Examination Revision

Very soon our Year 9's will sit their first end-of-year examinations. The purpose of examinations in the junior school is for students to get used to the structure and preparation  required for this style of assessment. As seniors they will sit many examinations and developing good habits around them is the key to personal success.

The Year 9 students will sit four two-hour exams. This is one for each of the four core subjects of Mathematics, Science, English, and Social Studies.

The examination dates as well as details of the exam content are in the planner below. Every student in Year 9 has been provided with a copy of this and they are encouraged to fill it out at home and put it up in a public place, (e.g the fridge, or above their desk). Students should have no difficulty finding content to cover over the revision period, and they could be aiming for an hour of study per night over the following weeks.

The results of the exams are purely for the students to see where they excel and where they may still have room for development. For those in the top of the cohort for English & Mathematics they will be partly used to decide on extension classes for next year. At junior prize-giving we will also announce subject prizes for top performers in each subject.

Below are some extra revision resources that are for parents and students to both look over. I can't stress the importance enough of students having a dedicated study space at home. This could be a desk in their room or a space at the table they can use for a study session. Distractions such as cell phones and television don't generally add to a productive study session.

Students can ask their individual subject teachers about detailed exam content and are encouraged to identify this content well in advance to inform study sessions.

Best of luck to our students over the coming few weeks. Remember that in order to overcome exam anxiety and fear of failure, it is best to prepare thoroughly in the lead in. 



Revision Planner PDF (To Print at Home)

Form Class Basketball

Inter-form class Basketball has just wrapped up. A very close final went the way of 9AT. The above table shows us just how close the competition is. With Chess and Dodgeball finishing up next week that means the Cross-Country event could well be the decider. Cross-Country is scheduled for the 22nd of November and it will involve all 170 students running a circuit around the school to collect points for their form class.

Speech Competition

Every Year 9 student did a speech in front of their English class towards the end of last term. From each class a few finalists were chosen and they got to present to the entire year group at a recent assembly. The quality of the 3 minute speeches was high and it was cool to see students confidently address a crowd of almost 200 people.

The finalists were (with their speech topics):

Brendan Taing ( peer pressure)
Brodie Domb (day dreaming and it's perceived link to non-intelligence)
Moana Le Sueur (know the student to teach the student)
Eleanor Strawbridge (global warming and its effects)

3rd Place-  Jeandre Botha (how to not be alone on valentines day)
2nd Place-  Demi Licence (toxic relationships)
1st Place - Ray Wu (the power of language)

Well done to all who presented and to our finalists.

Noscars Review

On the 22nd of September Newlands College students and families took to the city for the annual event that is the Noscars. The Noscars is our school's celebration of senior media student's short films. The night consisted of 20 short films, written, shot, acted, and edited by our super talented senior students. It is amazing that we have the use of the Embassy Theater for the night, the real home of film in New Zealand. The night is a true red carpet affair and it was especially pleasing to see so many Year 9 students make the effort to dress up.  It is exciting to think that when our cohort reaches the senior school they will be the one showing their films at this prestigous event. A big thanks to the Media department (Mr Cargill, Mr Mortensen, and Mr Lambert) for their efforts to make this night a huge success.

Below is a few snaps of the night plus some award winners.