Great Afternoon at Rutherford's Dan

It was my pleasure to accompany our Year 7 and 8 students to Rutherford's Den at the Christchurch Arts Centre. All of us entered into the spirit of the visit by donning academic dress. We then sat in a lecture theatre before dispersing to different rooms to undertake a series of activities.

The den and adjacent rooms are part of what once was the University of Canterbury and it is redolent with scientific memorabilia.

This visit did not concentrate on science but on Lord Ernest Rutherford's qualities as a leader. His qualities were many and our students felt a buzz when they realised they have many of his qualities and are capable of developing the others.

The great thing about a smaller school is that all of our senior students can assume meaningful leadership roles. We will be challenging, encouraging and supporting our students to be leaders and I know they are up to the challenge.