English: Yellow Brick Road (Post-Reading Questions)

Hey viewers,

Continuing on with the Novel Studies, our task today was to read the Yellow Brick Road novel. After reading the story we had to answer questions in full sentences, about what the story was all about. There were also specific pages we had to talk about. 

1) The narrator (speaker) of the story believes they are moving to Wellington so they can begin a new, better life by discovering new jobs, finally making money to help his family out of suffrage. Evidence for this statement: "We'll make lots of money and be rich as anything because Wellington is where the money is and you have to go where the money is, ay Dad. No use staying in Waituhi and being poor all the time, ay"

2) On Page 1, the big difference between Waituhi and Wellington, that was mentioned by the narrator was that "Wellington is where the money is. And you have to go where the money is, ay Dad. No use of staying in Waituhi and being poor all the time". The meaning of that quote is basically saying that there is a bigger population of Pakehas than their own hometown.

3) On Page 3, the narrator's dad told Uncle Sam that they were moving to Wellington because there were no more jobs back at home and they had plenty of seasonal work like shearing, fruit-picking etc. On top of that, Wellington had plenty of work there; plenty of factories. Another reason is that he wanted his kids to have a better life. 

4) The narrator's attitude towards moving to Wellington changes, as they were getting closer to the city. Earlier at the beginning of the trip and during, he was optimistic, curious and interested but then later on when they got closer to the city, his whole mood switched and started feeling worried and anxious. While that being said, there were signs ahead that made him feel those kinds of emotions, additionally also by some people who they encountered that were not so friendly.

5) Emerald City, Yellow Brick Road, Flying Monkeys, scarecrow, tinman and cowardly lion, are all allusions (references) to a famous book titled "The Wizard of Oz". I think the author made this comparison to show the audience what it's like to be in two different worlds, Rich and Poor. It shows that moving into a different or unalike place can make a big difference in peoples lives and that life can be an obstacle.

Yellow Brick Road - Pre-reading Qns: English

Hi there,

Today in English we began a new topic on Novel Studies. Our new set of work is about the "Yellow Brick Road" story. This post is just answering pre-reading questions regarding the Author and story.

1) Witi Ihimaera is a New Zealand Author born in Gisborne, NZ in 1944. 

 One of his famous works that were adapted to films is the Nights in the Garden of Spain (1995). 

2) I have never come across an expression called "Yellow Brick Road" before or heard of Witi Ihimaera and any of his books. But I am assuming that the Yellow Brick Road means to capture people to follow it or it could be a non-existing road.  

3) Based on the title, I am guessing the story will be about a protagonist who discovers a Yellow Brick Road and follows the path. So basically going on an adventure. 

English: Create Your Own Short Films

 Hi there,

Today this blog post is about what we have been doing for the past few weeks in English. We were assigned to create our own films in small groups, relating them to The Merchant of Venice story that we read at the start of the year. In my group was Jayden, Lasa, Camryn and Cruz.  

1. What is your short film about? How is this a 're-telling of The Merchant of Venice? 

Our film didn't really display any relation to the story Merchant of Venice at all, it was just camera angles on basketball shooting. However, before we started filming we were planning to make our film about Romeo and Juliet but instead, the boys ended up playing basketball.  

3. What 2 additional film techniques did you use? What were the intended effects of these? 

In our film we had to include the following angles/shots, Full shot, Long shot, Tilt, Pan, Close up, Extreme close up, Mid shot and two more techniques of our choice. We covered a few of the angles in our film like Pan and Close up. There were actually more than two film techniques we used in our film which was Wide shot, Tracking shot, High angle and Worms eyeshot. 

These film techniques were intended to...

Tracking shot - To make the audience visual moving with the person and seeing what it's like when shooting the basketball from the player's point of view. 

Wide shot - To show the body movement and footwork of the person. To tell the audience who is in the scene and where is the scene set.      

4. What were some challenges you encountered while doing this project? What learnings did you gain from these challenges?

What our group found challenging was planning and deciding what we were going to film, especially if it had to identify The Merchant of Venice in it. Overall, in the end, we recorded a decent amount of angle/shots and made it to the point where we have a result to show with you guys.

Lesson learned: You can't do the work without asking for help and not knowing what to do. 

5. What would you do differently if you were to do this project again?

I would probably choose carefully with who I might work with instead of working with people I know that won't cooperate with the work. I would also ask for more help when we are stuck and don't know what to do. I have learned my lesson when it comes to group work and noted that I have to pick wisely before confirming right away.  

All Summer in a Day - English

 A Summer in a Day by Ray Bradbury

Find 3 words you don't know the meaning of. Look them up and write the definitions.

1. Solemn - Formal and Dignified. 

2. Dimly - With a faint light: not brightly.

3. Tumultuously - Making a uproar or loud, confused noise. 

Discuss the Exposition in the story - What are the characters, setting and mood. 

Characters: Margot, William and Children 

Setting: Planet Venus

Mood: Rain, Sadness, Stagnant and Depressive   

List and label one Metaphor, one Simile, and one example of Sensory language from the story.

Metaphor - I think the sun is a flower, that blooms for just one hour.

Simile - They stood as if someone has driven them, like so many stakes, into the floor.

Sensory Language - "It was as if, in the midst of a film concerning an avalanche, a tornado, a hurricane, a volcanic eruption, something had, first, gone wrong with the sound apparatus, thus muffling and finally cutting off all noise, all of the blasts and repercussions and thunders, and then, second, ripped the film from the projector and inserted in its place a beautiful tropical slide which did not move or tremor."

List and label an example of show not tell from the story.

"And once, a month ago, she had refused to shower in the school shower rooms, had clutched her hands to her ears and over her head, screaming the water mustn’t touch her head."

"The children lay out, laughing, on the jungle mattress, and heard it sigh and squeak under them resilient and alive. "

Image:

Creative Writing Setting Descriptions - English

For my next creative writing task I have to write short setting, opening descriptions. The settings I will be writing about is Night time and a ghost town.

1. The room turned dark as the time of the day changes to night time. My ears started ringing while listening to the noisy crickets outside. Bushes swaying as hedge jogs in motion. Sneaky kiwi birds cheeping at each other. I hop in bed into my comfy, warm blankets ready to shut my eyes and get some rest.     

     

2. Sky filled with grey clouds, murky fog flowing everywhere, houses left empty as there is silence lingered all over town. Old and rusty paint sitting there for decades, coming off buildings. Weak pillars attached to each building, wrecked and broken, making the town fall apart and crumble.             

Show don't Tell narrative openings - English

For my next creative writing task, I have to write some show don't tell, narrative opening sentences. This can be reflected from the images given or made up ones from our own knowledge. These are the three images that I will be showing not telling, what is happening. Hope you like it.    

1. Another day as my busy fingers are moving along my keyboard, in a room filled with boredom. 

2. I had this nauseous feeling of goosebumps running down my body, as the cold air is flowing on my skin. Then a man walked past me and gave me a glare.   

3. A smell of smoke lingered in my room as I immediately sprinted out and froze, watching the blistering flames from another house.   

Show don't tell - English

Show don't Tell 

What does "Show don't tell" mean? It is a technique used in many kinds of texts to allow the readers to see the story through action, words, thoughts, senses, and feelings, other than through the authors description or exposition. 

The buildings were tall - I was standing next to buildings that were lofty in the sky. 

Sarah was upset - Sarah fell on her knees sulking with tears pouring out of her eyes.  

She was so happy to see him - She had an mighty grin on her face, as he walked towards her. 

The lake was beautiful - The lake glittered up as the sun shone above the water.  

Haiku Poems - English

 Hi there,

This week in English I have learned about Haiku poems. For those who don't know, a Haiku poem is a Japanese short-form poem. The rules of this poem is to have three sentences in total, including 5,7,5 syllables. In this slideshow I have written four Haiku poems about the four seasons Winter, Autumn, Spring and Summer.

Slam Poetry - English

 In this post I will be talking to about my favourite Slam Poetry. I chose to watch Brad McCormick poetry about "I'm not gay but I'd go gay for John Key. His performance was spot on, he was very fluent and expressive when he was talking, like he knows what he's doing to entertain his audience. It really caught my attention and really made me want to listen. Overall I enjoyed his poetry.

Here are some of my favourite quotes from his poem:

"His voice cuts through me like a knife through overpriced butter"

"He's brave when he speaks because he has the courage to be a leader, but to not bother to sound like one"

Here is the link to the video: I'm not gay but I'd go gay for john key     

   

Sensory Language Paragraph

In this post, I have written a Sensory Language Paragraph describing a scene or picture, using the five senses. (Touch, Smell, Taste, Hear and Sight) We weren't allowed to use the words saw, heard, smelled, tasted, felt. I wrote about the following picture above and I hope you like it.   

Sensory Language Paragraph:

The amount of warmth flowing in the air, lingered in the room, made me witness the sound of quietness. As I observed the moving fingers of students, clattering the keys of their Chromebooks. An revolting rush of flavour of the hot air, hit in my mouth giving me a nauseous feeling of sickness in the stomach. The scent of fresh air as the teacher opens the windows, blow against my face allowing me to breath.          

Metaphors and Similes

Hi there,

Today this is a blog post about Metaphors and Similes. What is a Metaphor? What is a Simile? I will be telling you the definitions of both.

What is a Metaphor?

A Metaphor is a figure of speech that is used to make comparison between two things that aren't alike but do have something in common. For example "Tom's eyes were ice as he stared at her".

What is a Simile?

A Simile is a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind. A Simile is using words such as like or as. For example "You were as brave as a lion" and "She swims like a fish".  

 

Language Features - English

Hi there,

Today this blog post will be about what I have been doing in English. We started our first topic Creative Writing. In Creative Writing we got assigned tasks to complete once a week. I started working on Language Features. In this task we had to choose three terms that we don't already know and research the definition, an example and the effect of each of them. I displayed this in a slideshow and I hope you learn something from this.

Film study Coraline - Resume

  In English I have been working on how characters are developed in the Coraline Film. We had a choice to either create a challenge chart or a resume. I had created two resumes about two lead characters, explaining how the character is portrayed using specific examples from the text. I had to include interesting facts about them, challenges they faced and words that best describe them. I have done this on Piktochart and a new site called postermywall. I hope you learn something and enjoy my work. 

English Film Study - Coraline Plot

 In English I have been working on analysing the plot of the Coraline Film. I had to create a timeline explaining how the film plot is constructed to engage a viewer using technical language. The words we used was Exposition, Complication/Challenge, Rising Action, Falling Action, Climax, Resolution and Denouement.  I have displayed this on a new digital site, Venngage. I hope this jogs your memory of the film and enjoy my work. 

Film Study Coraline - Lighting and Colour

 In English, I have been working on Lighting and Colours. I had to write one paragraph explaining how are colour and lighting used to create the two worlds. I have displayed this on a google drawing with two scenes that are located in the kitchens in both worlds, and I hope you learn something about the film and like my work.

What am I learning? I am learning to explain how the lighting and colours are used in both worlds in the Coraline film. 

How does this work show my learning? This work shows my learning by showing my understanding of the topic, lighting and colours.

What am I wondering? I am not wondering anything at the moment.

Coraline Sexxy Paragraphs

 In English, I have been working on writing sexy paragraphs for 4 scenes in the film Coraline. I had to write 1 paragraph for each scene about the theme, looks can be deceiving.  I have displayed this in a slideshow and I hope you learn something about the film and like my work.

What am I learning? I am learning to write sexy paragraphs and to analyse the looks of the characters.

How does this work show my learning? This work shows my learning by creating a slideshow filled with my understanding of the looks of the characters in the film Coraline. 

What am I wondering? I am not wondering anything at the moment.

The Film Coraline - Mindmup

 In English, I have been working on Themes and Ideas for The Coraline Film that we have previously watched in Term 3. There were two tasks to choose from, either using Coggle, creating a mind map showing as many examples explaining one of the themes, or writing a theme guide booklet explaining how each theme is shown in the film, giving the times to stop and look, quotes and key moments to watch for. I have chosen to go with Coggle but suggested to do it on Mindmup because it was easier and less confusing. The theme I am doing is "Looks Can Be Deceiving". 

I hope you enjoy and learn something from the film and my work.

What am I learning? I am learning to analyse the looks of the characters.

How does this work show my learning? This work shows my learning by creating a Mindmup which tells the audience the theme, and characters looks used in the film.

What am I wondering? I am not wondering anything at the moment.

Film Techniques - English

In English, I have been working on the extension task which is film techniques. The task was focusing on camera angles and lighting techniques. I have displayed this on a google document and I hope you learn something from this and like it.
Here is the document and link to the work:



Film Techniques

Camera Shots, Camera Angles, Camera Movements

Today in English, we had to create a Visual Dictionary on Camera Shots, Camera Angles and Camera Movements, where you have a photo showing the definition of each concept. I have displayed this on google drawings, mindmup and google documents, and I hope you learn something from this and like it.


Different types of camera shots:

Different types of camera Angles:

Camera Movements:

Language of Film - English

Language of Film Dictionary

Body language - Used to recognize the feelings of the played character.

Costumes - Used to show details of a characters personality.

Hairstyles - Related to costumes, used to tell the personality of a character. 

Make-up - Used to transform a actor to look similar to the played character.

Colour - Used to put a mood to a scene. Example: Blue means sad and yellow means happy.

Lighting - Used to make something important to stand out, and to make the film clear for people to see and understand better. 

Props - Used to make a scene realistic or more eye catching. 

Settings -  Used to establish a situation or mood. It helps the audience to understand the actions and emotions in the lives of the characters.

Dialogue - Used to make films seem mature and solidly crafted.

Sound Effects - Used to make a film realistic and more attracting.

Music - Used to create the perfect mood in a particular scene, by setting the right tone for the plot moment.

Silence - Used to create a serious mood or sincerity in acting.

Symbols - An object, used to suggest new ideas.

Special FX - Used to make the film look more realistic.

What am I learning?
I am learning film languages and film study.

How does this work show my learning?
By writing in my own definitions for each languages used in film.

What am I wondering as a result of this learning?
I am wondering how long it takes to make a film using all these languages.