Huia 1 Our Story

Host families needed for students from Argentina

2012-01-26T11:20:00.001+13:00

AFS urgently need to find host families for students from Argentina, arriving in February, who are wanting to experience New Zealand school, culture and way of life.

Families do not need to have a high school-age student to host an AFS student.

This is a wonderful opportunity to make life-long connections and for the host family to gain just as much as the AFS student. It is also an opportunity to learn or practise Spanish for yourself - or for any family members who are studying Spanish at school.

If your family, or someone else you know, is interested in hosting a student from Argentina, please contact Michael Van Dyk 0800 600 300 or info-newzealand@afs.org for further details and follow up.

A Few Slide Shows of 2011 Events

2012-01-23T10:08:00.000+13:00

Painting totems

Real Gingerbread House made for Huia 1 by Hunter's grandmother. (Thank you very much - it was wonderful and very much appreciated.)

Huia 1's Summer Garden

James Bond Day

2012-01-20T00:13:00.000+13:00

James Bond Day on PhotoPeach

Thanks to Mr Yates for organising and running the annual James Bond Day.

Some of the participants:

James Bonds:
Leon - Motto "Stay back - I've got fried rice!"
Nishant - Motto " Why use pepper spray when you have curry powder!"
Kobe - My attitude to assassins: "Oi! Go home!"
Kamal - Motto: "Seek, Strike, Destroy!"
Trent - Motto: "Trust nobody!"
Yatin - My attitude to assassins: "Hasta la vista, Baby!"
Glen - My attitude to assassins: " Sneak up and act like I am one of them."
Hoani - Motto: "To catch a rabbit, hide behind a bush and do carrot calls."
Callum - My attitude to assassins: "Date their sister to get them on your side."
Nikhil - Motto: "Always Give Up."
Donny: My attitude to assassins is ...friendly.

Charlie's Angels:
Jessica - My hobbies are: "That information is classified!"
Vanessa - Motto: "A Coke a day keeps the doctor away!"
Ella - "I train by lifting light weights - marshmallows on a stick."
Jasmine - Motto: "OMG, Yeah! Like totally!"
Sarah - "I train by punching a bag of meat in my grandparents' garage."
Taleyah- "I train by stalking James Bond."
Shyna - "I train by changing the channels."

Intermediate Speech Competition

2011-12-11T16:20:00.002+13:00

Here are some photos from the Intermediate Speech Competition on Friday, December 9.

Every single student in Year 7 and 8 prepared a speech and presented to the class. From these, semifinalists were selected to present their speeches to Miss Gifford and Mrs Fowler, who chose five Year 7 finalists and 5 Year 8 finalists.

This is from the MC's script:

In preparation for the speech competition, we learned persuasive writing skills and pubic speaking skills, including voice projection, so the speeches are presented without a microphone.

The adjudicator is looking for a 3-minute persuasive speech, delivered clearly, confidently and fluently, using good volume and appropriate expression – but it is not a dramatic performance.

The speech should have an interesting introduction, a mix of research, personal information and opinion. It should flow logically and have a relevant conclusion.

The speakers must use cue cards and have eye contact with the audience.

And finally, the speech must capture and maintain the audience’s interest, persuade you to think or feel as the speaker does and leave you with something to think about at the end.

Here are the finalists and their speech topics.

More Movies from the STANZA competition - for New Zealand Students Learning Spanish.

2011-12-10T17:42:00.001+13:00

Here are some of the Year 9 and 10 entries into the STANZA video competition. (We won the Primary School category.) We should be able to understand most of the Spanish used. How much can you understand?

Mathex-on-the-Court

2011-12-09T00:56:00.001+13:00

Mathex-on-the-Court Week 7, 2011 on PhotoPeach

Thanks to Mrs Whitehead for organising a Mathex competition for our maths classes today.

It was a fun way to finish the term - and the year.

Wearable Arts Show

2011-12-04T15:51:00.025+13:00

Last week, on Wednesday November 23, we held our 2011 wearable arts show. It was an amazing
atmosphere and the field was nearly full.

Faces from Wearable Arts 2011

View more presentations from The Gardens School

The models got dressed in the classroom, with a bit of help from their group. After we were all ready, we went out on the top court for our cue to go to the field and wait. We had to be very quiet but, knowing Huia 1, that was hard. Once the Year 5-6s were finished, it was our turn to be in the spotlight. It was our responsibility to set the bar high - I think we did a great job.

As soon as the first group came out the audience looked impressed and the bar was set. There were 5 categories that represented the rise and fall of the Aztecs, who were an ancient human race (they came up with the chocolate of today). Each category had 2 groups to represent it, except the 'Legacy' group.

The first category represented the Aztecs wandering the desert for years, in search of an eagle with a snake in its beak, sitting on a cactus.
The second category showed the city of Tenochtitlan and how they lived before they were conquered by the Spanish explorers, which was represented in category 3.

Category 4 was all about what happened when the two cultures collided.

And finally, category 5 displayed the legacy of the Aztecs, e.g., chocolate and corn.

We have collected some opinions from Huia 1 students who were there. Here they are:

"I thought last night was a great night. And lots of people were there to watch their children." Sarah J

"I really enjoyed the event. I was happy that our group received an award." Krizelle

"I thought it was really good because there was lots of people watching us." Jackie

"It was fun and exciting but I was confident to go up." Karnjeet

"I really enjoyed the event and I was happy that Spanish explorers got an award. Danny

"It was fun.' Wade V.

"I think it was embarrassing because I was the model and I was wearing a girly mask." Matthew
"I reckon it was pretty cool because I got to show my abs!" Fa'afili

"Wearable arts was fun and I learned a lot of skills while making the art." Sarah I

"I liked seeing everyone in their art."Madison

"I liked everyone's art they created and I felt confident about my art my group and I made."Shayla

"I felt confident that our group did the best that we could."Caitlin

"I think after we had a little extra help from people I think that it looked all right." Tegan

"I think that if my group had done more work on our costume we would have gotten it finished, but I liked all the costumes on the night"Terence

"I enjoyed the night. " Chris

"I had a lot of fun being on stage." Jakob

--oOO0--

Last week was Wearable Arts, the day when the whole school dressed up in their art and performed in front of a large crowd.

First, I had to arrive at 7:00 p.m., but I came at 6:30 because I needed to train Wade about what to do on the stage. Wade missed all of his training so I had covered for him.

Then finally Wade had arrived and I could start training him. I told him to get in the white t-shirt and the white trousers. After that, I quickly put the sail and the two belts on him and gave him his telescope and hat. I called Hunter to help with it. Then we got him in position and started. It took time but he got it - I think.

Finally, it was time. I just wished that Wade wouldn't muck up on the stage so I quickly went over with him again so I was completely satisfied that he knew it. Then it was our turn to go up on the stage.

My body shivered. In my mind I said, "Will Wade pull this off? Will Wade pull this off?" After a moment, the group needed to go on. I looked at Wade the whole time and he was doing what I told him to do. Once he got off the stage, I told him, " You did it perfectly!" After that we went in the class room.

I took all of his stuff off and we sat down. Then Mrs Vincent came in and said, "Will you look after the class room while I'm gone? And, don’t let any one in unless they have permission from me."

We said, "Yes."

In the class room was Fa’afili, Bhaban and me. We played hand games to entertain ourselves. A few minutes later, Rosie and Sarah I wanted to come in. We said, "Do you have permission from Mrs Vincent?" They said that they did so we let them in.

After they left, Mrs Vincent came back and asked if any one had come in. We said, "Yes, Rosie and Sarah I. They said that they had permission from Mrs Vincent."

"No, they didn't."

They lied to us then.

After a few moments Mrs Vincent and the other groups in my class came running back because we needed to go back for prize giving, so I quickly got the costume parts together again and put them on Wade. When we got up on the field, the prize giving was about start so Wade had to go and find a place to stand. Every one went silent to hear who won. Miss Castle was the speaker. I don’t know who else got an award, but in my class’, Hunter's group got an award for best use of recycled material ,and Jakob’s got the same.

The one who won the whole thing was Ineen’s group from the Seniors. They where pretty happy. I was kind of disappointed that we didn’t get an award, but not every one wins.

Well, we did have an awesome time and that's what counts, win or lose.

By Karnjeet

--oOO0--

Last week was the wearable arts show. It was cool.

I arrived at seven thirty five or six. I came up stairs and saw Matthew, Terence and Hoani. They shouted, "Fili!" and I quickly ran into the cloak bay - but there was no hope. Huia 1’s door was open. I went into the toilets but all of them came in. I was scared to take my t-shirt off.

I put my baby oil on - it was really slippery. I went inside Huia 1 with my baby oil on. Terence helped me put my garment on, also Mrs.Vincent helped. We were rushing to put it on. Mrs.Vincent tied the rosemary twigs on both my arms and legs.

I was ready to perform! I went outside waiting for the runner to call us. We went upstairs and we saw the tent. I was scared because three groups were left and then it was our turn.

It was our turn. I went up on stage, bare chested, painted towel, flax, rosemary and a sword. I finished walking up on the stage.

I wish I could do it again, but like Mrs.Vincent told us, "It comes once a lifetime."

by Fa'afili

Here is the commentary for our performance:

Huia 1’s art tells the story of the rise and fall of the Aztec Empire.

The god, Huitzilopochtli, told the Aztecs to build their city where they found an eagle, sitting on a cactus, holding a snake in its beak. The Aztecs wandered Mesoamerica for many years in search of this eagle.

This art shows the hardship of their difficult journey and the eagle warriors who protected the Aztecs on their way. Flax, feathers, wood, recycled clothing and papier mache were used.

When they found the eagle of the prophesy, the Aztecs built the city of Tenochtitlan. This art shows the juxtaposition of the sophisticated, spiritual and brutal aspects of Aztec culture, such as Quetzlcoatl, the feathered-snake goddess; agriculture, mathematics, jaguar warriors, arts, crafts, jewellery, temples - and the sacrifice of blood needed for the sun to rise every day – all developed over two hundred years.

Materials used include recycled fabric, yarn and accessories, dyed egg shells, feathers, flowers from our class garden, wire, flax and waste paper.

From the late 1400s, explorers and conquistadors arrived in search of gold, glory and conquest. This art represents the voyages of Europeans to the Americas and especially Hernan Cortes, the first European to see Tenochtitlan. The Aztecs had never seen horses and thought that they were half man and half beast. The globe is made with papier mache, lined with old maths tests.

The ropes are made from plaited supermarket bags. Other materials were packing foam, recycled fabric, yarn, cardboard and trousers from the Hospice shop.

What happens when two different cultures meet? The Aztec ruler, Moctezuma, believed Cortes could be a god returning, according to a prophesy. His cautious welcome ended in tragedy for both cultures.

These works represent two cultures – one believed in many gods who needed a sacrifice of blood for the sun to rise each day; the other believed in one god who had already made a sacrifice of his son. The art shows that communication was limited by differences in language and cultures.

The red and yellow represent the Spanish flag and the blood of conquistadors who were sacrificed to the Aztec gods. Materials used are cardboard, paint, flax, recycled clothing, fabric and accessories.

The Aztec empire was conquered by the Spanish through introduced disease and better technology and, over time, the two cultures merged to become modern Mexico. This art shows that today, the Aztec legacy lives on in words from the Nuahuatl language such avocado, tomato and, of course, chocolate – which is represented here. We used recycled fabric, cardboard, and chocolate wrappers (Thank you to everyone who ate chocolates to help us with that.)

And finally, the eagle with a snake in its beak, sitting on a cactus is still here today– as a symbol on the flag of Mexico.

TGS Wearable Arts 2011

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Mrs Grace, our Gardens School Corrrespondent in Egypt

2011-11-28T11:49:00.008+13:00

Here's a link to the credits and script from our award-winning Spanish video.

Here's an email from Mrs Grace, a teacher at The Gardens School, who is now working at a school in Cairo, the capital of Egypt.

We have been following the situation in Egypt in current events over the year so it is interesting to have an eye-witness account of what is happening.

We hope Mrs Grace stays safe and we look forward to hearing more from her.

(Thank you Mrs Grace for leaving us messages on our chatbox.)

Well Friday night brought my first experience of live gunfire. It happened in or near our street and was followed by blaring sirens. I don’t mind admitting I was terrified. I know I asked for adventure but this is just plain stupid!!! We’ve packed our suitcases in case we need to make a quick evacuation, but are hoping it won’t come to that. School is closed Monday, Tuesday because people have to return to their hometowns to vote – think Mary and Joseph travelling to Bethlehem.

Everyone is on edge and hoping for a good outcome.

Anyway must go, the buses are leaving early to get us all home on election eve.

Take care and I’ll keep you posted.

Cheers, Carolyn

Los países que hablan español

2011-11-15T12:13:00.013+13:00

Here is our latest entry into the STANZA Primary School Video Competition

We are learning how to ask the question "Where is...?" (¿Dónde está?) and reply with "It is here." (Está aquí.) We are learning the names and locations of countries where Spanish is spoken and we are also learning to recognise the flags of some of these countries.

Ben: ¡Hola clase! Hoy vamos a encontrar los países que hablan español.
¿Dónde está Cuba? Venezuela? Costa Rica..?

Estudiantes: Está aquí, al lado de México, Colombia..

Ben: ¿Dónde están Las Malvinas?

Callum: Aquí, este de Argentina.

Ben: ¿Puede encontrar otros países?

Ben:¿Dónde está Nueva Zelanda?

Todos: ¡Está aquí!

CAST:

Chris C

Tracey P

Jasmine F

Michael H

Te Amo T

Ricki-Jean W

Callum M

Madison L

Yatin S

Tegan M

Caitlin M

DIRECTORS:

Hunter K

Sarah J

Señora Lee

THANKS TO:

Trent G, Harrison O, Vaughan W for help with editing the movie

Mrs Whitehead for the use of her large world map

Mrs Montofre for the use of her Chilean flag

Huia 1 for the use of props

Señora Lee for the use of other props

Mrs Vincent for help with props and students

and to everyone else who helped put our movie together

No students were harmed in the making of this movie.

MMXI

Competition Details:

2011 Theme: Aprendemos español a través de la cultura
(Learning Spanish through culture)

Students should integrate the teaching of one topic of the Spanish curriculum with
culture in the video.

Possible topics: colours and flags; calendar and festivals; popular sports; food and
cooking.

Video specifications:
Two (2) minutes maximum in length.
Please follow copyright laws.
Videos should be appropriate for all ages.
No commercial content is permitted.

Athletics Day

2011-11-05T20:20:00.010+13:00

Here are some of the photos of athletics day on Friday, taken by Mrs Whitehead. (Rimu House colours are red, and Mrs Whitehead is in Rimu House, in case you were wondering why so many of the students are wearing red...)

Having a Ball at The Gardens School Part 2

2011-10-24T17:51:00.012+13:00

Some comments about the ball from members of Huia 1:

... I was wearing heels and my friends and I were laughing because I was a lot taller than my partner. It felt good being tall because I am the shortest in the class. There was punch which tasted like Just Juice Bubbles, and heaps of supper. There were chocolate eclairs and I love those...
Jessica

I felt nervous but it was OK. I had to do the Grand March with Tracey and she was really slow - maybe she shouldn't wear high heels.
Jakob

... Last year I was really nervous, but I slowly started to get more confident. On Wednesday night I really enjoyed myself. The best bit as when we taught Mrs Chetty to fist pump. I thought Terrence and I were the best fist pumpers though. I think it was more fun than last year's ...
Ben

I have improved in dancing. I used to hate dancing but now I like it.
Danny .

...Everything looked amazing. All you need to do is have a good attitude and have fun. Rachel, Krizelle and I were taking photos of each other in front of the Eiffel tower with little lights that hung from it. I had the best night ever.
Annella

I felt uncomfortable when I first started but then, after a while, I came out of my comfort zone and I had lots of fun. I had a great time. I was surprised because I was one of the leaders for the line dances and I think I am more confident about dancing with people and in front of people.
What was funny was that we got free dancing time and when a song came on, everyone screamed really loud - and when the lights went out, everybody screamed. A great memory was that everyone was so nice when I danced with them. I wore some of my sister's jewellery and a black dress that goers black, grey, white. I liked how my mum did my hair, and I felt good.
Tegan.

...It was awesome. During dancing, I have learnt to keep in time and use a bit of style in my dancing. At the start of the term I was very nervous and didn't think I could make it to the ball. But, I didn't have many fears except for the fact that I might have fallen over in my heels.

When I arrived at the ball I was very excited because Hunter arranged for her uncle to take us in his very cool car. It was read and white and fitted six of us in it.

I liked how the hall was decorated. It had a beautiful cardboard Eiffel Tower. I was surprised how confident I was with all my dancing.
Caitlin

Last year I was not very confident with my dancing and I would avoid doing it in public - but now I can strut my stuff without a care in the world. I think Hunter, Tegan, Caitlin, Sarah I, Sarah J and I made an entrance in our fancy car. I will probably never forget that when the house lights went out some of the girls screamed loudly. I loved my dress because it was different in its blue-green colour and how it looked on me. I won a special Mickey Mouse pencil case for being enthusiastic during all six weeks of dancing practice. I love Mueve la Colita because I can put my own style into it.
Ricki-Jean.

At the start of the term, I had completely forgotten most of the dances from last year. But, when we started to dance to the music, I started to remember. My favourite dance was the Grand March to the Marseillaise. It was probably the hardest to learn but also, in my view, it looked the best.
Nikhil.

...My special memory is shuffle fist pumping. I won a prize for the Macarena and I came second in the statue waltz with Tanya as my partner.
Matthew.

...This year I was more confident in dancing.
Chris.

... At first I didn't like dancing but now I do because I have a lot of confidence and I think it's pretty fun. The best part was when Ben and I were teaching people how to fist pump - including teachers - like Mrs Chetty and Mrs Loakman. And, it was cool as!!!!
Terrence.

...The night was awesome because Hunter, Tegan, Caitlin, Sarah, Ricki-Jean and I went in this really awesome old car....There were lots of nice dresses and everyone was so good at dancing Mueve la Colita... Last year, when I was a Year 7, I wasn't that confident, but I know I am really confident dancing with boys now. Mr Yates danced with a chair when we were waltzing around the hall - he did that last year, too.
Sarah J.

The ball has just been. I had a great time with everything, and there was a lot of supper. We played statues - the waltz version; it was fun. My favourite dance was Mueve la Colita because it is very enthusiastic and it makes you want to smile. I got chosen to start off the snowball waltz, along with two other couples.
Hunter.

Mrs Chetty came to the ball. She was telling me to shuffle and I shuffled - then she started laughing. Nikhil and Taleyah won the statue waltz. There were a lot of good dancers like: Michael, Danny, me, Ricki-Jean, Tegan, Hunter, Trent, Sarah J, Fili and Ben.
Jackie.
When I first started dancing, I was scared but as we kept learning dances I started to feel more confident. As Taylor -Paige and I arrived, we forgot our tickets so we had to go back home and get them We walked in the door and all the lights were off and there was only fairy lights.

We started with the grand march and next we did Mueve la Colita- I got a prize for that. There was supper and drinks. The punch was very fizzy - it made my eyes water. Wednesday the 5th of October was the best thing for that week.
Renae.

Overall, my favourite dances were the merengue, the Maxina and the snowball waltz and I think that the best dancer was Ben.
Madison.

I liked the statue waltz because I am really god at staying still and so was Terrence - he was my partner. When Mrs Vincent said we had to act the Eiffel Tower and a tourist I wanted to be the Eiffel Tower but so did Terrence, but he outranked me by saying,"I am taller." Terrence and I got into the finals but we did not win.
Shayla.

Everyone dressed their best and brought a plate of food - either savouries or sweets. What I enjoyed best was the freestyle dance. The lights were turned down and the music was played. We started a jumping Follow the Leader line. I won a prize but I forgot what for. During supper we took photos in front of the Eiffel Tower. It was a fun night and I didn;t realise that I had gained more confidence in dancing.
Krizelle.

I learned that you have to be confident. I also won a prize for great dance moves. When our parents came we did some dancing to show them what we've been learning.
Sarah I.

Having a Ball at The Gardens School Part 1

2011-10-06T13:34:00.021+13:00

Here's the first account of our Year 7 and 8 ball last Wednesday, and some of the photos.

On the evening of the 5th of October, the Intermediate team of the Gardens School gathered around the school hall. All wore their best dresses and suits and, as was required, their best attitudes. Many tried to make a grand entrance but they were shortly outshone by what they discovered on arrival.

The classic blacked-out windows greeted ball-goers and hid from passers-by the fabulous decor inside, which included a definitely-not-to scale Eiffel Tower, many Christmas lights and a supper that could be considered a feast fit for a king. In the background, French music complimented the theme of the night nicely - "A Night In Paris".

We began the night's dancing with the Grand March which is often performed at posh, formal balls. It starts with boys and girls in lines, shortest to tallest, and when the music starts the front two join arms and walk towards the host/hostess and everyone else follows along until everyone ends up in lines of 8s. We walked to the French national anthem which matched our theme.

We then broke into columns to dance Mueva la Colita, which in Spanish means "shake your bottom" or as Mrs Vincent says, "Move your tail." This was followed by the famous Macarena which although it is danced frequently many get it wrong, as one student kindly and thoughtfully demonstrated the correct way to do it. (Thank you, from Mrs Vincent.)

We then pulled out some dance moves that belong in the late 1970s and danced to Saturday Night Fever which then broke into the Circle Waltz, then through the Maxina, the Palais Glide, the Gay Gordons, the Merengue, the Veleta, and a statue waltz.

After most of the organised dancing, we had supper, followed by a snowball waltz, led by the best dancers of the night so far. Next the house lights were turned off and the disco and laser lights shone and we all started free-styling to some more recent tunes.
Thank you Mrs Whitehead for the group photos.

by Ricky-Jean

Here's a slide show of the ball photos. The link is currently 'private' which means it can only be accessed by using a link to it. You won't find it by searching or by finding it randomly.

If you have any photos you would like added, can you email them to me kayv@thegardens.school.nz and I will upload them to the blog. Others will have to wait until we are back at school. I hope you are all having a good holiday - from Mrs Vincent.

La Copa del Mundo de Rugby

2011-09-30T13:08:00.005+13:00

For our Spanish classes today, Mrs Lee organised an article about the Rugby World Cup. See how much of it you can understand. Can you choose the best statement for you at the end of the article?

La Copa del Mundo de Rugby

Muchos de los equipos de rugby de todo el mundo están en Nueva Zelanda para jugar en la Copa del Mundo de Rugby.

Hay un equipo de Argentina. Lleven un uniforme de color azul claro y blanco.

No hay equipos de otros países de habla española, solo Argentina.

El equipo de Nueva Zelanda, llamado Los All Blacks, ganó su primer tres partidos de rugby. Llevan un uniforme de color negro con un helecho de plata.

Aquí en nuestra escuela, tenemos las banderas de todos los países que están jugando en la competencia.

Tres viernes atrás, todos los estudiantes hacen las letras de la palabra ‘negro’ con sus cuerpos, en el campo de juego.

Hay muchas turistas en Nueva Zelanda en este momento y hay muchas fiestas también.

Mi equipo favorito es ___________________.

Espero que ___________ ganen La Copa del Mundo de Rugby.

Me gusta el rugby
No me gusta el rugby

Voy a mirar los partidos de rugby en la televisión

No voy a mirar los partidos de rugby en la televisión

Voy a ir a partido de rugby

No voy a ir un partido de rugby

Here is a link to Rugby World Cup information - in Spanish.

Here is a link to information about Argentina at the Rugby World Cup.

Survey- Who will win the Rugby World Cup?

2011-09-28T13:38:00.006+13:00

Wednesday 28 September
Tegan and I are doing a poll to see how many students think the All Blacks will win the Rugby World Cup. Let’s hope a lot of us think they will win.

We think that nearly everyone will choose:
ALL BLACKS

WHO DO YOU THINK WILL WIN THE RUGBY WORLD CUP AND WHY?

Tegan said, “The All Blacks will win because they have won all the games they have played and because they are awesome. GO ALL BLACKS!!!”

Madison said, “I think the All Blacks are going to win because they have Sonny Bill Williams and Dan Carter on their team. GO ALL BLACKS!!!!!!!!!”

Mrs Vincent said, “The nation’s self-esteem rests on the All Blacks winning. If they lost, I could not bear another four years of discussions about who should be the All Blacks’ coach. Also, the country would plunge into a long gloomy depression if they lost - so it is vital that they win. But, I would like Argentina to come second.”

Hunter said, “I reckon that the All Blacks will win because they are strong and the Rugby World Cup is being held in New Zealand so they have to win it for us Kiwis.”

Sarah J said, “The All Blacks will win because they have won all their games so far, so if they win their next game they will go into the quarter finals.”

Ricki-Jean said, “No doubt about it! The All Blacks by a long shot! The Auzzies and the French can try, but the Kiwis’ll always win!”

Jessica said, “The All Blacks are going to win because they are the awesomest team ever and have won all their games so far. GO ALL BLACKS!!!!!”

Krizelle said, “In my opinion, the All Blacks will win the Rugby World Cup because they had beaten their toughest opponent in their pool!”

Renae said, “All Blacks by a mile.”

Fili said, “Samoa because they won two games and might be in.”

Karnjeet said, “The All Blacks because they haven’t lost any games”

Ben said, “All Blacks because they are the best team in the world at the moment.”

Matthew said, “England all the way because they are the bomb!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Terence said, “All Blacks because they can beat England!!!”

Cullum said, “The All Blacks because they are real good at rugby.”
Wade said, “I think the All Blacks will win because they smashed France, Tonga and Japan.”

Michael said, “I think the All Blacks will win because they have won all their pool matches.”

Chris said, “You know who it is. ALL BLACKS!!!! because they’re epic.”

Donny said, “All Blacks because they’re cool.”

Nikhil said, “The All Blacks because they have a good coach, they have a good game plan and they have really well trained players.”

Jackie said, “I think the All Blacks will win because the All Blacks win every time. GO ALL BLACKS!”

Jakob said, “All Blacks because they have won every game so far.”

Danny said, “I think South Africa or All Blacks would win because they haven’t lost any games yet.”

Bhaban said, “The All Blacks will win because they thrashed all the teams that they have played in the Rugby World Cup 2011!”

"I think the ALL BLACKS will win the RWC because if they don't I am taking the rest of the year off!!!!!" said Mrs Fowler (Principal).

"I think the ALL BLACKS will win the RWC cup because if they don't, Mrs Fowler is taking the rest of the year off and I don't want to do her job!" added Miss Gifford (Associate Principal!).

We also asked our special visitors what they thought...

"The ALL BLACKS will win the Rugby World Cup because all of New Zealand wants them to - they haven't won it in 24 years - and because they are in the best condition. They showed when they played France that they have got a steely determination to win." (Kelli Kawhia-Conrad, ERO team)

"The All Blacks will win because they have a very good coaching team who have observed other countries' strategies in the game. They think of how they can use new strategies and techniques for every game. They also know that New Zealanders are barracking for them. It's about National Pride. Go the All Blacks!" (Another ERO visitor).

We are very excited to hear what Mrs Griffin, our Australian P.E. teacher, thinks but she is not here today.

...Miss Griffin thinks that you are all deluded as Australia are CLEARLY the best team in the tournament to date!...

Our conclusion is that most of us think that the All Blacks will win, so let's hope they put our words into action.

by Hunter and Tegan

What happens on Tuesdays

2011-09-27T13:50:00.016+13:00

As soon as the morning bell rang, the whole Intermediate Team went down to the hall to perfect our dancing for the ball, which is next week on Wednesday. Lots of us are very excited about the ball. We have to bring a plate of food for students and teachers to eat on the night. Lots of us are coming to the ball. If you want any more information on the ball go to "www.huia1thegardens.blogspot.com" and click on the Information about the ball" tab.

In Huia 1 we do buddy reading with Tui 1 students (Mrs Bradshaw's class) because it gives us practice to give us confidence when reading to other people. Nearly every Tuesday we do
it unless it is a rainy day or if we are not prepared. Last week, we went down to the library to choose a book to read to our buddy class, so we would have a week to practise our reading aloud.

Today, at 1:35 p.m. we started reading to the juniors. We only had a short time so we had to read clearly but fast. After we did buddy reading, we collected the books to take back to the library and got Hoani a new book.

By Sarah & Tegan & Hunter

What's happening in Huia 1?

2011-09-26T12:20:00.016+13:00

(Monday morning)
Huia 1 students are already getting back into school mode after the weekend - along with the rest of the school.

This term we have been doing lots of work on Aztecs and we are doing a project in class where you have to make up a question and research it using resources - that is computers and books.

Every Monday morning Huia 1 does a current events quiz. This morning we learned that England has introduced a new type of transport, called Pods, for people to ride in at Heathrow Airport.

Huia1 is reading Private Peaceful at the moment and we are talking about the key
information. Our class recommends Private Peaceful to any keen reader - it's by Michael Morpurgo. (Note from Mrs Vincent: A movie of Private Peaceful is being filmed in England at the moment. Check it out here and here.)

Huia 1 has been learning to find places on a map and and how to do mapping skills. In our Social Studies books we have a page on New Zealand facts and another on world facts and we have been adding to them every week since the start of the term.

During Term 3 we are getting ready for the wearable arts and we are in groups of three. Lots of people have started making their outfits.

At the moment there are E.R.O (Education Review Office) people around the school. They go around schools in New Zealand visiting them every three years to make sure the curriculum is fulfilled. So, we have to be on our best behaviour while they are at our school until
this Friday, then next week they are going to a different school in New Zealand. It's nearly the end of term .

By Sarah J and Hunter

Weeds are closer than you think...

2011-09-23T13:50:00.012+12:00

It was Monday 19th of September. Hunter, Renae, Caitlin and I decided to weed our garden to make it look lush and full of plants without the extra weeds. So we started and after 20 minutes we thought there were a lot of weeds.

The next day we had to weed still because the weeds were still there and it was so annoying because they weren’t going away.

The next day we had to get some soil because the old soil was looking really bad and dry. So we went and got a wheelbarrow and it was so heavy so we had to get some boys to come and help us while Renae and I were raking the soil Hunter and Caitlin were cleaning the bricks and tiles.

After the soil was all dry we put geranium and busy Lizzie cuttings into the soil and it looked magnificent. By the end of the day we all were really tired from gardening.

By Tegan

Two caterpillars were found - and given to Mrs Whitehead in Kea 1 to take home for her chooks.

(Note: Here are the rescued and replanted self-sown sweet peas which had ended up in the weed bin...)

Other things happening in Huia 1: (by Mrs Vincent)
Jessica's poster about the Rugby World Cup. Her chosen team was Argentina. Our last posting (see below) was viewed by people at the school I visited when I was in Argentina - and they noticed Callum's poster of Argentina did not have the Malvinas Islands on it. (They are called "Falkland Islands" in our atlases). So, Jessica made sure she put them on her poster.

Annella had a puzzle for us.
"How can you tie a knot in a piece of string, without letting go of either end of the string."
She asked for volunteers to try it out.

Finally, she demonstrated how to do it.

Students are making works of wearable art to tell the story of the rise and fall of the Aztec Empire. Here's what some of it is starting to look like....

Rugby World Cup Homework Projects

2011-09-18T17:05:00.039+12:00

Krizelle - full marks for this poster

Last week we had a homework project about a team participating in the Rugby World Cup.

Unfortunately, our whole class except for two people had to do it all over again because Mrs Vincent was disappointed with our first posters. As well as having to do it all over again, we had to choose a different team that we didn't know anything about.

So, we all got started on our second team and we only had one week to do it and have it perfectly finished. The rating was out of 25. If you got 20 you passed. If you passed you didn't have to do it again. We all were a little bit disappointed about having to do it all again but we all got on to it because we knew there was going to be a consequence if we didn't.

These are some of our comments:

I think that my Argentina poster was a lot neater and set out better then my Italy poster.
Jessica.

I think that my first one is better than my second one.
Madison.

My project got better marks than last time. And I think I did much better.
Hunter.

I think my homework is better than last time.
Terence.

I think my homework was better set out than my first one, my title was a lot better than my first one and relevant.
Shayla.

I think I definitely benefited from the second chance at the project.
Ricki-Jean.

I think I went really well but next time I need to be careful when I am reading the homework sheet. I think my homework this time is way better than last time.
Annella

Caitlin - full marks for this poster

It was hard and I think it is much better than my first one - and it was really fast.
Nikhil.

I think it is ten times better than my last project because it is much neater and has more facts.
Chris.

Donny

I thought my second one was better than the first one.
Sarah J.

Matthew

I think I represented my country right with the logo and the map to show detail.
Jackie.

My second homework project was better set out than my first.
Ben.

I think that my second homework project was better than my first one because I had a better title. It was neater and it was drawn better.
Danny.

Sarah I

I think my second on was way better than my first one. I think I set it out better.

Tegan.

I learnt the meaning of Japan's logo and think that my second one was better than my first one.
Renae.

Written by Tegan

Rugby World Cup Project:

Purposes: to develop, extend and increase the variety of presentation skills used (visual language)

to develop and extend research and study skills

to capitalise on relevant current events opportunities

Choose a country participating in the Rugby World Cup - excluding New Zealand

· present the required information on 1 side of A4 blank paper

· include your name on the back of the paper

· set your work out relevantly, clearly and neatly – thinking about the style of your presentation and the layout of your information

· no computer-generated work; all work to be done in black pen and coloured pencils

· neatness, correct spelling, punctuation and following instructions are very important

Include:

· the name of the country - this will be your title

· the name of the team (if a different name to its country; e.g. New Zealand - All Blacks)

· flag of the country

· symbol/logo of the team and an explanation of what it means or its significance

· map of the country – labelled with relevant information - which could be borders, seas, oceans, neighbouring countries

· a frame or border of your own design (think relevance)

· a drawing of the team’s jersey

· a line or words from the country’s national anthem which could be used as a motto, chant, slogan or similar to describe or encourage the team; e.g. “Hear our voices, we entreat!” or “Make her praises heard afar…” could be used for New Zealand. This could be incorporated as a border.

· a greeting or comment in a language from the country, which you could use if you met a person from that team – or one interesting fact about the team which you could discuss if you met someone from the team

Marks:

presentation and neatness, including following instructions :5marks

information – including amount and accuracy: 10marks

spelling, punctuation, correct use of capital letters: 5marks

handed in on time : 5 marks

Something Fishy in Kea 1

2011-09-14T08:53:00.020+12:00

On Tuesday, Kea1 (Mrs Whitehead's class) were having a special eel day with Paul the fish man, Wai Care Kate, and Fiona and Anna from the Auckland City Council Pollution Response team.

Kea1 put a special assembly on for the Intermediate Team, where all the visitors came and watched them present their awesome assembly. Velvet, the travelling tapestry eel, * was on display and went all the way around the hall.

Then, Huia2 and Huia1 went up to Kea1 to look at their presentation: eels, pictures of eels, things that can happen to the long fin eels and short fin eels and other sea creatures and a lot more things. My favorite thing in their class room was the eels and the game you went and played with Anna. She would show you two pictures of streams and you had to tell her what one was natural and what one was polluted. When she asked me what one was natural and what one was polluted we all said the one that looked the worst was polluted and the best looking one was natural - but it was actually the one that looked worst that was natural, so that was really interesting.

After school, Mrs Whitehead was in her classroom and you could go to her classroom or the hall after school. If you went to the hall, some boys would show you Velvet the eel, but if you went to Mrs Whitehead's class you could see the eel and all the other things.

Fiona showed us how to make our own fizzy drink and Paul let us hold and touch the eel.When everyone got there Mrs Whitehead said there is not really anything to do besides to feed us.

At the end of the day it was a fun and interesting day.

By Shayla

Here's a short video about the long fin eel.

Kea 1 have been involved in a study and clean-up of the Puhinui Stream.

Kea 1's eel puppet show.

Thanks Mrs Whitehead and Kea 1 for all the effort and work you have put into this. We learned a lot from visiting your room.
* 41 minute long video about Velvet the Eel

The Cat Ate My Homework - and other excuses for work being handed in late...

2011-09-13T22:39:00.005+12:00

In a week where I have been particularly strict about Huia 1's work being done carefully and neatly - and handed in on time - I find that my best efforts to do the same have been thwarted by one cute-but-devilishly-playful kitten called Poppy, who decided that a neatly stacked pile of spelling tests, basic facts tests and graphs would be fun to play with.

Any excuses for late , damaged or incomplete work from Huia 1 must also come with supporting photographic evidence.

By the way, if you look closely at the graphs on the floor you will be able to see that everyone is improving in monthly basic facts results.

By Mrs Vincent

Black Out Day

2011-09-09T09:01:00.026+12:00

The Rugby World Cup has arrived here finally and nearly everyone is buzzing about it. Even Huia1 is getting into the spirit of it! We are celebrating Black Out Day in which we completely deck ourselves out in black in order to support the All Blacks in their first game against Tonga tonight.

On Thursday, we proudly decorated our school with the New Zealand and All Blacks flags, apart from the usual black, red and blue there is a third variety of flag. The school has adopted a second country which is to compete against New Zealand for the cup, Wales!

Though among us Kiwis there is a lone Auzzie showing her support for her country and home, and it's none other than our P.E. Teacher. Miss Griffin sneaked into our class before school, took the flag pole key and switched our All Black flag with the Australian one! It seems that two of our own students, who are in charge of putting the N.Z. flag up and taking it down everyday, had leaked to Miss Griffin instructions on how to take down the N.Z. flag and where to find the key to unlocking the panel that allows access to the flag. (Mrs Vincent has dealt with them appropriately.) Can you see the culprit wearing yellow?

The strange thing was no one really noticed that the flag was Australian!

The Australian flag is so similar to our own flag, that the only difference is an extra star and their stars are white, but who's staring at the flag counting the stars everyday?

Luckily, Shayla (who today is hardly distinguishable from a penguin with a flag for a cape) noticed and informed Mrs Vincent who was searching desperately for the key for the computer cupboard. (The flag key and the cupboard key were on the same ring.)

When it was confirmed that it had been switched, Mrs Vincent confronted Miss Griffin on the matter. (The word 'convict' was used ...) She managed the to acquire the computer key but the flag key and the All Black flag remain held hostage with 'enemy'.

By Ricki-Jean and Sarah I.

Huia 2's Blog post about Black Out Day

Here's our weekly general knowledge quiz for Week 6. (Can you work out what is unusual about this quiz?)
1. What colour is associated with the NZ national rugby team?
2. The New Zealand men’s and women’s hockey teams are called called The….. Sticks.
3. New Zealand’s 1995 America’s Cup boat was known as …… Magic.
4. Name the surname of the actor who was the lead in the movie “School of Rock”
5. What colour is jet?
6. What colour is the volcanic rock, obsidian.
7. Edward of Woodstock, son of King Edward III, was known as The …….. Prince.
8. Complete the saying: “That is like the pot calling the kettle …….. “
9. What colour is licorice
10. The New Zealand representative softball team are called The…… Socks.

The Australian's Response

Follow this link to Mrs Hansen's blog to see more photos about Black Out Day

Growing New Classrooms at The Gardens School

2011-09-07T21:49:00.007+12:00

This term we've had a lot of building happening at our school. We had a new relocatable classrooms brought in and a temporary road built for all the vehicles coming in and out of the school. Watch this space for updates of our building progress.

Spring has Sprung - Estamos en la Prima Vera.

2011-09-01T21:07:00.009+12:00

Mrs Pearson's class planted daffodil bulbs, which are now blooming in the corner of the field, safely out-of-bounds in an area cordoned off where the new classrooms are being built.

These are the results of giving the camera to one boy, with the instruction,"Go and take some photos of the daffodils but don't go in the out of bounds area..."

"...And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils."

We have the beginnings of "a host of golden daffodils."

and...
Here's what happened to someone else who was inspired by daffodils...and got into trouble for it.

Talking to Dee about being in Hurricane Irene

2011-08-30T14:11:00.005+12:00

While we were coming back to class after morning tea, Mrs Vincent told us that we were going to
be talking on line (by messaging) to a woman called Dee from the other side of the world in U.S.A. She lives on the border of New Hampshire and Maine, in an area affected by Hurricane Irene. We asked her where she was when the hurricane hit. She was at home on a Sunday

She told us that some of her friends close to the affected area have no power, and one of her friends from New Jersey had been hit badly. Four hundred thousand people had no electricity.

One of our questions we asked was “What is the time where you are?” It was 07:10 p.m. on Monday and we were 11:10 a.m. on Tuesday - making her 16 hours behind us. We had a little laugh because she said, “ What were the lotto numbers haha?” We worked out that it is summer and very soon will be autumn in the U.S.A.

Dee said there were 35 people dead from the hurricane but there are now about 40 people to date died.

One of our other questions was, “ How were you affected?”
Dee said, “ Not too badly. They down-graded it to a tropical storm and a few branches fell on her roof.

We asked her on a scale to one to ten how scary was the hurricane. Her answer was “ About an 8 when a branch hit her house but 4 for the rest of the time because she was prepared. There had been plenty of warning and people had removed any loose objects from their yards so they wouldn't fly around and cause damage in the wind.

When we asked her if she felt the recent earthquake near New York, Dee said she had, and that it sounded like a big truck going past - for a long time. She was familiar with earthquakes after she lived in Taranaki for a while. We told her about Geonet so she can keep track of earthquakes in NZ as well as U.S.A.

Dee also said that while she was living in New York, the first winter that they experienced included a free ice storm and power-cut for 6 days ."It was like I was in Narnia,” she quoted.

We are going to try to keep in contact with Dee to ask her questions about current events in the U.S.A .

By Hunter and Sarah J.

Stunning Sunset Art

2011-08-29T14:58:00.011+12:00

Renae

Danny

This art used old bits and pieces of pastel- the ones that have got mixed up together and it's hard to tell what colour they were originally. The paper was completely covered in the pastels, then smudged away with a piece of sponge rubber. After that, the silhouette was added using a clean black pastel. (It can also be done using black crayon or black ink)

Tegan

Caitlin

Sarah I

Krizelle

Jessica

International Languages Week

2011-08-18T11:40:00.014+12:00

People in Huia 1 who speak or understand languages other than English (and a bit of Spanish) try to locate the countries of their languages' origins. This wonderful floor-to-ceiling world map is in our school .

In New Zealand, this week is International Languages Week.

Within our class we have speakers of several languages as well as English and, of course, we are all learning Spanish:

Terence has learned a bit of Maori, Japanese and Mandarin and understands some Cook Island Maori.

Ben understands some Maori

Fili speaks some Samoan

Jackie speaks Vietnamese, Mandarin and Cambodian

Donny speaks Cantonese

Nikhil speaks Hindi

Krizelle speaks Filipino

Sarah I speaks Urdu and a bit of Punjabi

Danny speaks Hebrew, a bit of Russian (and understands more) and used to be able to speak a bit of Romanian but doesn't remember it any more.

Karnjeet speaks Punjabi and Hindi

Bhaban speaks Punjabi and Hindi

Callum understands some Nuiean

Matthew has learned some French

and we all speak English and some Spanish.

We love this comedy video clip called The Offensive Translator which shows how we perceive the sounds, and stereotype the speakers, of different languages. It was interesting to share this with our class because we have some native speakers of those languages in Huia 1 and we wanted to know if we shared the same understanding of what is funny.

Bhaban said,"The Indian guy looks like my Dad." He said, "She sounded nothing like Indian language. I thought it was funny- but in real life, I think if an Indian did get offended, he would get all 'hyper' and start swearing bad language. But first he would be polite and would say, 'Please don't do that.' " Bharban said that he would have recognised that she was trying to speak Indian if he hadn't seen the man or his flag.

Jackie said,"She sounded like she was drunk - and she sounded nothing like Chinese. I thought it was funny because she looked and sounded as if she was confused. She was trying to make the noise of the Chinese language. If someone really spoke like that, a person might be offended but I understand the joke in the video clip." Jackie said he wouldn't have known she was trying to speak Chinese if he hadn't seen the Chinese woman in the video.

Karnjeet said, "I actually found it pretty funny because she didn't know what she was speaking and was using random words because she doesn't know how to speak Indian. I didn't recognise even a bit of what she was saying. I probably would have picked that she was trying to speak Indian."

Donny said, " I thought it was funny. She tried to speak like a Chinese person although she is just saying random crazy stuff. I wouldn't have recognised that she was trying to speak Chinese if I hadn't seen the Chinese lady."

Nikhil thought it was really entertaining. "She kind of got the accent right but not the words. They were way off. I would have known that she was trying to speak Indian if I hadn't seen the Indian man."

But there can also be many different ways of speaking the same language. Check out the 21 accents used by this speaker. The class recognised the New Zealand accent easily - especially after the speaker said she came from Wellington. We loved the way she changed her age from twenty-five to twenty-six so she could emphasis the way we pronounce the sound 'i'.

And then, we learned different ways to say (and write) 'Hello' in different languages. It was interesting that there are formal and informal ways to say hello in many cultures. Here's another person who has learned to say 'Hello' in 25 different ways. (Please note: these are not all spoken by native speakers but they would be understood - which is the most important thing!)

But, there can be times when misunderstandings DO occur...

There are many good reasons why it is good to speak another language. Here's one you may not have thought about...

¿Cómo se dice "It's snowing" en español?

2011-08-15T23:03:00.010+12:00

Shayla with a "snowball" of hail.

Matthew with a "snowball" of hail

Every day we discuss the weather, in Spanish.

¿Qué tiempo hace?

¿Hace sol?

¿Está nublado?

¿Está lloviendo?

¿Hace viento?

¿Hace calor?

¿Hace frío?

However, we have never needed to ask ¿Está nevando?

Today, for the first time in our memory, it snowed ever such a little bit at school. It wasn't enough to get a decent photograph but we did get some photos of the the hail storm just before school started, and again at the end of the day.

Hail in our class garden

Hail on the stage
Hail on the roof of the classrooms

Follow the link for more photographic evidence of snow around New Zealand (from the NZ Herald website).

Dancing Practice

2011-08-15T14:38:00.008+12:00

Photos by Mrs Whitehead

Cross Country

2011-08-12T20:19:00.012+12:00

Last Thursday, we had our annual cross country race at Totara Park. In the four houses, all students over Year 2, marched to the park, with their flags to lead them. As we walked, we passed the daycare centre - many waved us by.

The track through Totara Park to the starting place for the cross country.

Everyone gathers in their houses:
Kowhai (la bandera amarillo) Rimu (la bandera verde)
Tawa (la bandera azul) Rimu ( la bandera rojo)

Once we arrived, a very determined Miss Griffin, announced that we would be racing in order of year and gender [year 3 girls, year 3 boys, year 4 girls ...] The airhorn signalled the start of the first race and the pattern began.

Miss Griffin

We started of with the year 3s, because they took a shorter route round the track. One by one, everyone else started from different points according to age. Finally it was time for the Intermediate team.

Earlier on in the week, Miss Griffin chose a team of girls, from Huia 1, to take some photos at several stages of the course. The official photographers were Hunter, Sarah J, Ricki-Jean, Tegan and Renae. But before the year 8 students started, due to a slight stroke of brilliance, off went Hunter and Sarah who sneakily walked away and hid in the forest beside the track, to take photos of kids running by - without their knowing!

By the end of the day, after everyone had completed their races, everyone was really hungry and exhausted because it was nearly lunchtime and it seemed like an age since morning tea. But we had to make the short walk back to the school, an impossible task for some, but everyone made it back, somehow.

Jacky and Michael in Kowhai house colours.

Overall we all had a great day out and appreciated the chance to see more of Totara Park [and the opportunity of an entire block off work].

By Ricki-Jean