole headed up stream a couple of times and Lea took one dead end.
However, i was the only one to take a swim. I got caught amongst the willows just below the cottages and ended up tipping and taking a swim. It was good to get it out of the way!
Hope to get a couple of runs in this week and do both legs next weekend!
Kapa Haka Success
On Saturday Opotiki College Kapa Haka group Kura Ki Uta performed at the Mataatua Secondary School competitions. Our performance was very strong and moving, but we were quite nervous about how they would score.
When the results were announced we were third in whaikorero, first in kakahu, first in Te Manukura Wahine (go Hana!), second in Te Manukura Tane (go Raha!), third in Waiata Tira, second in original composition, third in Te Reo, first in discipline, first in whakaeke, first in moteatea, second in poi, second in waiata-a-ringa, second in haka and third in whakawatea.
Te Whanau-a-Apanui were third overall, Whakatane High School were second AND WE WON!!!!!!!!
This was a huge achievement and follows our awesome 3rd place in the NZ co-ed schools rugby tournament last weekend.
Well done KKU!
When the results were announced we were third in whaikorero, first in kakahu, first in Te Manukura Wahine (go Hana!), second in Te Manukura Tane (go Raha!), third in Waiata Tira, second in original composition, third in Te Reo, first in discipline, first in whakaeke, first in moteatea, second in poi, second in waiata-a-ringa, second in haka and third in whakawatea.
Te Whanau-a-Apanui were third overall, Whakatane High School were second AND WE WON!!!!!!!!
This was a huge achievement and follows our awesome 3rd place in the NZ co-ed schools rugby tournament last weekend.
Well done KKU!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Motu Training
A large group took part in a wide range of Motu training options today. Barry and a group left from the Waiaua Church and MTBed to the top of Whitikau and back. Hedley drove Karl's car to Motu, ran the track and then road home via the gorge. As well, a large group of us met at the College. The Boss, Lea, Jarrod, Dennis, Gareth, Destry, Brian, Karl and Mike left on their MTBs and picked up Dick at Tirohanga. John and Dan, Destry and I drove up the gorge to Motu where Destry and I ran the track while John and Dan waited for Colin who was driving up and rode back to town.
I found the run quite a struggle as was longest run for me since last Motu. 1 hr 36 was a good time for me but I struggled over the last 4-5 ks while Destry finished well in about 1hr 32.
Not too long after our finish Jarred came storming in followed shortly later by Dennis and Gareth, then Lea and Karl and the others in forgotten order. In the meantime Jim arrived, promptly did a U Turn and rode back to Opotiki without a pause or a hello. Karl leapt in his car and went to catch up with Hedley
Mike jumped in John's car and drove off after them, Jarred, Lea, Dennis, Gareth and Destry headed off on their road bikes, Brian drove Destry's truck with Dick on board, Andrew took Colin's car and I took the laden Hyundai and we headed to Matawai for fried sausages and coffee where we met Trev who had driven up to see if anyone needed a hand. Unfortunately there was only one sausage but I got it!
We then took off after our cyclists. We came across Gareth with a totally empty tank on te Wairata Hill and waited for everyone at Oponae. Jarred flew straight on, Gareth bailed and jumped in the Hyundai, and Dennis, Lea and Destry headed for home.
Jarred, Lea, Destry and Dennis completed a total of 100 miles! It was a bloody long day for a 96 minute run. Check the photos.Can't wait for next weekend.
I found the run quite a struggle as was longest run for me since last Motu. 1 hr 36 was a good time for me but I struggled over the last 4-5 ks while Destry finished well in about 1hr 32.
Not too long after our finish Jarred came storming in followed shortly later by Dennis and Gareth, then Lea and Karl and the others in forgotten order. In the meantime Jim arrived, promptly did a U Turn and rode back to Opotiki without a pause or a hello. Karl leapt in his car and went to catch up with Hedley
Mike jumped in John's car and drove off after them, Jarred, Lea, Dennis, Gareth and Destry headed off on their road bikes, Brian drove Destry's truck with Dick on board, Andrew took Colin's car and I took the laden Hyundai and we headed to Matawai for fried sausages and coffee where we met Trev who had driven up to see if anyone needed a hand. Unfortunately there was only one sausage but I got it!
We then took off after our cyclists. We came across Gareth with a totally empty tank on te Wairata Hill and waited for everyone at Oponae. Jarred flew straight on, Gareth bailed and jumped in the Hyundai, and Dennis, Lea and Destry headed for home.
Jarred, Lea, Destry and Dennis completed a total of 100 miles! It was a bloody long day for a 96 minute run. Check the photos.Can't wait for next weekend.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Motu Training Steps Up
Last week 13 of us headed up the Motu Rd for a gruelling mtb ride. 12 left from Hanaia and we picked up Karl en route. Kerr, Barry, Jared, the Boss, Tred, Lea, Dennis, Brett, Destry, Kurt, Brian and myself were the original 12 who downed good coffee before biking off into the cold. We experienced the biggest frost any of us had seen. As we were climbing the last 100m up the Meremere we had ice falling out of the trees and landing on top of us and the fence wires were frozen. From there on we were cycling on a thin layer of ice over the clay. Those of us with booties and full finger gloves were happy.
Kerr turned around at the top of the Meremere and Kurt and I turned around at the base of the Papamoa while the others climbed to the top where they met Teleri and Hilton who had biked through from Motu.
It was great to gather back at Hanaia in the sun and drink more coffee and eat the muffins Patty had brought along with Lea's fruit cake.
It was a great weekend's training as Lea and I had paddled the bottom section of the Waioweka on the day before. It was the first time on the river in my Arrow Waka and I was a bit nervous. Apart from getting caught in the willows and losing my paddle for a while there were no major issues and I was able to keep dry despite a couple of hairy moments.
Tomorrow we have a big adventure with some mtbing to Motu, others running the track, some road cycling home and maybe some cycling right round - a logistical nightmare but we should have fun in the torrential rain.
Kerr turned around at the top of the Meremere and Kurt and I turned around at the base of the Papamoa while the others climbed to the top where they met Teleri and Hilton who had biked through from Motu.
It was great to gather back at Hanaia in the sun and drink more coffee and eat the muffins Patty had brought along with Lea's fruit cake.
It was a great weekend's training as Lea and I had paddled the bottom section of the Waioweka on the day before. It was the first time on the river in my Arrow Waka and I was a bit nervous. Apart from getting caught in the willows and losing my paddle for a while there were no major issues and I was able to keep dry despite a couple of hairy moments.
Tomorrow we have a big adventure with some mtbing to Motu, others running the track, some road cycling home and maybe some cycling right round - a logistical nightmare but we should have fun in the torrential rain.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Latest Learning Matters
Last week I had the privilege of leading a full staff development day for the teachers and teacher-aides at Wairoa College. Wairoa College and Wairoa itself have a lot of similarties with Opotiki College and Opotiki.
The obvious similarities are the low socio-economic status and high percentage of Maori in the community and on the roll. However, there were some other strong similarities. The young people I met were open, friendly, inquisitive, cheeky but respectful and hospitable. This is also how most people find our students.
The teachers and the teacher-aides were passionate about their work and, like our staff, keen to explore whatever they could to provide even better educational outcomes for their young people.
As we do, they certainly have some challenging situations to deal with with some of their young people and a small group on their staff are resistant to change. This would certainly be the case in most schools.
Like us they are spending a lot of time discussing how best to engage their young people so that they have success at school. This involves exploring innovative ways, such as restorative practices, to manage difficult behaviour and investigating more relevant and engaging curriculum models.
The last of these is certainly the focus of Opotiki College at the moment. Restorative practices are firmly embedded in our school, but we still have work to do in developing an appropriate curriculum for the 21st Century.
Currently the Aspiring Leaders Group at Opotiki College are working on an investigation into what is an effective teaching approach which will meet the needs of our students. The work they have completed to date is exciting and will form the basis of the teaching approach which will be practiced at our school.
At the same time we are developing our thinking around the junior curriculum for our school. Our work has been influenced by our experiences with our recent Three Day Wananga and with our pilot programme with a home-roomed Year 9 class with an integrated curriculum approach. The work has also been influenced by the research we have read and the exploration that was done by myself on my sabbatical last year and visits to Vancouver and Singapore this year.
We appear to be moving towards an approach which has a common theme for all junior classes across the school for each school term with the teachers of each class meeting fortnightly to plan collaboratively around the theme, discuss appropriate teaching strategies for that particular group, share assessment data and discuss class and group progress.
At the same time clear learning targets will be developed for each class based on a sound assessment of where each student is beginning from. Working in the collaborative Learning Teams teachers will work together to enable students to attain their learning goals.
These are only the first steps towards our ultimate goal of having students carry out their learning in authentic contexts, researching real issues in teams and presenting real solutions to real audiences.
This is exciting learning for our staff and learning matters.
The obvious similarities are the low socio-economic status and high percentage of Maori in the community and on the roll. However, there were some other strong similarities. The young people I met were open, friendly, inquisitive, cheeky but respectful and hospitable. This is also how most people find our students.
The teachers and the teacher-aides were passionate about their work and, like our staff, keen to explore whatever they could to provide even better educational outcomes for their young people.
As we do, they certainly have some challenging situations to deal with with some of their young people and a small group on their staff are resistant to change. This would certainly be the case in most schools.
Like us they are spending a lot of time discussing how best to engage their young people so that they have success at school. This involves exploring innovative ways, such as restorative practices, to manage difficult behaviour and investigating more relevant and engaging curriculum models.
The last of these is certainly the focus of Opotiki College at the moment. Restorative practices are firmly embedded in our school, but we still have work to do in developing an appropriate curriculum for the 21st Century.
Currently the Aspiring Leaders Group at Opotiki College are working on an investigation into what is an effective teaching approach which will meet the needs of our students. The work they have completed to date is exciting and will form the basis of the teaching approach which will be practiced at our school.
At the same time we are developing our thinking around the junior curriculum for our school. Our work has been influenced by our experiences with our recent Three Day Wananga and with our pilot programme with a home-roomed Year 9 class with an integrated curriculum approach. The work has also been influenced by the research we have read and the exploration that was done by myself on my sabbatical last year and visits to Vancouver and Singapore this year.
We appear to be moving towards an approach which has a common theme for all junior classes across the school for each school term with the teachers of each class meeting fortnightly to plan collaboratively around the theme, discuss appropriate teaching strategies for that particular group, share assessment data and discuss class and group progress.
At the same time clear learning targets will be developed for each class based on a sound assessment of where each student is beginning from. Working in the collaborative Learning Teams teachers will work together to enable students to attain their learning goals.
These are only the first steps towards our ultimate goal of having students carry out their learning in authentic contexts, researching real issues in teams and presenting real solutions to real audiences.
This is exciting learning for our staff and learning matters.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Curriculum Planning
Go the relevant page of my wiki on Development Plans for Opotiki College (see sidebar or clicking on the post title will take you directly to the page) to see my latest plans for our Junior Curriculum at Opotiki College. I have attempted to take the best out of our Pilot Home Roomed Class idea, our three day wananga experience, the work of our Aspiring Leaders Group, my sabbatical, research I have been reading, and the posts on Bruce Hammond's Blog and match this with school structures and staff capacity and come up with something that moves us along and is doable.
You will see it is centred around the formation of learning teams for each junior form class which all concentrate on one common theme per term and there is a lot of collaborative planning, discussion of strategies and the sharing of assessment data along with the formation of clear learning goals and targets for each class based on establishing the 'where at' position for the whole class and individuals.
I would appreciate feedback both on the blog and especially on the wiki.
You will see it is centred around the formation of learning teams for each junior form class which all concentrate on one common theme per term and there is a lot of collaborative planning, discussion of strategies and the sharing of assessment data along with the formation of clear learning goals and targets for each class based on establishing the 'where at' position for the whole class and individuals.
I would appreciate feedback both on the blog and especially on the wiki.
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