Halswell School is an exciting and vibrant full primary school, Year 0
to Year 8 (5 to 13 years of age), located in a beautiful safe setting on
the southwestern edge of Christchurch City in the South Island.
Our school provides an inclusive, nurturing family friendly environment
in which the mastering of the English Language is achieved. Special
strengths are the high standards achieved by our self-motivated students
academically as well as in performing arts and sporting challenges.
We are proud to offer our International Students the very best study,
social and family environment available.
View our movie to learn more about our school community:
In New Zealand all schools must follow the New Zealand Education
Curriculum. The vision is to develop young people who will be confident,
connected, actively involved and life-long learners.
The methods of teaching and learning see that all children are able to
succeed to the best of their own ability and enjoy being at school.
There is regular assessment to ensure that students are progressing in
all subject areas and the teaching is making a difference to the
learning. The Government sets National Standards of expected achievement
for reading writing and mathematics. Parents must be informed about how
their child is progressing.
The learning areas that must be taught are
• English and languages
• Mathematics and Statistics
• Inquiry-Social Studies, History, Science, Health, Education Outside
the Classroom
• Technology
• The Arts: Visual Art, Drama, Music, Dance
• Physical Education and Sport
Unique Halswell
We are a Christchurch full primary school (age 5-13years) in beautiful
peaceful but dynamic decile 10 area that is close to the city centre as
well as the open green spaces and popular recreation areas. The location
is very convenient and easy to get around by car, bus, walking or
biking. The airport is 15 minutes away. There is an interesting retail
and commercial area with a variety shops and cafes and a hotel with
excellent accommodation.
Halswell School reflects the importance our local community places on
Education. Parents play a very important role in their child’s education
and the governance of the school. The school has over 150 years of
interesting history and tradition and is always a place that the local
community are made feel welcome and are proud of.
Our roll is usually approximately 560 students. Class size ranges from
15 to 28. Our students come from extremely kind and caring educated
families where parents are actively involved in their child’s education.
There is a special school culture of pride and wanting to participate
and do well. A special feature is the close relationship between our
younger and older students enhanced through a buddy programme. Halswell
students are very well behaved and eager to learn. Halswell students
excel in extra curricular activities and often participate nationally
and globally. They are highly regarded in Christchurch and many are
offered scholarships to secondary schools.
We have over 30 staff who are all highly qualified and chose to be part
of ongoing professional development of leading edge education. They are
all committed to ensuring the very best outcomes for all children and
love being part of a very collaborative team.
Many Opportunities
There are many extracurricular activities at Halswell School to choose
from depending on the time of the year. There are always sporting
activities. Coaching is provided in soccer, rugby, basketball, golf,
softball, tennis, swimming, hockey, volleyball, athletics, cross country
,triathlon, cricket, netball, jump jam and sports competitions. Music is
a feature and there are many instrumental and choral groups and an
orchestra as well as opportunities to learn to play a musical instrument
and many performances.
There also various groups to be involved in. The arts, culture, chess,
environmental and gardening club, radio station, dance, drama, school
leadership activities, additional languages including Mandarin and
French and academic competitions are some of these options.
Halswell is a popular area for families to live in. It has a very active
well resourced community. There many more opportunities for adults and
children to join recreational activities in the local community. Sports
clubs (swimming, basketball, football, rugby, touch, and golf are very
popular) music tutors, Taekwondo, dance, drama, ballet, art classes,
youth groups, church groups, and more!
There is a beautiful new library and community facility as well as a
swimming pool. There are many sports clubs and groups to join. There are
2 large parks that provide wonderful outdoor spaces to explore and where
special school and community events are held.
Outstanding Learning Environment
At Halswell School the teaching is in a brand new safe modern healthy
environment that offers the best possible learning for success in the
21st century. The students have access to superb resources and the
latest technology. The focus is on real learning and being actively
involved.
There are vibrant well connected learning studios that allow
flexibility, easy access to resources and technology. There are
colourful quiet learning spaces for targeted teaching groups to support
individuals and group learning. Sheltered outdoor learning areas enable
seamless blending of indoor outdoor learning. We have a huge stadium for
school and community use as well as a school library, music studios,
technology centre and an International Student kitchen and work room.
The outdoors are interesting and designed for learning and playing.
We are a code green school where water is recycled, there is a zero
rubbish focus and all students are fully involved in the care of the
environment.
The buildings take advantage of using natural lighting and have
effective temperature control , acoustically treated and plenty of fresh
air so that all children and teachers can concentrate and be comfortable
and achieve.
Intermediate Age
Our Year 7/8 programme is specially designed to prepare students for
secondary school. The programme includes many in depth learning
experience from specialist teachers with a focus on English, Maths and
Science. Students at this level have additional extracurricular
activities to develop confidence and leadership.
Coming to New Zealand for Year 8 allows the students a year to settle
into New Zealand life, gain an excellent practical knowledge of English
and make friends so the pathway to secondary school is an easy
transition.
Internationalisation
Internationalisation is a highly valued part of our school. We welcome
and embrace opportunities to meet people from around the globe and the
cultural diversity and friendships they bring. We have sister schools in
several countries and are proud of our global links. Halswell is a
Government approved provider of International Education. The Code of
Practice sets rules and regulations that we must follow to host
International Students. We also belong to Christchurch Educated and work
with other educational providers to ensure a high quality experience as
well as pathways to other excellent schools and study options for
parents. Halswell School has an excellent reputation in New Zealand for
the extra care they take of their International Students and families.
International Students do very well at our school and have won awards
and made highly valued contributions to our school. We have a small
migrant population who are able to provide a friendly welcome
to help
new families settle as well as our school PTA group.
Our International Director and staff have many years of experience
helping and caring to ensure our International students and their
families are happy and settling in well as well as supported in the
classroom.
Every student is special
At Halswell we are focused on improving the educational experiences of
all children. We provide high quality relevant programmes, and resources
that will support the diverse needs of our young learners. Halswell
children achieve at high levels by focusing on academic excellence.
Each student has a class group and a home teacher. The school is divided
but linked into 5 age group areas. A daily subject timetable is
followed. The teachers work together with the students using a range of
methods to cater for different learning styles and interests. All
teachers teach to the needs of the children. There is a very kind and
supportive atmosphere where each child is made feel special and is eager
to learn more through challenge and success.
At Halswell we want to inspire every child to Imagine Believe Create and
Succeed.
We do this by using our ACTIVE focus in all we do. A is for achievement C is for communication T is for thinking I is for interacting V is for being versatile E is for enjoying learning and celebrate our success
Our values
Care Respect Honesty and Resilience underpin all that we do to honour
our motto