Our Programmes

Past Initiatives 2024

Initiatives for 2025

Like many Y1 - Y8 small rural schools we struggle to keep our Year 7 and Year 8 students. So at the end of 2024 we decided to look for an opportunity that excited our students to remain at Omarama School for their final primary years. We embraced the William Pike Challenge and felt that this was a leadership programme that gave our school a point of difference in the Mckenzie area.
There are only 100 schools nationwide offering this programme to students in 2025 and we are excited and proud to be one of those schools.

The William Pike Challenge is a structured programme designed for Year 7 and 8 students to develop essential life skills. It encourages students to step outside their comfort zones, fostering personal growth, confidence and a sense of responsibility.

The challenge comprises three main elements: outdoor activities, community service and a passion project. Through this experience students are taken outside their comfort zone to solve problems or deal with situations they never expected - all while having fun.

Passion Project:
Our students are learning to play musical instruments, canoeing, kayaking, mountain bike riding, baking, learning a second language and undertaking digital technology tasks to fulfill their passion programme requirements.

Community Service:
We have reached out to our community to undertake work within our community village. To date community service has included gardening, stacking wood, reading to younger students at the Play Group, helping out at the community library and cleaning.

One student embarked on a fundraising journey selling and packaging butter. The $2000 raised enabled a local rowing student to travel to Lithuania to compete in rowing competitions.

Outdoor Activities:

Term 1 - students completed an overnight tramp and hike to North Temple (Twizel area) - photos supplied below
Term 2 - students complete a 2 hour challenge on an indoor climbing wall

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