Soaking it all in

Not one, but three fire engines and their crews, visited us today! We started off with a talk by Fireman Darron and a demonstration by Fireman Dave in the hall. They recapped on all the rules we've learned about fire safety and  then Fireman Dave put on all his gear as well as his oxygen mask and flash hood. He also demonstrated how to check our fire alarms at home. He had two stripes on his helmet to indicate that he has had lots of experience as a firefighter.

Next, we met up with Fireman Doug and Mel who showed us all the equipment stored on the fire engine. They explained that fire engines carry various loads and gear - they are not all the same. We were all given an opportunity to open, hold, control and close one of the medium sized hoses and finally we assembled back in the hall to watch the fire engine switch all its flashing lights and sirens on. What an amazing display it has been - we have learned so much and feel very privileged to have had such an interesting and exciting learning experience. Thanks to the wonderful firemen who gave us an insight into their special jobs.
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Our Little Garden ... two weeks on

Just look at all our seeds! They only took a fortnight to get this big. Plenty of sunshine, water and our eager little faces must have got them growing so quickly! We have taken them home now and are sure to continue to see them shoot up into pretty flowers!

Three Cheers for Science in a Van!

We are very spoiled at Point View!! Every week or two we have something exciting to enjoy and this week we were very lucky to have Alan and Emily from Science in a Van return to show us more of their amazing science experiments. They made glasses filled with water fly through the air without spilling a drop and they pulled a tablecloth from under two glasses and a teapot without them even moving!

Next Alan intrigued us with his amazing bubbles - they were small, medium-sized and massive! He controlled the bubbles by blowing or waving at them and they looked like shimmering blobs of transparent jelly as they wobbled and floated around.

Emily introduced us to some of the liquids and solids we all have in our kitchen - oil, water, vinegar, dishwashing liquid and bicarbonate. She showed us how to make a mixture with them, like bubbles. Another was a mixture of oil and water and the other mixture of vinegar and bicarbonate resulted in lots of frothing. Lastly that same mixture was used to blow up a balloon!

Alan used dry ice to make clouds and to make intriguing bubbles that fell or popped with a puff of smoke. To finish off, Alan used helium to make some bubbles and they rose right up to the roof because helium is lighter than air!

Lachlan

Lachlan arrived at school today with a plaster cast on his arm! He has a suspected fracture from a fall and last week he soldiered on, despite being in lots of pain. His family and many of the children signed his cast to cheer him up. Even though he had the choice to rest up, he happily carried on as normal. Ka Pai, Lachlan!

Our Te Tuhi Trip

As we arrived at the Te Tuhi Art Gallery in Pakuranga we were greeted by Salome who was to be our teacher and guide for the day. We had already viewed the slideshows providing us with a background on tapa cloths that are made from the bark of the mulberry tree. Tapa is found in the islands of the Pacific Ocean and each island has its own style of decoration.

It was good being able to see and feel samples of tapa and to see the designs close at hand.

We so enjoyed using crayon and dye to create our own paper tapa using symbols that tell about our own families, culture, interests and homes.

Our Spring Play

To celebrate the arrival of Spring we performed a little play to show how Mother Nature waved her wand to make this a happy season of the year.  She awoke some hibernating animals, arranged for the trees to blossom, invited birds to return home and build their nests and she attempted to get the flower seeds to make their appearance. They were too sleepy so the sun and the clouds did their part to awaken them. Once the flowers were blooming, the bees buzzed around with the butterflies and ready to take on the all-important job of pollinators. Mother Nature didn't fail to remind us that springtime is a good time for baby animals to be born. Well done, children. You entertained Room 6, Room 16 and Room 32 with great aplomb! We all enjoyed your lovely play and you did a great job of making your own costumes.