Term Two; Wrapping it Up. What a Amazing Term We Have Had!

We have had a great term getting really stuck into learning, Reading and Writing and Maths and so much more. Developing our ideas about what makes a good city has been a constant, discussing how decisions are made and by whom and then down to the nitty gritty of designing and building our houses; it's all been a great learning adventure.

Our students are developing incredible knowledge about our local marine environments including types of more commonly found plankton. Using the microscopes and varoious identification tools has been challenging and we are also beginning to gather baseline data of these species; data which we will be able to use for comparison in subsequent visits and for years to come. These are some of the 'Alien' species we found.

As usual, lots of PosEd. in this case thinking about positive self talk. How we manage that internal monologue is so important as we approach challenges. Below are some of the comic strips we have been developing with our Survivor groups.

And, Wynton Rufer has been in to coach us in Football. So much fun, so much mud! He was very complimentary about how we got stuck into it.

Letters to The Mayor! Making Wellington Even Better!!

We have been thinking about what makes a good city from a kid's point of view. It has been heartening to see that most students like Wellington and think it already is a city with many positive qualities. But, as with most things, there is room for improvement. Finding out about how the democratic process works has inspired us to share our thoughts with our Local Government. We have met Regional Councillor Yadana Saw on a few occasions and she has encouraged student participation in decision making, inviting us to make submissions to the Regional Council Long Term Environmental Plan. Issues of concern for kids include safety, entertainment, transport and the environment. We have been writing letters to communicate these ideas and try to persuade the decision makers to take our us seriously.

Building The City:

We launched our building project on Wednesday, making architectural drawings to plan our ideas and then getting stuck into building. Stuck in literally because there was a whole lot of glue flying! After the planning and the drawing we had to purchace materials from 'The Shop', making decisions about how best to spend their funds.

Everyone was in The Flow, challenged but immersed in learning. We are looking forward to seeing the buildings and houses laid out on our city plan. Exciting! Watch this space for developments.