France….

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So yesterday Grace and I did our presentation. We were extremely nervous but when we were presenting that all faded. Everyone else had a lot of information for each slide, so Grace and I were nervous that we didn’t have enough. We have been away a lot so we had a huge disadvantage. But we made extra time and carried on from there. We figured out what we were going to do each, and then combined them.

I had a goal I wanted to achieve, and that was to speak slowly and loudly. I read through the reflection sheets, written by my fellow classmates, and they all seemed to think I achieved my goal.

We created the Eiffel Tower with success. I’m really proud of how it turned out. Of course, we only had a two hour time limit, so when we got around to  painting we only did the base and not the bars.

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Big impacts that the French had on Australia, include; language and food. Around the country some schools speak French and also people love the delicious croissants.

Good Things

1.The model was a big attraction, it stood out, but also people knew what it was.

2. Throughout the presentation we had the whole classes attention and they all joined in.

Improvments for Next Time

1.  Putting the model on the ground, as it’s so tall it blocked Grace’s view.

2. The French language game got a bit out of control, maybe next time try to get people to stay in their lines and be a bit more quiet.

What Didn’t Work?

1.  The presentation was so colourful that it distracted some.

2. We chose a hard to pronounce name for our biography, so when we prounced it we mumbled a lot.

Thank you for reading!

The Night They Stormed Eureka

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A few weeks ago we finished reading ‘The Night They Stormed Eureka’, by Jackie French. This book was very descriptive and intriguing. I really enjoyed it.

A little recap for anyone who wants to read this:

A brave girl called Sam, is just like us. She lives in the 21st centery. She thinks life in the 1850’s would be better, but when she somehow ends up in the gold time things turn around quite fast. It’s not as safe or better than she thought. Meeting new friends friends, dressing as the opposite gender and meeting a kind couple who welcome her. But, she remembers the Eureka stockade. Can she change history? Will she change history?

 

While Year Six were at Camp…

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Year six went to Sovereign Hill on a camp. I didn’t go, and I have my reasons.  I did have work to do though. I had a lot to do! Here is the work I had to do:

*=I’ve finished the work.

*-Maths Online (which Ms Morris only set one task)

*-Extended reading reflections

*-Pretending I’m a tourist at Sovereign Hill and write an itinery of my day

*-Working on my maths goals

* -Write a diary entry pretending I’m a child on the diggings

*-Get ten photos of gold in Australia, convert the weight to ounces, pounds, kilograms and grams.

I managed to get it all done, well, apart from the other Maths Online tasks that weren’t set.

I found the ‘Child on the Diggings’ diary task the most fun. In my ‘diary entry’ I included what I do, and what has been happening on the diggings. I used tea bags on my ‘diary entry’ to make it look like parchment, and then I scrunched my work up so it gave it that rough and old effect too.

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I’m quite proud of myself for not only finishing all the work, but putting my best into it. I did all of this over three days.

 

Multiplication Facts

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Today, we have started to work on multiplication facts. I am still quite rusty on my times tables so this was a great way to dust them off.

We got given a work sheet and had to set a goal today, and what activities will help me achieve my goal. I felt liked I really had to work on my eight times tables. I used two activities; I wrote multiple times on paper, as I find that’s one of the easiest ways for me to remember things, especially numbers and I also used a website called Online Times Table Test. Here’s the link…

http://www.timestables.me.uk

Over all I found these ways effective and helped me to learn my times tables. I will now focus on my nines as I have acheived my goal.

 

Passive Energy Houses

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Recently we have been making passive energy houses. My group has brought materials to make a house and I think its going pretty well.

When we stated nothing was in our brains, we didn’t get an idea for a design until twenty minutes after we were told to design a plan.

My passive energy house includes the elements like; wind turbine, water collection, and system, eaves as well as guttering and the house itself.

I’m proud of how quickly my group got materials and how we worked. We always tried to get people jobs at the same time, and we worked really effectively as well.

I think we need to work a bit harder on making sure the gutters are secure as well as figure out how we will install our solar panels.

Over all I think we’ve done well by including a few of the elements of passive energy and how well we have secured our house from heat and water.

 

 

 

Reflecting on my Reading

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As it is now the end of the year, I think it’s time to see how my reading has gone this year.

At the start of the year I had a lot of trouble making connections. I started off with text to self connections. I found this quiet easy as well as text to text connections. As I was continuing with this through first semester I found the goals were getting too easy for me. After the holidays I decided to step up my game.

In Term 3 we were working on our science fair and learning a lot about  space and the Earth. For my goal I selected text to world connections. At first this was a weakness of mine because reading fiction stories and trying to reflect that, to something that has happened in the world is difficult. Well, difficult for me at least. I worked really hard on this and gradually it got easier, thanks to the information we learnt about science. It still isn’t one of my huge strengths but I can do it.

Lets look at then, to now.

My goal is to record and find the meaning in the different parts in the story. There isn’t just one meaning there are multiple meanings inside that people don’t normally pick up one. I find them and record them. Here are two examples from Zoë Sugg’s Girl Online book.

‘Everyone makes mistakes, we learn from it, but everyone deserves a second chance.’

Another one is that is quiet deep is…

‘Everyone makes mistakes, but sometimes the mistake is you made the wrong choices.’

I feel like I’ve covered a few of my weaknesses this year and at the start of the year I felt like its a long way off to complete those goal and to build those skills and now I feel confident that I have built some of the skills and now know that no matter how hard a task or goal may be, it’s possible.

 

 

 

Short Story

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I chose this book because it says a lot about not fitting in, being sensitive about your looks and how judgemental people can be. It ended with impact by showing how the ugly duckling was sensitive about his looks but then he grew up and became graceful, so they all misjudged him.

I love this story because it has a beautiful meaning, don’t judge a book by its cover. I know a lot of people say this but it matches this book, just because you may not look the best doesn’t mean you aren’t nice on the inside.

Itinerary for Sunbury, Movies

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Hi guys,

Our task was to be able to create an itinerary for a trip to Sunbury to watch a movie. (We are not really going) What is an itinerary? Well, it’s a timetable of your day, a train time list is even an itinerary. We have planned what we are going to do by using 24 hour time. We are going by a train, and we can’t leave to go to the movies until school has finished. Enjoy.image

 

Biography

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So, have you ever heard of a biography. An autobiography and a biography are different. An autobiography is where you have written about your own life and a biography is when someone else has written about you. If your still confused about what a biography is then here is a bit more. It’s a journal, book, letter or movie that is nonfiction about someone’s life.

Our task for today is to find a biography about someone. So here’s the link.

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I chose the wonderful Julie Andrews. I chose her because I love her acting and singing in Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music. I have never heard anyone sing or act like her so I think she is very unique.

Cooking!

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Beep, beep, beep, beep! Dang it! The fire alarm has gone off again. See, that would never of happened if Dad learned to cook. Where’s the bucket! Our house is literally going to burn down. I think everyone should learn to cook.

If you are bored or have nothing to d then the cooking supplies are waiting for you. You can smell the rich chocolate and the strong scent of the spices. That’s why cooking is fun.

Do you really want to keep buying take away? I mean, take away costs more, but the ingredients costs less, so cooking saves you a lot of money. If you have take away for every meal it could cost you around $300 a month. (Just thinking about the total of McDonalds, but McDonalds is great though).

Experts like scientists have proven that people who cook become healthier eaters. That’s mostly because in the home made meals you know what’s in your food and you have vegetables but in fast food places you don’t know what is in your food.

I believe that everyone should learn to cook. Do you want to be healthy or unhealthy? It’s your choice imagebut I think everyone would want to be healthy. Believe me it’s up to you to start cooking. So, start using that oven. I know you have one!

 

My Wellbeing and Wellness

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For term 1 we have been looking at wellness and wellbeing. So we created a poster or used an app on our iPad.

The criteria for this was that we HAD to add, emotional, physical and mental health. For example for food, food helps keep your body going. So I added all of the criteria to my poster.

Here are the photos.

Athletics Persuasion

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Persuasive writing is where you try and persuade the reader to come onto your side. The structure for a persuasive piece is an introduction, evidence paragraphs and a conclusion. We were looking at 2 pieces of writing that are agenst each other. One is about more sport and the other is about having a vegetable garden. I’m on the athletic side.

In their introduction they don’t have a sizzling start. So it doesn’t interest the reader. Id prefer some things like this ‘Gardening, boring gardening, how does it help us. Sport helps us.’ They state the opinion really strongly. The writer states what’s happening but not very strongly.

For the evidence they just assume that people don’t like sport because they have never won anything. That’s not true for everyone. That tecnique is called generalisation.

The conclusion states the opinion strongly again but says that gardening is a really bad idea. They didn’t say why it’s bad. It doesn’t really have a summary of their arguments, so it’s not really a conclusion.

Some of the tecniques this person used was emotive language and generalisation. Not very many. Normally there would be 3 or 4 types in a persuasive piece. The generalisation evidence is this, ‘I know a lot of kids are not interested in competitions but that’s because they have never won anything.’ They just assume that’s the reason.

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Persuasive Examples

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This morning my class looked at a persuasive piece about lockers. There were a lot of persuasive techniques. So we had a look at some. Here are 2.

One of the persuasive ways was emotive langue. The person that wrote this piece used things like, so the children won’t have to worry, so they don’t have to suffer health problems and do you really want to put your personal belongings into a crate? The crate really shows that if you put your stuff in a crate at school, then to everyone it would seem that, that school isn’t very good.

I like how they added in that everyone would be happier. Most people would be happier but some won’t like it. That is called generalisation. Generalisation is where it is the majority not all. It is obvious to me that this writer has a very strong opinion about having lockers.

 

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Self Advertasment

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With our Year3 buddies we created self advertasments. We created a yellow pages page about a skill we have.

My buddy’s poster was about ‘Chloe’s Awesome Drawings.’ She sells drawings and draws for people. Some of the drawing are skeletons, apples, eyeballs, swamps, flowers and many more. She also draws for people.

My poster was about a new book shop called ‘Holly’s Heaven Book Shop.’ Over 500 books with a 10% discount. Get caught up in another world! Reading helps your learning. We sell fantasy, fiction, comedy and many many more.

That was our task. (Keep in mind that we don’t really have businesses)

 

Toy Investigation

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WOW! I never thought that we would be able to create a toy at school. So, what we had to do was create our toy out of  multi cubes and then draw it on isometric paper. After we did that we had to find out how many blocks we used. Mine was 21. So, then I created a net. Once I put my net together I had to find out how many if my packages would fit into 1 cubic metre. When I finished that I had to find out how much my toy costs and how much it costs for my package to be made. For this project I had to use a lot of persisting and thinking.

 

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Kitchen Garden

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In year 4 we do Kitchen Garden. Throughout the year we had a Kitchen Garden ExplianEverything slide. ExplainEverything is an app with slides inside it. After we eat the food we do a reflection. With our reflection, we have to rate for taste, odour, appearance and texture of the food. After we do that we have some research to do, so we chose 1 ingredient and wrote what vitamins were in it, what it does and 1 interesting fact.

To show you all the food we have tried and researched about I have put my ExplainEverything down.

My Spelling

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In year 4 we focus a lot on spelling. I know all of my Oxford Words. Oxford Words are common and a few complex words. So, I got a new list from a spelling book. The word on my new list that I can not get perfect is chlorophyll. In my list there are a few words that I sometime mess up, but not many.

To improve my spelling I will: add some of my new words to a spelling list, do look, cover, write, check and have letters for all the sounds.  This will improve my ability to find more complex vocabulary.

Friday Frenzy!

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Last Friday it was full of fun. I feel so proud, happy and excited. On Friday it was a Celebration Assembly. Most classes performed something. My class, 4A presented the Man From Ironbark by Banjo Paterson. We all spoke very clearly and loudly. The Year 4’s had no microphone when talking!

The preparation for this took a long time. First off we practised our verse, then got into groups and practised. After that we got lots of feedback and we kept on going. I could remember my line simply and the whole verse. I think the Year 4’s were the best!

At at the end of our performance all of the Year 4’s sang a song called Waltzing Matilda. It is also by Banjo Paterson. We all sang very loudly and clearly. When I stood up on the stage area, I felt really nervous but I kept calm. As soon as the music started playing my nerves dissapeared and I felt confident.

As well as being in the Man From Ironbark and Waltzing Matilda I was also in another performance. That was a dance club Miss Wencel set up. Same thing, I felt nervous because I might mess up but I used self talk. I presented it without failing and so did the others. We all did great to remember tons of steps.

This dance had lots of preperation as well. We only had 1 week to learn the moves to 3 songs. Most of the time we had to have our feet together. Everyone always had to have strong arms and legs.

Here are 2 photos of the day. The one on the left is the Man From Ironbark performance and on the right is Miss Wencel’s Dance Club.

 

 

Out of My Mind

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We have just finished our Read Aloud book, Out of My Mind by Sharon M Draper. It has taken nearly the whole term to finish this book. Melody is the main character and is diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. If you haven’t read it check it out it is amazing. There is no spoilers about the story.

In Out of My Mind we have been collecting evidence for 1 main idea in this story. I have been following ‘Standing up for Others and Yourself.’ I will share some of the evidence: When Clair whispered “How can she get them right?” Rose stood up for a Melody buy saying ” She is smart.”

While we were reading we created a character map about Melody. I have listed her personalities and her physical descriptions. Some were: courageous, genius, thoughtful, pink wheel chair and positive. There are more so I am going to post a photo of my page.

When we first looked at the book we had to make a prediction. It was based on the front cover. Lots of my class mates were not that close, but mine was not any better.

We have finished our Read Aloud book, Out of My Mind. Now that we have finished I have a few questions buzzing around my head. They are:
Is this story true?
Does Melody forgive Rose?
Does Clair and Molly include Melody?
Is the person who wrote Out of My Mind, Melody?
I did abit of research and Sharon M Draper wrote this book because her daughter has Cerebrel Palsy.

My Shelfie

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The photo above shows all the books I have read in 2014. I have reread all of these books.

As you can see I have read different genres like: fiction, adventure, fantasy and a nonfiction. You might have noticed I have read a series called Dork Diaries, by Rachel Renée Russell. I have just started reading another series called the Famous Five, by Enid Blyton. 

My favourite book I have read this year would be The Land of Stories by Chris Colfer. Something about this book just make me feel as if I’m in another world or a different dimension. This story it is about 2 kids called Alex and Conner. Their grandma gives them a magical book. Alex tries to find out why it is making weird noises, so she fell in. Conner jumped after her and they ended out in a magical world full of fairytales. 

The author that I really like is Enid Blyton. She wrights lots if books. As you already know I am starting the Famous Five. This story is about 2 boys and their younger sister. The boys, Julian and Dick and the girl, Anne went over to Kirrin Island for summer holidays and solved mysteries over on George’s Island.

I would like to share with you my favourite character in a book I have read this year. I have decided George from The Famous Five series. I chose her because I love her bravery, courage and persistence. I also love this character because she doesn’t listen to anyone. If someone hates her dog, Tim she will hate that person. Also she absolutely  hates being called Georgina. She wants to be a boy not a girl. George only answers if she gets called George. She is very peculiar, but that’s what I like about her.

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Duet for Music

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In Music we are learning to create duets. I am in a group with Bella and Skye.

The criteria we had to have was 2 parts, in each part it had to contain 16 bars and in part 1 and 2 they had to have a mixture of semi breves . Bella is playing part 2. Skye and I are playing the busy part. Which is part 1. This was a very fun task to do.

Here is a link to Mrs Jamsen’s Music Blog.

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Resilience

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Being resilient means to stay patient, working tough, giving effort, bouncing back and to be saying in your head I can do it! Here is a BTN video that explains resilience.

I used resilience when I came to NGPS. I struggled to find friends. I didn’t get upset. I bounced back and tried harder to make friends.

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Cardboard Car Regatta

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Last week was my school’s annual Carboard Car Regatta. We had to decorate a cardboard car by the theme we were focusing on this year. We focused on olden day things. I was in a group with Beth, Mikayla and Bella.

The learning behaviours I was focusing on were: helping, working tough, listening and being persistent. My team agreed that I was better at helping but not as good at listening.

Next time I work in a team I will try harder to listen to what my group have to say. I will do this by putting all my attention on the person talking.

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Remembrance Day

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96 years ago the war stopped. There are still wars going on but not big ones. Here is the reason why we wear poppies on this day. On the battlefields in WW1 the land was completely destroyed. The troops dug trenches to live in. Along the ground there were ditches all over. In Spring 1915 the red poppy was sighted near the battlefields. To this day, the red poppy is a symbol for Remembrance Day.

Today, I was asked to write on a poppy what we dreamed of. During the one minute silence today I hoped that there would no more wars ever. I hung my poppy on our Hope Tree. Here is my poppy, the tree the Year 4’s made and my poppy up on the tree.

My Prediction

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Tomorrow is the day of the Melbourne Cup. The thundering hooves have been heard since 1861. A part of maths is being able to analyse different ways data can be presented. I looked carefully at the weight, age and the health check.

I predict that Signoff will win the Melbourne Cup race. He has the lightest weight out of all horses competing. His weight is 51kg. It’s a good thing so that he won’t have to run with his weight and his rider, Joao Weir’s weight. I also think he will win because he was a brilliant winner of the Lexus Stakes competition.

The race has been run and won. Protectionist won the race. The horse I predicted came 4th. 

Here is a link of Protectionist crossing the finished line.

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Melbourne Cup

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Have you ever been to the Melbourne Cup? The Melbourne Cup started in about 1861. So about 154 years ago. This event starts at 3pm on Tuesday 4th November. It is a public holiday for all in Victoria. People get dressed up for this event.

Today, the Melbourne Cup is the richest race held in Australia, and the prize money and trophies make it one of the richest horseraces in the world. You win over $5,000,000. Over 100,000 people attend the Melbourne Cup. While the Melbourne Cup was first run on a Thursday, in 1875 it changed to a Tuesday and has normally been run on the first Tuesday in November each year. In three of the five years during the Second World War it was held on a Saturday. It is held on the Flammington Racecourse.

 Here is a photo of people racing at the Melbourne Cup. It is by  www.news.com.au. Here is another link to the website I got my information. It is called History of the Cup.
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The Truth

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In Australia on the 31st of October it’s Halloween. We go around and knock on people’s doors and collect candy. Why though? Here is the reason.

Halloween is a yearly celebration in many countries on the 31st of October, the eve of the Western Christian feast if All Hallows’ Day. It is a time of year to remember the dead including saints, martyrs and all the other faithful believers. It is a tradition to dress up in costumes and to go Trick or Treating. We sometimes carve pumpkins. Some people say we dress up to scare the dead.

Here is a link to Wikipedia about Halloween if you didn’t understand what I said. Have a great Halloween.

Photo by www.wallpapersandimages.com.

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Walk to Gisborne

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On Friday we walked to the New Gisborne train station. We looked at things that stayed the same over the years and things that were different.

This photo shows the Hurst Family Hotel in the olden days. Then, the photo shows the building that’s in its place, the Whistlestop Tavern. The most things that have changed about Gisborne are: flora, arcateture, fashion, roads and pathways.

My Favourite Spot in our School

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Annie has asked on her class blog if we can take a photo of our favourite place in the school. What is your favourite place in the school? If you send them to her she will put them up in the library or the library blog.

My favourite place in the school is the fake grass. At play and lunch I like to relax and chat to friends. We lie down and talk about random things. The fake grass cheers me up.

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