Corss Country 2014!

Cross Country is OVER!

All of the training was for nothing, for me. Sadly, I didn't get to run. But I got to support My House, Hoiho! I was chanting and yelling out to the ones who needed support to help them run and to the ones that  were always in the front and who passed the finshed line in  the top 5. It was AWESOME. To see all of the children from Hoiho that one something, bring the points for us.

GO HOIHO 

 

Journey Through the Legends Production Reflection!

Well, Its over, 7 weeks of hard work for Nga Rakau Nui;s Production "Journey Through the Legends". It was about A Classroom learning about Maori legends. As they mentioned each legend, a group of 2 classrooms (from Nga Rakau Nui) acted out the legend. The 4 legends were, Rangi and Papa (Rm 19 and 12) The Ika a Maui (Rm 7 and 10)  The Legend of The Seven Whales (Rm 18 and 21) and Finally, Te Mata o Rongokako. (Rm 11 and 20) My role was a Linking Script Narrator. I explained what was going to happen in each legend, and crossing over to the classroom! I was the only boy out of 4 Narrators.

The Production went on for 6 nights and was estimated to be 2 hours each night. Here is some pictures of our production "Journey Through the Legends"

The Battle Scene between Tu and Tawhrir!

The Narrators of Rangi and Papa, With me in a Yellow hat down Below!

Thank you Miss Hill and Nga Raukau Nui Teachers for making the Production Happen!

Becoming a Leader

On Friday the 8th of Parkvale School had there school assembly. This assembly was special because they were announcing the leaders for 2014. All of the Yr 6's were excited because they had all applied. This assembly was very long with all of the other stuff that gad to be done like Room 3's assembly item, PRIDE Awards and much much more.,

The assembly went on and on until the end. They announced the leaders. It took forever. They started with Digi Leaders.  Cameron O from our class got Digi Leader. Then the Bankers, P.E Monitors and  Sport PALS. Aidan from our class got Sport Pal as well. Then Young Leaders.

Miss Hill announced them 1 by 1.  Miss Hill announced Nikita then Me. Rani then Zac and last but not least, Mohit.  16 Young Leaders were standing up there waiting to see who is House Leaders. I had to wait to the end because my House was last. Miss Hill said really loud "Gerogia and" then she paused "Ethin". I was screaming in excitement from getting two things with badges. Now swimming sports. House comp. its my time to shine!!!!!!

Now I am a Young leader and House Leader. A blue badge and a Bright yellow one (Because I am in Yellow house) You can see me an mile away.

By Ethin

Cockroaches

Cockroaches.

What is the Cockroach? Are they Incredible? To find out it is all down below. We will be looking at Its Body, Food and Amazing facts about themselves. So come join me in this amazing journey of this amazing or creepy species.

The cockroaches body is incredible. For starters its brain is in it tummy. They start out as a ootheca. The Ootheca is a egg that baby cockroaches are born in. The female of the species  lays the ootheca. They have a large case quite like a Butterfly Chrysalis. There legs have little spikes the size of our hairs.

They have a wild source of food. They eat stuff to Paint to Wood to Glue. To be pacific they eat.

• Glue
• Wood
• Paint
• Shoe Polish
• Soap
• Plants
• Other Insects
• And  if they want to get drunk, They drink Beer

They are Amazing. Here are some general facts.

• Because their Brain is there tummy. They can live without their head for a week.
• If you squish a Cockroach, You will see all of this white stuff come out. This is all of the fat they store so they live for a little bit longer.

I hope I have given you a better idea on how Cockroaches really are. Yes they are incredible. They are amazing infact.   

By Ethin  

 

Learning Logs

Learning Logs

Learning logs or journals let students keep notes of their thoughts and feelings about their work. A log need be no more than a page.

Students will have some time in class to complete it.

. The most important thing I learned this week was: I learned how to write a Poem

. What I found most interesting this week was: I found interesting that Mrs Hardaker likes Valentines day

. What I enjoyed most about this week was: I enjoyed writing Love poems

. One thing that still puzzles me is: It puzzles me that I cant get my Writing Puch finished.

.What I need help with is: I need e help with making my poems more exciting

. What pleased me most was. Helping other people please me with there work

. This week might have been more helpful for me if I had time to write my Young Leaders and Digi Leaders application

First blog post for 2014: Room 19

This year I am in Room 19 with Mrs Hardaker. I have had a great start to the year. We watched a video about Nemo's first day of school. This was cool because we we're all feeling the same way as Nemo. We also got some smarties from Mrs Hardaker because she said we are all a smart bunch of cookies! And we started swimming, the water was refreshing on a hot day. Here is the video and some pics.

Our Smarties sheets. 

Room 19 and 20 swimming!!

Balloon in a Bottle

Balloon in a Bottle

Can you blow up a Balloon in a bottle? Is it possible. Maybe. In this experiment you will find how to do this.

Materials

1. 2 bottles
2. 2 balloons
3. 1 pin

What to do

1. First. Get a balloon inside 1 bottle and blow it up
2. Take the other bottle and put a hole in it with the pin. Just a small one
3. Noe do step 1 with the second bottle.
4. What Happened

What Happened????????

With the first bottle the balloon couldn’t work properly but the second one did because the air is been pushing. The big secret is that there is a hole in the bottom so the air is coming out. If you put your finger over the hole the balloon will stay up. This can work on any type of bottle just as long you have a hole in it.

ALWAYS HAVE ADULT SUPERVISION.    

Tragic

Tragic

Warning: This contains some Gross scenes.

It was a while ago (January 3rd 2011 to be precise) and there were 5 people biking along the Napier bike way. Their names were myself Ethin, my sister Sage, Justin my step brother and Mum and my step Dad Blair. We all just got new bikes for Christmas and we went to go try them out. We planned a 5 hour day of cycling excitement. We were going to bike down to Hot Chick for lunch.

It was a busy day and there were people everywhere. I was going to lead since I was the smallest. Everyone had to go at my pace. Justin hated it. Sage didn’t like biking so she wasn’t that bothered. Me and Mum always bike so I went fast. Justin and Sage didn’t see it coming. Sage was already puffing and  Blair didn’t know I was this good.

It was like a hurricane of people coming to me. I had to weave my way through them.  It was like I was making a bag out of wool and I was the needle. Suddenly, there was a lady the wasn’t looking anywhere  but back at her friend. BANG. She hit me. I was trapped in under my bike. I was screaming for help. I was in so much pain. Luckily, I was wearing a helmet. Blair pulled my bike off me. There was people going slow for me. The hurricane suddenly stopped. Mum walked me back to the car and Blair took Justin and Sage to bike down to the aquarium and bike back.  

Finally, we got back to the car and Mum had a proper look at my knee. It was oozing blood and plasma. “EWW”, screamed Mum. She put a plaster over it. That didn't do anything. The blood and plasma was oozing down my leg. Blair, Sage and Justin came back from their bike ride to the aquarium and they thought it was disgusting. Blair found a little cloth a wiped off all of the disgusting liquid. We waited for a little bit and then the liquid stopped pouring out.

So did you get the catastrophe? I fell off my bike and hurt myself. It was bad. Today I still have the scar on my right leg. The good thing was I was wearing a helmet like every cyclist should. I hope this changes your mind on how to cycle properly. Remember to wear a helmet at all times.  

The Force

The Force

Today at school. I did an experiment that makes a Ping pong ball float in the air. Why. In here it will tell you how to do the experiment and how it works.

What you will need: 

A Hairdryer

3 ping pong balls. 

How to do the experiment

1. Hold your hairdryer in midair turned on. It will need to be on a high setting. 
2. Put a ping pong ball on top of the hairdryer and it will float. 
3. If you will like to you can add on another ball and another

How and Why does it work. 

This works because the air that the dryer is making is pushing it up. Why cant it go high. The invisible force called Gravity is battling against the wind to pull it down. If you add another ball. They will bobble up and down and one of them will fall off. This is because the wind field if not wide enough to hold both balls inside its field. 

 

Can you blow up a balloon without your mouth? (Explanation)

How to blow up a balloon without your breath?

What you Need:

• 2 soda bottles
• 2 balloons
• 2 containers. 1 hot water, 1 cold water.
• An Adult or Tongs for hot water.

Preparation

1. Put one balloon on the Mouth of a bottle.
2. Repeat step 1 with the others.  
3. Get your water ready.
4. Get your parent on Standby or tongs right next to you.

How to do it

1. First put your one of your bottles in your cold water. Then the other in the hot water
2. Immerse the bottle in water and make sure that most of it is under.
3. Just sit and watch and see what happens to the two balloons. HINT After a while the balloon will go down because the water got cold.

What actually Happened???

All of the particles in the hotter bottle were whizzing around in the bottle and the hot air (That Rises) went into the balloon because the air has already taken up the room in the bottle.  While the other balloon was staying at the same rate as it was at the start because the water was cold.  It was in a state on an inertia while the other bottle was heating up.  As for the particles, after a while they will stop  and make the balloon go down because the water has gone cold and the air has come down from the balloon. From here you can tip out your water and pack up your experiment. 

Here is a Diagram on what happened.

Hot Water Cold Water
 

Can you blow up a balloon without your mouth?

Can you blow up a Balloon without blowing the air in? Maybe. In this you will find the instructions to do it and you can do it yourself to see if this works.  Be careful, You may  need an adult to help you with some parts.

To start your experiment you will need some things. 2 Plastic Bottles (Coca Cola, Lemonade etc) 2 ordinary balloons, hot and cold water and an adult or tongs. For starters put the balloons on the bottles. On where the lid was. Prepare the water to hot water and cold water in separated containers. Once you have done this you can get your adult to help you put the bottle into the hot water. If you have tongs, just hold it around the neck and dunk it in. With the cold  water one you can  just put it in slightly. You do not need some tongs or an adult to help you with this part.

Once you have put the bottles in the water, you need to press the bottle right down into the water. Make sure the whole entire bottle is underwater. This is called immersing. You are Immersing the bottle in water. Why do you have to do this? So the hot air can heat up to bottle in water. That is why you have  to do this. The heat that the hot water has is going around the bottle that is heating the air that is in the bottle and that is what creates hot air. You still have to do the same with the cold water.

The next step is really easy. All you do is sit and wait. This is called observing. This is the scientific word for sitting and watching. As you observe. Have a look at the two different boxes. You might see one of them moving. Why is this. It is because the air is becoming hotter and thinking that it can escape through the balloon si the balloon is expanding and blowing up. As you Observe you might want to take some notes to see if there are any changes in your time of doing this.

Now I am going to explain what actually happened. As the air heated, all of the particles was whizzing around in the bottle and being heated up. Hot air rises, so the air would want to get out the balloon thinking that is the open world. As the balloon expands because the hot air is going in the balloon, blowing it up. But after a short while, The balloon will go down because the water will get to cold and the hot air will turn into the other bottle in the cold water. The particles will get cold as well and the other bottle. This is because the water in the container is colder that it was 30 minutes ago.

So, can a balloon blow up without blowing in to it. Yes you can. After a while it will go down by itself. This has proven that balloons will go up by itself with the right gear. I hoped you have been careful and if it did not work for you. Maybe you did it wrong.  

Down below there is a diagram that explains how it works:

Hot Water Cold Water

Flexibility Test

On Monday. It was the first day of Term 4 and Mrs Roil thought that it was a good idea that we make a Flexibility Machine. We put our self's in groups of 5 and made our own machine. Yay it was time to test. I got 13 negative. Not to shabby for a boy like me. The other 4 people in my group got resealable results for them as well.

Over, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday we have being doing some Flexibility stretches to improve. Over those days we did over 20 stretches to improve. It Worked. We could feel  it with all of the muscles in our body's.  Our teacher was doing these for fitness and we improved.

It came the day that we were doing the test that we did on Monday was here. We needed to bet our score. I got negative 10. I improved 3 centimeters. Most of the class improved  but some dropped. We know that it worked because a boy in our class improved by 20 centimeters. It was really fun doing this and I want to do it again next week.

Egg Drop Experiment

On Thursday My class did an science experiment and we wanted to know if it works and why. Here is the details.

It worked because when you pull it quick it goes straight down into the water but if you go slowly  it will go down into the cup slow and break. The motion of the plate and the toilet roll that goes under the egg is the reason that the egg can go into the cup when it is pulled.  It could also become unsteady and smash on your plate if you pull it slowly. The force of Gravity will pull down the egg but because there is not the much gravity in water the egg will go slower and not break. It also has to do with the speed of the egg  as well as Gravity has force to do with speed.   


Here is some pictures.

Yachting Reflection 2013

Yachting

Over the past week I have been Optimist Yachting and Kayaking. This is my reflection. Something I was pleased with was Yachting because I liked going round the sharp corners and flying round on the water. It was exciting because I have never been optimist yachting before and I thought it was really cool.

Something that I got scared about was going out far in the Kayak because I panicked a little and I couldn’t row left enough and I kept going the other direction. I got a little stressed with the kayak and I think I should go in a double next time so I won't get stuck and if I do the other person can come with me.

Something I need to improve is how to use a kayak oar properly and figuring out how to steer the kayak properly so I don’t go out where I was last time. That was freaky so that is my goal for next time.  

Something I could have done better was using the mainsheet the first time and not chicken out and sail back to shore and go back to the tiller prostitution  because I was too scared and made the rope very loose. I didn’t like it when the boat tipped when I was in control.

My plan next time I would like to go in a yacht by myself and be in charge so I can go by myself and I know when I want to steer and use the mainsheet so I know what to do it. I would also go on a single kayak so I can go at my own pace and not get a sore back anymore

Allround Day 1 (Monday)

It was really fun because it was my very first time in a yacht. I liked doing the tiller best and I went in a boat with Milly and in the kayak I was by myself and I got drifted out to sea.  It was terrible.  I liked rowing and sailing around the lake because it was fun and peaceful. I thought that this was really fun and I wanted to go again.

Allround Day 2 (Thursday)

Thursday was fun. We went yachting first and my buddy was Alex. She was a good buddy and I went on Mainsheet first and It was fun. Alex wanted to go on tiller and  I was fine with that.  It turned out that I was good at doing Mainsheet and I was just a (chicken thee first time.) For kayaking I was with Milly and we went under the bridge and around the harbour. It was fun. Milly took us around most of the harbour and I could just  sit back and relax. It was an amazing exprienice.  

My Term 3 Holidays: My Birthday

My Term 3 Holidays: My Birthday.

Yes finally, we get to the  laserforce arena and we have to wait for half an hour. That was a long time. Waiting made it go longer.  We play games in the arcade. Heith, Elijah, Breaden and I . We play some table hockey and I lose. That wasn’t fear. I gave the other player some free shots so I guess that kinda let him win . Slowly we get to have our turn. We went against little kids and they were easy. Heith, Breaden, Elijah, Sage my sister, Justin, my step brother and I. We line up getting our suits on and ready to go. Then we go in. The battle starts. I shot left, shot right. Getting people out left, right and center.  Then I get out. “Stupid little kid,” I say.

Well now, it has gone on for at least 5 minutes. The little kids are saying “I'm in your team so don’t shoot me”  I can see heaps of green around me so I shoot fast. I see that they are running. I don't really get far.  I can see also that steam in hiding the front entrance and the little kids are getting their gun reset. I think They don't listen to the man out front. Then out of nowhere shouts “game over man, game over” It was in a silly cartoon voice.

We go out. Not long until our next game. We finally get in and it is just us. All on all. Not long until us little ones team up. Sage and Justin team up and go hard on us. 4-2.  They are just shooting at nothing but they knew where we were.  We kept moving location so the would have to look hard.   I got Sage 2 times and Justin 5 times. They both got me 10 times.  The game kept going on and on for ever. I thought that it was the everlasting game of laserforce. It took for ages. Sometimes Elijah would shoot me and then blame it on Breaden. It was annoying. Then here comes that silly cartoon voice again. I was glad to be out of there.

Term 2 Reflection

Term 2 Reflection: Buddy Class.

My Term 2 Reflection is my Buddy Class, Room Nine. We go and help them with math and writing. Sometimes they come and sing songs with us.  Recently  we have helped them with their Dream Bedroom.  All term they have been saving up money to make up their bedroom so  they can put whatever they want as long they can afford it.  The highest amount someone got in their class was $4,500. That was a lot. The rest of the class of in the 3,000 mark.  Still that is a lot of money.

We had to add up want the wanted and tell them what they can get rid of and what  they can keep.  Then we had to say to them  what they want. They don’t need a 52 inch flat screen TV.  A 32 inch will be alright. There were kids that wanted a computer and an IPod. I had to ask them to change to a Laptop. It is better because it is portable. You can take it wherever you want.

Then we needed to make a running total.  Mrs Roil was there to help. I like it when she comes to help. She is the best teacher yet.    We had different buddies everyday so we got to met a different child every time we went to our buddy class.   All of them are good children. They all listen sometimes and they can be a pain but we still cooperate.  Some kids just get involved into their work and some talk and talk. Luckily we got the job done. Finally. All of them do their work and stay on task sometimes. It is hard to get them back on task.             

The Catch.

As I was fishing in the local lake called Noob,  I caught a fish and I was surprised. I was thinking that it would be the best fish ever but then it turned out to be a little baby fish. I was disappointed. I knew that the villagers  would be really mad with me. So as I went back to the lake Noob  I heard an unusual sound.  It sounded like a Cat in a blender. As I went to go see I saw a fox trapped in a vine. I grabbed my knife and cut him free. He was really mad. The fox jumped up at me and I fell to the ground. It was gonna bite me but then he could smell the tiny baby fish. It ran to the basket I put it in and ran away up a hill and thought the cliffs. Then my hat fell off.  The fox ran up more cliffs and it finally stopped. I was tired.

There was luscious green grass and a lake right next to me. It was  beautiful  and clear and I could look straight to the bottom. I saw a little family of fish swimming by. They didn’t care that I was there. Then, out of nowhere, jumped the fattest   fish of all time. It was at least 10 m long. Then the fox  came over and handed me a pointy stick. I snapped of a twig and threw it at the giant fish.  

That was the feed of a lifetime. From then on the villagers loved me and always send me of to go catch more fish for dinner. When I went to go find the fox and and give him the leftovers I just found him and then he turned into sand and disappeared into the sky. I waved and walked back to  the  village.  There was my Mum waiting there to give me a giant big hug. I was honored.   




Here is the link to the video this is based on The Catch

Onepoto Caves

Onepoto Caves.

I liked going into the caves best because it was a really fun adventure and I like learning about the land and how it came together as one.

Onepoto Caves were formed 2,200 years ago. The Caves formed in the same way as Waikaremoana. It  goes through a small valley 10 km south of the Aniwaniwa Visitor Center. Onepoto Caves are completely harmless and they won’t hurt you at all. They are 2 Km’s long and 2 hours to walk around the track fully. There are heaps and heaps of cave weta found in Onepoto caves . Even baby Cave Weta.  Be careful though, they are everywhere. DOC officers say you need a torch. They are very dark in some places. It takes 3 hours and 47 minutes to travel to Onepoto Caves from Hastings. These caves are very muddy.  Onepoto Caves have over ten caves in the whole entire track.

Room 17 went to Onepoto Caves In the Te Urewera National park. It was for a  really fun activity for Camp Kaitawa. We also had Mrs Roil and Miss Hill.

Next’ I would like to go in the big cave with a rope. I would also leave my torch behind and go in the dark. I think that will be challenging for me. I would like to hold a Cave Weta in my hand and let it walk up my hand but not up my arm. My biggest fear is insects walking on my hand, even butterflies.   

So you should go and check Onepoto caves for yourself. Don’t forget to take a torch and a friend.

By Ethin


Photo from: Room 17 Camp Kaitawa Photos.

Six easy steps on how to fix a broken arm.

Step One

When somebody breaks their arm start by calming them down.

Step Two

Remove any jewellry from the broken arm but be careful not to touch the arm so when the swelling comes it won’t stick.

 

Step Three

Put on a splint so the bone and marrow  can fix up properly and so the arm won't flop around.

Step Four

Wrap the arm in glad wrap so no bug’s can get in and the arm is protected

.

 

Step Five

Create a sling to elevate a arm above the heart so the blood doesn't come out the  brake of skin.

Step six.

Call for help so the real doctor can come in an Ambulance and get it checked out. While the Doctor is coming keep making sure they are ok and get them comfortable.