Pinehurst Junior College Years 7 - 9

Pinehurst Junior College builds on the foundation of education established in the Primary School in a programme designed to meet the needs of emerging adolescents, best preparing them for their Senior College years.

Mr Glen Radojkovich, Headmaster of Junior College (and Primary) leads a very experienced team of Junior College teachers who are passionate about working with this exciting (and sometimes challenging!) age group.

Multiple Intelligences, Habits of Mind and De Bono thinking strategies assist in scaffolding a strong Cambridge Curriculum. The Junior College provides the Cambridge University Checkpoint Examinations, an excellent tool in preparing our students for IGCSE examinations in Year 10 and 11.

Students are taught within Homerooms with a maximum of twenty five pupils in each class. All subjects are taught by specialists ensuring students receive passionate, dedicated instruction. For practical, on subjects such as Information Technology and Music, students are taught in half classes of twelve or thirteen enabling them to produce outstanding work.

Students are expected to strive for excellence in all areas. High expectations in work standards are also applied with behavioural expectations. Teachers support the students whilst challenging them to reach their individual potential in all areas through the development and reflection of SMART goals. (Specific, Measurable, Achieveable, Realistic, Time sensitive).

There are more than twenty sports which students can participate in as well as numerous cultural activities such as choir, flute ensembles, bands and dance groups. Sports Academies, with professional coaches, support our top tier sports such as Netball, Soccer, Golf, Basketball, Tennis and Hockey.

Four Houses (Kauri, Rimu, Totara and Matai) assist in developing healthy, competitive spirit, as students compete for weekly shields and inter-house sporting competitions.

Pinehurst Junior College provides a very challenging E.O.T.C (Education Outside the Classroom) programme:

The Pinehurst triangle philosophy ensures that parents play an active role in their child’s education in the Junior College throughout adolescence, working with staff to ensure that each student receives the very best education possible in the most supportive well resourced environment.

Junior College Special Programmes

At Pinehurst we recognise that every student has individual needs and we endeavour to meet those needs through our classroom and Special Programmes.

Learner Support

Mrs Judy Eyre manages our Learner Support centre in the Junior College and Senior College, providing literacy and numeracy support for students. Teachers are made aware of the special needs of our students and take steps to make these students feel safe and cared for. Students with special needs can ask for extra time or the help of readers/writers during examinations (organised through Mrs Eyre).

CWEA (Children with Exceptional Abilities)

We recognise the needs of our gifted and talented students through a variety of exciting programmes run by specialist teachers. These students are also catered for, through our Academy classes in Years 7 to 9.  Students get the opportunity to work at an increased level of depth and to share their ideas with 'like minds' 

PrEP The Primary Enterprise Programme

Junior College students continue with the Primary programme, where they learn about resources and economic education through running their own business and trading in their own currency called Pines (1 Pine = NZ$1). We are the lead PrEP school on the North Shore and have provided professional development for teachers from across New Zealand. In the College, students have the opportunity to take part in the Young Enterprise Scheme www.youngenterprise.co.nz, NZIM Certificate of Management, www.nzim.co.nz and the Financial Literacy Programme, www.enzt.co.nz

Thinking Skills

At Pinehurst we recognise that we all learn in different ways. In our quest to foster life-long learning we employ a variety of teaching strategies in the form of Thinking Skills. These include Art Costa's Habits of Mind, Gardiner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences, De Bono's Six Thinking Hats, The Pinehurst Inquiry Learning Programme, Thinking Maps and a variety of creative, critical and caring thinking strategies.

Guidance and counselling

We have an on-site counsellor, Ms Kate Casey (kate.casey@pinehurst.school.nz) who looks after the well-being of our students.