Ella West

As a part of our reading activities, we [our group] had to comment on the blog site of Ella West [the author of "Night Vision" "RainFall" and many several books]. In our comments, we presented and given light to what we enjoyed about her book, "Night Vision", how we felt about reading it and asking any questions that we had.  We hoped dearly that she would reply, though for me I thought that chances were slim, however, shockingly she did! I cannot describe how we felt at the time, though even now, we're still shocked by the incident (unbelievable). Each and every one of us was exuberant, even our teacher as well, we felt proud of what we've achieved. To add to that, we were informed by our teacher [Mrs. Allan-Flecther], that Ella West had contacted her and she told us that she was glad that we enjoyed the book; how she was happy that her target audience liked and loved what she had written.
This September she was originally coming to back from Dunedin, and so she told us that she is willing to meet with us; made us all crazy.

Thank you very much Ella West, we adore you and we admire you for what you do. Thank you for the books and the story that you've told us.
Thank you.

Biblical References: Old Testament

Several weeks into Term 2 of 2019 [last term]; Scholarship English Students were given activities in which we had to write about a certain topic that we've chosen. An activity book was given to us, in which we read; took the topic that we most liked and started to write about it. After reading the book, I chose to write more in detail about some of the major stories in the "Old Testament"(Christian Bible). The reason for choosing this subject is that being a Christian myself I know sufficient information about this topic. Not only that but since we owned a bible I thought that would make it easier since I have already got an excellent source.

In the duration of Term 2, I have only been reading the "Old Testament" in the Bible; while reading I, with the guide of the activity book as well began to chose which I will write a "summary" about.

The stories/events that I chose were; Genesis - The Garden of Eden; Noah's Ark; Exodus -  Moses - Ten Commandments and Daniel in the Lions'  Den.

After the Term, in several periods of the holidays, I have started to write the "summaries".  This was done in order starting from "The Beginning" up to the "Daniel in the lion's Den". I've made several changes to how the wording in most parts of my writing. Though however, some are entirely quoted from "The Bible"; by that, I am stating that some of the writing in which we would see a character talking, most was kept original. This was done so that the writing would have some aesthetics of where it originated. 

I am currently reading more, however, the topic I am focusing on now; again continuing on the Biblical Reference, I am reading the New Testament.

Biblical References: Old Testament

Hurumanu: Water Cycle

AIM: TO LOOK AT THE WATER CYCLE AND HOW CLIMATE CHANGE IS AFFECTING IT.

Definition:

In the connecting of the different parts of the water cycle; we first started precipitation as our main base. Our group then progress on talking about what connects to it; for that, we took and connected it to condensation. One reason we connected it is that if the condensation may be enough, precipitation would be very much possible. An example of this event would be the condensation of clouds and precipitation would be the rain that it process; as well as condensation of different liquids as well. Connecting to it we found evaporation, which the vaporization that occurs on the surface of a liquid. We knew that by evaporation, condensation will occur, then while in this subject water vapour will occur and is very much related to evaporation. These water vapour and evaporation occur because of the large bodies of water that we have which as the likes of freshwater and the oceans; which are part of the Hexagons that we have done as well.  The nest part of this is carbon dioxide, which seems quite unrelated, though it is very much so. The burning of fossil fuels [what we've discussed previously] creates C02 which what we've discussed as well, traps the sunlight from bouncing back to space. Therefore it is heating our planet, global warming which is melting the Arctic and the Antarctic;  also is responsible for more evaporation, which then turns to condensation and back to precipitation which is a product of condensation. If more of such things should occur, there will be larger rains which we know relates to climate change, the rains become storms which in time will be hurricanes. Strong hurricanes will soon result in a lot of damage and could in time cause severe flooding. That is what we've connected so far.

Scientific words:

• Evaporation. When water is heated by radiant energy it turns into water vapour.
• Transpiration. Evaporation from plants.
• Condensation. When water vapour cools, molecules join together and form clouds.
• Precipitation. When clouds get heavy the waters falls as rain, sleet, hail, or snow.
• Acidification: the action or process of making or becoming acidic.

We will be conducting an experiment that looks at the different ways that climate change is affecting the water cycle.

THE WATER CYCLE EXPERIMENT

Bag 1: Normal Water cycle

Bag 2: Water cycle with CO2 added: like Oceans in climate change

Bag 3: Water cycle with ice added: like Antarctica in climate change

Bag #1

Material:

1.  Plastic bags/ziplock bags.
2.  Vivid Markers.
3.   Water.
4.   Food colouring.

Steps:

1. Grab your ziplock bag lay it on a hard surface. 
2.  Hold your vivid and draw the water cycle by drawing water, clouds, sun, etc.
3.  Label your drawing by putting the process, like evaporation, transpiration, etc.
4.  Insert 1 cup of water in the bag and put 2 drops of food colour in the bag(preferably blue).
5.  Stick the bag to a location where there is sunlight and observe within several days.

Findings:

	The Water Cycle: Bag 1	CO2 Water Cycle: Bag 2 Acid	Desert Water Cycle Bag 3
Does it cycle?	Yes	Yes	Yes
Amount of Water	2	2	2
Acidity	1	2	1

Key: Water and acidity amount:

1= none

2 = small drips

3 big drips

Other comments:

1. Bag 1

• The first water cycle experiment had not any amount of acidity.
• The water cycle that we hypothesized has indeed happened.
• There were small drops of evaporated water around the sides of the bag.

2. Bag 2

• There was acidity in the second bag.
• The acidity was in the form of soda water.
• The same cycle happened, evaporation, precipitation, etc.

3. Bag 3

• Bag 3 had the least amount of water and was not as plentiful as the other bags.
• Again the cycle occurred, even though it had less liquid.
• Small drops of water can be seen inside the bag.

Conclusion:

The water cycle is an ever-recurring phenomenon. Each of the steps that it takes is fundamental to the reaction that it does. A location no matter how less liquid it contains if exposed to enough heat it will evaporate. In conclusion, the experiment proved our hypothesis that each of the bags did indeed have their liquids evaporate and turn into small drops of water. All of the bags including bag 3 which represents desert water cycle had omitted moisture.

Draw a labelled diagram of the Water Cycle

Water cycle words:

1. Precipitation - Any product that condensation produces.
2. Hurricanes - They are a natural disaster which brings heavy rain and strong winds; which occurs around the Atlantic.
3. Storms - Storms are a natural phenomenon that can turn into hurricanes when the closed circle becomes an "eye"; it typically brings thunder, rain, lightning and or snow.
4. Evaporation - A type of vaporization that occurs on the surface of the liquid.
5. Carbon Dioxide - Carbon dioxide or C02 is 1 part carbon and 2 parts oxygen; it is an essential part of photosynthesis, fire extinguishers, etc.
6. Water-Water/ H20 is a main part of the earth's streams, rivers, oceans and is fundamental to life forms.
7. Oceans - A body of water, a very large expanse of sea, that is divided geographically. 
8. Water vapour - It is a state of water where it becomes gas, can be produced by evaporating water.
9. Freshwater - Freshwater is water that is not fro the sea; examples of these are the likes of rivers, streams, lakes, etc.
10. Flooding - It is when commonly dry land is submerged with water.

SOLO Hexagons Activity

Water cycle words:

1. Precipitation
2. Hurricanes
3. Storms
4. Evaporation
5. Carbon Dioxide
6. Water
7. Oceans
8. Water vapour
9. Freshwater
10. Flooding

TODAY YOU WILL BE INVESTIGATING THE EFFECTS THAT CLIMATE CHANGE HAS ON THE WATER CYCLE.

1. Using your SOLO hexagons poster write a paragraph about the different aspects of climate change.
2. Write about the following Climate Change concepts:

You can do these by powerpoint, embedding a movie, on your blog, on a doc or any other form of presentation. It is up to you.

ACIDIFICATION: HOW DOES CLIMATE CHANGE CONTRIBUTE TO THE ACIDIFICATION OF OUR OCEANS?

The burning of fossil fuels not only greatly affects climate change; the warming of our globe which causes severe problems for some certain species of animals. As well as the rise of sea levels which threaten islands from being erased from the map; the very unusual weather patterns, making hurricanes more common resulting in flooding. However, that is not the only problems that pose for us. The oceans absorb C02, in fact, it absorbs about 30% of the carbon dioxide in our atmosphere. The ever sustaining absorption of C02 results in an unpleasant chemical reaction that increases the concentration of hydrogen ions. The increase makes the seawater more acidic; hence the production of carbonate ions is significantly less. Given that, carbonate ions are fundamental to the production of seashells and organisms such as coral skeletons; twill is a lot more challenging to maintain such organisms.

Picture:

Diagram of how it affects the water cycle.

DEFORESTATION: HOW DOES DEFORESTATION AFFECT CLIMATE CHANGE?

Deforestation affects climate change; one because trees transform the carbon dioxide in our atmosphere into oxygen. Without the trees that we have now the carbon dioxide in our atmosphere may not lessen to a significant amount.  Flooding would be a very likely event that would occur as well; no trees means that there would be less matter to absorb the water from precipitation. Not only that but then transpiration would not pe possible thus not being able to release vapour; that would cause no condensation leading to no precipitation. With no precipitation, the land of which the trees are in would likely be dried; killing the vegetation and would not be a habitable space for trees to thrive. 

Picture:

Diagram of how it affects the water cycle.

ICECAP MELT: HOW DOES ICECAP MELT AFFECT CLIMATE CHANGE?

The ice from the Arctic and the Antarctic is melting at a fast rate. This melting would be a reason for the rise of sea levels. This would cause further damage to those who are on the low ground as well as the islands that small. This would not only be a crisis for the people around those lands catastrophic for the animal species around the area as well.

Picture:

Diagram of how it affects the water cycle.

WATER VAPOUR: HOW DOES CLIMATE CHANGE CONTRIBUTE TO WATER VAPOUR AND EVAPORATION?

The amount of water vapour that has been evaporating would cause condensation. The condensation would turn into precipitation; meaning more rain, stronger hurricanes and typhoons. This would also result in more unpredictable weather patterns. These strong and longer hurricanes and typhoon would be a reason for floods; then these flood would have devastating effects on our cities and towns. Not only that but these floods could affect habitats around the globe, theoretically, this would result in the extinction of several species.

Picture:

Diagram of how it affects the water cycle.

What are some things that we could do individuals could help solve this global problem?

3 R's -

We reduce the amount of pollution that we make. This could be done such as by minimalizing our carbon footprint; if the destination that you want to travel to could be reached by walking and would not take long. Walk to that location instead of using a fossil-fueled vehicle, this may also be achieved by using a bicycle or any type of vehicle that uses human power or electricity. Another way that you could contribute to solving this problem is by reducing the resources that you use. Try to lessen the quantity of tree made materials that you use. Lower the amount of paper,  as well as planting trees; these such things would help us to be one step closer into overcoming this calamity.

Reusing materials such as a reusable bag, cups, straws, plates, etc. Reuse what you can, reuse old material that may be damaged but can still be usable in another way.

Recycle paper, cardboard, etc. You could also buy recycled materials, clothes, decorations and everyday objects that you may need. Environment-friendly materials, 

Night Vision

In reading, this term we have been doing Novel Studies which is reading a novel and doing activities that connect to it. Our group has been reading "Night Vision", a story about a girl with a disease, which is XP or Xeroderma Pigmentosum. The disease causes her to be only out at night, she is not able to absorb sunlight, if exposed to a great extent she or he may die. One night while out, he saw something that she shouldn't have seen; it was a crime, murder and robbery. The question is what will she do with the money? The direction in which this story take is very surprising and would recommend anyone to read. We have been progressing with the activities that were given to us; such activities were, for example, creating the main character and other characters as well, like animals, etc.

This book had been an enjoyable novel, I liked the plot on the book and that it had been set in New Zealand. How it was written was simple yet interesting; it hooked me at the moment I read the blurb. There wasn't a point in the story that I felt uninterested in reading further; not only that but I quite liked the fact that it tackles on a real disease and spreading knowledge about it while the plot continues. Moreover, it was in one of my most favourite genres mystery and thriller. There were only a little things that I didn't enjoy so much, specifically two.
The first one is that the character development was not seen in some characters, like for example, the dad. He didn't change as much or at all during the story. The character development on the mom, however, was a little bit confusing as I can't tell if it was because Viola was on the papers and that's why she changed. I didn't see an event where the mother would show more affection towards Viola.
How it ended was too quick and fast-paced, but I would guess if that were to happen in real life that would be a very likely scenario to happen. the case would be left as a mystery and there would probably be no evidence that would prove it.
Nevertheless, the book was an amazing read; I would hope to read more of Ella West's books.

Here are some of the activities that we have been making:

Crossword puzzle



Creating a Poster/Advertisement.
(Recreated version)

Puppets and Ventriloquisim

We continued to look in depth about our 4 aspects of our Hauora. Last week and the following week, we know started to present our ideas but in an exciting way; which is Ventriloquism we started to create puppets that we can use to state what we think. The question that we have to answer in our little puppet show is "How does eating healthy food help all 4 aspects of Hauora". Some groups like us are still continuing to create our puppets, though I as an individual has created my puppet we are still not finished per se.
We designed our puppets, one of my group members, Vann planned to create "Kaneki" from the anime "Tokyo Ghoul" and the other one Lars thought about doing "Gordon Ramsay". I, on the other hand, thought about doing two characters which were "Vito Corleone" [The Godfather] or "Mrs Doubtfire" from "Mrs.Doubtfire".
Another thing that we still need to think about is what we are going to say for the show.  We started to think about 1 one the aspects at first, which we thought would be the easiest. That is the Physical well-being, eating healthy foods such as vegetables; fruits and lots of protein would help you build muscles, therefore, making you more active. The next aspect that we looked at is Taha Whanau [Family], eating healthy foods or not even as healthy foods with your family tightens the bond. Foods may be a way to socialise with people better, like at gatherings, festivals or just hanging out. The third aspect that we started to do is Mental/Emotional well-being, this could connect to the whanau as well. This could be that after being tired from work or school; knowing that you have a family that takes care of you and makes you food with love, would contribute to how you feel emotionally. The last aspect which was Taha Wairua or Spiritual well-being, we looked at last. The foods could connect to your religion, an example of this can be not eating meat; as well as eating certain types of foods during parts of the year.  That is how we think eating healthy food help all 4 aspects of Hauora.

Solo Taxonomy

Solo Taxonomy

1. Prestructural

• No Organisation
• Unconnected Ideas

2. Unistrcutural

• One Idea
• Shows Connected Thoughts

3. Multi Structural

• 2 or 3 Ideas 
• Some Connectedness

4. Relational

• Make Links To Other Concepts

5. Abstract

• Bringing Your Ideas Into Other Concepts.

Tane Mahuta

This week we have accomplished our mission and has visited Charlesworth Reserve. It was around half past 9 when we started to head for the bus; 3 classes were joined together on this project, to help plant native plants around Charlesworth Reserve. For this term in CIP, we have been aiming to help our environment and to be able to bring the native plants that were once thriving in New Zealand. That is the reason that we went to Charlesworth Reserve; not only that we had to bring the native birds back but to build habitats for the immigrating birds that would come to here as well. In the Reserve [wetland], we were taught the best area that we would plant 2 types of rushes and 2 other types of plants as well. The rushes were mainly placed and planted on around the sandy and wet part of the land.
Andrew, who was the who was one of the people that take care of the reserve discussed with us the proper way of how to plant them, as well as teaching us that we should plant these rushes in the sand rather than the clay layer. The reserve had been aiming to plant approximately 100,000 plants in the area; in the duration of our visit, we planted around 200 of them. The area had a history of being a Plainfield, though it was supposed to be an area to be built a building on. But was then organized to be a wetland to help the native plants and birds, rather than being a building or a school. They took measures in taking the field and getting it to be partly submerged in seawater.

We've learnt quite a few about planting while we were in the reserve, from my point of view at least contributed to the goal that the reserve was aiming for. Though we might need to plant a lot more trees globally the progress is being done and saving the Earth is on the way.