Yum Yum Yum!

Holiday Time!

Wowsers, it has been quite a term!  12 weeks!  Congratulations on an excellent start to 2014 Room 6.  We have been so busy, but we've had loads of fun too.  Have a great holiday.  Make sure you get plenty of rest and chill-out time so you're pumped and raring to go again in two weeks!

Interhouse Patter Tennis

Over the past two days, we've had our annual Interhouse Patter Tennis competition.  This is always fiercely contested, with everyone playing their very best for their house.  After the round-robin games, we added up the points.  Playing off for 3rd and 4th place were Matai and Totara, which Matai won.  Kauri and Rimu battled it out in the final in a great game with lots of rallies.  Eventually Kauri took the win!  Well done Kauri!

Here are the winners:

Blog Awesomeness!

In case you're wondering, our class blog has been viewed more than 60,000 times since the beginning of 2013.  Whoop whoop!

 

 

Another interesting statistic - the 'Leaving A Comment' page has been viewed nearly 5,000 times and the 'Must Read List' page nearly 500 times.  Can you believe it?

 

Senior Team Book Sharing

In keeping with our end-of-term tradition, the Senior Team got together today to share our Theme learning from the term.  It is a great way to find out what the other classes have been working on, as well as get tips on how to present our work really effectively.

For The Parents

Dear Parents

Thank you so much for the awesome comments you've written in your child's books!  I really appreciate the time you've taken to check out what we've been doing this term and leave a positive comment or words of encouragement.  As a reward, I'll let you keep your child at home for the next two weeks!

Regards,
Miss Simpson

Book Club

We've all been working hard to finish the books we've been reading.  Today was the big day - time to discuss a whole heap of different things and reflect on our thoughts about the story.  We separated ourselves into groups and talked about the following things:

JR Art

After checking out the street art photography of the mysterious JR, we thought we'd have a go at creating our own!  Using the iPads made things a lot easier (thanks Room 1 and Room 2 for letting us borrow them).

JR is a French photographer who believes "the street is the largest gallery in the world".  He has created his art in many cities around the world.  To learn more about JR, CLICK HERE. 

 

Here we are in our 'studio':

Here is our finished photography:

Buddy Class - JR Art - Photography

We decided to create some JR-inspired art with our buddy class today.  We had heaps of fun!

We had a few minutes to spare, so it was SELFIE TIME!

40 Hour Famine

It is that time of year again!  Well done to all those who have signed up for the 2014 40 Hour Famine.  Here is the link you need:

40 Hour Famine - CLICK HERE

Reading Follow Up

Created with Padlet

Created with Padlet

Created with Padlet

Sausage Sizzle!

The Student Council cooked lunch today - a sausage sizzle!  Cooking more than 200 sausages was hot work, but everyone pitched in and worked together to get lunch ready in time.  Well done team!  Thank you to Olivia's family and our school PTA for donating the sausages.

Spots And Stripes Day

We LOVE dress up days!  The Student Council hosted Spots and Stripes Day today and it was lots of fun.  Everyone in our class got right into the spirit of the event and showed off their best dance moves in the parade.  Awesome!

Thunderstruck - Cello

 

Science - Insect Powerpoints

One of our final tasks as part of our learning about insects, was to work with a partner to create a factual report about a New Zealand insect.  We chose to use Powerpoint to present our information.  Not only did we learn heaps about our insects, but we're getting better at processing large amounts of non-fiction information.  Here are four awesome examples - just pause the video to read the information:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Final Tennis Session

Today was our fourth and final tennis lesson.  We played mini-doubles in a massive class competition.  It was REALLY hard to hit the ball with the right amount of power, most of us were hitting it much too hard!  It was lots of fun though and it is obvious our tennis skills have improved in the last few weeks.

Rippa Rugby Tournament

We had two teams entered in the Rippa Rugby Tournament, held in Palmerston North today.  Each team played four games and enjoyed the opportunity to compete against the big Intermediate schools - they were good!  Unfortunately neither team won any games, but we didn't mind too much - we still managed to score heaps of awesome tries.  Well done to all the players, we're really proud of the way you stuck it out and kept trying your best.  Thanks to the parents who provided transport and supported us from the sidelines!

A 'Fishy' Story

While the Minstrel was visiting last week, he laid down a challenge:  write a fishing story!  We had to try to include as many of the important fishing rules as possible.  A school-wide competition is underway, we the best fishing story winning a fishing rod!

The winning story from Room 6 came from Jasmine - check out it out!

So there I was. Staring anxiously down at the choppy sea water. This was gonna be the big one.  I remembered how today started off.  “Quick! Get the sinker! Did you put the flare and beaker in the boat? Oh! I forgot to put the salt in the ice!” my dad screeched as he was frantically running round the house. As you can tell, my dad isn’t organised. It runs in the family. But if there’s one thing my dad is great at, it’s fishing.

 

A common thing for dad and I to do is to go and catch some big ones, but today was different. Today was the day of our huge hangi. Dad wanted to impress everyone by bringing in a monster snapper to show off his fishing skills. When we were in the car, dad went over all the rules. “Firstly, we must wear a life jacket. There ain’t nothing unmanly about wearin’ one. Secondly, always measure the fish, because a small fish doesn’t impress. Thirdly, pick up the fish with a wet towel and gently place it in salted ice to keep it fresh. We don’t want no rotten fish at the hangi!” Dad went on and on about the rules. He liked talking. I guess that must run in the family as well. We rolled on around a corner that said ‘Marine Reserve.’  “Now Jasmine, you must never ever fish at a marine reserve, because those fish are special and need protecting,” dad told me. Finally, the car had made its stop. “Rightyho.” Dad scanned the sea water.  It was a beautiful picture of blue scenery. “Let’s put 'Sea Beauty' in the water.” Dad and I named our boat 'Sea Beauty', because it was our pride and Joy. “Let’s go catch the big one!”

So that’s how I got here. I had been patiently waiting for a fish to come and nibble on my bait, and that’s when I got the tug. “Dad!” I cried. “Dad I think I got one!” This was so exciting. The tug got harder and harder until I couldn’t bare it any longer. “That’s it Jazzy! Pull it in!”  Dad begged. I desperately yanked, and pulled, and tugged. My arms ached and my legs hurt. My head was swimming like the fish in the water below me. I was imagining how happy everyone would be, seeing the monster that I caught and that gave me a huge tank of power. I reeled and reeled with all my might. Dad was screaming with joy as I pulled up a huge snapper! I was so shocked at what I caught, that I forgot what to do. Dad raced to get the ruler. I nervously measured up my snapper. ‘Oh no!’ Dad cried miserably. ‘It’s too big!’ My heart sank. The biggest fish ever and I couldn’t take it home. My dad looked even more devastated then I did. I looked at the fish.  Even the fish looked sad. “Come on dad." I stood up and walked over to him. “Let’s put it back in the water. After all, it might have babies, and we can catch them another time!” Dad slowly nodded his head. We placed it gently back in the water. The fish happily swam in a few circles, then looked up at me. It looked as if it were saying thank you. I nodded, and the dark blue water swallowed up the fish.

On the car ride home, my dad took a left turn to go to the supermarket. A few minutes later, he came out with a massive snapper in his hands. He cheekily looked at me and winked. “Don’t tell anyone!” he chuckled.

Insects Up Close

Today we got stuck into the magnifying glasses, microscopes and digital microscope so we could take a close up look at the insects we'd caught.  It was fun being 'real' scientists.  Something interesting we noticed, was that many of the insects were very hairy!

Butterfly Time

Today, our babies finally emerged from their chrysalis - we've been waiting for this day for weeks!  We have observed the process right from the start, when the caterpillars were just wee fellas.  We watched them eat and eat and eat, while getting bigger and fatter and bigger and fatter.  Next came the chrysalis, in which they stayed for a few weeks.  Since the end of last week, the colour of the chrysalis changed colour from bright green, to dark green, to a magnificent teal colour and finally to a clear, transparent shell.  Watching them spreading their wings and eventually fly out the door during maths was an awesome experience.  Have a great life our monarch butterfly friends!

Dr Paul - The Insect Guy

Today we had a visit from Dr Paul, an entomologist (insect specialist) who works for Landcare Research.  He came along to talk all about insects and to share some of the work he does - using insects to get rid of nasty plants (like horsetail) in New Zealand.  He shared lots of interesting information with us and we learnt heaps.  A highlight was having a close-up look at his specimen trays.  Thanks Dr Paul!

Hall Update

Today we went on a special 'field trip' to the school hall!  We've been watching the builders hard at work for weeks and weeks and were curious about what the inside of the hall looked like!  Well, today we found out exactly what it looked like - a massive mess!

Japanese Cultural Day

In Japanese (with Miss Campbell), we had a Cultural Day. We enjoyed exploring Japanese toys, gave origami a go, matched Japanese characters to English blends, tried on and created kimonos, used fans, followed traditional Japanese customs and ate some oshi - delicious food.

What a great taste of Japanese culture!

 

 

 

Mr Tucket - Quick Writes

We tried out this new writing activity called a 'Quick Write' today.  We took a moment to consider what we could SEE, HEAR, FEEL and WONDER when we came to the end of a chapter in the book we're reading at the moment (Mr Tucket by Gary Paulsen).  We imagined we were right in the story, sitting next to Francis, the main character.  Miss Simpson says even though it is short and sweet, this is some of the best writing most of us have done in weeks!  Nice one team!


I see lots of tall wavy, bushy grass. I see the moon and the night sky.
I hear the coyotes crunching on the bones of the buck. I hear the mule and the mare chomping on the endless sea of grass.
I feel relaxed, because I have just had a full meal. I feel sleepy and calm, because I am tired and I hear no unusual sounds.
I wonder when the sea of grass will end? I wonder how long until I see my family again or if I will ever see them again.
LOGAN


I see tall grass is caving in on me, making my escape route seem  impossible. The grass looks dead and without life.
I hear the wind pushing against the grass, making the whooshing sound that is peace to my ears.
I feel lonely and the dead leaves that I put on the fire start to crumble into nothing and blow away in the wind.
I wonder if I’ll ever see my family again and if I’ll make it without Mr Grimes. 
FFION


I see the long stalks of grass and I see the smoke from the fire rising into the night sky.  The trees around me sway with the wind.
I hear the wood on the fire crackling from 20 feet away. The sound of my breath and bird calls fill my ears. The movement of the wildlife moving  in the grass is all around me.
I feel an emotion I have never felt before, since I realised I was lost, the feeling is happiness.  I am happy that I have eaten and I am happy to be alive.
I wonder if I will live to see another day. I wonder if the Pawnee will kill me during the night.
JORJA

The Minstrel

We had a special show at school today - The Minstrel!  As well as teaching us lots of important fishing rules, The Minstrel performed lots of entertaining songs - he is a guitar master!  The key rules we need to remember are:

• always wear a lifejacket in a boat
• never fish in a marine reserve
• if the fish is too small (use the chart), put him gently back into the water
• if the fish is too big, put him gently back into the water (this is the breeding stock)
• after catching a fish, pack it in salty ice

Red Reading Group

The Red Reading Group has just finished reading 'A Winter's Day In 1939', by Melinda Szymanik.  We all really enjoyed this book and decided to contact the author to ask some questions.  We were very lucky that she took the time to respond - thank you Melinda!

What/who inspired you to write this novel?

I was inspired by my Dad’s experience as a Polish refugee during World War 2. What an amazing story! And knowing what he’d been through and yet he was just an everyday dad. When my writing started getting published my mother (who was also a Polish refugee as a child) suggested I write my Dad’s story but I didn’t think I was a good enough writer to do it justice. Then a few years ago one of my publishers asked if I would write the story and in the end I decided to give it a try.

 

After the book was published, did you want to change anything?

I forgot to include how they were infested with fleas and lice and had their heads shaved because there was no other way to get rid of all the bugs. But otherwise I am happy with what I wrote.

 

How much of the book is fiction, how much is the real story?

The places they went and the journeys they took are all real. What happened to the sisters and mother really happened, so I consider most of the story real or based in reality. The jobs they had were all real and the living conditions too. The horses at the beginning are real but the animals later were added, including the incidence with the bear. If you have particular parts of the story you would like to know about feel free to ask me.

 

Did you have any hesitant moments, and want to keep your father’s story to yourself?

No, I wanted to honour his experience and survival by sharing it. I’m very proud of his quiet courage and determination. And I’m fascinated by this side of World War 2 which is much less known than other aspects. It seemed important to me that this story should be told

 

Did your family ever go back to Poland?  If yes, what was it like?

I have never been (although I would very much like to go) but my mum and dad and older sister and brother have been there. I think Mum and Dad enjoyed going back but Poland has changed so much since they were there as children that they didn’t want to return permanently but were happy to stay living in New Zealand. Poland has had a lot of political changes over the years so it is not the same Poland they left behind. And while some old buildings and towns survived the war other places had to be rebuilt. The part of Poland that both my mum and dad were born in is now part of the Ukraine.

 

What has been your family’s reaction to the book?

They love the book and are very happy I wrote it.

 

What was the most enjoyable part of the writing process?  How long did it take to write the book?

It took me around 18 months to write the book and after finishing the first draft I had to rewrite the whole story twice. But I’m really glad I did because the final draft was so much better. The best bit is writing The End and knowing that all the hard work has paid off and the story is what you wanted it to be.

Big News!

Halcombe School has been sold!  All children included.

Small Ball Skills - Throwing Golf

We've invented a new game!  Throwing Golf is exactly like normal golf, except you throw the ball instead of hit it with a golf club!  We set up a 6-hole course around the school and competed in teams over two days.  We developed our long-range throwing skills as well as our aiming/target skills.  It was lots of fun.  Well done to Cody who won the competition, Luke and Kyle who came second equal and Quaid who came third!