What does a good war diary look like?

Today 8R12 students analysed exemplar war diaries written by students in previous years.  They worked in small groups to read the diary entries and determine what they like about the diaries and how they would improve them.  They then scored each of the diaries out of five (five being the greatest).

Tomorrow, they will add their ideas to collaborative documents so they can compare their ideas with the other students in the class and start building a picture of what makes a good war diary.

Learn more about the task they did and look at the collaborative documents -- Click here.

'My War Diary' Assignment Underway

Today 8R12 students started creating their character and timeline for their war diary.

View the assignment instructions

DUE DATE: Last Wednesday of term 1 - 16th April

Today students should have created a visual representation of their character and mind-map of their background/qualities/characteristics. Students also should have started their timeline of important events in their character's life, based around major events in the war which might have affected New Zealanders.

I was very impressed with Kayla and Holly's idea to weave their characters' stories together. Well done.

I can't wait to read what the class produces!

Field Trip to the Auckland War Memorial Museum

Today 8R12 students visited the Auckland War Memorial Museum to learn more about the experiences of ANZAC soldiers during WWI.

View photos and videos from the trip -- Click here

Homework

I have recently spoken with a parent about homework expectations. I feel it would be beneficial to hear from parents and also students as to what we should expect from homework.

How long should students be spending on homework every day/week?

What about other commitments? Sports training etc.

What sorts of activities are students being given to do? What sorts of activities do students want to do at home?

Please consider the questions above and post your comments below to grow the discussion. Comments are moderated by Mr Hagler before being shown on the blog.

Gearing Up to Gallipoli

Today 8R12 students were introduced to an interactive animation which takes them through the events of the first day of the Gallipoli Campaign (April 15th, 1915).

View the interactive animation (log in with your child's username and password)

Students will be using this animation to support the writing of their diary entries for their upcoming project.

Several students in the class also started collaborating on a digital map of the WWI battle fronts, including Gallipoli.

View the map in a new window

Students were also introduced to NZ On Screen resources which include a variety of interesting films which they can use to support their diary writing as well.

Visit nzonscreen

On Monday, the class will be visiting the Auckland War Memorial Museum where they will continue to collect ideas to use in their war diaries.

View the war diary assignment instructions

Discover WWI with 8R12

8R12 students produced a collaborative presentation on aspects of WWI which they wished to research.

The presentation below is the first version of their work before feedback from their peers and teacher on how to improve their work.  This is the work that will be formally assessed.

Constructive comments are welcome.

Click here to view larger version of presentation in a new window

Archibald Baxter - His Own War

Today 8R12 students started an assignment on the story of the war pacifist Archibald Baxter (father of famous NZ poet James K. Baxter) who fought his own "war" during WWI against those who wished to make him fight in The Great War.  His story is quite famous and shows to what lengths people will go to stand up for their convictions.

Click here to view the assignment instructions on the class's homework page

Click here to view the actual assignment in Google Drive (log in with your child's username and password)

Check out these "movie trailers" made by 8R12 students last year (Assignment Section C, question 8):

http://youtu.be/hl7rR_u29cE

http://youtu.be/fJ3Aa8g90lU