Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

Merry Christmas from Room 16! We hope you have a fantastic time over the holidays, stay tuned for more interesting writing from us after February 2nd, 2009!

Science Experiment: Making Sherbet

What you need (materials):

1. 1/2 a teaspoon of baking soda

2. 1 teaspoon of citric acid

3. 3 teaspoons of icing sugar

4. a small cup

5. a teaspoon [to stir it round]

Method:

We put all the ingredients in the cup together and mixed them.  Then we tasted them!

Results:

When we put all the ingredients together I thought it woud taste disgusting, but when I had a taste, it was amazing! At first it was all sweet and then it fizzed up in your mouth. Our saliva mixed the ingredients together. It was the best sherbet I have ever tasted!!!!

By Joe

Science Experiment: Super Starch

Question: Can a liquid be a solid?

Hypothesis: Yes it can.

Materials: Corn Starch

    Cup

    Bowl

    Spoon

    Water

Today for our experiment we discussed whether a solid can be a liquid at the same time.  Most of us said yes.  To test it out, first we poured 1 cup of corn starch into a bowl and added half a cup of water.  We then took it in turns to play with the mixture.  I found out that when you felt it, it felt like a liquid, but when you tried to pick it up, it felt like a solid.  When I let it dry, it felt like extra bits of dead skin.  

Because of our experiment, I have learned that something can be both a liquid and a solid at the same time.  I look forward to the rest of our cool experiments!

By Murdoch

Science Experiment: Turning milk to plastic

Equipment:
*milk
*saucepan
*vinigar
*spoon
*bowl
*sieve
*portable element

Method:
1. First we turn on the portable element.
2. Then we put a small amount of milk in the bowl and put the bowl on the element.
3. After that we added the vinegar and let the mixture simmer.
4. Then we put all the mixture through the sieve with all the vieigar drained out.
5. If there is still some vinegar left, move the sieve up and down and side to side.
6. Then we put it out in the sun to dry.
7. When it has dried run cold water over the mixture.
8. After that you should be able to bounce it around like a ball, an eco friendly, plastic, home made, bouncy ball!

We did this experiment with Miss Jay in Room 12. Overall, I thought it was an amazing experience because we learned how to make plastic! I thought it was really fun and I can't wait until the next one! I think we might be making sherbet!

By Alex V.

Science Week

This week is Science Week at Grey Lynn School.  The Kowhai team is focusing on Chemistry.  Each class visits another class in the team and does an experiment with that teacher.  I am looking forward to today because I think the experiments will be fun.  We brainstormed in our books with Miss Meleisea to see what we already know about chemistry.  Here is a class brainstorm:

By Freeman

Miss Burts Last Day - Friday 22 November 2008

On Friday it was Miss Burt's last day in our class. We had a big party for Miss Burt on the same day as our farewell for Baby Silvie. Sadly Silvie was sick and couldn't come. For the party we had to bring a plate of food for a shared lunch. We hung up balloons put on some music then the class went wild!  The food was delicous and yummy, most of it was healthy and the rest was not. 

We were all very sad Miss Burt was leaving because she was the one who set up this blog for us. But the good thing is that she is coming back next year to teach at our school and thats great for all of us. We wrote cards and Keaston and Alex.W said they would visit and put down her chairs... I hope they remember. Anyway I hope we still get to hear from Miss Burt through our blog! 

love from all of Room 16

 Written by Elle, Casey, Lucy, Loimata and Ariana.

Thoughts towards next year

NEXT YEAR

For next year, I will not talk to people at my desk or on the mat.  By that, I mean zipping my mouth shut, locking it and snapping the key and chucking it as far as I can.  I will also try and get better at my maths by practicing my basic facts more often.  In maths, my subjects I need to focus on are my times tables and division.

By Casey.

I will try to do more sports to get rid of my asthma so that I don't need my asthma inhaler.  I will do more spelling practice with easy and hard words like "empathy."  I will keep my manners great by not talking when the teacher talks.

By Savannah.

For me, a goal for Year 6 next year would be to try hard and participate in every task.  Also I would try to improve my maths and start practicing at home with my brothers or cousin.  My other goal is that I need to practice my spelling and to work harder on it and if I cant spell a word, I should try to spell it out. Finally, the tricky part.  I have to try not to be annoying to people at my table and try to get on with the task I am given to do.

By Misty.

Our Playground Experience

This morning Miss Burt announced room 16 would be going on the playground.  I was thinking, "what?!"  since it wasn't even lunch time, but then she told us we had to describe our playground experience.  I slid down some shiny silver bars, and this is what I came up with:

I could taste air gushing into my mouth.  Everything looked like a blur except for what was right in front of me.  I somehow smelled fresh seawater!  The sound in my ears reminded me of the soft whisper of the wind.  I felt the smoothness of the metal poles on my hands.  It felt like I was flying like a bird.        

By Lucy.

On the spinners I felt like a spinning top.  I heard nothing whizzing wind rushing past my face and into my ears.  The spinning top felt warm because it had been used a lot.  Suddenly, the spinning top stopped, but I will never stop spinning inside!   

By Tori.

This morning Room 16 went to the playground.  I chose the top of the monkey bars, and by top I mean TOP!  My mouth tasted dry.  I felt like a monkey swinging through the trees.  It felt exhilarating flinging myself down from the tree. 

By Freeman.

I could hear the wind wooshing past my head.  My mouth tasted dry like some small indians in my mouth had just burnt a germ to the stake. My hands felt sore from the cold steel bars. I thought I was going to crash. I like the flying fox. 

By Henderikus.

As I swing around on the helicopter blades I feel like a monkey in a tree.  I can smell kids sweat on the bars.  I hear kids running and screaming like mad.  I think if I stayed swinging for too long, I would be sick.  The blades felt cold like iced tea.  I felt very happy like a bird after it had eaten a worm.

By Tim.

                                                              

            

Athletics Highs, Lows and Interestings

High: Was  getting a good place, by that I  mean coming 4th in my race.

Low: Was being beaten by a year 4.

Interesting: Was the sun shining down on me.

By Tim

High: I came 7th in ten year old race.

Low: It was so hot.

Interesting: The teachers, parents and kids had a race.

By Vera   

High: I liked chilling out a lot while watching the other races.

Low: I almost choked while I was racing. 

Interesting: It didn't take long to get there (well not as long as we usually take).

By Alex V

High: I enjoyed running and watching all the other kids have their race.

Low: Sitting in the hot hot sun.

Interesting: When the parents and teachers had a race with the year 6 children.

By Pepe Marie

High: Coming second in the semi finals and seeing my cousin's face!

Low: Walking all the way to the toilet and realising I forgot my bag, so I had to walk back.

Interesting: We had tabloids for the first time at Athletics Day.

By Alex W

Athletics Day - Recount Writing

On Friday 14th November, we went to Grey Lynn Park to do Athletics. First we did tabloids. We get points for each activity. Next it was moning tea so we ate our food.

Then year 5 and 6 did a sprint. It was 800 meters. We did the race together. Miss Sepora called out, "on your mark, get set, go!" I came 13th in the sprint. Finally we walked back to the grass to watch the others race. I was cheering for my friends. Itwas really loud.

After that the teachers, Year 6 children and parents had races. The teachers came last, the children came first and the parents came second.

At the end of the day, the whole school walked back to school. I was hot and sweaty, tired, sleepy and thirsty, but it was a fun day.
By Tatsuki

The Film Festival Review

My favourite part of the film festival was... 

• Seeing ourselves on the big screen in Tamaki intermediates movie. I liked seeing myself doing the sasa. I thought the music in the movie was cool too.      Oscar S

• Watching Api's Hippo, the movie by Room 5, because it was cute and funny.  I thought that they did an awesome job!    Loimata

• Seeing the claymation movie from Panmure Bridge.  I liked the fighting and the fake blood and the action looked very real.     Keaston.

• Watching the film that was about kids eating healthy food.  I liked it because it had dancing in it and because its about healthy eating so we don't get fat. Casey

• I really liked the clay guys because of the good puns in the movie!     Freeman

• I really liked Apis Hippo . They made a great film because they had really good acting, I liked it when the pretended to laugh at Api.     Ariana

• Seeing the claymation movie and hearing all the great puns, because they made me laugh.  I liked how they made the characters out of clay, and when they died they had pink clay coming out of them!  Overall, I definitely liked the clay movie the best. Jericho

• Watching the Beowolf and the "My favourite places" movies. I liked the Beowolf one because it was was funny and it made me laugh.  I liked the reporter one because I thought the little reports were really cute and I wish I could have been in all their favourite places at once!            Murdoch

• Watching how to eat healthy and seeing the film where the kids dance to there healthy  song.    Samera 

Manaiakalani Film Festival Predictions

BubbleShare: Share photos - Craft Ideas

On Thursday I hope I do well in the mathathon, and by that I mean getting all the questions right.  When we go to the film festival I think there will be between 500-600 children. I think it will be quite a big building because it needs to hold so many children. I think I will see a big movie screen and a projector, and I will definitely hear the cheeky chatter of children, but I still can't predict the smell of the place, though I'm sure it will be hot and stuffy. On the screen I'm sure we will see Mister Webb's flick, and I'm also looking forward to watching the other schools films too.

By Murdoch.

On Thursday we will be going to Manaiakalani Film Festival. I think there will be about 500 children there. The size of the hall will be about maybe 3 times the size of our classroom. I think I will see lots of kids, teachers and a few short films of course. I might hear a lot of kids

talking and teachers telling them to shhhh because of the films going. It will be very exciting!

By Elle

On Thursday when we go to the Manaiakalani Film Festival, I think that there will be heaps of other kids.  I don't think I will know any of them though.  I might see us on a big screen in a movie.  I hope that it is playing inside, so that it feels like the movies.  I think it will feel hot and stuffy there.  I might hear a lot of chatting kids watching the movies and on the big screen I might see other schools that I don't really know doing interesting things.  It will probably smell like sweaty kids because of how many people will be there to watch.  I am looking forward to Thursday.

By Samera

My Bean: changes over time

When I first got my bean, it was black and red and looked like a jellybean.  Now it is green, and it has leaves which have grown as big as my hand.  I used to have my bean in a clear plastic cup with paper towels, but now my bean is in the school garden growing in the soil.  It's roots are growing lots there because it has more space to grow.  Over time, my bean has changed and it has been good to watch it happen.  

By Keaston.

In the beginning my bean was smooth it had no roots and no sprouts. It used to be in paper towels. It was in a plastic cup and it still is. It is also still brown with black speckles.

Now my bean has cracked and it has long roots and three sprouts. Instead of paper towels it is planted in dirt to give nutrients to the bean through the roots.  My bean changed by growing sprouts and really long roots where before there was nothing.

By Freeman.

Beans and Venn Diagrams

In the beginning my bean seed had a shell around it and it was in a clear plastic cup. The sprot has always been there, inside the bean seed. Now it has sprouted and it has been planted in the garden

By Joe.

When we first planted our beans they were nowhere near as impressive as they are now. They used to be simple speckled ovals, now they have long roots and big leafs. My bean's musty smell is still there. I can't wait 'till we get to eat our beans!

By Lucy.

Casey the Kid Pix Queen and her bean!

DAY 16 and the bean is growing straight and tall like a giraffe with a long neck. The leaves are tongues, like slobbery  black licorice - wet and smooth. That makes my bean nice and   healthy 

By Casey

Day 16 - Using my five senses

My bean,

He smells like the kind of green salad my mum makes. He smells fresh and moist like plants in the bush wavering, swaying. He smells like nature itself! He looks a lot like a tree growing tall and strong. The two leaves look like thousands of tiny leaves swaying in the wind. His long sprout looks like the tree's tall trunk boosting the leaves up higher and higher as the sky gets farther and farther away from the tiny tree. Oh my! He feels so different! He feels rough and scaly like a dragons scale which has scraped against tough hard rocks many times. Wow! he tastes like the wind and the rain mixed together in a giant mixing bowl ready to be whisked up and consumed by the stars.''Pheet phew!'' He sounds like the rain falling onto  leaves in the bush rustling them. Wow!

                           By Alex .V.

The Next Bean Step: Adding Soil

On Friday, Miss Burt took little groups of kids down to where the soil is kept.  The first thing you had to do was you had to take out the paper towels in your cup and throw them in the paper bin.  When we had done that, we had to take our bean out of our cup and hold it in our hand while we scooped some soil into our cup.  We filled it up halfway.  When we had finished we had to make sure we put our bean in the right way up with the roots going down and the shoot coming up.  We covered our bean with more dirt so that our cups were full.  Finally we, went back to class.  It was lots of fun.

By Vanni.

Term Three - Aki's Tale

BubbleShare: Share photos - Play some Online Games.

Talofa blog buddies. Here is a snipet from Term Three. It was a busy term full of dancing, singing and lots of shouting from teachers, but it was worth it. We had a great time with our production and our families and friends loved the show.  A big thanks to Mrs Fale who wrote and produced our production.  A big thanks to all the teachers and staff members at Grey Lynn for all the hard work and extra love and sweat. You rock and so do we! 

P.S Miss Meleisea has just learned to add a bubble share on our blog, Miss Burt will be pleased with her.

By Room 16

Day 15: Our Beans Are Growing Huge!

BubbleShare: Share photos - Craft Ideas

My bean is 13 cm long.  It looks like a snake standing up ready to strike and it smells musty like damp clothes that you forgot to hang up on the clothesline. The soil is mushy and soggy like a wet  soccer field. The stem is hairy like a gorilla's arms.  I listened to my bean, but I didn't hear anything.  It must grow really quietly.  When I watch my bean growing, I feel happy because I know it is healthy.

By Alex W.

My bean is tall.  It has two leaves growing.  It has roots coming out under the ground.  My cup has soil, dirt and water in it with the bean.  The plant is green just like a tree.  There are little lines on the leaves.  My shoot is standing up straight.  The soil is black like my hair.

I think my plant could turn different colours.  It will grow more leaves.

By Waina

Describing my bean: Day 11

Picture by Murdoch.

My bean smells musty like a old tea towel left in the bath. When you smell it the disgusting scent stays in your nose like a permanent tattoo. My bean looks like a octopus with only one leg because of the little dots on the side, which remind me of suckers. It tastes like, well I don't know what it tastes like because I'm not allowed to take it out of the cup because it is growing, but I think it would taste like damp washing that was carelessly washed without soap. It sounds like an awkward silence, like nobody has talked for years. It feels hard and soft at the same time, like a cat, because a cat has soft fur and a hard nose.

By Lucy.

More Descriptive Writing

My bean look like a cicada shedding its skin. The bean looks chocolate in the middle of the seed.

It smells like the tank farm because it stinks! When I listen to my bean I hear the sea, like I would in a sea shell. When I touch my bean I get the hebie jebies, where my body goes all tingly and hair on the back of my neck stands up straight and tall. I feel happy when I look my bean, like when I open a present.

By Tim.

My bean look like a mutated jelly bean or a mutated rocker growing two minute noodles. It smells like a dead warthog coveredd in flies with worms in its ears and nose. My bean looks like a poo. When I touch my bean it gives me the hebie jebies. It feels like plastic. It tastes like grass. When I look at my bean, it makes me feel all good like at Christmas.

By Hendy.

Bean Report - Day 11

I see a green leaf. It looks like a snake slithering up the side of the cup. It grows silently like a snail slides. It does not smell bad like some of the other ones, so I am lucky. It makes me feel excited like at Christmas when I open my presents.

By Oscar S.

Descriptive Writing

The BEAN
(Patheticus Maximus)

All this week all I've heard is BEAN BEAN BEAN! Water the BEAN check on the BEAN what about the BEAN has changed? Ay yi yi, why couldn't we have a more interesting plant?! Like a venus fly trap, or a bird of paridise! No... It had to be a small, blackish greyish purple speckled bean.
I wish the bean was a different colour, that might help. I wish the bean was the colour of fire and when you touched it, you got a warm feeling in your stomach, and when the plant sprouted, I wish it was golden with silver mists shimmering in it's depths and moonlight dust all over it like diamonds, and it grew fruit that was the colour of cream, yellow and amber mixed together. And it's taste, oh it's taste! It would taste of ambrosia, orange juice, whipped cream and vanilla icecream all mixed together for one glorious moment...
But no, it had to be a small, blackish, greyish, purple speckled bean.

By Murdoch

Snap shot of Term One and Two

By Alex.V
Samera and Chris showing how to use the same shape yet producing different pictures.

Wow it's great to read so many happy new friends reading our blog. I do agree growing beans in the class to start the term was fun but Room 16 have also been very busy doing other things throughout the year, so I thought it only fair to share with our loyal followers. Also I am trying to see if Miss Burt is good teacher (doing this s0lo - look no hands!) and if I get this up I get a chocolate fish from my teacher (Miss Burt). Any way enough about me, have a look at what Room 16 have been up to since the start of the year.

In term one our class started to use paint as a drawing tool to draw pictures of our baby. This picture was done by Rahiri. The best part of using this drawing software was not getting paint all over the tables! The butterfly was painted by Ariana, her very first time using paint.


Term Two was really cool because the whole school took part in Trash To Fashion. Our class we grouped into designer teams and we planned, made mock clothes and had a mini fashion show in our class. Our families were able to see all the art work we created and the parents loved all our work! We must say our clay work was pretty fab!!!!

Baby Silvie's Visit

BubbleShare: Share photos - Play some Online Games.

Room 16  is part of the ROOTS OF EMPATHY PROJECT - each term a baby has been coming to our class. Her name is Silvie. When Silvie comes to visit the Room 16 children, we talk about what she is doing.  We have talked about her milestones over the year and I must say, she has grown very big.  Jill is another teacher who runs the project and helps us to understand different kinds of feelings that we may have but can not talk about.   

I am sad today because it is Baby Silvie's second to last visit.  I think baby Silvie has changed by getting bigger.  I also noticed that she makes a lot of noises now.  She can also say "mum."  She still kicks her legs as she goes round the circle when we sing the ''hello baby Silvie and how are you'' song.

For Baby Silvie's last visit I think a party is a great idea and we should make sure we weigh and measure her.  I wonder how tall she is now?  I am looking forward to Silvie's last visit.  It will be a lot of fun!   

By Elle.

Ariana shares her thinking about Baby Silvie:  

Baby Silvie has grown very big. She can say ma ma ma and even pull her self up. Silvie can pick up toys she want to play with and even let her mum know when she is hungry! Today the whole class got to see our baby eat mushed up apple!.... it did not look that nice - but she liked it.  

On her last visit I would like to share all the things we have learned. For me, I learned some important things like - do not drop a baby, never leave a baby on a high chair and that babies can drown in a teaspoon of water. Learning about baby Silvie has helped me to look after my friends and babies as well.   

By Ariana and Miss Meleisea.

P.S: Thanks Jill for choosing our class to do Roots of Empathy!

Day 4: Bean Growth!

Guess what's happened?  My bean has started to sprout! I have drawn a smily face on my cup using a black vivid, and the bean is the nose in my smily face.  The sprout is big and white and is growing downwards, so it looks like snot hanging out of the nose!  It looks really funny.

By Keaston.

On day four my bean has made tiny changes. The only thing that has happened to it is the colour. The skin on my bean has faded away - like the sun falling into the ocean and disappearing! It has also put on a lot of weight - thats right a FAT BEAN! Watching my bean grow  makes me feel like a caretaker! 

By Tori.

Room 6 Visits Room 16

The newest members of Grey Lynn School are in Room 6.  Today they came to visit our class!  Here they are looking cute and very ready to learn!

Thanks for coming to see us, Cheryl and Room 6!  We hope you saw our beans!

Day 3: Progress Report

I thought that today my bean had not changed much, but then when I looked harder the crack had grown.  My prediction is that a few of our beans may start sprouting tomorrow.  

We haven't just been growing beans, though.  We are also growing water cress.  All the little water cress have sprouted and they look like tadpoles!  Soon we can eat them!

By Freeman.

Day Two: Predictions for our beans

Waina: I think my bean is going to grow big and tall just like a tree

Misty: The runner bean might crack so it can grow a root or it might start to sprout

Joe: I reckon nothing is going to happen to my bean and now I'm thinking that it might die!

 

Growing Cress

In Room 16, we are also growing water cress.  For the water cress we got a clear bowl and put some paper towels in it and put some water in too, but we made it was only damp, not wet.  Then we put the water cress seeds in the bowl and made sure that they were spread apart. We put a book and a paper towel on top of the bowl to keep it warm and left it for a few days.

By Joe

Growing Runner Beans

Today we've just planted our runner beans.  The first thing we did was we each got given a cup.  We rolled up a paper towel and placed it inside the cup.  After we'd done that, we scrunched up 2 or 3 paper towels and put them inside the cup.  Next we placed one bean in the cup, halfway down.  Then we wet the paper towels so that they were damp but not fully wet.  We wrote our names on the cup and placed the cups on the windowsill.  

I think that the runner bean will start to crack and turn into a sprout.  I also think that the roots might grow soon.  That will be really exciting!

By Pepe-Marie

Mangere Mountain Visit

On Tuesday the 15th of October Rooms 16, 11 and 8 went to Mangere Mountain for a school trip.  We went there because we are learning about different uses for land and how it changes over time.  Mangere Mountain is a mountain that erupted 18,000 years ago, and it is 48, 000 years old. While we were there, we went for a walk and explored the mountain.  We made Maori gardening tools, visited the food garden and medicine garden.  It was really interesting and we had a great day.

By Casey

High: Going up the mountain.

Low: Going back to school.

Interesting: Seeing the medicine garden.

By Tatsuki

High: Carving the gardening tools.

Low: Walking in the sun for too long.

Interesting: Finding out that local plants can cure.

By Casey

High: Looking in the medicine garden.

Low: Getting thirsty on the long walk.

Interesting: I think it was cool how some plants can be medicine.

By Jericho

High: Walking up the mountain and seeing the cool view.

Low: The heat on the walk since I was wearing black.

Interesting: Carving the tools that could be used for gardening.

By Loimata

Welcome

It's the one, it's the only, Room 16 blog, coming to you straight from Auckland City, New Zealand, the Earth, for those of you who are little aliens!  Room 16 is a class full of Year 4 and 5 students, and if you thought Hannah Montana had talent, you should see us!  This is why... one of our students was the main character in a 365 person school play, 3 people competed in the inter zone cross country, and another 3 competed in the inter zone rugby league and came fourth!  So you see, Room 16 is full of talent!  We hope you enjoy our blog, and remember, ROOM 16 ROCKS!!!!

By Murdoch

P.S: By the way, it's Hendy's birthday today.  He turned 10!