Who are you? ~ Home Room Learning :)

'Be proud of who you are as I have done the same!' Being Maori 'and' Tongan means a whole lot to me as I identify myself as 'that' nationality. It's in my blood and will always be :) 

(Maori) ~ One of the many traditions that I am linked and involved in is 'Kapa Haka.' Kapa Haka is a time where a group of people represent their skills, their family and more :) Many things are involved in this type of tradition as it has meaning too :) One of the many traditions in 'Kapa Haka is a Waiata: A waiata marks a special and important occasion. Such as, the birth of a child, death, ETC. It can most likely be emotional and heartfelt. But in the end it brings everyone together. 

(Tonga) ~ From my personal experience the most common Tongan traditional dance is called a Tau'olunga. Usually performed on special occasions, E.g weddings, birthdays and more. You’re able to perform the dance individually and also in small groups. It shows untouched beauty. It’s also performed by younger people as it is quite rare for older women and married women to do this dance as it is prohibited. 

Being able to participate in such passionate event brings me to a better understanding of where I come from and of how special it is to me:)

~ It's Tongan Language week! :) ~

This week is Tongan Language Week! This week we celebrate the nationality, the people, the culture, the language and all that has come from the friendly island: Tonga. Uike Kātoanga'i 'o e Lea Faka-Tonga is on from Sunday 6th of september to Saturday 12th of september. 'Fakakoloa ‘o Aotearoa ‘aki ‘a e Lotu Mo’oni.' The theme for the week! Which in english means 'Enriching Aotearoa New Zealand through Prayer and Faith.'


Tonga is made up of 170 Islands! The island itself is located in the Pacific Ocean. The capital of Tonga is Nuku'alofa. Tonga is known as The Friendly Island. It was nicknamed by Captain Hook as he adored the Warm Welcomings, their hospitality and their friendliness.

Taha Whanau! ~ Inquiry :)

For this task we had to label the jobs everyone in my bubble had done. The roles they did :) 

My brother looked after us while our parents were either working or sleeping because they were tired. He also made us laugh and bought humor to lockdown by telling jokes and showing us many different funny videos. Other then that he also played nice songs to vibe to while we were meant to be doing work :)

My sister did her job in cleaning. She made sure she did her dishes, etc. She turned our lounge into a movie cinema for the twins and entertained by coming up with new things to do almost everyday. 

The twins struggled a lot during lockdown as they weren’t able to see their friends. But they jumped on their calls and even tried to do some work of their own. Asking for lots and lots of help to complete it. They both also had fun times with their toys and cleaned up after themselves. But other then that, they also did a great job of yelling in my ear to wake up every mornings :) 

Dad cooked us all dinner while mum was at work. He made sure we were well feed and on top of that he did his role in being an essential worker. He worked very hard. He also encouraged us to finish our work, to attend out meetings, and to be fully ready in the mornings.

Mum also did some cooking for us too! But as she was at work, she found it hard coming home and making dinner. Which is why she relied on my dad :) As said, she did her part in being an essential worked and worked very hard also :) Other then that, she shopped for the things we needed during lockdown and also cleaned every mornings before she was off to work.
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( I know I wasn't suppose to do as many paragraphs as I had done, but I felt a bit weird as I hadn't finished my work on time so I decided to do a bit of extra work to motivate me to do better next time and to Finish It Off Properly! )

Why did Rona blame the moon? ~ Writing :)

Today we were tasked to right 2 paragraphs (max) about why we support or don't support Marama's
choice of blaming the moon for her fall/spilling the water. We talked together in our call as some of us stated our reasons then.

What do you think ?

Lockdown Disco! ~ Level 3 - Covid-19

Camp 2021 (Step up 2021)

 Camp was amazing this year! We were given the opportunity to step out of our comfort zone. Which was cool to see everyone giving it a shot.

The activities were so much fun. I would've liked to do the flying fox or even go for a swim, but obviously it's too cold. The next set of year 8's should have the amazing opportunity to do what we experienced and I feel like they should be just as greatful as we were. The Kauaeranga Site had the option of a camp fire. I feel like the year 7's moving into year 8 would have a wonderful time having amazing conversations while roasting marshmallows or even singing songs. It would also be really cool to see the future year 8's participate in some new things.

But I also feel like in 2021 year 8's should have more time at camp. Maybe a week or so? A week to do more activities with friends and to find their way around. 

Overall, the 3 days spent at camp are really important. You get to learn new things and lesson and shine through. Treasure these opportunities and try it out :)

That's all from me :) 

Term 2 Reflection :)

Kia Ora! Sadly, Term 2 for 2020 is coming to an end. We have had many fun and tragic times this term. Lockdown learning ~ Back to school and more!  I have had amazing highlights from this term!

Lockdown Learning~
Lockdown learning was fun, yet tragic. Jumping on calls every morning to learn online with our teachers was a fun way to keep in contact with each other. We stressed a lot, not knowing if we were able to go back to school, due to Covid-19. Each day we were given our normal literacy and maths slides to complete and on top of that we were also given a education pack. Lending us, coloring pencils, books and pens!.

Back to school~ 
Coming back to school was a struggle as we still had to follow a lot of strict rules. We were still not able to touch people as we had to 'keep our distance.' Being back at school was a reliever, being able to see our teachers, friends and more was very heartwarming. We also made a move to our new home class. Off to Mrs Stone! For the past few weeks we listened in with our Prime Minister and made sure we were sticking to her rules. Sooner or later, we moved to level one, allowing us to now come closer with each other.

40 Famine~
40 hour famine was one of my highlights this term. We were able to create house forts out of cardboard. Play reverse charades and drink juice and eat bali sugars. We shared our thoughts on why we fundraise and fast for this cause. Making massive impacts on childrens and families lives is a good thing to do as some of them need a lot of help! Being able to be one of the peoples making impact on their lives and experiencing what they have been through means a lot!

Matariki~
This was a fun day for our whole school to connect and celebrate Maori New years. We got split up into different groups. Art and crafts, Sports, Cooking and Movie Making. Each group did their own creative thing. Making and doing things. I was in the arts and crafts group and I must say, it was a pretty fun experience. Others made delicious cookies, played some pretty cool sports, made some creations and movies! It was amazing to see our whole school come together and celebrate such an important even with everyone else! :)

As you have read, we have had quite a on and off term! We have also had a special person visit us at our school assembly. Joseph Parker! Thank you for sharing your experience and your amazing and inspiring quotes. I was also lucky enough to be a school leader and run the school assemblies! It was really fun!

I want to thank all the teachers, student and staff members for making amazing things possible this term. And to all you students, thank you for participating in a lot of awesome events! Can't wait for another term of excitement. Especially year 8 camp! I'm ready :)

Also a massive farewell to Miss Donaldson! Love towards you on your new journey! God Bless, we will miss you lots :)

Why do people protest!?

Have you ever wondered why people protest? For the past 150 years, New zealand has been a free country! It’s legal to protest about disagreements and movements that are important, not only in New zealand but in the entire world! Why would you protest?

What is a protest?
A protest can be defined as an object or complaint. There are many other ways to protest. Such as a; Hikoi, Petition, March, Meet and/or strike. A protest usually involves a large group of people meeting together to fight or have a massive conflict for a cause. Protests are known to make something better and to make it fair.

What causes a protest?
Usually protests are caused by disagreements and responses to an event. Protesters sometimes organize a public protest so their opinions could be heard! There are so many ways that cause protests. It could be a disagreement with the government's choices, it could be something the public doesn’t agree with and many more. I’ve learnt that many protests are about racism, different rights and disagreements with a statement. Let your opinions be heard!

Do protests actually work?
I’ve learnt that there’s a 50/50% chance that protests will work and won't. Opinions can be heard and can’t. Some make very big impacts on what they're protesting about, but if others are against it, it’s not certain it will work. If everyone is on the same track and if everyone is protesting for the same rights and cause then, you’ll know what happens next. It depends on the government's choices.

Protests have made very big impacts on other lives. We’ve been protesting for 150 years, and we’ll continue to protest for many more! :)

Noughts and crosses

Walt: Evaluate the writer's purposes and ways in which writers use language and ideas to suit their purposes.


Task description:

Have you ever been unfairly judged?  If so I recommend this novel to you.

Today in Room 4, group A read a story called noughts and crosses. We looked at the different perspectives of two different people. Read on to find out more!

What's the point? ~ Literacy work

Walt: Identify the author's purpose for writing


Task description:

Today in room 4 literacy we learnt about 'what the moral of a story is.' First we watched a video as a class. ~ The boy who cried wolf. We talked about what the moral was and pasted it into the slides. We then read a short story and did the same. We read - 'Lion and the mouse' We did a little recap on what the story was about and what the meaning behind the story was. Kindness given - Kindness gained. Our next task was to read 'The dinner party' We did the same with the previous stories then talked about it with the class. But our last task was to create our own story. We had to have a nice moral too.

Today's literacy work was pretty fun! I enjoyed making my own story and identifying the meanings behind the stories!

| All Rivers Flow To Sea | ~ Literacy work

Walt: Describe the purpose of a clause


Task Description:

In this presentation we were tasked to complete the following slides. I have a bit of unfinished things in this presentation so I'll finish it soon. If you see any changes, then I've finished the rest. We had to highlight the subject in the sentences and the verbs in the sentences. Green and blue! We also read a story and talked about the structure and what is happening. We looked closer at the story as we answered some questions. We then had to write our own little story. My one was about 'the time I decided to come back to school after my aunty had passed due to cancer'

Enjoy!! :))

My Invention :) ~ Literacy

Walt: Form and communicate ideas.



Task Description:

Miss Tapuke gave us something a bit interesting this week for Literacy. She gave us the task to sketch out an invention that'll be made and be useful for 2057. I decided to sketch out a drone that'll help us reduce our pollution. We then had to come up with 2 sentences that describes and tells my audience what it is and what it does. Then we had to come up with 3 names for our inventions and post it on our blogs!

Here's mine :)

Day Two of no school :) | What's up ? |

Today was the second day of no school. We've been learning at home and online with our chrome books! I started my morning off with a nice hot shower :) Then had my breakfast. After that, I got straight into work. I joined Mrs Tele'a at 8:30am, reading the daily time table. Also said the school karakia like usual, may have say the school mihi and sang Wairua Tapu as Mrs Tele'a wanted us too.

Usually on a Wednesday I'd be at Extension but because I was at home I got right into literacy.
This time I decided to do the create tasks because I've already answered the questions. Later on, it was finally time to call Miss Tapuke. This time it was different. She explained our tasks like usual but then gave us a quiz. She asked us questions about our texts, and we answered them :) After the quiz Miss Tapuke decided to send us off the hangout to do our work. I had a little break with my sister. We had a snack and played outside. It was lots of fun. After all, isolation is driving me crazy !

We came back inside and I carried on with my literacy task as my sister Eva went on with her school work too. I then decided to switch to maths :) Mrs Stone had new work set for us. I had a look at the video she had made for us and scrolled down to see a brand new slide waiting to be completed. I had a look at the video she had inserted in the slides and responded when she asked us too. She helped us complete the first 3 slides. She then let us try to solve the following slides.

It was a bit different as our maths call was moved to 1:00pm. Well, it was time to call each other! We did the rest of the word problems on the slide together on the call because some people were still confused (including me :) Once again, the call was very very very tragic! Some forgot to mute themselves and it was just, really confusing. It didn't help that it was a bit laggy but doing learning at home with your teacher is better then nothing :)

Once we finished out hangout Mrs Stone set us off to complete the presentation. We all got removed off the call one by one and did our learning for today. Time went by and all of a sudden it was 3:00pm!

It would've been the end of school but I kept pushing to get a couple of things finished.

In the end i'd say I'm proud of what I've accomplished today.

I hope you're all having a good time, don't forget to be safe!

God Bless xo

Bring it on!

2020, a new start. This year has already been flying past and so I’m sure I need to set some goals. I actually have a few goals for 2020. One of my goals is to be a good role model for others. As part of being leader for 2020 not just for Kapa Haka but for the school too, I think I should be setting goals to improve my leadership skills. Another goal I have set for myself is to try new things. Things like new sports, new things at home and more. I think that everybody should be able to try new things because sticking to one thing is simple. The world isn’t simple and so why should people be basic and simple? I want to be able to take the risks and reach for the stars!

Image Attribution: 

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My letter to you, Miss Tapuke!

Walt: Write for a specific purpose.

Kia Ora Miss Tapuke,

My name is Jahzara. I’m a Year 8 student at Pt England School. I have been attending Pt
England School since I was 5. As you may know, I am currently 12 years old turning 13 in June! 
I am in fact the eldest female sibling in my family always working hard in the house :)

My favourite subject is writing! The reason why is because I’m able to chuck in any of my
thoughts and ideas. Writing makes me feel calm and free. I feel that my weakest subject is
Numeracy. I sometimes find it hard to understand some of the questions that I get asked, but I
must say that I love to find the Area and Perimeters of different types of shapes.

I enjoy playing netball and cricket. I’ve been playing netball ever since I was 7 years old. I’ve
had amazing opportunities to play netball in the Pacific Cup! I played for Tonga in 2016 & 2018
and in 2017 I played for Fiji. I also played cricket in 2017 and 2018 and decided to take a break
in 2019. Now I’m back and trying to be active with the family or even school teams. 

I absolutely love music. Singing is actually one of my hobbies. I love playing the guitar and
ukulele. I know heaps of tunes and songs. When playing the guitar I enjoy finger picking. It’s one
of the ways to bring more empathy and life into my type of music. I am currently learning how to
play the keyboard/piano. I like to think of it as a splash of refreshment towards my mind. 

I am really interested in gemstones. I love how the gemstones have their own type of power. I’ve
had a couple myself. My personal favourite has to be an amethyst. An Amethyst is known as a
protection stone. It is known to protect you from any spiritual attacks which I find very cool.

I am very excited to be in your literacy class this year. I know it’s going to be a blast, just like
last year! :)

Yours sincerely,

Jahzara.

Task Description:

Room 2 literacy was tasked to write Miss Tapuke a letter, introducing yourself. We were tasked
to make our letter interesting and thoughtful. This letter is to inform others, telling them what I'm
about and what I enjoy doing. I enjoyed this task because well, I like to write! You may have read
the letter already so you must know a lot about me now :)

Enjoy! :)