Friday 29 November 2013 45 min Inquiry]\

At the Tauranga Port mrs Mills took a picture of logs that are stacked. These logs come from Asia and are shipped back to them for lots of different uses. The logs are mostly pine trees and we use them for paper, toys ETC. The logs are taken by truck to the port and then they can ship the logs to Asia. Most of the pine tree's come from the northern, east side of the North Island.


The logs are taken onto cargo ships where they are imported to Asia. The port of Tauranga sends about 5.6 million dollars worth of logs each year, thats 14% of their making! Once we collect the pine trees they come by logging trucks and take them into the port of Tauranga. When they get the pine tree's the port stacks them in triangles before taking them onto the cargo ships. The cargo ships take them to asian factories where they make paper ETC, but is is not that environmentally good.

Wednesday 27 November 2013 45 Min Inquiry

The four pictures are of a Totem Pole, Inuit Boots, Tiki and a Boomerang.

The Inuit boots are originated from greenland and are worn by Arctic aboriginal people. The are made from seal skin or reindeer hide, they wear them to be more warm and silent when hunting preys.  They look like very high boots and have art painted on them.

The other photo was of a Totem Pole. They are made by Native Americans with the trunk of a Thuja Plicata tree. They paint them with red and white paint and place them in forests.

The Tiki is a large wooden carving or by stone. They are made by Maori's in New Zealand and they are mostly named after the Maori gods. They are placed inside Whare's which are a traditional place where Maoris sleep and do kapahaka performances.

The last picture is of a Boomerang  that are a wooden throwing tool. They are made flat and designed to spin. Once you throw it it circles back around to the thrower. The Australian Aborigines use them for hunting but most of us use it for entertainment. It is one of the icons of Australia.

What all of these have in common are that they are indigenous to all these tribes.

27/11/13 Maths Problem Solving

Today we did maths problem solving but our team didn't finish. I am in green team and in green team are me Zane, Jacob, Lauren, Sharnae and Caitlin.
I contributed by quickly finishing our algae rhythm equations. I  learnt by watching other people that you do the X axis before the Y.

45 min Bow Hunting

Last Saturday Mrs Mills went to Huntly to bow hunt for koi carp. She was hunting them because they are a pest. They eat native fish and their eggs. They pollute the water by stirring up the mud and it kills native trees. Koi carp can grow up to 80cm and can weigh up to 10kg.

Mrs Mills went bow hunting last weekend because the koi carp were spawning (breeding) and they come into the shallows to do this.

Bow hunting is a sport that requires a bow and arrow. You also need a line attached to the arrow so you can retrieve the fish and arrow. You do not need a license in NZ to bow hunt. It has been around since the Victorian era.

Mrs Mills caught 6 koi carp. She didn’t throw them back into the water because you can receive a fine.  She left them on the side of the lake and they were taken by some fishermen.

Which Button Would you Push and Why?

I would push the grey button because of how easy life would be. I would wake up and pick up my toothbrush. Whenever I am lying down in my bed I would just fly my breakfast into the bed but there are some disadvantages. You would become really lazy and you would not take anything seriously.

Summer Sports P.E

We have started to play our summer sports. This week our class room played Tennis.
Me and Zane practiced tennis on tuesday block 3 and today we played a couple of games. One thing I learnt while I was playing was that to get your angle right and to move to the ball. I have improved my back hand and Zane and I won 6 games together.

Beyond the Story Competion

I looked across the shore line of Somalia as the sun beamed into my grey dusty glasses. I turn around to see the satellite. I can see a small red dot coming towards our giant, red rusty boat. The clear blue waves crash against the boat with no effect. It was exactly 12:35 and I knew that the coast of Somalia was known for pirates. BANG!

Four men with AK-47s bust through the door like a wrecking ball.

“Get on the Ground!”

I dive down on my hands and knees and start to crawl to the radio but suddenly a gun pushes against the back of my sweaty head.

“Stand up!”

I slowly turn around like a turtle and stand up. When I was half way from standing up I saw an emergency card that had the diagram of a life boat located at the back of the giant MV Maersk Alabama. I grab the rusty desk that is in front of me and pull myself up.

All of my crew in front of me. Terrified. Scared. I couldn’t stand to see them like this. I think to myself that I am the captain and I have to do something.

“Where is the money?”

“I haven't got any.”

Suddenly one of the pirates grabs their gun and sprays bullets into the air leaving holes above us causing light to flood in.

“WHERE IS THE MONEY?”

All of my crew put there hands up all at the same time.

“I don't have any.”

I try to say it in the most convincing way possible when I know there is a safe underneath the table.

“Fine. You choose captain. Either I kill all of your crew or I take you with us and keep you until we get to shore?”

A hot drop of sweat slowly crawled down the side of my face. It got caught by the cold thin barrel of the black AK-47. This was the end. There I stood with my hands in the air waiting for the sound of death. Then someone grabbed me viciously and pulled me out of the room. All four of the pirates and me ran to the lifeboat leaving my crew behind. I was being dragged like a dog trying to get away from a needle. He threw me in the lifeboat and my head crashed against the side of the seat. The boat looked like a small peanut but more disgusting. There was beef jerky and a life jacket neatly tucked under the bright orange driving seat. As the pirates hopped on I looked out the window to see my crew trying to call for help but they looked like they were struggling.

The sound of the motor whirred and rumbled the boat. We raced off, crashing through the waves and I wasn’t sure if anyone would find me but the only thing I could do was lie there and hope for the best. It had been an hour but it felt like I was slowly dying by burning ashes. Suddenly, a pirate stood up with an idea.

“Why don’t we use the radio to get more security when we get off?”

I looked up with anxiety to see the four pirates looking at each other like they had won lotto.

Suddenly wind started to gush against my back, but I could hear a swishing above us. I quickly look out the window to see a chopper circling us. My crew really did call for help. That made me have some hope but only an inch.

Days and days go on and every single one is worse and worse. On the third day even the pirates look like they can't take more but one of the pirates keeps on telling them to not give up and that we can make it to shore. We were all out of food and none of us could go on. It was happening again; the end was coming but there was something else coming towards us. I could see a black life boat with five other men and they were all carrying guns. This was my ticket back home, I didn't know if I was seeing things or it was real but It made me feel more alive.

Waimarino Why other schools should go

On the 7th of November our class went to Waimarino for a class trip. There are many reasons why other schools should go to Waimarino but the main reasons are children would manage themselves, relate to others, think, use signs and text and participate in activities. 

When we got there we first got a kayak each and paddled out to the river. Once we all got out there we rafted up in a circle while grabbing other peoples kayaks, then we had to think. Then we learnt what to do when you fall out of a kayak and how to get back in. We also played a game of sharks and fish. Then we all got out and had a shivering lunch.

After lunch we went to do the water activities. There was the Tarzan Swing, UFO, Gladiator Pole, Blob, Diving board and Hydro slide. When we were there It was pouring down with rain so we didn't have to get in the water to get wet. We had to use signs and text to get on activities because there was signs on each activity then once we got on we had to relate to others.

The weather started to clear up but that was the end of the day. I think other schools should go visit Waimarino because of the fun activities and the things you learn. When we were there the weather wasn't the best but we still had heaps of fun. I hope that Waimarino will keep improving and I know that Im coming back.

Week 4 Homework

For the past 2 weeks we had to finish 50,000 energy points on Khan Academy and The Drug Webquest.

For the Khan Academy I got 39,337 and I didn't do the Drug Webquest except for number 10 and 2.