Pressure Groups

In class we have been looking at Pressure Groups, what they are and how they operate. After comparing and contrasting two existing pressure groups we are inventing our own pressure or interest group. Many of you are creating wikis and blogs as a method of delivering your message. I have found a website that allows you to create and customise your own speaking character. Perhaps you could craft a character that will personally welcome visitors to your site and share your message, and embed it in your wiki/blog. Alternatively you could create a character that explains what a pressure group is like the example here. The website for creating these characters is http://www.voki.com/ . It's free but you will have to register. Remember to ask your parents.

Waikato Full Primary Speech Competition

Huge congratulations to Sonya who won the recent semi final for the Waikato Full Primary Speech Competition, with her speech on Learner Drivers. This Thursday Sonya will compete in the final at Ohaupo School with other students from as far afield as Whitianga and Taupo.
Good luck Sonya!

Senior Speech Competition

Last week we held the Year 7 and 8 Speech Competition. Some very interesting and persuasive speeches were delivered. The results were:
Year 7
1st              Sonya Fenton
2nd             Bella Smith
3rd             Jennifer Qiu
Year 8
1st              Courtney Creighton
2nd             Emma Harris
3rd Equal    Elena Steven Rouvi and Caitlyn Dawbin

Congratulations and well done to you all. Sonya and Courtney will go on to represent Kimihia at the Waikato Full Primary Speech Competition in Hamilton tonight. Good luck!

Waikato Science Fair

Last Friday we were very excited to hear that of the three projects Kimihia School had entered in the Waikato Science Fair ALL were to be awarded prizes at the regional competition. Congratulations to Emma and Caitlyn (Third Prize), Kirsten and Sonya (Highly Commended), and Elena and Courtney (Highly Commended). It was thrilling to see that the work we submitted was of such a high quality and the projects were deserved winners. I know some of you are already contemplating projects for 2012 and beyond. You are all future scientists in action. Check out the Science Fair page for more information.

Loving Literature

Recently I read an interesting article by author Michael Morpurgo, about the importance of instilling a love of stories in children. Personally, I love books and there are so many wonderful books available to open the hearts and minds of children. Books in which  children can love the fun, share the sadness and love the music in the words. Unfortunately the market is also flooded with lower quality books and it is sometimes difficult to identify really great books to read. Follow the links to find lists of books every child should read. Teacher's Top 100 books and Michael Morpurgo's Recommended Reading
Check out the book reviews page for a review of Kensuke's Kingdom by Michael Morpurgo

WaiMath Quiz Night

Well done to our two WaiMaths teams. Last Thursday Stephen, Caleb, Sonya, Manuel, Rani and Emma competed in the quiz which saw students from all over the Waikato come together to solve problems, in teams of three, in a race against the clock. You all represented Kimihia brilliantly, as usual.

National Young Leaders Day 2011

Recently a group of 10 students attended  the National Young Leaders Conference at the Logan Campbell Centre in Auckland. After a very early start to the day and breakfast at McDonalds en route to Auckland we joined 3000 others to hear some very powerful messages about leadership. Inspiring speakers challenged and encouraged the young people present  to consider what makes great leaders. Nick Tuatasi shared an important message about using our skills to give something back to our communities. How many of us make sure we take the time to do this in our busy lives?

Testing, Testing, Testing

Currently a number of students are participating in the International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) tests. Students from over 20 countries participate in these tests each year and the subjects tested are Computer Skills, Science, Spelling, Writing, English and Mathematics. The Computer Skills and Science tests are complete and the next ones to be taken are Spelling and Writing on the 21st June. Click on these links to find hints and tips for sitting these tests and you can also try some practice questions.

Young New Zealander of the Year



17 year old Jamie Fenton is named Young New Zealander of the Year 2011



Wow! Have you heard of Jamie Fenton? In February this year she was named Young New Zealander of the Year in recognition of her amazing achievements. Jamie credits her success not to being  'gifted,' but to being fortunate enough to have had sufficient support to show what she is capable of.

Read about Jamie and her recent success and consider:

• which of her long list of successes do you think is her greatest achievement? Why?
• what are the things Jamie may have found difficult along her path to success?
• what do you think you could be capable of if given the right support?

Discover the Author In You

In class we have been working on writing a short story for the NZ Post Story Writing competition. Editing our work to improve it has been a major focus and some of us have written five or six drafts of the same story. Soon you will be able to read our entries on line. Last years entries were published in the book Leprechaun Icecream available from NZ PostShops.
There are several other writing competitions currently available if you would like to submit a piece of writing. Click on the following links to find out more about the Elsie Locke Writing Prize and the Puffin Short Story Awards. Make sure you read all the rules and conditions to ensure your writing meets the judging criteria.