Thursday, February 19, 2015

Our Virtual Trip with Learnz: The Routeburn Track

Questions for Audio-conference #6
Day/Date: Wednesday 25 February
Time: 2.15pm
Location: Queenstown
Topic: The Ecology of the Routeburn Track
Expert: Sarah Thompson
Speaking School: Elm Park School
Questions from R25 Elm Park School

  1. What kinds of plants can walkers see mostly when they are walking the Routeburn? (Jusleen)
  2. Why are beech forests common in New Zealand and found mostly in the mountains? (Aliah)
  3. We know beech trees produced a great deal of seeds during the “beech mast” last year. Can you tell us the consequences for predators and the native bird life in the areas on the Routeburn track in particular?  (Richelle)
  4. Why are there so few land mammals in New Zealand? (Chloe)
  5. Which are the most endangered birds in the Routeburn area and why is this? (Kaden)
  6. How do you get rid of all the pests on the track such as stoats, rats and possums? (Tarquin)
  7. Why were brown and rainbow trout introduced into the Routeburn Track area? (Cameron)
  8. How did the Rifleman bird get its name?  (Oliver )
  9. Why were white tailed deer introduced to the Routeburn Track (Hannan)
  10. What does the mōhua bird eat? (Myra)

We are looking forward to having our questions answered by Sarah Thompson.

Friday, February 13, 2015

Learning How We Learn New Things: Making Balloon Dogs

Success!
I made it!!

Today we talked about the process of learning and how it feels when we learn something new.

Lots of us felt scared, worried, or stressed when faced with a new skill to learn.

Luckily, when we know the learning intention (what we are going to learn) and how we are going to be successful (the success criteria) the process of learning is a lot smoother.

We found out that:
  • it's good to go back to the model
  • re-reading the steps in the success criteria is helpful
  • it's good to stop and ask for help if we need it
  • learning new things takes lots of practice


All done... 


I got there by following the steps


All done- I followed the success criteria
      
Way to go!
My dog is great...
I'm proud of my dog!



This is fun...getting the hang of the twists
It's so squeaky...







Now for the legs and the double twist...
I did it without help!



Going well...!
It could pop...



Head and ears...yay!
 


These twists are tricky...
It's tricky...but I won't give up...



I'm persevering...!
It might pop...!




Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Our Korean Visitors: Joy and Bella


We are really enjoying having our Korean visitors, Joy and Bella, in our class.  They are with us for two weeks.


Joy told us all about herself

She wrote:
My name is Joy. I’m from South Korea. And my Korean name is Gippeum Ju. I’m 11 years old. My birthday is 14 May.
I like playing the cello and piano. My favourite foods are noodles and rice-rolls.
Thank you.


Joy answered our questions










My name is Bella. My Korean name is Hee Jeong Choi.
I’m 10 years old. My birthday is 26 September.
I like fruit because it is very sweet. And I like drawing because it makes me very happy.
Bella answered our questions too




Monday, February 9, 2015

We are Room 25!



We are a Year 5 class in Auckland, New Zealand beginning the school year. We have two visiting Korean students Joy and Bella. They have been in our class for the past two weeks.  We will miss them when they leave. 

Our trainee student is Miss Naidoo. She will be in our school every Tuesday throughout the year.