Room12Space

2009 Highlights

2009-12-11T14:43:00.005+13:00

Writing - Personal Voice Journal 2009

2009-12-11T13:32:00.001+13:00

We wanted to improve our use personal voice in our writing. This ebook is the creation of our best efforts from the journal entries we have been practising on.

Lc12 Personal Voice Journal 2009

Patterns

2009-12-01T12:18:00.004+13:00

This week we started learning about patterns and algebra. The interactive lesson below helped us learn about what a 'pattern', a 'core' and 'extending' is.

This is the best definition from the class, by Ben C and Ben w

Measurement - Time

2009-11-27T09:26:00.001+13:00

Inquiry Survey

2009-11-25T15:29:00.001+13:00

Diana's Inquiry team would like you all to complete this survey. Thanks everyone!

Captain K.C Hall of Fame

2009-11-25T14:24:00.006+13:00

Last week we started the 'Captain K.C' (Key Competency) for the class. This person wears a landyard and looks out for other people displaying the K.C. focus traits for the term.

This term our focus is on 'Managing Self.' We decided that some traits of this K.C are

- Being tidy and organised

- Staying focussed

- Staying on task

- Using self control

- Following instructions

At the end of each day the Captain K.C chooses who will replace them tomorrow. Here is the HALL OF FAME - students who have been Captain K.C. so far!

Hauora Inquiry Blog

2009-11-20T12:42:00.006+13:00

This week we started our Tri Teams Inquiry Projects. We want to find out - 'What does Riverdale School do to benefit the Hauora of it's community of leaners?'

Here's a link to the blog that will track each groups progress. Today we started a mindmap of our 'What we know, don't know and how we'll find out' thinking. You can check this blog for updates on how we're going.

Earthquake Hits Palmy

2009-11-19T10:12:00.002+13:00

This morning we had a 5.1 earthquake! We talked this morning about what causes earthquakes and found a neat site with some interactive graphs.

Geonet.org.nz

LC.12 - Our Story

2009-11-19T06:51:00.002+13:00

I've just started making a collage of the pictures and movies we've taken over the past year. This is made on 'Vuvox' and might be what we publish our inquiry projects with.

Wordle - Personal Experience

2009-11-17T11:40:00.003+13:00

Here's a wordle I've created using Kate's story about 'Pain!' We're going to create one of these using the published version created on google docs. These are a great way to get a visual depiction of the word pictures we are making with our writing!

Sandbox Time

2009-11-17T09:59:00.002+13:00

Here are some fun online activities for our sandbox time. Remember - these are for when you have completed your S.D.L. tasks for this week!

1. Samorost 2

2. Wiglingtonandwenks

3. Jumpstart

Post Home - Week 5, Term 4

2009-11-10T06:27:00.007+13:00

Hi, all parents and friends of L.C.12,

6 weeks are all we have left of this year! Are you all preparing for Christmas - making plans with relatives and thinking about the summer holidays? It coming up VERY fast. Here are some details about what we have in the next few weeks and I'll also describe some of the learning that is currently going on.

But, before I get there, you might have heard that I will be leaving the school next year? My family are I are relocating to Southland in January - following the Ranfurly Shield! We have often talked about living in the South Island and the timing seems right for us to make the big move. It hasn't been an easy decision and Riverdale is a difficult community to leave. I'll always feel a strong connection to the school where my teaching career started and I'm really grateful to all the staff, students and parents who I've been learning alongside for the past four years!

The last four weeks have seen us preparing for our speeches. You could ask your child what aspect of speech making they are practising. The topic of belonging has made us all think really hard! We've had our first attempt at them, last week, and we thought it would be an important part of the learning process to pause, reflect on what we could improve and have another go. You can see our speeches in a video on our efolios.

Have you had a look at our Calendar pictures, displayed in the window of our classroom? You should have received an order form on Friday that you can use to buy a number of these calendars for yourself and your relatives. We have designed some pictures that illustrate what we think helps us stay well (Hauora, again). We hope you are able to support the PTA and our school by making a purchase.

We have said goodbye to Mrs M. She was with us for 4 weeks and really enjoyed having her learning with us. She will be teaching at Aokautere School next year and wish her all the best! I'm sure she'll be an amazing assett to their school - especially now that she's a 'google apps convert'.

Speaking of which - have you had a chance to see your child's efolio? This is, of course, our version of the school's portfolio and the place for us to reflect on our learning but also to celebrate the success as well. Please come in to school after 3pm and have us show you the efolio on the school's computers if you have limited acess to one. The students LOVE showing people their progress. There are links to their efolios on our class blog, too.

Did you know that there is a school calendar on our school website? It's on the calendar page and will be a vital tool to keeping up with all the dates for events coming up in the next month. For example, there is our school athletics day on the 24th of November. This is at the Massey Track and open to all parents to come and enjoy the fun. Please make use of this tool, especially as we get closer to concert season next month!

Don't forget to drop me an email at any time, for any reason. Have a great week!

Mr H
(markherring.riverdaleschool@gmail.com)

Speeches

2009-11-05T14:46:00.003+13:00

W.A.L.T - present an amazing and interesting speech!

LC 12 are in the middle of presenting their speeches to the class. Our topic is, 'Belonging!' For the last three weeks we have looked at what makes an amazing speech, drafted our first ideas, given each other feedback (according to the success criteria we created) and been practising hard.

Here's Ben giving his speech on the belonging that comes from playing in a soccer team! Well written and presented, Ben.

LC12 has a Maths Champion!

2009-11-05T14:34:00.004+13:00

Diana has proven, once again, her amazing mathematical ability by gaining a 'High Distinction' in the NSW Maths Exam. This means that she is placed in the top 1% of all the students who entered.

Congratulations, Diana!

Hauora at Riverdale School

2009-10-28T13:04:00.003+13:00

Here's the start of our brainstorm map that shows what we do at our school to promote our well-being. We made it using 'Mind-meister' and heaps of fun collaborating online. Our next step is to make individual maps of our OWN wellbeing. This should show us the areas we are really strong in and the area we need to develop because balance is important.

Art Intensive - Week 2

2009-10-28T12:28:00.002+13:00

Last week we had two days of art! We were creating some masterpieces for the inter-school art expo this weekend.

WALT: use symbolism to represent an aspect of Hauora. (Making stained glass windows)

What do you think of our finished product?

Speeches and Pow-wow Pals - HOMS

2009-10-28T12:21:00.003+13:00

Here are the Habits of mind that we're practising when we are preparing and presenting our speeches and also during our Pow-wow pals (part of our oral language). We're hoping that we get better at we think is the most important for these activities - 'Communicating with Clarity and precision.' - What does your child think this HOM means?

Doodle for Google

2009-10-19T06:39:00.002+13:00

The final 20 entries for the Doodle for Google competition have been announced. Our school entered five fantastic logos from the Senior Team. Unfortunately they were'nt among the finalists but here's a link to view the ones who are.

Kiwi Kids doodle new Google logo

Well done to our entrants!

Post Home - Week 2, Term 4

2009-10-18T21:31:00.006+13:00

Hi, all LC12'ers, Parents and friends,

Here's another update on what LC12 have been doing and what's coming up this week.

We have made some good progress in exploring our Connected context this term - 'Hauora.' The Senior Team has had three guest speakers enthrall us with some excellent messages. They spoke about making choices with our feelings, what things help build our self esteem and how to keep ours bodies healthy and fit. The student's are learning how to let their curiosity loose and ask some great questions that they may use as their personal investigation for the term We'll be starting these in a few weeks and will use class time, plus some home effort may be required. Parents, you could help over the next two weeks by asking them that great, dinner time question, 'What did you learn today?'

We have been learning some tips for answering maths word problems. The details are in a previous post but you can see some of our work here. It's interesting to hear the students admit that often they don't read questions possible and just have a guess when doing tests. This is certainly something we can all try to focus on.

Another big project for us this term is the speech competition. We are starting our drafts this week and will be talking about the Hamburger Technique. The competition is always HOTLY contested and many of us are looking forward to it. The theme for the speeches is, 'Belonging.' Look out for some speeches to come home, ready for practising!

Our K.C. focus for this term is Managing Self and we have started a 'Checkpoint' chart. This is where we can earn credits or strikes for doing 'Managing Self' type actions like completing our homework and having a tidy desk. I have earned myself a strike for not having a tidy desk on Friday (Thanks for the judging, Karina). We are also posting a self assessment grid for the KC on our efolios this week. You can see these by asking your child to show you. They would LOVE to see a comment below the post, highlighting your reflection on the aspects they manage really well and even the things they could improve. You can comment on what you observe at home but remember, a spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down! I'm a big Mary Poppins fan.

We are having two art intensive days this week, on Thursday and Friday. The artwork will be displayed at the annual interschool 'Art Expo' to be held in town. I will have more details closer to the time. Our school's theme is, 'A children's Story book.' We'll be making some stained glass windows and an entrance way to grace our exhibit. If you would like to join us during those two days, please email me or drop in and let me know. Anytime you could spend with us would be great. It's always good to have more adults in the class and the class would love to have you here.

A couple of other reminders - Don't forget that Electives start this week on Tuesday. The students are really eager to get started. There is also a Teacher's Only Day on the 9th of November. Details are on our school website - www.riverdale.school.nz You will also find our school calendar here with all the important dates for this term (Like the PTA Disco!).

Have a great week!

Mark Herring
LC12 - Teacher

Efolio Tasks

2009-10-18T20:33:00.005+13:00

1. Make your own copy of the KC Grid. Complete it by colouring the boxes and adding lines. Publish YOUR copy to your blog.
Write two goals that you want to achieve this term. Add some detail - why you choose those parts of the criteria and how you'll achieve them.

2. Copy and paste the email you sent to your new ebuddie. Write about 1 new thing you learnt about emailing and why it's important.

3. Catch up on anything, or any details, you missed from last term.

MR H's KC assess - Managing Self

2009-10-18T20:05:00.002+13:00

This is going to be our assessment tool for this term's K.C. focus. LC 12 has decided on the criteria we want to develop and I have completed it for me. You can see that my goal is to be more tidy, especially my desk (thanks Karina for the motivation!), and to remember all of my equipment for the next day, all the time.

Students - don't forget to make your OWN copy of the grid, colour in the boxes that relate to you and write a goal for the term.

Key Competency - Self Assessment
Term 4: 'Managing Self'

Managing Self Assessment

2009-10-16T14:40:00.001+13:00

Maths - Word Problems Strategy

2009-10-15T14:49:00.005+13:00

We're learning a new strategy to help us answer maths word problems. (Quite a few of us admitted that we find this really hard)

This strategy is called RQWQCQ, said rikwiksik. Here's the acronym and some photos of our working out.

The most important things were to READ the question carefully, work out the facts and the equation and then check to see if the answer is part of the multi-choice... EASY!

Managing Self - Spot checks

2009-10-14T08:44:00.005+13:00

We've decided to have some rewards and consequences for having our equipment and a tidy desk.

Here's an idea of what they'll be -

Rewards - 5 points for teams
- a credit for your MS Chart

Consequences - 10 points taken off your team
- a strike on your MS chart

Three strikes on your chart = a lunch duty. You will also gain strikes for forgetting your homebook and other 'unmanaging self' actions.

You'll never know when there will be a spot check!

Maths Interactives - Week 1

2009-10-14T06:58:00.003+13:00

Stars

- Doubling

Ducks and Giants

Place Value Games

Giants

Place value Giants

Term 4, Ready, Get Set...

2009-10-11T20:09:00.005+13:00

Hello to all L.C 12'ers and friends.

This post / newsletter is being written on our class blog (rm12space) but my 'hunch' is that for many parents and family it is being read in our paper copy - glued in our homebooks. I have discovered an easy way to print our blog posts so will have these printed for you and hot off our blog when they happen. Obviously it is great to be able to read our class updates 'fresh' off the internet but this will assist those of you who are not online. I hope this will help to keep you informed.

We are really happy to have a College Teacher with us for the first four weeks of this term, Mrs Massarotto. I'm sure we're all going to learn a lot together during her time with us.

We are learning about being healthy and whole this term. One of the models we use, from the NZ Curriculum, is the 'Hauora' Model which describes our well being as having four areas; Physical, Spiritual, Mental / emotional and Social. We'll be exploring these four areas for ourselves and our aim is to improve our well being in some way. This week we are exploring this idea in an art project, having some great speakers come to visit the senior team and each student will have a mapping activity to begin that explores their own personal well being. It'll be amazing to see where this inquiry takes us!

Our electives begin next Tuesday! I hope that you have all received a notice about the elective your student has chosen. Please remember that any money for these activities must be payed to the office as soon as possible.

Our class will be talking about the Key Competency of 'Managing Self' this term. It connects nicely with Hauora (I know I loose my sense of well being when I forget my lunch!) and with Intermediate around the corner for many is a good skill to hone. Part of these 'discussions' will be some rewards and consequences for being prepared and equipped to learn. We'll be deciding as a class what is essential for us to have at school and will let you know if we're short of anything (It will be nothing more than what we have used already). This should make for some good briefing / debriefing around the breakfast table, I'm sure.

Thanks for reading. Remember, there are lots of great photos and updates on our class blog (www.rm12space.blogspot.com) and we'd love to have you visit from time to time.

Mr Herring

Extra Efolio Task

2009-09-24T09:21:00.003+12:00

This is an activity you can do today if you've ticked all the tasks so far!

- Top 20 Progress.

Create a graph of your Top 20 Progress for the year. You can draw the graph on some A4 paper (using joves / colouring pencils) and photograph / scan it into your efolio with an explanation. Don't forget to explain what it is and add a reflection.

What type of graph would you use? Work with a buddy and have a go!

Senior Team Market Day

2009-09-20T21:12:00.003+12:00

Congratulations for a great Market Day! I hope you all had heaps of fun selling your products. Here's a link to some photos of the day. You can use them in your efolio post about the Tri Team Process.

Efolio task - Journal

2009-09-20T21:01:00.003+12:00

Use this web tool to create your journal as a tikatok book. Tikatok

1. Use riverdaleroom12 as the login and our password.

2. Create your own registered name and password once logged in.

3. Create your own book following the steps.

4. Embed your book into your efolio.

Efolio Technology post.

2009-09-18T06:36:00.003+12:00

Here are the details of what to add to your efolio post about your Tri Team Product.

1. A description about what we did, how we did it and why?

2. An embed of the Matrix. (Tell the reader which group number you are)

3. A scanned and inserted image of your prototype drawing with labels. - What did you do to get some market research and change the prototype?

4. A photo of your finished product.

5. A photo and recount of you selling your product at our Market Day (You'll have to wait until after the market Day to do this...)

GREAT JOB! - now you could commment on someone elses post.

A Market Day in Sharping, China.

Place value of Decimals

2009-09-16T06:54:00.003+12:00

Some of us are learning about decimals. This video is another way for us to get a handle on how they work.

Handwriting Week 9

2009-09-14T06:53:00.004+12:00

Women's Suffrage Day

Did you know that it took until 1893 for Women in New Zealand to get the vote? In England and the USA it took until 1914 for them to be able to vote but New Zealand was the first place to give them this right.

This change was largely due to the Women's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) and other organisations for their protests and hard work. We can be very proud that New Zealand led the world!

September Survey Link

2009-09-06T20:28:00.001+12:00

Click Here to take survey

Bookchats for Week 7

2009-09-03T13:59:00.005+12:00

Our Comprehension skill for this week is...

Amundsen, Menzies, Hillary

There is a discussion question on our Bookchat group site for you to answer this week. Read the following chapters before answering with good detail.

Cook

There is an activity on your Textterrors blog for you to complete.

I will be collecting your books on Friday and marking ALL your answer for the last few weeks!... no pressure. =)

Quick Fire - Giants / Ducks

2009-08-31T06:37:00.003+12:00

1) What is a quarter of 44?
a)9
b)10
c)11
d)12

2)What is 2/3 of 60 ?

3) Look at this image. What fractions equal 1/2? What are the same as 3/4?

4) How many lots of 1000 in 233,590?
a) 2
b) 233 and 590 left over
c) 23 and 3590 left over
d) 3

5) Mike was using his playstation when his Mum said he only had 40 minutes left for the weekend. He decided to save 1/4 of the time for tomorrow. How much time did he spend on it before getting off?

6) Bob didn't like eating cabbage. He had 12 mouthfuls left to eat! His dad said he could get down from the table if he 3/4 of it. How many spoonfuls could he leave on his plate?

7) What is the family of facts for these numbers?

a)3, 4, 12
b) 2, 8, 16
c) 7, 8, 56
d) 6, 54, 9

8) Complete these fraction word problems with a partner. (It will take you some time)

Fraction Word problems

Biotech Latest

2009-08-30T14:44:00.003+12:00

This is the start of our Tri Team Matrix. We are all adding to the assessment chart as we go.

Planet 12 is Alive!

2009-08-27T06:52:00.005+12:00

Planet 12 is a site for our class to use out of class time (before school and lunchtime if it's wet). It's a place to talk to friends, watch school related videos, find some great learning links, practice spelling and basic facts skills and tackle home challenges.

You have to register with your gmail but then you have your own homepage which you can link to your efolio, have messages posted by friends in class.

Here are some rules.

1. You must only write things that your Mum would be happy to read. (And be spelt correctly)

2. You must have your parent's permission to use it.

3. Don't post personal information like your address and phone number. (Favourite colour and food is fine)

4. Be nice and have fun.

Look for the widget on the right of our blog for updates and a link to the site.

Measurement - Week 6

2009-08-26T20:38:00.004+12:00

Click on link below and complete the measurement activities

Remember you need to use LC11 as username and password...then click on Lesson Menu

Maths Interactives - Week 6

2009-08-26T06:49:00.005+12:00

Once your have had your FIOs checked by the teacher, try these interactives with a buddy.

Giants

Stars and Ducks
Jets

2009-08-25T21:39:00.002+12:00

Here's a slideshow of our trip to Massey University's Food Technology Department. We meet some real food scientists, had a lesson on what food scientists do and had a tour of some amazing looking equipment and machinery that they use.

We're looking forward to using what we discovered to help us make our own products for the market day in week 8!

Maths Challenge

2009-08-24T06:20:00.004+12:00

Complete these in your maths books. Watch your setting out and DON'T look at the answers. Check your work with a buddy after you've finished and mark it then. =)

Stage 5ers - Rounding to 100

Stage 6ers - Rounding Money

Stag 7s - Rounding tenths and hundredths

Play this time game when you've finished.

Week 6 Preview

2009-08-23T21:55:00.005+12:00

Hi Room12ians.

I thought I'd give you all a preview of this week. It's good to have an idea of our goals for the week and what we'll be focusing on.

We'll be carrying on with our Tri Team's Biotech challenge - I hope you will finalise your product idea, carry out the market research and begin designing and making your prototype. It should be fun!

On Monday is our trip to Massey University to see some real Biotech in action. We are starting the 'Dare' programe this week, too.

Our reading focus on Comprehension will carry on this week. This week's skills is 'Evaluating'. You'll need to practise this when you complete the bookchat and txt terror activities.

I'm also hoping you will get up to date with our efolio tasks, we'll finish our google designs and get stuck into our spelling and basic facts ladder steps!

Busy, Busy!

Mr H.

Web Research

2009-08-21T08:06:00.003+12:00

A lot of you are using the net to research your Biotech products. Here's a video of some techniques to help.

2009-08-20T08:49:00.005+12:00

Measurement

Click on this link to Google Maps.... Google Maps

Can you locate you house?
Can you locate Riverdale School?
How far is it from your house to school?
How far is it from your house to the Square?

WALT - Measure distances on maps using a 'Measuring Distance Tool' online

Handwriting Week 5

2009-08-16T20:46:00.005+12:00

Kiwi Pilot's Sacrifice Saves Village

A New Zealand Fighter Pilot, Officer James Stellin, struggled to avoid crashing his Hawker Typhoon fighter-bomber into Saint-Maclou-la-Brière, a village of 370 people in the Seine-Maritime region. He was returning from a mission and is thought to have been hit by enemy flak.

He succeeded in avoiding the village but at the cost of his own life as he tried to 'bail out' before crashing. The villagers gave him a hero’s funeral and have honoured his memory ever since. The day was the 19th of August, 1944 and he was 22 years old. In 1964 they erected a black marble memorial stone to Stellin outside the gates of their church and he is still remembered to this day.

Week 5 Comprehension Skill

2009-08-16T20:44:00.001+12:00

Playdough Wars!

2009-08-14T14:47:00.004+12:00

We've been exploring Biotechnology and learning some skills we'll need for our inquiry teams - making a product for our market day in week 8.

Have you seen our blog for the Playdough Wars challenge? It has some great pictures of our teams entries and the assessment for each team. We've learnt how to research, design, make a protype and test it, modify our design, remake and market our product.

2009-08-13T14:10:00.003+12:00

Weight Challenge......

Who can solve it?? Click on the 'practice area' for challenge

CHALLENGE - Click Here

Efolio Tasks Term 3

2009-08-13T10:14:00.005+12:00

This is the list of tasks to work through for your efolios. The list will G.R..O.....W as the term goes on. Please complete them in this order.

1. Video Goals

Record your goals from week 2 on the flip camera.

Transfer the file into movie maker and export as a movie file.

Upload the video onto your efolio.

2. Google Logo

- Scan and upload a jpg file of your 1st google logo design.
- Scan your second design and your feedback page. Write a reflection on the fedback you got and what you wanted to do to make it better.
- Scan and upload your finished copy and a 'what, so what, now what.'

3. Efolio Peer Comment

Make a comment of two other blogs of people in our class. Tell them what they have done well and what they could do better next time on 2 different posts

Share your blog with three others - go to setting permisssions and add their email address as a viewer.

4. Te Reo Vocaroo
- Record yourself having a conversation with a buddy in Te Reo.
- Use Vocaroo to record and then embed.
- Say, Hi, how are you? I'm feeling ...... How are you? I'm feeling .........
- Embed into a post with a W.SW.NW.

5. Reflection
- Type up the reflection you wrote for our Parent Interviews last week. Check your proofreading!

6. Tri Team Matrix
- Embed the TriTeam Matrix (Googee Doc) into your efolio and reflect on your teams progress.
- Write about 8-9 sentences, answering these questions.
- what have you done so far?
- why have you made those decisions?
- what do you need to do next?
- what levels has your group assessed itself on the matrix so far? Why? Give evidence and what you need to do to make the next level.

Google Competition

2009-08-11T14:40:00.007+12:00

We're using the 'Doodle for Google' competition to help us learn about logos. We'll need to make some great logos to market our Bio Tech products at the market day in Week 8.

Here's our success criteria. We've got some great ideas for some themes, such as Kiwiana, ICT research, NZ bush, playgrounds or Books/words/text.

Below are some of our first efforts.

Jets Interactive

2009-08-10T21:57:00.003+12:00

Have a go at this. I BET you can't work it out! (Reverse psychology...)

Stage 6 Knowledge Quiz

2009-08-10T21:53:00.002+12:00

Stage 6 Knowledge Quiz » Make Your Own Quiz

Stage 5 Quiz

2009-08-10T21:32:00.002+12:00

Stage 5 Quiz » Quiz Question Maker

Bio Tech in action!

2009-08-09T21:20:00.003+12:00

Here are some examples of bio-tech that impact us everyday. Let's have a go at drawing the process of each procedure.

Maths Interactives - Week 4

2009-08-09T20:54:00.004+12:00

Fractions quiz

Fractions Interactive

Week 4 Comp Skill - Inferring

2009-08-09T20:02:00.001+12:00

Comprehension skill for the Week!

2009-08-02T20:29:00.001+12:00

Handwriting - Week 3

2009-08-02T19:47:00.002+12:00

What is Bio-Technology good for now?

Bio Technology has been practised for thousands of years but new things are we using it for today?

The world's population is growing larger and larger every day and we are quickly running out of usable land to grow food. Scientists and Farmers are alwys using biotechnology to discover new ways to grow better and more plentiful food sources.

They are discovering ways to grow food in bigger quantities and even inplaces where we have not been able to grow food before such as on really dry or rocky land.

There are places in deserts where biotechnology is being used to grow plants for food, even new ways to grow plants on the roofs of building in the middle of a city!

Ducks and Giants Quiz and Interactives

2009-08-02T16:07:00.002+12:00

1. Complete this quiz.
2. Complete this interactive - Booster Activity

Giants and Ducks Quiz Week 3 » Fun Trivia Maker

Stars Quiz and Interactive

2009-08-02T15:30:00.005+12:00

Read this CUTE story about Bunnies and fractions.

When you have finished this quiz, complete this interactive - Booster Activity

Stars Quiz - Week 3 » Quiz Maker

2009-07-31T11:40:00.004+12:00

Making Bread

In Week 2, we all had a go making bread. We had to follow the instructions carefully and measure accurately. We were able to see how the yeast made bubbles in the bread dough making it bigger and fluffier. Check out the link below to see the recipe we used...remember we did steps 1, 2 and 5, as we didn't use a bread tin, but you could try the other steps at home.

Bread Recipe

Week 2 Quiz

2009-07-28T22:00:00.001+12:00

Fractions, Decimals, Percentages » Create A Quiz

Handwriting Week 2

2009-07-27T21:27:00.003+12:00

John Walker Wins Gold at Montreal

John Walker is one of New Zealand's most successful middle distance runners. He is famous for winning the 1500m Gold Medal at the Montreal Olympics, this week, in 1976.

On the 31st of July Walker had a strategy of setting a fast pace and beating the others to the line. The race was actually slower than he had wanted so, on the final bend he surged past Eamonn Coghlan of Ireland to hit the lead. John Walker won with a time of 3:39.7 secs.

It was the first gold medal for NZ since Peter Snell in 1964.

Reading Term 3

2009-07-26T21:21:00.007+12:00

This term we are learning how to improve our comprehension skills. This website has an excellent chart of all the comp skills we will focus on. Can you guess what skill each of the pictures are for?This week's focus is on Visualising! Here's the activity we'll do as a class before we have a go in our groups.
Remember to practise the skill when you complete your week 2 reading follow ons.

2009-07-22T21:18:00.002+12:00

Week 1 Term 3

Have a read of this cartoon about Traditional Biotechnology (click here)

Have a good think about what each cartoon is saying as we'll be having a class discussion about them :)

Weight...Week 1

2009-07-22T20:52:00.004+12:00

Click on the Link below and you will find some activities on Weight.....

You will need to use username - LC11 password - LC11
Then click on Lesson Menu
When you have finished, have a go at the practice / warmups at the bottom of the page

weight activities - Click here

School Survey

2009-07-22T08:14:00.004+12:00

Here's a link to a school survey we need you all to fill out today. Answer the questions as honestly as you can and ask for help if you need it.

School Survey

Game of the Week - 1

2009-07-22T07:05:00.001+12:00

Multiplication Station

Click here to play this game

Bio Tech Inquiry Book

2009-07-20T14:20:00.002+12:00

I've started a Tikatok book to show our progress in our Inquiry for the term. I'll add to it as we go along. It's great that we've made this much progress already!

Welcome to Term 3!

2009-07-19T19:46:00.002+12:00

Welcome back! This term we'll be continuing to hone our skills - maths, spelling, reading, writing, P.E, art, Te Reo ... and so much more...I have to catch my breath!

We're also going to be doing this within our Inquiry focus of BIO-TECHNOLOGY! If you don't know what this is (it doesn't really have anything to do with the 'Transformers' movie), don't worry. We'll be figuring this out very soon.

Brace yourself for a great term!

Handwriting, Week 1

2009-07-19T19:25:00.002+12:00

This is what we have researched about Bio Technology.

Bio Technology is what people do when they take natural products and turn them into something we need or want. Everyone uses or is involved in it, from bakers, butchers, food scientists, farmers and us - when we eat or use things.

The first use of Biotech was 6000 years ago when people made bread, wine and beer. Biotech is

best used with the technology cycle. We're going to learn and use this cycle in our inquiry teams this term!

Term 2 Photos

2009-07-03T10:03:00.001+12:00

Last day 3D action!

2009-07-02T20:30:00.001+12:00

Have you completed your efolio? Here are some activities to do after we've cleaned up the room.

Paper aeroplanes

Paper folding crafts

Great Handwriting example.

2009-06-30T13:27:00.003+12:00

Lexus has made a great job with our visual language last week. Our aim is to practice our handwriting and present the pictures and border in a way that links with the topic.

Well done, Lexus. You've met all of the criteria by taking time and pride in your work! Keep it up.

3D shapes

2009-06-30T12:59:00.001+12:00

Here's a great example of what we've learnt about drawing 3D images. Ben has drawn his shapes based on our 2d images on the white board. Can you see his made up shape at the bottom?

Efolio tasks - week 10

2009-06-28T19:22:00.005+12:00

Welcome to the end of term 2! This weeks we'll be working through a small list of tasks to complete on our efolios. It should be a great week of reflecting on all our learning and wrapping up some loose ends -

Efolio Tasks - post in this order...

(Don't forget to upload image files in medium size)

1. Handwriting sample.

- choose your best example out of your book. This will be scanned into a handwriting folder and you should upload this as an image file.

- Reflect with these prompts - what you have learnt to get better at, what you are proud off and what you need to improve next (about your handwriting)

2. Spelling and Basic Facts progress.

- What levels have you passed for each of these and what level are you working on now?

- What has helped you succeed and what could you do to improve next term?

3. Writing Sample

- upload your writing sample, from the folder in 'my docs', and answer the following reflection questions;

- What did you do really well from our success criteria. What would you do to get better next time.

4. Science Project

-embed your powerpoint from slideshow.com (login, password on the whiteboard). Upload photos of your project if not a powerpoint.

- What did you most enjoy about this science project?

- What was your team really successful at?

- What part of the matrices would you need to improve next time and how?

- Descibe your social action and how it went. What happened?

5. 3D Shapes drawing

- Upload your drawing.

- What, So What, Now What?

6. Term Reflection

Write your reflection from your draft books (we will have had time in class to draft this). It will be based on your projection letter to yourself.

- Copy and paste your projection into this post to keep the two together.

Expo this weekend!

2009-06-26T08:52:00.003+12:00

Are you coming to the expo this weekend. The hall will be open from 3-7pm today and from 8.30am until 1.30pm tomorrow.

It will be jammed full with all sorts of science action from around our school and we would all love to show you around. The Senior Team has a large area full with a lounge and a media tent! See you there.

Quickfire - Week 9

2009-06-25T21:17:00.003+12:00

Remember to write the full equation (even if your have to work it out of a word problem) and the answer!

1. 100 + 800=

2. 300 + 200 =

3. 12 x 2 =

4. 100 x 9 =

5. 1/3 + 1/3 + 1/3 =

6. Twice of 200 =

7. What are the family of facts for these numbers? 3, 4, 12 4, 5, 9

8. The expo is on for four hours tonight and five and a half hours tomorrow. How long will the hall be open?

9. If I had twelve minties to share with four of my friends, how many minties would we get each?

10. How many times would Mr Merryman have to drive his tractor if he wanted to cover the field with 10 kgs of fertiliser and it took 2 kgs each time he drove over it?

11. What is the time on this clock?

12. What is the average age of these dogs?

3, 5, 2, 2, 4, 1, 4

13.

3d Object Activity

2009-06-25T21:00:00.002+12:00

Just in case.

Handwriting, Week 9

2009-06-25T09:11:00.003+12:00

Matariki

This week we celebrated the Matariki festival at school. Matariki is the Maori new year and a time of reflection and thinking about the future.

The Matariki constellation, or the Seven Sisters, is seen at this time of the year and was recognised as a good time for planting and preparing for the crops of the spring and summer.

We had an assembly this week that had each team presenting an item of what Matariki means for them and then we planted some flax in a new flax area on the field.

Science Expo Week!

2009-06-21T21:40:00.004+12:00

This week we'll be finishing our projects, assessing our matrices and putting our SOCIAL ACTION in plan. This is where we do the 'so what!' thinking about what we've been learning.

Do you have any ideas about what you'd like to design, promote and put into action? Maybe your parents and friends could give us some ideas.

Whatever we do we should be doing it because of what we've learnt in our science experiments. Let's just do it!

3D Objects - Interactives

2009-06-21T21:32:00.005+12:00

Here are some great interactives that we'll use to learn about our new maths topic for the next two weeks - 3D OBJECTS!

Finding Faces 1
Finding Faces 2
Locating Faces
Predicting Faces

It will also help us to work through all of level G, 3D objects on Rainforest Maths. - Our password is on the white board (for safe keeping...ssshhh)

Friday's Maths Interactives

2009-06-19T06:40:00.005+12:00

Here are the interactives for today. Remember, complete the FIO in your maths book BEFORE you attempt these activities.

Stars - Baseball Geometry

Ducks and Giants - Rainforest maths, level f-g, 3d objects. Work through all the activities.

Visuwords

2009-06-15T22:17:00.002+12:00

This week we're working 'flat-out' on our science investigation projects. This site, Visuwords, can help you research your questions.

Night and Day Interactive

2009-06-14T20:07:00.003+12:00

Here's an interactive for you to have fun with - once your other SDL tasks are complete for the day. Do it in pairs and THINK about the answers, don't just guess. =)

Handwriting, Week 8

2009-06-14T19:32:00.002+12:00

More Strange Science

Humans get a little taller in space because there is no gravity pushing down on them.

Most of the dust in your home is actually dead skin! Yuck!

Kangaroos and Emus can't walk backwards.

Butterflies taste food by standing on top of it! Their taste receptors are in their feet unlike humans who have most on their tongue.

Although the Stegosaurus dinosaur was over 9 metres long, its brain was only the size of a walnut.

Rabbits and parrots can see behind themselves without even moving their heads!

WALT: Explain

2009-06-07T20:54:00.002+12:00

We're going to use this video of Bill Nye, the Science Guy, to give us a subject to explain - 'The Water Cycle'. Let's use our success criteria to practise adding a new feature to our explanations.

Quickfire - Week 7

2009-06-07T19:21:00.005+12:00

Remember to write the full equation (even if your have to work it out of a word problem) and the answer!

1. 1000 x 4 =

2. 3000 x 2 =

3. 15 x 2 =

4. 50 x 2 =

5. 1/2 + 1/2 + 1/2 + 1/2 + 1/4 =

6. Half of 120 =

7. Bob had seven hours to finish his homework and wasted four watching television. How much time does he have left?

8. My van can travel twice as fast to school as I can bike. I takes me eight and a half minutes to bike, how long will it take drive?

9. If I had sixteen chocolate milks to share with three of my friends, how many bottles would we get each?

10. How many times would Mr Bron have to run around the field if he wanted to run for 15 minutes and it took him three minutes for each lap?

11. What is the time on this clock?

12. What colour of candy does Natal have the most of? What three colours does she have the least of?

13. Which two types of trash were found in the same amounts? What type of trash was found in nearly half the amount of cigarettes?

Handwriting - Week 7

2009-06-07T18:56:00.004+12:00

Human Science Facts

1. In one day your heart beats 100,000 times.

2. Coughing can cause air to move through your windpipe faster than the speed of sound - over a thousand feet per second!

3. The average human dream lasts only 2 to 3 seconds.

4. Your brain is 80% water.

5. Your forearm (from inside of elbow to inside of wrist) is the same length as your foot.

6. It is impossible to sneeze with your eyes open.

Qnews Vids

2009-06-05T13:40:00.005+12:00

Here's this weeks QNews - The first is by Diana, Zia and Kate, explaining how rainbows work. The second is by Stephanie and Samatha, explaining how tsunamis work.

They were learning how to research the five W's and an H, write an explanation and present their information in an oral presentation.

Your assessments are linked in scribd above. =) Don't forget to add these videos and assessments to your efolios.

Efolio Extension Activities

2009-06-03T20:33:00.002+12:00

Here are some extra efolio tasks for all you speedy students. Ask me if you have any questions about them but ask three before me! (Remember - these are for when you have finished all of your other S.D.L tasks.)

1. Macro Photos
- Find 2 of the best macro pics you took at camp. They will be in a folder in 'my docs' - camp pics.
- Insert into a post with your reflection - use the poster prompts!

2. Efolio Buddies
- Find two other buddies to share some comments with. Add them as viewers to your blog.
- Make some comments on THREE of their posts from this term. Tell them two things they have done well and two things they could do better next time!

Congratulations - Zia.

2009-06-03T13:59:00.005+12:00

Zia is the Year 5 Interschool Cross Country Champion! Here she is, winning in style. You can see how far ahead she was of the rest of the field.

Handwriting - Week 6

2009-06-03T08:05:00.001+12:00

More Amazing Science Facts

The ant can lift things 10 times its own weight.

Ocean waves can travel as fast as a JET Plane.

We blink 25 times a minute.

Male mosquitoes do not bite, so blame the females next time.

A whale can swim for 3 months without eating.

The body's largest internal organ is the small intestine at an average length of 20 feet.

Turtles can live for more than 100 years.

Learner Licences

2009-06-02T11:30:00.004+12:00

Riverdale School has, as one of it's guiding values, an emphasis on developing students self responsibility.

"We believe in promoting self-responsibility, self esteem, confidence

and positive attitudes in children."

You may have noticed that your student has a licence pasted into their homebook. They need to have these signed by you and brought back to me this week.

We have had a licence system running throughout this year that gives the children rights and responsibilities - directly related to their proven level of 'self-responsibility'.

Each licence level has some requirements attached and the student can move up or down the levels depending on their improvement (or otherwise) at managing their own behaviour. The more responsible they become, the more trust and responsibility they earn.

Here's an example of a level 3 licence and you can see the requirements outlined on it.

It would be very constructive for your student to have a conversation with them about why they think they are at their current level and what they could do to improve. On the occasion that a student earns (or looses) a level they will have that licence updated in their homebook.

I'm looking forward to seeing how this system develops and helps to encourage our class become ever increasingly independent and responsible.

Survive the Jungle!

2009-06-01T19:57:00.002+12:00

This mission involves a series of choices that mean life or death. If you make a wrong move, watch out! - You'll have to start again.
A wise strategy is to record each right choice along the way so you don't have to rely on memory.
eg, 1. I chose the _______ to help keep me alive because it would __________.

You will hand your literacy book in to me on Friday for marking. Make sure each choice is recorded with a number, the date and title. (Don't forget to spell things correctly and make it readable or else... guess what!)

QNews!

2009-05-29T15:05:00.004+12:00

Here's our first Qnews for this term.

Riccardo, Jackson, Dominic and Kua presented their research on 'In-Line Skating' and 'Snowboarding' where they researched the five W's and an H.

This is their assessment, uploaded onto scribd. Well done, guys! - don't forget to embed your video and assessment in your efolio.

Qnews Assessment Matrix Riccardo and Jackson

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Fiction dictionary Japanese

Qnews Assessment Matrix Kua and Dominic

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Fiction dictionary Uncategorizable-Unca

Scientific Drawing

2009-05-27T11:27:00.002+12:00

Today we'll be practising how to draw scientifically. You will need to complete one of these for your TriTeam science project.

This link will give us some tips -

- Nature Watch

What kinds of features make this type of drawing different from an artistic drawing?

Writing Challenge

2009-05-25T11:07:00.002+12:00

Use the first scene of this interactive game (Samorost 2) to 'describe' the scene!

In your draft book,

1. Describe what you - see, hear, feel, touch.

2. Write a short story of what has happened to you (as the man), eg why the dog was taken, what are you going to do next?

Handwriting - Week 4

2009-05-21T20:14:00.002+12:00

Bending Water Experiment

Question - Can static electricity affect water?

Hypothesis - Electricity can travel through water so it must do in some way?

Experiment
- Rub a nylon comb through some long hair a few times. Hold it close to some running water (from a tap?), slowly, and see what happens. Move it closer and closer without letting it actually touch.

Conclusion
Static electricity creates a charge in the molecules of the water and they are attracted to the comb. You'll see the water bend towards the comb because it's molecules move towards each other. Our hypothesis was correct!

Immiscable Liquid!

2009-05-13T13:32:00.004+12:00

What on earth does immiscable mean?
Today we modeled how to plan an experiment. Our question was, 'Do all liquids mix together?' I was making a smoothy and wanted to know what liquids I could combine.
Today, as a class, we filled out the steps to our investigation page.
Step 3 Planning Investigation Step 3 Planning Investigation room12

Publish at Scribd or explore others:

These steps helped us work through the experiment. We mixed water with milk, food colouring and oil.
Our hypothesis was that the oil and water wouldn't mix because oil is too thick. We observed that this was exactly what happened - the oil stayed at the top of the water because it has a higher density and is attracted to itself, even when mixed around.
Then we saw what happened when we dropped salt into the mixture.
Ben was right when he saw that the salt combined with the oil, dropped down because it was heavy and took the oil with it. But when the salt dissolved in the water the oil went back up to the top - what a cool lava lamp!
We've learnt how to follow a science experiment through the steps and will be using this template to guide our P.I's in our Triteams.