On Friday, 23 May, 6 Year 13 students were chosen to attend a Hackathon event hosted by Deloitte and AWS for Tech Week. The students were first given a task on AWS software to learn about the cloud through a game. They then started on their main objective of the day. They were in competition with 6 other schools in attendance to ideate the best tech-based solution for a social or environmental issue assigned to them. After brainstorming and finalising ideas into a slideshow, each school would present their pitch to their peers, the hosts and special judges. Our team was assigned a school garden that demonstrates manaaki whenua. 

The group came up with an app that senses when it needs attention, which can either be automated or send a notification to the house captains who have been assigned roles. This turns the garden into a competition amongst the school and gamifies the experience as the students who help go up in rankings and collect badges. Their idea also included a feature where you could scan a QR code to learn more about the traditional use of each native plant. The team were complimented by the judges on their ambitious ideas and the way they worked together so well. The team demonstrated exceptional respect and sportsmanship, they were the only group who talked to other schools and congratulated them. Thank you to Caitlin Bolton, Scott Christie, Dhikshil Achariya, Jimmy Wang, Maximus Abrahamse, and Yaman Altorah for representing the school with pride on this day.

- Mr Semmons