Illustrated Story

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

This week in writing, Sakina, Taheesha and I created a pourquoi story that shows why kiwi's can't fly. A pourquoi story explains why something is the way it is (for example how Maui slowed the sun). Our challenge this week was to illustrate our pourquoi story and share it to our younger classes. Yesterday morning and this morning we shared our stories with Room 2 and Room 4, they loved listening to them. I really enjoyed this lesson as I used a different technique of writing and we got to use our own creativity to create the story. 

Why is it important to use our P.B.S C.A.R.E Values?

LI: To write an explanation using TEEL Paragraphs.

This week for writing Sakina, 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 technical 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.

Choices Explanation

LI: To structure and write an explanation.

Why is it important to make Wise Choices?

Have you ever thought about your choices?  Wise choices help you realise you could be making a bad decision. Making a wise choice leads you to a right decision. But we haven’t made a wise choice and it’s affecting our environment. As you already know, the ocean is slowly becoming polluted as others haven’t thought about their actions and have mistakenly misplaced their rubbish, therefore having animals die slowly and painfully.

Due to the actions of others, animals have to be cautious of their surroundings because we haven’t made the best decision. Everywhere around the world the air or sea is polluted by plastic for instance the waters in Thailand. Those waters have been badly polluted resulting in the water turning black, that’s the result of our carelessness. If we made wise choices beforehand beaches, air and waters would be healthier. Have you ever thought about the consequences of leaving rubbish on the sidewalks? How does it make you feel if I told you that you could possibly be ending a whole existence of sea creatures? Think about it.

Imagine this.. every sea animal has a plastic ring around their neck gasping for air. Those breaths became shorter every inhale leaving them to slowly suffocate and die. Do you want to know the reason why they were suffocating? Because of our careless actions, we didn’t think about the consequences of having plastic flow down the drain. If we made a wise decision before dropping our litter we could’ve saved so many animals.

We make wise choices because it helps us realise the bad things that could possibly happen. Wise choices help shape our future and help us make wise decisions. We need to make a change now so we can have a fresh and healthy future!

This week in writing, we practised writing explanations for our assessments next term. Our topic was about why we need to make wise choices. Our explanations tells others why we should make wise choices when it comes to pollution. The process for this explanation was doing 5 minutes of planning, 40 minutes of writing as this would be an appropriate time for writing our assessments. After we proof read our writing we did DRAFT (delete, rearrange, add, fix and talk) so we could check for any mistakes.

10-5-7-10-10 Writing

Morning Adventure

My friend Jennie and I took a trip to Switzerland for a break from our city life in Australia. The journey there was long and dreadful, as there was so much commotion going on around us while on the plane. We were exhausted from doing anything so we rested up for tomorrow. We had slept for nearly 12 hours having the urge to do something adventurous. Having our hotel right next to a mountain an idea popped into our minds. Since it was still early hours of the morning we had the idea to see the sunrise. We dressed up and went to the lobby of our hotel which had some climbing equipment we had to hire, which we paid for then left. Already having some climbing experience we started our climb almost immediately. As we were reaching the middle of our climb we noticed there was a silhouette of another mountain in the distance which was surrounded by water. Our muscles started tensing up and our arms were losing stability as the mountain started getting steeper by the second. As we were coming up to some flat land we were astonished. Although our bodies ached it was all worth it as we saw the sun rising. Our breaths were taken away by the beautiful scenery we discovered. We both agreed that this was the best adventure yet!

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

This week for writing we created a creative writing using the 5-7-10, but changing the 5-7-10 a little bit by adding 10 minutes to plan in the beginning and 10 minutes to check our work at the end. The changed version would be 10-5-7-10-10. This time our story was based off someone climbing a mountain and having a beautiful view of the sunrise. This time around the method was easier to use as I could plan before writing therefore I knew what I was doing. Overall I really enjoyed writing my story with this method.

5-7-10 Writing

Does lightning strike twice?

Lisa, Rosé and I recently arrived in Utah for our vacation since we found there were amazing attractions here. Today we decided that we would explore the area not knowing that there was a storm to arrive. We came across many creatures and noticed that there was some sort of building in the distance which resembled a windmill. As we were coming up to the now recognised building which was indeed a windmill, there was a storm arising from behind. We were already about 4 kilometres out and the only shelter was the windmill. We crouched and decided to huddle together near some dusty sacks and hoped the storm would calm down. The storm was nearing and the wind started to pick up making the dust fly around us and right at that moment we knew that we couldn’t go home. 

There was one question that crossed our minds was does lightning strike twice? That question made the atmosphere uncomfortable as we quivered in fear. The rain was flooding the land around us but we could see afar some calm clouds so we knew that we had a chance to get back home. We were still crouching and huddling together as the rain still poured down and there were still lightning strikes occurring every now and then which made us flinch. The wind started to calm down and the rain turned into spit as the clouds unravelled into light grey skies. We found this as our only chance to get home as we could see some dark clouds arriving ahead. We decided to run as that was our fastest option to get home and could see our house in the distance. We were coming up to our house as the rain started to pour down and it started getting windy again. Thankfully we managed to get inside just in time before lightning struck the tree outside which resulted in our power being cut. Although we were in the rough we were just thankful that we got home before the storm hit.

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

This week for writing we created a 5-7-10 creative writing. The 5-7-10 method is writing for 5 minutes which doesn't have to be perfect meaning that words don't have to be spelled correctly and doesn't have to have punctuation, then you share with a partner for 7 minutes and then continue writing for 10 minutes. My writing is about how some friends went to Utah for a vacation and went to explore but what they didn't know was that there was a broadcast that there would be a huge storm. I really enjoyed this activity as I haven't written freely for a long time so it was nice to write what ever I had in mind.

Ancestor Poem

LI: To write a poem to describe your ancestors using the literary devices of alliteration, onomatopoeia, metaphor, simile, hyperbole and rhyme.

Our ancestors have given us very special treasures that we should cherish, passed down through many generations makes the treasure even more valuable and we should be grateful for it. This week for writing, we created a poem about our ancestors and culture. In our poems we have included literary devices to make our poems more poetic. Writing this poem reminded me of what our ancestors have given us and that we should be grateful for everything they have gave us. My poem has given me a stronger connection with my cultures and ancestors. 

Steps

LI: To recognise Suffixes 

Today I did steps which is a site where it can help you learn words and understand it. Steps has many of activities you can do with the words. For steps today I practised putting the syllables of each word together where you join the letters together to make a word. I enjoyed this activity because I made errors but I fixed them and tried again so now I have a better understanding.

Venn Diagram

LI: To find as many similarities and differences as you can. 

This week Sakina, Victoria, Florence, Taheesha and I made a Venn diagram about the differences from the past and the present. For our Venn diagram we included what differences have been made now. Something I found really interesting was that back then they had to use a whistle to notify people that the train was coming. But thankfully now we have technology to notify us that the train was coming in a few minutes. I found this challenge really interesting as I could learn about the past and compare it to what we have now,

Why is plastic pollution a problem for our coastlines?

Why is plastic pollution a problem for our coastlines?

Did you know that over 1,000,000 sea animals lose their lives each year due to the huge amounts of plastic waste into our oceans and coastlines? Mistaking it for food, the animals will eat the plastic...but as it takes years to break down, it stays trapped in their body and they will eventually die. From our actions, they are forced to suffer and we create a bigger problem for ourselves in the future...How would you feel to be swimming in plastic?

Plastic makes up 90% of the pollution on the ocean’s surface; a large majority of that ends up inside our sea animals or wrapped around their neck, and intoxicating the waters. The plastic we leave lying on pathways and throwing on the street ends up in drains and leads to the sea. About 97 percent of New Zealanders have admission to plastic facilities, but why aren’t we doing anything about it?

Plastic is biodegradable but it takes around 1,000 years to break down based on the type of plastic it is. Plastic NZ says that every New Zealander takes in about 31kgs of plastic packaging a year, but only around 5.8kgs get recycled. “Love Your Coast” is one of the many projects that is taking action by bringing together groups of people to help clean the shores of New Zealand. This project decides to clean the shores of New Zealand as they want the next generation to be cleaner.

We should take action now for a better and healthier future!

Victoria, Haylee, Florence, Sakina

This week Victoria, Florence, Sakina and I worked together to make a explanation about why plastic is effecting our oceans. Above is the writing we did and it explains what is happening and why its happening. A fact I found interesting was that only 5.8kg gets recycled from the 31kg we get.

Shoes Story | Personification

Shoe Personification Story

After waking up from a long nap, it was time for me to get to work. I could smell the stench coming from her feet as she stepped into me. I could feel my whole body getting compressed by her feet. Ohh ! I was so glad that it didn’t start raining. If it did rain my perfectly styled hair would get wet and it would be all messy. As I was walking, I could see many shoes all dirty and scruffy. I felt like I was the only perfect and clean pair of shoes, but then I saw my worst nightmare, a muddy puddle. I was doomed, as my owner stepped into the puddle. I held my breath tightly as well as my mouth. When I opened my eyes in relief, gasping for air, I saw my whole body covered in mud. I guess my owner doesn’t really care about me. As my owner stared down at me, I gave her a dirty evil look. She gasped as she saw how dirty I was, but it was too late. If only she used those two eyeballs in her head then I would still be looking perfectly fine. I could still feel mud stuck in my teeth. I was still mad at my owner after a long day of work. Finally, she took me off as I was tossed into the washing machine. I started dancing with the bubbles. After a long shower I felt fresh and clean. I felt dizzy as I came out of the machine, but I could finally relax after a hard day of work.

 

This week in writing, we learnt about personification and what it is. Personification is giving non living things human abilities. For us to understand it more we got into a pair and wrote a short story about what a shoe might be feeling if they were a human. My partner was Sakina and the first paragraph above is what we wrote about. In this activity we had our backs against each others and we couldn't talk to each other. One of us opened up a google doc and we communicated on there, this really made me think. In our writing we also used the 5 senses which are look, feel, hear, taste and smell. After about half an hour we proof read with each other. Above is the story we wrote. 

Student Leader Explanation

Why I should be Head Girl for 2020

I wonder how it feels to be a leader? I really want to find out the answer to this question so that is why I should represent our school as your head girl for 2020. I have the wisdom to know I will do well in this role. 

Even though I haven’t been here that long, there isn’t a reason why I shouldn’t be a head student. Being a leader isn’t new to me since I have always been a role model to family and friends. My dad has also been a leader so I always looked up to him, as he was the chief of my village. As the eldest sibling I have a role, and that is to be to a great big sister. My parents depend on me to be a role model. As a leader I will be supportive and will encourage others to keep going. I have taken on some leadership roles at my old school, so I have the confidence to step up to this challenge. 

Leaders are responsible and determined. Being a head student would be amazing as I will look after the younger students and be a role model for them. I will be confident and participate in inter school competitions, as well as the summer learning journey. If there is a need for someone to represent the school I would be more than happy to volunteer. I am independent, I use my initiative and I cooperate with others well. You could even say collaborative is my middle name!

As head girl I will act responsibly to show our younger students what our CARE values look like. 

Explanation

How we can understand depression

Depression is a mood disorder when you can feel sad or have lost interest in something or someone. Sometimes depression can affect how you feel, behave and think. It may lead to physical and emotional problems. Depression can be caused physically or emotionally and may last a long time. Some mood swings might be thrown in there but that is just how depression is. It can sometimes get the best of you. There are many reasons why you can be depressed like overthinking, family problems, personal problems or stress. Depression can lead to people not eating properly or lack of communication.

There are some ways we could help with depression. Someone should not be facing it alone, you may be in a tough situation but there are always ways to help. You can be empathetic and share with each other how or what you’re feeling. It’s not that hard to tell someone how you feel. Sometimes your kindness can help the problem. Try and put yourself in their shoes and try to feel what they’re feeling. Trying isn’t much to ask for right? Little things might mean a lot to them, as you might have heard the saying 'little can go a long way'.

People can feel alone in this process, they can feel many types of things but suffering shouldn’t be one. They might shut themselves out from the world but that’s fine. They might have suicidal thoughts. Depression can take a big toll on their life. Although you might be thinking, depression is just being sad, it might be that bad that it may be life threatening. You can feel like there's a point where you have just messed up, but you are not alone, nobody is alone.

Depression is just like a mood swing, you can experience different types of emotions. Depression is like a point in life where you think you have failed in succeeding something, but everyone is bound to make a mistake now and then. You can fix that mistake, you can ask for help. Don’t ever feel alone because there will be someone there for you. You will one day face depression in your life, but you shouldn’t let it get the best of you. It’s not a very nice thing to have, but with the right support and communication, it can be treated carefully.

How would you know if someone is going through depression?

This week for writing we wrote an explanation about empathy and kindness. My topic was about depression. In my writing above I wrote how we can help with depression and some reasons you could be depressed.

Hover-bike Advertisement

This week I worked collaboratively with Victoria, Chavda, Nyjah and Fui to make a advertisement. For the challenge this week we had the choice of either making a advertisement of one of the RWC merchandise, or make an advertisement of a hover bike. We chose to make a hover bike advertisement. We added some things that the hover bike can do and why you should get it.

Let me tell you about...

Let me tell you about my favourite celebration... my birthday, January 15, 2008. One of my favourite things on my birthday is waking up to my mum making pancakes, sausages, eggs and toast for my breakfast. Usually after breakfast, I head straight to my room to put on my birthday girl outfit . On the day of my birthday, we wait until the sun comes out more which is around 10 o’clock. Finally, the sun spread around Brisbane, Australia. For most of my birthdays we enjoy going to the lagoon near Springfield shopping centre. I enjoy playing with my family in the water and I mostly like blowing out my candles and eating cake. As the morning is kind of boring, we find ways to make it more interesting, like playing on our consoles and beating each other at the games. Usually while we’re playing games, my parents get our things ready for the lagoon. Once the time to leave came around, we got ready to leave and meet our other family. The whole car ride there was a carpool karaoke. The most played songs were Tupac, BTS, Blackpink, Got7, Ikon and many other artists. I’m not going to lie but my family is pretty good at singing, but when it comes to dancing, you don’t want to see how we ‘bust down’. When we got to the lagoon we all met at the BBQ and started making some food. All the kids and most parents headed down to the water park. We played for hours and hours until it was time to head back to the BBQ. My absolute favourite thing to do on my birthday is eat, dance, sing and have fun. My family is really good at making food, I would say my most favourite dish to eat is koko lica. (Koko lica is a Samoan dish that is made in most households and basically is cocoa rice). The best part about my birthday is passing down so many memories with my family. 

Today for writing we had a challenge to write what our favourite celebration was. Our challenge revolved around comma as it is our task for a couple of weeks. My favourite celebration is my birthday since the day revolves around me and my family. In my writing I talked about what I do on my birthday and everything that happens. We had 5 minutes to write, then 7 minutes to check with a partner and then another 10 minutes writing.

Explanation: Should NZ ban plastic straws?

Fakalofa lahi atu, my name is Haylee and in my point of view, we should ban plastic straws because they are harmful to our environment and to our marine life. Did you know that 1 million seabirds and 100,000 marine mammals die each year because of our plastic waste? Plastic straws turns into micro plastic which means that marine life will mistake the micro plastic for food. Plastic straws have harmful chemicals in them and if an animal digests micro plastic they will die. Think about it, there are millions of animals dying every year because we aren’t doing our part for the world. These animals have a purpose in life and they shouldn’t be dying because of our mistakes that we have made, they should be able to live a happy and healthy life. There are more animals dying this year than the past years and means we’ll have less food stock and less wild life. What happens if we don’t have anymore fish to eat? What happens if we can’t see animals living there happiest life? Now tell me, what happens when we have no more food to provide for our families? 

Pollution. Ever heard of the word? Pollution is harming our world and is the cause of why animals are dying. Majority of the percentage of the pollution contains plastic products and most of them being plastic straws. 175 million plastic straws get thrown out each day, most of them being from fast food restaurants and stores. Plastic straws take an average of 500 years to decompose which seems impossible to me. Imagine having to go swimming in an ocean of plastic and all you could see is plastic on top of plastic. In the future there will be tonnes of plastic piling up until you can only see nothing but rubbish. Would you like swimming in an ocean full of rubbish? I wouldn’t like to and I’m sure you wouldn’t either. Every single day sea animals have to swim in a dreadful environment, because all they can see is rubbish and I wonder what the cause is?. Have you ever thought of how harmful, poisonous, and toxic plastic straws could be?

This is the reason why animals are dying and this is heartbreaking for most. This is why I choose to not use a plastic straw. We should all help do our part in this world because we only have 1 world and we should treat it right.

Persuasive Speeches

Speech

Talofa Lava everyone, my name is Haylee and in my point of view we, New Zealanders have made the right choice to keep our flag that we fly today. When this event occurred it made me think about why they would change the national flag when the flag has a lot of history and meaning behind it. It made me so frustrated that people were moaning about not getting their vote counted. It was time that they should’ve realised that the flag has a lot of history and meaning so we can’t, and we shouldn’t throw the history of our flag away.

For over the last 100 years the flag has flown, the armed New Zealand forces have worked and fought hard with the flag on their arms and in their souls. Changing the flag would mean wasting millions of dollars and disrespecting those who have fought and risked their lives for the freedom we have today. 

$26 million dollars is a lot of money being spent on designs that never got chosen. Yes the designs took time and effort to make but this money could’ve been spent on other things that could’ve helped others or animals or even construct shelters for the homeless. If the money was spent wisely it could help keep all of us above the breadline.

If we didn’t have this election the money could’ve been spent on things that were in need. This election wouldn’t be needed because others need to know that the flag means a lot to people, and the people that have past, have died knowing that the flag that we fly today, will always be in their hearts. Imagine having to change a tradition that had lasted for over 100 years because others didn’t like how it was. To me the New Zealand flag is a reminder of my ancestors and the past.

Our national flag should never be taken away because a few people want a change. Our flag should stay the same because it’ll cost money for new things, and the money may be needed for other situations. There will always be a time where you want a little change but remember, you are not the only person in this world and others have different opinions. I hope you think twice about things and don’t rush straight to conclusion.

LI: To write a speech that persuades others to think the way you do.

This week we wrote persuasive speeches for the speech hall competition. For my topic I chose to write about the election that happened during the flag change a couple of years back. We had a few weeks to plan our speeches and communicated with each other to proof read and give feedback. We used OREO which stands for opinion, reasons, explanation, and opinion. While doing the speech we were to give the audience eye contact, show expression, to be confident and hook in our audience with persuasive language features. Some read aloud to the class and some read in groups. In groups we read our speeches together and gave marks to everybody and told them our feedback. I think I did well at speaking clear and loud and giving the audience eye contact times. I don't think I did well at showing expression so next time I should try doing that. We all voted for who should go into the speech hall competition and they had a chance to say there speeches in front of the class before the competition on Wednesday. On Wednesday we had a guest from Tamaki College, Mr Stevenson to judge the speeches. Everybody did great and I enjoyed listening to their speeches.

Fish For The Future

Do you find fishing fun? If you do there are some rules that you need to know about before you set off. You need supplies and safety gear like life jackets so in an accident you are safe. I’m going to tell you about some things that you might not have learned or heard about so listen up adults and kids. For further information visit Hiwi the Kiwi website.

Before leaving your place you may need things that might be needed before going fishing. Things you need is salt ice, fish ruler, salt water, wet cloth or towel and normal fishing gear. Salt ice and water is for your fish because the fishes natural habitat is the sea and the water and ice will keep the fish fresh for longer. You need a wet cloth or towel for picking up a fish because fish have a protective coating on them so they don’t die as soon as you let them go.

This is the reason why we have less fish in our sea’s and less food to eat. Later on in the future there won’t be as many fish as we have seen today. We have to deplete our plastic waste so our sea’s won’t be a garbage patch in the future. You also need to measure the fish before you let it go because the fish needs to be a certain size so you can either keep it or let it go. If it’s undersized place it back in the water gently and the same goes for over sized fish, because they are breeding more fish for the future and if it is the perfect size you may take it home.

We have to respect the sea as it is a life and food source. Try and look at it in a traditional way. We’re are taking their delicacy and it will no longer be a traditional dish. If you don’t follow rules you’ll have to face the consequences like facing the harbor patrol are sea police.

The message I am giving you is to keep our ocean cleaner and we will have more livestock living in the future. Did you know that 100,000 marine animals have died from plastic? Well if you didn’t now you know.

Collaborative Writing Task

LI: To write a postcard to a million year old police officer who thinks she's a cartoon character.

Dear Million year old police officer,

I am writing to let you know that being a cartoon character is different than being a million year old police officer. It is crazy to think that a woman at the age of a million can think that way. But many have their own imagination. I think that your more than just a cartoon character your you and nobody can ever change who you are including yourself.

In writing Joel and I worked collaboratively together to crate a share ideas about our task. Our task was to collaboratively write a post card to a million year old police officer who thinks shes a cartoon character. At first we shared our ideas using notes we wrote down to help us to create our post card. In this task we did 5 minutes of planing, 10 minutes of collaboratively of planning our story, 30 minutes of collaboratively writing our post card, 10 minutes of reading or postcard out loud, 10 minutes to finish writing and 10 minutes of drafting our work.