The Crucial Game... (Holiday Writing)

Today was a crucial game for my Otahuhu Leopards Rugby League Under 13 team because we couldn't afford to lose after previously losing 2 games in the championship round. Today we versed one of the top teams Papatoetoe Steelers who have only lost 1 game this whole season. This was our third game in the Championship round, we have to win our last 3 games to advance to the Semi Finals. 

We had a slight advantage going into the game because we were the home team, we played at Bert Henham Park No.1 field which is the main field of our club. I was really excited because this was my first game after being sick. 

I was nervous but as soon as the first hit up was made I was ready. Our first set was a great set because we gained a lot of meters in our oppositions territory. Sadly after this set Papatoetoe had ran in 2 quick tries and we were down 10-0. We quickly gained momentum and were able to grab a converted try which made it 10-6. Shortly before halftime Papatoetoe also grabbed a converted try and the score was now 16-6 and this was the outcome of the first half. During our Halftime talk with our coaches and manager we were determined to play harder in the second half and force a comeback. 

Indeed we did, we grabbed 2 quick tries and we were able to bring the game within 2 points (16-14). Papatoetoe replied with a long distance try of their own and had pushed out to a 22-14 lead. At this time we knew we had to work harder and we were able to score 2 tries and at this point we were winning 24-22 according to the ref. The score remained the same until fulltime and we were all happy that our final hopes were still alive. Their will be some controversy over the score because the deciding kick from our team was missed yet the ref had said we had won. We'll just take this win and hope for 2 more wins against Manurewa Southern Storms and Ellerslie Blue. 

Term 2 Reflection- WeVideo

This is my Term 2 Reflection movie which I created through WeVideo. I hope you enjoy it!!!

Matariki Night Sky Artwork

In Room 7 (my class) we have been learning about Matariki. So our whole class decided to create the Matariki night sky using paint and oil pastels. This is my creation and interpretation of the Matariki night sky. 

Book Character Mufti Day

Today was mufti day at our school (St Pius X Catholic School) but we had to dress up as our favourite book character. I decided to dress up as Albert Einstein who is in the book called "The Great Scientists" and he was considered the smartest man when he was alive. This is me and my friends dressed up as our favourite book characters.

PS: I'm the one in the glasses.

Sports Camp Meeting

I was pleased that I was selected for the Sports Camp which is going to occur late next term. There have been 5 others selected from our school to participate in the sports camp alongside some students from Glen Innes School and Glen Taylor. We all gathered into the Glen Innes Primary Hall and we all introduced ourselves.

After we introduced ourselves the boys and girls separated and the girls tried table tennis while the boys tried indoor bowling. Indoor bowling is actually harder than I thought because it all has to do with measurements. The aim of bowling was to get closer to the white ball and if you hit the white ball off the platform you will be eliminated.

After we finished bowling we went outside to play a quick game of basketball, it was really fun. It was good to meet different people and to get to know them. Now we currently train on Tuesdays and Thursdays to prepare for the Sports Camp late next term.

Marae Visit- Recount

We were all glad the weather held out for us so that we could walk to Ruapotaka Marae. We were all very excited to experience something we haven’t experienced before. We followed all the Protocols/Rules of the Marae which is known as Tikanga, the protocols we followed at the Marae was to take our shoes off before entering the wharenui.

When we got inside the wharenui we started it off with a short ceremony. Matua Jim had welcomed us and spoke in Maori and me and Motu had replied, I replied in Maori and Motu had translated it in English. To conclude our very special ceremony we all sang He Honore and E Toru Nga Mea (two very well known Maori songs in our school)

After our morning tea we were split into two groups and we did separate activities. The two activities was learning a song and using flax to make a flower. The most difficult task was making the flower because the flax was so fragile and we had to ensure we didn’t tear it apart. Luckily I was able to form a flower. Our last activity was to learn a basic Maori song with Matua Jim. We learnt Heads Shoulders Knees and Toes yet it was in Maori. As we learnt it and started to get better we started to sing it faster and faster.

After we finished our song with Matua Jim my class (Room 7) had left the Marae because we had to catch the bus to go to our technology class at Selwyn College. The Marae visit was a great experience for all of us. I hope to go there again another time.

Year 8 Retreat Reflection

The Year 8 retreat was a great time for us (the leaders) of our school to develop our leadership skills. We went to the St Francis Retreat Centre in Hillsborough which is a tradition at our school for the year 8’s to go. The highlight of our retreat was the Candle Lighting Ceremony, we all had to light one candle each to which to me symbolised that we were in the presence of Jesus our teacher. All the tasks and activities was with teamwork, leadership and following instructions. All our meals were delicious especially dinner. For dinner we had lasagne,potatoes and salad and for dessert we had warm chocolate pudding with ice cream.

One of my other favourite activities was the Noah’s Ark activity which involved teamwork. I teamed up with Pate and formed an ark and we had to place 2 big stones on the ark. The goal was to see how long our ark would float, the aim was to make it float for at least 3-5 mins. Our ark just lasted for 10-15 seconds.

This retreat was a great experience for us Year 8’s.