Term 1 Novel Study - Castaway

Term 1 Novel Study

This term I have been reading and studying the novel: Castaway

I found this novel okay because some parts of it I didn't really enjoy reading but some parts really made you think about if you were in that situation.

During the novel I had to complete two major assessment tasks. The first is an Explain Map which shows the consequences of a major event in the book. The second was a Describe++ Map (Inference map) which shows I how I have connected prior knowledge and other experiences to what I have been reading to make an inference.

• Link to: Explain Map
• Link to: Inference Map

National Standard for this:

• Year 9/10 Standard
• I can monitor my understanding as it develops during my reading, and adjust my strategies to address any comprehension problems Eg: If I don’t understand a passage I have read I can re-read it, read-on, use pictures or diagrams, or explore the meaning of some of the vocabulary.
• I can use strategies to analyse ideas and information and to reflect critically on the meaning I am gaining from my reading. (Eg: I can think about the meaning of the information and ideas and how this fits with what I think)

Term 1 Book Review

Term 1 Book Review                              2.5.2017

Divergent:

This story is about the main character, Tris, who lives in a city soon later to be called as Chicago. Their world is divided into five factions; the names of these factions are Dauntless (brave), Erudite (intelligent), Amity (peaceful), Abnegation (selfless) and Candor (Honest). Depending on where these people are born and how they react to the world is which faction their in. The main character was born in Abnegation (the selfless) and moved when she was sixteen to Dauntless (the brave). The people in this futuristic world have no idea if there is anything outside their city boundaries  and no one except the main character wants to find out. She and some others discover the truth about their hidden world.

(Read the book to find out more)

I can take action to improve the water cycle in Canterbury!

I can take action to improve

the water cycle in Canterbury!

In this project I was working with Kate. We decided to create… A story book for younger children!

Here is a link what we made: Rubbish in the ocean - our story book

In this project we decided that our success criteria was: Extended abstract, we can execute our plan and evaluate it.

Overall our project met this criteria because... We finished it on time (we executed it) and we evaluated the plan. (Our story book came out exactly the way we wanted it :)

The Water Cycle, Information report plan!

The Water Cycle, Information report plan!

The water cycle is a complicated process that water goes through. It gets recycled over time as there is no end to it. The steps that water experiences are: Evaporation, Condensation, Precipatation and Runoff/groundwater. Let's go find out what happens!

Evaporation 

It is the step that takes water from natures beautiful liquid life; the ocean!When the suns beams collide with the sea it heats up and turns into gas! This works even better on a hot summers day.

Condensation

When evaporation has done it's part condensation comes in and forms clouds out of the evaporation. Did you know condensation isn't always up in the sky as those big white puffy things you see in the sky. Oh no, they are also responsible for ground level fog as well. These clouds that you see can be made of water AND ICE! What happens when condensation has formed these incredible clouds? Do they stay up there? No, so let's go find out what happens!

Precipatation

This long word just means that it's rain, hail, sleet or snow falling from the sky, anything really that falls from the sky due to gravity. (gravity plays a big part in the Water Cycle) After the clouds have been formed and they have gotten as full as possible and gone dark or gray, that's when precipatation happens! The sleet, snow, rain or hail that falls, goes all the way back to earth! But where does that liquid/solid go?

Runoff/Groundwater

The water sinks into either dirt/soil or rocks (most likely soil or dirt!) It travels underground from then on, until it comes across a river or stream and with that it heads off back down to the ocean! But no, that's not where it ALL goes! The water that has sunken into the ground can either go to the river/stream OR head even further down through the cracks in the soil or rock to the center of the earth!

Overall the water cycle is a great part of life that helps us live! From the suns beams that heat the water, to the fluffy white clouds in the sky, and the rain, hail, sleet, or snow that falls and finally the water that travels under or on top of the world. What would we ever do without the water cycle!

I can recognise and understand a variety of grammatical constructions and some rhetorical patterns

I can recognise and understand a variety of grammatical constructions and some rhetorical patterns

In this unit I have been learning about:

• The parts of speech.
• The types of nouns.
• The types of sentences.

In this unit, I found challenging…

Knowing the nouns off by heart, like common, proper, collective and abstract!

I had a slow start off with this because the one after knowing the nouns worksheet:

Second noun worksheet

was quite hard because I didn't know what the nouns mean't!

Something new I learnt was...
There were fur different types of nouns (proper, collective, common, and abstract) and four different types of sentences (command, question, statement, exclamation).

I can apply my knowledge of adverbial clauses and connectives to see how ideas are linked in texts.

I can apply my knowledge of adverbial clauses and connectives to see how ideas are linked in texts.

For reading I have been learning about adverbial clauses. I have found this learning quite easy because we use these words and punctuation in everyday writing and reading!

In this activity (I can add adverbial clauses to a sentence), I had to replace the adverbial clause in the sentence with a different one and find out which adverbial clause goes in which sentence.
I also had to add an adverbial clause at the end of each small sentence in the activity to the argument, (I made it a fight over a teddy bear!) and adding a reporting clause makes it even better!

WALT apply the techniques of improvisation to a range of different scenarios.

Improvisation TECHNIQUES that I have used successfully are,........... saying "yes!" to the improvisation someone has said. Showing the emotions i'm supposed to be improvising. Pretty much all the techniques (I have forgotten most of the techniques, sorry)!

Improvisation TECHNIQUES that I would like to have more practice at…… Being less scared of getting up in front of heaps of people. Smiling. Speaking louder.

The thing that I enjoyed most about this unit of learning playing the improvisation games, because they are fun to play and it's funny watching what people can come up with.

The thing that I found most challenging during this unit of learning was thinking of what to present to the auidence, how, and what it'll be about, because I need more practice at thinking quickly!

My favourite improvisation game was I forgot what it was called but it was to do with making groups and making a scene, because it was awesome!

My next step/ something I need to work on further  in improvisation is thinking quickly and not having stage fright because it would help! :p

Year 7/8 Standard: Assessment task! Jacinta.

Year 7/8 Standard: Assessment task Jacinta 1/6/2016

WALT: I can use a use a wide range of comprehension strategies to understand text such as: - using their prior knowledge, along with information in the text, to interpret abstract ideas, complex plots, and sophisticated themes - gathering, evaluating, and synthesising information across a small range of texts - identifying and resolving issues that come from competing information in texts

Complete both texts and write the answers in your own words.

TASK 1 - read the text about Sneakairs	TEXT: EasyJet's Smart "Sneakairs" Makes Sightseeing Effortless
What I already know about navigating with maps?	There are heaps of different kinds of maps like: Navigation with the stars, paper, google etc... The maps i'm mostly familiar with are online because every time my family go somewhere with the online maps, I tell them the way by saying " Go left here" " straight then right at the end of this road " and all that! I also really love maps and I know the online maps are used with satalites around the earth in space to show you all the roads.
Who created “Senakairs?”?	Easy jet airlines.
How do the “Sneakairs” work?	The person types into the app on their phone, where they'd like to go, the shoes will show them the way guiding their feet by vibrating either the left or right shoe to change direction.
How do “Sneakairs” help tourists visiting a new city or town?	The person doesn't need to carry a big map around with them. It looks to the people that live there, that they know how to get around easily and fast and dont need help.
What challenge does easyJet need to overcome before “Sneakairs” can go mainstream?	However, before Sneakairs can go mainstream, the easyJet team still needs to tweak the prototypes. Among the challenges that need to be addressed is the smart shoe’s three-hour battery life, which is hardly enough for a tourist to catch all the delights a new city or town has to offer!
Can you think of any other uses for smart shoes like Sneakairs? - (give at least 2)	A talking system in them as well so the person doesn't get confused with their left and right feet! Different patterns on the shoes so that each and everyone is unique.
Can you think of a better invention than Sneakairs to help us navigate places? Why is that invention better than Sneakairs?	A watch that can navigate for you. The watch can tell you the exact time you'll get there because you might be late for something you need to do and it can 3D print out the road that you are about to head down so you know your going down the right road/street!

TASK 2: The purpose of this task is to identify details that support a main idea.

A main idea that the author David Hill often explores is: New Zealand's natural environment, and how awesome (impressive and amazing) and powerful it can be.

Read the following passages from pages 7, 8 and 9 of "The Sleeper Wakes" by David Hill.

a) Find details in the text that support this main idea. Underline these details.

b) Think about what the 'sleeper' is, and how it would 'wake' up. Highlight details in the text that suggest this development.

Two girls stood with their parents by a car, watching him. So Corey tried to look cool and expert, and he started up the track behind his father. The blunt pyramid of Mt Taranaki lifted into a blue winter sky. Snow softened the cliffs where lava had flowed, thousands of years ago. High up towards the summit, the ridge of The Lizard showed where more lava had crawled downwards before cooling and setting. Corey lowered his gaze to the 4WD track twisting up the mountain's north-east flank. Packed grey and green trees rose on either side. After just ten metres, all sounds from the carpark faded away. Only the crunch of their boots broke the silence. Three steps ahead, his Dad walked steadily. He wore a woollen hat and green Gortex jacket to keep out the June cold. Warwick Lockyer, Department of Conservation Field Officer; expert on Mt Taranaki; tramper and climber. His father loved this mountain. He loved its silences and stories, the way it tested people. Corey felt the same way. Being up here was the greatest feeling in the world. Pity some other people couldn't see it that way. * * * After 30 minutes' climbing, they paused, took deep breaths, and gazed around. The trees were lower. Tangled, waist-high shrubs had taken over, crammed together for shelter, tops flattened by the wind. In summer, white and yellow flowers blazed here, flowers that grew nowhere else in the world. Now everything huddled beneath winter snow. Far below, the towns glinted like little grey models – New Plymouth, Inglewood, Stratford. Off to the left, the Tasman Sea was a sheet of grey steel. On the horizon, blue-and-white shapes shouldered upwards: the peaks of Ruapehu, Ngauruhoe, Tongariro. Corey thought of Riki, the other DoC Field Officer. From Riki, he'd heard how Mt Taranaki once stood beside those other volcanoes, fought with them for the love of beautiful Mt Pihanga, then marched away in anger after losing the fight. Hardly any Maori people lived along the line between Ruapehu and Mt Taranaki; they believe that one day, Taranaki would head back in the fire and smoke to find his love again. Corey stood listening to the silence. A puff of wind slid past. A pebble, loosened by the morning sun probably, dropped from an icy bank nearby. 'Awesome day,' Corey said. His father nodded. 'Pity Dean couldn't make it.' Corey glanced up at the dazzling white summit. Dean was a volcanologist who monitored New Zealand's North Island volcanoes to see if any eruptions seemed likely. He came to visit two or three times a year, even though nothing ever happened on Mt Taranaki. Corey's father was gazing upwards, too. He stretched, and grinned at his son. 'Come on, mate. We're sleepier than this mountain.'