Taut on the recruiting front

Taut on the recruiting front

A Waipā principal says schools are struggling to recruit teachers and the fields of applicants is as thin as he has seen in 25 years in the role. “High quality experienced teachers are increasingly difficult…

Praise for coaching ‘legend’

There was one person mentioned repeatedly after Te Awamutu Intermediate came third at the Waikato Intermediate and Middle Schools hockey tournament this month – coach Sally Davies. “Sally lives and breathes hockey and her energy,…

Hockey players tickled pink

Two Waipā schools achieved top-three finishes at the 2024 Waikato Intermediate and Middle Schools tournament in Hamilton this week. The annual tournament, held at Gallagher Hockey Centre on May 28, attracted eight mixed teams this…

Petch at the games double

Te Awamutu’s Rebecca Petch will become a double Olympian at the Paris games starting in late July. Petch, 25, represented New Zealand in BMX at the Tokyo Olympics, where she finished 12th. She announced her…

Burning ring of chilli fire

It’s a fine line between pleasure and pain, as the Divinyls’ song goes, but it’s a line Jim Thomassen gets a kick out of walking. Jim, 55, is a competitive chilli eater who will take…

Sextortion looms as growing concern

Sexual exploitation, exposure to objectionable pornographic material and internet-based abuse are the biggest threats to children’s safety online, says a cyber safety expert. John Parsons delivers child protection training around Aotearoa alongside the Police, Oranga…

Phones away, students play

Students at Te Awamutu Intermediate have noticed little difference since the coalition government banned cellphones in schools last month. They have been handing their phones in at the start of the school day for ages…

Kicking the monkey to touch

At 2pm on March 19, a dozen boys in maroon and yellow sports uniforms huddle on a sideline at Albert Park, completely absorbed in their coach Matiu Paraone’s words. Experience has prepared the Te Awamutu…

Cracking idea creates new hen-ergy

Central Kids Hazelmere Kindergarten’s 40 pint-sized poultry farmers are eagerly awaiting their first servings of scrambled, fried and boiled eggs – and enjoying some fluffy cuddles in the meantime. The students have incubated and hatched…

Hoping for Maadi strokes of genius

Asarina Johnson says she went to a Te Awamutu Rowing Club open day in 2022, got in a boat and hasn’t wanted to come back to dry land since. “Rowing is my happy place, I…