The Twits -Emeralds

The Twits
By Road Dahl

Teegan says that they were making some plans.
Heidi says that they were going to steal something in someones house.
Leah says that they were making plans.
Vailo says that they were gonna steal something in someones house like old women's house

Teegan scored 5/10 because it wasn't interesting at all.
Heidi scored 5/10 because their was know pictures.
Leah scored 5/10 because it wasn't interesting with out the pictures.
Vailo scored 6/10 because their was know picture but their was only one picture with two people but the words was a little bit interesting.

From Vailo,Heidi,Leah,Teegan.

The Twitts-Diamonds

Twitts 

Kirsten said that the Twitts  where making a plan.

Theissen says they had team work to plan a work sheet

Theissen scored 5-10 because there needs to be pictures.

Kirsten scored 5-10    there needs to to be pictures

9/11 Victims Honoured, Remembered

SEPTEMBER 11, 2011 11:21 PMAustralia

U.S. President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and former U.S. President George W. Bush at the 9/11 memorial at Ground Zero. Image: MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images

Just over 2 weeks ago was the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

“9/11” refers to three terrorist attacks in the United States that occurred on September 11, 2001 – the ninth month, the 11th day.

On that day 10 years ago, nearly 3,000 people were killed when terrorists attacked two World Trade Centre buildings in New York and the Pentagon in Washington DC. Near Pennsylvania, a plane was hijacked and crashed into a field.

The victims of the attacks were from more than 90 countries. Around the world, millions of people commemorated 9/11 in their own way.

At the site in New York where the twin towers once stood, called Ground Zero, thousands of people including U.S. President Barack Obama attended remembrance services. Bells rang and there were moments of silence so people could think about the people who died in the attacks and the heroes—including members of the New York Fire and Police Departments—who worked tirelessly to save others that day.

In Canada, hundreds of people gathered at a hockey arena in Gander, N.L., where U.S. Ambassador David Jacobson thanked the town’s residents for generously helping the nearly seven thousand Americans who had been stranded there for three days 10 years ago. (Their flights had been cancelled to keep the airspace clear).

British Prime Minister David Cameron and the relatives of 67 British people who died in the 9/11 attacks, attended a ceremony in London. An American flag at the U.S. embassy in London flew at half-mast.

Mourners in Tokyo, Japan, gathered in front of a glass case containing steel retrieved from Ground Zero. They honoured 23 Fuji Bank employees who died in the World Trade Centre.

There was an emotional ceremony in Australia. The country’s prime minister said, “on this day, on behalf of millions of Australians, I say this: We do not forget. We never forget.”

Writing/Discussion Prompt

Australia’s Prime Minister expressed the importance of never forgetting the events that took place on 9/11. Why do you think it is important to remember this event and what are the dangers of forgetting?

Reading PromptWhat do you know about 9/11? Where did you first learn about it? What questions do you still have?

Grammar Feature: Spelling (double consonants)
Certain words are harder than others to spell. As a result, they’re often misspelled–by kids and adults alike. “Difficult” words often have double consonants. For example, today’s article includes the often misspelled word, “commemorate.” In order to become a better speller, it is important to memorize words with double consonants.

Here are some other commonly misspelled double consonant words:
millennium, different, pollution, opportunity, recess, soccer, attention.

With your reading group, write 10 different words that include double consonants in a new post on our reading blog home page.  Remember to add your group name int he title, incase you do not get your post published today you will know what draft is yours to work on tomorrow!

Reading just for fun - Week 8

The cat in the hat.- Dimonds

Written and Illustrated by  Dr suss

what  happened but we cant tell to much.

Once there was a little boy and a little girl and they where so bored like there will be no tomorrow  because it was  Raining it was poring the little kids where boring. And then they herd a big huge bang and it was The CAT IN THE HAT. he said to the to little bored kids why are you inside? They said back to him its running are you crazy?  Then he wanted to introduce No 1 and No 2 then they pop ed out then the started to play and  then they made a mess every where and then the fish got so angry and then they suddenly the fish  herd there mother coming down the street and the kids knew that they where going to get into trouble. The  kids thought of way to clean up all of the mess. Then the cat in the hat came back with his lucks and cleaned every thing.
Kirsten scored 10-10
Theissen scored 10-10
Elisara scored 5-10

Rare Albino Hummingbird Seen In Colorado

A rare albino hummingbird may have been spotted in Colorado.
Albino hummingbirds have a genetic condition that prevents their body from producing a natural chemical called “melanin.” Melanin is a chemical that gives most birds their beautiful colours.
Because Albino hummingbirds aren’t coloured, their feathers are white. They have pink bills and whitish or pink legs and feet. They may either have red or pink eyes.
The pink or red colour is caused by the red of their blood vessels.
One writer who specializes in birdwatching (or “birding”) says albino hummingbirds are extremely rare. The writer said a white hummingbird has also been seen recently in Virginia, a coincidence that is rarer still!
Birders will be watching carefully to see if they can photograph the bird again, so they can be sure it truly is an albino hummingbird.
Related Link
There are many “birder” websites and blogs featuring this story and photo of the albino hummingbird. Birds & Blooms is one of them.

Writing/Discussion Prompt
“Birding” is a hobby that is popular all around the world.  Have you ever gone birdwatching?  If so, explain where you went, what equipment you needed and what you saw.
If you haven’t gone, think of a nearby location where your class could go birdwatching.  What equipment would you need? What types of birds do you think you might see?

Reading Prompt
There are several uncommon and challenging words in this article, such as: albino, genetic, melanin, blood vessels, coincidence. How did you predict and solve the meaning of these unfamiliar words? What strategies did you use? Which were most helpful?

Grammar Feature: Compound Words
Several compound words appear in the article. These are single words that are made up of two or more words. Some examples are: shoelace, flashlight, doghouse. Find and circle all of the compound words in the article.

The Cat in the Hat Book Review

The cat in the hat
By Dr Seuss
There was a little boy and a little girl and they sat there for 2 hours and after that the cat in the hat came into there door and the cat in the hat was playing around and the house got a big mess and the fish was in his fish bole and the fish started to jump out of his fish bole.Then the kids was so worry because it was there house and they wasn't really pleased and the cat in the hat was happy and the cat in the hat tried to make the kids happy because they was sad because they don't have anything to do.After that the cat in the hat band his head on the cups and he fell down and the kids was crying and then they went back to the normal face.


We liked the part where Cat in the Hat cleaned up the house.


We scored this book a 10 / 10 


Topaz - Brodie, Vailo, Shyann and Tutu

peanuts-Review-Rubies

Peanuts
What do you like/dislike about this story?
what we like like about this story is when the mother tangled the snake

What is the story about? 
A baby monkey gets sick of bananas so mum went and got some peanuts.


Rating
8 out of 10.

 
From the Rubies.

Peanuts- Report

 Peanuts

What  do you think will happen in this story?

Well i think mum gos and get some food and a snake try's to eat her.

Rate the story out of 10.

I rate this story 9 out of 10 because it was funny.

What other words did the author use for said?

Hissed and replied.

How did it make you feel?

Happy because it had a picture of the mum getting back her baby.

What did you  dislike about this story?

My dislike was when the mum got trap by a snake.

from Mia

Lost Penguin Back In His Natural Habitat

SEPTEMBER 6, 2011 6:00

Image: Department of Conservation NZ/Richard Gill

A woman was walking her dog along a beach in New Zealand in late June when she saw something that looked like a white ball in the sand.

It turned out to be a young Emperor penguin that was very, very lost.

At his age, he should have been close to Antarctica, swimming for fish, squid and krill and playing on the ice floes. But this penguin started swimming north and just kept going.

The penguin attracted a lot of attention in New Zealand. It has been 40 years since an Emperor penguin has been seen there.

Researchers at the country’s Department of Conservation were called in. They decided to watch the penguin closely, but not to disturb it in any way. Many New Zealanders came to Peka Peka Beach to look at the elegant penguin. They were careful to keep their dogs away from it so it wouldn’t be frightened.

The public nicknamed the animal Happy Feet.

Researchers started to notice that Happy Feet didn’t seem well. It turns out he had been eating the sand from the beach, likely thinking it was snow.

The public raised more than 11,000 pounds for an operation to get the sand out of his belly.

The operation was a success, and Happy Feet was taken to a zoo in Wellington, NZ. A group of experts met to decide how best to help Happy Feet return to the wild.

Last Sunday, they put him on a boat called the Tangaroa, in a specially built ice-filled crate and took him out into the Southern Ocean, southeast of New Zealand. There, they released him into the ocean, which is his natural habitat. He took one last look at his human helpers and then dived into the ocean.

“Emperor penguins spend their first five years at sea,” said Peter Simpson, of New Zealand’s Department of Conservation. “What happens now is up to the penguin.”

Happy Feet was fitted with a satellite transmitter so they can monitor his progress using the Internet. So far, the tracker shows that he swam north-east for a little while before getting his bearings and heading south.

Emperor penguins are one of the largest penguins, weighing up to 30 kg and standing about a metre tall. They can stay underwater for 11 minutes at a time.

Thank you to Peter Simpson, of New Zealand’s Department of Conservation for his help with information about Happy Feet. Home page image: Mark Mitchell/nzherald.co.nz

Related LinkFollow Happy Feet’s journey here. (Internet site where they are tracking Happy Feet for a limited time via his GPS tracking device.)
New Zealand’s museum, TePapa, has been following the story of Happy Feet. Their blog has more details and great photos.

Writing/Discussion PromptThis article is about a lost penguin that needs to make its way home.  Can you think of any other fiction or non-fiction stories that you know that also involve an animal that has gotten lost?  Describe this story to a partner or group and explain how it is similar to the article.

Reading PromptRead the article carefully and identify the main idea.  What is the main problem in the article and how will it be solved?  Are there any other problems and solutions in the article that are important?

Grammar Feature: Common nouns and proper nouns

A common noun names any ordinary, non-specific person, animal, place, thing or idea.  Examples of common nouns are: dog, girl, school, city, ball.

A proper noun names a specific, particular person, animal, place, thing or idea.  It always begins with a capital letter.  Examples of proper nouns are: Canada, Sylvia, Mount Everest, Batman.
Read the article and underline all common nouns with green and all proper nouns with orange.

Scotland arrives in Southland

Room 12 have completed their Banner

Heading upstairs at Invercargill Airport

Attaching the Banner for all to see

Wow doesn't it look fantastic?!

Yesterday the Scottish rugby team were arriving in Invercargill.  Mrs Rolton thought this would be a good opportunity to welcome the team to our city.  We made a banner by adding flags, Scotsman playing the bagpipes and a Loch Ness monster.  Thanks to Mrs McCambridge and Mrs Dallas taking us to the airport, while Mrs Rolton waited patiently to hear about our adventure. 
We had so much fun and discovered these things about Scotland...
The Scottish flag has a navy blue background and a white cross.  It is called the St Andrew cross or Saltire.  It is one of the oldest flags in the world, dating back to the 12th century.
A Scotsman wears a kilt that is made out of tatan.  Tatan designs belong to clans - we think clans are like a family or iwi.
The Loch Ness Monster is a mysterious unidentified freshwater creature.  We think this is like a myth, it might be like a taniwha.