The power of small classes and country schools came to the fore at the finals of the Rotary Wairarapa Primary School Year 7 and 8 Speech Competition.
Among the top junior speechmakers contesting the finals at Carterton School last week were two boys from tiny Whareama School, which has only
two pupils in each of the contest-age grades and a full roll of 32.
Twenty Wairarapa primary schools were represented, Whareama principal Darren Kerr said, and Whareama boys Logan Taylor, 11, and Jacques Le Grove, 12, were told that being finalists against the odds was prize enough, win or lose on the night.
"And when you consider that half of the finalists at the contest were from country schools, don't let anyone tell you small class sizes don't work," Mr Kerr said.
Carterton Rotary and Masterton South Rotary sponsored the contest and up for grabs was $100 for the winner in each grade, $75 for the second place-getter and $50 for third.
