Home Economics: Cupcakes

Hi there!

Today I will be writing about how I made Cupcakes in Home Economics. 

Ingredients:

125g Margarine/Butter
3/4 c   Sugar
1 t Vanilla Essence
2 Eggs (size 7/biggest size)
1 1/2 c Plain Flour
2 t Baking Powder
1/2 c Milk

Method:

1. Cream margarine in a large bowl. Use a wooden spoon.
2. Add sugar and continue creaming until light and fluffy in texture.
3. Add vanilla essence and beat briefly.
4. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after you have added each egg.
5. Sift flour and baking powder onto a large plate.
6. Using a rubber scraper, scrape all the mixture off the wooden spoon.
7. Add 1/3 sifted flour/baking powder mix and fold in half the milk using the scraper. 
8. Repeat step 7 for the next 1/3 flour mix and the rest of the milk. Do not over mix. 
9. Add the last of the flour and gently fold this into the cake batter.
10. Carefully spoon cake batter evenly into 12 paper cases.
11. Bake at 180°C for 7 minutes then turn over to Fan Bake for a further 6-8 minutes.

Icing:
50g Margarine/Butter
100g-150g Icing Sugar
Flavour (Essence)
Colour (optional)

Method:

1. Cream together margarine, icing sugar and flavouring.
2. Spread icing onto cooled cupcakes and decorate with sprinkles if available

Remember:

• Preheat your oven
• Measure all ingredients accurately
• Gently fold in flour/baking powder (dry ingredients) alternately with the milk
• Do not over mix the cake batter
• Put the paper cases into cupcake or muffin tins before spooning in the cake batter

Icing Spatula

We used basic icing and decorating techniques when it came to that stage. For icing, we used a icing spatula (also known as a palette knife). We used generous amounts of icing so that we wouldn't have any dents in our cupcake as well as wanting it to look appealing to the eye. We also used the spatula to smooth out the icing so that there was an even layer all around the cupcake.  
For decorating, we used M&M's and licorice candy (I decided not to use licorice) 

The cupcake itself tasted like vanilla. They were fluffy and airy when you bit into them, this means that the ingredients were mixed well together otherwise they would be dense. They looked soft and spongy inside and bounced back when you touched them.  
The icing was eye-catching as it was blue. We added orange flavoured essence to our icing which tasted really good. We decided to choose blue as our colour and orange as our flavouring as it was an interesting pair, you would guess that the icing was blueberry or something to do with the sea. 

Here are some photos of my end out come:

Thanks for reading!

C.A.R.R Values Blog Post

Hi there!

Here is my weekly C.A.R.R blog post. 

I have showed the values by:

Commitment: I have showed Commitment this week by doing a Level 5 Maths e-asTTle test, one which I haven't done before and I got a score I was quite happy with. 

Achievement: I showed Achievement by finishing an assignment for Health in under an hour, leaving my afternoon free. 

Respect: I showed Respect by encouraging players in my team during P.E. 

Resilience: I showed Resilience this week by doing my work at home at my own time, while I was sick too. 


Thanks for reading!

Science: Chromatography

Hi there!

Today I will be writing about what we did in Science.

Aim: To separate the different pigments from ink using Chromatography.

Hypothesis: I think my colours will become lighter and stay the same shade as the starting colour. Resulting in one side being a light colour, slowly developing into a darker colour or black. 

Equipment: Felt tip pen, filter paper strips, test tube, measuring cylinder, pencil. 

Method:

1- Draw a line across the filter paper in pencil, 5cm from the bottom.

2- Draw a coloured dot in the centre of the line.

3- Measure out 10mL of water and place in the test tube.

4- Place the filter paper in the test tube and fold over the side. MAKE SURE THE PENCIL LINE IS NOT IN THE WATER.

5- Wait for 5 minutes and observe the results.

Observations: At first nothing really happened, but after about 30 seconds the water slowly reached the dot and it started to bleed out. 

Conclusion: No, my hypothesis wasn't correct. 

Discussion: We made sure to use cold tap water in our experiment and not to let our coloured touch the water as the experiment wouldn't work. Instead of a test tube, we used 200mL beakers and filled them to the 50mL mark. When we placed our Chromatography paper in the beaker the water started to go up slowly to the dot, eventually it reached the top of the beaker. After taking my papers out the colour looked like it was more faded than it was against the beaker. 

Evaluation: I really enjoyed this experiment, I enjoyed watching the water saturate the paper and seeing the colours spread out across the paper. I wouldn't change anything about the experiment. 

Here is a photo of my end outcome:

Thanks for reading!

Health

Hi there!

Today I will be writing about how to get help regarding depression in Health.

Agencies to help a young person in Christchurch:

• Depression Support Network
• Stepping Stone Trust

Depression Support Network:
On their website you have the option of taking a quiz/test to see if you have symptoms of depression. Also, you can read about how to tell if someone is suffering from depression or not. 

Stepping Stone Trust:
This agency has many options for youth help. They can come to you or you can go to see them, one of their services featuring Support Workers. 

These services would help improve your mental/emotional wellbeing by being a place you can go to talk to a someone you can trust as well as become happier. 

Three people at Hornby High School a student could talk to is/are:

• Counselor
• Youth Workers
• Trusted Staff Member 

Thanks for reading!

Health: Fake v Real Friends

Hi there! 

Today I will be writing real friends versus fake friends. We researched about what makes a person a genuine friend and what makes a person a fake friend. We did this by watching a video explaining this and also coming up with ideas ourselves, either from personal experience or what we thought a fake/real friend would act like. 
Here are some examples below:

Fake Friends are:

• Are being mean to you behind your back.
• Hang out with you when they can’t find anyone else. 
• Lose their temper easily.
• They call/message you when they need something.
• Try to control you & change you.
• Are jealous of your achievements/try to bring you down when you achieve something. 
• Don’t like your other friends.
• Spread rumours about you. 

Real Friends are:

• Kind to you.
• Stick up for if someone is being rude to you or being rude behind your back. 
• Constantly in contact with you.
• Accept you for who you are.
• Celebrate your achievements.
• Remember things about you. 
• Don’t judge your other friends.
• Treat you with respect. 
• Encourages you and doesn’t put you down.
• Don’t get angry at you.
• Don’t harm you.

Thanks for reading! 

Weekly C.A.R.R. Values Blog Post

Hi there! 

Today I will be writing about how I have demonstrated the C.A.R.R. Values this week. 

Commitment: I have demonstrated Commitment this week by doing my classwork out of school and doing it instead of watching T.V. which felt very productive and made me feel good for finishing it. 

Achievement: I have showed Achievement by completing all my e-asTTle tests for reading, although I still have maths e-asTTle tests to go. *sigh*

Resilience: I have demonstrated Resilience by not giving up when things got tough this week as I had to balance out of school activities with ones in school.  When I felt like it was too much I took a deep breath and refocused.  

Respect: I have showed Respect this week by listening to my teachers and being polite to them. 

Thanks for reading! 

Home Economics: Ginger Gems

Hi there! 

Today I will be writing about how I made Ginger Gems in Home Economics.

(Serves 12)

Ingredients: 

150g Butter 

1/2 cup Sugar

2tsp Ground ginger

1/2 tsp Ground cinnamon

2 Tbsp Golden syrup

1 Egg

2 cups Standard flour

1/2 tsp Baking powder

1 tsp Baking soda

1/2 cup Milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 200℃ (Fan bake). Place gem iron or muffin tray in the oven to heat.
2. Cream 100g of the butter with sugar, ginger and cinnamon.
3. Beat in golden syrup and egg, adding a tablespoon or two of flour to prevent curdling.
4. Sift flour and baking powder.
5. Dissolve baking soda in the milk. Mix flour into butter mixture alternately with the milk.
6. Remove tray from the oven and put it on a wooden board. 
7. Add half a teaspoon of butter to each mould or hollow. It will sizzle.
8. Fill moulds with batter. Bake for about 15 minutes until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
9. Cool slightly then remove gems to cool on a wire rack. 

Like last time, we used multiple processes to achieve the end out come, one of which was mis en place. 

My team worked well together again, we all took part in assembling the mis en place. Our communication was better than last time, but still needs to be worked on. 

The Ginger Gems tasted a bit like muffins with some spice in them. Their texture was soft and bouncy, when split in half they looked very springy. 

Something I would change the size of the batter, I would make it larger to make more Ginger Gems. 

Here is a photo of my end outcome and a gem iron:

Thanks for reading!

Social Studies: Alaskan Tsunami

Hi there!

Today I will be writing about the Alaskan Tsunami, something we covered in Social Studies. 

The Alaskan Tsunami happened in 1958, on the evening of the 9th of July in Lituya Bay. The cause of the mega-tsunami was the striking of an earthquake which struck the Southeastern side of Alaska. The earthquake triggered a mega-tsunami, it's maximum height reaching 524 meters high. Not only did an earthquake and mega-tsunami affect the area, a rock slide did too. 

Below is a graph showing the difference between the Alaskan Tsunami and famous landmarks:

Science: Separating a Mixture using Evaporation

Hi there!

Today I will be writing about what I did in Science. 

Separating a Mixture using Evaporation:

Aim: Separating a liquid using evaporation.

Hypothesis: I think that the copper sulfate solution will crystallize when it is placed on the element after being heated for a couple of minutes. I don't know why I think this.

Equipment: Copper sulfate solution, 250mL Beaker, heat proof mat, evaporating basin, element. 

Method: 

1. Set up element
2. Add 100mL of hot water to the beaker and place on the element.
3. Add copper sulfate to the evaporating basin until it is quarter full.
4. Carefully, place the the evaporating basin on top of the beaker. 
5. Turn on the element to 8
6. Heat the solution until most of the solvent has been evaporated and crystals of solute are forming. 
7. Turn off the element- careful not to touch as will be hot for a long time.

Observations: I saw the water in the beaker start to simmer and slowly come to a boil. Condensation appeared on the sides of the beaker and evaporation basin filled with the copper sulfate solution (which was blue), after a while the copper sulfate solution started to evaporate until almost none was in the basin.

Conclusion: No, my hypothesis wasn't correct, no crystals appeared.

Discussion: After placing the beaker and evaporating basin filled with the copper sulfate solution on the element at heat 8 we recorded what happened as it was on the element. The water in the beaker started to bubble and boil and the sides. The sides were also covered in condensation. The copper sulfate solution slowly evaporated from the basin and what was left was a thin, dry layer of the solution.

Evaluation: Yes, I enjoyed the experiment. I enjoyed it because it was interesting to see the copper sulfate solution slowly evaporate from the basin. Something I would change is how long we had to do the experiment.

Thanks for reading!

Athletics Day 2020

Hi there!

Yesterday, Hornby High School had it's school athletics for 2020. 

I competed in Long Jump (Under 14), High Jump (Under 14) and Javelin (Under 14) for field events and competed in the 100m (Under 14) and 200m (Under 14) sprints. I also ran last in the Year 9/10 Relay for my house, Riroriro. 

I placed first in both my heats for 100m and 200m and the relay team I was in won our relay. I placed 1st in the High Jump, 3rd in the Long Jump and ? in the Javelin. 

I enjoyed the relay the most as I felt like I was going to fall over my legs were going so quick! I could hear everyone cheering while I was running, it was so loud it was all I could hear! It was a thrilling day for our Kahui because we won every relay race which was really great!

I demonstrated the CARR ( Commitment, Achievement, Resilience, Respect)by: 

• I showed commitment by trying my hardest in every event. 
• I showed achievement by completing all my events. 
• I showed resilience by competing even with a sore back and calf. 
• I showed respect by congratulating my opponents. 

My goals for next year are:

• To work on perfecting my technique for sprints and getting out of the blocks more explosively.  
• Build more arm muscle for my throws and to get my arms pumping more in races.

To achieve these goals, I will need to train well and consistently. Also, I will have to do specific exercises too. 

Thanks for reading!

Athletics

Hi there! 

Today I will be writing about Athletics training in P.E. We have been doing this for a few weeks leading up to our school Athletics day. 

We trained for long jump, high jump, shot put and discus for field events and 100m to 1,500m events for the track events. We were taught how to correctly throw a discus and how to 'put' a shot put together as a class and in small groups as well. We recorded our results, here are mine below:

Shot Put: 3.50m (3kg)
Discus: 13.50m (1kg)
Long Jump: 4.20m 

I learnt how to turn my time into how fast I can run in kilometers per hour (kph)and meters per second (mps).

My mps was 7.81 and my kph was 28.1. I also learnt how to throw a discus and it was very helpful. 

Thanks for reading!

Home Economics: Scones

Hi there! 

Today I will be writing about how I made Scones in Home Economics. 

Ingredients:

3 c Plain Flour 

6 t Baking Powder (level)

1/4 t Salt

75g Cold Butter

1 to 1 1/2 c Milk 

Method: 

1. Sift Flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl.
2. Cut butter in small cubes. Rub butter into the flour, baking powder, salt gently with fingertips until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
3. Add milk gradually. Mix quickly with a knife to form a soft dough (the amount of milk required depends on a number of factors) 
4. Lightly knead the scone dough a few times on tabletop.
5. Place baking paper onto an oven tray. 
6. Cut scone dough into 12 even pieces (you can do more or less)
7. Place scones onto the oven tray. Keep them quite close together to the centre of the tray.
8. Brush scones with milk.
9. Fan bake at 180℃ for about 10 minutes.

Variations: 

• Cheese Scones

Add 3/4 c grated cheese to flour. 

Before baking top with a little cheese.

• Sultana Scones

Add 3/4 c of sultanas to flour.

I used multiple processes to achieve the end outcome. We used mis en place to organise our ingredients before making our scones. We sifted flour, baking soda and salt together to aerate them and get rid of unwanted lumps. We also rubbed butter into the flour so that it would resemble fine breadcrumbs. 

After this we made a well in the middle of the flour, baking powder, salt and butter mixture to pour the milk into slowly. We mixed it with a knife from the outside of the bowl to the inside until it resembled a soft dough. Next, my group and I took our dough out of the bowl and lightly kneaded it, not too much otherwise we would toughen the gluten and when the scones baked they would have strands in them; something we didn't want. 

My team worked well together, when organising the mis en place we all split off to get our ingredients and we worked quickly and didn't muck around. We all took turns sifting, mixing etc. so that we all put an equal amount of effort in. Something we need to work on is our communication but apart from that I think we are off to a great start!

My group's scones turned out good, they tasted good, like scones from a cafe if I am honest! Their texture was was soft and squishy when you bit into them, the tops of the scones were crispy so they added a nice texture when you ate them. The colour was golden brown on the top and were a pale yellow on the sides. The flavour which I could taste was the butter, salt and cheese. 

Something I would change for the next time I make scones I would double the recipe to make more scones and cut them so that the sizes are even as possible so they would cook for the same amount of time. 

Here is a photo of my product outcome: