Making Our Fossils

We decided to make our own fossils.  To do this we took a ball of play dough and flattened it out slightly.
We then pressed our shape into the playdough (frogs, dinosaurs, shells and leaves).
We  took our shape out and then with a finger very gently put a small amount of cooking oil onto the mold.  This was to stop the plaster of paris sticking to the play dough.
We then put some plaster of paris on top of the mold and then left it to dry.
Look at our great fossils.

Making Fossils

Making Fossils on PhotoPeach

Different Types of Fossils

Trace Fossils
Some of the most interesting fossils don't even belong to the animal. They are the marks the animal has left behind, they can be footprints, impressions of the skin or droppings. These are called trace fossils and can be very useful to scientists as they can tell how the animal lived. Nests and eggs also give information of an animal's lifestyle. It is usually easier to identify a particular animal from a nest or fossilized egg rather than from a trace fossil.

Mold Fossils

This is an imprint of an animal or its trace. A shell can make an imprint in the sand. After the sand hardens the shell can dissolve and leave a spave in the shape of the shell. This space is called a mold fossil. When the sediment hardens into rock a fossil is formed in the same shape as that shell.



Fossils

Our new inquiry topic is Fossils and we are loving it.
When an animal or plant dies it's usually eaten or rots away to nothing. Sometimes its remains can be buried quickly and may be fossilised. This usually happens if the aninal has died in or near water.

This is the Process of Fossilisation
1.  Before the bones break up in the sun, the water rises and covers them with a layer of sand.
2.  The soft body parts such as muscle and skin rot away and the skeleton falls apart but bones
and teeth remain.
3.  Minrals in the bones are dissolved and are replaced with minerals from the ground.  Over time the sand and mud layers build up and harden to form sedimentary rock.  This can take millions of
years.
4.  Soil is washed away which can expose the fossil and can be found by
anyone.                                

Wire Scupture Athletes on PhotoPeach

Cross Country

Cross Country on PhotoPeach

LEOTC - Enviro Art

We started by viewing artworks by Environmental artists who use objects found in nature to create sculptures. Their works usually focus on shape, space, texture, and colour. Two of the artists we looked at were Martin Hill from Wanaka and Andy Goldsworthy.  We walked down to Bremner Bay and created our own amazing works of art.
Here are a few, tell us what you think.





































Before coming back to school we collected driftwood to make mobiles - what do you think?

Art - Making Wire Sculptures

Today we began making wire scuptures of Olympic athletes.

First we looked at Elizabeth Berrien, Helen Godfrey and a few other artists who create some amazing work from wire.

We sketched what we want our sculpture to look like and then began our own sculptures.

LEOTC - Bike Skills

On Thursday, 2 August we had a bike skills day. We started off by being put into groups of four and then were given the challenge of construction a bike out of newspaper and sellotape. For some, this was indeed a challenge.

What do you think of some of our results?

Then we jumped on our bikes and moved around in groups completing bike skills. Phil Vink also came along and did bike and helmet checks for us and showed us how to ride on the road safely.

LEOTC - Mt Iron Walk

On Thursday, 26 July we left school at 9.15 am and walked to the base of Mt Iron where we had a morning tea stop. A few of us wanted a drink, but the fountain was still frozen. We made our way up Mt Iron in a long line - some of us fitter than others, but we all made it eventually. We had lunch at the top, a bit of a look at the view and some even got their sketch pads out as they were so inspired by the view.

We made our way down again (a lot faster than going up), had a quick stop at the bottom for a drink and then continued on our way to school.

Hunter was so proud of himself as he said that is the furtherest he has ever walked in his life. Way to go Hunter

London 2012 Mascots Film 3 - 'Rainbow Rescue'

Visual Art - Sewing

Room 15 have been busy sewing this week. We drew the Olympic Rings onto hessian using a cardboard template, then with running stitch and the correct colours we stitched around the rings. To achieve this we had to learn a few skills first - these were:
Threading a needle, knotting the wool and learning the stitch.
It looks easier that it actually is - most of us got tangled a few times but luckily we managed to sort that out.
We have been having a lot of fun.





Liam showing Jasmine how to knot her wool and begin on the next circle.












Layton, Harrison and Ewan busy working on their sewing

Play these fraction games

London 2012 Mascots Film 2 - 'Rainbow Rescue'

London 2012 Mascots Film 1 - 'Rainbow Rescue'

Dance beginning from the Olympic Rings

We used the olympic rings as an idea for dance. First, in groups of five, we linked up as the olympic rings to try and feel how the games brings athletes from all over the world together. Next, we made up a short dance beginning in the olympic rings position. We had to come apart, twist, turn and end the dance back in the olympic rings position again. We shared these dances with each other and had a lot of fun doing it. Here are a couple we would like to share with you. We hope you enjoy them.

Mascots

Wenlock and Manderville are the mascots for the 2012 London Olympics. Watch the videos above and follow their story.

Olympic Games - What do the Olympic Rings stand for?

This is the symbol used on the Olympic flag  for every Olympic Games. 
The five circles represent the 5 continents of the world:
* Europe
* North and South America
*Asia
*Oceania  (Australasia)
*Africa
and the meeting of athletes from throughout the world.

These five colours were chosen because every country competing has at least one of these colours on their flag.

Dear Diary - by Will

Read our Awesome Writing

THE MAGIC BOX
I WILL PUT IN THE BOX…
THE ROAR OF A HUNGRY LION IN A JUNGLE NINE MILES AWAY
THE CRASH OF A TREE FALLING TO THE GROUND DURING A THUNDERING ROCKFALL
THE ECHO OF WAVES ROLLING ONTO A SILENT GOLDEN BEACH

I WILL PUT IN THE BOX…
THE FRESH SMELL OF SPRING AS I WALK OUTSIDE FIRST THING IN THE MORNING
THE WHIFF OF A FRESHLY CUT PEACH
THE AROMA OF OPENING A BRAND NEW BOOK

I WILL PUT IN THE BOX…
A DOG WALKING IN THIN AIR
A FIRE MADE OF ICE IN THE MIDDLE OF A SLOW FLOWING RIVER
A SCHOOL SKY DIVING TOWARDS ‘HIDDEN LAKE’

I WILL PUT IN THE BOX…
A WORLD MADE OF CHOCOLATE
A DOG WALKING A PERSON TO THE ZOO
1000 MICE IN ONE SMALL MOUSE HOUSE

MY BOX IS FASHIONED FROM DIAMONDS, GOLD AND SILVER IN THE SHAPE OF A DRAGON. ITS HINGES ARE MADE FROM ANCIENT SNAIL’S TOES. THERE IS ONE MAGIC KEY, AND ONLY ONE!

I WILL TRAVEL IN MY BOX OVER FIELDS OF FIERY RED POPPIES AND END UP IN THE SNOWY MOUNTAINS OF NORTHERN CANADA

By Liam

Will

 I am a good friend and love to play

I wonder about space and if aliens really exist

I hear the giant stomping as he passes the buildings

I see space as it comes closer and closer

I want a helicopter to fly over the mountains and valleys

I am a good friend and love to play

 I pretend to be on stage singing to my friends

I feel the dragon’s skin as it lifts me off the ground up into the clouds

I touch magic berries in an enchanted forest

I worry about a comet hitting the earth in one second

I cry when someone laughs at me just because I have something different

I am a good friend and love to play

 I understand why mum gets cross at me when I’m naughty

I say people who are good will have a really happy life

I dream of living in a world of magic where wishes come true

I try to win 1^st place in a race

I hope to take a trip around the world especially to see my cousin in England

I am a good friend and love to play

By Will 

Trip to Cromwell

Mathletics

Inquiry - Goldmining in Central Otago

Our inquiry topic this term is goldmining in Central Otago.  The area is celebrating 150 years of goldmining.

Everyone in the class had to make a Miner's Permit before we were allowed to begin, as miners were not allowed to mine for gold without one.

Last Wednesday we all had a turn at learning to gold pan, this was a lot of fun and everyone found some "gold"!!!

Olivia's grandad came into school last week and showed us five nuggets of gold that he has had for 30 years.  These gold nuggets came from the Cardrona River and had a value of $4000.00.  We were all very surprised at how heavy they were.

Middle School Duathlon

We had a great day for our duathlon, the sun was shining and there was a lot of cheering from the spectators throughout each race - great to see, well done.  Here are a few photos of some of Room 15 as they run down the last hill to the finish line.

Instruction Writing

We are learning to write instructions learn. Use this interactive site to practice making sure your instructions are clear.

Tell Us What This Message Says!!

How Does Popcorn Pop?

The popcorn kernel has tiny droplets of water inside. When this water heats up it turns to steam and builds up pressure inside the popcorn kernel. When the pressure finally becomes too much the kernel explodes and the two sides fold back on themselves, exposing the white starch.

Progress Report 1 on Popcorn Seeds

On the 8th day after putting our seeds into the cups we checked them and here are some of the results:

Both of the above photos are of the cup that was kept in the dark.

This photo on the left is of the cup that was kept in the light.

Maria Gill - Author

Today we had a visit from Maria Gill from Auckland. Maria is a non-fiction children's author who enjoys writing about conservation.
She explained how she became a writer and what is involved in writing a book.  It can take quite a long time from writing the book until it is published, sometimes 2 years. 
Maria read us part of the story of The Call of the Kokako.  This is a beautiful book about the endangered bird, the kokako (known as the mysterious grey ghost). Now we have to read the rest to find out what happened.  Half the book is pictures and information about the birds and the other half is a story about saving kokako in the Matahina Forest.
She also showed us her book
New Zealand's Hall of Fame: 50 Remarkable Kiwi.
This is an colourful non-fiction book on famous New Zealanders
such as Sir Edmund Hillary (Climber), Dame Susan Devoy
(Squash player), Sir Peter Jackson (Film Maker), Margaret Mahy
(Children's Author), and many more.

Bike Wise Day

We were supposed to be having a bike wise day today (Wednesday).  It was cancelled because of the rain, so will now hold it on Friday. We bring our bikes and helmets to school and take part in fun activities that will be set out on the school field, such as:
Slow Bike Race
Circuit which includes weaving between road cones, riding under the high jump pole, riding along a wooden plank
Riding a figure of 8
Riding around tight U shapes and then winding through cones
We will attach some photos from the day.

Wow, what a fun day we had.  Some of the senior students (Year 6) came out and gave us a hand as well.  They were great - checking our helmets for us, helping us with activities.  The slow bike race was really funny - very difficult though because you needed great balance so you didn't fall off.
We hope you enjoy the photos.

Facts About Popcorn

Here are some facts we have found out about popcorn!!!
Popping corn kernels are harder and drier than ordinary corn.
The pericarp (the outer covering that protects the kernel) is hard fibre and makes your poos float.
People have been eating popcorn for over 7000 years.
The oldest known popcorn was found, still fluffy and white in a bag attached to the belt of a mummy in Chile.
In the 1700's colonial women made the first tasty breakfast cereal by pouring milk and sugar over popcorn.
The popcorn kernel is actually a seed.

Parts of the Popcorn Plant

We looked at the popcorn plant and labelled the parts.  Hopefully our seeds will grow into a plant as healthy as this.

Growing Popcorn Investigation - Fair Testing

We began an investigation on Friday with growing popcorn seeds.  Investigation: How do Popcorn Seeds Grow the Best?
Things We can Change or Vary: Depth of the seeds, types of seeds, light or dark, warm or cold, water or no water
Things We can Measure: Length of stalk, how fast it grows, how many grow

Today, Monday, 5 March we put a piece of paper towel into four plastic cups.  Next we put six seeds down the outside of each paper towel. Then we added two dessertspoons of water to each cup. Finally we placed each cup in its position (ie warm, cold, dark or light) .




This is our Investigation
My Question: Will Popcorn grow better in the Light or Dark?
I will Change:  We could choose from putting one in dark and one in light or one in warm and one in cold.
I will Measure: We decided on 'How High the Plant will Grow'.
I will keep the Same: Same amount of water, seeds from the same packet, same type of cup, same type of paper towel, same amount of water, seeds on outside of paper towel.

We will keep you informed of our popcorns progress.

Wanaka A and P Show

On 9 and 10 March this year is the annual Upper Clutha A & P Show, which is held in Wanaka. It is the second largest agricultural and pastoral show in the South Island. This is mainly an agricultural show, judging farm animals, horse riding events, home baking, crafts etc and selling farm machinery and vehicles. There are hundreds of stalls selling food, clothing, toys, items people have made, basically anything you can think of. It is one of Wanaka's major annual events and is supported by the whole community.

Every class at each of the schools in the area put in some artwork. This is not judged, just for people to look at.
We are finishing our artwork at the moment and will put some up on the blog when we have finished in the next couple of days.

We looked at the Gerbera flower.  It looks like a single flower, but is actually hundreds of individual flowers.

Kimiya

Will

The petals were made by cutting shapes from paper and the centre has been given texture by using rice.





We each made a quarter section of a flower, then put them together to make whole flowers.
                                                

This is how our artwork looks all put together ready for the Show

Parts of the Plant

As part of our Popcorn unit today we looked at the parts and functions of a plant.  What the parts are called and what function each part has.

Inquiry - Popcorn

We have begun our unit on Popcorn with a KWHL Chart (What we Know, What we Want to Know, How we are going to Find Out).  We will fill out the last part of the chart (What we have Learnt) at the end of the unit.
We are now looking at the life cycle of popcorn.  We will add some of these when they are completed.

Some of our Friendship Recipe's

My Friendship Recipe  -  By Will

Ingredients
1 level cup of love
1 raised teaspoon of kindness
3 cups of thoughtfulness
1 bucket of smiles
10 scoops of laughter
3 tablespoons of respect
3 pinches of finely chopped arguments
Method
1. Add the love and kindness into a bowl
2. Mix together
3. Add the arguments
4. Toss in the thoughtfulness, smiles, laughter and respect
5. Serve on a platter of trust

My Friendship Recipe - By Layton

Ingredients

2 generous scoops of respect

3 cups of laughter

1 cup of caring

3 tablespoons of sharing

4 tablespoons of responsibility

2 cups of helpfulness

1 cup of trust

Dash of bad attitude and sadness

Method

1. Add the respect into a bowl
2. Stir in the laughter, sharing and caring
3. Mix together with responsibility, trust and helpfulness
4. Add bad attitude and sadness
5. Marinate overnight and serve

Square Dancing

We have been practicing a square dance with Room 16 to the "Popcorn" music.  It has been a lot of fun because this music has a great beat.  It is quite bouncy like popcorn popping.  It has been a bit tricky to pick up the steps  and all keep in time, but we think we have just about mastered it.

Maths

In class we have been focusing on basic facts, trying to get them up to speed.  We are trying to have them instantly rather than working them out.

Games help with this.  Try some of these.

Modigliani

Today we started looking at the artist "Modigliani". He was an Italian painter and sculptor, who worked mostly in France. He became known for his modern style. His graceful paintings are known for their elongated heads and necks, some of the faces have the look of masks.
We sketched our pictures onto black paper and will complete with pastels. Once finished we will attached some to our blog to let you see the results.

Here is some of our artwork. We think they are fantastic  -  What do you think?

By Holly

By Olivia

 

By Liam

By Emily

Graphs

In Room 15 we have been learning about graphing.
Pictographs
First we looked at Pictographs - This is a way of showing information using pictures
We looked at the different eye colours in our room and which way we all travel to school.
To gather the information we used a tally chart, then we put this information on to our pictograph.
We then came up with statements that explained our graph.

Bar Graphs
We then moved on to bar or column graphs. These show the information in bars or columns.
We still use the tally chart and explain our graph using statements. We are looking at coming up with our own question, then following through the same process.
We are all enjoying this and are looking forward to the learning more.

Quad Bloggging

This term we will begin quad blogging with two schools in the UK and one school in USA.  We will all take turns at reading each others blogs and leaving comments on them.  This is very exciting and we are looking forward to contacting the other schools now that we are back at school.  The schools are:
Crowcroft Park Primary School, United Kingdom - Teacher: Helen Jackson
Huntingtower Primary, United Kingdom - Teacher: Dina Lord
Mossman Elemengary, United States - Teacher: Peggy Shoemaker
Maybe you would like to look up these schools and see what they are up to

Respect

Our value for this term is 'Respect'.  This is about respecting ourselves, each other and our school.  For others to respect us, we have to respect them.

Welcome to 2012

Welcome back to Room 15's blog for the beginning of 2012. We have all come back fresh and ready to learn after a great summer break and are all looking forward to a fun and exciting year.