As part of Positive Education learning, we have been inviting students to work through a course led by Dr Jo Boaler (Professor Mathematics Education at Stanford University) and her undergraduate students.
This will help students to develop a Growth Mindset in Maths. This course includes useful information about the brain and the best ways to learn Maths effectively.
Here is some of our learning from Week 2...
Smashing Stereotypes
James: Companies think that girls do not like some things boys like, they use stereotype thinking. More people should have access to different toys, video games, board games and computer programming - they all use maths. People should also let people have more choices of t-shirts colours that aren't just pink for girls.
Inigo: Maths is for everyone! Never get boxed in to anything! Ideas are for everyone to enjoy.
Ajooni: Today, I learned that no one should think in stereotype. For example, pink is not only for girls and blue is not only for boys. The video said that to be good in maths, you should play maths game, board games, build stuff with Lego. It's for everyone not only for boys. No one should tell you that something is not for you.
Mindset in Maths
Darragh: You need to be confident about it and not give up.
Billy: People need to persist and have a growth mindset in order to learn Maths.
Emelie: They need to use perseverance and believe in themselves even when things get hard, and even if they get it wrong they believe that next time they will be able to see the mistakes they did last time and learn from them!
Emily: If you have a growth mindset you think that you can grow your brain if you have a fixed mindset you think that you are smart or not smart.
Sammy: If you want to get better at maths you have to have a growth mindset and just keep trying because if you fail once, you can just try harder the next time and you will get better. You also need to believe in yourself to have a growth mindset.
Messages about Maths and You!
Sophie: When students are praised for being smart they sometimes choose the easy problem. This is because they wanted to get it right again so that people would still think they are smart.
Sabine: Why do you think that when students were praised for being smart they then chose the easy problem? Maybe because if they think they were smart they thought they wouldn’t have to do the hard problem because smart means that you know a lot so they probably thought that if someone said they were smart they wouldn’t have to challenge their brains because they knew that question so they wouldn’t have to get muddled up doing the hard question.
Mae A: I think it is because they really want to know that they are smart. It can be just wanting to think that they are smarter than other people, but it would just make them not as good as the people who choose the hard problem. Even if the people that choose the hard problem get it wrong, their brain still grows and they will get it.I f you set yourself at the easier problems your brain can still grow but not as much as the people who choose the hard problem.
Messages about you
Alex: When people say you are failing it doesn't matter just keep trying.
Coco: The thoughts in your head can really affect your learning. When the students had a test half the class got feedback saying"Im giving you this feedback because I believe in you"and their results were much better at the end of the year.
Hunter J: The negative messages you receive will affect your future in learning unless you shut the negative messages out of your brain and let the positive messages come in instead. you should always try the hard problem because when you struggle it might seem that your bad it but when you struggle it actually helps you to learn so make sure you try the hard problem next time.
Fülöp: The first thing is that the students' achievements are changed by the messages they get. If they get, for example the message, "This is bad. I can't understand what made you think this" then the student will be hurt, and they will think that they can't do that. if they get the message, " I'm giving you this feedback because I want to help you" then the student won't lose much confidence.
We love all of the creative ways that you are sharing your learning. Lots of you have been working on Minecraft projects. Minecraft enhances creativity, problem-solving, self-direction, collaboration, and other life skills. Good on you!
Minecraft Parthenon by Chris
Our Garden Design by Cameron and Hunter
This is my unfinished replica of my garden on minecraft by Caspian
In these slightly strange times we are reminding ourselves of all the things which we are grateful for. I has been lovely to see the way we are appreciating nature, what's in our backyards, the things that remain constant , like the sun and the moon and, most importantly each other.
Expressing gratitude makes us feel good. Telling somebody that you are grateful for what they do for you, not only makes them feel nice but it has been proven to be beneficial for the mental health of the person expressing the gratitude.
Who can you show some gratitude to today?
She's grateful!
I am grateful for.....
I am grateful for the moon
the stars the sea the sounds
I am grateful for the sound
that dances in your ears
the way it can make you
jig about and dance it out
I am grateful for dances
that can contain a ball of emotion
I am grateful for emotion
the way it makes you smile
the the way it make your eyes twinkle
I am grateful for
my eyes making it possible
for us to see the place we live on today.
As part of our Positive Education programme, we have been learning about optimism. We watched the "positive attitude" animation.
What does the saying 'is the glass half full or half empty' mean?
What is optimism?
By Mae A
Hunter J:
1.The saying of is the glass half empty or half full means if someone is being bright and cheery or if someone is being sad and weary.
2. Optimism means if someone is looking on the bright side even if something not to good is happening and there thinking of the good things instead of the bad things.
Marnie:
1. What does the saying 'is the glass half full or half empty' mean? I think it means that if you are optimistic you would say 'the glass is half full' and if your pessimistic you would say 'the glass is half empty'. In the video the dog was optimistic and wanted to play but the boy was being pessimistic and didn't.
2. What is optimism? It means that you always look on the bright side of life, are usually happy and full of energy (dog), but pessimism would mean that your sad and never really want to do anything (boy), the opposite of optimism.
We love all of the creative ways that you have been keeping fit in your bubble. It has been great to see you working on your strength, flexibility and endurance to improve your Positive Health.
Some students have been helping around the house as part of their physical activity:
In case you didn't already know, Pokémon are also isolated within a bubble - a Pokéball!
We were asked to write a story about Pikachu’s day in the Pokéball that ends with him being sent out by his trainer, Ash.
Of course, many of us took inspiration from our current experience. This must be what those Pokémon feel like huh...
Pikachu is famous for not wanting to be confined to his bubble!
Check out some excerpts of our clever and creative writing below:
Pikachu slowly opened his eyes to see the slightly lit ceiling. He just lay there for a while wondering what was going on in the outside world to make him need to stay at home so much.
- Solly Y
One day Pikachu was sitting on his tiny armchair in his pokeball watching TV, He was BORED, and he didn’t even want to play with his favourite plush toy of Munchax or play with his Lego model of ratata. He didn’t even want a Bunnelby shaped sandwich. He just wanted to get OUT of his Pokeball and play in the fresh fallen leaves of Autumn.
- Will J
Kablooey! An explosion came from from outside. ¨Not another Pokemon battle. Ash really needs to stop with these...¨
- Billy B
“PIKA PIKA CHU PIKACHU” (translate mode: Pikachu is saying “NOOOO I HATE MY POKEBALL”) “Hope you have a great
day Pikachu” says Nicolas *throws pokeball at pikachu* *pikachu goes in the
pokeball* “Guess I’m gonna stay
in my Pokeball today...”
- Nicolas M
"I can't wait to train with Ash!" He headed over to the door. “Sorry Pikachu, we can’t train today. We're in lockdown. Humans in homes and Pokemon in Pokeballs.” "Nooo!”
- Greta L
“12:47 pm April 17, Days go
by like shooting stars, it
feels like an eternity
now, no battles, no
winning or losing,” “Hey Pikachu buddy are you in there?” “Yes I’m in here” “Well you better not be drinking sugary
drinks!!!” “Yeah ummmmm about that..."
- Cameron J
I am Pikachu and this Covid 19 thing has kept me from traveling. Ash and I were going to go to China for a battle yesterday, but I am stuck in my Pokeball all day and all night. I haven't seen the daylight in 7 days, well that's what my Dad's dairy sign says.
- Chris G
One day, Pikachu was feeling a bit lonely 😔, so he decided to throw a friendship 👫 party 🎉!!!
With drinks 🍹 and food 🍗. He invited all his friends 👫, except the humans (they can’t fit inside his pokeball). Every one came! “great 👍 party Pikachu!!!” said Dedenne.
“Thanks!” said Pikachu.
- Caleb W
Before opening the bottle he looked up at the ceiling where the whisky was. It was empty. Everyday it was the same, as if he thought it was going to magically refill.
Then he sat down on his couch and drank his soda while playing video games.
And hours later he was asleep.
When he woke up, he was on the floor with Ash looking at him with a long beard and long hair with short legs. With a soda in his hand.
They had both found their way of the lockdown.
As part of Positive Education learning, we have been inviting students to work through a course led by Dr Jo Boaler (Professor Mathematics Education at Stanford University) and her undergraduate students.
This will help students to develop a Growth Mindset in Maths. This course includes useful information about the brain and the best ways to learn Maths effectively.
We asked: What happened when the girl had half of her brain removed?
Charlotte: All the doctors said that it would take along time for the girl to move again but the girl recovered really fast and began to walk and run. All the doctors wore shocked of how fast the girl the recovered.
Ethan: Scientists thought she would be paralysed for a long time because the brain controls your body. Surprising all the doctors, she regained the ability to move quite quickly because her brain grew back and all the cells reconnected. That just showed the power of the brain is more powerful than we ever thought it would be.The brain would be able to grow itself back in a few days. Now that you know that, let's see how you do in your maths test!
Elliot: What happened when the girl had half of her brain removed? The doctors thought that she would be paralyzed for a super long time but her brain connections grew back much faster than they expected so she learned how to walk again real fast.
Summary The video taught us about the brain. Anyone's brain can grow at any time if you challenge yourself. London taxi drivers have to memorise 20,000 streets and 25,000 landmarks. They study for 2-4 year and then take a test called "the knowledge". And their Hippocampus grows tremendously when they retire it shrinks back. There was a study where some scientists got two groups of volunteers, looked at their brains, told them to learn how to juggle, and sent them home. The scientists contacted the first group and gave them tips and encouragement. They didn't contact the second group. After a while they got back together and showed the scientists their juggling skills. Only the first group had learned how to juggle and showed significant brain growth. This kind of evidence proves that the brain is much more plastic than previously thought. Practicing a task for a few minutes every day makes your brain grow. This mean we can learn almost anything.
We asked: How do people feel about Maths?
Yoichi: Lots of people hated maths except for some people. The people who hate math did not think it was useful but the people who liked math thought it was useful in day to day life.
Coco: I think that often people haven't had an enjoyable experience meaning that they don't have many happy memories with the subject.
Cleo: Most people feel a bit bored or frustrated when they do maths. Others use it in work but might not like it quite so much. And some people disliked it as a kid but got better withit growing up.
Georgia: Most people don't like it because there are lots of rules to learn and it can be very frustrating especially when you get things wrong.
We asked our students to summarise the clip:
Anastasiya: Summary of the video "Math Myths and the Brain" There are many math myths that have been for a long time and are actually not true. For example, there is a myth that some people are more talented in math than others. In fact, everyone can succeed in math. But different people can have different experiences. The second important point of the video is that our brain is very flexible and develops with practice. The more we learn the more our brain grows.
Eddie: they were talking about a myth that there are people that are good at maths and that some people aren't. some of the things thy said were "Anyone can succeed in maths", "there is no such thing as a maths person" and "you need to exercise your maths brain".
Hadley: What I took out of this was that you are good at maths you just need to try no one is gifted with maths they have just had a good experience with it and any one can be good at maths.
We have been loving the investigations going on in your backyards. Spiders, bees, flowers we never know the names of; it is so interesting when we slow down enough to really notice things.
Emilie’s investigation uncovered these treats!
Elliot is thinking like a scientist.
We will be thinking about what can be done to further enhance our backyard habitats next week.
We know that lots of you have been reading some great books. Please add to "Book Club." Our friends at Auroa School have also been adding their recommendations.
This is a place to share books! Tell us about what you’re reading at the moment...
What thoughts and ideas does it spark?
What characters do you admire and why?
What advice would you give the main characters?
Describe the setting, what does it look like?
What’s a summary of the plot?
Ella has been posting real life problems on Seesaw. We loved this idea and thought it would be a great activity for everyone. Can you add your own problems to the slides?
One of Ella's problems: Grandma came to get some eggs. She brought with her two cartons. There was one space left in the cartons when they had their eggs in them. One box had 10 spaces and one had 6 spaces. Grandma asked - how many eggs were there? If there was a whole tray how many eggs would there be?
Olive has written a story about Number Frog. Number Frog can appear in Maths, story writing and is also helping the police to solve crimes!
An array is a way of arranging things in rows and columns. When you buy things like a pack of cookies, a pack of toy cars, or even a carton of eggs, the items in the package are lined up to create an array. An array always has rows and columns.
The rows are the horizontal lines that go from left to right. The columns are the vertical lines that go from top to bottom. Things that are arranged in an array create a rectangular shape or a square shape.
Can you add some of your own arrays to the Padlet below:
Here's a wee update about what we have all been up to! We went for a walk around Zealandia before lockdown
Saying goodbye, just before we went home on the Monday for lockdown!
Jenny
Kia Ora!
How are you? I have been missing our Māhutonga Matariki whanau, but I am really enjoying seeing all your wonderful learning on Seesaw. Especially when you leave a voice message explaining what your thinking was. I am also enjoying reading your jokes and seeing your book recommendations - very cool.
I am knitting a hat for my friend. I like to listen to podcasts while I knit. It's pretty fiddly at the start and I have to use perseverance and grit to get through. It'll be worth it in the end!
I've also been baking almost every day (I’ve also been exercising everyday). Last night I made pasta for tea. It was yum! Are you cooking for your families?
I am making sure I am staying active and getting out for a walk and doing yoga just like we do at school every morning. It is helping me get ready for the day and keeping my mind clear.
I'm really keen to see more questions go on the science padlet. If you want some help, let me know!
Be kind. Happy Easter!
Jenny
Nik
Kia ora koutou!
I hope everyone is having a magical time in their bubble. I’ve been really impressed with everyone’s home learning posts on Seesaw, it really proves how powerful and connected our learning community is!
I was meant to be going up to Gisborne for Easter, so I’m a bit sad that I can’t go and spend it with my family. How lucky are we to be able to so easily connect through technology though? We have been using Zoom and Houseparty to catch up with friends and family from all over the world - we’ve probably seen more of them than we would’ve otherwise! There are many, many silver linings to this crisis.
Apart from cooking, cleaning and looking after my wife (who had knee surgery the day before the lockdown started) I have been working really hard on my fitness. I’ve been doing P.E. with Joe, going for lots of runs around the hills and doing a daily press-up challenge with my friends.
Noho ora mai koutou! Stay safe, be kind and have a lovely Easter staycation 😃
Nik
Nic
Kia ora all,
How are you all going? I have loved seeing your posts on Seesaw and hearing about what you have been
up to. It has been lovely to see you all connected socially whilst physically distancing.
I have been running and doing yoga every day since the lockdown. My husband (Nick) and I have started every day with yoga. It has been a great way to start the day! Running every day is quite tough but I am enjoying the challenge. Yoga helps me to stay flexible so that I can keep up with the running. I have also been doing some weights and been on the spinning bike too.
I have also been cooking. I have been sharing recipes with my brother, Stuart, who lives in the UK. I have been cooking lots of new things! I find cooking quite relaxing. I’ve been talking with my family lots too. They are all safe and well.
I have been looking in my backyard and investigating some of the interesting flora and fauna out there. I have been surprised about some of the things that I have found when I have looked more closely. I will be interested to hear what you find in your backyard!
I have also been getting stuck into my personal reading. I am grateful to have the time to do this. What are you reading?
Worser Bay staff have been meeting each morning to do a daily quiz. This has been a lovely way to
stay connected!
We miss you all.
He waka eke noa !! We are all in this together.
Love Nic x
Teuila
Talofa Guys!!!! What's up!!I bet you guys are doing awesome in your bubbles. I've been doing heaps of fun stuff and lots of DIY (Do It Yourself) like….
ANT EXTERMINATOR the ants at my house have been staying home too but being real pests so had
to make my ant bait to get rid of them arrgghhh!
SHOE DESIGNER look how I turned a pair of plain white converse into Zebra Kicks can't wait to wear them at school to show off my styles!
TIK TOK & INSTAGRAM CAMERAMEN...my daughter Lani trying to do her Handstand Challenge to Shakira music we must have shot a 100 takes and still haven't perfected it!
Do you like my Cactus Top Bun? I think it will go great with my Zebra Kicks lol!!
So get into some DIY, it's so much fun and you'll learn new and fun stuff.
Stay safe Peeps miss you all Teuila xx
John
Kia Ora e te Whānau!
We have been really impressed to see so many of you involved in Home Learning and expect we will see still more of you this and next week.
Being in lockdown has had all sorts of effects, many of them strangely positive. I have really enjoyed spending heaps of time with my family. I have been appreciating them and I am grateful for the different things which they bring to our whānau.
Louie for example is a fantastic chef! We have been eating some quite fancy food. He approaches cooking much as a scientist approaches an experiment, with a great deal of thought and planning. The
effects are superb! For example one night he made a Lamb Ragout with Pappardelle, a homemade pasta.
He cooked the Ragout for about 6 hours! Mia helped make the pasta dough and then they rolled it out
together on the kitchen table. We got dressed up so everybody looked as fancy as the food.
Lamb Ragout & Pappardelle!
Woah! Fancy!
I have spent a lot of time in the garden too. Weeding, weeding and weeding some more. And, trimming
a very large Karaka tree. That’s where I found the old Tui nest. It has been really hard work but also
very satisfying.
I made a basketball hoop for Zico so that he gets some exercise, a challenge for us all. We have been using a Spin Bike, running and doing yoga to keep healthy.
Miranda had her birthday in lockdown so we couldn’t buy her a present. I made her a song as a present instead. She had been whistling to the birds, making us all laugh, so I made a song with a background of bird song to celebrate and remember.
I think that it’s good to keep a creative life going, no matter what the circumstances. When the weather was bad I was painting, reading and writing. And doing school work because work doesn’t stop just because we are confined to our homes.
This is one of my paintings. Geez John, did you do that at Kindy?
My son Pirimi is in London so we chat to him on Facetime most days. He gives us recommendations of good shows to watch. His Dark Materials, the Phillip Pullman series on Neon is the best so far. Absolutely brilliant. The books are even better!
Looking forward to speaking to you all soon.
Arohanui
John
Cloe
Hello everyone
It’s a lovely day in our bubble.
Tony is working already, hidden behind a screen.
Even so...I miss you, I miss my friends, I miss the kids....I miss the butcher and the baker. I miss the pool (you know how much I love to go to the pool….)
So I talk to people I love.....
Bubbles are short-lived, that’s why they’re so lovely....
So see you soon.
Clotilde
Suzanne
Kia Ora Koutou ,
Kei te pehea koutou ? We are all good in our bubble and missing everyone ! We have been up to all kinds of things and like many of
you, lots of DIY ! Lucy and I have been making lots of sweet treats
and we are waiting to see how our rock crystals turn out !
We have been working together and practising our te reo maori. I have done lots of extra study too. We have also been taking advantage of the lovely weather. We had the tent up for 2 days before the wind started.
Lucy also had her birthday
lockdown so we had a little
party for her and she saw
her friends online.
We are looking forward
to returning to school
whenever that may be so
until then we will be watching and connecting online from our bubble :-)
