I'll save the subject of New Zealand’s Tip Top ice cream, including the Hokey Pokey flavor, for another time. Coulter is certainly the most experienced with this subject. For now, I'm offering the real scoop on Martha’s experiences at Queens High School, at least from the information that I get right after school. Okay, so it's mostly second hand, but better than nothing, right?
Queens is located in South Dunedin, about 20 minutes away. The transportation started out a bit stressful. Mart missed the bus home on the first day and I didn’t have a car to go pick her up. It was 30-minutes before I could get in touch with Rick and then he picked her up. She was sitting by herself on a bench and everyone had left the school. On the phone, I kept asking her about the strangers walking by. On the second day, I nearly called the police after she was 45 minutes later than I had expected. She walked up the driveway all cheery and relaxed, thinking that the schedule was normal. I guess time goes by fast when you can ride the bus with boys! When I called the school administrator to say everything was okay, she told me to “sit down and have a nice cup of tea.” The transit employee replied to my panicked message, saying “no worries, there is nothing wrong with caring about your child.” Rick has a hilarious Skype message/video in which I look like a nervous wreck. Anyhow, the transportation is all good now.
Mart’s homework load is surprisingly low. The curriculum tends to be practical and project-oriented--an interesting way for her to apply concepts. For example, in maths (it is called maths, not math) she has been working on designing a farm with all the associated financial, physical, artistic, including principles of perimeter and area. The sciences have mostly been a review, except that everyone else has more of the periodic table memorized. In English she has weekly quizzes on NZ current events and government. Now we are talking much more about the news as a family. Her Maori class is entirely new and fast-paced but she seems to be getting along okay. It is exciting to see her thriving and being challenged in new ways. She is starting to play in a music ensemble (cello, flute, piano) and she is being recruited by the PE teacher for a sports team (touch rugby or indoor soccer) as she just placed first in her age category for the 400m, 800m and 1500m during their school-wide competition. She was surprised when they called her to the front of the room to receive a certificate in front of the whole school.
Mart’s experiential load is huge as she takes in a new suite of social dynamics and school traditions. For example, on the first day of school our family was invited to Queens as part of a Maori welcoming ceremony. The new girls were escorted into the school after a senior girl and a faculty member offered a Maori call. The entire faculty sang the school song in Maori, followed by a lengthy speech by a Maori elder (in Maori). We aren’t sure what he said. This was followed by a speech in English from the principal which emphasized, “once a Queen’s girl, always a Queen’s girl.” We were invited to stay at the school for “tea” and Martha was later asked to join a group of international students for more tea and coffee. Talk about cultural immersion! I love it. She has made friends fast but they are very different from back home. One girl, in finding out that Mart was a Mormon, asked her if she really went to church every week because she had never met someone who actually went to Church (in spite of the fact that the friend had just transferred from a Catholic school). Mart is the only Mormon at Queens, although there is a 17-year-old investigator from the school who has been coming to church every week.
A few more comments about Queens in general: I don’t think single-sex education is necessarily ideal but this was the closest public HS to our house, and even that is 20 minutes away. There are a variety of high school options in the Dunedin area but everyone adheres to strict uniform codes, identifying their particular schools. Interestingly, the local paper recently reported that the uniforms are problematic for the “non-binary” and transgender students, a growing population who don’t want the male/female distinction. They are finding solutions in unisex restrooms and approved uniform alternatives, like the option of wearing the “male” bottom part of a uniform and the “female” upper part. Queens, thankfully, is still quite traditional. The girls are girls. They wear gray wool skirts or plaid skirts, white shirts, white socks, black leather shoes, wool jerseys/sweaters (if cold) and a compulsory wool blazer that they must wear at assemblies and when going to and from school. Today it was baking hot and Mart still had to wear her blazer home on the bus. We all think that is a bit extreme! The girls' hair must be up off of their necks. No make-up. No hair dye. No jewelry, except earring studs, unless it is traditional Maori wear. The school reflects both Maori and British heritage, typical for the Dunedin area, which is known as the "Edinburgh of the South." Girls are divided into “houses” with colors and prefects (think of Harry Potter) but they also remove their shoes when entering the Maori classroom. We are so glad for these new experiences and that Martha is moving forward with a great attitude. By the way, I'll have her approve "the scoop" before I post.