Year Four Explore Animal Adaptations in the Ocean

 In this lesson, we made observations of an underwater animal, a frogfish, in order to collect evidence that its external structures serve specific functions. In the activity, Frogfish Finder, we used observations to construct an argument that the frogfish’s external and internal structures work together as part of a system to support its growth and survival.

We were amazed at the incredible adaptations of the frogfish.  Afterwards, we used our imaginations to create our own sea creatures and describe their special adaptations.

Year 4 Voyagers

As Aotearoa is a remote island in the Pacific Ocean, our inhabitants have had to be master voyagers.  We began our lesson by brainstorming all the ways humans can cross the moana.

Some ideas included:

boat, submarine, swimming, canoe, helicopter, plane, jet pack, jet ski, paddle board, yacht, cruise, bridge, kayak, waka, hovercraft, ferry, catamaran, windsurfer, seaplane, raft. Can you think of any more?

We watched videos about our navigational history and read an article about one of the early Polynesian explorers.

After we recorded what we learnt, we drew an ocean-going waka with its double hull and V-shaped sails.  They were much quicker than the European ocean-going ships.

Project Jonah Visit Year 4

 Today, Year 4 had a very special visit from Michael and his walk-through whale from Project Jonah.

What do we already know about whales?

Nolan "Whales hearts are bigger than people"

Luke "As big as a car"

Evelyn "They live in the ocean"

Kyrie "Whales are fat and juicy. They breathe air"

Eiden "Whales are thick"

Aiden "Whales are the biggest mammal"

Eden "Whales have a spout to shoot water  and to breathe"

Celine "They can hold their breath for 20 minutes."

What did we learn after visiting with Michael and his whale?

Charles: "The humpback whale has the biggest arm of all animals"

Atlan: "A humpback whale can eat 6 tonnes of krill a day"

Hiraya: "Some whales have baleen, but some do not"

Nico: "Blue whale hearts are bigger than small cars"

Collins: "Humpback whales are the only whales that have long tubercles for smell"

Gaynuka: "Humpback whale sing loud"

Millie: "They have eyes on their sides, so they can't see forward very well so they use smell and hearing to locate things"

Bryn: The fluke is made out of cartilage, the same as our noses"

Rylee: " When the humpback whale sprays out of the blowhole, it is not just water. It is snot, air and water"

Verage: "Humpback whales work together to eat krill by blowing bubbles while spinning underneath them"

Thank you so much, Michael and Project Jonah.  We loved learning with you!

Year 4 dive deep into looking at our Healthy Moana

 Today Year 4 continued their inquiry into our local moana.  We were concerned with how humans are acting to preserve the precious seas.

Did you know that New Zealand has the 5th largest ocean space on the planet!

We learnt about marine reserves where humans can visit and enjoy the moana, but there is absolutely no taking of anything natural and no feeding of wildlife. Long Bay is our closest reserve.  Have you visited?

We did a bus stop activity in groups. What do we already know? What is the purpose of a marine reserve? What can't you do at a marine reserve?

We saw videos that showed the amazing difference between the seas in reserves and inside our unprotected harbours.

Our last action was to create a chart in our books showing what can and cannot occur in marine reserves.

Room 22 and 19 Seaweek promotion

Today, the Year 6 classes in Rooms 19 and 22 looked into our Waka waste.

Do we have a litter problem at Waka? A quick survey of our lunchboxes showed that Room 19 had 45% of the class with a litter-free lunch today at school. Room 22 had 35%. That is a great start. But.......

 A 15-minute litter hunt around our school produced an astonishing amount of litter. We were really amazed at how much there actually was.

The classes decided to take action by making a collaborative display with  Aotearoa sea animals 

promoting bringing litter-free lunches to school. 

You can check our messages on the windows of Piwakawaka