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Wednesday, 25 April 2018
MY THOUGHTS ON REVISION: Reader's Cup 2018! 📖
Revision is a term I have become quite familiar with over the past few months.
I revise on everything; notably Science terms which I tend to do on flashcards, book summaries, reviews and studies which I tend to write a lot of notes about, and mathematics, which I will spend any given time of my day working hard on as it is a subject I'm determined to get better at this year. For maths revision I tend to take notes and use Khan Academy or Mathletics.
Of course I use revision outside of school, too. I'm currently learning French in my few hours of spare time I actually have nowadays (my father can speak some of it and I'm generally very interested in learning new languages) and I tend to use online apps such as Quizlet or Busuu to help me with that.
With the Reader's Cup approaching I have a lot of English revision to do. I enjoy revision very much and love English so I'm not stressed about it, but I have a fair amount of books to take notes on and answer questions about.
My favourite and most effective revision techniques.
My favourite revision technique which I think is most effective for me is writing down lots of notes and eventually reading between the lines to summarise them.
I discovered this technique when I was writing rather philosophical poetry and had a breakthrough just by writing it in words. I used this technique with a few other books and discovered that it worked well. Simply by writing down main points, exploring the details of those main points, and re-reading chapters frequently I was able to gather more information about the book than I would have done just by reading it.
Another technique I like to use is flashcards - particularly the ones Quizlet provides. I make my own Quizlets frequently for this reason.
My revision planning for the Reader's Cup
The most difficult thing about the Reader's Cup is that we have little to no idea as to what the questions we will be asked will include. We were given a short pre-competition that gave us a few ideas but they were based on short stories with fewer characters.
I will be using my note-taking revision technique for the books, and may use Quizlet flashcards to explore characters and settings.
As a team we are planning to get together to share our summaries of the books we are reading, and at the end when we have all read the books we will compare notes and reviews.
I have made steady progress on the Reader's Cup so far.
I have finished my first book, Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy, and am aiming to begin taking notes and re-reading it chapter by chapter this week, finishing up with a book review at the very end of the school holidays.
I don't plan on reviewing every book I read, however these school holidays have thankfully given me a lot of free time to spend doing extra work for school and making goals for the new term.
I revise on everything; notably Science terms which I tend to do on flashcards, book summaries, reviews and studies which I tend to write a lot of notes about, and mathematics, which I will spend any given time of my day working hard on as it is a subject I'm determined to get better at this year. For maths revision I tend to take notes and use Khan Academy or Mathletics.
Of course I use revision outside of school, too. I'm currently learning French in my few hours of spare time I actually have nowadays (my father can speak some of it and I'm generally very interested in learning new languages) and I tend to use online apps such as Quizlet or Busuu to help me with that.
With the Reader's Cup approaching I have a lot of English revision to do. I enjoy revision very much and love English so I'm not stressed about it, but I have a fair amount of books to take notes on and answer questions about.
My favourite and most effective revision techniques.
My favourite revision technique which I think is most effective for me is writing down lots of notes and eventually reading between the lines to summarise them.
I discovered this technique when I was writing rather philosophical poetry and had a breakthrough just by writing it in words. I used this technique with a few other books and discovered that it worked well. Simply by writing down main points, exploring the details of those main points, and re-reading chapters frequently I was able to gather more information about the book than I would have done just by reading it.
Another technique I like to use is flashcards - particularly the ones Quizlet provides. I make my own Quizlets frequently for this reason.
My revision planning for the Reader's Cup
The most difficult thing about the Reader's Cup is that we have little to no idea as to what the questions we will be asked will include. We were given a short pre-competition that gave us a few ideas but they were based on short stories with fewer characters.
I will be using my note-taking revision technique for the books, and may use Quizlet flashcards to explore characters and settings.
As a team we are planning to get together to share our summaries of the books we are reading, and at the end when we have all read the books we will compare notes and reviews.I have made steady progress on the Reader's Cup so far.
I have finished my first book, Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy, and am aiming to begin taking notes and re-reading it chapter by chapter this week, finishing up with a book review at the very end of the school holidays.
I don't plan on reviewing every book I read, however these school holidays have thankfully given me a lot of free time to spend doing extra work for school and making goals for the new term.
BOOK REVIEW: 172 Hours on The Moon 🌙
Warning: Potential spoilers and a lot of text.
These school holidays I made a goal for myself to read different genres of books that I don't usually read. Genres I already ready include romance, drama, biographies and horror... lots of horror. I don't read fantasy because I like to put myself in the scenarios and worlds the books I read are based in, and it is quite difficult to imagine myself as a vampire or fairy or mermaid rather than my own house being haunted or something along those lines.
I find fantasy books don't really play with my emotions much, as I do not find myself particularly engaged with characters with magical powers that I definitely do not have myself. Horror or romance on the other hand plays with my emotions terrifically, and particularly the works of Stephen King make me afraid to turn the page with every new horrific event.
Other genres I have enjoyed briefly exploring including ones written about natural disasters, notably the Wahine Disaster, The Black Death, 9/11, and the Columbine Massacre. Others include biographies of famous musicians of the late 20th century and early 21st - those of Elvis, Chester Bennington, Gerard Way, Kurt Cobain, Chris Cornell and John Lennon. These are generally people whose music I listen to and I hope to explore new timelines, music genres, and cultures in the upcoming months.
What inspired me to do this? There are two reasons. I, as well as a few of my classmates, are all preparing for the Reader's Cup competition next term. This competition will consist of reading assigned books and answering questions about them at a Canterbury school meet-up. I got my first book during the last week of term, and after a quick scan of the back summary, I could identify that it would be a fantasy-horror story. I took this as an opportunity to begin my goal.
The second reason is that my father has always been an avid reader of horror books and music biographies, and seeing his three huge bookcases full of them all inspired me to change up my reading style to see if I could find a new genre I enjoy.
And so when my father took me up on a roadtrip up to Hastings, up in the North Island, I ensured to pack my two books I planned to read that week.
One of those books was titled 172 Hours On The Moon, written by Johan Harstad. It was originally published in the Netherlands by the title DARLAH (which I definitely prefer and would probably have reached for it without even reading the summary. I'm guilty of judging books by it's titles!)
Brief Summary. Edits of the teenagers! (Sadly these aren't real)
172 Hours On The Moon is a good book in my opinion. In the story, N.A.S.A is determined to find a rare mineral on the moon that would improve the United States technology manufacturing market, but it is too dangerous. They discovered something very unusual and dangerous about their unused moon base. Because N.A.S.A didn't want other countries on the moon to find out about it, they made a plan. Their plan involved sending three teenagers, the winners of an international lottery they would hold, up to the moon to "celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the moon landing.
In a horrifying mess including hatches mysteriously locking themselves, a power outage that could have only been performed manually, and the crew slowly dying off, the two remaining teenagers and one crew member fight to get back to Earth via their second secret moon base. Will they get home? And what even are doppelgangers?
Genre and field of study
I think the genre this book could be categorised in is Adventure/Action or Science Fiction. I think this book is rather mature and even I, a person who strongly believes in government conspiracies and extra-terrestrial life, got spooked by it's contents.
It's field of study would probably be Astronomy.
Major themes.
I have always believed a good way to sum up a book is in just a few different words. For 172 Hours on The Moon, these words would be moon, extra-terrestrial, unknown. Unknown extra-terrestrial life on the moon - that's a good summary.
Criticisms I had.
I have always attempted to write events slowly in my own stories. This book is an example of quick-paced events which I did not enjoy particularly. It felt as if every chapter something big and new was happening without time in between to convey emotion, reasoning, descriptions, or detail. Another criticism is that there was no absolutely no reason to include a romance between two of the teenagers. I believe the book would have remained the same whether or not there were any romantic themes, and the emotions of the couple were not explored in any way, not even after a death. In terms of the ending I feel as if it was rushed and I didn't like that.
What I enjoyed.
I immensely enjoyed reading this book because I love to read about the moon, moon conspiracies, and government conspiracies. It was one of the reasons I picked it in the first place and I definitely did not regret it. I enjoyed how realistic these themes within the book were. I enjoyed the difference in the teenager's personalities and how their countries and personal lives were portrayed.
In comparison to other books I usually read, this has inspired me to read more books about the moon and space missions because it has allowed me to discover that Science Fiction isn't always about monster, ghosts, or abnormalities in humans.
I would definitely recommend this book to others, particularly people who are conspiracy theorists, like the idea of going to space, or readers of Science Fiction or futuristic themed books.
I give the characters a strong 10/10, the plot 10/10, and how it was written and portrayed a 6/10 - just because I felt as if it was too rushed and didn't include as much detail as I was expecting.
I give it an overall 8.5/10 (or 4 stars).
Have you read this book, or do you want to after reading this? Leave some feedback for me and I will answer any questions you may have about the book or my opinions.
These school holidays I made a goal for myself to read different genres of books that I don't usually read. Genres I already ready include romance, drama, biographies and horror... lots of horror. I don't read fantasy because I like to put myself in the scenarios and worlds the books I read are based in, and it is quite difficult to imagine myself as a vampire or fairy or mermaid rather than my own house being haunted or something along those lines.I find fantasy books don't really play with my emotions much, as I do not find myself particularly engaged with characters with magical powers that I definitely do not have myself. Horror or romance on the other hand plays with my emotions terrifically, and particularly the works of Stephen King make me afraid to turn the page with every new horrific event.
Other genres I have enjoyed briefly exploring including ones written about natural disasters, notably the Wahine Disaster, The Black Death, 9/11, and the Columbine Massacre. Others include biographies of famous musicians of the late 20th century and early 21st - those of Elvis, Chester Bennington, Gerard Way, Kurt Cobain, Chris Cornell and John Lennon. These are generally people whose music I listen to and I hope to explore new timelines, music genres, and cultures in the upcoming months.
What inspired me to do this? There are two reasons. I, as well as a few of my classmates, are all preparing for the Reader's Cup competition next term. This competition will consist of reading assigned books and answering questions about them at a Canterbury school meet-up. I got my first book during the last week of term, and after a quick scan of the back summary, I could identify that it would be a fantasy-horror story. I took this as an opportunity to begin my goal.
The second reason is that my father has always been an avid reader of horror books and music biographies, and seeing his three huge bookcases full of them all inspired me to change up my reading style to see if I could find a new genre I enjoy.
And so when my father took me up on a roadtrip up to Hastings, up in the North Island, I ensured to pack my two books I planned to read that week.
One of those books was titled 172 Hours On The Moon, written by Johan Harstad. It was originally published in the Netherlands by the title DARLAH (which I definitely prefer and would probably have reached for it without even reading the summary. I'm guilty of judging books by it's titles!)
Brief Summary. Edits of the teenagers! (Sadly these aren't real)
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In a horrifying mess including hatches mysteriously locking themselves, a power outage that could have only been performed manually, and the crew slowly dying off, the two remaining teenagers and one crew member fight to get back to Earth via their second secret moon base. Will they get home? And what even are doppelgangers?
Genre and field of study
I think the genre this book could be categorised in is Adventure/Action or Science Fiction. I think this book is rather mature and even I, a person who strongly believes in government conspiracies and extra-terrestrial life, got spooked by it's contents.
It's field of study would probably be Astronomy.
Major themes.
I have always believed a good way to sum up a book is in just a few different words. For 172 Hours on The Moon, these words would be moon, extra-terrestrial, unknown. Unknown extra-terrestrial life on the moon - that's a good summary.
Criticisms I had.
I have always attempted to write events slowly in my own stories. This book is an example of quick-paced events which I did not enjoy particularly. It felt as if every chapter something big and new was happening without time in between to convey emotion, reasoning, descriptions, or detail. Another criticism is that there was no absolutely no reason to include a romance between two of the teenagers. I believe the book would have remained the same whether or not there were any romantic themes, and the emotions of the couple were not explored in any way, not even after a death. In terms of the ending I feel as if it was rushed and I didn't like that.
What I enjoyed.
I immensely enjoyed reading this book because I love to read about the moon, moon conspiracies, and government conspiracies. It was one of the reasons I picked it in the first place and I definitely did not regret it. I enjoyed how realistic these themes within the book were. I enjoyed the difference in the teenager's personalities and how their countries and personal lives were portrayed.
In comparison to other books I usually read, this has inspired me to read more books about the moon and space missions because it has allowed me to discover that Science Fiction isn't always about monster, ghosts, or abnormalities in humans.
I would definitely recommend this book to others, particularly people who are conspiracy theorists, like the idea of going to space, or readers of Science Fiction or futuristic themed books.
I give the characters a strong 10/10, the plot 10/10, and how it was written and portrayed a 6/10 - just because I felt as if it was too rushed and didn't include as much detail as I was expecting.
I give it an overall 8.5/10 (or 4 stars).
Have you read this book, or do you want to after reading this? Leave some feedback for me and I will answer any questions you may have about the book or my opinions.
Friday, 13 April 2018
My First Term As A Year Nine: A Recap 🎓
I still vividly remember the very first day at Hornby High School, three years ago, back when I was just ten years old! That first year seemed to last forever for me. Maybe it was because it was a whole new environment that I was getting used to.
Well, I'm Year Nine now, and I'm pretty used to it by now.
This term has gone by so quickly. It feels like only last month I was starting Year Eight!
Even though the term has gone by fast, I would be lying if I said it was a bad one.
I was lucky enough to become a Junior House Leader for Setu.
I made it onto the Student Council.
I attended the World Vision Youth Conference.
I was invited into Voices With Soul.
I started an English scholarship program.
I won a Mana Horomaka award for demonstrating Hornby Pride today!
I tried out volleyball for the first time and made it onto a team!
I played goalkeeper for a whole season of girl's indoor football.
I met amazing new teachers and classmates.
I was part of a Reader's Cup team and am studying hard for the Canterbury competition!
And I got my first detention!
I already have goals for next term, and I cannot wait to return to school to accomplish them. My big goal of being head girl is still on the wall, don't worry! I'm working on it everyday, taking new opportunities and leadership roles.
I got a excellent report this year and am working on aiming higher for PE, Maths, and Technology, as well as my highest subjects, English and Art.
My goal for next term is to focus on showing all of my values consistently even outside of school or in the playground.
I hope everyone has an amazing holiday, I'm sure mine will be - laying in bed until the evening listening to Jack Johnson and Soundgarden like usual.
Well, I'm Year Nine now, and I'm pretty used to it by now.
This term has gone by so quickly. It feels like only last month I was starting Year Eight!
Even though the term has gone by fast, I would be lying if I said it was a bad one.
I was lucky enough to become a Junior House Leader for Setu.
I made it onto the Student Council.
I attended the World Vision Youth Conference.
I was invited into Voices With Soul.
I started an English scholarship program.
I won a Mana Horomaka award for demonstrating Hornby Pride today!
I tried out volleyball for the first time and made it onto a team!
I played goalkeeper for a whole season of girl's indoor football.
I met amazing new teachers and classmates.
I was part of a Reader's Cup team and am studying hard for the Canterbury competition!
And I got my first detention!
I already have goals for next term, and I cannot wait to return to school to accomplish them. My big goal of being head girl is still on the wall, don't worry! I'm working on it everyday, taking new opportunities and leadership roles.
I got a excellent report this year and am working on aiming higher for PE, Maths, and Technology, as well as my highest subjects, English and Art.
My goal for next term is to focus on showing all of my values consistently even outside of school or in the playground.
I hope everyone has an amazing holiday, I'm sure mine will be - laying in bed until the evening listening to Jack Johnson and Soundgarden like usual.
🎶 THIS IS ME PERFORMANCE 🎶
On Wednesday the 11th of April, 9Rc were finally able to perform the long-awaited This Is Me number. We reserved Period Five for the musical concert and were able to watch the Year Eight performances and rest of Year Nine's. What have I learnt?
Practising for the musical number taught me a lot. From confidence to learning choreography to even just how to hold a microphone, the skills I learnt have increased my confidence and capability to perform like this in the future. What did I find challenging?
I think the thing I found most challenging was just confidence. In every rehearsal I was telling myself I couldn't do it, I was telling myself that I can't sing or act when really, everyone else was telling me that wasn't true. It came down to my confidence and in the end it got the better of me. I couldn't perform due to other circumstances but I do believe that confidence was a factor in it. I also felt really self conscious of where I was on stage.
What would I do differently?
In every rehearsal I found myself saying, "You'll do better next week," or, "Don't try because it's just a practise." So because I wasn't trying and procrastinating when I was going to actually start putting expression into my role I wasn't ready for the performance at all.
What did I enjoy?
I really enjoyed just being able to become more confident in my singing. Even though I wasn't singing during rehearsals, I would constantly practise offstage and feel a little better about my singing after. I'm pretty confident with singing in front of my own class now and that will do me well in Voices with Soul.
What am I wondering?
I'm wondering whether I could have done the best of my ability if I had a different role, or the role that I wanted. I didn't particularly like my role because the notes were pretty tough to hit - I'm definitely not Kaela Settle! - but I really liked the choreography we all got to do. Video >>>
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| Can we all just pay attention to this photo please? |
Overall, I think 9Rc - and all of the other classes! - did AMAZING on these musical theatre performances. It's something that a lot of people probably have never done and will never do it again, but it is really good to do things that get you out of your comfort zone sometimes. Music still stands as one of my favourite classes and these rehearsals are something I will probably remember for a long time... and cringe about in about five years!
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