2022 is a great year and we are now reaching the end of the year. So here are my reflections on what I thought of this school year. The event I remember the most is Athletic’s day because it is a day that pushed me into doing sports. I enjoyed the museum trip this year because I learned about volcanoes and dinosaurs. A subject I think I have made the best improvement in is reading because I have moved up in levels. The subject I enjoyed the most this year is writing because it let me use my imagination a lot. After some time this year I feel like I have made a proper friendship with Zachary. A responsibility I have completed this year is counting the house points. I feel this responsibility has helped me with my maths. This year has been challenging and there are still things I need to improve on so hopefully next year is better.

Today is the Parihaka Rememberance Day and as such we are all wearing white. Let me explain to you what Parihaka is and why we need to remember it. In the 1860s land was taken from many Maori tribes. Two leaders – Te Whiti – o – Rongomai and Tohu Kakahi set up a settlement for Maori who lost their land and homes. When the Government wanted to take this land as well they protested in a non violent way. They wore the white plume (feather) to represent peace. So in order to remember this the Parihaka we made a band with white plumes. We first got two pieces of shiny paper and stuck them together. Then we drew Taniko patterns on the paper and outlined them with vivid. Finally we stuck it into a band shape and put feathers on it.

On Tuesday me, the other seniors and some parents were going to the Auckland Museum. We were going there to extend our learning on the Auckland region and disasters. We went to the museum by getting on two buses, once we got there the first thing we did was eat in the break room. Once we had eaten we went to our assigned exhibits, in the Maori exhibit there was a scavenger hunt. My favourite exhibit was Weird and Wonderful because you could design your own butterfly on a tablet and it would appear on a big screen. Altogether I thought the trip to the Museum was amazing, hopefully you check out my other blogs. LINK

This term we’ve been doing PE sessions with Greg from NZ health. His sessions are mostly about teamwork and good sportsmanship. My favourite session is when Greg made us play endzone.

It was where there were two teams and you had get through to the other team’s side. The thing that made it hard was that if you were tagged by the other team you had to go back. This meant that you had to start again. There were cones laid out to signify which team was which. When we finished there were four colour coded cones showing the four groups there were.

I love the PE sessions with Greg because he finds a way for us to have fun while learning. Good thing his sessions are still on in school. I think they’re really fun and that everyone should try them. The End.

In Waikowhai there are lots of different subjects but my favorite is swimming. That is because it’s more like playing than learning. When I swim I have more fun than working. Even when it’s windy and the pool is cold I can still feel calm. I used to be afraid of swimming when I was 9 but now I feel much better in the pool. The only thing I don’t like about swimming is that you need to put your head in. But after some practice I could do it. I turned something I was scared of into something fun. So in conclusion if you believe in yourself you can do anything you put your mind to.