Future Focused

Here is a poster we created to show what we think future focused learning is. To the left we have painted, 'The Present' and on the right is, 'The Future'. 
lol from Team 5 PES on Vimeo.

Mini Tattoo Project

For our task we were to create two tattoo designs. The first one being a cultural one and the second being one that represented yourself. The presentation above includes the tattoos and an explanation for each I created. 

Samoan Pe'a

In extension, we have been looking at symbols and the meanings and reasons behind the tattoos. But the very tattoo we have been researching and focusing on is the samoan Tatau, or, the Pe'a.

Recently, we were visited by Mr Tele'a, who was going to show us his very own Tatau. But before we could ask questions and find out more information about it, Mrs Tele'a pointed out some of the elements included in the tattoo such as the va'a (canoe).

The Va'a, is a 20-30 cm solid coloured strip that represents family. It wraps around the back and towards the front. In this case, the va'a wraps around and comes just under the ribcage. It also has an arrow point or a faaulutao at each end. 

Once we had done that, we started asking him questions we had prepared before. We asked about the designs, the meanings, how long it took, etc. He answered the questions with detail and explained things very well. One thing he said that I found quite interesting, was that if you unwrap the Pe'a from around your body and look it as if you were looking at it on a piece of paper, it'll look like a bat.

We are now working on creating and designing two of our very own symbols/tattoos. One of them had to include one aspect of our culture or heritage and the other, had to represent ourselves. Currently, I am working on designing the two tattoo's. 

Storyline Reflection

Last week the year 5, 6, 7 and 8 extension groups went along to The Storylines Festival out at the Vodafone Events Center. It was a pretty interesting and enjoyable day hearing from the different authors but overall, my favourite’s were probably, Juliette McIver and Jill McGregor, even though they both wrote children’s books.

These two authors were very entertaining, interacted with the audience and creative. Juliette had a really ‘out there’ kind of personality and seemed really excited. She was really into rhyming and also created her own words. She also read aloud one of her books called, Queen Alice’s Palaces. Jill, was more of an educational writer who spoke with a soft tone. She talked about her experiences in the islands and why she started writing.

If I presented at the festival, I would try to interact with the audience to get them more excited and interested. Maybe things like, getting some students on stage to act out parts of the story or getting them to read the speech bits in a voice that matched the character. That would be quite interesting.

Overall, I had a great time listening and learning about the different authors even though I did enjoy last year’s Storyline Festival more enjoyable and interesting.

Year 8 Camp!

A few weeks ago, the year 8’s were lucky enough to go and camp at the Marsden Bay Christian Camp in Ruakaka. It was so much fun, I wish it had lasted longer! Over the four days we spent there, I got to enjoy relaxing, many activities and more.

Day 1 wasn’t that bad but it surely wasn’t my favourite. After taking a 2 hour bus drive, we stopped at Langs Bay and started our hike towards Waipu Cove. Ms Squires had planned what was supposed to be an easy walk, but due to the weather it wasn’t so. The track was not only slippery but very narrow which made it harder for everyone to avoid plummeting to their deaths. But luckily, everyone made it to the end.

For me, my favourite day was day 3. We did many different activities such as a fire pit cooking challenge, archery, a confidence course, frisbee golf and kayaking! Then to finish the night off, we all gathered around a campfire and sang songs.

But overall, my highlight from camp was probably spending time together as a whole year 8 group (instead of just our team groups). Also, getting to know other people that I don’t usually hang out with.

Tangle Explanation

A celtic knot is a piece of art that has been interwoven to create the illusion that it has no beginning or end. Having that class 1 and class 5 have combined (Panuba), this particular style of art is great as a collaborative project, as everyone can contribute with their own design.

It’s a great idea to do some planning and researching before you start draft-sketching. Look at different designs, patterns, colours and symbols you could include in your piece. But remember to include something that represents you.

Choosing only a few colours that contrast each other would be better than using a lot. Bright and bold colours will also make your artwork stand out more.

Placing all the pieces in the right place of the tangle can be quite confusing, so it's a good idea to label them. This way, it'll be easier to assemble the celtic knot.

My Avatar

Self Management has been something we've focused on this year and in my class we have a Self Management Level Board. This board has three levels. Level 1; I need help to manage myself. Level 2; I am able to manage myself but I sometimes go off task. Level 3; I can manage myself well, inside and outside of the classroom. 

Above, is my avatar that I have created. I think that I can place myself at Level 3 as I can manage myself well away from the teacher and keep on task.

Day 1 Term 4

The first day of the last term had started and no one was expecting what we had just been informed about. Class 1 and Class 5 were being merged together. Now it was one large class with three teachers.

It was quite surprising to hear that our class would be changing again, and, in a different way. Along with my friends, we've been moved around the school in to other classes ever since last year. But to be merged, didn't bother me very much and it actually ended up being quite a good day.

Astria Countdown To Impact #1

The Extension group have been given the opportunity to trial a new game, which is designed to help improve literacy skills. It was designed and created by a group based at the Auckland University.

Gloria and I paired up and started the game. We acted as the Alpha Leader in the future, whose duty was to prevent an astroid from destroying many lives and their planet, Astria. There are different area's to the base that you can explore to try and find clues and information. 

The most difficult thing for me was finding the right people to talk to for the right information. Also, another thing I found hard was rating whether or not some of the pieces of information were very credible.

Today, I think Gloria and I did quite well for our first time. We achieved a lot more than we thought we would, especially in the time we were given.

Smart Footprint

Class 1 - Smart Foot-Print from Team 5 PES on Vimeo.
Here is a M.T.V we, Lisia, Jorja, Gloria, Tyla and I have created to the song, We Cant Stop by Miley Cyrus. The lyrics have been re-written to match our theme about having a smart footprint. Hope you enjoy!

20 Thinkers Keys : BAR Keys

For the last few weeks we have been looking at what the 20 Thinkers Keys. Each week we have been focusing on one of the 20 and have learnt more about it. Today we looked at the B.A.R Key. B.A.R stands for B : Bigger , A : Add , R : Replace. As an activity, we were given five minutes to draw a simple house. Here is the house, below, I drew.

Five minutes passed and now came the second part of the task. We rotated around the room, skipping a few computers, then made a change on the other persons house. With the first computer we stopped at, we had to make something Bigger, following the B.A.R. Key steps. We then rotated again but on the next computer we had to add something. Lastly we replaced something on the final house we stopped at. Here are the changes people have added to my house. (Below)

Sound Presentation

Here is yet another presentation. But this is all about sound.

The Scientific Method

Here is a presentation I have created showing the steps of the scientific method.

4 Things You Need To Remember About A Smart Footprint

Here's a few tips on how to have a Smart Footprint.

1. Be careful with what you search online.
2. You never know when someone's watching.
3. Be original! Do your own stuff.
4. If it's not kind, keep it in your mind!

Writing Sample

This is my writing sample for Term 2, 2014.

The sun shone brightly as Kisha rushes down the path, dragging her older sister, Kara, behind her. “HURRY UP!!!!” she yells as she runs towards the beach, leaving Kara behind.

“Aaaah!”. Kara jumped, surprised. She peered around, looking for her sister, but she was no longer in view. Kara ran to the edge of the beach and sighed camly, starting to giggle. Kisha had tripped and rolled down the sand dunes.

Laughing, Kara jumped down and helped her up. “I tripped over that stupid thing!” she said, pointing at a glassy object peeking out of the sand. It’s an hourglass. Kisha picked it up and flung it against a rock, annoyed.

The glass shattered and the sand slid down the sides of the rock. Suddenly the sand beneath them started to disappear and create a tunnel of a sort. Kara and Kisha sank into the deep hole quickly. “WHAT'S HAPPENING!?” they yelled as the slid down the everlasting seeming tunnel.

Finally, they hit a solid rock floor. The only light source was a flaming torch.

Swimming

To be safe in the water you don’t have to be the best at swimming, you just have to be able to keep yourself safe. Which means being able to float and swim away from any dangers if needed.

The easiest thing to do is the doggy-paddle, but this can use a lot of your energy. Backstroke and freestyle are another two style’s of strokes that are quite easy if you think about it. They’re basically floating, but adding the movement of your arms and feet. If you are in some sort of danger, it would probably easier to flip onto your back and swim away.

When moving your arms in backstroke, it’s like painting a big line across the ceiling or sky. And all you do with your feet is kick tiny kicks just under the surface of the water. So it doesn't create a huge splash.

Another thing to do is when you bring your arm under water, create the shape of a ‘S’ by swivelling your hand.

And finally, when swimming we have to keep in mind to have your eyes up. Try not to look around at our surroundings, it prevents you from sinking.

#BringBackOurGirls

This is my opinion on the Bring Back Our Girls tragedy.

#BringBackOurGirls has attracted a lot of attention from many people around the world. This popular hashtag has only really been making more and more people aware of the kidnapping. What is this hashtag actually supposed to do though?

Well, right now it’s doing nothing but showing they care. The whole point of #BringBackOurGirls is to bring them back. But it’s in no way helping the people in Nigeria find the kidnappers, Boko Haram, and the 300 girls with them.

#BRINGBACKOURGIRLS

Six Sentence Story

Once upon a time there was a young ugly wolf. He lived in the shadows of the gloomy woods. The wolf was a professional master of disguise. One day, he was mistaken as a criminal due to his appearance and choice of disguise. He wanted people to think good of him though. So he finally gave up disguise’s and decided to not care about what others thought.

Visual Mihi 2014

In extension, our task was to create a visual mihi and explain what they mean. These are the few graphics I drew representing me. 

The first one, in the top left, shows the Maori Flag. I drew this as I am Maori. 

The second one, in the top right, is the New Zealand Flag. Again I drew this because I am a New Zealander. 

The third picture, in the bottom left, shows a few music notes/symbols. These were drawn because I love basically everything to do with music! 

The last symbol shows a cross and the bible. This is because I believe in God. Anyway these are what my symbols mean. 

Here is a link to my classmates visual mihi's.

Boer War Diary

For the last few weeks we have been learning about the Boer Wars. We have created a graphic and written a Diary that a soldier in the war might have written. This is only the draft.