Across weeks seven & eight of term four, we headed off on Year 10 camp for 2023. Although the year’s earlier flooding meant we took the long way round to the Coromandel, the destination was well worth the drive. We parked up at Flaxmill Bay for the week, just a stone’s throw away from Cook’s Beach, to enjoy some of the best the Coromandel has to offer.

With approximately 75 students away on camp each week, it was a big week of organised fun, made possible by our fabulous PE department, with June Tai Tin and Ryan Stevens at the lead. Our first full day at camp was set around building new friendships, as students and staff were split off into teams - Blue, Silver, Yellow, Green, and Pink. Activities for the day consisted of kayaking, raft building, raranga (Māori weaving), a quick board games session, and finally, a camp pride station where students were tasked with painting their team flags. These flags were used as the backdrop for the student talent show, held on the last night of camp. Each evening, before hot milo and a bikkie, students were given time in their tent groups to prepare their performances for the talent show. At the end of the week, students were expected to deliver a top-tier performance and were judged on audience enjoyment and their level of preparedness. Such talents witnessed included Jump Jam performances, magic shows, energised renditions of well-known numbers and more.

Our luck with the weather was felt most on days three and four when we headed to Whitianga for a day of banana boating, and Hahei for a day at Hot Water Beach.

For some students, it was their first experience of being towed behind a boat, and our hosts treated each group with both a scenic ride around Shakespeare Point and a ‘hellbender’ experience where students learned the value of clinging on for dear life. At Hot Water Beach, students were equipped with shovels as they dug to find treasure in the form of a natural hot spring.

Overall, it was awesome to see students enjoying new experiences and creating new memories and friendships along the way. Seeing our students at Waitākere College come together in moments of teamwork, and to see them relax in a new environment outside of their usual understanding of ‘school’ was a perfect way to round out 2023.