Learning beyond expectations.

This week we have had a couple of students choose to do additional creative work, and it has been such a busy week with shows, assembly and fire men visiting as well.  Here are a few that got finished and are ready to share with others.

This is Kaye-Lani's.  She has spent 2 weeks getting this ready to share.  She got inspired to write her pepeha (which we had been discussing in class).  She brought it in to share with us and when we suggested that she record it on the ipad, she went away super excited, and created a stop motion.  She was super proud of herself.  We however said that this was by no means finished.  She then had to go back and research her Tongan pepaha so she could also include this.  This has been something Kaye-Lani has been very shy about within our class.  After the suggestion was made, she was still very apprehensive, so we tried to enlisted the help of her brothers ... In the end, we just rang home.  Kaye-Lani's mum was fantastic to chat to and within a few days Kaye-Lani bounced into school carrying her Tongan version of her Pepeha.  She shared it with us, and then added it to her Explain Everything.  She was very excited to share this today as part of our school assembly.

This is an amazing example of a student using writing to bridge not 2 languages but 3, not just English and Te Reo but also Tongan.  Seeing her now sharing her understanding of all 3 language in class as well as in this Explain Everything has been PRICELESS!!!  Well done Kaye-Lani and your family.  You guys ROCK.

This is Nicks, he is learning to use his imagination to create different stories, about a range of different things.  He has used Lego to create a scene, and has then been able to use some Lego ships and other creations to create a stop motion story.  When Nick had finished making the stop motion movie he then started learning how to record the oral story that goes with his stop motion movie. 

We can't wait to see the sequels Nick.

Simile Story challenge

What am I Story challenge!

I have two wings and a nose.
I have a tall tail.
I soar among the clouds.
I have many viewing spots, where eyes can look through to see the world below.
I fly many, many kilometres year after year to exciting destinations around the world.
What am I?


By Miss Fletcher


I have a big tail.
I love to eat fish
I soar among the sea.
I drown everyone around in fear.
I have stared in many movies, always the bad guy.
What am I?

By Braeden


I have a frame.
My frame comes in different colors.
You can see through me.
I am used for reading.
I have two arms and two big glass eyes.

What am I?

By Ronan

Maths workshops

Heidi has the iMovie bug!!!

Today we had our maths workshops.  We decided to take some short snippets of things we were doing.  Heidi saw the opportunity to step up again... Not only has she volunteered to run one of our workshops next week but she also wanted to create an iMovie to show others what we do.

She worked with Legacy and Stella to get this movie published in time to share at our assembly in the afternoon.  

Pretty impressive.

Stop Motion Movie Making Instructions

This week during writing time children working with Mrs C Monday and Wednesday were asked to make a  movie explaining the steps of stop motion.  

Their first task was to discuss the steps that needed to make a movie.

Write these down clearly for others to read and listen to.

Record the scenes that supported each of the steps.

Piece it all together using iMovie - including adding the written steps.

What a great result they have come up with.  Ruby, Nicole and Heidi did a great job of piecing it together and they did a great job of sharing it at assembly.  Well done.

Heidi I am so proud of you for stepping up and volunteering.  This was not your writing group but when you saw and opportunity to get yourself involved you grabbed it (and nailed it).  To be honest, once you saw the opportunity to get involved.  MAGIC!!!

Butterfly Life Cycle

Here is a presentation that Maia and Laylah created following the visit from the Butterfly Lady.

They researched their facts. 

Then decided what to write on each slide.

Next they added their pictures (and took pictures), to match what they were saying on each slide.

Finally they added their voices to each slide to make it more interesting.

They thought it was a shame that they didn't do this in the first term when there were so many caterpillars chrysalis and butterfly around our classroom.