What Christmas Means to me

 Last week we had to write what christmas means to us so Mrs Naden could send them to the news paper because they wanted to find out what kids thought of christmas. I think that the actual joy of christmas comes from giving rather than getting.

here is what I wrote:

What christmas means to me…

Christmas is a happy time,

To share with family and friends.

It's a time for love, joy and giving a gift,

And maybe getting one too.

It is a time to celebrate, have fun and enjoy,

So Merry Christmas!

Ice candles

 Yesterday we made ice candles! It was really interesting and it was really awesome when we pulled the carton off the wax and all the water poured out. Here are some steps and equipment to make ice candles yourself:

Equipment:

Old candles

Long candles

milk cartons ( the cardboard ones that you get soy milk in )

ice

Frying pan

Steps:

1. cut open the top of the milk carton

2. pour some olive oil inside the carton and spread it around in the inside, make sure you have covered all the sides

3. turn on the stove and put the old candles in the pan, melt them until it is just liquid

4. get your long candles and put one in each milk carton, make sure they are in the middle

5. fill the milk cartons up to the top with ice

6. get your melted candles ( if they are done ) and pour the wax into the carton

let the candles sit over night and rip the carton off them in the morning

here are some photos of us making ice candles:

Camp Thank you letters

 Last week we went on camp and this week we had to write a letter to one of the helpers or teachers who came on camp. I chose Shaun who was the parent helper for my group. At camp we did heaps of fun activities like high ropes, flying fox, laser tag, rock climbing and frisbee golf. My favorite was the flying fox and going on the luge. Camp is definitley one of my favorite memories from 2020.

I enjoyed writing the letter,

I found it tricky to think of what to write,

Next time I would add another photo,

Here is my letter:

WALT: structure (thank you letter)
Success Criteria	Self assessment
At least 2 or 3 paragraphs
Correct layout
Nouns and Verbs

Ciara M

40 Campion Rd

Gisborne

5 November 2020

Dear Shaun,

{I am writing to you to thank you for being one of the amazing parent helpers who helped make the Year 5 and 6 camp possible. Thank you for helping with the activities like the high ropes course and the flying fox. Without your help we wouldn’t have been able to do those activities. You also helped other people have more fun by āencouraging them to go one step further.

Two of my favourite activities were the flying fox and slingshot paintball. Corin got me in the back, Unasie hit me in the face and I got paint in my mouth. It was also funny when you zoomed past me on the luge! Thanks for encouraging me to climb higher on the rock wall and reach my goal.

So thank you for giving up your time to come on camp and help out. 

{I really appreciate it. I hope you had a great time too.

Ngā mihi

Ciara

 

Letter to the Editor

 Today we were writing letters for the newspaper which is called letters to the editor. We were writing them to tell the council to spray the blackberry bushes down by our Rerenga Awa. Our Rerenga Awa is there so the native trees can provide shade for the river so more creatures will live in it, but the blackberry is in the way so we can't plant more native trees closer to the river. 

I enjoyed writing my letter,

I found it tricky to write the letter and use correct spelling and to make it make sense,

Next time I would write a little bit more,

Here is my letter:

Dear Editor, 

Saint Mary’s is a Green Gold Enviro school. By our school we have a river and we want it to be clean and clear. We want more native birds and insects so we planted our Rerenga Awa to make shade for the river so more animals will come, but we have one problem. There is a lot of blackberry by the river which is stopping us from planting more native trees closer to the river. We asked the council to spray the blackberry and keep mowing there but they haven’t responded. Some of the teachers at our school emailed them but we have still got no response. We can’t plant the native trees anymore. I firmly believe that the council should come and spray the blackberry so we can plant more trees. Then more native animals, birds, insects and freshwater creatures will have a healthy environment to live in.

Pancakes with Maple Syrup and Chocolate Sauce

 This week for writing we have been learning how to use imagery. We had to write a paragraph about eating our favorite food, mine was pancakes with maple syrup and chocolate sauce. We had to describe what its like to eat that food. We had to include the first bite, the taste and licking the plate. We had to use a simile, alliteration and juicy verbs.  

I enjoyed writing the paragraph of my fave food,

I found it tricky to use alliteration,

Next time I would use more alliteration,

Here is my writing:

Pancakes with maple syrup and chocolate sauce

I took a bite of the stack of pancakes on my plate. I felt the ooey gooey sticky syrup oozing down my throat and the runny chocolate sauce dribbling down my chin. The fluffy puffy golden brown pancakes were warm and perfectly cooked. They were delicious, sweet and sugary, the sticky maple syrup dribbled down my arm, like a raindrop dripping down the window on a rainy day. I turned away and licked the plate clean, the sticky chocolate all over my face. I snuck over to the stove to see if any pancakes were left over, then I took a nibble of the last one.

Animals should not be kept in zoos persuasive writing

 This week we were learning how to use a rhetorical question, use emotive language and use persuasive language in writing. We had to write a report persuading people not to put animals in zoos. We read a piece of writing telling you to put animals in zoos, then we discussed why we should not keep them in zoos. I enjoyed writing my persuasive writing, I found it tricky to use emotive and persuasive language, 

Here is my writing:

Animals should not be kept in zoos

Would you like to be cooped up in a cage with nowhere to go? If not,

then why should animals be cooped

up in a cage? I strongly believe that animals should not be kept in zoos.

It is brutal because in zoos

animals rely on

humans to survive, they are taken away from their habitat and they

are taken away from their families.

Firstly, in captivity animals rely on humans to survive because they lose

their natural instinct to hunt and the

zookeeper's decide when they eat, what they eat, and how much they eat.

Tourists feed them junk food which

makes them fat and it is not part of their natural diet. It is also very unhealthy.

Secondly, they are taken away from their natural habitat.

The lack of space and room to roam around makes them weak, sore and tired.

For example, tigers and lions have a big

space to roam around in the wild but if you take them to a zoo they get locked

up in a cage with not much room to move.

Also, when you take animals from their habitat and into the

zoo it might be too hot or cold for them.

Thirdly, they are taken away from their families.

The babies need their parents or whanau to survive.

Elephants get depressed when they are separated and feel joy when reunited with family.

They need friends and space to thrive

Did you know that elephants can die if they miss their family too much?

In conclusion, I strongly believe that animals should not be kept in zoos. Care for the animals!

Ciara 28/8/20 

The Laughing Owl Report

For this week and last week we were studying NZ native animals. We had to write a report on a extinct NZ native animals, I chose the Laughing Owl. We had to use paragraphs and put our information in topics with subheadings. It was really hard to find information because The Laughing Owl is extinct and people don't know a lot about them. I enjoyed writing my report and blogging it. I think I should of put more sentences in each paragraph

Here is my report:

The laughing owl

Classification

The laughing owl is an extinct New Zealand bird that belongs to the Sceloglaux albifacies family. It got its name because it made a call that sounded like someone laughing. It was also called the white faced owl, whekau or hakoke.

Description

The laughing owl was a brownish color, it had a white face and dark orange eyes and its beak was a yellowish orange colour.The males were mostly shorter than the females. It was 40 cm high and it weighed 600 grams. Its legs were covered in feathers and it had very sharp claws. 

Habitat

It lived in the country and cliffs rather than bush and forests. They preferred to live in low rainfall areas and rocky cliff areas. It also lived in tree holes before the humans came and cut the trees down.  

Diet

The laughing owl mostly ate rodents, lizards, insects, frogs, small birds and earthworms. It sometimes ate baby tuatara. Before the humans arrived it ate some species native to New Zealand like kiwi and duck. 

Threats

Since the laughing owl nested on the ground lots of animals tried to kill it. Cats, Rats, Goats, Weasels, Stoats and ferrets were threats of the laughing owl.

Did you know that some people thought that if you played a tune on an accordion it would attract the laughing owl?

Here is the site that I found my information on:

https://sites.google.com/a/cloud.waimeaint.school.nz/newzealandendangeredspecies/home/room-7/room-7-endangered-species-project/the-laughing-owl

Ciara 

13/ 8/ 2020

  

Matariki star

WALT- identify the main idea and evaluate ideas.
This week we are learning about Matariki for writing and reading. We made Matariki stars and used information that we learnt to put on them.
I enjoyed making my Matariki star and gathering information for it,
I found it tricky to use correct spelling and put the macrons in the right places,
Next time I would add more stars to make it more 3d,

Matariki explanation

WALT- use visual language features (such as headings charts or maps) to extend or clarify meaning and to engage our audience.
This week we have been learning about Matariki, for writing we had to write an explanation on Matariki. Our success criteria were to use subheadings, text boxes and pictures.
I enjoyed writing my explanation,
I found it tricky to use at least four sentences for each paragraph,
Next time I would use some text boxes,
Enjoy!

                    Matariki

What is Matariki?

Matariki is the Māori name for a cluster of stars in the night sky. It is a sign of the start of the Māori new year. In June and July Matariki will appear in the night sky. During this time the Māori will remember those who have died, spend time with family and friends, enjoy games and kai, and plan for the future.

Our ancestors would look to Matariki to help them with their growing and harvesting of food. In April and May they would preserve their harvest for winter, when Matariki re-appeared in June and July they would read the stars to predict what the coming winter would be like. If the stars were clear winter would be warm. If they were hazy, winter would be cold.

How many stars are in the cluster of Matariki?

According to Māori astronomer Dr Rangi Matamua the Matariki cluster has nine stars. The nine stars include: Matariki, Tupuārangi, Waipuna-ā-Rangi, Waitī, Tupuānuku, Ururangi, Waitā, Pōhutukawa and Hiwa-i-te-Rangi. 

The nine stars 

Matariki:

Matariki means the eyes of God. Matariki is the star that represents reflection, hope, our connection with the environment and the meeting of people.

Pōhutukawa:

Pōhutukawa is the star that represents people who have died.

Waitī:

Waitī is connected to the fresh water and the sea food that lives in it.                .

Waitā:

Waitā is linked with the ocean and the sea food in it.

Waipuna-ā-Rangi:

Waipuna-ā-Rangi is connected with the rain

Tupuānuku:

Tupuānuku is the star connected with everything that grows in the soil that can be eaten

Ururangi:

Ururangi is the star linked with the winds

Hiwa-i-te-Rangi:

Hiwa-i-te-Rangi is the star who grants our wishes 

Ahmets Journey

WALT- use visual language features such as headings, charts, or maps to extend or clarify meaning and to engage our audience.
This week we are learning about refugees. For writing we usually write in our writing books but this week the teacher decided to change it up a bit so we are doing Comics instead.
I enjoyed making my Comic,
I found it tricky to use correct grammar,
Next time I would change the font in the text boxes

Gravity

WALT- organise text into paragraphs
For writing we were writing an explanation of gravity, we watched a video to get ideas,
I enjoyed writing my explanation and watching the video,
I found it tricky to use paragraphs,
My digital learning object shows I can use google docs,

                      Gravity 

What happens after you jump up into the air? You land on the ground, right? Why would you land on the ground instead of floating off into space? That's when gravity comes in. Gravity is a force that pulls us towards the Earth so we don’t go floating out in space.

 A force is a push or pull acting against an object to move it or change direction. Think of gravity as our invisible superglue, keeping the Earth together and us on the ground.

 Our class did an experiment with boinks. If you squeeze the boink the coil gets tight then when you let it go it will spring up into the air, but eventually gravity will pull it back down to the ground.

 We did another experiment with Dropper Poppers. If you invert and drop the dome down with a ping pong ball, the ping pong ball will ping up into the air. It will stay in the air for a bit, but in a few seconds gravity takes action and it drops back down to the ground.

 No matter where you throw that ping pong ball… it's going down! Force is the cause that produces the effect of all objects coming down. Eventually gravity is going to pull everything down to the ground… no matter what!

The Creek

This week in writing we are learning how to use different sentence starters. We had to write a recount and use jucy verbs and adjectives.
I enjoyed writing my story,
I found it tricky to use correct spelling,
here is my recount

                The Creek

   The sun was high in the sky beaming hot rays down on us as we slowly made our way towards the creek, I was enjoying the way the cool wind ruffled through my hair when a fantail flew past me and perched itself on a small twig, cheeping away, I watched it before moving on.

I ran to catch up to the others who were way ahead of me. I hopped onto the closest rock to get across the creek and onto the grassy path, leading to the wallowing hole. As I hopped from rock to rock the thick green moss that covered the rocks like a soft green carpet got slippery and eventually I slipped and landed in the shallow water below me.

I got up and kept hopping from rock to rock, this time I was a bit more cautious of which rock I was hopping onto. Finally I reached the grassy path. Slowly I walked along, taking care not to step on any wasps. The grass was dry and very scratchy so I started jogging, then sprinting.

As I approached the wallowing hole, my little sister threw a pile of sticky mud at me, it made a splatting noise as it hit the side of my leg. She giggled and reached down into the gunky water to grab another handful of mud, but before she could take aim and fire another mud ball I threw the mud that was clenched tightly in my hand at her.

She screamed and darted out of the way dodging the mud ball that was now just a brown blob sinking deeper and deeper into the wallowing hole. It was getting hotter and hotter so I slowly slipped into the wallowing hole, I let out a sigh of relief as the icy cold water hit my skin saving me from the scorching hot sun, still beaming hot summer rays down on the creek.

The long gone phone

This week for writing we had to write a report and use different sentence starters,
I was learning to use different sentence starters,
I enjoyed writing the report,
I found it tricky to use juicy verbs,
Next time I would change the images that are on my google drawing

Pygmy Marmoset report

In Reading this week we had to choose an animal from the Amazon rainforest and read some articles then we had to make a report about our chosen animal, I chose a Pygmy Marmoset also known as a finger monkey. In our reports we had to include an interesting fact, where they live and what they eat.

This is just to say

                             This week for writing we were learning to write punchy sentences.
                                                I found it tricky to send it to Mrs naden.
                              next time i could make the background suit the poem more.
                                                       I enjoyed making the canva

Making Huts

                                     

          Today we were writing about what happened on Monday
                 A thing that i found tricky was adding similes.
   Next time I could challenge myself to use the star on my success criteria.

 When I was little (and I still am) I used to climb trees, play hopscotch and swing on the monkeybars at the park, but most of all I loved making huts. At school we made huts in the classroom. Chairs supported loose sheets, blankets dangled over the sides of the desks, books weighed down the blankets to stop them from collapsing on us like landfalls, desks made the borders of the huts. Then the bickering started. 
“Charlie! Charlie! The books! The books! Oh Charlie!” 
“Where’s my desk!? Who moved it!? 
“You moved it!”
“Did not!”
“Did to!” 
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?”
“I just need to move this chair a little”
“NO YOU'LL BREAK IT!”
“Hey!” 
“What!? Don’t blame me!”
We were having so much fun until Mrs Naden told us to “Bust those huts!” “ NOOOOOOO!” everyone groaned. Then the bell rang for lunch so we had to bust them anyway.

My Profile

Hi i’m Ciara, i go to St Mary's school and i am in year 6. I live with my Mum Dad little brother and little sister, I am the oldest child in my family, i have a cat called Nachos but sometimes we call her “ Nacho kitty’’ or “ kitty meow’’ 

 I enjoy doing arts and crafts, T ball, Swimming and Singing. My goals for this year are to improve in my maths and reading. This year I will challenge myself to reading 100 books. I love baking and I am obsessed with tiny things. My favorite foods are pizza, chocolate cake, sushi and more!

 This year I am looking forward to camp and finding out who the young vinnies leaders are. I might do an exam for singing to get to the next level. Someone who inspires me is Charlotte Church, she is a famous singer and her voice is like an angels. Thanks for reading my posts.