Middle of Term 3 Newsletter - Monday 24 August

Tēnā koe

Last week we acknowledged Uike Kātoanga’i ‘o e lea faka-Tonga | Tonga Language Week and were proud of our young people who spoke at assemblies. The ball on Saturday night was a great success with Year 12 and 13 students dancing the night away at the Ellerslie Convention Centre. We enjoyed meeting with the many parents and caregivers who attended the recent Parent-Teacher-Student meetings; there were rich discussions about academic progress and next learning steps. If you were unable to come to these meetings or you have any questions or concerns, you are encouraged to contact your child’s teachers.

Student Success
You may have seen the feature on Seven Sharp about Waihuia Thein who was a finalist at NZ Fashion Week’s Walk the Line show. Her beautiful design received an honourable mention.

In sport we have a number of students competing at the highest levels who are to be congratulated for their dedication and outstanding results. Here are some highlights:

Basketball: Our Premier team is playing in the A Grade Final on Thursday afternoon. The U17 Boys finished 2nd in the Harbour competition, successfully qualifying for the Greater Auckland Basketball Championships where they finished 3rd with a bronze medal
Hockey: Congratulations to Liam Phillips on his selection to represent North Harbour at the National U16 Tournament. A further six students (Blake Nancekivell, Nathan Phillips, Will Fairhall, Seth Fairhall, Harry Bishop and Felix Pendred) have also been selected for the Regional U16 Tournament
Netball: Our Year 9/1 Netball team finished 2nd in their grade, placing them in the Top 10 overall for the Year 9 North Harbour competition
Judo: Brayden Fitzgerald delivered an incredible performance at the Auckland International Judo Open, taking home Gold in the U60kg Junior Men and Bronze in the U60kg Senior Men
Waka Ama: Charlie Steers is heading to Singapore to compete in the Waka Ama World Championships (J16 division), representing her club, Pineula New Zealand
Table Tennis: Kiki Su has been selected for the Oceania Cup in Australia, where she will compete in both the U19 Individual and Team events

The Performing Arts Showcase was a wonderful celebration of dance, drama and music. In musical success, our Jazz and Concert Bands were both awarded Bronze at the KBB Music Festival. Sienna Fitzgerald and Jesse Scott made it to the semi-finals of the Auckland City Council's SUSO [Stand Up Stand Out]. Jeremy Christie made it through to the semi-finals for instrumental solo, and rock bands Estatica and Fever who have made the semi finals for bands. There were also a range of engaging performances at Kaipātiki Sounds. Estatica and Fever also played fabulous sets at the school ball. We look forward to the Dance Showcase this week.

Last week we had teams participate in Mathex and EPro8. There have been trips to the Auckland Theatre Company’s Macbeth and to the zoo.

Recent Property Announcements
You may have seen in the media that Northcote College is to receive funding to reinstate walls. This is a small project to replace the wall between two classrooms in H Block (formerly Technology and now English Language Learning). We have also been informed that we are on the Ministry list for a solar energy project and look forward to hearing more.

Education Review Office ERO
The provisional ERO report has been shared with the Board for feedback. We look forward to sharing the confirmed report in due course.

Year 9 Hearing Tests: 26-28 August
Northcote College will be participating in the Listen Up, New Zealand Hearing Screening Programme for Year 9 students this week from Wednesday to Friday.This national initiative, delivered by the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Foundation (NFDHH), provides a free, quick, simple, and non-invasive hearing check that can identify early signs of hearing loss which may affect student learning. Parents and caregivers of students in Year 9 will have received information from our school nurses. If you do not wish your child to participate, please opt out by emailing nurse@northcote.school.nz

Daffodil Day and Non-uniform Day: Friday 28 August
We will have a non-uniform day on Friday for Daffodil Day. We hope you will be able to donate generously to support the lifesaving work of the Cancer Society. Donations may be made in cash in period 1 classes or online at Kindo or directly on our Northcote College Daffodil Day dashboard Students are encouraged to wear yellow; there are prizes for the ‘yellowest’ student, form class and staff member.

Pasifika Fono and Whānau Hui: Tuesday 1 September 6.00-7.30pm
We have Pasifika Fono and Whānau Hui next week for our Pasifika and Māori families. We are excited to have Katalina Ma from the University of Auckland sharing her expertise on how best to support academic success. She will inspire and give practical advice to support students to excel. Then there will be a session where we are keen to hear about insights and experiences so that our kura can best serve our young people. It will also be an opportunity for us to answer any questions Pasifika and Māori families might have.

Kia Manawaroa and Matavai e-newsletters
New issues of Kia Manawaroa and Matavai have been published.
Kia Manawaroa Issue 18: August 2026
Matavai Issue 16: August 2026

Winter Sports Tournament
We have students, coaches and staff heading off to the Winter Sports Tournament next week. Our school will be represented across the North Island in a number of codes - football, netball, hockey and basketball. We wish our teams and supporters all the best and will post results as they become available on our social media.

Term 4 Junior Sports
Registration for Year 9 and 10 summer sports is beginning to go live on Kindo. Please keep an eye on your emails, the school notices and Northcote College Sport Social media for updates and information.

Mid-term break: Friday 4 September
The school is closed.

Common Assessment Activities (CAAs) and Derived Grade Exams
Good luck to students sitting the Literacy and Numeracy Common Assessment Activities (CAAs) in Week 8 and to senior students sitting their derived grade exams in Weeks 9 and 10.

Course Selection 2027
The course selection process for 2027 begins this week. Please spend some time talking with your child about subjects of interest and potential pathways. Your child’s dean will email with information and instructions for course selection.

E-scooters, Road Safety and Parking
Constable Louise Nicholas has been speaking at assemblies about e-scooter and e-bike safety. Students were told about regulations, the law, and the consequences for reckless or dangerous driving. Helmets and responsible riding are essential. Please urge your children to be safe pedestrians and cross Onewa Road responsibly at the lights and to always triple check for cars before stepping out to cross Kauri Glen Road.
Another reminder to only park appropriately and legally in Wernham Place and other streets around the school. You must not park or stop your vehicle over driveways or within one metre either side of them.

School Uniform
Please support your child to wear the correct uniform which should be named. In this cold weather, black shoes with black socks or tights are encouraged. White socks are not part of our uniform and should not be worn.

Kindo Refresh
Kindo has a fresh new look. The updated experience is now rolling out, making school administration easier to manage. Here is a two minute clip about the changes to Kindo.

Year 9 Camps to Motutapu Island
This is a reminder for Year 9 parents to please complete the camp permission form in the email from Louise Inwards, our teacher in charge of camps.

We understand the financial burden camp can put on families and want to support and work with you to ensure the cost is not a barrier to students attending camp. We also recognise some families are in the fortunate position to be able to support another child. If you are able to support another child to experience camp, please donate through the Kindo Shop - Y9 Camp Fundraising; look for Camp Pay it Forward - there are different amounts that you can pay. We greatly appreciate your generosity in making this important learning experience possible for all.

2026 Yearbook
The 2026 yearbooks are $25. You are encouraged to purchase a copy through the Kindo Shop before the end of this month so we can estimate the printing order number. The yearbooks will be ready for issue at the start of December.

School Donations
We are grateful to families who pay the school donation; without these payments we would not be able to offer the variety of learning opportunities our students currently enjoy. All payments to Northcote College can be made in one place with your myKindo account. Kindo allows partial payment so families can make the donation with the amount they are comfortable with at any time suitable for their situation.

The Teachers’ Institute Information Sessions
If you are considering teaching as a career, please see The Teachers’ Institute website for details about webinar sessions. Details are here.

Thank you for your ongoing support of our school. We encourage you to stay in contact; if you have any queries, please contact your child’s Dean in the first instance.

Ngā manaakitanga

Vicki Barrie
Tumuaki | Principal

Upcoming Key Dates

Key dates for the second half of Term 3

Week 6
Wednesday 26 & Thursday 27 August: Dance Showcase
Wednesday 26 - Friday 28 August: Year 9 Hearing Screening
Friday 28 August: Daffodil Day, Non-Uniform Day, Clothes Swap

Week 7
31 August - 4 September: Winter Sports Tournament Week
Tuesday 1 September: Pasifika Fono & Whānau Hui 6-7.30pm
Friday 4 September: Mid-term break - school closed

Week 8
Wednesday 9 September: NCEA Literacy (Reading) Common Assessment Activity (CAA)
Thursday 10 September: NCEA Literacy (Writing) Common Assessment Activity (CAA)
Friday 11 September: NCEA Numeracy Common Assessment Activity (CAA)
Thursday 10 and Friday 11 September: Year 12 Drama Production

Week 9
Monday 14 - Tuesday 22 September: Senior Derived Grade Exams

Week 10
21 - 25 September: Te Wiki o te Reo Māori
Thursday 24 & Friday 25 September: Year 13 Drama Production
Friday 25 September: Last day of Term 3

Key Dates for Term 4

12 October: First day of Term 4, Timetable Day 6
12 - 16 October: Year 9 camp (group 1) to Motutapu Island
14 October: 2027 Welcome to Northcote College Evening
26 October: Labour Day - school closed
27 October: Whānau Prizegiving
28 October: Film Evening
29 October: Senior Sports Prizegiving
4 November: last day of timetabled lessons for seniors
5 November: Senior Prizegiving
10 November - 4 December: NZQA Examinations
13 November: Ministry of Education Teacher only Day
23 - 27 November: Year 9 camp (group 2) to Motutapu Island
9 December: Junior Sports Prizegiving
15 December: Year 10 Prizegiving and last day (1pm finish for students in Year 9)
16 December: Year 9 Prizegiving and last day