Monday 31 August 2015

I Will Not Drink Juice From A Box!

The Rimu Maths group during their statistical investigation discovered that there are lots of children who bring tetra pak juice boxes to school. This is a problem because these type of containers cannot be recycled. We created these videos to encourage children to try and reduce the number of juice boxes at school.



Coughs and Sneezes Spread Diseases!

The Totara Maths group during their statistical investigation discovered that there are lots of children who come to school feeling unwell causing sickness and disease to spread. We created a public service announcement to encourage children to stop spreading these germs at school. We were inspired by these videos from the 1940's!





Walking to School is Cool

The Kauri Maths group during their statistical investigation discovered that there are lots of children who do not walk to school. We created these music videos to encourage students at Halsey Drive to change their ways and walk to school.




Walking to School from Peter Bainbridge on Vimeo.

We Sell Feijoas

After reading 'We Sell Feijoas' by Margaret Shroeder the X-Men used a SOLO sequence map to identify the steps needed to make money from selling feijoas.


How to Sell Feijoas

During the April school holidays is the perfect time to make money from selling feijoas. If you want to make some extra pocket money and have a feijoa tree follow these steps:

  1. First you need to create your stall and collect your feijoas.
  2. You will need a sign (with a name and price written in large letters), wheelbarrow, rake, buckets, empty supermarket bags and chairs
  3. Next shake the feijoa tree to release any loose feijoas. Quickly use the rake to gather them up and pick these up in buckets and place them in your wheelbarrow.
  4. After you have collected the feijoas place 25 of the biggest and juiciest of them into a plastic bag. Repeat this until you have used all the feijoas.
  5. Afterwards set up your stall on the footpath outside your house.
  6. Lean the sign up against your stall with the wheelbarrow full of feijoas.
  7. Finally wait for customers to come to your stall. Greet your customer and tell them how delicious your feijoas are.
  8. Last but not least don’t forget to collect the money

If you follow these steps you should be able to have lots of fun spending your pocket money on whatever you like but maybe not feijoas!

Thursday 27 August 2015

Milk From Farm to Factory

The X-Men used the information in the text 'A Hundred Cows' by Jane Buxton to describe the journey of milk from the farm to the factory. Here is Sativa and Aaliya's video.

IMG_0547 from Peter Bainbridge on Vimeo.

Poutini

Kevin and Ansh created this video retelling the story of Poutini - an ancient greenstone

Poutini from Peter Bainbridge on Vimeo.

Haka Vs Lion Dance

After reading 'Men of the School' by Mike Young the Avengers compared the Haka with the Chinese Lion Dance.


Compare and Contrast the Haka and Lion Dance

Dancing is very different in many cultures such as in the Maori, Indian and the Chinese culture. These cultures have many dances such as Kapa Haka, Garba and the Lion Dance. Two dances that share similarities and differences are the Maori poutini haka and the Chinese lion dance.

The lion dance and the poutini haka both involve costumes. In the haka the leader needs a cloak and the boys wear shorts. In the Chinese culture they have a dragon to wear when it is Chinese New Year. The Chinese costume has a head and legs that are connected to the body and arms. In my personal opinion the dragon dance is the most decorative because the costume has more detail and involves more actions.

Both dance involve sounds in their dances. In the Chinese culture they have drums that go slow at first but after a little while goes fast. In the Maori culture they involve chanting and stomping the feet.

Overall I think the most impressive dance is the Maori haka because there is more people involved in their dance and it has louder sounds than the Chinese dance.

By Samarah

Cultural dances have many similarities and differences. They all tell a story of their ancestors and their past. Let us find out the similarities and differences between the Chinese lion dance and the Maori Poutini haka.

The first similarity is that both dances tell a story. The Maori dance tells that there was a greenstone boulder that was split into adzes to carve canoes. The lion dance tells a story of awakening the lion so it could give the Chinese good luck.

The second similarity is both dances require practise. The Maori Poutini dance needs regular practise, usually a few weeks. The lion dance however needs approximately 3 months of practise. I think the most difficult dance is the lion dance because the people in the lion costume have to carry a lot of weight caused by the fabric.

The last similarity is both dances involve sounds. The Maori Poutini haka involves chanting. The lion dance involves loud beats and drums. I would prefer to chant more than dancing with the beat.

In the future I think both dances will become more famous and be recognised globally because more people will get to see them and learn about them. However there is a possibility of these dances becoming less famous because people might not learn those languages and won’t come to their concerts.

I believe my comparison is extended abstract because I have explained what I think will happen in the future.

By Nuha

Tough Times in Taiwan

The Justice League have been working on sequencing the events in the text "Going to School in Taiwan".  Do you think Taiwanese students have a busier day than us? 

WALT-Sequence in our own words.

1) Firstly Jacky and Olivia wake up at 7 o’clock in the morning.

2) Next their mother drives them to school.

3) Jacky and Olivia’s lessons start at half past 8.

4) When Jacky and Olivia get dropped off to school, they take off their shoes because they don’t want to get the floor dirty. There are shelves outside for storing their shoes for later.

5) When their lessons finish each student gets a turn to sweep and mop the floor. They each get a cleaning rag.

6) Then it’s time to eat. Jacky and Olivia’s school have a large kitchen where their lunches are cooked! All students eat at their desks.

7) After eating, it’s time for the students to take a nap! Their teacher also takes one too! Jacky and Olivia take a nap on their desk.

8) Eventually they go home but sometimes they take English lessons and piano lessons. These lessons takes up most of their time. Jacky and Olivia have a lot of homework too.

9) At six o’clock Jacky, Olivia and their family sit down and eat some dinner. Olivia and Jacky have a small bowl of rice. Jacky and Olivia helps themselves with chopsticks.

10) After dinner, Olivia and Jacky go and do their homework. Olivia and Jacky cannot go on a device while they are working.

11)  After dinner Jacky and Olivia have to finish their homework, they can have a quick game before they have a sleep

12) Finally to finish off Jacky and Olivia’s day, they have a relaxing sleep. This sleep will give them plenty of energy for the next day!

By Kalani

In Taiwan Jacky and Olivia have a tough school life. Jacky and Olivia’s school starts at 8:30 A.M, thats the time our school is able to play outside in the mornings.


When they arrive they take their shoes off this helps keep the class room clean and tidy. Their school has to do lessons in Chinese then all over again in English. One half of the day is written in Chinese then the other half written in English. Taiwanese pupils have a Chinese name and an English name.


The young students each take turns sweeping, mopping and dusting. In their stationery pack there is a duster rag! When these kids learn a Chinese letter they have to repeat it over and over.


After morning lessons it’s time to have some num nums, They have a kitchen which serves them lunch. After lunch they float into the world of snooze, The teacher even sleeps too! After that the students repeat lessons in English. Home time is at 4:10 but they have not finished learning yet.

Olivia and Jacky also have after school commitments and activities like English and piano lessons and always stacks of homework. At about 6 o’clock the family have their dinner. Once they have finished their homework they can play on computer games. Then the day is done and onto the next day of hard work.


By Skye

Tuesday 25 August 2015

A Hundred Cows

After reading 'A Hundred Cows' by Jane Burton the X-Men created these recipes featuring New Zealand milk.

Going to School in Taiwan

After reading 'Going to School in Taiwan' by Megan Williams the Justice League compared going to school in New Zealand with going to school in Taiwan. Where would you prefer to go to school?

Going to School in Taiwan

Many people move to New Zealand for a better education for themselves or their children. However different cultures from around the world have their own ideas about what makes a good education. This means that children’s experience of school can be very different. Two cultures with different perspectives of what makes a good education are New Zealand and Taiwan.
                     
Languages - Dev and Israel
Both students in New Zealand and Taiwan learn a different language. In Taiwan they learn English and Chinese at school. They learn Chinese for half of the day and then the other half of the day they spend repeating all their subjects again in English. In New Zealand learning Maori is important because Maori language nearly died out because it was not taught at schools and was speaking Te Reo was banned in some schools, like my Nana’s school (Israel).

School Times
Both students in Taiwan and New Zealand begin school in the morning and finish in the afternoon. However the Taiwanese students have a much longer day compared to students in New Zealand. Taiwanese students begin school at 8.30 am and don’t finish until 4.10pm. We however begin our school day at 8.55am and finish school at 3.00pm. We think it is better to have a shorter day because you would probably end up being exhausted from the long days.

Jobs/Responsibilities - Sherlyn and Priscilla
Both students in Taiwan and New Zealand have responsibilities and jobs. Taiwanese schools are really strict with jobs like mopping, cleaning and dusting whereas New Zealand students have easy jobs such as tidy up the shelves, recycling, book distributors and art monitors.
When I went to Taiwan mopping was the hardest out of all the jobs, carrying the heavy bucket and water was really hard. Now that I’m in New Zealand I think that the jobs are way easier because you don’t have to carry heavy buckets every day! (Priscilla)

After School - Skye and Kalani
After school both students have places and commitments they have to go to, such as English lessons and piano lessons. Taiwanese student’s lessons take a lot of their time after school. Where as we have different after school activities such as netball training, rugby training and Kelly sports on Wednesdays. In our school these after school activities only take about 30 minutes or an hour. In our opinion we would prefer to be in New Zealand because we get to choose an after school activity and it doesn't take up most of our precious time!         
Furniture - Chantelle
One difference about what is best for learning between these two countries is the setup of desks. In Taiwan their desks must be set up in rows facing the front  and must also be kept tidy whereas in New Zealand our desks are spread out around the room and we also get beanbags, kneeling tables and a whiteboard that has an Apple TV projector. In my opinion it is a better learning space in New Zealand.

Conclusion
Overall we prefer to go to school in New Zealand because our days are shorter, we don’t have to repeat lessons in another language and we don’t have to clean the classroom with dusting rags and a mop. However in Taiwan the students can bring and share any food they like and they can have a nap too! We think although there are some major differences Taiwan has some good ideas about education such as teaching two languages and skills such as cleaning, which would be useful when we are older.


Monday 24 August 2015

Totara Statistical Investigation

Rimu Statistical Investigation

Kauri Statistical Investigation

In Maths we have been learning about statistics. We first discussed possible problems/issues at school that we could investigate. We then followed the PPDAC cycle to carry out a statistical investigation.

Saturday 22 August 2015

Cross Country

Congratulations to all Room 5 students who competed in this years cross country. You all put in a great effort and should be very proud. Thank you to all the parents/whanau who came along to cheer us on.



Podcast #5

Here is Nuha with with her weekly round up of news and events

Thursday 20 August 2015

When life gives you lemons....

Wanting to make some extra money? Follow Samarah and Ansh's guide to becoming a Lemonade Entrepreneur.


Exporting Sequence

The X-Men used a SOLO sequence map to track the journey of logs through Tauranga port.


Exporting Logs Sequence

Did you know that logs are the main export from the Port of Tauranga? Tauranga is in the North Island of New Zealand and exporting means sending cargo to another country. The journey of exporting logs begins in the forest.

To the Port

Firstly tall, mature trees are cut down from the forest.  The logs are then stacked onto a huge, wide truck and drove to the port.

Loading

At the port special forklifts are used to load the logs onto the ships.

Ship

The logs are loaded onto a bulk carrier. Bulk carriers have a large amount of space to hold the logs.

Safety/Destination

The workers at the port need to be prepared for the dangers of transporting logs so wear safety vests and hard hats. After the logs leave the port they travel overseas to to India and Japan where they are used for houses and furniture.

In the future if Japan and India grow more of their own trees for logs New Zealand would miss out on money from exporting. Although we would like countries to be able to grow their own trees and make their own money we would not want New Zealand to miss out on earning money from exporting.

We believe our sequence is extended abstract because we made a prediction about the future and have each stage in the correct order.

Wednesday 19 August 2015

Powhiri

The students of Year 4 participated in a powhiri with Matua Edwards. A powhiri is a traditional Maori welcome. Sativa and Kalani did a great karanga followed by Eli and Michael speaking on behalf of their groups. After the waiata the two groups greeted each other with a hongi.

Growing the Dollars

After reading 'Growing the Dollars' by Sarah Reid the Justice League sequenced the journey of the mushrooms from paddock to plate using the information in the text.


Monday 17 August 2015

Nine Lemons

After reading 'Nine Lemons' by Keren Cook the Avengers created these book trailers summarising the key plot points of the story.



The Port

After reading 'The Port' by Sharyn Jones the X-Men collaborated on a SOLO Generalise map and summary.


The Port 

Every day ships from all over the world visit the Port of Tauranga. The Port is very important to our economy because it is one of New Zealand’s biggest ports. Every year more than a thousand ships bring and take cargo to and from New Zealand. 

New Zealand exports logs and kiwi fruit from Tauranga. Kiwi fruit is exported from Tauranga because it is grown nearby and it saves money on transport. By exporting from Tauranga the kiwi growers are saving money on transport costs by not having to send their kiwifruit to other parts of New Zealand before sending them overseas.

New Zealand imports dry food for cows and fertilizer. Fertilizer helps crops meaning our fruit and vegetables can grow better. Better quality fruit and vegetables means people will buy more of them and people from overseas will be happy to buy our exported fruit and vegetables.

We accept this generalisation because the Port of Tauranga is one of New Zealand’s biggest ports, there are lots of imports and exports and it provides jobs for lots of people. Some of the jobs at the port include driving the forklift trucks or cranes, loading containers and being a tugboat pilot. Without these type of jobs New Zealand would have more unemployed people. 



Phrase #4

Here is Skye with this weeks phrase. Remember to encourage your whanau to try speaking Te Reo at home.

Friday 14 August 2015

Netiquette

In health we discussed 'Netiquette'. Netiquette is a combination of ’net’ (from internet) and ’etiquette’. It means respecting other users of the internet and being a positive digital citizen.

Thursday 13 August 2015

From MIlk to Cheese

We have been studying the process of how milk becomes cheese. We collaborated on a SOLO sequence map and then each wrote our own summaries. Welcome to the fascinating world of cheese making!

From Milk to Cheese by Sherlyn

Cheese is a tasty dairy product made from milk and is eaten the world over. Dairy products are New Zealand's biggest export earner (NZ $12.1 billion in 2011) with cheese making up 12% of all dairy exports. Cheese has to be made before people can eat it. Making cheese takes many steps.

From Cows to Factory

Firstly the milk is collected. The herd of cows are led into the milking room where they get milked. In the olden days cows were milked by hand where as now cows get milked by machines. I think milking cows with machines is better than milking cows by hand because it is quicker, you don’t need more employees and your hands won’t hurt from milking lots of cows. The milk comes from the cows udders. Milk for making cheese is not just from cows goats, camels and reindeer can also be milked. The milk is transported through tubes where it is kept cold. The milk needs to be cold otherwise it will turn sour. The milk is then stored in tanks before being picked up by trucks and taken to the cheese factory.

Making Curds

When the milk reaches the cheese factory it gets heated to kill the germs. Bacteria and enzymes are then added to the milk which forms lumps called curds (curds are the solid part of sour milk). After that the curds are put into moulds.

Pressing

Weights are then pressed down on the moulds. The curds then turn into blocks or wheels of cheese.

Ripening

When the cheese has been formed it is taken to the storage room to ripen. Ripening gives the cheese its taste, smell and feel. Did you know that one of the smelliest cheeses in the world is Epoisses? Which is from France. Epoisses is so smelly that it is illegal to take it on public transport! Stinking Bishop is Britain’s famous smelly cheese. You are allowed to take it on public transport but it came number eight in the top ten of the world’s smelliest cheeses.

To the Store

Finally when the cheese has finished ripening it is sold. The factory sells lots of different types of cheese like swiss, cottage cheese (curds and whey), cheddar, blue and mozzarella. The cheese is transported by trucks, aeroplanes or trains to shops and stores.

I believe that if New Zealand didn’t produce milk and cheese we would be a totally different country. Milk and cheese is very important to New Zealand because we earn a lot of money from selling dairy products and we are famous for it. If New Zealand stopped making dairy products lots of people would lose their jobs.

Podcast #4

Ecuadorian Jerseys

The Justice League created these advertisements for the jerseys that the Ecuadorian villagers make in 'Home-Spun in Ecuador'.

Wednesday 12 August 2015

Global Postcard Exchange #1

Room 5 are very excited to be part of the 'Global Postcard Exchange 2015/2016'.  Over the next few months we will be sending postcards to a wide range of schools from all over the world. This week we received our first postcards all the way from Parklands College in South Africa!




Home-Spun in Ecuador

After reading 'Home - Spun in Ecuador' by Erica Johnston the Justice league sequenced the process of "How wool becomes a jersey.

How wool becomes a Jersey


In Ecuador families make money by turning ordinary wool into bright colourful jerseys. These families work very hard to make these jerseys but do not make much profit. Making a jersey takes many steps.


Buying the wool - Kalani
The villagers in Ecuador are very poor, so they can’t raise their own sheep to make wool. The villagers don’t have enough land for the sheep to survive. However what the villagers do to get their wool is walk up to the mountains and purchase the wool from the sheep farmers who have all the wool they need to make the jerseys.


Washing the wool - Skye
Next the villagers have to wash their wool. An important mix gets tipped over the wool. The villagers wash the wool in the local pond. They use the local pond for a few things like cooking and drinking water this is why most children die before they reach the age of five.


Carding the wool - Sherlyn
Now the villagers have to card the wool. Card the wool means to get rid of seeds, grass and tangles that might have been in the sheep’s wool. The villagers card the wool by pulling the wool through the spikes that are on wooden bats. After the wool has been rolled off the bats, it is time to spin the wool.  


Spinning the wool - Next the wool is spun. People in Ecuador use spinning wheels that are very different to the ones in New Zealand. The spinning wheel that is used in the village has a large bamboo wheel and a spindle that teases the wool into long strands ready for knitting.


Dyeing the wool - Arav
After the wool is spun it is dyed. The wool is dyed very bright colours. After it has been dyed it has to be dried on long lines. The families now sell the dyed wool to another family. The family who dyed the wool don’t make much profit only about 60 cents per kg of wool.                                                                                                                                           
Knitting the wool - Eventually the clean, dyed wool is bought by a family that knits the wool into colourful jerseys. The knitting is done by families (even the children). Some children as young as six can spend hours knitting jerseys. The family don’t have patterns to follow so must learn the patterns off by heart.


Selling to tourists- Chantelle
The finished jerseys are then sold to tourists that have come to see Ecuador. The jerseys are bought as a souvenir to take back to their countries or just to consumers who want a woolly jersey for freezing cold days and nights.


Conclusion - Chantelle
Overall the villagers in Ecuador do not earn much profit from all their hard work. The villagers do not earn enough money to buy more land so they could raise their own sheep, which would make it easier to make more money.

We hope in the future that all the hard work that the villagers do to make jerseys earns them more money. If the villagers had more money they could improve their daily lives and clean the local pond, so that their children can live longer lives. This could happen if tourists gave more money for the jerseys or if countries like New Zealand imported the jerseys and sold them before sending the money directly to the villagers.