Tuesday, 17 November 2015


Speech marks

http://www.iboard.co.uk/iwb/Punctuate-Me-Superheroes-Complex-Speech-2485

Monday, 19 October 2015

http://preview.nzceronline.org.nz/quiz_backbone?token=QBKSGG

Wednesday, 2 September 2015

Gyre: Creating Art From a Plastic Ocean

PLASTIC IN OUR OCEANS!

Students will investigate how much plastic they throw out and find ways to reduce their waste and impact on the environment. Students will learn about the 5 plastic-filled gyres in the world’s seas and how they impact on marine wildlife.

For the last three weeks of this term we will be writing a persuasive text on PLASTIC.
Persuasive writing is important as throughout our lives we are constantly having to persuade people.
When was the last time you had to persuade someone to do something for you? Turn and Talk. Were you able to persuade them? What strategies did you use to persuade them?
Josie Yeager is having to write a persuasive text so that she can go to San Francisco to Stanford University with the Whare Kura, Kehu Butler has to write persuasive texts to apply for funding for his trips overseas...so you see you too will at some stage need to use your powers of persuasion.

Here are some strategies:
We can use bribery: eg if you let me go to Patus house I will do the dishes.
You can use rhetorical questions eg How would you feel if you never got to go anywhere
You can exaggerate: make the issue bigger than it is
You can appeal to the person's judgement eg 'A kind person like you must understand how .....

However, they type of persuasive text you will be looking at does not require these powers of persuasion, as PLASIC pollution is a major world wide problem, and one that we do not need to exaggerate! Since I have started learning about plastic, I see it everywhere...flying around my lawns, in the gutters, grass everywhere! I see at least 50 pieces on my walk to kura each day. 
All you require is a strong opening statement, and then the main part will be the evidence to support your argument, and each video that we watch will provide you with all the evidence you require. The problem will be narrowing it down!
YOur focus should include a persuasive text. It can be in poster form or a rap, a powerpoint or movie and it should include the following:
What is the problem: or the stance you are taking eg
Plastic is killing our sea creatures…
What we do here with our plastic affects sea creatures and animals not just here in NZ but all over the world!
When is enough plastic enough?
You then need to provide examples to support this statement.
You will find this information in the videos we watch, each video sometimes leads you to another, as its not just sea creatures who die from plastic, it is birds, cows etc.  The examples are the facts, the numbers of sea creatures dying, the pollution in the river, the time it takes plastic to break down, the mercury inside fish….’what we do to the earth we do to ourselves etc….think about it we are poisoning the earth and the sea...posioning the food that we eat!
You then need to provide solutions to the problem eg what are other countries doing? how can we reduce our plastic intake? How can we stop supermarkets using plastic? What can we do at Kura? Is the plastic going in to the right bins? What if we had a container at Bayfair where our plastics went in to and people used them rather than new ones etc
You should then have a final statement summing up your argument!

watch this news story and answer the following questions:





  1. How many pieces of plastic end up in the world’s oceans every day?
  2. How does plastic get into the ocean?
  3. What can happen when plastics stay in the water for a long time?
  4. What are microplastics?
  5. Why are they harmful?
  6. What is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?
  7. Explain Boyan Slat’s idea to clean up the garbage patch?
What can be done to prevent plastics from reaching the oceans?


Discuss in pairs the effect that plastic which ends up in the ocean has on animals, people and the environment.

Record your responses on a concept map. Then complete
one of the following sentences:
  • This story made me feel...
  • Plastic that makes its way into the sea is....
  • Marine debris is impacting on...
  • It is surprising that...

YOur focus should include a persuasive text. It can be in poster form or a rap, a powerpoint or movie and it should include the following:

What is the problem: or the stance you are taking eg

Plasic is killing our sea creatures…

What we do here with our plastic affects sea creatures and anilmals not just here in NZ but all over the world!

When is enough plastic enough?

You then need to provide examples to support this statement.
You will find this information in the videos we watch, each video sometimes leads you to another, as its not just sea creatures who die from plastic, it is birds, cows etc.  The examples are the facts, the numbers of sea creatures dying, the pollution in the river, the time it takes plastic to break down, the mercury inside fish….’what we do to the earth we do to ourselves etc….think about it we are poisoning the earth and the sea...posioning the food that we eat!
You then need to provide solutions to the problem eg what are other countries doing? how can we reduce our plastic intake? How can we stop supermarkets using plastic? What can we do at Kura? Is the plastic going in to the right bins? What if we had a container at bayfair where our plastics went in to and people used them rather than new ones etc
You should then have a final statement summing up your argument!



Choose a focus for your ocean rubbish inquiry within an area of interest: Here are some ideas to help you:
  • What is a gyre? Explore the 5 plastic-filled gyres in the world’s seas and how they impact on marine wildlife.
  • What is meant by the term ‘travelling trash’? Explore the journey of plastic into our oceans. Watch this TED-Ed video to find out what really happens to the plastic you throw away.
  • What types of study and research are scientists doing to help protect marine ecosystems and wildlife? Explore and explain one study in depth.
  • What might happen if we don’t look at the marine debris problem? Think about the responsibility of individuals, communities and the government.
  • Why should we protect our oceans? Write a persuasive piece of writing explaining your reasons.
  • Marine debris is a significant global issue causing negative ecological, economic and social impacts. Explore and explain these impacts.

Awareness challenge – Are you waste wise?
For one week students (and teacher) will keep a diary to document the amount of plastic they throw away at school and at home on a daily basis.

Class brainstorm
Before starting this challenge, brainstorm the types of plastic you throw away on a daily basis. Share your ideas as a class recording your responses on your classroom whiteboard. For example, cling wrap from your school lunch, plastic shopping bags, straws, water bottles, chip packets and other food packaging. 

Audit your waste
On a daily basis, collect and record all your waste that is plastic, including the weight. At the end of the week add up how many pieces of plastic you threw out and the combined weight.  Plot your results on a bar graph.

Day
What plastic did you
throw away?
For example, cling wrap, food packaging, straws, drink bottles
Number of items
Weight of plastic
Monday



Tuesday



Wednesday



Thursday



Friday




Analyse your results and respond to the following:
  • What surprised you about the results?
  • Identify the best areas for improvement. How could you reduce the amount of plastic you throw away?
Reduce your waste
Do your part to make a change and challenge yourself by going plastic-free for a day or a week.
  • Think of ways that you can avoid using plastic that you would normally throw away. How can you reduce, reuse, recycle or upcycle plastic? For example, use paper bags to wrap you lunch, purchase milk and juice in cardboard and shop at your local farmers market to avoid pre-packaged food.
  • Did you find this challenge difficult? Why or why not? Explain.
  • What plastic-free alternatives did you use during the challenge? Describe.
  • How has this challenge impacted on your thinking?

Poster design
In small groups or as a class think about the effect that plastic pollution in our oceans has on people, animals and the environment. Record your responses in a mind map, with the sentence “Plastic pollution in our oceans is...” written in the middle.

  • difficult to cleanup because it breaks down into really small pieces (micro plastics)
  • killing marine life – species are getting tangled in plastic and are eating the plastic
  • threatening marine ecosystems
  • costing a lot of money to cleanup
  • everyone’s problem (consumers and producers)
  • affecting the food we eat and our health
  • making our beaches and oceans dirty which may affect tourism

Design a poster which illustrates one or more of the ways that plastic pollution in our oceans affects people, animals and/or the environment.  Display your artworks to celebrate seaweek and raise awareness about the issue.

Upcycling
Watch BtN’s Upcycling Kids story and then talk about upcycling as a class. Have you ever turned your rubbish into treasure? Describe your creations to other students in your class. What materials did you use?

As a class list the benefits of upcycling. Here are some suggestions:
  • reduces the amount of waste and therefore landfill
  • reduces the need for production using new or raw materials (therefore reduces air pollution, water pollution, greenhouse gas emissions)
  • unique, one of a kind products
  • saves money – for example you could upcycle your clothes into new designs
  • uses your creativity

Experiment with upcycling using recycled materials collected at home and at school.
ABC News – Researchers sample giant rubbish vortex in Pacific Ocean as part of global, clean-up proposal

TED Ed Lessons – What really happens to the plastic you throw away?

5 Gyres – What is the issue?

Behind the News – Plastic Oceans


Adrift – Marine Plastics Interactive

Tuesday, 1 September 2015

What really happens to the plastic you throw away - Emma Bryce

Catalyst ABC TV - Plastic Oceans



After watching this video you are to write a response ( 100 words)
This will include a short summary of the video.
What is your thinking, what questions came up for you while watching it. What part stood out for you? How did it make you feel and why? What can we do to make changes? How does it affect the food that we eat? How does it affect our future? What small steps can we make to change this?

PERSUASIVE TEXT: SAVE OUR OCEANS:
We are learning to write a persuasive text to persuade people to stop using plastic bags! 

  • Our persuasive text will have a strong opening statement: eg What will it take to make people realise that we are killing our oceans and sea creatures with plastic pollution. 
  • The main body of the text will contain our arguments as well as the proof to support our statement. You may need to do further research to show the numbers of sea creatures affected by this. 
  • You can use rhetorical questions, how would you feel if the food you ate was full of plastic etc
  • Your closing statement is a repeat of your opening statement and can use phrases such as: therefore it is imperative we do something now to save our oceans etc. 


Use this link for the persuasion map to help you
Persuasion map


Sunday, 23 August 2015

Kihi Ngatai part 2 year 5-6


click on the above link to watch the rest of the Kihi Ngatai story. Watch it through twice, the second time teacher and class will work together to list important keywords and phrases. Add these words to the list below.  Now use these keywords to write the next part of your story.
What are the two things that are very important to Kihi? Make sure you use them in your story.



Year 7-8 Monday 31 August
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDJVO8UzDVE

Watch the youtube clip on Kihi Ngatai. First watch it all the way through and then rewatch it, this time listing key words and phrases. Remember the keywords you will be looking for will be names, dates and places. Once you have this information you are to organise it into:

Early Life

Working Life

His life now.

Once you have this information you are to write up a report on Kihi.
Remember the first sentence should introduce the topic. eg Kihi Ngatia is a kaumatua rangatira of Tauranga moana.

You will use the above titles to separate your ideas and writing,

eg Before Kihi Ngatai was born his whanau thought they had been cursed as three of their tamariki had died before the age of 13. They went to see a tohunga who told them that they needed to whangai their tamariki in order to break the curse and so when Kihi was born he was sent to live with ........


Kihi Ngatai: WALT use keywords to tell the main points of a story.
WALT: order our writing so that it is placed in chronological order
Early Years key words
Working years keywords
Curse  died koroua
Whangai
Motutapu
Riiwa Ririnui
Return Matapihi raised by Te Puharangi Ngatai
Father sick returned to land


Dream traindriver
Railways
Forty years
Cleaner, fireman,
Thirteen years
Locomotive driver
War Korea two and a half years
Family Key words
Present day key words
Parents Tiuka and Parehuia
Maria wife gifted land
Five children boarding school education
Te Puna
Matapihi
Whangai
Motutapu
Riiwa Ririnui
Returned built house Te Puna


Walks three days
Kaumatua
Determined
88
Kiwifruit
Home Te Puna