Class Novel for Term 3

This funny and poignant novel, by New Zealand author- David Hill, tells the story of Nathan and his best friend, Simon. These are two 14-year-old boys with a passion for girls, soccer, weekends, girls, computers, and girls. Although Simon is confined to a wheelchair because of muscular dystrophy, his keen sense of humor and taste for excitement are more than a match for his disability. 
A really nice link to our term inquiry focus- Healthy Bodies, Strong Minds. We've made a start...the aim is to finish by the end of this term!!

Our new class novel- There's a boy in the girls bathroom

We've started a new one...and it's hilarious! All about a boy named 'Bradley Chalkers' - a quirky unusual chap and the journey he takes as he tries to make sense of the social niceties of school...in very creative ways. A great introduction to Louis Sachar's writing, hopefully, some will be entertained enough to give other novels of his a try.

The Reading challenge is set!

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

READING OUTSIDE THE BOX CHALLENGE

READ A CHUNKSTER (must be at least 450 pages!)	LOVED BY OTHERS (A book recommended by someone else)	RELIVE THE MAGIC (reread a book you loved)	ONE OF A SERIES
READ BY EAR (listen to an audio book)	TRY A CLASSIC	READ A LOCAL (read a book written by a New Zealander)	POETRY
SCIENCE FICTION	AWARD WINNERS	SECOND CHANCE	MYSTERY
PICTURE BOOK	LOST IN TRANSLATION ( a book originally written in another language)	ACCIDENTALLY WATCHED THE MOVIE FIRST	BIOGRAPHY OR NON FICTION

Students in Room 12 are off on a reading adventure. A visit to the school library today has sparked a beginning to reading through the "Outside a box" challenge. Students need to read 16 books over the course of the year. (unless a negotiation has occurred)..Can it be done? We talked about choices that could be made, conducted research and many students have formulated plans of attack! Each completed text requires a short review blog post so that others can gain ideas as to what to read next. Keep an eye out for those first reviews to appear!

Our class novel for Term 1

Our class novel for this term is a hit! Sunken forest, written by New Zealand author Des Hunt, is an action packed adventure novel set in the wilds of Lake Waikaremoana. It explores meaningful issues, such as friendships, peer pressure, bullying, environment, family and heritage- a great link to our inquiry focus this term- Turangawaewae, a place to stand. We are finding that there are many connections we can make to our own life experiences, leading to some robust discussion. Keep an eye out for student reviews later in the term.