Wānanga: Reflection Section

 Hi there!
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In this reflection section, I will be writing about an article I read in Stuff. The article I read was called, 'Covid-19: A year since New Zealand's first reported case'.

Title: Covid-19: A year since New Zealand's first reported case

Type: Article

Creator: Georgia Forrester, Stuff

Purpose: To inform 

Date: 26/02/2021

Critical Literacy Question: What is the text about? 

This text was written to inform readers how New Zealand had it's first Covid-19 case arrive. It talks about how on the 26th of February 2020, a man in his 60's arrived in Auckland. Two days later, his Covid-19 test came back positive and he became the first person in New Zealand to contract Covid-19. It also talks about the general Covid-19 'experience' in New Zealand.

Thanks for reading!

English: What do I like?

 Hi there!

Today I will be writing about what I like, don't like and what I would change in regards to my English class.

What I like:

• I like the film we will be studying for our film study
• I like my teacher's sense of humor
• I like the '321 RIQ' blogging format we use in class
• I like they way we are learning about certain things
• I like that my teacher listens to everyone's opinion
• I like how my teacher involves everyone in the class
• I like that my class feels like a safe environment where I can express myself
• I like the topics we are learning about
• I like that my teacher listens to us before deciding what will do in class

What I don't like:

• I don't like how some people talk while the teacher is talking as it can be distracting, which therefore prevents me from working a my best.

What I would change:

• I would change what periods I have English to later on in the school day, but of course that is not possible. 

Thanks for reading!

English/Film Study: Thoughts on, 'The Boy in the Striped Pajamas'

 Hi there!

Today I will be writing a brief summary of what I thought about the film, 'The Boy in the Striped Pajamas'. 

Storyline: Bruno, a boy who is eight years old and from Berlin, Germany moves to the countryside of Europe with his sister, mother and father who is an SS Commander. We find out the reason for their moving is because Bruno's father has been appointed to control a concentration camp so close to their house, it can be seen out a window. Bruno, an avid explorer goes looking about and finds a Jewish boy called Shmuel in striped "pajamas" sitting inside the camp. 

I found the film quite numbing. I felt like this because I couldn't comprehend how horribly the Jewish people in the concentration camps were being treated by the German soldiers. I couldn't believe that people had the ability to be so terrible towards others, purely their ethnicity is different. 

I felt sorry for Bruno, because he was thrust into a world he didn't understand much about, far away from what childhood should be like. I also felt sad seeing Shmuel inside the concentration camp, he looked so fragile and afraid. Not only did he not look like a child, but he acted in a way that he wasn't too. It was such a crazy difference between Bruno and Shmuel, although they are both 8 years old their worlds are completely apart. 

Thanks for reading! 

Social Studies: Slave Trade Triangle

Hi there!

Today I will be writing about what I have been doing in Social Studies class. We have been learning about the Slave Trade Triangle, but I will be writing about the later stages of this. 

One type of song which was used was called a Spiritual. Spirituals were religious types of songs which would be sung at informal gatherings called praise houses. They were also sung at outdoor gatherings called bush meetings. The slaves would sing, chant and dance to these songs and sometimes enter ecstatic trances. These songs were used to uplift the slaves, give them hope and relay secret messages to escape. They were also sung at church, funerals and weddings if they were allowed to attend them.

One person who was an important person with abolishing slavery in America was Harriet Tubman. She created the Underground Railroad which was a system used to help slaves escape from the plantations they were stationed at. 

One spiritual song used was 'Wade in the Water' written by Harriet Tubman. The song relayed secret messages. Here are the lyrics to that song:

Chorus: Wade in the Water, wade in the water children.

Wade in the Water. God’s gonna trouble the water.
Who are those children all dressed in Red?
God’s gonna trouble the water.
Must be the ones that Moses led.
God’s gonna trouble the water.

Chorus

Who are those children all dressed in White?
God’s gonna trouble the water.
Must be the ones of the Israelites.
God’s gonna trouble the water.

Chorus

Who are those children all dressed in Blue?
God’s gonna trouble the water.
Must be the ones that made it through.
God’s gonna trouble the water.

Chorus

Tubman used “Wade in the Water” to tell slaves to get into the water to avoid being seen by their masters and sniffed out by dogs to make it to safety and a better life. 

The significance of this horrific event in history still runs clearly today. This can be seen with protests such as the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020, as well as the Black Civil Rights movement too. Songs sung by the slaves many years ago, now has inspired new music about how African American people are still discriminated against. Spiritual and slave songs influenced the following genres of music:

• Blues
• Soul
• RnB
• Gospel
• Rock n Roll
• Rap

Songs such as the following talk about the Slave Trade and how it has impacted people today:

• Street Livin'- Black Eyed Peas
• New Slaves - Kanye West
• King Kunta - Kendrick Lamar
• Roll Jordan Roll - Topsy Chapman
• Queen of the Field - Alicia Keys

Here is a map I made regarding the Slave Trade Triangle:
 

Thanks for reading!

Science: Model Atom

 Hi there!

Today I will be blogging about how I made a model atom in Science class.

Aim: Make a model atom out of beads and paper.

Method: 

1. Choose an atom to make (one between Hydrogen and Neon)

2. Work out how many protons, neutrons and electrons it has.

3. Assign protons and neutrons to particular colour bead.

4. Get a ball of blue-tac and stick the protons and neutrons to this to make your nucleus.

5. Cut out the appropriate electron shells and draw on the electrons with vivid.

6. Connect the nucleus and electron shells with a piece of string.

7. Create a label to go above the model so people know what you have created. 

Result: 

Discussion:

Leading up to making these model atoms, we learnt about the following things:

• Atomic and mass numbers
• Number of protons, electrons and neutrons in atoms
• Electron arrangement

An atomic number is the number above the element symbol. It also states what number it is in the Periodic Table. It represents how many protons are in the nucleus of a single atom of that element. The number of protons is equal to the number of electrons, so the atomic number also tells us how many there are in that atom. 

A mass number is the number that represents how many total particles, protons and neutrons found in the nucleus of an atom. If you know the mass number and atomic number of an element, you can figure out the number of neutrons in the nucleus of that atom. You can do this by subtracting the atomic number from the mass number, the answer gives you the amount of neutrons. 

I chose Lithium for my experiment, so I found out that: Lithium has 3 protons and 3 electrons. It has 4 neutrons.  

The electron arrangement for Lithium is:

Li 2,1. This means there are 2 electrons in the inner shell and 1 one the outside. Only two electrons are allowed to go in the inner shell, and the 2nd and 3rd shells can hold up to 8 electrons.

Two interesting facts about Lithium:

• Lithium is the lightest metal
• Lithium can float on water since it has a low density. 

Conclusion:

My aim worked, and I was able to create a model atom of Lithium. I would have used stronger paper to make the electron rings so it doesn't break as easily. I would have used the same element for this experiment. Overall, I liked making this model atom as I learnt more about atoms but it was also a lot of fun.

Thanks for reading!

Wānanga: Reflection Section

 Hi there!

In this blog post I will be writing a Critical Literacy text for Wānanga about the film, Guardians of the Galaxy made by Marvel. 

Title: Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 1

Type: Film Trailer

Director: James Gunn

Purpose: To entertain viewers

Date: 7/08/2014 (N.Z.)

Critical Literacy Question: What do the images suggest?

The images in this trailer suggest that the setting of this film is on a foreign planet and will be following a group of 5 prison escapists on their journeys. For example, we see this group of 5 fighting together in a prison riot to escape and find a ship to another planet. I believe the reasoning for this is to show that even the oddest of groups can come together and achieve what they put their mind to one way or another. 

Thanks for reading!

English: 321 RIQ

 17/02/2021

Hi there!

Today I will be doing another 31 RQ for English class. 

Recalls - 

• I remember learning about different camera shots in film and what they capture in the frame. 
• I remember learning that people are normally used to show the example of what camera shot is being used as people are all generally the same size and have the same proportions. 
• I learnt about different angles too, I learnt that  they can portray characters in a different way. For example, a low angle can be used to show a character is strong and important and better than everyone else. A high angle is used to show a person is weak and not important in the film. 
• I learnt about static images and how they can send messages. For example, we looked at 12 different signs from a typical Spanish train station, static images used for 'entry' and 'exit' were arrows pointing into and away from the box. Whereas in New Zealand, we have a green sign with big block letters saying 'entry'. For an exit sign, we have a green sign with big block letters saying 'exit' or, a green sign with a person running away. 

1 Question - 

• My question for today is, are there specific machines film makers use to create different shots in film?

Thanks for reading!

Home Economics Year 10 2021

 Hi there!

This will be my blog post for all the food I make in Home Economics. 

On the slideshow below, I will show my work.

English: 321 RIQ

 Hi there!

Today I will be writing about a new blogging strategy/system I will be using in English class this year called '321 RIQ'. Here is a quick summary of how it works: 

3 Recalls - (3 things I remember about the lesson)

2 Insights - (2 new things I learnt in the lesson

1 Question - (1 Question about something I didn't understand/would like to know more about)

Here is a 321 RIQ about my most recent English lessons:

3 Recalls - 

• I remember making sentences with the word 'disappearance' in class yesterday.
• I remember writing a story which had to include the following words:
• Fallacy
• Enigma
• Disappearance
• Suspicion 
• I also remember learning about different types of nouns.

2 Insights - 

• Something that I learnt last lesson was the definition of 'fallacy'.
• I also learnt the definition of 'enigma' last lesson too.

1 Question - 

• Something I still want to know more about is the different types of nouns as I found it interesting to learn.

Thanks for reading!

Wānanga: A School Holiday Summary

Hi there!

Are you bored out of your mind? Are you looking for something to read? Well, you've come to the right place! 

In this blog post I will be giving you a summary of my school holidays. 

At the beginning of the holidays I hung out with one of my friends from my previous school and went to a pool with them too. At this point, I was planning on having a very social school holiday by hanging out with my friends, but my holidays were probably the complete opposite; apart from a couple other occasions. 

However, I wasn't able to achieve this because I had a freak accident when doing athletics and led me to tearing two ligaments in my knee. I am not allowed to return to sports for 9-12 months AFTER surgery; something I am still waiting for. But there wasn't time for feeling sorry for myself, I had to prevail and beat my sadness by putting in hard work so I am in the best shape before my surgery. "Hard work" meaning, working out. Every. Single. Day. My physio routine consists of going on a stationary bike for 30 minutes 3 times a week, and then full body strengthening 4 times a week. 

Putting aside the damper put on my holidays, I went to a beach "close" (20 minutes) to my house about 6-7 times, and walked along the beach every single time which was a lot of fun. It was interesting going to the beach at different times, seeing the tide at different levels along the beachside. 

I also visited Nelson for a couple days towards the end of January as a holiday within my holidays. It was crazy to see how the climate was so different in Nelson compared to Christchurch, the temperature low while I was there was around 18°C; a definite high in Christchurch. This dramatic climate difference was also seen in the ocean water too. The sea was so much warmer in Nelson than in Christchurch, it shocked me when I first stepped in the water and felt the water wrap around my feet.

During the holidays I also rediscovered my love for PlayStation 2 games, most especially Tekken Tag Tournament. Tekken Tag Tournament is a fighting game, I discovered a different mode on this game which lets me unlock new characters for other modes. I unlocked 6 out 14 locked characters during the holidays. It would have been 7 out 14 characters, but unfortunately I forgot to save the game and lost the last character I unlocked because I expected it to auto-save. It did not. 

All in all, my holidays were good, I do wish I had done more but that is for the next summer holidays. 

Thanks for reading!