Strictly sickly

Hi! It has been a long time since I have written a blog post due to me being sick and nit having much involvement at school. Last week though, I was able to have a full week of school. In that one week we had a lot happen to us. There was WIMS Music Day and a Jump Jam workshop alongside our last session, in the cycle we were in, at Tech Arts, which for the year 8's was music.
For Music Day some schools from around the Waikato district came to Te Awamutu Intermediate and we all split into three different sections.  Rock Band, choir and symphonic band. At the end of the day we performed for the school and adrenaline was running through our veins. I was in the symphonic band who quite a few times accompanied the choir. The rock band kind of merged in with the symphonic band but never mind that.
For the jump jam workshop we learnt a new routine and were given tips by Brett Fairweather who is the face behind jump jam (kids aerobics). Telling us to make big moves with sharpness and energy and to also insure our posture is perfect. Primary schools and three schools including Te Awamutu Intermediate participated in this event which was really fun.
Last week I was really stressing out about Science fair as I hadn't gotten on to representing my work. In the end after all that hard work I finally finished it and I am now satisfied with the end product I have come up with.
All in all last week was quite full on and this week on Wednesday I will be heading up to Belmont for the sports exchange. I can't wait to evaluate my time there next week but for now I am signing off.

same old same old week

Well the same old things have happened this week. The only thing that is different about this week is that we have Friday off this week and Monday off school next week. I already have in mind what I would like to do during my four days off but back to the subject at hand.
For tech arts we explored the garage band app and the year 8's made a song about blues. It was very funny when we got to listen to each others' as the problems or scenarios people made up and how they portrayed their story was hysteric. Arden and I made a song about waking up in the morning and getting a bruised a forehead.
For Monday and Tuesday Mrs Crowe was at a course so we had to have a substitute teacher who was our principal Mr McCabe.  He informed our class about the problems that majority of our class were unaware of such as fish wastage, whaling and we also got a snippet of the places he has gone to.
This week overall was good. I was able to stay on top of my work and complete tasks on time. I am really proud of my effort towards those pieces of work and I feel as if my determination and confidence towards my work is increasing gradually. But I must take little steps at a time. Well it is time for me to sign off but until next time goodbye.

Reflecting time

This week I had a shorter week than usual due to being in Christchurch on Monday but the rest of my week was very smooth. Nothing out of the ordinary really happened but I did find Tech Arts to be very interesting. We had been exploring and identifying different music genres again but this time we got to make a twelve bar rhythm blues which was really fun and hysteric to do. We also learnt an African-American song with percussion in it. we did not use drums though, instead we used our hands. It was really hard to carry on the beat because everyone had done a different part in the songs and you couldn't get the same thing going for ages because it sounded out of beat. 

I remember in my last post I stated I was going to write a better blog post than the last one so I am going to do a more in depth piece now. I know it was a few days due but I had been currently occupied with other assignments. So now is probably the best time to write about it. 

Well during the course of two days, we had a music camp/ workshop. There was a drum line and the choir performing in addition to the beginner band and senior band. Lots of tutors came from each school to help us perfect a few pieces for Thursday night when we performed them. Most the students from other schools did not have their music so there was a lot of commotion around that. Eventually we had a successful night until the drummers lost their music.

Well that is all I can really say about the evening so until next week so long.

Music Workshop

Well, it has been quite a while since I wrote a blog post so here is one about Music Camp/ workshop.
During Wednesday and Thursday last week Matamata Intermediate and Cambridge Middle School came to Te Awamutu Intermediate for a workshop on music. The choir and symphonic band were both involved in this event. During these two days we learnt new techniques for breathing, dynamics etc. On Thursday night we performed for Te Awamutu Intermediate during the afternoon and our parents during the night. I came away from that experience with new friends, more goals and heaps more to work on.
I am a bit ashamed of my poor effort in getting this post done on time but it just means I need to work harder and manage my time better. I will do better next time definitely. I think it would be good of me to write a more in depth post later on today because this one really lacks in everything as it is a quick, short but sweet post. So until then, goodbye for now.

Week 2 out of the way

Well, I can say this week has been really fun and exciting. I have been so busy out of the class yet I have been able to stay on top of my classwork. I have finally remembered to do a blog post after a number of weeks.
My Science Fair project is now getting into gear and is now on the way to success as I have finally, after one week, decided on my topic. My topic is "How/Why does the temperature affect water freezing time".
Today we had french and I learnt the days of the week and the months of the year in french. We also recapped on last week's lesson which was really fun.
It was the first time back at Japanese where we had a new Japanese teacher Etsuko. She showed us a slideshow of what schools look like in Japan and what her own classroom looked like. She showed us the Sky Tree Tower and said it was 630 meters high. She asked us what we knew about Japan and also taught us a game that is similar to shadow boxing. What you do is you play paper scissors rock with another person and see who wins. The winner gets to point their index finger at the losers face. The winner then has to say "Atti moite". On "HOI!" the winner points in the direction of left, right, up or down and the other opponent has to try go a different direction from where the winner directs. The aim of the game is to try make your opponent look the same direction that you are pointing in. This was very fun to play and it can get very intense.
Overall this week had been very fun and exciting for me. For the next few weeks I am going to be full on with Leadership Day, Music Camp and more. I will try make an effort to keep you updated on time. Well goodbye for now.

First week back to term 2

Hello. Well I can say that it has been a very quick week and we are already trialing for sport camps and music workshops.
Last week we were introduced to a new activity that happens every two years at our school. Science Fair. I am still contemplating on what my question is but I have got a few rough ideas.
Our band is preparing for a music workshop in two weeks times where Te Awamutu Intermediate, Matamata Intermediate and Cambridge Middle School collaborate bands and we all play as an orchestra however; the group is split into two groups which are Beginner band, first year people, and Senior band, second year players and up. Not only does our band participate but also our school choir. After we have practiced as a whole we have a concert on the last night in front of all our parents. I am really looking forward to this particular workshop as you meet new people.
On Tuesday our school was split into two groups because we had Mike King come into our school to talk to us about Depression, anxiety and addiction and his journey to recovery. Mike King was a former comedian who had a terrible drinking problem and drug addiction. Mike told us how he got a Councillor and how that had a big impact on him and his family. I thoroughly enjoyed Mike King because he was able to still make his talk humorous and include the students in his talk.
All in all my week was very full on but these few things had quite a big impact on my week. I am a bit disappointed in myself for not putting up a blog post summarizing my term last year and also not having this post done in time but what can I say? I need to time manage a bit more and I need to prioritise better. Well, yes I could say that but instead of just saying these things I need to put them into actions. Well I hope my week goes well this week and that everything goes smoothly. Well it is time to say goodbye and come to a close. Goodbye for now.

Two weeks in one

Hello. Well it has been two weeks since I last wrote a blog post and normally I could write heaps about the events over that course. Unfortunately I have come up short with ideas but am willing to try my best.                
We have had a few major events  happen over the course of the week that has just gone such as our school disco and summer games.
During the first week I did the usual here and there transferring. I felt mixed emotions as I was processing so much.
Last week we had Inter-house Summer Games. I was in touch for this and it was really fun. My house was very cooperative with eachother. We won all games we competed in and we almost got a perfect streak of never getting a try scored against us but one boy managed to score.
 All mixed emotions were running through me these past weeks. There isn't much I can say to be honest because we had three days of school last week so not much educational activities happened. I am really hoping I can write heaps next time I write a reflection but these weeks just weren't in my favor.

Times going fast

Well the clock is ticking down until Term 1 is over. So much progress has been made over the past couple of weeks. I have exceeded way out of my comfort zone with a few bumps along the way. I have definitely been put under the element but I have found it very motivating.
In maths I have had to definitely revise on my integers knowledge as I am so lost this year. My mind has been so active I have forgotten everything I knew on integers. I remember some stuff about it but not as much as I did.
I have thoroughly enjoyed the Makuhari students. The Kapahaka group taught them how to dab, whip, nae nae and hit the quan which are very "in" dance moves of our generation. It is really amusing and very cool how the Makuhari students fit right in with our school which actually makes it a bit harder to see them go. It just makes you treasure the time you had with them.
This week, at Kapahaka, we had so much fun. The Makuhari students had joined us so we taught them a classic song you learn called "this is what you have to do" which teaches you the basics to Kapahaka.
This upcoming week I am going to strive to be the best role model I can be and try be a bit more organized than I was last week.

Reflection on my week

This week has been a very busy, emotional, happy and motivational week I have had yet. We had found out who are the new Head Students were and we welcomed the Makuhari students to our school. I was so nervous this week because I had to do the Karanga for Makuhari.

 All emotions came to me on Thursday when I found out I was one of the head students for 2016.  It definitely was a humbling experience for me. I really have to put my A into gear and manage myself this year. No more just saying it I actually have to do it. 

Other than these two events nothing else was really big or major. I can't really remember what I had learnt unfortunately. I think I was mainly focused on head student this week. This upcoming I think I will be much more relieved and really focused in my learning. Next time I write a blog post I will have more to say hopefully. 

Swimming sports

Last week I was absent for most of the week due to getting sick. I was able to attend two days of school and in those two days a lot of things happened but the biggest thing to happen was inter house swimming. The results in the end for my house were so joyous for me as house captain to know, that for now, our house, Waipa, came first for swimming. I can't get to excited as there might be a change in points and places. We all participated in swimming but not the championship heats. There were other heats where the school could participate. I did not come any places in any of the races but I am happy that I participated. I was very proud of one of my friends who came first in nearly all her heats. I can't say much about the day but I can say I nearly lost my voice due to chanting really loud.

Busy week

Well I can say that it is getting busier and busier by the week. Having an awesome time at school we did activities such as japanese, testing, sports, visiting the museum and so forth. It was very interesting at the museum. We did some interesting role play with costumes amd our educator there was Mr T. He was very humorous and entertaining. We went to the museum to learn more about the Treaty of Waitangi otherwise known in Maori as Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
For japanese we our teacher Mika made okanomi-yaki. Her recipe was very delicious when the finished product was on a platter served for us. We also had green tea which was very nice. Mika said that it is good with cancer.
For sports I played softball and it was really fun. My team got a few home runs but the other team was a bit more skilled.
Overall it has been a really good week. I made it as Waipa House Captain,  made it into rock band and I am still planning more activities I want to be involved with.

Visual Language

For the past few weeks our class has been doing a visual language task where you have to put together a collage to show where you want to be, what you want to do etc. Here is my artwork I did.

Visual language explanation

For visual language I incorporated a lot pictures that had some similarities between another. Here are what my symbols represent.

I wanted to be a singer, dancer and actor in movies so I included negative film strips, a photo of a hip hop dancing girl and two of my favourite singers Jennifer Lopez, otherwise known as J Lo, and Beyoncé Knowles, also known as Queen B or R n B Queen.

Not only are these two women beautiful and talented but they are very polite and inspirational. They are my idols. I have included a baritone saxophone (bari) and a guitar because I would like to carry on playing bari and learn guitar. If you look right next to J Lo’s head on the left you will see a stage which shows that I want to end up there singing for people.

The two pictures that show car interior and the outside of a car represent what I want my car to roughly look like. I would a mustang or a BMW i8.

There are three mansions on my dreamboard. They represent my dream houses. I want a pool and a lot of room inside overlooking outstanding scenery.

I want to travel all around the world so I stuck a picture of a plane and another of a globe with buildings going all around it. By the time I am around 60 I would have liked to travel to most countries of the world. I would like to experience at least 10 extreme theme parks.

There are some islands I would like to see such as Rarotonga, Samoa and Fiji. There are two photos not far from each other that show a beach and a beachy kind of resort.

Home is where my family are so I incorporated some of my heritage and culture into the photo. I added an actual photo of my Marae Whakakotahitanga. It is well known as Te kotahitanga, Rae O Te Papa and Tirohia. I added a photo of me in a kapa haka uniform. The photo was taken at the Hauraki Kapa Haka Competition in 2015. That represents me being Maori and my love for kapa haka. I wanted to reinforce kapa haka because that is one of the places I want to go. To Te Matatini like some of my family did. The photo of the mountain is Rangitoto which is what my Maunga (mountain) is. That represents my hometown.

I love my bestfriends so I added a photo of two friends taking a selfie to show that those are mine and my friends goals. I added a photo of my best friend holding a flower with me and my hair flowing in the wind. There are a few more little photos of my cousin and I taking photos. That represents the bond between my family and I to show the content between one another. The photo of me with a red-ish pink-ish flower shows the vibrancy I want to have in my life. The three other photos of me were added just to show my love for life and freedom.

The words shown on my visual language are the mottos or things I want to live by. Not so much the perfect though because no one and nothing can be exactly perfect.

There are three last pictures I have not yet explained. The candle is to reinforce the word below family. The converse show is to represent my love for shoes. I want to have a variety of shoes for every occasion I might have. The hologram looking phone is to show what my phone goals are.

Raiha

reflection on my first weeks back at school

Well I can say that I am not used to staying in class this much. I am so used to going out of class and doing band and choir. I can't wait for those to start again though. My weeks so far have definitely been different without the old year 8's and now being a year 8 myself I keep forgetting I am. I keep putting my hand up when the teachers say year 7's which is quite amusing as you would think I know. I enjoy the new year 7's but they are beating the year 8's at some things this year like finishing work on time. I can say that it is a bit harder to get into the things I did last year as the year 7's and 8's have stepped up their game. It is fun to make new friends and learn more about my peers. I can't wait to see what the year has to offer.

2016 new year!!!

2016! Time flies quickly at Te Awamutu Intermediate. Last year was just a taste tester for all us year 7's but now we are no longer year 7's. Now we are YEAR 8'S!! This means more activities, more jobs, stepping up to the challenge and much more. I have grown interest in applying for Class Councillor and House Captain but if I should succeed in acquiring one of these roles I would really love to go for HEAD STUDENT!!! I am so excited for what the year has to offer this year and can't wait to partake in all of the action.

My first days at school have been very exciting. I have met a lot of year 7's who say they are going to strive whilst at T.A.I. Our pool is now up and running again for the term and I love seeing all the students enjoying themselves.

Kapahaka is up and running again and so is band!!! The amount of new students is unbelievable as there are tonnes but we can't say that they are going to ALL stay.

Well I hope that I can keep up with this blog by posting a status every week but it may not be possible. Anyway its time to go so see you later.