Skiing

Acrostic Poem


S low going up the slope 
K eeping up with people your own speed
 I  icy snow conditions  
 I mpressive mountains
N ice going down the intermediate slope
G ood fun!!

My speech

Introduction:

I’m going tell you about New Zealand’s only poisonous spider called the Katipo. I’m talking to you about this spider because I was interested in how many poisonous creatures live in New Zealand. 

Description

The Katipo is an endemic species found only in New Zealand. The female Katipo is 6 mm long with an abdomen of similar size to a garden pea. While the female is growing she changes colour. The black abdomen is shiny with a red stripe down the top surface. 

The male is much smaller it is only 4 mm long. Most of the time the male’s abdomen is white. The markings of the Katipo spider are unique compared to other spiders; even to their closest relative, the Australian Red-back spider. The Redback has a red hour glass shape on the under side of the abdomen with a bright red line on top. 

                           

Diet

The Katipos diet is mostly made up of tiny live insects.

Habitats  

Katipos generally live near the sea, usually where the beach is very sandy. Katipos are also found where coastal sand dunes turn into land.The bundled webs of the Katipo are built close to the ground with only a few sticky threads. The webs are mostly found at the bottom of dune grass and 

they can also be found on driftwood or rubbish.

Katipos prefer to live in pingao grass, this plant allows their web to be made close to the ground. Pingao leaves patches of sand between each plant so that the wind can blow insects into their webs. 

Because of interference from people to sand dunes and the removal of drift wood the Katipo’s habitat has been disturbed. To help hold the dunes together coastal plants like marram grass were introduced into New Zealand. Because the marram grass grows close together it stops the Katipo from making their hammock shaped webs. When the Katipos can’t make their webs they can’t catch enough food to eat.     

Behaviour

A lot of people are afraid of the Katipo spider because of it’s poisonous bite.

Katipo bites have not killed anyone for about 200 years. The bites usually just cause big red marks with pain and swelling. Bites are now extremely uncommon but it could be because of the fewer numbers of Katipo. 

Summary

The Katipo needs to be well looked after as it is a part of ancient New Zealand ecology. We can help the Katipo spider by looking after our sand dunes.

Thank you.

Room 2's Mice

One Wednesday after lunch Stella came back from Nature Land with three mice. We all ran into the classroom and started writing names for the mice on the blackboard. In the end Dave, our teacher, circled names that had more than four votes and ones with less than four got rubbed out. There were about five or six names left and we had a vote on them. The final names were Oats, Inky and Flip. Oats and Inky are females and Flip is a male.

My Dad's Heli Ride

On Sunday when I was on holiday my Dad was mountain biking with Sam M's stepdad. They went up Supplejack and he was careful when he was doing all the switchbacks by walking the hard ones. On one of the easy parts he fell off and sliced his calf muscle and blood came pouring out so Scott called the ambulance but it wasn't able to come so a helicopter had to come and winch him up and fly him off to hospital.

This is a picture of him getting winched up   

My Little Sister

My little sister loves her teddies - their names are Brown Bear and White Bear; they're so worn out that the fur is falling out. It's like the book 'The Best loved Bear'.

If she's not at home she is either at school or at ballet and when she's at home she is annoying the cat.

Lemonade Making

Today I made fizzy lemonade with Bryn. Hannah, Evie and Sam M. showed us how to make it because we had to show the next group how.

Hannah helped me with the lemons, Sam and Evie helped Bryn. He also spilled the sugar. Bryn forgot what to do while we were showing Ella's group and had to get Hannah.

Totara Tryathlon

At the start
Just before the tryathlonI had butterflies but when I started I was fine.

Up the steps
When you got to the steps you had to walk because the steps are very steep.

In the pool
As I dive into the pool I swam up tthe left side of the pool, around the moon hopper and down the right side of the pool.

Around Room 8A
When I ran past Room 8A I couid see the bikes shining in the sun.  I couldn't wait to start biking.

On the bike
 As soon as I got on my bike I shot off around the track.  I overtook 5 or 6 people.

At the finish
When I passed the finish line I was exhausted and very happy.