Action World Trip

On Monday the senior syndicate attended Action World for the morning. The instructor did a small breifing explaining the rules about Action World. After that we were able to play freely doing any activity we wanted. My friend and I went to The Jousting game. I dominated the game during the start but was forced to get off to let others have a turn. That was the only activity I really did because I got the most pleasure out of it. Overall I enjoyed the trip as well as seeing kids have fun and collaborating together to accomplish what they were doing.

Summer Learning Journey Teaser Week Activity 1

The purpose of this activity is to speak about our roots. Taika Waititi is a producer and a director who does majority of his work away from his home. He uses his pepeha to introduce himself to others. This is for us to introduce ourselves and for people to know where we come from and who we represent. Here is my pepeha.

Meeting Aunty Tay

My third favourite activity was with Aunty Tay/Taylor. When I first met Tay, she was a very expressive happy person that enjoyed accompanying children and adults while educating them at the same time. Before we went to the University, We played a little game with her so she could remember all our names. For the game we had to make a simple beat. Then we would come up with actions for our names for others to remember. After creating the beat and creating some actions, we would have to pass it on to the person next to us. This game was fun because a lot of people had very creative actions. After that we walked down the road to the University.  When we visited the University she gave us little packs with pens, paper and a t-shirt. Afterwards she showed us her workspace as well as majority of the facility. I enjoyed this activity very much compared to the other ones because our whole class loved being around her and connecting with her.

Te Papa Museum Visit

My second favourite event was Te Papa. Before we entered Te Papa we were separated into supervision groups. When we first entered Isaiah S grabbed a map while we were planning where we wanted to go first. Since the other group entered the Gallipoli section, we went to the Mountains to Sea Exhibit where we could see a preserved giant squid. After seeing everything from the ocean in the exhibit, we learnt about different bird species from New Zealand. That area was pretty interesting because there was this dark section in the exhibit where you would rub the egg next to a screen showing the bird. When you would rub the bird egg, it would  let off a sensor and showed what state that species of bird was in from being stable to becoming or already being extinct. Soon after that, we entered the Gallipoli exhibit. The first thing we saw was a giant realistic statue of a soldier. As we proceeded to walk through the exhibit, we would see a big statue, then information about who the statue is and other artifacts to show related to the war. My favourite statue was the last one. The last statue had three men on the battlefield while shooting a mini gatling gun. The second man was helping the first while holding the bullets. The third man was dead and laying on the ground with a blanket over him.  I really liked the detail with the hair and blood. When we visited Weta Workshop, they told us that they had to stitch each hair one by one. After that exhibit we visited the marae above us. There were heaps of maori artifacts which included toko toko, pounamu and pottery. Overall I enjoyed the experience with my friends.

Weta Workshop Visit

During the camp I had three events that I was most interested in. My first one being Weta Workshop.When we first arrived at Weta Workshop we waited and looked around in the main lobby. Since the other group arrived before us they were showing us around while other kids were talking to the nice tour guides. We got to wield a sword prop from the Lord Of The Rings and saw statues of characters in the same movie.. When we first entered, we saw some weapons and armour props for the Lord Of The Rings. One of the tour guides explained how they made it. We were allowed to hold an alien gun from Project 12. Afterwards we watched an educational movie which described the making of Weta Workshop itself and the other companies they work with to make quality films. Later on we were shown heads made from plasticine. Majority of the heads were graphic and were made for the movie Daybreak. Afterwards we were shown the engineering behind functioning props from Project 12, Brain Dead, Black Sheep, The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit. Overall I enjoyed the experience and the company of both of those two nice tour guides around the facility.

The Year 7/8 Trip To Wellington

Two weeks ago our principal, Mrs Lindsay gave the year 7 & 8 students the opportunity to go to Wellington for a week. First, we travelled from Paihia to the Auckland Airport, from there we flew to Wellington. We drove our hired vans to the Te Herenga Waka Marae where we settled in. I really enjoyed staying at the marae because of the carvings that were embedded on the marae walls. Each and every carving represented different tribes from up north to down south. We weren’t given the opportunity to learn about each carving but I still enjoyed admiring the detail in them and the stories they all told. Lastly, I would love to say thank you to Mrs Lindsay for letting us see and do what we did during the week with you. Nga mihi.

Paper Tower Activity

In Te Ngahere we did a STEAM activity. Our task was to create the tallest tower only using two sheets newspaper and 30 centimetres of tape. We had 20 minutes to come up with an idea to make a tower using the material we were given. What worked well was that our team was able to collaborate and use each other's ideas to create something that we were proud of. Even though our tower wasn’t able to stand, we still thought that our result was enough for it to be a good team's effort. What our group found most difficult was the base of the tower. Just after the 15 minute mark our group came up with an idea. During the end our group had to rush because our base wasn’t strong enough for it to stand on its own. I reckon I did well in helping my team out and making the tower. Next time I could probably come up with a better idea for it to actually work. To also think of another way where it plays by the newspapers strengths, not weaknesses. Which in the activity we were doing, we thought the paper was stable enough to stand by itself but it what too flimsy and our idea didn’t work. See ya.

Converting Fractions Into Decimals DLO

Recently our class have been learning many different varieties of strategies in math which were based around addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. I learnt about converting fractions into decimals. At first it was hard because I never really practiced my division facts even though we needed to know it to use this strategy. It got easier as I progressed through the learning sheets because it helped me to learn more of my basic division facts. Knowing our basic division facts was cruetal while we were learning the strategy. The steps were to basically divide the denominator by the numerator. But here is my DLO (Digital Learning Object) explaining how I solved the problems that were given to me.

First Day Back At Waka Ama

Yesterday was the first time back at Waka Ama after the winter break. It was relaxing and surprisingly warm since it was like 5:00pm. I’m still rusty and need to keep practicing on switching sides. Eventually I’ll get back into Waka Ama and regain the skills I had when I use to hard out practise. Waka Ama was really fun and I can’t wait to practice next week.

Kaikohekohe Cultural Festival

Yesterday we went to the Kaikohe Cultural Festival. I enjoyed performing to other people around Northland. It was nerve racking before going onstage. After the festival we watched the live stream of the other groups. I hope to perform more to build my confidence when I perform in the future. The things I need to work on is my facials and the volume of my voice when I haka or sing. Thank you for viewing my post. See ya.

School Cross Country

Last week we did our Paihia School cross country event. Our race was last, I loved that because it wasn’t as hot as if our race was in the morning or mid-day. I don’t know what place I came but it doesn’t really matter in my opinion. The day ended up being really fun and exciting. My favourite part was having to run up on the hill. I liked the view up on the hill and that it was windy making it easier to run in. After the race, I was knackered and exhausted. I was glad that I finished the race because I only had to do it once and never again until next year.  I'm curious of what the track will look like next year when I start going to Bay College.

Kapa Haka Rakau

Yesterday the kapa haka boys started to work on our rakau that we’re going to use for the festival in Kaikohe. We stripped the bark off the timber which revealed a nice white grainy piece of timber. We then had to sand down the rakau making it smooth and easy to work with, gradually changing the type of sandpaper. Lastly we had to coat our rakau with a wood grain stain to give the rakau a good finish. Today I have to coat my rakau one more time and then I’m finished. I enjoyed using the power tools to turn something that’s a little ugly and rough to the touch, to something that’s and and smooth.

Healthy Takeaway Foods

Three days ago, A physical health teacher named Gina came back to our school to teach us about food. We were shown some images of healthy and unhealthy hearts. We were given cards with images on them to organise into groups. We had to place the images under the healthy heart or the unhealthy heart, only if the food was healthy or unhealthy. I learnt a lot like that Chinese food are healthy because they don’t use a lot of fatty ingredients in their food that they make. I never knew that sweet and sour pork was classified as being healthy because it tasted so sweet. I hope Whaea Gina comes back to our school so we can learn about physical health and healthy eating. When she first arrived we learnt about physical health and the outcome of eating and being unhealthy.

Science Fair Presentation Event

Last week on Friday Te Ngahere presented their science fair projects. Classes rotated around viewing our projects. I really enjoyed viewing our project with my partner Kingi. Presenting our work to the juniors was challenging for me because of the language that we had to use to explain to our audience. The senior syndicate was a little easier to explain to because they could understand the words that I was using to explain our project to them. Next time I could work on using different words for the little kids to understand.

Science Fair Plan

Last term we learnt about the scientific method. We used this method to solve an experiment. We had to find out real life problems that we wanted to solve. Our problem was which was the stretchiest material for slingshots. The real life problem was that my friend and I tried fixing a slingshot using different materials. Both the bike tube and the tyre rubber snapped. We wanted to find a better material that is durable and affordable. Right now we’ve researched different materials including Theraband, 80G rubber bands and normal rubber bands. For our investigation we want to compare all three of these materials to see which is the best.

Feathers

Today we’ve been creating feathers for our Korowai that we are trying to create. I’ve really liked how we’re making a Korowai for our class. We did this last year but we used crayons and dye.. Looking at it now, the colors look dull and faded. Using pastels really brings out the warm bright colors and the cold bold colors. I don’t know if we’re doing this every year but it’s a very creative thing to do with all the kids participating. Bye.

Author Visit

Last Thursday our school was lucky enough to have two very passionate authors come in and visit us. The seniors and the juniors were separated. We both got to met an author, we met a women named Adele. She told us what she would write about and that they’re based of real things that have happened to her. She uses things that she’s done and adds it into her stories. She also told us that it’s easier to describe what a character is doing in a book if you experience what your character is doing. I really enjoyed knowing what she does as an author and what she writes about. Bye.

Statistics

Yesterday in Te Ngahere for maths we learnt about statistics and the types of graphs there are. We chose different graphs that were the best to use depending on what we’re using it for. We were given an example to base our graph off. We had to choose two different graphs that were the easiest to read. Our example was about kids of different year levels choosing which author was their favourite. These are the two graphs that I found the easiest to visualize. My favourite type of graph was the bar graph because it shows which one is better depending on the problem you’re using it for. I enjoyed learning about the uses for different graphs like the pie graph. This graph is mainly used to show fractions and percentages.

The Scientific Method Infographic

Today Te Ngahere started a new T shaped Literacy activity. The topic for our reading activities are about science and the universe. We had to learn the scientific method and understand how it works and why it is the most efficient. We then had to create an infographic about the scientific method. Here is my infographic that I made today. We had to use images and words for others to get a better understanding of the method reading the words and analyzing the images.

Adding and Subtracting Decimals DLO

Recently in Te Ngahere we have been working around different varieties of strategies that we could use in maths. We use these simple strategies to subtract and add decimals. We worked on this because we aren’t very good at remembering strategies but good at learning them. We had to create a maths DLO to show three different strategies that we relearned. Here is my DLO which contains Jumping the Number Line, Equal Additions and Rounding and Compensating. I enjoyed relearning the the strategies and using them efficiently for the right type of equation. Next time I need to remember all of these simple strategies that could be used consistently for hard problems. Bye.  

Fibonacci Sequence

Recently our teacher has been teaching us about Fibonacci. He also taught us about the Fibonacci Sequence. The sequence is 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55 and so on. The pattern for this is 1 + 1 = 2. 1 + 2 = 3. 2 + 3 = 5. 5 + 3 = 8 and so on. We had to use these in code.org to create the nautilus shell perfectly. At first without any help it was confusing but after our teacher showed us what to do with the numbers, I figured it out. I enjoyed being challenged with creating the shell perfectly but also trying without any help and nearly getting it right. Here is a small video of me coding the shell. Bye.

New Zealand Wars Animation

Last week I posted my script, but I have finally completed my animation with my buddy Muscles. It has been recorded using screencastify. I enjoyed recording it with my buddy because we had fun reenacting the characters. Next time I want to find another site to use because in my opinion it’s too chunky to animate depending on how good your WiFi is. But here is the animation. Bye.

Panui Script for Animation

Part 1: Getting transported to New Zealand

1: Hey do you know why we’re here?

2: Yea, governor FitzRoy sent us here to fight against those savages!

1: Oh that’s right!

2: Yea, I want to put this (picks up musket) to good use.

1: I miss my family very much. Mostly my wife.

2: Well when we’re finished you can go back to your family.

1: Yea, let's get going.

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Part 2: Travelling to New Zealand

(Sailing to New Zealand on ships)

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1 = Maori man 1

2 = Maori man 2

3 = British man 1

4 = British man 2

Part 3; Maori’s point of view when British arrive

1: (strolling through the ngahere singing Tū Tera Mai Nga Iwi)

2: Look look look look. There’s people coming.

1: I know I can see them.

2: Look at their waka.

1: Wheeaa they’re flash.

2; I know aye. Let's go see them.

(Walking down the hill to the British)

1: Kia Ora, my name is Boy.

2: Tena koe, my name is Rocky.

1: What are you fallas up to?

3: Who are these scoundrels?

4: I believe they are the maori people.

3: What are they doing here?

4: They are the native people of this country.

3: Oh ok well ask him where the war is being fought and how we can get there.

4: Forgive me but can’t you ask him.

3: They have a foul odor that is disgusting.

4: Ok.

4: (Talking to the Boy and Rocky) Well if you don’t mind me asking, do you know where Ruapekapeka is?

1: What?

4: Ruapekapeka?

2: Oh, Ruapekapeka.

4: What is that?

1: It's what you just said but the right way to say it.

4: Oh.

1 and 2: Hahahahahaha.

4: Well where is it?

1 and 2: Just go over that hill, down that track, through the forest and walk the rest of the way for about three hours.

3: I beg your pardon? Three hours?

1 and 2: Yea, now go away! You stink!

3 and 4: Ok thank you for the directions.

1 and 2: Ka kite!

1 and 2: Wheeaa those fallas are stupid aye?

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Part 4: Walking to Ruapekapeka

1: We’ve been marching for about an hour and we are in Kawakawa, I believe so.

1: We need to get to Ruapekapeka

2: I know, (sigh) I really want to use this bad boy (musket).

1: This artillery is so heavy! I feel like I’m the only one pulling it.

2: Hah good for me that I’m not pulling it. It looks heavy as. (rubbing it in his face)

1: I hate you.

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Part 5: Reaching Ruapekapeka and fighting against Maori

1: Finally (exhausted) we made it!

2: Yay! (being sarcastic) I can’t believe it.

1: Why do you sound bored or not excited.

2: Because I have had to pull this cannon for ages and you haven’t helped me at all!

1: Karma hit you, hahaha.

2: I will get you back.

(Preparing the artillery and fighting)

1: Let's kill these savages, these monsters!

2: Yes finally, (killing men) Boom Boom Pow!

(Scene: shooting men) Sound effects: Boom Boom, Pow, graaaaah, Neeeeea Boom

(He gets shot and dies)

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Part 6: Tensions between the two sides

(Slides with words and talking over the tensions)

The tensions between the two sides were that when the british found New Zealand, in their mind they thought that since they found the country they could take it over not knowing that there were native people that were established into the country making it their land. The war started because the two sides fought over the land leading to inconclusive results. upon the battles that were fought.

(Blog Post)

For the past couple of weeks in Te Ngahere we have been creating animations and writing scripts about what we learnt, from what we read. We were given different articles and texts for us to read and learn about refugees, immigrants and the New Zealand Wars. After that the teachers had the idea for us to create animations showing what we have learnt from the texts we were reading. We had to have 4 - 5 parts which included why they came to New Zealand, what happened when they came to New Zealand, the other sides point of view and the problems between the two sides. This is my script which contains all of that (I hope). For now my animations isn’t completed but I’ll post it when it is. Thank you for viewing and see ya later.

Fibonacci

This week in Te Ngahere our smart handsome teacher has been teaching us about Fibonacci. We learnt that he was a mathematician that really liked nature. He based a lot of his work around math and nature to combine them together to solve different things such as why sunflowers are so symmetrical. Our teacher taught us how to draw the nautilus shell using math and a pencil compass. I really enjoyed learning about nature and including math into it. At first it was very challenging but I got used to it. Next time I could try to draw  I hope we do more activities relating to Fibonacci. See ya.

Southern Cultural Festival

Last week on Friday the kapa haka roopu participated in the Southern Cultural Festival in Kawakawa. We performed to the audience our small bracket that we created in two weeks. We practiced hard for about a week before the festival. I enjoyed performing what we learnt and had been training for to others. I also enjoyed watching the other groups to see what they did well. I hope we perform more in the future because we are representing our tutors and what they have been teaching us.

Southern Cultural Festival in Kawakawa

Since last week in Te Ngahere the Kapa Haka roopu have been training for the Southern Cultural Festival in Kawakawa. We have been practising every morning tea and lunch times for the festival. Before, we went to the Te Tai Tokerau Festival in Whangarei. We went to the festival to learn new things that we saw when the groups performed. We are trying to use that and bring it to our kapa haka roopu. We only have 3 more days to practise until we go perform at the festival. I enjoy doing this because it is a good learning opportunity for us to learn more and perform what we have learnt towards others. In Kapa Haka I’m focusing on emphasizing my actions and pronouncing the kupu correctly. Later.

Great Marble Run Challenge

In Te Ngahere we have been doing a Marble Run Challenge. In groups we had to create a ramp using random objects around the class. Our goal was to get a marble and roll it down a ramp so it can roll 110cm away from the end of the ramp. As well as creating the ramp we also had to learn about variables. Anything else we changed was a variable, even if it was the type of floor we were on, or the way we rolled the ball if we dropped it or pushed it. This activity was fun because we were able to work together and collaborate and use each others ideas.

Variables DLO

 In Te Ngahere we have been learning about variables. Our task this week was to create a ramp that when you use a marble on it, it rolls 110cm away from the ramp exactly. When we created the ramp it was easy to find what we were going to use to create the ramp but was difficult on what things we had to change to end up with a different result. I enjoyed testing and making the ramp because we were able to get creative with our ramp. Next time we could probably change one thing at a time so we are able to find out what change made a difference in the result.

ANZAC DLO

This week in Te Ngahere we have been working with some word problems related to ANZAC day. After completing the word problems we had to create a DLO to show how we worked out the problem. We were learning how to use different strategies to solve difficult equations that included percentages and fractions. I enjoyed being challenged by using less words and more numbers. Next time I could try complete the DLO in a certain amount of time.

The Nukes

Yesterday 25 students from our kura were selected to participate in a ukulele session with a band called The Nukes. They taught us about different chords of the ukulele and where the name of the ukulele came from. From what The Nukes told us the ukulele came from Hawaii and the name meant jumping flea. We played the ukulele together showing our talent to the rest of the school. I enjoyed playing with a different school and coming together to play something cool. Next time I could work on learning more chords for the ukulele and how to use the chords to make a song. But overall the ukulele session was fun and I would love to do it again.

Maths DLO Trebling and Thirding

Last week in Te Ngahere we started creating Math DLO’s. We learnt strategies such as doubling and halving and trebling and thirding. The strategy helped me heaps because I was able to solve difficult multiplication number sentences using the strategy. Creating the DLO was a bit challenging for me because I struggled explaining how the strategy worked and showing it on a slide. Next time I could probably finish the DLO in less than three days because I now know how to explain the strategy, but also keep it simple for the audience to understand.

Year 7&8 Technology

Last week on Wednesday the year 7&8’s went to Moerewa School to go to Technology. The year 8’s started with cooking while the year 7’s did woodwork. We chose to make lasagna with a minimum of five vegetables in it. Before we started to cook we set expectations for ourselves on how our lasagna should look like and taste like. Fonz-o and I chose different varieties of vegetables and ingredients including tomatoes, capsicum, carrots and more. We chopped up our veggies and added it to our mince and bacon that was frying in the pan. We made a white sauce and pasta to add in the tray for the lasagna. When that was finished Fonz-o put everything in a small tray and put it in the oven to cook. I enjoyed tech because the lasagna tasted nice.

Waitangi Day Waka Tangata

Last week Kingi and I attended a wananga learning about Waka Tangata. It was a three day camp learning the techniques on how to paddle and what to say after the kaihautu calls. On the day we had to prepare ourselves in the clothes that we chose. We paddled on the day showing the crowd Ngawhakamatautau and our new ngeri. We did other calls but those were our main actions to show everyone. We weren't able to show what we learnt on land because the tide was too high for all the other wakas to fit on the beach. Waitangi day was fun but hot as.