Sunset / Sunrise

This blog is now closed. A bit sad but...
It will still be here for you to look at, none of your fabulous work is going anywhere. If you want to, you can still even make a comment.

My new classroom blog is here. It is called The Room 20 Tree of PRIDE. I am excited to be moving on to new things and very glad that this blog will stay here, containing so many treasures from Parkvale 18, 2010 and 2011. Thank you so much for reading, viewing, listening and contributing!

Mr M

Oiled Penguins Released Back Into The Ocean

From DOGO news.

Our New Song

Thanks for all the suggestions for songs. I have decided on Junathan's nomination of "Invincible" because it is catchy, funky, has boy and girl parts and most importantly the lyrics are appropriate. I have shared the lyrics on a google doc with you, so have fun and start learning and choreographing.

Our inspiration:
Room 16's Stereo Hearts

U Can't Touch This

Mr M

Draw a Stickman

This site is fun, artistic, creative and challenging. Go draw a stickman and see what happens!

Mr M

NASA's Kepler Spacecraft Discovers Dark Alien Planet

I have just added DOGOnews to Mr M's favourites. It is a great news site especially for kids, packed with amazing topics, videos and moderated commenting. Check it out.

Below is a link to a great news story (including video) which fits into our Solar System topic.

NASA's Kepler Spacecraft Discovers Dark Alien Planet

WALT: Interpret Information From Graphs

A reminder of the great work Room 18 did, interpreting information from graphs in term two. We learnt about strip, bar and pie graphs and how the same data seems different if it is displayed on different types of graphs. Some graphs illustrate (show) certain things clearer than others.
This unit got us using proportions, fractions and percentages. We were able to use statistical vocabulary such as data, categories and make and evaluate statements.
Most of all, we used our key competencies, working together in teams.

Green Screening

I went to a workshop this afternoon where I learnt how to use green screening. That means taking a photo in front of a screen and then moving the main object in the photo on to another background image.

This picture is my first attempt. I used Picnik to add a speech bubble and effects to the photo.

Mr M :)

Tiger in a Zoo

Our Literacy Starter this week has been the poem "Tiger in a Zoo". The trailer to the film "Madagascar" really helped us to make connections (text to the text) to the meaning in the poem. These connections helped us to visualise with our five senses and build our understanding of the text.

Good use of your reading strategies Room 18!

Mr M :)

Number Cop

Another multiplication (times) game to test drive.

Leave a comment if you prefer NUMBER COP or MOON MATHS.

Which game will win?

Mr M :)

Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key (In Lego)

We read the last five chapters of Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key over the five nights of camp. Here is a stop motion video to celebrate. It summarises the book quite well.

Mr M :)

I Believe I Can Fly

We used the lyrics of R. Kelly's 'I Believe I Can Fly' as the text for our literacy starter. It was nice to have Room 19 in the class. They helped us to make connections and visualise. We used these strategies to help us identify the writer's purpose.

Play the video if you want to sing along!

Mr M :)

WALT know parts of 3D shapes

Our 'Start Me Up' for Maths this week is knowing parts of 3D shapes.
Here is a slideshow that can help you to learn them:

3 d shapes

View more presentations from mrmoriarty.

Seal Nursery

In the holidays, we got to see a very special place. Just off State Highway 1 on the Kaikoura Coast, we walked into the bush for five minutes, following a stream. In the stream underneath a waterfall was a nursery of baby seals. Many were frolicking in the water, some were sleeping on the rocks and they were all so cute! Their mothers leave them there (in a safe place) while they go hunting in the sea during the day. I felt so lucky to see such free wildlife. It was magic!

Below are two videos I took (using our classroom digital camera), trying to capture some of that magic.

Mr M :)

Reading Number Lines (With Missing Numbers)

Thanks for the iPad Jesse!

Follow the link:

Monster Making Competition

And we will learn to use it for more and more cool stuff!

Mr M :)

WALT dodge

For PE we have been learning to dodge. To improve our dodging we are playing skill-based games and then reflecting on our learning. Yasmin reflected on the IWB today after we played Shadow Partner and Octopus. Octopus was the class favourite. Mr M :)

WALT use a digital camera effectively

Creating Shutterbugs - Digital Photography in the Classroom

We have got a new digital camera in our classroom. It is going to really enhance our learning. "A picture paints a thousand words."

The inspiring slideshow above will give you some ideas about how we will learn to use the camera effectively. Already we have used it to help us reflect on and record our learning (our ongoing Learning Journey powerpoints) and create comics to show our reading strategies.

PS22 Chorus

On my favourites is a link to the PS22 Chorus. Do check out their amzing blog and their versions of all sorts of songs. They are from a school in New York. Here are three of my favourite PS22 songs:

Lisztomania




Round and Round




Just Dance

Adrian the Bird

Adrian is the newest member of Room 18. His camp animal is a bird. He used MS Paint to turn his photo into an Adrian / bird hybrid for our learning buddy wall. Well done Adrian!

Mr M :)

Learning Buddy Criteria

We discussed what we thought made a great learning buddy this afternoon. The brainstrom below shows our criteria. Then we had a fun drawing activity, where each buddy had to draw to their buddy's instructions while blindfolded. It was hilarious! Afterwards, we reflected on the activity and added TRUST to our criteria.