3D

Room 6 has been learning some of the features of 3D shapes, such as faces (the flat surface of each side), edges (the line where two faces are joined) and vertices (the corners where the edges converge). 

Today we used nets to create 3-dimensional shapes (a net is the flat shape that a 3D object can be created from).  Here are a few of the finished shapes...

Triangle-based pyramids

Triangular prisms

Longer triangular prisms

Table Tennis

We had the privilege of learning from a fantastic table tennis coach who visited our school and took the class for a lesson. Warm-up challenges were targeted towards developing hand/eye coordination and motor skills and the following games suited all skill levels. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves...

GEOMETRY

We have been learning about shapes and patterns during maths this term. We have been exploring the idea of symmetry and created our own symmetrical tiles with a vertical line of symmetry. Here are our results...

We used copies of our symmetrical tiles to show different patterns that can be made by manipulating the tiles. These include translation (when the tile slides horizontally or vertically to cover a surface)...

...reflection (when the tile is flipped horizontally or vertically to cover a surface)...

...and rotation (when the tile is turned a half or quarter turn to cover a surface)...

I think we've all done a pretty good job!

Senior Speech Finals

The Year 5 and 6 classes have been busy over the past few weeks, creating, writing, editing, practising and presenting their speeches in class. Two students from each class were chosen to present their speeches at the Senior Speech Finals. These were held today and Room 6's finalists were Zach and Putri.

Zach's speech was about the Bermuda Triangle and the mysterious disappearances that have occurred there, and Putri shared about what it's like being the youngest in her family.  Both students did well in the finals (as did the other Year 5 students). Putri was the overall Year 5 winner...congratulations on a job well done!

Technology Challenge

While some students were at the Winter Sports Field Day, the remaining students from Room 6 and Room 4 were busy with a technology challenge. This was their challenge:

In groups of 3 or 4, using the following equipment:

• 5 drinking straws
• 3 iceblock sticks
• 7 sticks
• 1 plastic cup
• 1 metre of wool
• 1 metre of masking tape
• 1 piece of card (A5)
• 1 marble

Design and build a construction that will hold a marble as far out from a table as possible without the marble being lower that the surface of the table. The challenge is to have your marble reach the furthest out from the table than any other group.

(Extra paper and pencils can be used to to draw ideas and scissors can be used to cut soft materials. Not all materials need to be used)

There was a lot of trialling ideas and changes being made as designs failed, but this is all a part of the process. We talked about Thomas Edison inventing the lightbulb and all of the failures he encountered. Some of the challenges today included running out of resources, working as part of a group, having to remake parts that didn't work initially and time constraints.

Here are some images of technology in progress...

And the winners were...

...with a 460mm distance from the edge of the table!

Well done girls!

Wheel Make A Difference

Our topic this term was based on technology. We looked at different modes of transport with wheels that we use as 9 and 10 year olds (things you don't need a licence to use). 

We undertook some research about the history of different wheeled transports (including roller blades, tricycles, penny farthing bicycles, unicycles, roller skates, scooters, skateboards, BMXs, mountain bikes and the segway) and created slideshows to highlight key points. 

Then we surveyed the school and found many students wanting to bring bikes, scooters and skateboards to school. We designed and made prototypes of suitable storage for these modes of transport. Here are our finished prototypes:

A Term of Taniwha

This term our art focus has been inspired by Maori myths and legends. We read some traditional stories about taniwha and looked at images on line, then used ideas from Maori art to create our own taniwha images. The first process involved using a chalk drawing and pastel to create an image, then dyeing it black to create the outlines (negative space). These are on display outside Room 6 and in the library. Here are a few samples:

Louis

Isla

Cooper

Quinn

Putri

Ginny

Sasha

Harriet

Scarlett

Anastasia

Our next project was to create an image of a taniwha for printmaking. We planned the shapes, cut them out of card and glued them to the backing board. When they were dry we used ink and rollers to print multiple images. Here are a few of our prints:

Throughout the term we have also been working on four panels that we removed from outside the school library. We painted a base colour (the four house colours) and then used a similar colour to create a woven design over the top. Then we painted the silhouette of a taniwha over the top of that. The taniwha used elements of some of our pastel and dye images. Here is the finished product: