Social Science goes all creepy

10GV have been working on a unit about the spreading of infectious disease, and incident response plans.  Here are some images of them investigating different micro-organisms and the effect they have on people.

Revision programmes

As exams are looming large, remember that History revision will be offered in the Drama room on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday lunchtimes.  All levels are invited.

Tuesday 26 October- Essay structuring
Thursday 28 October- Resource interpretation
Monday 1 November- Essay planning (topics and guidance issued)
Tuesday 2 November- Useful timelines and study tips
Thursday 4 November- Essay writing (topics and guidance issued)
Monday 8 November- Mindmapping
Tuesday 9 November- TBA

There may be waffles on Thursday..... just sayin'....

Examinations and revision

Now is the time to really get thinking about revision and being sensible about what you have to do.

Harrang and harrass your teachers for information and advice. And seek advice elsewhere. You all know about studyit.... the website with information about English, Maths and Sciences.

Finding help for the social sciences can be more challenging. However, we will try to steer you in the right direction with some advice. Today is a shameless plug, and a financial outlay. But it is worth it. Not all of us have great notes from the year..... let's be honest people! Buy some! You have options- ask for the notes of people who were in the class last year. Shamelessly beg for them. Look for revision guides in bookshops and online...

Shameless plug... check out the author..... ;)

 ESA is a New Zealand company who specialise in revision books.  They have ones for course outlines, and ones focussed on examinations.  You can buy them from their website- or bookshops.

The ESA Website- all of their books.

These range between $20-$30 for each title.  You can always re-sell your book next year to the following class and get back some of the cash.  Or check out Trademe, which always has a range of secondhand titles listed.

There are also other brands of study aids.  These just seem to be more comprehensive than some of the others.  Ask your teacher....

Longman produce "Write-on" study notes.  These have short notes, a space to write stuff down, and quizzes to test your knowledge.  They have less information but are easy to use, and cheaper to buy.  Again, ask your teacher for advice and guidance.

Get in quick and they may have a copy of a book to lend you.

Massey University History Day

Every year the lecturers at Massey University give up their time to give a series of seminars on topics relating to the Year 13 History course.  This year we went along to hear the lectures in the England Stream on Puritanism and Religion.

While we did not take a large group of students, those that we took were keen and made excellent notes.  It was great to see Blair using his italk and ipod to record the lectures as well as taking notes.  Phone cameras were also invaluable for catching those slides that flew by awfully quickly.  These tips are BRILLIANT for getting the most out of lectures, and really a good time to reflect on our preparations for the upcoming examinations.

The day is always rewarding, from the information, to the company, to the discussions, to the chance to see what University is really like.  We enjoyed the atmosphere, the ducks and just getting to spend a day out of the school in the wider world.  Thanks Mr. Buckham for putting in the legwork to get this trip underway.

The small crew at Massey

Jaimee making notes in the lecture theatre

Blairs recording set-up- completely an excellent idea

Historical Pictionary, Exams, and other games of chance

Well, the girls are the current champions in Historical Pictionary.... sorry boys.  It was a close run thing, boys leading the whole way, at once being 5 points ahead, but the girls clawed back a miraculous victory with the drawing of "Serbia".  Kudos to Karl Whittal, who managed to spend 1 minute without drawing anything on the board, and to the boys who won one round in 3 seconds, setting a new pictionary room record.

Exams are coming up shortly.  Be aware of what is being asked of you.

Year 11 History:
1.3 - Resource Interpretation
1.4 - People and their role in History- on the NZ topic
1.6 - New Zealand Identity.

Year 12 History
2.3 - Resource interpretation.  I may weaken and make this a unit standard assessment.
2.5 - Essay on a force or movement

Year 13 History
3.3 - Resource interpretation (on Tudor Stuart England)
3.4 - Decision essay.

If you are sitting in a class off-line.... you will have a slightly different exam.  Please check with your teacher about what to revise and what shall be in the exam.

History and Potatoes....

Mr Potato Head has long been an integral part of the Kuranui College History Curriculum.  He made his debut this year.

Simple task:  Build a Mr Potato Head that represents each country and their feelings about the first and second Balkan Wars.  The Potato will then be presented and discussed as a class.  The whole concept relies on a lot of higher order thinking, and a whole lot of fun.

Finding the right pieces to make a good metaphor.

Delivering the description of Great Britain.

From the left:  Great Britain, France, Russia, Serbia, Germany, Austria, Italy and the Rest of Europe.

Year 13 History - The Google Group

Year 13 History is 'in the clouds' with its own Google Group. 


If you want to be a part of it you have to be invited, so flick me your gmail addy (preferred) so I can return-flick you an invite to be a part of this l33t g-group.


Be a part of the m-learning evolution - sign up TODAY!


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