Avonside Girls' High School International

Sarasa graduated this year after completing 5 years of study at Avonside Girls’ High. It was important to Sarasa and her family for her to stay connected to her Japanese culture so she joined the Takumi Japanese Drumming Group in Christchurch. She committed to weekly practices and performed at many local events. This year the group played at our school Cultural Assembly and it was a highlight of the event. Sarasa has returned to Japan and she will start university in 2025. We are sure she will be missed by her Takumi group.

We are sad to farewell our international students but sometimes we are lucky to see them again when we travel. I went to Japan this year and met some students from the year I started in the AGHS international department 11 years ago. The last photo was taken the year some of the girls were at AGHS. Two students who graduated a few years ago also joined us for the reunion. It was great to hear about the lives and their achievements.

Four of our German international students are staying over the summer break. They are all fortunate to be travelling around sometime in the break either on tours, with their host families or with their families from home who have come to visit them in NZ. Here are some of their Christmas Day photos. Happy holidays!

During the year we supported Kairos Food Rescue and their Food Store which is available for anyone in the community who is struggling for the basic necessities. We were proud of how our girls participated in our volunteer programme and how they managed this event and helped with organising local food bank packs for delivery.

Fuka and Yoona have been involved in various school music groups this year and they performed at the Canterbury Schools’ Chamber Music event, which was a wonderful event. We are very proud of their commitment throughout the year.

Another year is over and it’s an opportunity to look back on our year. We will start at the end when four of our girls graduated. Athena and Sarasa have been with us since year 9 and five years later they are leaving us, it was quite emotional. Sarasa is going to Uni in Japan and Athena will be coming back to study at Otago Uni in Dunedin. Hinari and Erii started in year 11 when our borders reopened mid 2022 after Covid. Sadly Erii had to leave before graduation but she is going to Uni in Rome and Hinari will study at Uni in Japan. It was lovely to have Hinari and Sarasa’s parents, Athena’s brother and host families there. We will miss them and wish them all much happiness and success with their future studies ❤️

Aotearoa New Zealand is celebrating Matariki this week. Matariki is a special occasion in the New Zealand calendar which marks the start of the Māori New Year. Signified by the Matariki cluster of stars reappearing in our night sky, this is a time to reflect on the past year, celebrate the present, and plan for the year ahead. We made Matariki gift bags for our international students filled with special Matariki cookies baked by Jude our Homestay Manager and Milky Way chocolate bars 🌟 ⭐️

Every year we support the Child Cancer Street Appeal to help raise funds for children with cancer and their families. We appreciate our international students giving their time to help our communities across New Zealand ❤️

The Waka on Avon experience gives our students the opportunity to learn about Māori culture and also history of the local area. They started with some games and then out on the water in a Waka. Each group were taken on a walking tour around Victoria Square and the river. Some of our girls performed a Māori song to thank the waka crew 😊

Our Term 1 trip to the West Coast was blessed with perfect weather for the outdoor activities we had planned. The stunning scenery in Punakaiki can be enjoyed in kayaks on the river, walking around natural attractions, on beach walks and it’s the perfect place for yoga. Our toilet paper wedding dress competition proved what amazing designs can be made in one hour. The interactive activity at Shantytown gave the girls an opportunity to dress up, learn about the history of the West Coast and pan for gold.

Having an offsite Orientation for our new student arrivals means they can relax and meet new people as well see the Christchurch city sights and have new experiences.

We love it when our students step outside their comfort zone and try new experiences. Airi, Marin & Yui went on their PE Leap class overnight tramp near Mt Somers. They slept in tents, cooked their own food and didn’t have showers! They said the scenery was beautiful when they returned but they are ready for a shower and a comfy bed . Scenery photos will be posted soon!