Since starting at Ao Tawhiti over four years ago, I have been encouraged to try so many different things that I had never before considered. I have had so many amazing opportunities and completed courses such as: Philosophy at UC, Barista and Design at Ara, Animation at Yoobee, Gateway Aviation, and First Aid Certification. I […]
Ever since I started at Ao Tawhiti in 2022, I have been given the opportunities and freedom to pursue my learning at my own pace and achieve the goals I set for myself. I’ve been able to take charge of my own learning, but I still had assistance from my teachers when I needed it. […]
I started at Ao Tawhiti back in 2015 as a Year 0, and have loved the special character of the school. Being able to choose my own learning pathway and subjects, and the trust focused model provided by the school is great. It has been incredibly helpful being able to make my own timetable, and […]
I started Ao Tawhiti at the start of my year 11 in 2024. Since joining this school I have had access to incredible opportunities that I couldn’t experience at another school, such as undergoing a work experience placement at the pharmacy department of Christchurch Hospital, beginning both NCEA Level 2 and 3, and completing Level […]
I joined Ao Tawhiti going into year 5, and it’s the best decision of my education yet. The thing that drew me here in the first place was the ability to learn at whatever level was best for me, and what absolutely kept me was the variety of subjects and the people. I’ve had a […]
Upcoming Events Message From Anita Kia ora koutou, As we come to the end of Term One, I would like to take a moment to reflect on what has been a vibrant and inspiring start to the 2026 school year here at Ao Tawhiti Unlimited Discovery. This term has been filled with energy, opportunity and […]
I joined Ao Tawhiti in the middle of my NCEA journey, after moving from the Cambridge system, and I only had about a year and a half to figure out how everything worked. What made that possible was how my Homebase teachers structured my learning with me. I took History, English, Media, and Art & […]
Upcoming Events Message From Anita Kia ora koutou,As we come to the end of another uniquely Ao Tawhiti year, full of organised chaos and messy learning I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to all our caregivers and whānau for your ongoing support, flexibility, and commitment to our community.Our kura thrives because of the strong […]
Upcoming Events Message From Anita Kia ora e te whānau, There have been a lot of changes introduced in education over the last few weeks, including the release of a number of curriculum documents for consultation. Below is an open letter composed by Niki Stephenson, Jenny Ward, Nicole Cunningham and Alex Clark. I am sharing […]
Kia ora e te whānau, Here are our Homebase Learning Advisor selections for 2026. Please complete this selection by 5pm Monday the 17th of November. https://aotawhiti.school.nz/2026-year-7-13-homebase-learning-advisors/ Please read everyone’s blurb and then fill in the form (large green button) at the bottom of the page. If you have stumbled across this page, and you are NOT a […]
On the last day of term, Thursday the 11th of December 2025, we are intending on having our annual picnic at the playground/paddling pool in the Botanical Gardens. https://maps.app.goo.gl/paE65sHW7iNQaZZ89 This will begin at 9am and finish at 12pm. Please can you arrange to have your child picked up by 12pm from the park. We will […]
There’s heaps of cool things on offer in 4.2. Take a look at the descriptors and let your HBLA know what classes you want to take. https://arotahi.aotawhiti.school.nz/course-list The timetable structure will change slightly – see below. Literacy and numeracy classes will run in yellow and red. Some of the Wednesday options will start at 9am, but others […]
Friday, 28 November is our 2025 graduation! This event is one of the absolute highlights of the year. Graduation is our chance to farewell our leavers, hear each of their stories and wish them well on their next step. We are thrilled to announce that graduation will take place at the Piano again this year. The Piano: […]
Upcoming Events Message From Anita Tēna koutou e te whānau, I want to thank you all for your mahi and support for our school over the past term.I would also like to welcome our new Board. Courtney Shipp and Danella Stewart are existing board members who got reelected. Our new board members are Ian McAdam, […]
Our Term 4 2025 IEMS (Individual Education Meetings) are scheduled for Friday the 19th of September & the Monday the 6th of October, 2025. The IEM is the most important element of a student’s Learning Journey at Ao Tawhiti and it is vital that you book one. The IEM is a time to plan out […]
Kia ora Term 4 Classes (4.1) are available now for students and whānau to have a read through and choose from. https://arotahi.aotawhiti.school.nz/course-list These classes will run for the first 5 weeks of Term 4. A new set will be available to choose from for the second half of Term 4 soon. (4.2) Please let your HBLA […]
We will be running our practice exams for NCEA Levels 2 and 3 during the final week of this term (the week beginning September 15). This means that Year 12 and 13 students will be on study leave and there will be no NCEA Level 2 and 3 classes running. Year 11 students (or younger) […]
Upcoming Events Message From Anita Kia ora ki te whānau, Thank you everyone who recently contributed to the phone consultation. It was fascinating working through the 160 caregiver responses, as well as the student and staff responses. Common themes from the community consultation are listed below. We also considered the legislation that states that students […]
Upcoming Events Message From Anita Kia ora koutou Welcome to the end of term two. Sadly, we farewell a number of staff this term. Grace Schischka was covering Gina Harrison’s maternity leave and Andy Ellmers was covering Matt Parkes’ study leave. Matt and Gina are back next term and while it is great to have […]
