Leading Our Own Conference

On Wednesday afternoon learners in Room 20 had their second opportunity to run their own learning conference with their family.  They did a superb job and were able to talk about what they have been doing, what they find tricky, what they are proud of, what their next steps and goals are... and so much more.  

To reflect on this we created a Word Cloud.  These are some of the words we thought of after this experience.

Cooper and Kayla

Kayla and Cooper shared their karate experience.  They represented our school and their clubs.

Kayla - It was really hard at first.  For kumite I got a warning for hitting my sister in the head!

Cooper - For kata I nearly came 3rd but there was this really good guy that was hard to beat.

Superior Sculptures

We had an amazing time exploring the creations at Sculpture Onshore.  As well as seeing a huge range of sculptures from a range of artists, we were also proud to see our creations on show.  

Follow the link to view the gallery and check out what we saw.  Sculpture Onshore Gallery.  

Class Reporters

Mia - On Saturday night I had a sleepover.  We went to the 'Haunted Hall Disco' together and bought some things from the tuck shop to have a midnight feast!  Instead of a midnight feast we had early Jaffas and Twisties for breakfast.

Sophia - I watched the Good Dinosaur movie a few days ago.  Some bits were really sad, but other bits were happy and funny!

Flying High in the Sky

This is a story of animals that come together to make hot air balloons.  They come up with lots of ideas.  Hope you enjoy my story.  - Sophia

Kallona Balloona

Kallona went to a different place with lots of balloons on her house.  She met lots of human and animal friends.  Hope you enjoy the story.   - Rio

The Special Book

The story I created is quite long and special to me.  I love storybird because you get to make lots of stories.  It can be challenging to think about what you want to write.  I hope you enjoy my story!

- Elly

Diwali Celebrations

What a fabulous Friday!  

The CPDS school community were able to celebrate Diwali thanks to an extraordinary group of organisers.  We had lots of fun, learnt why Diwali is celebrated and what is done during the 5 days of festivities.  

A huge thanks to all those who made this day so enjoyable.

Ready, set...

Room 20 is buzzing as we prepare ourselves to take part in Sculpture on the Shore.  Our creations are in the beginning stages and we are looking forward to completing them.

Stars of Football in Training

The sky is clear, a light breeze drifts along the field.  It's a great day to have a football coaching session.  We had heaps of fun with the coaches from Football Kidz NZ.

Four Class Reporters

James, Jamie, Iris and Cooper shared some of their special experiences during our class reporters time this week.  James picked up a cool Ben 10 truck at the fair this year and showed us some of its special features.  When Jamie visited Rotorua in the holidays she went to Rainbow Springs and let us watch a couple of exciting videos of her experiences.  Iris showed us her awesome hip hop dance moves and Cooper shared news of his karate talents.  

We enjoy hearing about the interests and experiences of learners in Room 20!  Thanks for sharing.

The Snow Dog

A Day in the Bush

Room 20 used their CURIOUS learner strategies as they explored the bush in the Waitakere Ranges Regional Park.  We were taken through the bush by park ranges, learnt about he parts of flowers and the jobs they do, and even got to plant our very own flax seeds.

Rio's Story

I have been working hard on this.  I hope you enjoy it!  Rio

Beyond on Storybird

This is a story about me on a hot air balloon, travelling, seeing what is outside the village.  Maskil

The Amazing Adventure

I liked writing this story because I like challenges.  It's really hard to finish so it took a lot of confidence and silence.  Max

The Amazing Adventure

It took heaps of confidence and time to write my story.  We edited it at the end, I think that storybird is cool.  Thomas

Hannah: Hot Air Balloon Challenge

I wrote my story and edited it carefully.  It is hard to make a good story and I think I learnt lots about punctuation.   It was challenging but I'm sure you'll enjoy it.  Hannah

Hot Air Balloons

We have been learning about storybird and the amazing things that you can do on it.  You can make stories and send them to your friends.  It's also useful for school, home learning and becoming a great writer.  Please enjoy my story.
James

Sunshine in Our Pockets

The much awaited dance video premiere!

Look How You've Grown!

From the tiny little seeds they started as, to healthy cress plants.  Learners in Room 20 have been watching their plants closely and have made sure they got what they needed to grow.  

Just look at them now!

The World of Plants

Videos to help you dive into our learning about plants.  Check out the class site for more.

What A Performance!

Year 3's shared their amazing musical talents to a full house on Thursday evening.  An explosion of singing, instrumental items and dance echoed through the hall and out into the night.

Your effort and hard work shone right throughout your performance and we are all very proud of you!

Creative Flair

The gallery is open!  The artists of Room 20 have completed their fabulous calendar art.

Come by and check out these beautiful artworks.

Growing Log

Room 20 are growing seeds.  We all have a little plant that we are taking care of, making sure it gets what it needs to be healthy.  Here's what has happened so far.

The Exhausted Faces of Cross Country

It's Tuesday afternoon, the weather is looking good and the Year 3 and 4 teams are making their way to the Rugby Club beside Puriri Drive.  The cross country is on.  Runners make their way to the start and give it their best as they run around the course.  Congratulations to Jayde who placed second out of the Year 3 girls.

Well done everyone!

The Cool Dance From Room 20

Thank you to our fabulous tutors, Rio, Hannah and Rio.  Follow them to learn our dance!

Creating an Adventure Story

Your challenge: Come up with your own tale of adventure that involves a hot-air balloon.

Where will your adventure take your characters?  What problems will they face?  How will they resolve their problem?

Data Detectives

Are you a...
Data Detective?

Room 20 have been learning to carry out a statistical investigation.  They have come up with their own question, surveyed their class, displayed the data and discussed what it tells them.  Here are some of their results.

Andrew

James

Elly

Kayla

Reflecting On Our Learning

What disposition are you focusing on?

What are you having success with?

What are you finding a challenge?

Room 20 are learning to reflect on their learning, come past to see how we're going!

Kapa Haka

Each Monday a group from Room 20 joins the CPDS Kapa Haka group.
Here is a small sample of their learning so far.
Ka mau te wehi!

The Hello Song

Since the beginning of Term 3 Room 20 have been learning Mandarin three days a week.  

They have used what they've learnt when singing this song.
Imagine what they will know by Term 4!  Keep up the great work Room 20.

Tuesday Sharing

More fantastic sharing in Room 20.  Ahmed had a special sculpture to show us that was given to his Dad.  Oscar shared his chess success after playing overseas tournaments.

Thanks for sharing!

A Trip to the Art Gallery

You might think you are visiting a gallery when you take a look at what some of Room 20 created during their Dot Day experiences.  This is a small selection of some of the creations made by Elly, Sophia and Cooper.

Karate and Dance

Learners in Room 20 have lots of different interests.  Kayla and Rio shared theirs during class reporters last week.  Kayla has been learning Karate and was in preparation for her grading.  Rio got a chance to participate in a dance competition and brought her medal to show us!

Thanks for sharing!

Dance Moves

Learn the moves for our awesome dance!  Thanks Miss Williams.

Pokemon and a Party

Week two of Term 3 and our class reporters this week were Thomas and Elly.  Thomas had his Pokemon book and shared his favourite.  Elly had just celebrated a birthday and shared some treasure hunt clues with us.

Growing Body Gardens

What is a body garden?  Room 20 explain what they are and how you can make one.

Week 1 of Mandarin

This was our first week learning Mandarin with our fantastic tutor Wendy.  Saying 'thank you' 'xie xie' was our third lesson.

Music and More

Exploring music with Mrs Inkster.

Class Reporters

Todays class reporters Sophia, Maskil and Deziree shared some items and information with us this afternoon.  We were amazed by Sophia as she shared her player of the day trophy.  Maskil told us about his adventurous trip to Mt Ruapehu.  Deziree brought in her tweeting, repeating and singing pet bird.

I wonder what we will see next time?

Mandarin: Day 2

In our second Mandarin lesson we were able to have a conversation.  

Greeting each other, 'Ni hao'

Asking, How are you? 'Ni hao ma'

Replying, I am fine. 'Wo hen hao'

Master Chef Muesli Bars

Athletes need to feed their bodies with the right kinds of foods so that they can perform at their best.  We learnt more about this today as we were lucky to have Sylvia come up from her restaurant in Port Waikato to talk to us about what different foods provide us with.  We learnt about protein, fat and carbohydrates and which foods contain these, then we completed a taste test before creating our recipe for our very own muesli bar.
  

Mandarin: Day 1

Day one back at school and our first day of learning Mandarin.  How exciting!  We learnt how to say and write 'Hello' and 'How are you?'

Ningbo Vistiors

On the 5th of July 2016 Ningbo students visited Cornwall Park School.  For half an hour the Ningbo students looked around our classroom and asked questions about the differences of New Zealand and China.  We also showed the students from Ningbo our class site and blog.

By Maskil, Oscar and Max

With the help of our amazing translators - Max, Maskil, Oscar and Li - we were able to welcome, share our learning and experiences, ask and answer questions with the students who are visiting from Ningbo China.

Exploring Ocean Depths

What an amazing day Room 20 had at the Auckland Museum.  We were welcomed by Josh and Muriel who were some of the wonderful people that hosted us.  

What is a predator?  Why do sharks have lots of teeth?  What can we do to look after sea turtles?  How do some sea creatures protect themselves?  

Room 20 can answer these questions and so much more after our Wonders of the Sea lesson.

View our Wonders of the Sea album for more highlights of the day. 

Matariki Celebrations

The rain cleared and we welcomed a beautiful new day as the early birds of Cornwall Park District School celebrated Matariki.

A Tale of Three Fish

After labeling fish diagrams and making three fish puppets we got to watch a performance from Jamie, Iris and Andrew.  There was a story and then we were even tested on our fish knowledge.

A Day in the City

What an exciting day.  Kauri and Totara teams travelled into Auckland city to take part in a day full of dance, drama, music and more.  Here are some of the highlights of our experiences with the Java Dance Company, Te Rehia Theatre and Mata Mata 2.0.

Dot Day Delights!

Dot Day is well underway and Room 20 take off all over the school to explore their talents.  Here are some of the awesome painted creations made by the group that goes to painting with Mrs MacKenzie Browne.  I wonder what they will show us next!

Who wants to build a waka?

Are you keen to make your own waka like the ones you have seen?  Here is some advice from Oscar, Ahmed, Max and Maskil.

The Great Waka Challenge

Room 20 and 21 spent two days in the discovery centre.  Part of their time was spent building a waka that would stay afloat when weight was added.

 

Can Paper Hold Water?

Not everyone can turn on a tap and have access to water.  We are used to this in New Zealand but for a lot of people it is not this easy.  Many need to carry water from it's source to their home.

Our challenge:  Can you build/create a container using paper that can hold water?

Our strategies and results: 

Thomas - We tried to make lots of layers of paper but it didn't look like a cup so we changed our design, but then we ran out of time.

Jayde - It wasn't easy at first until we got the hang of it.  Watching a video made it easier to understand.

Iris - We put water from the tap into the paper box.

Oscar:  We had to put loads of layers to make it stronger so that it could hold more water.

Sophia: It was hard when I started but when I tried again it got easier.

We had to make lots of layers of the paper but it didn't make it strong, we needed to use tape.  At the start I felt nervous, but after I felt quite interested and thought my design was good.

Super, Super Shapes

Beautifully coloured and organised into different layouts.  These are the results so far for our shape inspired art pieces.  

How many triangles, circles, rectangles and squares can you find?  Can you describe what you see using shape words like: curve, straight, edge, corner...?

Can a story inspire art?

We were inspired to create these crayon and dye Taniwha after reading Taming the Taniwha.  

Super Shapes

After an exciting game of 'Name that Shape' Room 20 made some detailed observations about several artworks that have been created using shape - you can check them out on our class site.  We have now begun to create our own shape inspired artwork.  Today was stage one - getting our shapes ready. 

A Very Big Water Pipe

We were lucky to get the opportunity to have our learning documented by a professional photographer when Sally from Watercare came with her water lesson.  Room 20 are now stars of the newspaper!  You can read about our experience in the latest Central Leader and on the Watercare website here.

A Special Welcome

On Monday morning Cornwall Park District School welcomed new families and staff to our school with a powhiri.  This was made all the more special as we also welcomed visitors from Tahiti who will be in our school this week.  Our Kapa Haka group led us, and Room 20 were represented by these amazing students!

Our Observations

Today was the day!  We began to see what happens during the water cycle in our very own classroom.  Some of the water in our bags has started to evaporate and is turning into vapour.  It is now showing up as tiny droplets on the sides of our bags, a bit like clouds.  What will happen next?

How do you make a water cycle in a bag?

As part of our learning journey into water, Room 20 have created a water cycle in a bag.  You might be wondering how is that possible, so are we!  We are not seeing much action yet and think our experiments might be missing one important thing.  Can you think what it might be? 

Life as a Drop of Water

On Friday Room 20 learnt what it is like to be a drop of water.  Sally from Watercare came to teach us about how water gets to our homes.  We found out that water is very old and is always moving.  

At the end of our lesson we were able to try and clean some dirty water.  We trialled different filters: sand, bark, paper towel and cotton wool.  You can see that our results were all different.

Did Our Water Really Walk?

We wondered what we might find when we arrived back at school.  Our experiments had changed but each was different.  Can you see any changes?

We noticed...

Maskil - Before the handy towel was white but it changed from the food colouring.

Jamie - The food colouring kept on climbing up until it reached the next cup.

James - The plain water changed because of the paper towel.

Mia - The blue food colouring was so strong that it went into the plain cup of water and turned that blue too.

Sophia - Sometimes two colours would creep up the handy towel and make new colours.

Liam - When the yellow food colouring went to the red it made orange.

Walking Water

Is water really able to walk?  We are going to find out!

Creations to Share Our Learning

Room 20 learnt about the ways people celebrate Easter around the world.  They then planned and created items that could share what they had learnt.  Posters, videos, booklets... we have it all!