Jean Batten

 Jean Batten

Jane Gardner Batten was born on 15 September 1909. She lived in Rotorua then moved to Howick. She attended a local convent school in Howick. Later she moved to Auckland and attended Melmerley Ladies School. Then she became interested to flying and got her license in December 1932.

Jean Gardner Batten was born on the 15 September 1909 in Rotorua. She soon became known as Jean. In 1913 she moved to Auckland with her parents and two older brothers. Her father, Frederick was a dentist in 1917 and volunteered to join the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, and was sent to the Western Front. Following Frederick's return in 1919, Batten's parents quarrelled and around 1920 they separated. Her mother, Ellen, initially took her to live in Howick, where she attended a local convent school, They returned to the city in 1922 and Batten's father paid for her to board at Ladies College in Remuera.

When the Batten family moved to Auckland she started to attend Melmerley Ladies School, a private school, before switching to a state school a year later. In 1922, Jean was sent to a ladies college, a girl's boarding college in Remuera at her father's expense. Althrough she later described her time at the school as a happy one, she had few friends and many of her fellow students found her to be aloof.

Jean Batten was New Zealand's greatest aviator, celebrated around the world for her heroic solo flights during the 1930s. She flew the Percival Gull from Australia to England in 5 days and 18 hours. In November 1935 she became the first woman to fly herself across the South Atlantic. In October she went one step further and made the first ever direct flight from England and New Zealand.

Batten's parents sent her to England to study music, but she became intensely interested in flying and earned a private pilot's license in 1930. She gained a commercial pilot's license in 1932. She learnt how to fly at the London Aeroplane Club and gained her 'A' license in December. Jean Batten internationally celebrated her world record for her solo flight from England to New Zealand in 11 days and 45 minutes.

Jean Batten was the first woman to fly from England to South America. Jean Batten was New Zealand's greatest aviator, celebrated around the world for her heroic solo flights during the 1930s. Following her success she moved in and out of public view before dying in obscurity in Majorca, Spain, in 1982.

Poetry

 My Kitten Is a Ninja

My kitten is a ninja.
He wears a black disguise.
He sneaks up on me stealthily
and takes me by surprise

I never hear him coming.
He doesn't make a peep
He hides, then glides in silently
and makes a flying leap.

I don't know why he does it.
The reason isn't clear.
He simply likes to tackle me
then swiftly disappear.

I wish that he was normal
and didn't act like that.
My life would be so different if
I had an average cat

I'd play with him and pet him, 
and treat him gingerly.
 Instead, whenever he's around
I get a ninjury.

 Winter Olympics

The Winter Games

Every four years, athletes from the world gather to compete in The Winter Games of the Olympics. The athletes, who train extremely hard, are chosen to represent their countries. The games begin with the opening ceremony, where the athletes parade in front of an audience.

The Events

The Winter Games is comprised of many different events. There are sledding events such as the bobsled and luge. There are skiing events such as snowboarding and ice hockey. There are also team events such as cross country. Every Olympics some new events are added such as alpine, which was added in the 1998 Nagano Olympics Games.

Winning

The dream of every athlete is to make it to the podium, which is where the medals are handed out. The first place winners receive the gold medal, and have the honor of hearing their countries national anthems played. The second place winners receive the silver medal and the third place winners receive the bronze medal. Often, the winners are determined by who has the fastest time. Events such as speed skating are decided this way. Other events such as figure skating are determined by a panel of judges, who give marks according to artistic and technical ability.

Polar Bears

Polar bears

Polar bears are great white northern bears found throughout the Arctic regions. Except for one subspecies of grizzy bear, the polar bear is the largest and most powerful carnivore om land. It has no natural predators and know no fear of humans, making it an extremely dangerous animal.

Polar bears have white of yellowish fur with some black skin. Polar bears have sharp teeth so they would be more able to cut meat. The paws of polar bears are large and allow the bear to walk on the ice and paddle in water. Polar bears are stocky, with a long neck, relatively small head, Rounded ears and a short tail. The male, which is much larger than the female, weighs 410 to 720 kg. It grows about 5.3 feet tall at the shoulder and 2.2-2.5 metres in length.

Polar bears live in the Arctic regions like Canada, Alaska, Russia, Greenland and Norway. Much of the polar bears time is spent on sea ice, where they hunt, rest, breed and care for their young. As the Arctics top predators, polar bear's biggest threats are humans and impacts of climate change. They even make occasional visits to the Geographic North Pole, in the middle of the Arctic ocean.

Polar bears are excellent swimmers, But their preferred habitat is on top of the ice that covers Arctic seas much of the year. This is where they mate, hunt and rear their young. They thrive in an Arctic world of ice and snow where temperatures can drop to -50° degrees. That's more than twice as cold as an average freezer. Refugia are places that polar bears may survive without ice.

Polar bears feed primarily on ringed seals, but will also eat bearded seals, harp seals, hooded and harbor seals, when available. Larger prey species such as walrus, narwal and beluga are occasionally hunted. Polar bears may attempt to find alternate prey on the shore including muskox, reindeer, small rodents, waterfowl, shellfish, kelp, berries and even human garbage. If necessary, the polar bear will also eat smaller prey like arctic hare and lemming. The polar bear will eat carrion as well.

Adult polar bears have no natural predators, though walruses and wolves can kill them. Longevity in the wild is 25 to 30 years, but in captivity several polar bears have lived more than 35 years old. Humans probably cause most polar deaths, by hunting and by destroying problem animals near settlements. The animals that eat polars bears are orcas, other polar bears and humans.

In conclusion, polar bears are truly specials animals. Despite their size and strength, they live in one of the harshest environments on Earth and face many challenges in order to survive. They are powerful swimmers, have thick layers of fur to keep warm, and have a unique, carnivorous diet

Making Predictions

 1. What event is most likely to occur next?

   His bike spilled and he fell off and got hurt.

What evidence from the text supports your prediction? 

Because there was a large oil slick.

2. What event is most likely yo occur next?

Rex is gonna get hurt by 2 dogs.

What evidence from the text supports your prediction?

Because they were making eye contact and they were growling at each other.

3. What event is most likely to occur next?

He failed the test.

What evidence from the text supports your prediction?

Because he stayed up playing games.

4. What event is likely to occur next?

He got in trouble.

What evidence from the text supports your prediction?

Because he spilled grape juice on the carpet.

5. What event is most likely to occur next?

He burned the potatoes then almost burnt his hand.

What evidence from the text supports your prediction?

Because he made a fancy dinner and burnt the potatoes.

Carnivorous plants

 Carnivorous plants

1. Which statement would the author most likely to agree with?

A. There are too many species of carnivorous plants.

2. Which plant traps bugs in its stem and forces them to walk forward?

D. Pitcher plants.

3. What of the following statement is false?

B. Carnivorous plants do not get nutrients from the soil.

4. Which event happens last when a sundew eats a meal?

D. The sundew releases enzymes.

5. Which best expresses the main idea of the third paragraph?

D. Some plants attract bugs by offering them nectar.

     6. Which best defines the word treacherous as it is used it the fourth paragraph?

C. Something that tastes delicious.

7. Which best describes the overall text structure of the second paragraph?

A. Chronological order.

8.Which statement would the author most likely disagree with?

C. Carnivorous plants are tough and can live in any environment.

9. Which best expresses the main idea of the last paragraph?

C. Carnivorous plants are difficult to keep at home, but you should keep trying.

10. Which title best expresses the author's main purpose in writing this text?

A. Watch Out! How to avoid being eaten by carnivorous plants.

1. In what way are carnivorous plants stronger and more resilient then other plants? In what ways are they weaker?

Carnivorous plants are stronger and more resilient because they attract, trap and eat bugs. Most plants get nutrients from their prey. Carnivorous plants live in bogs and places where the soil lacks nutrients.

2. Compare and contrast two types of plants described in this passage. How are they similar? How are they different?

Carnivorous plants are different because they can eat flies and insects once they land on their mouth.

3. Carnivorous plants have some unique and amazing characteristics. What do these characteristics suggest about life and the world that we live in. In other words, what can carnivorous plants teach us about the world.

Carnivorous plants are stronger then normal plants because other plants are more delicate and carnivorous plants are more harsh but still delicate. 

Volume

Volume

Volume is measured in cubic units.

Ex:

 Cubic centimetre = cm³

Cubic metre = m³

Millilitre = ml³

Litre =L³

Three dimensional (3D) shapes have length, width and height.

All 3D shapes have volume.

Volume = L x W x H = answer