SLJ | Week 1 | Day 3 | Activity 1

LI: To create a kowhaiwhai pattern. 

 

We created a kowhaiwhai representing something. Tanenore is the personification of shimmering air, because he performs a haka to Hine-raumati, his mother. A wiriwiri is a part of the haka, which represents shimmering heat. The yellow swirl on my art, represents Tanerore, the other red swirl represents Hine-raumati and the swirls on the outside represent the shimmering air/and or heat. I enjoyed this activity as I was able to use my drawing skills to create these kowhaiwhai patterns.

SLJ | Week 1 | Day 2 | Activity 2

 LI: To create a piece of insect art.

Inspired by art creations by Raku Inoue we went outside and collected leaves, twigs, and other plant debris to create our own insect images. I found it quite hard to make the insect I wanted, as I didn't have the right material and colours. I enjoyed doing this activity, because I was able to use my creativity to create this insect. The insect I tried making was a beetle.

Three interesting facts about beetles: 

• Beetles use sounds and vibrations, to communicate as they can't see well.
• Most of the beetles live for a year.
• Some beetles are able to glow in the dark.

SLJ Week 1 | Day 2 | Activity 1

 LI: To create your own comic strip of an imaginary conversation.

My comic strip shows the conversation I imagine these two people had after one of the men had sneezed his teeth into the sea during a fishing trip. I found this activity fun and enjoyable, because I was able to use my imagination to create a conversation between the fishermen.

SLJ Week 1 Activity 2

 LI: To write a quality blog comment on someone else’s blog that starts a rich learning.

Leaving a quality blog comment on another  student’s blog helps us make connections to new learning by asking open ended questions that encourage a reply and motivate the blogger to ask their own question in return. This is how a comment thread starts and when that happens we make connections with a wider audience who we can learn with and from.

My blog comment is a quality comment because I have used positiveness (began with a greeting and have complimented the author). I have been thoughtful (made a connection). Lastly I have also given feedback. 

SLJ Week 1 Activity 1

LI: To collect materials needed to successfully complete our weekly superpower building missions with Nano Girl.

This morning LS2 worked in groups with our Year 4 students to help them create their first Summer Learning Journey. PBS are still at school this week so finding some of the materials we needed for our treasure hunt was easy. Our challenge is going to be able to find all the materials we need at home now. I found this activity interesting and fun, because I am looking forward to completing more of the Nano Girl Summer Learning Journey activities. Are you looking forward to completing these Summer Learning Journey activities?

Operation Christmas Drop

 LI: To write a summary of the story behind the Operation Christmas Drop in your own words.

For the last 68 years the men and women of the US airforce who are based at Andersen Airforce Base in Guam have been using a pilot training drill to drop much needed supplies to the people who live on the 60 remote islands that surround Guam. This week as a research challenge, Taheesha and I worked together to give information about the Operation Christmas Drop organization. This organization has had a big impact towards the villagers, as it helps them sustain their way of life and brings joy and positivity. I think that Operation Christmas Drop is a great idea, as they give humanitarian aids and supplies to those in need, or in remote islands.

Pourquoi : Why Can't Kiwi's Fly?

LI: To write a pourquoi (tell me why or how) story that paints a picture in the mind of the reader.

   

 This week our challenge was to write and illustrate a pourquoi story. A pourqoui is a narrative explaining why something is the way it is (for example, why pigs have curly tails). Pourquoi sotries are can often be legends and folk tales. Over the past few weeks we have been writing our pourquoi stories, and have created illustrations, to entertain younger students. I worked with Haylee and Taheesha. Our pourqoui story tells "why kiwi's can't fly".  This morning we presented our stories to Room 2 and 4, and they loved listening to them. I enjoyed these writing lessons, as we were able to use creative ideas for our story. I really enjoyed creating the illustrations too, as it was fun drawing to show the juniors instead of telling the story without any entertaining drawings. 

Design Technology Challenge

LI: To design and make a holiday decoration that fits the client brief.

This term, LS2 has been designing and creating Christmas felt decorations for the foyer in the school office. At the start of this term, we planned our decorations as well as the materials we needed. At some of our sessions, Mr Johnston, our client would visit and give us a brief of what he wanted for these decorations. Ms Ferguson also visited to give us information about the design technology process to help up plan our designs. Once we planned our design, we moved onto creating our decoration. 

At the end of finishing our products, we wrote an evaluation. With my products, the positives, was that I made sturdy stitches, chose colors that worked well and stitches didn't come out. The things that I need to improve on, is cleaner stitches, making the stitches the same size and using the same color cotton as my felt. My designs meet my original criteria as it was close to 10cm and it was a celebration decoration, like our client(Mr. Johnston) wanted. At first my first design was hard to make, as it was my first time, but on my next two designs it was easier as I knew what to do. Next time I would try to make smaller stitches, so its more sturdy, I would make the stitches neater and would add more stuffing into my design to have a 3D effect. 

My opinion of this challenge is that it was really fun and I enjoyed it, as I learnt how to sew two different ways and used my creativity to create these designs. I found, that it's an easy process of making these decoration, and would definitely do this again. I am proud of my designs, as I worked hard to create it. 

Probability Tree

 LI: To use probability trees to find the chances of an event.

This week in Math, Haylee, Victoria and I worked together to solve probability questions. We were given three different math word story problems to justify the answer of the probability with our working out. We then created a DLO of one question and explained our thinking with the probability tree method. 

Above is the question we answered. To solve this question, we created a probability tree. On our first branck, we added the fractions 4/10 and 6/10 as Maria had 6 frangipani and 4 tiare taina (6 + 4 = 10), making it 6/10 and 4/10. On each end, we wrote a T and F representing each flower. We then carried on our tree. And wrote the same things. After that we wrote all the possible possibilities of Maria picking out the same type of flowers. We multiplied the fractions together, for example (6/10 x 4/10, 6/10 x 6/10, 4/10 x 6/10 and 4/10 x 4/10). After multiplying the fractions, we added them together, so 36/100 + 24/100 and 24/100 + 16/100. Lastly we added 36/100 + 16/100 as they are the changes of picking out the same flower.

We enjoyed working these equations out as we used a different strategy and learnt a new strategy. 

Food Tech | Sushi

 LI: To follow a recipe to make sushi.

This week was our last session of food tech, with Mrs Heka. Today we followed Mrs Heka's instructions towards making sushi. My partner was Sakshi. We first got our cleaning supplies ready for the end of our lesson. 

To make the sushi we got out all our equiptment (3 sized bowls, small, medium and large, two small knives, measuring spoons, spatula, green and white chopping board and a bamboo mat) Our ingredients for the sushi was tuna, 3 table spoons of mayo, capsicum, rice, a pinch of salt and nori sheets. In the medium bowl, we broke up our rice with a spatula, in the small bowl we added our tuna or chicken with the mayo and mixed that together and filled up water in our large bowl. Then we went into the process of making the sushi rolls. We dipped our fingers in water, so that the rice wouldn't stick and spread the rice on our nori sheets. We added our filling and topping (tuna and capsicum) in the middle of our rice. We then used the bamboo mat to roll our sushi. If the end of the bamboo mat didn't stick, we would add water to the end. Lastly, we cut out our sushi rolls into 8 pieces. We ate our sushi at the cafe. The sushi I made was delicious. 

Thank you to Mrs Heka for providing us with the ingredients and showing us the set of instructions for the foods we have made. I really had a fun time at food tech.

Art Colouring Book

 LI: To experiment with colours.

           Original

      Mine

"Under The Waves Of Kanagawa"

This morning we tried one of this year’s Kick Start Summer Learning Journey activities. The purpose of this task was to experiment with colours by mixing colours from the original palette with pop colours. This allowed us to recolours famous painting or images of landmarks around the world. Something I found interesting about this art colouring book, was how it was easy to use the different colors and how the original colors of the painting were on the palette, as well as pop colors, as we could combine different colors. 

Exploring international current events

 LI: To identify author's purpose.

Authors write for a purpose. These reasons are to persuade, inform or entertain (PIE). Each day, newspaper editors around the world must make decisions about which stories they will run. We explored the different types of current events that are happening internationally (globally), thought about why the story made the news and plotted the location on a google map. Haylee and I worked collaboratively and shared the stories we found under each category. Something I found interesting, was that a group called Belgium-registered charity Apopo raises rats to land mine. A seven year old rat earns a gold medal for land mining. This was really interesting as I didn't know rats earn medal, and mine.

Te Whanau Raukura Performance

 

This week a special performance was held by Te Whanau Raukura who performs at Auckland Museum, who had peformed Maori cultural dances and elements of the Maori culture. To know that the visitors have arrived they blew into a shell, which is what Maori people used to do. As they came in the hall they had spoken a whaikorero. As they made their way onto the stage they performed their dances. As they performed they introduced traditional Maori items. Firstly they showed us the poi, which was used to increase their hand and arm strength and flexibility. A woman had swung four poi, which had amazed me. Nextly they showed us the te rakau, which was used to increase their skill in performing tasks. This item also amazed me too. Lastly they showed us the taiaha, which was used to attack or stab their enemies when, in war, to protect themselves. Something I found interesting about this performance, was how they showed the meaning behind each of these elements. After the performance, they did a pukana. When the performance ended, Bekah, from Te Whanau Raukura came into our class and taught us how to play Pukana. This was a really fun game, as we all enjoyed it. Overall this was a really fun time, watching the performance and learning a new game.

Exploring Our National Current Events

 LI: To identify author’s purpose.

                 

Authors write for a reason/purpose. These reasons are to persuade, inform or entertain (PIE). Each day, newspaper editors around the world make decisions about which stories they will run, to catch the readers attention, about whats going on. Haylee, Lukah, Azatullah, Tanisha, Leroy and I explored the different types of current events that are happening in New Zealand (nationally), thought about why the story made the news and plotted the location on a google map. We worked collaboratively and shared the stories we found and which category we think the story goes into. An article I found out interesting was about a women and her two children, who had died on state highway 35, Gisborne due to crashing into a tree.This was really interesting, as the women's partner and children's father had died on the same highway a month ago. 

Provocation: Should masks be compulsory on NZ public transport?

LI: To identify and consider the two perspectives of this provocation to help me form an opinion.

             

A provocation is an action or speech that triggers strong feelings about a topic. Today in groups for reading, Name, Name, Name and I thought about both sides of the provocation, ‘Should masks be compulsory on NZ public transport?’. We used our smart searching skill and information to help us form an opinion that we could justify with evidence and provide strong evidence for each opinion. On November 19th, masks are going to be required to use on public transport (buses, trains) My opinion is undecided as masks are help reduce the amount of cases of corona virus, like  Professor Michael Baker has said "I'm not in any way saying we don't need to wash our hands - I think that's vital - but actually mask use is almost certainly more effective at containing COVID-19” At the same time I disagree, as peoples rights will be taken away, like Jamie-Lee-Ross said, and people won't be able to use public transportation, due to not having a mask or not wearing it. 

Why Is it Important to Use Our PBS C.A.R.E Values?

 LI: To write an explanation using TEEL Paragraphs.

This week for writing Haylee, Taheesha, Matthew and I worked together to create an explanation about why it's important to use our PBS C.A.R.E values. TEEL stands for topic sentence, example or evidence, explain and link ideas.We put together our idea’s and  added some transitional words in the making. This task was to help us revise on writing explanations as next week is assessment week so we did this collaborative challenge to remind ourselves what is needed when we write explanations. Something I found interesting was how we used the TEEL paragraphs for the first time. I found this interesting as it was a different way of writing paragraphs.

Why We Should Make Wise Choices?

LI: To structure and write an explanation.

Why Is It Important To Make Wise Choices?

Have you ever made wise choices? Wise choices are important, as it helps lead towards the right path. Wise choices are an important thing that not many people think about, especially when it comes to plastic pollution. In beaches and environments, people have been throwing plastic, constantly every day!

As a result of plastic increasing around the areas, sea animals have been harmed and suffocated, due to the bad choices we have made. Have you ever cared about how sea animals feel and react when they swallow plastic? Imagine if you were in a sea animal’s position, dying and feeling their pain. Because of us, we have been using plastic constantly, leading to the death of sea animals.

The majority of plastic has ended up in drains, leading to the oceans, rivers and lakes, the habitat of sea animals. Many people have access to the facilities of plastic, but why aren’t they doing anything to stop this situation. In a few years, we could’ve decreased the amount of plastic polluting our oceans. Because of our choices, this leads to consequences, and consequences lead to affecting our environments, oceans and sea animals.

What if your favorite beach was filled with plastic, and couldn’t swim anymore, due to your actions? This is what could happen in a few generations, if we don’t do anything about it. Imagine if all sea animals had died and you couldn’t eat fish and chips or any cultural and special dishes, consisting of seafood! It's time to put a stop to using plastic, for a safer environment.

We need to act now and make wise choices throughout our life, to have a cleaner and healthier future generation! 

This week in writing, we practiced writing explanations for our assessments next term. This is an explanation that tells others why we should make wise choices when it comes to plastic pollution. For this explanation we did 5 minutes of planning and 40 minutes of writing as this is how much time it takes for our assessments. After writing our explanations, we proof read our explanation and used DRAFT (delete,rearrange, add, fix and talk), so there aren't any mistakes.

Elections

LI: To think deeply about a change I would make.

‘If I was Prime Minister I would decrease the prices of houses and rents, as some people can't afford it. I would also create more houses, for homeless people, so they have shelter, food and clothing. This is, because a lot of people don’t have the main things they need in life to survive. This week, we went through a google doc to help us figure out which political party, we would vote for. 

Elections

LI: To decide which political party will get your vote by making an informed choice.

To decide which political party I would vote for, I read a summary of the policies each party wants to introduce should they win the election and the right to form a government to run NZ. Doing this allowed me to make an informed decision.

If I was 18 I would vote for Labour because, they have handled covid 19 well, as it was their first time experiencing it, and have kept us protected and healthy. This means if Labour won the election in my electorate Jenny Salesa would be our member of parliament and Jacinda Ardern would become the Prime Minister.

Food Tech | Corn Fritters

LI: To follow a recipe to make corn fritters.

At Tamaki College, we did food tech with Mrs Heka. This week we made corn fritters with salad on the side. We listened to a set of instructions to create our dish. I worked with Sakshi. We collected all our equipment and ingredients.

To make the batter of our corn fritters, I measured out the wet ingredients (2 eggs and 1/4 of milk) and mixed it, while Sakshi measured out the dry ingredients (1/3 of flour and 1 tablespoon of baking powder). After they were mixed separately, we put the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, and mixed thoroughly until the batter was creamy and had no lumps. After that, we mixed a can of corn into the batter, and greased our pan with (1 tablespoon of oil). We added small batches of our batter into our pan and flipped it once it was brown. In our lunch boxes, we added our salad and corn fritters, with dressing and sweet and chilli sauce.

Once we finished cooking, we washed the dishes and wiped our work spaces, ready for next week. I really enjoyed making the corn fritters, which were very delicious. Next week, we are making mac and cheese.

History Of New Zealand

This week for Maori language week, we completed different DLO's to teach others different information about Maori. In this DLO, I included what Maori Language week is, how it started and and interesting fact. This was a really fun activity, as it helped me learn about the Maori culture and language.

Exploring Maori Place Names

This week for Maori Language week, we created multiple DLO's, to teach others different information about Maori. Haylee, Taheesha and I worked collaboratively to complete this activity. In our DLO, we included different places in New Zealand, with the meaning and what we found interesting. A place around New Zealand I found the most interesting, was Waitanga, meaning weeping water or noisy. I really enjoyed doing this activity.

Taupanga | Maori Language Week

Since this week is Maori Language week, Haylee, Taheesha and I created an interactive app where you can learn some basic words in Maori as it is a challenge that was set. In our app we’ve included some time words, greetings, days of the week and months of the year in Maori, we’ve also included a small quiz at the end where you can test your knowledge on Maori. We’ve enjoyed learning some words in Maori and enjoyed creating this app for others to learn the language.

Tuakana Teina

This week for Maori language week, we helped ruma kotahi (room 1) and ruma korua (room 2) create string art panels. For this art block, my buddy, Mila drew her designs, as I helped her. Then we cut the string and used glue to attach it on Mila's designs. Once we finished attaching the string, we painted over the string. Helping our little buddies Maori context, is called tuakana teina, meaning teaching younger kids Maori. This was a really fun day of painting. I am excited to continue on our art panels next week.

Family Tree

LI: To create a family tree.

This week for our Te Reo challenges, we did a challenge, where we created a family tree with some kowhaiwhai patterns. The grey swirls of my pattern represents my parents, uncles and aunties and the little designs represent their children. I really enjoyed creating a family tree.

Biology

LI: To understand the meaning behind the acronym MRS C GREN.

MRS C GREN is an acronym for life process, which stands for (Movement, Respiration, Sensitivity, Cells, Growth, Reproduction, Excretion, Nutrition). This week for Science, we learnt about MRS C GREN, which is a part of Biology, and created a DLO about it. We used collaboration and smart searching by skimming and scanning for keywords to help us select and reject information needed for our DLO. Something name, name, name and I found interesting, was that even living organisms with one single cell can grow. We really enjoyed learning about MRS C GREN.

Biology

LI: To look for evidence in the data/an image and infer what might be happening.

 This week for our Biology Science, we did a challenge where we gave our inferences of what might be happening in a footprint image. Science is empirical, which is based on observations. We also used our prior knowledge and observations. Haylee, Florence, Taheesha and I worked together and negotiated to pick which inference was correct. In this DLO, we included, what Empirical is, our biology activity and what we saw in a image of footprints. Something we found interesting, was that science is based on observation and is empirical.

It's Cool 2b Me!

LI: To strengthen our ability to make positive life choices.

This week for our DARE Program, we created a DLO about ourselves. In our DLO, we involved fun things we like doing, who we would like to be, our goals, our favorite foods, great things about us, what we wish for and qualities we look in friends. This was a really fun activity to create, as it helps me know why its cool to be me.

Painting Sunflowers

LI: To paint a still life of sunflowers in the style of Vincent Van Gogh.

This week in Art, we painted a still life of sunflowers, in the style of Vincent Van Gogh. First we practiced painting sunflowers. We watched a video on how to make sunflowers, as we didn't know how to. We then painted our background for our sunflowers. We also drew a vase and circles for our sunflowers, using chalk. When we painted our sunflowers, we thought of the tone and shading needed, made use of all the space that was available, used layers of paint, mixed and blended the colors to make different shades, created sharp edges and lines, thought about the brush stroke direction, dabbed the brush and didn't overload the brush with paint. I really enjoyed painting these sunflowers as it was very fun to do. 

Vincent Van Gogh Timeline

LI: To create a timeline to show the life of Vincent Van Gogh.

This week, for literacy and inquiry we worked together to create a timeline of Vincent Van Gogh’s life. We used our smart searching skills to find information about Vincent Van Gogh. Vincent was an Impressionist artist, meaning he liked to paint a moment in time (still life). I worked collaboratively with Haylee, Florence, and Taheesha to get this timeline completed. We enjoyed learning about Vincent Van gogh as we were able to learn something new. Something we all found interesting was that he cut off a part of his ear and sent it to his girlfriend, because he got into an argument with Paul Gauguin, who is one of his friends. This was interesting, because we wouldn’t imagine someone cutting off part of their ear.

Cybersmart Screencastify

Today was our first day back to school from our second distance learning lockdown. We started our day with creating a screencastify that explains how to navigate your way to a juniors class site. First we wrote down on a piece of paper of what we would explain to the parents to help them get to the school and class site. We then wrote our script and practiced what we were going to say.

Haylee, Florence and I have all worked together to get this screencastify completed.

Natural Disaster #3

LI: To research natural disasters.

Last week for our distance learning, we researched about natural disasters. For my last DLO about natural disasters, we answered the questions, how do you get help, what help is offered, what do you need to do to help yourself and how do you stay informed. The civil defense is a public agency which helps us with the safety rules of natural disasters.

Natural Disasters #2

LI: To research natural disasters.

Last week for our distance learning, we researched natural disasters. For the second DLO, we included, the safety rules for our natural disaster and the signs. I really enjoyed learning these safety rules and signs, as it will be a huge help in case there is a natural disaster. This information is by https://www.civildefence.govt.nz/get-ready/get-tsunami-ready/

Natural Disaster #1

LI: To research about natural disasters. 

Last week in our learning, we researched about natural disasters, which included the subjects, (literary and inquiry). We chose a natural disaster and created three DLOs. In this first DLO, we answered the questions, ( what the natural disaster is, what caused it, what it looks like and an example of a time where and when it happened in New Zealand. I really enjoyed learning about a natural disaster. Did you know, tsunamis can travel at the speed of 500 to 805 kilometres and hour?

Research Challenges | Marry Anning

LI: To use smart searching skills to find out about a scientist from the past who made an important contribution to their field of science.

This week in reading, we studied a scientist from each branch (physics, chemistry, biology, geology). From the geology branch I decided to study Mary Anning. In this DLO I included, her biography, discoveries and facts. Something I found interesting about Mary was that she nearly died as a baby, from nearly being struck by lightning. I really enjoyed researching about Mary Anning.

Research Challenges | Charles Darwin

LI: To use smart searching skills to find out about a scientist from the past who made an important contribution to their field of science.

This week in reading, we studied a scientist from each branch, (physics, chemistry, biology, geology). From the biology branch, I decided to study Charles Darwin. I used my smart searching skills to find out about Charles Darwin. In this DLO, I included, his biography, discoveries, facts and quotes. Something I found very interesting, was that Charles Darwin discovered the theory of evolution. I really enjoyed researching about Charles Darwin. 

Research Challenges | Alfred Nobel

LI: To use smart searching skills to find out about a scientist from the past who made an important contribution to their field of science.

This week for reading, we researched a scientist from each branch (physics, chemistry, biology and geology). I decided to study Alfred Nobel, who studied chemistry. In this DLO In included Alfred Nobel's biography, discoveries, facts and quotes. Something interesting I found out about Alfred Nobel, was that his net worth was $250 million dollars. I really enjoyed learning about Alfred Nobel.

Research Challenges | Albert Einstein

LI: To use smart searching skills to find out about a scientist from the past who made an important contribution to their field of science.

This week for reading, we researched a scientist from each branch (physics, chemistry, biology and geology). I decided to study Albert Einstein, who studies physics. For this DLO I included Albert Einstein's discoveries, inventions, who he was, interesting facts, a quote and his education. Something I didn't know about Albert Einstein, was that he won the Noble Prize for Physics from discovering the photoelectric effect. 

Robotics At Tamaki College

LI: To learn how to define codes to shorten the sequence.

This week in robotics, we learnt how to define codes, to make our sequence shorter. We used our knowledge from the last time we made a figure of 8, and made our codes shorter, by defining it. We tried to create a code to follow the black lines of a figure of eight. I did have some technical difficulties and tested out different codes. I also tested out my code to see if it would create a figure of 8. At the end I finally made my mbot to create the shape I wanted.

Dentist Qualifications

LI: To find out what qualifications I will need to become a dentist.

This week, we focused about the pathway of our dream career. I want to become a dentist, but I need certain qualifications and subjects to take. Learning about careers is a great idea, so we know what we want to become in the future, as we will be talking about careers in college. This DLO showcases the subjects you need to take, the entry requirements and the personal requirements of becoming a dentist. 

Manaiakalani Survey

This week, LS2 helped the junior classes complete a manaiakalani survey. We worked with different people and taught then how to complete a survey, as some of them were new to ipads. We asked different questions from the survey, as some of the questions were hard to understand for them. After helping complete the juniors survey, we practiced Cook Island language, with them. I really enjoyed helping them complete their manaiakalani surveys.

Dance Class #1

This week we did our first session of dance, with Miss Rebecca. Dance is a way of expression, movement and creativity. As Miss Rebecca said, "there is no wrong way to dance". Our theme this week was "Me and my Body". First we did a warm up to help prepare for our body. Then we did an activity, where we danced freely to music. When Miss Rebecca said freeze, we creatively with or without a partner, created a shape, that Miss Rebecca called out, and held that position for about 5 seconds. Then, we got into groups and created a team name.  We did a different activity, where we worked collaboratively, as a group to form letters of the alphabet. Each group got 30 second to create their letters. I really enjoyed doing our first session of dance. This was a fun session.

Life Education

LI: To learn the safetys of Life Education. 

This week, we attended two sessions of Life Education. Life Education is a program, which helps us with our health and to make the right pathway. For our first session, we watched two video clips about Cuppys Hauora/wellbeing. We then talked about different scenarios that happened to Cuppy. Each time one of Cuppy’s walls fell, we removed a colored stick. We also sang, played games, talked about peer pressure, learnt about brains and found out more interesting information. We also got a chance to meet Harold. We enjoyed going to Life Education.

Science | Summary

L.I: To summarise the information.

This week for our reading topic (science), we created a summary using the information from our post it notes. We skimmed and scanned to identify the important keywords. We then shared our ideas and collaborated to use those keywords to create our summary. For our next activity, we used a question dice to help us create three interesting questions that we wanted to research. We all worked together in these activities.

The three questions are:

1. When was science discovered?
2. Why is science important?
3. How is science different from the past to today?

Science | Main Ideas

L.I To find the three most vital ideas from the information to help us find the answer “What is science?”

This week we watched a video which helped us understand what science is. While watching the video, we took notes, by selecting and rejecting the information. We used the information to identify the three most vital ideas. We shared our ideas and negotiated on where to put the information, whether it was four very important ideas or three most vital ideas. We also collaborated and respected each other's opinions for this activity.

We think the three most vital ideas are:

• Science is an answer and has the power to destroy and heal.
• Science includes physics, chemistry and biology.
• Science is discovering new things.

Hauora

LI: To create an information poster that explains the four walls of Hauora.

Hauora is a Maori belief of health, towards New Zealand, which consists of four walls (Tana Tinana, Tana Hinengaro, Tana Whanau, Tana Wairua). When these four walls are standing together, they are strong and powerful, which helps us with our wellbeing. If one wall collapses all four walls collapse. This week, we created a canva/information poster about Hauora, for our inquiry topic. In this information poster, I included explanations of each wall of Hauora, what would happen if each wall collapsed and icons relating to each wall. 

Making Connections With Problem Solving

LI: To explore problem solving.

This week, we learnt how to make connections, using Tangrams. We made Tangrams, as our internet connection stopped. A Tangram is an ancient Chinese puzzle, used to create different shapes and figures. In the 19th century, when Chinese were traveling to Europe to trade, they made Tangrams, using wooden blocks as they were bored. We started off with a piece of A4 paper and a pair of scissors, as we listened and followed a set of simple instructions. This procedure, was a way of problem solving. In small groups, we helped each other and communicated. We used our Tangrams to create different animals, by problem solving and collaborating with each other. While making animals, we tried different options, until we completed our animals. I really enjoyed learning and creating Tangrams, as it is a way of problem solving and working together as a group. This was a challenging activity.

Maths Challenges

LI: To use the most efficient strategy to solve the problem.




This week for Maths we have been working with negative numbers; learning how to add and subtract them. Today we answered a few maths word problems using negative numbers to test how comfortable we are and our understanding. We worked collaboratively in a small group with Haylee, Victoria and Florence.

10-5-7-10-10 Writing

Rock Climbing Experience

It was our first day of our vacation in Las Vegas. Early in the morning, at 5:00 o'clock I was eager to rock climb a famous mountain called Mount Dew. Ever since I was 3 I had always had a hobby for rock climbing. I forcefully woke up my friends, Chloe and Kim and dragged them by their wrist, into the car. It was a long and exhausting ride to Mount Dew, since I was the one driving. As we arrived at Mount Dew, I was fascinated by the height of the mountain. Both Chloe and Kim were very tired and angry for waking them up this early. We wore our rock climbing gear and started to climb this amazing mountain. As we rock climbed this tall cliffy mountain, I could already see the wonderful view of the sunrise. My eyes were focused on the breathtaking sunrise of a range of red, yellow and orange hues, which had beautifully blended in together creating a gradient colour. As I was rock climbing, my muscles started to tense as  I held a grip. I couldn’t imagine how beautiful the view from Mount Dew was. The sun appeared onto my fingers, as I was climbing. Only halfway through rock climbing I felt my sweat dripping through my face. After a few hours, Chloe, Kim and I were exhausted, as my heart beated, with sweat all over my face. We had finally reached the top of the mountain, when I was astonished by the view. All the rock climbing was worth the view. After a while, Chloe, Kim and I climbed down and drove back to our hotel. This was the best journey!

LI: To use 10-5-7-10-10  to write creatively.

This week in Writing, we used the 5-7-10 method to write a creative story, but this time we changed the method into 10-5-7-10-10. We added an extra 20 minutes, 10 minutes to plan and the other 10 to draft. My story is about three friends who go on a journey to Mount Dew to rock climb. They get amazed by the spectacular view. This method was easier to use, because there was time to plan, so we could have ideas on what to write for our story. I really enjoyed writing this story, using this method.

Experimenting With Ultra Violet Lights

LI: To design an inquiry to test predictions on effective UV filter.

LS2 has been trialing the electronic sensor for the Kiwrious project. We are working with Suranga, Sonia, Evan, Dawn and Yvonne from the AHL at Auckland University. Our mission was to use the Kiwrious sensor to find a material as a shelter.  I found that the brown paper was the most effective filter to keep Zally protected from the Ultra Violet light. After testing out each material, we created a DLO about each material we experimented on. My DLO will show what I did in this experiment.

5 - 7 - 10 Writing

                                     

Lightning Never Strikes Twice

My family, friends and I, had just arrived in San Francisco for our Summer holiday vacation. It was a cold night, when my two friends, Cassidy, Christy and I decided to explore the area. We were already 2 kilometres away from our hotel. A big storm had just occurred, when we could see a windmill nearby. Boom! Lighting started striking, as my friends and I raced our hearts out to the windmill, because it was the only shelter nearby and we heard that we could get electrically shocked by the harsh lightning. It was as if lightning struck twice at the same moment. I couldn’t believe my eyes, when I saw the huge lightning.


 The lightning was nothing that I have seen before. Cassidy, Christy and I quickly crouched inside, huddling together, next to a pile of dusty sacks in the base of the windmill, because it seemed like a stable structure. We were terrified as we could hear the loud bangs of the lighting striking towards the ground. I could feel my heart beating repeatedly.

 After being in the uncomfortable windmill for a while, in relief we suddenly stopped hearing the loud bangs of the lightning. Even though I was terrified, I went outside and in relief, the storm had ended. Both Cassidy and Christy came out of the windmill and were so relieved. We all ran back to our hotel and were so glad that we safely got back. It was a miracle that my friends and I didn’t get struck by the crude lightning.


LI: To use the 5-7-10 method to write creatively.

This week in Writing we used the  5 - 7 - 10 method to write a creative story. This story is about a few friends who arrive in San Fransico, and explore the area. Harsh lightning suddenly occurs, so they run to the windmill, since its the nearest shelter. For the 5-7-10 method, we first wrote our story for 5 minutes, we talked to a partner for 7 minutes each and wrote the rest of our story for 10 minutes. I really enjoyed writing this story, as a start of term 3.

Optical Illusions

LI: To explain what an optical illusion is.

This week, Mr Johnston came to LS2 to teach us more about optical illusions. Mr Johnston shows us some examples of optical illusions. One of them were two lines, where we decided which line was longer. Both lines were actually the same size. After learning about optical illusions, we learnt about Mc Escher and a piece of art he created. Then we created a DLO explaining, what an optical illusion is, who Mc Escher is and which line is longer. 

Matariki Navigation & Harvesting

LI: To explain the navigation and harvests in Matariki.

This week, Florence, Afatia, Sakshi and I worked together to complete a Matariki activity. In our DLO, we explained how the sun, moon and stars are used in harvesting and navigation. An interesting fact that I found out about navigation and harvesting, is that when the stars were bright, it was a good signal of summer arriving. I really enjoyed learning about harvesting and navigation through the sky.

Matariki Venn Diagram

LI: To find out the similarities and differences between Matariki then and now.

Today we have completed this venn diagram. This venn diagram is comparing what people did for Matariki back in the day, and what they do now that is different. We also write what people do the same for Matariki. This DLO is created by Florence, Afatia, Sakshi and I. We all worked collaboratively to get 4 facts for each section. We enjoyed this activity as we were able to find out more on Matariki.

Harvesting In Matariki

LI: To explain what tools people used for Matariki.

Today Sakshi, Sakina and I created this DLO. This DLO that we created shows how the tools that Maori had were used. We also explained what tools they used. We added a picture showing some things they had harvested up. I enjoyed this activity because I was able to learn about the tools that Maori used to harvest.

Importance Of Matariki

To explain what Matariki is and why we celebrate it.

Today I have completed this DLO along with Florence and Sakshi. We all collaborated to collect the information about Matariki. We found out some facts and found out what is important about Matariki. In this DLO we added what Matariki was, What people do in the Matariki time, and of course why its important. I really enjoyed doing this activity because I was able to learn more about Matariki.

Matariki Summary

LI: To explain in fewer words what Matariki is about.

This week for Matariki, we completed different activities, to show or understanding about Matariki. Florence, Sakshi and I worked together to complete a summary about what Matariki is. In our summary, we included 20 important words, 6 of the most important words and summed up those 6 words to create a few sentences. Matariki, is a celebration which celebrates Maori New Year.

Optical Illusions

LI: To explore optical illusions.

This week, Mr Johnston came to LS2 and taught us about optical illusions. An optical illusion is something that tricks your eyes, making an object look different. Mr Johnston gave us an optical illusion activity, where we drew a fish and a fishbowl onto two different pieces of paper. Then we created a DLO, explaining what optical illusions are, how it works and an explanation of the activity Mr Johnston gave us. I really enjoyed learning about optical illusions. 

What Is Matariki?

LI: To use our knowledge, to explain what Matariki is. 

This week for Matariki, we completed different activities, to show our understand about Matariki. Florence, Sakshi and I watched a video to build up our knowledge about Maori New Year. We created a DLO, to explain what Matariki is. Our poster included, how Matariki is celebrated, what Matariki is, what Matariki means and a legend. I really enjoyed learning about Matariki. 

Careers: Dentist

LI: To explore a career that interests me.

I took the Career Quest quiz to help me find and explore a career that interests me. At the end the three options I chose were a Dentist, Optometrist and a Building Contractor. Out of those three options, I chose one that interested me the most and created a DLO about a dentist. This DLO shows what a Dentist is, the pathway/subjects I need to learn to become a dentist, the payments and the entry requirements.