Full of Beans

We've been invited to join a bean-growing experiment. 
All the other classes taking part 
are in the Northern Hemisphere, 
where it is spring.

We are in the Southern Hemisphere and it is autumn.

We thought it would be fun to take part, even though it is not growing season here.

We are keeping track of our observations and results 
on the Full of Beans wiki.
Our beans are growing on the windows.

Two sets have been placed on the window above the radiator, and two sets have been placed on the door window, 
away from the heat.

Will our beans germinate as well as those in the northern hemisphere spring?


What does germinate mean?
Do you have winter vegetables growing in your garden?

Happy Birthday, Miss Jordan

We love celebrating birthdays with our blogging buddies. 

This time it is Miss Jordan, from 4KM and 4KJ, who is celebrating a milestone birthday.

Mrs Morris, who teaches with Miss Jordan, set up this Wallwisher so we can 
all wish Miss Jordan a Happy Birthday.

Just click the 'Post a Sticky' tab to add your own sticky note.

When you are a child the milestones are usually 

5 years old 

(you go to school),

13 years old 

(you are a teenager),

18 years old 

(you are regarded as an adult), 

and also

21 years old.

After that the milestone birthdays usually end with zero!

How many years until your next milestone birthday?

ANZAC Day 2012

Every year on April 25 we have a national holiday 

for ANZAC Day.

On ANZAC Day we commemorate those who were lost in war and acknowledge the sacrifice and suffering of others.

Our school always takes part proudly in the community parade.

We are getting ready for the parade to the cenotaph.

The pipe band from Westport always comes to lead the parade.

The service was held at the cenotaph.

You can read our previous posts about ANZAC Day here.

Do you have days that are important to you and your community?

Questions about Squirrels

Having the squirrel mascot here has prompted us 

to find out more about squirrels.

We thought about our questions and worked with our buddies to find some answers.

Thank you to Mrs Monaghan from A Room with a View, 

who left us some information about squirrels 

in her comment on our Mr Frizzletail post.

B4 children, what was your question and what did you find out?

Safe Walking with Jos

Jos came to school today and taught us about safe walking. 

We watched a DVD about it and then we went for a walk to practise using our road rules.

We shared lots of great thinking!

Listening carefully to the instructions.

Looking both ways as we cross the road.

Young children should cross the road with an adult.

How do you keep yourself safe when you cross the road?

What safety gear is Jos wearing?

Mr Frizzletail Comes to Visit

Mr Frizzletail is a squirrel mascot from the U.S.A. and 

is on a tour 'downunder' to 

Australia and New Zealand. 

You can read about his adventures on his blog.

On his way from Wellington to Reefton, Mr Frizzletail got to visit the Beehive and Parliament buildings.

Mr Frizzletail is surprised to find that we don't have squirrels in New Zealand, 

but he is looking forward to some adventures 

with the B4 children.

What do you know about squirrels?

Why do we refer to New Zealand and Australia as 'downunder'?

Art in the Style of Hundertwasser

 Art with Mrs Wistrand in Term 1 
was about 'Buildings'.

We used blocks to create our own building-lined streets 

and took photographs. 

We looked at perspective. 

We sketched around the photocopied photos then added trees and other features.

We made our own paintings of buildings in the style of Hundertwasser.

Hundertwasser was an Austrian painter 

who lived and worked in New Zealand over a number of years.

He was also known for his architecture, 

including the well-known Hundertwasser restrooms in Kawakawa, New Zealand.

What do you notice about his style of painting and architecture?

'Eggsperiment' Update

A week ago we set up our 'eggsperiment'.

Today was the final day.

We poured off the vinegar and observed our egg.

The shell had gone!

The brown shell had disappeared, and all we could find of it were some little bits of brown scum 

floating in the jar.

The egg was still whole, and egg-shaped, but it felt soft and spongy.

We reviewed the predictions we had made 

at the start of the experiment.

None of them had come true!

We wondered what the egg was like inside. 

We decided to cut it open to see.

Check out what happened!

What do you think happened to the shell of the egg while it was in the vinegar?

Do you enjoy science?

Making Postcards about 'Our Place'

The Social Studies topic with Mrs Wistrand this term has been 'Our Place'. 
We were looking at how people use our environment;  describing our landscape, climate and buildings and how they influence people's activities; 
and how people use and have adapted our environment.

One of the ways we chose to present our information was by making postcards. 

Last year when we were involved in the Postcard Project  and sent postcards all around the world, we used commercial postcards.

This term we've enjoyed making our own.

We drew our own images of places around our town. 

For 'stamps' we used photos about the place we drew. 

Last week we sent our postcards off to the Year 7/8 students 

in Room 24, at Taradale, in the North Island.

As a class we came up with these descriptions of our ...

Landscape: 

native trees and bush

river and rocks

flat farmland

Climate:

rainy / wet

sunny / hot

cloudy / foggy, 

frosty / cold

stormy

Buildings:

many are wooden

simple shapes eg square with a triangle roof

one or two levels/storeys

a lot of old public buildings are now people's homes

What is your climate like?

How would you describe your landscape?

What type of buildings are common in your environment?