Coding

We have been learning how to code to programme Bee Bots. It was very tricky to get the Bee Bot to land on our numbers but eventually we worked out the correct code. 

We also programmed the Bee Bots with several directions to find the pirates treasure on a treasue map. We had to avoid the sharks and the swamp. 

Next time, Mrs Naden needs to remember to have her phone landscape and not portrait when she videos. She always forgets!

Sign Language Week

This week is Sign Language Week. We have been reading articles and watching videos about signing. We discovered it is a combination of hand shapes, facial expressions and body movements. We thought it was just hand movements. We were shocked to discover that using Sign Language was banned from 1880-1979. Deaf people had to lip-read and speak aloud to communicate. This is called oralism. But deaf people continued to sign in secret. Then in 1979 Total Communication was used. This is a combination of using formal signs, finger-spelling, body language, listening, lip-reading and speech. It was made an official language in New Zealand by the New Zealand Sign Language Act in 2006. 

We learnt some simple phrases. Check out our individual blogs to learn how to sign.

Teaching 5 Year Olds How to Make the Sign of the Cross

One of this week's tasks was to make Google Slides or Screencastify's on how to make the Sign of the Cross for the 5 year-olds in our school, and for kids all over Aotearoa. We had to try and make our Screencastifys interactive and pretend our audience was doing what we asked. We also had to give them positive feedback. 

Do you know how to make the Sign of the Cross? If not, maybe you can watch Aime's below.

ANZAC Day

We have been reading and learning about what it was like to be in the war, and how many different animals are war heroes because of their bravery and because of how they helped the soldiers. We also tried eating bully beef and crackers. We discovered that bully beef is actually another name for canned corned beef. We also discovered that canned corned beef was something you either liked or didn't. Some people thought it smelt and tasted like cat food (no we haven't tried cat food! We were using our imaginations). Others said it had no smell and was delicious. The soldiers ate cabin bread in the war because it is long lasting but we couldn't find any so ate crackers instead. We also ate ANZAC biscuits. These are also long lasting. Whānau back in New Zealand would bake ANZAC biscuits and send them to their father's and sons. 

Read the ANZAC diary entry and postcard Leyla wrote after reading her groups articles.

Find out which animal war hero is Olivia S's favourite.

Women's Native Tree Nursery Visit

We are a Green/Gold Enviroschool - the first city school in Tūranganui-a-Kiwa to become one. Years ago, we started planting a native reserve which is now quite big. Today we went and collected seeds and cuttings because autumn is a great time to do this. Kauri, from The Women's Native Tree Trust, showed us how to get the seeds from the pods and strip a cutting off. We were careful not to take too many from one tree.

We also learnt quite a lot of other things. We all knew that the Māori Battalion fought courageously in the war under horrendous conditions. But did you know that their whānau back home picked the tips of the koromiko leaves, dried them and sent them to their fathers and sons? The soldiers chewed the leaves which cured them of dysentery and this most likely saved their lives! Ngaio is an insect repellent. Rub the leaves on your legs and the mosquitoes won't come near you. Karamu leaves are for your sore puku. Take the leaves at the tips. Try and take multiples of 12 because that's being kind to the tree by not taking too many. Put the leaves in a cup and pour boiling water over them. By the time it's cool enough for kids to drink, the magic is done. Just drink the cup. Don't eat the leaves. 

While we were down at the Rerenga Awa, we spray painted an Australian native that was accidentally planted. We did this so our caretaker will know which ones to remove.

After we had collected the seeds and cuttings, we walked to The Women's Native Tree Nursery to learn about propagation. It was a hot 30 minute walk but we decided not to bus or use cars as we were thinking about our carbon footprint. Once we were there, we planted the seeds in a cutting mix and the cuttings into small pots. It was so hot, we kept going under the sprinkler system to cool off. 

Next term we will go back and re-pot them into bigger pots. The Women's Native Tree Trust will then gift them to other schools and organisations who want to plant native trees like us. This is a great act of service.

My Culture and Me

This term we have been learning about our own culture and other cultures from people in our classroom. On Thursday we had a Culture Celebration Day. Everyone shared information about our culture. Some people dressed up in their traditional costumes. Everyone brought some traditional food for a shared kai. We tried things we had never eaten before. There was a huge selection. We had boxty, blini, Chinese peanut cookies, dumplings, Canadian maple syrup cookies, milk tart, cheesy eclairs, macarons and lots more. It was a great way to celebrate who we are.

Marae Noho

All of the Year 5 and 6 students enjoyed a fantastic noho marae experience at Takipu Marae near Te Karaka. The purpose of the noho was so we could experience local marae tikanga and kawa in a real context. The noho also provided the opportunity to build whānaungatanga, responsibility and teamwork skills.

We had a great couple of days. We had a Korero from Matua Antony about Takipu marae, and the kaiako from the Tairāwhiti Museum and Matua Luke from Turanga Health came out as well. We enjoyed learning traditional Māori games and looking at how  the Horouta Waka navigated to Aotearoa in the star dome. We ate lots of amazing food and had a big sleep over in the wharenui. It was a highight of our term.

Have you ever slept at a marae before?