New School For Ohope At Last?

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 12, Issue 26, 2 March 1948, Page 5

New School For Ohope At Last?

Site Settled: Plans Expected Shortly/ Now Representatives of the County Council, the Department of Maori Affairs, the Ohope Progress League, and the School Committee, met Mr A. Bell, of Tauranga, the Ward representative of the Education Board, at Ohope yesterday to discuss the proposed new school site. The party visited the area occupied by the Caledonian Sports ground which has been considered as a possible site for some time. An area of approximately 10 acres was decided upon. The party agreed that this would give the children ample playing area. “The site that is used for the school at present is Presbyterian Church property, and though not equipped with all the essentials of a modern school it was the best that could be found at the time,” said the secretary of the school committee, Mr J. Duthie, after the conference yesterday. He expressed his committee’s appreciation of the generosity and consideration the Presbytery had shown. The next move will ibe a visit by the Education Board’s architect, who will view the site and consider the best type of school for the locality. It is not known exactly when the board intends to start on the construction of the new building, but it is believed in informed quarters, that it will not be far off.

School Re-opens With Good Attendance: Sighs Of Relief From Mothers

All those harrassed mothers who have been trying to teach their offspring from correspondence lessons seem to have heaved quite a number of sighs, presumably of relief, over the opening of schools yesterday, according to 1 the Headmaster, Mr I. B. Hubbard. A good attendance at school yesterday seemed to bear him out.

Though the rolls have not been fully compiled yet the number of children at the school now seems to suggest that a new record will be established this year. The infant school is so crowded that for the twenty-fifth year the children have overflowed into the old Band Room. The number of Auckland school pupils attending the High School here is very small, though it is expected that more will coming, , A new angle on school life, and one that is little known to parents in Whakatane, is the branch known as the Hospital Side School, run by the Education Board so that the puils of any school in the district who may be in hospital will not miss any of their lessons. This type of teaching requires patience and ability above the norfinal, because the teacher has to deal with sick children only. Only children up to standard six are taught. Miss D. Blake is the teacher in charge.

Teachers Brush Up Physical Training: Three-Day (Course

Teachers from schools in Whakatane and its vicinity have been undergoing a three-day refresher course of physical education conducted by the physical education branch of the Education Department, at the Whakatane High School.

The instructors in charge of the scheme were Misses A. Grainger, A. Golding, N. Romans, E. McDonald of Auckland, and Messrs. H. Mills, of Auckland, I. Wyatt and R. Adams, both of Whakatane* The course was designed to enable teachers to introduce new corrective exercises and ball-handling techniques. This has been thought necessary because of the low standard of ball-handling in various sports in New Zealand. The scheme was checked by such noted sportsmen as Scott and Allen, the All-Blacks, and Wallace the cricketer as well as by the leading softball authorities.

A number of films were shown, including films on athletics, shots of the last Olympic Games, and one on English ball-handling. This new system will be used in the coming school year and is expected to give better results.