At the start of each school year, Year 9 students will attend an Expo in the Hall highlighting the range of groups, clubs and opportunities in dance and drama available to students. To learn more or sign up please email the contact person listed below.
Chess & Card Game Club
Staff contacts – Marcus Blomquist (marcus.blomquist@hvhs.school.nz) & Teri McMullan (teri.mcmullan@hvhs.school.nz)
Ever wanted to learn chess or magic – The Gathering (MTG)? Hutt Valley High School has a Chess & Card Game Club that meets every Tuesday after school in V8 from 3:30-4:30pm.
The Chess & Card Game Club is a very inclusive space so don’t worry about not knowing anyone or the games themselves. Students from all year levels are welcome to attend. The club counts towards Ad Alta as well.
Circus Skills Group
Staff contact – Ben Britton (ben.britton@hvhs.school.nz)
The Circus Skills Group meets Wednesday lunchtimes on the green space in the middle of school (C Flat). Why attend? In case you have to run away to join the circus!
Come along learn something new and try your hand at some entertaining circus skills. We have a variety of props to play with including unicycles, devil sticks and rope darts. Open to all year groups and all skills levels are welcome.
Debating (for the HVHS Team)
Staff contacts / Years 11-13 (Seniors) – Sara Pollard <sara.pollard@hvhs.school.nz> & Ioanna Koroniadis (ioanna.koroniadis@hvhs.school.nz)
For students in Years 11-13, a trial is being held after school on Monday 12 February in room S1. Students don’t need to prepare anything for the trial and students new to debating are also welcome. Simply come along and give it a go.
Staff contact / Years 9 & 10 (Juniors) – Philippa Plewinski (philippa.plewinski@hvhs.school.nz)
For students in Years 9 & 10, please contact Philippa for additional information on debating teams at Hutt Valley High School.
Esports (for the HVHS Team)
Staff contact – Tyler Benson (tyler.benson@hvhs.school.nz)
Students can join an Esports team and represent Hutt Valley High School in their favourite game!
To register for a team or to learn more email Tyler Benson or come to P1 where he teaches. Competitions in 2023 included Rocket League, Fortnite, League of Legends and Valorant.
Dungeons and Dragons / D&D Group
Staff contact – Marcus Blomquist (marcus.blomquist@hvhs.school.nz)
Come join us for Dungeons and Dragons every week! The D&D Group meet every Thursday from 3:15-5:30pm in V8. Members range in experience from brand new to any kind of gaming to peers with years of gameplay, all our welcome. The cost is free, we have all of the resources.
Green Fingers Horticultural Club
Staff contact – Richard Edwards (richard.edwards@hvhs.school.nz)
The club meets Friday lunchtimes in the Horticulture Area. Growing plants throughout the year. Prepare and plant your winter crops during Term 1 (broccoli, lettuce, radishes, broad beans, potatoes, silverbeet, cabbages….) and summer crops (corn, strawberries….) in Term 4 and harvest! Make use of our raised beds, tool shed and glass house.
Homework Club
Staff Contact – Jamie Casley (jamie.casley@hvhs.school.nz)
Former refugee and new migrant students face unique challenges when it comes to completing their school assignments and homework. KiwiClass runs a Homework Club at HVHS, offering one-on-one support from a coordinator, experienced volunteer tutors, a registered teacher, and bi-lingual tutors, focusing on NCEA-specific assessments and tasks, utilising the New Zealand curriculum. Everyone is welcome to attend.
KiwiClass runs Homework Club with support from HVHS and the Ministry of Education. KiwiClass is an organisation that provides a range of services to support former refugees and new migrants in the Wellington region. To learn more visit KiwClass’ website
Please also see the HVHS Fusion Club below (for new migrants and former refugee students).
HVHS Fusion Club (for New Migrants & Former Refugee Students)
Staff Contact – Sarah Roper (sarah.roper@hvhs.school.nz)
The wonderful youth workers from Ignite will come in on Tuesday lunchtime in G7 for weekly mentoring, and relationship building for former refugee students and new migrant students. Day trips are also run, one per term, where students are taken out into the community for activities (sports and games). Everyone is welcome.
Please also see our Homework Club that runs on Wednesdays at 3:30pm in the Library.
Kapa Haka
Staff contact – Whaea Krystal Clarke (krystal.clarke@hvhs.school.nz)
Te Rōpū Kapa Haka o Te Awakairangi is the Hutt Valley High School Kapa Haka. This group meets in the Hall on Tuesday and Thursday lunchtimes. If the Hall is in use they meet in Hotuwaipara (school marae).
The group is comprised of students from Years 9-13 and is open to all students from all cultures.
K-Pop Club
Staff contact – Sarah Roper (sarah.roper@hvhs.school.nz)
This group meets once a week to listen and dance to the latest K-pop songs. The low key group meets Wednesday lunchtimes in the dance room to listen to or sing along to K-pop and sometimes dance or learn some moves.
Mahjong Club
Staff contact – Yanling Guo (yanling.guo@hvhs.school.nz)
Learn and play mahjong every Friday at lunchtime in D1. Mahjong was developed in the 19th century in China and is a tile-based game played by four players.
Come along and join in. It will be fun!
Maths Help
Staff contact – Jill Skinner (jill.skinner@hvhs.school.nz)
Maths Help Room runs from 3:30-4:30pm every Wednesday after school in P4. Students receive individualised help from Hutt Valley High School’s fantastic Maths teachers. Students can bring their own work or our Maths teachers can help them find work. Maths Help is open to all year levels and abilities. No bookings are necessary, students are welcome to just show up.
Philosophy Club
Staff contacts – Jill Skinner (jill.skinner@hvhs.school.nz) & Paul Christeller (paul.christeller@hvhs.school.nz)
The Philosophy Club meets every Friday at lunchtime in the P10. It’s open to all year levels and no prior knowledge of philosophy is required. What is Philosophy? It is the study of the fundamental nature of reality, knowledge, morality and logic. At Philosophy Club students hang out, discuss and debate a range of issues like – is the world a simulation, is corporal punishment unethical, or what is truth. This club also counts for Ad Alta.
Pasifika Group
Staff contact – Rob Everett (rob.everett@hvhs.school.nz)
The Pasifika Group meets in S2 on Monday lunchtimes, and Wednesday and Friday intervals as well.
Students are learning new items for performances at school events and possibly HuttFest! The aim of the Pasifika Group is to make Pacific Island cultures more visible.
Queer Straight Alliance (QSA)
Staff contacts – Jill Skinner (jill.skinner@hvhs.school.nz)
The QSA meets every Thursday lunchtime in P4. The QSA is for students who identify as queer including lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, asexual, takatapui, fa’afafine, intersex and gender non-conforming students. We also have many cisgender, straight allies who are here to support their friends. Our aim is to provide a social space, a support network, and to work together to make our school and wider community more inclusive for students of gender and sexual minorities.
Rock n Roll Dance
Staff contact – Matua Paul Morris (paul.morris@hvhs.school.nz)
The Rock n Roll Dance group meets on Tuesdays at 3.30pm and Wednesday lunchtimes in the S1 Dance room.
In 2024 we are aiming to participate and compete at the Hutt Valley Rock n Roll Club Champs and the Regional Championships.
RockQuest
Staff contact – Katriona MacDonald (katriona.macdonald@hvhs.school.nz)
RockQuest is a nationwide, live, original music competition designed to give young musicians the opportunity to perform in a professional setting. In 2023, two HVHS bands competed at RockQuest in the Wellington heats, Pound-it and Dead Man’s Circus. Dead Man’s Circus qualifed for the regional finals as one of the top 12 bands in Wellington performing at RockQuest.
The RockQuest dates for 2024 haven’t been confirmed yet. For the latest information keep an eye on the RockQuest website
ShowQuest
Staff contact – Anna Flaherty (anna.flaherty@hvhs.school.nz)
Open to all year levels, keep an eye out in Term 1, 2024 for information on auditioning for ShowQuest. To learn more about ShowQuest, visit their website
Stitch in Time
Staff contacts – Annette Inglis (annette.inglis@hvhs.school.nz) & Sarah Robbins (sarah.robbins@hvhs.school.nz)
A group for all things needles & stitching – knitting, crochet, embroidery and basic hand sewing including buttons, mending and hemming. Come along and learn a new skill or get help with a project. Stitch in Time meets on Wednesdays at lunchtime in B10.
Theatre Sports
Staff contact – Anna Flaherty (anna.flaherty@hvhs.school.nz)
Our Theatre Sports Club meets every Friday at lunchtime in the E5 drama room. Students get involved in a variety of drama games, learn improvisation (and that it’s fun) and the rules of Theatre Sports, and gain confidence as they work in teams of four making things up on the spot. It also contributes to Ad Alta.
The focus of the club is on creating a relaxed space where students can banter, share a laugh, think on their feet, and have fun getting their creative juices flowing. The club is open to all students and you’re welcome to come along to watch or get involved slowly with a non-speaking part.
Trans and Non-Binary Group
Staff contact – Jill Skinner (jill.skinner@hvhs.school.nz)
The purpose of this group is to help support gender diverse students, allow them to support each other with more targeted advice relevant to their transitions and to discuss changes needed within the school to further support trans and non-binary students.
While facilitated by Jill Skinner, the group is primarily led by its student members. The group meets every Tuesday lunchtime in P4. New members are welcome – just turn up.
Youth UN (United Nations)
Staff contact – Hayley Knight (hayley.knights@hvhs.school.nz)
Student contact – Katrina Schaff-Ede (22074ks@hvhs.school.nz)
The group at meets to help organise logistics when events are posted from time to time from the President of UN (United Nations) Youth New Zealand.
The aim is to connect young people with a broad range of international and domestic talking points and help them develop confidence in their own beliefs and abilities. Youth UN run a number of local and national civic simulation-based events designed to showcase the role of international and domestic civic’s bodies in shaping a range of different policy areas.
UN Youth New Zealand is one of the country’s largest youth-for-youth organisations, operating as a charitable organization dedicated to increasing civic engagement for our young people. We form the youth arm of the United Nations Association of New Zealand (UNANZ), delivering on the many United Nations Youth programmes around the world.
This group is open to all year levels. Note, attendance at Youth UN events make require students to catch public transport into Wellington for events.
Please contact student organiser, Katrina Schaff-Ede at 22074ks@hvhs.school.nz for more information.
