Social Studies

Year 9 and 10 Social Studies continues to be a popular core subject area for many students. The topics are well received with Savage Earth at Year 9 and Human Rights at Year 10 being two of the most popular topics to learn about. Year 9 students were again able to visit the Napier Aquarium and MTG as part of their study of the Savage Earth to look at the causes and impacts of the 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake. At the Aquarium, students had a hands on opportunity to create a tsunami in the tsunami tank, cause liquefaction and watch the effects on model cars. At the MTG students visited the 1931 Earthquake gallery filled with preserved items from this day and had a walking tour of the nearby streets and Soundshell area to look at the new Art Deco buildings that were constructed in the rebuild of Napier. Group work and creative model making opportunities were encouraged this year and we had a focus on writing paragraphs to help the transition from the junior school into NCEA where thinking of and writing an answer is a necessary skill. The teachers were all very pleased with the progress students made with their writing.