Important Notices from the Headmaster – November 2023
End of Year Procedures
To assist with your family’s organisation, the information below outlines School activities and the timing of the School day throughout the last month of the School year.
We highlight these with you as there is a lot on in the coming weeks and we appreciate all families will want advance notice of the range of activities occurring as the School year draws quickly to a close.
Week 5 (Monday 6 – Friday 10 November)
- Form 3 and 4 students will be completing their end-of year examinations
- Form 5 students are not required to attend School this week
- Form 6 and 7 students will be on study leave and/or completing their external assessments. Parents of senior students should note that Cambridge examinations continue until Thursday 16 November. NZQA examinations (NCEA and Scholarship) start on Monday 6 November and continue through until Thursday 30 November
- Students without an examination on a particular morning and/or afternoon are on formal study leave and are expected to be studying at home, or in the School Library, where they will be supervised
Week 6 (Monday 13 – Friday 17 November)
Form 5 students will have scheduled timetabled classes on Monday 13 November only as part of the Pre-Q Examination Paper Review Day. This day will be the only opportunity for Form 5 Pre-Q students to review and confirm the marking of their examination scripts. All Form 5 students who study one or more Pre-Q courses are expected to attend timetabled lessons for the entirety of the School day. They will be required to meet the School’s uniform and grooming standards. Form 5 students are not required to attend School after this day, except for NCEA assessments, until Wednesday 29 November.
Form 3 and 4 students will have scheduled classes Monday – Friday, where they will receive examination marks back from their subject teachers.
Form 4 students will also attend a mixture of timetabled classes and workshops, where Health teachers will facilitate presentations and associated learning on the impact of pornography on the adolescent brain. Relevant information regarding these important workshops will be communicated to Form 4 parents separately.
Each School day will finish at 3.15pm.
Week 7 (Monday 20 – Friday 24 November)
Beginning on Monday 20 November, Form 3 and 4 students will participate in the Junior School Activities Week programme, on campus, which will operate over 5 School days.
During the Activities Week programme the School day will begin with assembly at 9.00am and students are expected to maintain the usual standards of uniform, grooming and behaviour. They are required to bring PE uniform each day. The day will conclude at 3pm throughout the five days of the Activities Week programme.
Form 3 students will participate in Te Reo Māori workshops held on campus, led by Mr J. Potaka, ably assisted by a network of tutors on Monday 20 November. They will participate in a bespoke Form 3 leadership programme on Friday 24 November.
Form 4 students will participate in a Careers Experience Day with AUT staff onsite at School on Monday 20 November and will complete a specialised leadership programme on Friday 24 November.
Week 8 (Monday 27 November – Friday 1 December)
Monday 27 November – Tuesday 28 November
Form 3 and 4 students will attend School as normal.
On Monday 27 November, all Form 3 and 4 classes will participate in a Form Class Sports Day held on campus. The School day will conclude at 3pm.
On Tuesday 28 November, all Form 3 and 4 classes will attend final timetabled lessons in each subject to complete course-related formalities. ID photographs for 2024 will also be taken of all Form 3 and 4 students on this day. The School day will conclude at 1.15pm.
Please note the School bus service will run at its normal timetabled intervals throughout the final 3 weeks of the School year. Departure times will not be brought forward earlier as the service accommodates students from other schools.
Wednesday 29 November
Students in all year levels return to School for the final three days of the School year meeting the normal standards. The School day will commence at 9am with assembly, followed by a form time where young men will have the opportunity to return all textbooks, library books and School materials to the appropriate place.
After the scheduled form time, all students will return to the Great Hall for the 2023 Colours and Performing Arts Assembly, which will commence at 10.15am. This special assembly will be livestreamed for parents to recognise and celebrate the successes of our top performing arts’ students. The School day should conclude at 11.30am for all who have met their commitments.
Thursday 30 November
All Form 3 – 7 students are expected to attend School.
The School day will commence at 9am and should conclude at 10.30am, after our last formal assembly of the year and Prizegiving rehearsals.
The Leavers’ Dinner begins for Form 7 students at 6:30pm at Eden Park.
Cambridge certificates for the November examinations will arrive in school in March next year. Students who are still at School in 2024 will receive their certificates in person. School leavers will be contacted when certificates are ready for collection from School, but if it will not be possible to collect certificates in person, you can arrange for your certificate to be couriered to an address you specify. The arrangements for this facility can be confirmed here, or via the link available on students’ GrammarNet dashboard.
Friday 1 December
The 2023 School Prizegiving will begin at 9am in the Great Hall. This is a celebration of achievement and is a compulsory event for all students.
All young men are again expected to attend in school uniform, wearing shoes and socks. As is the norm, we remind students to ensure they are appropriately groomed before arriving at School for this important occasion.
Prizewinners who fail to meet basic standards or fail to attend School on Wednesday, and Thursday will not be issued prizes and awards at the Prizegiving ceremony.
We encourage parents and friends of the School to join with us for this celebration of the 2023 academic, sporting and performing arts’ student achievements. Seating is available for parents on the B Floor of the Great Hall. Parents are encouraged to arrive early.
Prizegiving should conclude by 11.40am. For parents and friends of the School who cannot attend Prizegiving, the occasion will be livestreamed on the website.
The School year concludes for all young men at the end of a final form time that will follow Prizegiving. Form teachers will issue all students with their end of year report at this second form time.
Students who sat Cambridge examinations will also receive a notice with personalised log-in and password details so that they can access their results online on 10 January 2024 for AS and A Level).
Students who have completed Pre-Q courses will receive their Pre-Q Results Certificate at this time.
If applied for, senior form teachers will also issue Form 6 or 7 leavers with their Leavers’ Documentation at the end of Prizegiving.
All young men who have met all School commitments will also be issued with a copy of this year’s School magazine, the Chronicle, and a copy of the School List.
If a student does not attend Prizegiving, they will not be issued any documentation. Similarly, students who arrive to Prizegiving not meeting our uniform or grooming expectations will not be issued any documentation at the scheduled Form Time that follows Prizegiving.
Those who have had documents withdrawn due to being on the Defaulters’ List, or for not meeting our expectations, will be required to report to the Great Hall at 9am on Monday 4 December in uniform.
Key dates for Term 1, 2024
- Thursday 18 January: Form 5-7 Option Changes (10am-3pm)
- Friday 19 January: New Students’ Orientation (9am-12pm)
- Friday 19 January: Form 5-7 Option Changes (12pm-3pm)
- Monday 22 January: School Closed (Staff Only Day)
- Tuesday 23 January: Term 1 starts for all Form levels
- Monday 29 January: School closed (Auckland Anniversary Day observed)
- Monday 5 February: School closed
- Tuesday 6 February: School closed (Waitangi Day observed)
- Wednesday 7 February: Form 3 Parents’ Information Evening
- Thursday 15 February: Athletics Sports Day
- Friday 16 February: Scholars’ Assembly
- Friday 15 March: Cross Country
- Thursday 4 – Monday 8 April: Term 1 Examinations
- Friday 12 April: End of Term 1