The senior executive students of Mount Aspiring College (MAC) have created a positive message for their fellow students on how to keep safe and occupied during the COVID-19 alert level four lockdown.

Students Siena Shotwell and Michael Gealogo (committee heads) and Cece Gardner, Zelda Boyd, Ryan Schmack, Kiera Gray and Maddy Thompson created a video after talking with the school’s senior staff about the best way to communicate with students over the next few weeks.

“Our aim was to deliver a lighthearted message of hope that also articulated the serious reality of this situation,” Siena told the Wanaka App.

“... in the environment that we live in, this can still feel pretty surreal and it has been difficult for many of us to come to terms with the fact that this is a reality; one that we have a responsibility as individuals to react to appropriately.”

In the video the students say they want to let the community see the advantage of staying connected online “during a time like this”.

Michael Gealogo

“This is time for resilience, hope and for vigilance,” Michael says.

“There is a time and a place to think and act for our own interests. But this isn’t it. Being in self isolation and taking care of ourselves means we can break the chain of community transmission. We as individuals have an integral role in this,” Cece says.

The video suggests ways to spend the next few weeks in isolation, including keeping fit and healthy, reading, games and puzzles, learning a language, and even cleaning your bedroom.

Staying in touch with teachers and keeping up with updates on Google Classroom is also a priority, the students say.

Students can also keep in touch with their friends through Quarantine Diaries, and they can send any questions to [email protected].

“We wanted to make sure that, for our school, we weren’t silent because in this strange context, it is so necessary to work at keeping each others’ spirits up,” Siena said.

“We’ve had some great feedback so far and the video has been shared to all families and on social media. I think people are looking forward to seeing some updates about what everyone is getting up to.”

Watch the full video here.

PHOTOS: Supplied