EXTENSION AND ENRICHMENT

Hillcrest High School follows Curriculum guidelines for Junior (Years 9-10) and Senior (Years 11-13), and promotes and encourages education beyond.

Extension and enrichment are features of both curriculum and co-curricular programmes at all levels at Hillcrest High School. At Years 9 & 10, students identified as gifted and talented have opportunities to participate in programmes such as JEEP (Junior Extension and Enrichment Programme) and Sports Development.

JEEP (Junior Extension and Enrichment Programme)

Hillcrest High School’s Junior Enrichment and Extension Programme (JEEP) is offered in Year 9 (in Semester 2) and in Year 10 (in Semester 1). JEEP’s goal is to offer our junior gifted students opportunities to enrich and deepen their thinking and learning through inquiry driven classroom activities and EOTC experiences such as trips to the international film festival, live performance, exhibitions, tours of thought-provoking places and physical challenges. Students who take JEEP go on to excel in a range of areas, from sport to academic subjects, music and the arts, cultural activities and many other extra-curricular activities. The majority of our senior student leaders at Hillcrest began their path to leadership in JEEP.

Year 9 JEEP runs in Semester 2 each year, allowing our new Year 9 students to settle into the routines of high school. Year 10 JEEP is run in Semester 1 of Year 10, building upon and extending the foundations laid in 9 JEEP.

The course is designed around the Autonomous Learner Model (Betts, 1985) to meet the cognitive, emotional and social needs of gifted and talented students. By developing student’s autonomy for lifelong learning, JEEP fosters growth of their awareness of the world around us through inquiry-based learning and reflection, debate and discussion. Students are encouraged to master concepts by presenting seminars to their peers, completing individual and group research projects and creating action plans for positive change within our community.

Year 10 students are also encouraged to take part in local and international academic competitions such as the Philosothon and Future Problem Solving.

The further development of links with Waikato University is continually explored and utilised to enrich learning for students. Selected students are currently able to study level one university papers in, Computer Science, Economics and Maori.

There are opportunities to extend and enrich learning at senior levels through Scholarship and Cambridge classes and participation in national and international academic competitions There is an extensive itinerant music programme in the school and all students are encouraged to participate in extracurricular programmes.

Our groups

  • Theatresports

  • Shakespeare Club

  • Theatre Visits

  • Productions

  • Art Club

  • Kapa Haka Group

  • Concert Band

  • Guitar Group

  • Orchestra

  • Instrument Lessons

  • SCAT Jazz Choir

  • Vocal Lessons

  • Rock Bands

  • Future Problem Solving Group

  • Debating

  • Mooting

  • Hanfu Dancing

  • Korean Fan Dancing

  • Indian Dancing

  • Lion Dancing

  • Writer’s Group

Sports Development Programme

Students applying for this trimester programme will go through a rigorous selection process before being accepted into the group. Selection will be based on sporting ability, potential, effort in both sport and school, and general attitude.

Year 9 Sports Development will be a timetabled class running in Semester 2.

This course will ready the students for the Year 10 programme and competing in the annual Duathlon, Co-op Games, Skill Acquisition, strategy and a Police-based fitness unit.

At the end of the Semester 2 course students will be invited to attend the annual trip to Rotorua, mountain biking and rafting.

At the end of this course, students can then apply to be a part of the Year 10 Sports Development class the following year.

The class will begin the year by training for and competing in the Multi-Sport Challenge. Students will complete a challenging event including swimming, running and kayaking around the Mount Maunganui area.

This runs as a full-year option course and topics included are Anatomy, Sports Nutrition, ABL, Strength and Conditioning, Professional Sport, as well as the annual trip to Auckland to Snow Planet and go-kart team racing.

This is a full NCEA course offering 20 credits across a range of contexts including Anatomy, Biomechanics and Exercise Physiology, Rock climbing, mountain biking, tennis and a ski trip.

Students will be selected for this course from the Year 10 class but there are often spaces open for others to apply for.

The course has been designed to be as practical as possible while offering contexts that will benefit the students in their sporting endeavors.