2021 Reflection

Hola~ As you know, today is the last day of the school year 2021. For this reasoning, I will be taking the time to reflect on how my year went. First of all, I think this year has given me a lot of opportunities to get out of my comfort zone and learn new things along the way. 

One of my highlights this year was definitely the Year 10 camp in Term 2. It was my first time attending a school camp and it sure was enjoyable and memorable. The camp consists of 3 days and 2 nights of staying in the Outdoor Education Boyle Lodge area. During those times, we were provided with outdoor activities that challenged us to connect and cooperate with the people within our assigned group in camp. I was in Group 4 with a few fellow year 10s from my kahui and a half from Mohua. They were all lovely people which I eventually became friends with after camp. One of the activities that I particularly liked in camp was the night activity called "solo." In which individuals have to stay in a certain spot in the woods and stay there for more than 45 mins without any flashlights or devices of any kind. The purpose was to connect with nature and your surroundings. I boldly volunteered to participate in this thrilling activity. At first, it was slightly terrifying as I am alone in the woods with pure darkness. However, I ignored the fear and focused on what was on the sky instead. It was a beautiful starry night sky. It was a little rainy but it wasn't too heavy. The whole experience was calming. It gave me time to reflect on my life and meditate for a bit. Coincidentally, I saw a wishing star. Which made my experience a lot meaningful and memorable. Other than that, the other camp activities were also equally interesting and memorable. For instance, the cook-out, flying kiwi, and sleep-slope required us to slide down our way back in the steep mountains. It was fun. Here's a picture of me and with the rest of the group 4 above ↑

The second highlight of my year was being able to cook my chosen cultural dish in Home Economics (cooking). As part of our learning topic around Cultural foods, we were tasked to make a certain dish from our chosen country. I picked South Korea as my country and have decided to cook a South Korean dish called "Jjangmyeon" which is technically a Black bean noodle. We spent the first few weeks researching all about our dish such as the recipe, cooking methods that are used to make it, etc. After the preparation, I was finally ready to cook the actual thing. The ingredients were slightly different from the ones that I have learned from the internet but I managed it and deal with it. Not going to lie, there were some moments of weakness during those times where I was so anxious and didn't what was the next steps. Luckily, my fellow cooking classmates helped me out a bit and it kind of lessen the pressure burden over my shoulders. In the end, my dish was delicious. It had this exotic mouth-watering salty taste from the black bean paste. But with all the pasta, pork belly, and veggies mixed in together. It was like a slice of heaven. I was overall proud of what I have managed to produce. Here's a picture of what my dish looked like:

The last, of my highlight this year was the prizegiving which was today. I managed to somehow receive a trophy award for an excellent attitude for Year 10s. It was my first time receiving a trophy award so it was quite unexpected yet a wonderful achievement to have and earn. I am grateful and thankful for the teachers that acknowledge my behavior or attitude as to be labeled 'excellent' for the year. Thank you. Here's a picture of me with my trophy award: (will load soon).

Overall, I think this year has been another good year for me. There were some ups and downs but I managed to get past it and survived another year in high school. Next year will be 2022. I am excited about what 2022 has in store for me and everyone. Hopefully, the pandemic and virus all over the world will soon disappear and things would go back to normal. I wish everyone the best summer holiday. BYE! 

Social Studies: Why was a Treaty needed in NZ (essay)

In the 1830s, there were 100,000 Māori and 200 Europeans living in New Zealand. The behaviour of the Whalers, the Missionaries’ desire to help protect Māori rights and the Musket Wars were reasons that a treaty was needed. The Declaration of Independence was another contributing factor to the need for a treaty.

Firstly, one of the reasons why a treaty was needed was because of the Whalers. But what are ‘Whalers’ exactly? Whalers is the name given to the group of people of European settlers who came to NZ in the late 1920s. Who behave freely and lawlessly in the Bay of islands of New Zealand. Although it wasn’t just European settlers, Maori people eventually joined them and sinned with them. The following behaviour of Whalers was the key cause that entered the British crown and Māori into the treaty. Starting with the optimistic side, it was a place for them Whalers to stop by, restock and refresh. On the negative side, they spent most of their time partying, drinking and hooking up. Moreover, the fact that NZ wasn’t a civilised undeveloped country by then, only encouraged more sealers and whalers from around the world to go to NZ. It wasn’t acceptable. In fact, NZ was given the name ‘Hell hole of the Pacific.’ In contrast to that, the area is presently known as Korareka in Maori and Russell in English. With this whole thing happening, a treaty was needed at all costs. Obtaining a treaty would make things clear and have rules and boundaries around the country and lawless behaviour prevented.

Another reason that a treaty was needed was to defend Māori rights. One group that felt strongly about this was the missionaries. Missionaries came to New Zealand at the Bay of Islands in 1814. They established one primary goal in mind at first. It was to convert Māori people into Christianity. The missionaries have taught Māori modern effective ways of gardening and farming skills encouraging them to convert to Christianity. Interestingly, the first Māori people were only converted to Christianity not until 6 years later during the 1820s. However, with the arrival of European settlers or Whalers, they began to grow worried on behalf of Māori with all the number of sins being committed, lands being sold and the violation of their rights in their own country. Therefore, they decided on another goal, which was to keep the law and order among the European settlers. To achieve this, they promoted the treaty of the Waitangi to help strengthen the missions and protect their Māori converts from undesirable European influence. Overall, with the desire of Missionaries to protect Māori converts and Māori rights, a treaty was definitely needed.

Another reason that a treaty was needed was the Musket Wars. During the 1800s to late 1820s, the rivalry between Māori tribes began creating conflict. Those conflicts led to Musket Wars. Māori demanded muskets to give them a massive advantage and power. Therefore, they traded with the European settlers for potatoes in exchange for muskets. These muskets generated an impact that has led to thousands of bloodshed. It was estimated that 20,000 Maori were killed during the musket wars. Land borders also changed during this war.

Lastly, what's the final reason? The final reason that a treaty was the existence of the Declaration of Independence. On 28th of October 1885 is the date of the Declaration of Independence in New Zealand. The declaration states the sovereignty that existed in 1835 and was designed to promote and protect the rights of Maori. About 34 chiefs have approved the Declaration of Independence. It had provided a portal for the Treaty of Waitangi negotiations. It, in addition, gives them freedom because if it breaks down they would have the Crown as a backup plan as the king would gain possession if anything had gone wrong. This would boost the relationship between the Crown and Maori. This was tremendous for the treaty signing.

In conclusion, this essay has demonstrated that a treaty was needed because it improved relations between the Crown, the Maori and the Missionaries. The treaty also ended the muskets wars and improved the Declaration of Independence. It allowed them to form a government, enact laws/regulations and promote new connections with other nations.

English: Writing Portfolio

Today in English, we are making a writing portfolio blog. Within the portfolio, we were tasked to paste in three main writings we had in English this year and additional work from a subject of our choice that we are proud of. 

Science: Germination Experiment

For the past few weeks in Science, we have been doing an experiment around Germination. Germination is the name of the process where a plant grows from a seed.

Aim: To observe and record germination in bean seed.

Equipment: 200 mL beaker, newspaper, water, bean seed.

Method: 

1.) Get a newspaper and stuff it inside the beaker. Make sure it covers the edges and the bottom of the glass. 

2.) Get a pencil and poke the newspaper on the side to make an opening and place your bean seed inside it.

3.) Pour a decent amount of water into the beaker and wait for 1 or 2 weeks for the bean to germinate.

Observations/Results:

Conclusion:

I think the whole experiment was fun and it went well. It never failed to amuse me to watch the growth of the bean into a plant every day. I watched the bean grow from the embryo stage into a full developed plant.

Social Studies: Treaty

These past few days in Social studies, we are learned about the different kinds of treaties. We had to pick one treaty from a textbook and do research about it and turn it into a presentation of your choice answering the four main questions about the treaty. Here's my presentation:

Courtesy:

The Treaty of Waitangi - Te Tiriti o Waitangi Learning book

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zwsrd2p/revision/5

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom#:~:text=On%201%20May%201707%2C%20the,so%20unite%20the%20two%20kingdoms.&text=British%20imperial%20ambition%20turned%20towards%20Asia%2C%20particularly%20to%20India.

Textiles: Bucket Hat Pt. 2

Hi! This week in Textiles, I have finally finished sewing my bucket hat together. Therefore, I am blogging about it and answering a couple questions regarding commercial patterns.

What are commercial patterns?
Commercial patterns are patterns used in sewing to guide or direct how to sew a certain piece of clothing or garments and accessories through templates and so on. It is issued worldwide patterns by the States, Canada, and the UK.

What pattern did you use?

My class used a bucket hat pattern made by HelloSewing online. The bucket hat had 3 commercial pattern templates; the top, brim, and crown. These parts were sewn together on a 10mm line. The instructions were clear and easy to follow. However, it was quite confusing at first but I got through it. The pattern that was used most was Bent Double-Headed Arrows (cut on the fold) and cutting lines. There were also a few but wasn't used as much. 

Here's a picture of my finished bucket hat:

Reflection:

The process of making it was quite challenging for me because I have never really seen anything like this before. It was definitely confusing and it kept on testing my patience as I always get something wrong and had to unstitch it. But overall, it was fun. It taught me to have patience and trust the process. I am also familiar with the commercial patterns now. 

Social Studies: Line Graph Population

Today in Social Studies we are making a line graph.

What does the graph show:

The graph shows the population of Maori and Europeans throughout 1836 - 1901

Why do you think the number of Maori changed?
I think the population of the Maori decreased due to the introduction of a fatal disease at that time and as well as all the bloodshed of the outcomes of the war with Europeans.

Why do you think the numbers of Europeans changed?
I think the population of the Europeans due to lands being sold to them led them into NZ growing their population over the years. 

Textiles: Bucket Hats Pt. 1

Hi, Today in Textiles we are blogging about our progress so far in making our own bucket hats. As you can see from the picture below, I am on the stitching stage of the top bit of my hat. You can see the pins around it to ease out the shape. This bit of the process is quite difficult to do as it is hard to stitch in circles and not get the brim of the bucket to get accidentally sewn together on the bottom. However, it is okay as sewing doesn't really come naturally to everyone. I don't have any particular reason behind choosing this material, I just simply like the Beige colour.

Social Studies: Mihi/Pepeha

In class, we are learning about our Mihi/Pepeha. It's a traditional way how you would introduce yourself in Te Reo. Here's mine. 

Ko Aoraki toku maunga
Ko Waimakariri toku awa

Ko Canterbury toku rohe   

Ko Elisha Mae toku ingoa

Social Studies: God Poster Activity

Today in Social Studies we've been learning about the Gods in Maori mythology and their deities. As well as their similarities compared to other gods in other cultures such as Ancient Greek, Ancient Roman and so on. We had to create a poster about it. I chose the god of the earth which is Papatuanuku in Maori mythology. She shares the same similarities of the greek god Gaea, who is also a mother-earth figure. 

Textiles: Commercial Patterns

Hi. Today in Textiles we had to cut and paste the correct symbol with the correct label of commercial patterns. We had to choose to do it digitally but I preferred to do it on paper. 

The commercial patterns were confusing and tricky to match with their own definitions because the descriptions match the other symbols too. However, I got through it in the end. 

English: The Secret of Walter Mitty (Late Post)

Greetings. This week in English, we began reading a short story called 'The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. Therefore, this blog will be about me answering the post-reading tasks based on the story. 

A drawing picture of one of Mitty's daydreams.

[Mitty imagined he is one of the successful famous surgeons that can only cure the patient]

Comprehension Question: 

What were Walter’s daydreams about? Rank the daydreams from your favourite to your least favourite.
Mitty Walter daydreams being a war pilot, a doctor, a sharp-shooter, and a captain. In the final daydream, Mitty imagines himself smoking a cigarette while in front of a firing squad. 

What was Walter Mitty doing in his waking life?
He was avoiding his inadequacies in real life.

Does Walter Mitty enjoy his life? Why or why not?

He doesn't enjoy his real-life nor content. He desires to be a cooler person with a cool life. 

Wananga: Passion Projects

こんにちは! In Term 3 2021 for Wananga, we are doing Passion Projects. Here's a slideshow I created to present my overall work for passion projects. It includes all the details and information about my project from research to the end results. Enjoy. 

Here's a picture of my painting:

"Desederium"

BYE!

Science: Geological Timescale (SciPad work)

Greetings. Today in Science Biology we learnt about the geological timescale. We made a timeline showing how life on Earth has changed over the past 4,600 million years.

Home Economics: Eating Patterns

Hi, Last week in Home Economics, we were learning about eating patterns at specific times and days. We were tasked to make the 1950s and modern dish plates from playdough. The plates are divided into three categories; vegetables on the top, right-hand side are the carbs and on the left-hand side is the meat. 

Here's what I came up with:

The 1950s dish:

The modern dish:

Wananga: Interpersonal Skills

Greetings. Today in Wananga, we are learning about the 8 fundamentals of communication skills and how it is beneficial in a job of your choice. I'm going to pick the job of a teacher to discuss my answers. It is important to have empathy being a teacher so you could teach better by understanding your student's perspective. And just like empathy, that goes without saying having good conversation skills is also important as a teacher. Because, how would you be able to teach students effectively if you yourself don't have good communication skills? Without it, you can't express your ideas to the students properly which will lead to having a poor understanding of the lesson discussed. It is also important to have a respectful vocabulary to set up a good role model for the students and it is just professionalism in general.

Wananga: Pyramid Scheme

Hi, Today in Wananga we are creating a poster informing others on the dangers of the Pyramid scheme. Here's the poster I created in Canva:

Science: Mutations

This week in Science Biology, we are learning about mutations. Mutations are basically permanent changes in the base sequence of DNA that produces a different outcome on the organism.

The human species first appeared in what is now called Africa. They were dark-skinned, dark-haired and dark coloured eyes. But in the present times, we now have a range of different colours of skin, hair and eyes. Therefore, Blue eyes are basically a new allele = mutation. Blue eyes first appear in humans about 6,000 to 10,000 years ago.

It is a beneficial mutation because blue-eyed humans get the advantage of coping better with seasonal affective disorder. A disorder that occurs when there is less sunlight at certain times of the year.

It also has the advantage of seeing unmoving objects better than moving things. Blue-eyed humans can also see better in the dark because lighter pigment makes the iris more translucent meaning it lets get more light into the eye.

Bonus:
Blue eyes may have more advantages because based on societies' beauty standards blue eyes may appear more appealing and look attractive and fascinating than the common eye colours in the world today which is dark-brown.

English: Yellow Brick Road (Post-Reading Questions)

Greetings! After finishing reading the Yellow Brick Road novel in English we were tasked to make a blog answering in a full sentence the post-reading questions in our blog about the story.

Here's a link to the Yellow Brick Road story so that this post makes sense to you

1.) The narrator of the story believes that they are moving to Wellington was because to have a better life by getting jobs that would lift his family out of poverty. Evidence on the story:
"We'll make lots of money and be rich as anything because Wellington is where the money is. And you have to go where the money is, ay Dad. No use staying in Waituhi and being poor all the time, ay”

2.) On Page 1, the big difference between Waituhi (narrator's hometown) and Wellington that was mentioned by the narrator himself was that Wellington is where the "money" is and the bigger population of Pakehas than their own hometown.

3.) On Page 3, the narrator's dad explained to his uncle Sam that they were moving to Wellington because there were no more jobs at home and they had enough of plenty of seasonal work such as shearing, fruit-picking etc. Moreover, there is apparently plenty of work in Wellington; plenty of factories. And he wants his kids to have a better life than he had.

4.) The narrator's attitude towards moving to Wellington changes as he encounters a lot of signs when they got nearer to the city which overwhelmed him and made him feel anxious. Moreover, the people they also encounter on the road the way to Wellington was not so friendly.

5.) Emerald City, Yellow Brick Road, Flying Monkeys, scarecrow, tinman and cowardly lion, are all allusions (references) to a famous book "The Wizard of Oz". I think the author made this comparison because it has the same story theme which is where the protagonist starts a journey into a destination that will solve all of their problems and which turned out to be fake. Meaning, the destination of their journey isn't going to solve their problems. 

Social Studies: Estimation Deaths (Bar Graph)

Greetings! In Social Studies in my previous blog, we had to create a map of where the locations of these death camps. Now we have to make a bar graph showing the estimation of deaths in those locations.

Here's my bar graph: