Latest news with #Korimako
Otago Daily Times
17 hours ago
- General
- Otago Daily Times
Class goes global with viral idea
Clyde Primary School teacher Sydney Robertson and the year 6 and 7 Korimako class show off with the postcards they received from around the world as a part of their viral postcard project. PHOTO: ELLA JENKINS A Clyde primary school teacher has gone viral on social media asking for strangers from around the world to send postcards to her class as a part of their inquiry learning. Sydney Robertson said she got the idea one morning while scrolling through social media. She came across a high school teacher from overseas collecting postcards from around the world. "I thought we could do that, so I pitched it to my class." The response had been incredible, with more than 40,000 views and postcards arriving from all over the world. The year 6 and 7 pupils were instantly hooked on the idea and began to discuss how and who they could get postcards from, she said. Miss Robertson had the idea to tie the postcard project in with the class' inquiry project, about Kōpūwai and the Clever Girl, a traditional Māori story set on the banks of the Clutha River. "So we compared some different versions of the narratives and then discussed how it relates to Central Otago now and how there are lots of different people in Central from all over the world." The class started on May 15 by connecting with family and friends while Miss Robertson shared videos on her social media pages, which she set up three years ago to share her teaching journey. The videos asked people to send postcards and include information about where they were from, as well as how to say "welcome to Central Otago" in their language. "Postcards started arriving from all over and we decided to take things a step further by creating a wish list. "It's now filled with hopes of hearing from famous Kiwis, sports teams, local legends, even the Country Calendar crew, a pub owner from Ireland and, of course, [American basketball player] LeBron [James]." The class was buzzing after going viral. The pupils said they were grateful for the postcards they had received. "It's been an amazing way to connect the classroom to the wider world and celebrate the diversity of Aotearoa and beyond," Miss Robertson said. She and her class hoped to learn how to say "welcome to Central Otago" in as many languages as possible in order to create a video welcoming seasonal workers to the region.
Otago Daily Times
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
New to speaking English but singing no issue
Two years ago, Jared Gerida, 15, could barely speak a word of English. Yesterday, the South Otago High School student led his choir at a regional singing competition. The year 11 student owned the stage at the Otago and South Canterbury Big Sing regional competition at the Dunedin Town Hall. He said he migrated to New Zealand from the Philippines two years ago and did not know how to speak English. "I [had] never really grown up with English. "I only picked up on English through listening to people talk." South Otago High School year 11 student Jared Gerida, 15, sings in front of his school choir Korimako (from left) Jayden Gelacio, 15, Rashaun Melvin, 16, Julia Silverado Racho, 18, Erin Turner, 14, Ella McCarthy, 17, Erynne Parlane, 13, and Jessamine Daumann, 15, after their performance at the South Canterbury and Otago Big Sing regional competition yesterday. PHOTO: PETER MCINTOSH He said it was challenging for him to learn the language, but he was getting used to it. It was an amazing experience for him to be on stage and singing. He was nervous before singing in front of hundreds of people but said a prayer and hoped for the best. "I just said 'God, just take care of me and give me the voice of an angel', and I think he did." Jared has an extraordinarily deep voice that stands out among his peers. He said he had found it by trying to do impersonations of older people as a child and by taking part in his school's kapa haka group. His choir, Korimako, had been rehearsing once a week for the past two months and was one of the smallest to perform yesterday with just eight singers. Music director Deborah Ward, who is an English teacher, said the school did not have a music department, but she sang in a choir herself and wanted to share the experience with her students. "I loved singing in choirs when I was at school. "Those were some of my favourite days performing like that in a group." She said Korimako had a "strong underdog energy" and her advice to the students was to not be intimidated by any of their competitors. Big Sing regional co-ordinator Rosemary Tarbotton said 14 schools and 16 choirs from as far north as Timaru took part in the competition. Recordings of the performances will be sent to Wellington, where three adjudicators will select the top 24 choirs from across New Zealand to compete in the finale in Dunedin in August.
Otago Daily Times
29-05-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Speech contest winner gets ‘heart-warming' response from peers
Receiving a roaring haka was a "heart-warming" moment for a Dunedin secondary student who took top honours in a Māori speech competition. King's High School student Zane Rakete-Gray, 16, won the Korimako senior English contest at the Ōtākou and Murihiku Ngā Manu Kōrero regional speech competition at the Dunedin Town Hall yesterday. Zane placed first in both impromptu and prepared speeches categories. For his prepared speech, Zane spoke about what the world could look like in 2085 if the present coalition government got its way. "There won't be a competition like this in 2085, our language will be dead, the land will be destroyed beyond repair and our environment will not be good enough to live in." The competition was a good way to express his culture to the rest of the country, if not the world, he said. "It just shows that there is still people who can speak Māori." When he was announced the winner, a haka erupted in the town hall from his peers in the King's and Queen's High Schools' kapa haka group, He Waka Kōtuia. "It was a bit heart-warming." For the Ta Turi Kara junior English contest winner Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Otepoti student Ngaki Kiore, 14, speaking was about showing her peers they could stand on a stage and speak their minds. "There is a place for you here, whether you speak te reo Maori or not." Ngaki's sister Matoia Wilson won the senior English competition in 2009 and Ngaki was proud to follow in her sister's footsteps. Her speech was about connection to her ancestors and why her Māori correspondence school's curriculum offered the best opportunity for students to succeed, Ngaki said. "At Kura Kaupapa we are not just based off learning, we are based off how we can grow in ourselves." About 40 speakers from 23 schools across Otago and Southland took part n over two days. Zane and Ngaki will be joined by Pei Te Hurinui Jones senior Māori contest winner Hana Davis and Rawhiti Ihaka junior Māori contest winner Kyra Bachelor-Tata at the national finals in Whanganui this September.
