On Monday September 18th Yr 4-8 held a survival island day. We had to trade tokens for any supplies we didn't already have between our team to enable us to ¨survive¨ on the island and create a tepee, a stretcher for an injured friend and a fire to cook food on. I learnt that without teamwork I would not be able to survive on an island. I enjoyed creating the tepee and cooking the food on the fire. I thought that 95% of the time my team (Josh, Elijah, Jazmyn, Hayley, Rowan and I) worked really well to collect enough points to get what we didn't have, get the fire going, put up the tepee and complete all of the other activities. Overall it was a good day even though we all got soaked from the fake tsunami and the rain.    

        

Novel Study

This week I have been working on a novel study. I had to choose a book from home and complete a range of activities base on the book. Some of the activities had to have examples (quotes) from the book and others had to have photos to go on the slide.

Character Desciption

This week we wrote character descriptions. The character could not be someone that lived with us but it could be someone that we have met or another family member that is special to us. We had to specifically write about: skin, hair, face, voice/what they talk about, actions and their personality. We had to include similes and make sure we had Level 4 punctuation.  

Nana

Her white hair with ashy streaks (like gunpowder scattered across snow) is moulded to her head. It may look thick from a distance but it is transparent because of her age. All the attempts to keep her hair perfect fail, due to the frizzy bits that always sneak in. She relies on the car mirror to check her hair is presentable whenever we go somewhere. The laugh and stress lines on her face show her age. The creases between her eyebrows deepen when she is concentrating on her sewing. Whenever I visit her she is always wearing magenta lipstick to hide the purple scar on her bottom lip. She has emerald green eyes that hide behind her thin oblong shaped glasses. The moisturiser that aligns the ledge in the bathroom has given her soft, baby-like skin. You know when she is going somewhere special because she has her face decorated in a range of positions and colors.

Whenever Nana comes across somebody she knows she immediately starts talking. She has an art of finishing stories of what has happened in her life recently or talking about her latest sewing project.  When I go to stay in the holidays, she is always teaching me different sewing skills and asking me what sort of color scheme would be good for my cushion, or whatever object I am making. Her happy, positive voice always cheers me up, much like a glass of lemonade does when I am sick. In her spare time she loves to sew a variety of things such as: cushions, quilts and clothes. At her house Nana has colossal garden.  Whenever the sun shines, she will go out and water the flowers. A social butterfly, Nana loves spending time with friends, family or even strangers who help her find something in a shop. She also loves to cook food such as: pavlova, cakes, pies, salads, etc.

Nana is perceived as very trustful and honest person. She is unique because she tries her hand at so many things like, her favorites are: cooking, gardening, sewing, shopping, traveling and reading. I remember Nana as having such a big personality,  she has been the one who has taught me how to sew and she has attended every birthday I have ever had with such amazing presents. She has always been there for me (ever since I was a baby) and has taught me so much and that to me makes her an extraordinary role model in my life.

It's The Little Things

 I am learning to write a piece of prose-  a sketch with detailed words, about a particular place, that is very important to me

I know I have achieved this when I can describe this sketch of the place,in specific detail. To do this I need to:

- Use specific nouns

- Activate the nouns with strong verbs

The Garden

The aroma of the flowers emerging from the ground filling my, nose with joy. In the back corner of the yard, the golden sun was glistening off the glass house. All around me are fruit trees with their branches careening and bushes trembling in the wind. In the middle of the yard/garden I have a prodigious view of the farm and nature around me. Birds are warbling continuously to each other, bees were embarking on to their next flower, clovers are overpopulating the grass and tomatoes are busily ripening in the glass house.

My dog scampering happily under the close eye of the summer sun - the most beautiful sight of all.   

Memoir Poem #3

I am learning to write a memoir poem. (This recalls a moment in time from my past that links to an emotion I felt at that time) The emotion I have chosen to link my memoir to is wonder.

In my memoir I describe the scene and situation using strong adjective, nouns and verbs.

I hope you enjoy it.

The bedroom was stuffy enough.

My sisters were whispering privately to each other, newly opened presents were sitting in front of me and I could hear laughter down the hall.

The sweltering sun was shining through my dull grey curtains, charming birds were happily singing from the highest trees and the maroon pencil was tapping briskly between my fingers.

Our boisterous dogs were barking loudly, my overjoyed mum was ranting on about something I couldn't quite hear and my over-worked brain was exploring for different present options.

Agitated, Excited, Wondering.

What could possibly be the most perfect present?

Memoir Poem #2

Today I wrote another memoir poem. We had to use a A.N.V(Adjective,Noun,Verb) chart and then add other words to make it a proper sentence. I chose to write my poem in Shmuels (from The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas) point of view. I hope you really enjoy my poem.

The concentration camp was lifeless enough, there was an old pile of wood planks, a couple of aging huts and a barb wire fence surrounding the innocent men and little boys.

A rusty wheelbarrow traveling in my hands, there were underprivileged Jews laboring all around me and evil Nazis surrounding the fence.

Horrible smelling, gloomy smoke drifting above us, an ear-popping whistle signalling us to come back and terrifying guns firing in the distance.

Languid, Depressed, Hopeless,

while doing nothing important but hoping for a brighter future.

I wonder...

Memoir Poem

The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas Memoir Poem

Today I had to write a memoir poem using adjectives, nouns and verbs. This memoir poem is set when Bruno got to his new house and what he can see. I hope you enjoy this poem.

The new house was horrible enough, there was only three floors, a cramped backyard and a tiny boys room.

An overpaid maid was sorting my clothes, a group of languid Jews were trudging behind a barb wire fence and uniformed soldiers were marching behind the Jews.

Serious Hitler was speaking down stairs, grumpy Gretel was arranging her dolls again and irritated Lieutenant Kotler was stuttering.

Frightened, Upset, Clueless, doing nothing important while hoping to return to Berlin.

Novel Study 100 Word Challenge

 The Boy In the Striped Pyjamas:

100 Word Challenge
Chapters 1-3

This week for my 100 word challenge I had to describe the date, scene and the situation in the perspective of one of the characters in my book, in my own words. I chose Bruno from The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas.

It was 1943 and I had just arrived at my new house. Unlike my old house in Berlin, which stood next to a collection of big houses like my own, this new house stood on it's own. I stared up at the new house, eyes opened wide. I can't believe we are actually going to live here! Our old house had five floors, whereas this one only has three. Not ideal for exploring at all. The new house has no streets, no vegetable or fruit stands. I couldn’t see any other families around which meant no boys to play with.

Digi Dig

For weeks now we have been working on Digital Digs. These teach us all of the keyboard shortcuts, how to add links for videos, how to take a screenshots and more. I found this activity to be really fun and it helped me learn all of the keyboard shortcuts and how to use google drawings.

Novel Study

Since week 4 we have been working on a novel study. For this we had to choose a book and complete a series of activities for it. I chose to do Lady Midnight for my novel study. I found this really fun to do and it was challenging at times, especially when I had to find a character that had changed a lot and finding two conflicts to alaberate on. If I had to do it again I would probably choose a shorter book.

100 Word Challenge Week 10

This weeks 100wc prompt was …now what do I need? … This week I had to work on changing the opening of a sentence and using level 4 punctuation. I think this week I did the best I possible could with my punctuation and vocab.

The Chocolate Cake

As I gradually woke up this morning, the first feeling I had was boredom. What could I do today? I trudged down the hallway brainstorming what on earth I was going to do today to keep myself occupied. I could ask Dad if I could take Emit for a walk, ride my bike or even bake a cake. That is good enough. I started getting all the things I needed to construct this chocolate cake. As I was mixing the ingredients together I felt like I was missing something. I had milk, eggs, the mixture, now what do I need?

First Aid D.L.O

Ever since St Johns In Schools came and taught us about first aid the whole class has been working on first aid D.L.O's . For this we could do a number of objects such as a kahoot, movies, posters, slide show, powtoon, speeches or comics. I chose to do a kahoot. A kahoot is a website where you can make quizzes, games, surveys and discussions. I really enjoyed making this because I learnt a bit more about first aid myself. My favorite thing about making a kahoot was choosing the three other answers and making them funny or making them look like they are the correct answer. If I did it again I would see if I could get to 20 questions.

What does D.R.S.A.B.C stand for?

a Dagger, Response, Send for help, Able, Bouncing, CPR

b Danger, Response, Send for help, Airway, Breathing, CPR

c Danger, Response, Say help, Airway, Breathing, Compressions

d Diana, Reading, Sofia the first, Andy, Billy, Charlotte

2) What number do you call to get to fire,  police and ambulance in NZ?

A 911

B 111

C 999

D 119

3) What is the organisation called who teaches First Aid to schools?

1. St Peters
2. St Johns
3. St Andrews
4. St Marks

4) What is the Recovery Position now called?

1. Front Steady Position
2. Lying Steady Position
3. Side Steady Position
4. Back Steady Position

5) Breathing, bleeding, burns and _______ are the four B´s we need to check for when someone is hurt. What is the fourth B?

1. Back
2. Bus
3. Bones
4. Ball

6) What is the number of compressions and breaths you need to do?

1. 30 compressions - 2 breaths
2. 20 compression - 2 breaths
3. 35 compressions - 4 breaths
4. 40 compressions - 1 breath

7) Who is the most important person in an emergency?

1. The person injured
2. The ambulance driver
3. The police officer
4. You

8) Do we touch someone if we don’t know it’s safe?

1. Yes
2. No
3. Maybe
4. Only if they’re unconscious

9) What is the correct compression depth

1. ½
2. ¼
3. ⅙
4. ⅓

10) When applying a bandage, what should you do first?

1. Elevate, Wrap three times around
2. Pressure, Elevate and leave it
3. Pressure, Elevate, Wrap twice around
4. Elevate, Wrap twice around, Ice

11) What song keeps us in time with our compressions?

1. Stayin’ Alive - The BeeGees
2. Your Song - Elton John
3. Happy - Pharrell Williams
4. Stressed Out - 21 Pilots

12) Each attempted breath should be delivered over how long?

1. 50 seconds
2. 3 seconds
3. 1 second
4. 1min

13) What is the rate of compressions per minute?

1. 50 compressions
2. 30 compressions
3. 100 compressions
4. 70 compressions

14) What is the correct hand placement for adults when doing compressions?

1. Heel of the hand anywhere on the chest
2. Palm of the hand anywhere on the chest
3. Heel of the hand in the centre of the chest
4. Palm of the hand  in the centre of the chest

15) How long do you cool a burn in cold water for?

1. 5 minutes
2. 1 minute
3. 20 minutes
4. 16 minutes

100 Word Challenge Week 9

This week for the 100wc the prompt was 'but then the weather changed dramatically.' We had to work on using exemplary vocabulary and punctuation.

It was a stunning day at Oreti Beach today. Everyone was having such a great time surfing, flying kites, walking dogs and just having a ball. I was working my way across the extremely soft sand when I noticed something felt off. Please let there be nothing wrong, I thought anxiously. It is too perfect of a day for anything to go wrong. I mean the sun is out, seagulls are happily soaring above, no clouds what so ever and well everything. But then the weather changed dramatically. Am I cursed or do I have something seriously wrong with me?

The Lions Are Coming...

For the past few weeks in Room 4 we have been working on Lions Maths. I found this very challenging until I finally got what exactly what to do then it ended up being a lot of fun. My favorite part of it was adding up all of the money.

Speech Board

Speech Board

Every year at Drummond Primary School we have to do something called Speech board. Speech board is a national examination that helps us work on our oral language skills (speaking and listening). We have to do a speech, learn a poem off by heart, an extract from a book that is about 150 words long and an impromptu speech that was either a welcome, an announcement or a thank you . The juniors have to do a fake phone call though. We get assessed on all of these. You can get distinction, highly commended, commended, pass or fail.

The most challenging thing about this assessment was trying to find a part in my book that wasn't too long yet not boring either. For my speech I did the Tomtit and I thought that it was a very interesting topic to research and share with others. For my book I did and extract from Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare which again I found difficult to find really good bit that was short enough. If I had to do it again I would chose to do a speech on mammals.

100 Word Challenge Week 8

This weeks prompt was a photo that we had to tell a story about. The photo had a cream egg that was cracked and had some cream running out and builders that were surrounding

the egg. This week my goal was to use more interesting words.

As the creamy substance flowed out of its chocolate shell we panicked not knowing what to do. I peered around to see what I could use to stop the flowing. A couple of meters away I spotted a plank of wood that could possibly do the job. The puddle of the creamy substance was now ankle deep. Everyone pitched in to help drag the plank of wood over to the giant egg. I don't know how it happened but when we put the plank in place the shell started to crack. All of a sudden the cream came flowing out.

100 Word Challenge

Every Monday we have a new creative writing challenge called the 100 word challenge.

I enjoyed this because it was challenging and fun to have to make a short story with only 100 words in it. I think this is a good writing challenge for leaning because it helps you choose your words carefully. 

This weeks prompt is ¨...And the water just kept flowing out...¨

It was the middle of July, just an average day in California. I was walking down by the dam when I noticed it had a big crack. I wonder how that appeared there? As I was observing the crack I heard the sound of footsteps approach me. ¨ Hey, what are you doing?¨ the boy asked. He had a huge rock with him. ¨ I was just wondering-¨ I was cut off by the sound of stone against wood. All of a sudden the crack burst open, the water just kept gushing out. What am I going to do?

About Me

This week Miss Blair introduced us to piktochart. We made a poster with some things about ourselves such as our name, hobbies, favorite things, family and more. What I learnt was that there more ways to share your learning than google docs and slides. If I had to do it again I would probably try playing with different icons and colors.

Welcome

Welcome to my very own blog for learning. I look forward to sharing my learning with teachers, my school, my family and friends anywhere.