WELCOME TO YEAR 9 STARTING COLLEGE Starting at a new College can be both a scary and an exciting experience, especially one as big as Paraparaumu College. Here are some answers to the many questions new students will have. STARTING DATES FOR YEAR 9 IN 2015: Thursday 29th January Students will meet in the auditorium in the correct uniform at 9.45am and the day will finish at 3.15pm. School buses will be available after school. This day will involve a powhiri, orientation and a programme with Form Teachers & Year 13 students (facilitators). Timetabled classes will commence on Friday 30th January. PROSPECTUS AND STUDENT HANDBOOK These are two very important information booklets which will have been handed out at school visits by the Deans. Please keep your copies as they contain important information about the school. The Year 9 Students Handbook has information about all aspects of daily College life and a map to assist you during those first few weeks. Click here to download a copy of Prospectus 2015. STATIONERY The stationery list is on the website or available from the office. Stationery can be purchased at any retail outlet. There are certain textbooks/items that are only available at the College office and these are clearly marked on the sheet. Year 9 students will come to the office during the first few days in form classes to purchase these items. WHAT IS THE UNIFORM LIKE? Smart and stylish! Click here to find out more. Year 9 uniform can only be purchased at the College Uniform shop located in F Block. Information about opening hours and making appointments over the late Dec/early January period are available on the website.
WHERE WILL I GO ON THE FIRST DAY? On the first day of College you will come to the Auditorium which is at the front of the College. You will be officially welcomed to the College and placed in your form classes. From there you will leave with your Form Teacher and move to your form class where you will meet your Year 13 Facilitators, get your timetable, have some fun activities which will help you to get to know your class mates and go for a tour around the College. You will report to this form class at 8.50 am for Form Time the next day, ready for classes. Don’t worry; you will have someone to tell you where to go and what to do every step of the way! HOW WILL I KNOW WHERE TO GO FOR MY CLASSES FOR THE REST OF THE WEEK? When you go to your form class on the first day of school you will be given a timetable with the rooms for all your classes. It will be strange at first having a different teacher for each class but by the end of the first week, you will find it is normal. This is a great way to get some exercise, meet new teachers and have a change of scenery between classes. HOW WILL I FIND MY WAY AROUND? Your student handbook has a map in it showing all the classroom locations and best of all there are 1200 people quite happy to give you directions if you are lost! They were lost once themselves, too, so they know what it feels like and will point you in the right direction. If you are lost when they are all in class then come to the Office or see the Deans, we are all here to help you You might go into the wrong class a couple of times but teachers are used to that and most of the students did that too when they first came so don’t worry about it. A message from students who have been in your position: “I was sacred but then everyone was really cool and even if you are lost they help you.” “I was kind of lost the first week – that was the hardest but then I got used to it and made some great new friends.” HOW WILL I FIND MY FRIENDS? Arrange a meeting place that will be easy to find such as at the school canteen, in the main quad or by the auditorium. HOW IS THE COLLEGE DAY STRUCTURED? Form Time starts at 8.50 am every morning, except for Thursday when the College has a ‘late start’. Click here to view the school day. ARE CLASSES STREAMED? Enrichment classes operate in the core subjects of English, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies. Placement in the Year 9 classes is initially based on standardised testing received from primary schools along with consultation with the primary school teachers. Movement in and out of these classes can happen at any time during the year.
DO WE HAVE TO CARRY OUR BOOKS EVERYWHERE OR CAN WE GET LOCKERS? You can get a locker but be quick. Lockers are allocated on a first come first serve basis from the office. The cost is $20 per year but when you return your key at the end of the year, $10 will be reimbursed. You will get a letter towards the end of the year detailing when you can get a locker so make a note of it and make sure you are one of the first. With 5 subjects every day the books mount up so you don’t want to be carrying all of them around all of the time if you can help it. IS THERE MUCH HOMEWORK? Homework/study in Year 9 shouldn’t be much more than 20 minutes per subject a day. You won’t have homework from every subject every day. The best advice is get it done as soon as you get it and do it well so you don’t have to do it again! You will find if you start off being so well organised with your homework you will be organised when you are in Year 11, 12 and 13 working towards NCEA examinations. (It goes without saying that this way you also avoid the consequences for not doing homework such as detention). Much of your homework will be on PC4Me and you should make sure you log onto the site regularly and check all your courses. Google Calendar is a good way to record and organise your homework as you can access it from your phone. ARE THERE CLASS TRIPS? All Year 9’s are involved in days out of school, these include the Swimming Sports, Activity days, visiting Whakarongotai Marae and depending on what options you take there could be others.
HOW MANY STUDENTS ARE THERE AT PARAPARAUMU COLLEGE? There are about 1200 students overall and there will be approx. 250 in Year 9. You will be in a compulsory subject class of about 28–30 students, and a form class of approximately 24, so you will get to know those students very quickly.
WHAT SUBJECTS ARE TAUGHT AT YEAR 9? You will have 6 compulsory subjects - English, Maths, Science, Social Studies, Health & Physical Education, and you will have chosen 4 Option subjects from Film Making, Horticulture, Classical Studies, Financial Literacy, Visual Art, Music, Performing Arts, Languages (French, Japanese, Te Reo and Spanish), Digital Technology, Food & Nutrition, Design and Visual Communications (Graphics), Technology Textiles and Technology Hard Materials ….WOW! We encourage all Year 9 students to study a broad curriculum including Languages, Technology and the Arts and to choose at least 2 options from Groups 1 (The Arts), Group 2 (Languages) or Group 3 (Technology) but the Prospectus sets this all out in an easy to follow format. Students can choose more than 1 from each group if they wish. WHAT DO WE STUDY IN CLASS? You will be building on the work that you have done at Year 8 level. Some of it might be a little more challenging but you will feel great when you’ve mastered something really tough. You might even find a new appreciation for maths or discover a passion for literature. If you ever find your work too overwhelming there are always Teachers or Deans to help you. You do have more independence at College so make sure you take advantage of all the help that is out there. (If you are a parent asking this question check out the New Zealand Curriculum website to get some idea of what your child will be doing and don’t forget to come along to the Parents’ Evenings to find out more) WHAT SPORTS AND CLUBS ARE THERE? Almost too numerous to mention and growing all the time! Make sure you take advantage of these but here are some that might interest you: rugby, volleyball, netball, cricket, basketball, football, golf, hockey, skiing, tennis, rowing, chess, debating, Voice, orchestra, badminton, lawn bowls, rock climbing, Kick boxing , WOW Factor, Music ‘n’ Motion, Major Production, Voice, Mural painting group, , Dance Collective, Amnesty, Space Group ………… to name a few.
LEARNING TO LEARN WEEK: 5 – 9th March 2015 During this week the Year 9 timetable will be collapsed so that the students can be introduced to the Good Learner Profile and interesting extracurricular activities. Topics will include: Getting to know classmates and Form Teacher What is your learning style? What digital tools we provide to help students learn What expectations we have at College and the goals students can set against these Thinking about how students can learn to be a Good Learner An evening session will also be held on Thursday 8 March 2015 (7-9pm) Topic: How parents can best support their child at College. YEAR 9 FAMILY MEAL – TUESDAY 10TH FEB (5-7PM) This is a relaxed evening for teachers, parents and students to meet and enjoy each other’s company. GOAL CONFERENCEING DAY – FRIDAY 27TH FEB Great day to sit down with your Parents and Form Teacher to plan how to achieve your goals for Year 9. WHAT ARE THE TEACHERS LIKE? You have different teachers for each subject so you will find a wide range of teachers but they are all committed to their work and to helping you to be the best you can be. ARE WE ALLOWED TO HAVE OUR CELLPHONES AT SCHOOL? Cell phones are allowed at school, but, like any electronic item, they are brought to school at your own risk. It is expected that phones are switched off during class time, and only used with permission of the teacher. You are free to use them at interval and lunchtime. IF YOU MOVE OR CONTACT DETAILS CHANGE: Please let the College Office know (04) 9025170 or office@pcol.school.nz if your child will no longer be attending school in 2015, if you have moved house or changed any contact details since submitting your application. A FINAL WORD Welcome to Paraparaumu College. You are about to enter into an exciting, important and unforgettable time of your life – MAKE THE MOST OF IT and enjoy every opportunity you can!