Literacy

Creative Writing - Matai - Whaea Sue - 

Tuesday 7  - Fri 10 Sept

Imagine yourself 10 years from now! 

You have the chance to create yourself as a 20 - 23 year old! I want to hear all about this 20-something year old YOU! 

So, you need to imagine and create your life - tell me all about how you spend your days? What is your job? Where do you live? What is your life like, your eating habits, exercise, recreational activities, and all the aspects of your life that are important to you.

Imagine you’ve fulfilled all your dreams for a great career, firm friendships and you’re really pleased with how your life has turned out so far. You can explain your journey to get to this point too.

You might find it helpful to think about who your role models are, you might like to talk to an adult in your life to help you figure out what you might have done in the last 10 years to get you to where you are today.

Don’t forget to include some details about how you’ve got to where you are today. (school, work, study, university, trade, sport, drama, art, science, travel etc)

Planning your writing - make a plan that includes all of the following ideas - how are you going to grab the reader at the start of your piece? How are you going to keep them interested as you go on? Many of the writing features listed below will give you ideas to keep your writing interesting. 

Here’s a possible starter…..

I quietly walked back into my old classroom. I was a bit nervous, it was 10 years since I’d last sat in this room. “Hi Matua Craig/Whaea Sue remember me? ….. .

Remember for Year 7/8 writing, I’m looking for . . .

-Structure

-Creative language - vivid verbs, descriptive adjectives ...

-Variety of sentence starters

-A range of punctuation

-Variety of sentence lengths

Accurate spelling 

Use this as your checklist.....

Remember, any problems, you’re welcome to email me, sue.sheaf@knightsstream.school.nz

Monday 6th - 7th September. 

Alliteration Writing Challenge

1. Listen to Animalia on the Read to Me tab.

2. Learn what alliterations are below:

3. Let the challenges begin! Grab some paper and your pencil case.

Pick a letter, get a timer and write as many words as possible! 

For example, Spongebob Squarepants sang sweetly to Sandy Squirrel. 

Write your alliteration sentence creatively on a page. Add drawings to highlight your sentence and letter! 

Remember to upload your efforts to Seesaw in your one daily post! 

Writing  - Totara - Wednesday 8 - Friday 10 Sept

Watch the Video! and Have a Go!

Hi Totara students, later this week you get to watch Dr Murray Gadd read you a story - The Diary of a Worm - it's full of funny moments and imaginative ideas. 

Murray is an expert about reading and writing and he spends a lot of time teaching teachers, that's how I got to know him.

This time, Murray is reading to you, and at the end he has a writing challenge for you - to choose your own creature, and create a fun diary about them. I won't say too much, because Murray will guide you through it! 

You'll find the video on Youtube -

Dr Murray Gadd PhD, reads "Diary Of A Worm"

You might like to draw your diary first, then add the days and the interesting language in writing afterwards! Have fun!

Any problems, feel free to email me: sue.sheaf@knightsstream.school.nz

Whaea Sue

Instructional Writing- Phase 2 (Matai)

Last week, you may of completed the instructional piece of writing on either an iMovie, or something of your choice. This week, your task is to create one more piece of something of your choice, and then create an instructional video. You could use iMovie for this, or Clips, or a programme of your choice. 

Remember, an instructional piece of writing should make assumptions, assume that the reader has no idea what you are talking about, but over do it with too much!! It's a fine line. Some ideas for this weeks piece are....

-How to ride a bike

-How to iron a shirt

-How to plant a plant

-How to do a flip on the trampoline 

Remember for Year 7/8 writing, I'm looking for

-Structure

-Creative language

-Variety of sentence starters

-A range of punctuation

-Variety of sentence lengths

Accurate spelling 

Use this as your checklist.....

Storytelling Tasks

Monday 30th August - Wednesday 1st September

Monday 30th August

Close your eyes and picture the most wonderful creature you could possibly dream of that would make you happy and smile if you saw it in real life.

Your task for today is to get creative and draw this fantastic creature. It could be absolutely anything, but it must come from your own imagination - we already know what a unicorn is! Think about all of the animals that you love, and take some aspect from each to create your own creature - just like the Creator did in our Storytelling text! 

Don’t forget to label the different parts of your creature like I have so we know what animals you have taken inspiration from!

Tuesday 31st August

What ingredients make you happy?

On a piece of paper, draw a table like the one below. You are going to brainstorm what things from the five senses make you happy like the Creator did in our story. 

Wednesday 1st September

Once you have completed your brainstorm, you are to choose one thing from each category, and write a recipe on how to make your imaginary creature from yesterday using your favourite things. Here is an example from my favourite things! 

Extra for those that are inspired!

Write a narrative piece about you creating and discovering your fantasy creature. Here is a starter if you are unsure of how to begin! 

The pot boiled rapidly in-front of me, the thick, silvery liquid shimmering and churning like a raging ocean. Sparkling steam started to build within the room, filling my nostrils with the sharp scent of pine trees and fresh raspberries. Suddenly, a flash of brilliant light erupted from the pot and I stumbled back in surprise. Blinking, I slowly pulled myself off the ground before letting out a gasp. Before me, was the most fantastic creature I had ever seen…

WEEK 5

Writing for Matai (and Totara if you wish) for Thursday and Friday 

For the remainder of the week, your task is to complete a piece of instructional writing based on an activity at home. Whether it is a baking recipe, how to make something, create something etc. 

For an example of the correct structure for an instructional piece of writing, see my example-

How to create an iMovie

iMovie's are a great way to connect with your audience on a deeper level which promotes creativity. They are simple to create and by following the steps I have outlined in this text, you too will be create your very own masterpiece in no time!

Step 1- In order to get started, simply open the iMovie app, which is located on your home screen. This will be the purple icon with the star in the middle. 

Step 2- Once you are in to the app, you will see a plus button located at the top left of your screen. This plus button has a couple of options, but the option you will be needing is the create new project button. This will start your iMovie. 

Step 3- Once your project is live, you will then see another plus icon. This will enable you to import footage to work with or manipulate. Once the footage has been exported, it will be considered raw footage. In order to get creative, you will need to add it to your timeline. 

As you can see the text is in a sequential order and there is detail. It is not simply...... put your ingredients in a bowl, (WHAT ARE YOUR INGREDIENTS?) Be specific. If you remember from class, think of it like the person who is reading the piece has NO idea at all, like they are from another planet, so don't make assumptions. 

Good luck, I look forward to reading the pieces on Seesaw👍 

Whaea Sue's Collage Writing

Hi everyone!

Just a little writing challenge for you if you're feeling Creative and Courageous! This is a chance for you to write about yourself in a fun way, about your likes and dislikes, hopes and dreams!

The sentence starters are just a suggestion, you can CHANGE them to suit you better.

There are lots of choices with this challenge, as you'll see from the page I've posted below. 

If you accept this Creative Collage Challenge, YOU can either:

☺ Use the template just as it is and add things about YOU to finish each sentence

☺ Change, remove or add more sentences so that they suit you better

☺ Be as Creative as you like, and add pictures or clipart as part of your sentences if you want to! I used old magazines. But you could use newspapers of any sort, or just import pics from your device.

☺ Don't forget the Challenge to use a pun to make your sentences even more fun!!

( A pun is when you use a word (or picture) in a different way so that we have to think about the meaning and have a bit of a giggle - you'll see I used pictures of a bee and corn but they don't have their usual meaning).

I hope that if you Have a Go at this challenge, you can treat is as FUN, and you could even ask some other members of your family to make their own collage!!

REMEMBER your collage doesn't have to be as long as mine.

☺  Have fun  ☺

Monday 23rd August - Friday 27th August 

STORYTELLING 

How Butterflies Came to Be 

Monday and Tuesday: Mapping

- Watch the above link, which is Whaea Emma sharing our Term 3 Storytelling text called How Butterflies Came to Be. 

- Use the guide below to draw a story map to ‘map’ out the key events within the story. Remember - try not to use words in your drawings and make sure that you can follow your own map! 

Wednesday and Thursday: Stepping

- Explore your creativity and have a go at coming up with your own actions for each part of the story to ‘step’ it out. Make a video of you ‘stepping’ out our story to upload to Seesaw (you may even want to get your whānau involved in this part!)

Friday: Creativity Challenge

If you are feeling super courageous, have a go at being a ‘story teller’ and make a video of you telling our story and upload it to Seesaw. Use your story map as a guide to help you remember the main events (and what order things happen in), and don't forget to get creative with how you share it with your audience! Puppets, soft toys, drawings, props…the possibilities are endless!

WRITING

The expressive subject, the opportunity to tell all, the ability to be creative and weave some flavour through your thoughts. 

Here is your writing challenge for the week. (It could last you 5 days) 

MEMOIRS 

These pieces of writing focus on your moods, your emotions, they promote creativity and are a perfect way to showcase your skills. 

Your Task is to write a Memoir on the Highs and Lows of LOCKDOWN. 

Here is an example of how to start your memoir.......

Blurry eyed, dazed and confused, I reached for my alarm as it was blearing in my ear. A piercing sound like an F19 Fighter Jet breaking the sound barrier. I rolled over and suddenly had a wave of emotions flowing through me as I contemplated another day in lockdown. How do I feel, how do I react to not being at the place I love?..... KSS.... It is a bitter pill to swallow, but I stand up, amidst the sole tear, traversing across my cheek as I catch a glimpse of my beloved KSS uniform, screaming at me to wear it.... but today, is not the day. 

EITHER carry on with this piece, or create your own! Publish to Seesaw and we look forward to seeing your creations. 

Reading 

Each day we encourage you to grab a book and read for 10-20 minutes. 

There are lots of different types of text that you can read, from fiction texts that get your imagination going, to non-fiction texts like recipes and sport articles. 

Next Step: Write a Book Review

Creatively design your own book review. Below is an example of the types of information you may choose to include. Upload your efforts to Seesaw:

1). Take a picture of your work and upload it. 

                                or 

2). Review your book like you are on the TV!