Culture, Society and Sub-Culture ｜Wānanga

Hi everyone! Welcome to another post, today for wānanga we have started a new topic. For this topic, we will learn more about our culture and self-identity. Our first task was to create a DLO about what culture, society and sub-culture were. I chose to create my DLO on canva.

Anti-Vietnam Song ⎢ Music Through Time

Hi everyone! Welcome to another post, today for social studies we started a new topic about Woodstock which was similar was connected to the previous topic we did, Beatlemania. Woodstock is a musical festival held in America, the festival went on for 3 days, many people attended this event. The people that attended the event were against the war. Our blogging task for this unit was to do a blog on one of the songs that went against the Vietnam War. 

I chose to do the song 'Vietnam' by Jimmy Cliff. 

Vietnam

Hey, Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam
Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam

Yesterday I got a letter from my friend fighting in Vietnam
And this is what he had to say
“Tell all my friends that I’ll be coming home soon
My time’ll be up some time in June
Don’t forget”, he said, “To tell my sweet Mary
Her golden lips are sweet as cherry”

And it came from Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam
Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam

It was just the next day, his mother got a telegram
It was addressed from Vietnam
Now Mistress Brown, she lives in the USA
And this is what she wrote and said
“Don’t be alarmed”, she told me the telegram said
“But Mistress Brown your son is dead.”

And it came from Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam
Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam, hey, Vietnam
Somebody please stop that war now

Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam, Vietnam, oh Vietnam
Vietnam, oh Vietnam, oh oh, oh oh
Somebody please stop it

Vietnam, Vietnam, oh Vietnam
Vietnam oh oh, oh oh Vietnam
Hey Vietnam, aha Vietnam, oh oh, yeah
I wanna say now somebody stop that war

The lyrics of the song portrays a soldier writing a diary to his friends and family about his return home. But instead, his family were notified about his son's death. Though the song wasn't as popular as some, it was considered the most effective of the anti-Vietnam songs. 

Children of Blood and Bones ⎢ Critical Literacy

Hi everyone! Welcome to another post, today we did another reflection session. Today I decided to do a reflection about a book that we have been reading in English. I have already made a post about this book, but that was when we were starting the book, but now that we have finished it I decided to do a reflection about it. 

Title: Children of Blood and Bone

The book was written by Tomi Adeyemi and features South African Gods and Goddesses. The story features a girl who goes on a journey to attempt to bring back magic to the kingdom of Orïsha. The author of the story developed this story with the purpose to inform readers about the tragic shootings happening to African-Americans. She also gained inspiration from Yoruba culture, books and animations such as Harry Potter and Avatar: The Last Airbender. 

Text Type: Book 

Text Creator: Tomi Adeyemi 

Text Purpose: To inform 

What views of the world is the text presenting?

In the text, it represents unfairness to a certain class of people. One class is superior to the other. It shows how the lower class were treated and how they were judged by the higher class. This can be linked to something in the world that would be called social class, something that is used to group people into a set of hierarchical social categories. To further explain, a certain class will always be on top of the other class the person of the higher class may have a person of lower-class working for them. The book explains how the people of a higher class were mistreating the people of a lower class. 

Neutralisation : The pH Scale

Hi everyone! Welcome to another post, today for science we were given the task to create a post with either one of the experiments that we have previously done. I chose to do a post about the pH scale. 

Aim: To observe how different acids and bases are on the pH scale. 

Equipment: Test Tube, Test Tube Rack, Universal Indicator, Hydrochloric Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Stirring Rod. 

Method:

    1. Use the universal indicator and pour it into each test tube.

    2. Using Hydrochloric Acid and Sodium Hydroxide pour onto tubes to create the pH spectrum. 

    3. Observe the colour change of the solution. 

Result:

    ⤿ After organizing the test tubes to make them similar to the pH scale, we observed how much acid and 

        the base we have put in the solution.

Discussion:

    ⤿ The process was a fun thing to do because we were just pouring things into the test tube to create different reactions. Strong acid and a strong base were easy to make because you only needed to add a large amount of that particular thing. Something that my partner and I really struggled on was making a more neutral colour something in between pH 7 and pH 14. It was also hard to make something only a little bit acidic because adding too much acid can make it too acidic. Both were hard because we needed to add a mic of different levels of acid and base.

Conclusion:

    ⤻ To summarize the results, we ended up with the pH spectrum arranged in the test tubes. 

a pH of 8 - 12

a pH of 4 - 6 

Full Spectrum of the pH scale. 

Beatlemania ｜ Music Through Time

Hi everyone! Welcome to another post, today for social studies we started a new topic. For this topic, we are learning about Beatlemania, what it is and how it impacted the music industry to what it is today. Our first task was to write about one of their songs. I have chosen to write about their song 'Yesterday', written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. 

Yesterday

The song yesterday was a song from the Beatles album called 'Help!'. The song was written by two members of the Beatles, John Lennon and Paul McCartney and was produced by George Martin. The song is about a heartbreak between two lovers. 

Lyrics:

Yesterday 

All my troubles seemed so far away 

Now it looks as though they're here to stay 

Oh, I believe in yesterday

Suddenly I'm not half the man I used to be 

There's a shadow hanging over me 

Oh, yesterday came suddenly

Why she had to go 

I don't know, she wouldn't say 

I said something wrong 

Now I long for yesterday

Yesterday 

Love was such an easy game to play 

Now I need a place to hideaway 

Oh, I believe in yesterday

Why she had to go 

I don't know, she wouldn't say 

I said something wrong 

Now I long for yesterday

Yesterday 

Love was such an easy game to play 

Now I need a place to hideaway 

Oh, I believe in yesterday

Discussion 

The lyrics are saying how their relationship was yesterday compared to today. These lyrics represent how something that you have said could have made your lover leave you. 

During the 1940s music genres such as Jazz were very popular and were always listened too. This is because of the war, it was very gloomy around this time as the world had just concluded yet another war. So when music such as the Beatles came it was very surprising for some people. 

Israeli Archeologists ⼁Critical Literacy

Hi everyone! Welcome to another post, today we did another reflection session, for this session I decided to write about a news article I saw on a site. The article was called 'Israeli Archeologists discovered fragments of Dead Sea scroll from 2nd century', I decided to do this, because the topic interested me. 

Title: Israeli Archeologists discovered fragments of Dead Sea scroll from 2nd century

The text was a news article about archaeologists from Israel finding dead sea scrolls dating back from the 2nd century. The scrolls contained biblical texts and were found in a desert cave, the text is believed to have contained Greek texts from the books of Zechariah and Nahum which is believed to have been written during the 1st century judging by the writing style. The scrolls were found in a cave called the 'Cave of Horror' which is well-known for the number of skeletons found inside the cave. 

Text Type: News Article 

Text Creator: Ilan Ben Zion 

Text Purpose: To inform

What does the author of this text want us to know?

The author wants to inform us about how the archaeologists found the scrolls and why it is important to their research. They also wanted us to know how they found the scrolls and where it was found. By this we know how the scrolls were important and what knowledge we can gain from observing the scrolls. This also shows that the knowledge that we gain from the scrolls can let us know more about the past. 

Credit: https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/new-dead-sea-scrolls-1.5951332

Anzac: Significance of WW1⼁Music Through Time

Hi everyone! Welcome to another post today I have finished our last unit for Social Studies. For this unit, we had to learn about the Anzacs, what they are, what they were known for, their experiences, and how music was used during the war. Our objective for this unit was to understand what happened during the Gallipoli Campaign and how music was used during WW1.

Gallipoli Campaign

The Gallipoli Campaign is a campaign that took place from 19 Feb 1915 to 9 Jan 1916. The purpose of the Gallipoli campaign was to make an opening through Dardanelles for Allied Ships to come through and capture the Capital of the Ottoman Empire, Constantinople. Their goal also included completely throwing the Ottoman Empire out of the war. The campaign went on for 8 months, resulting in the Ottoman Empire winning.

The Last Post  

When do you hear the Last Post being played?

The Last Post would normally be heard when we are celebrating Anzac Day or Remembrance Day, it is also played in services where we commemorate the people who have participated in the war and honour the people who sacrificed themselves. The last post can also be heard during memorials and for funerals for people that have served their country.

Why is this song significant to New Zealand?
This song is significant to New Zealand because it honours the many soldiers who have sacrificed their lives for our country. It was important because some soldiers did not have a proper burial and some soldiers were never even found. 

What does the Last Post represent?
The last post represents the many wars and battles the world has gone through. Before the last post was just a call that signified what time of the day it was for a soldier. But as time passed by it has been incorporated into the ceremonies and military services for the people who have served their country. The last post also symbolises the start of a new life for the soldiers. 

Map of Gallipoli Campaign

 

The ANZAC'S ⼁Critical Literacy

 Hi everyone! Welcome to another post, today is another reflection session and I decided to do a reflection about a topic that we have studied during Social Studies. The topic was about the ANZACs (Australian and New Zealand Amry Corps) and how their sacrifices made them known. 

Title: Anzac Day : Page 2 - The Anzacs + The Gallipoli Campaign : Page 7 - Soldiers' experience 

The text was part of an article that consisted of different information that included different information about Anzac Day and how it came to be. The part that I read mentioned information about how the Australian and New Zealand soldiers went to Gallipoli and fought. Then it mentioned the other wars they participated in. 

Text Type: Article 

Text Creator: New Zealand History

Text purpose: To inform viewers. 

How does the text construct a version of reality?

This text shows how Australian and New Zealand soldiers were brave enough to participate in a war that decided the fate of the world. It shows the reality of being in the war and how many sacrifices they had to go through for their country and for the world. But these weren't the only things they had suffered, living in trenches and sleeping when there were firearms and bombing happening wasn't the best situation to sleep in. The environment was also bad to live in as there were constant shortages of water, the food that was shipped to them was difficult to get and the space they lived in was quite small for all of the soldiers. In short, both articles showed how harsh the war was to the soldiers and how much they have suffered and sacrificed throughout the whole campaign.

The Mystery of the Hanging Garden of Babylon丨Critical Literacy

Hi everyone! Welcome to another post, today we did another reflection session. This time I decided to write about a book I have recently read, it is called 'The Mystery of the Hanging Garden of Babylon'. 

Title: The Mystery of the Hanging Garden of Babylon 

The text was a book about how archaeologists found the Hanging Garden of Babylon. It gave us an insight into the process of finding one of the seven wonders of the world. It wrote about the history of the hanging garden, why it was so hard to find and some information about the architecture of the garden. 

Text Type: Book

Text Creator: Stephanie Dalley 

Text Purpose: To be read and inform.

What knowledge does the reader need to bring to this text in order to understand it? 

In the book, The Mystery of the Hanging Garden of Babylon by Stephanie Dalley, knowledge of the Hanging Garden of Babylon is needed. This is something that is needed because the book is on the subject of the hanging garden. The book discusses how the hanging garden was discovered so it is mandatory to know a few things about the hanging garden so that the reader can fully understand the text that is being written. The following sentences above give us evidence that we need to know about the hanging garden to be able to fully understand the book and what is written in it. 

Credit: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hanging_Gardens_of_Babylon.jpg

Music Through Time: Parihaka

Hi everyone! Welcome to another post, this week for social studies we have started a new unit. For this unit, we learned about Parihaka and how it impacted the natives who were living in Parihaka. Our objective for this unit was to understand what happened to Parihaka, its impacts and how songs were used during this event. 

Information about Parihaka

Parihaka is a small community between the Tasman Sea and Mt Taranaki. After the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, the government started to take away lands from the Māori, when their lands were taken away from them they didn't have anywhere to go. Parihaka was a small village that housed many natives that lost their homes during that time. 

Song: Parihaka 

Artist: Tim Finn & Herbs

My friend, My friend, I hate to see you suffer, 

Events conspire to bring us to our knees, 

My friend, my friend, you've taken this the wrong way, 

Rise up, defend yourself, never give in, 

Look to the sky, the spirit of Te Whiti, 

The endless tide is murmuring his name.

I know Te Whiti will never be defeated, 

And even at the darkest hour, 

His presence will remain. 

I'll sing to you the song of Parihaka.

Te Whiti he used the language of the spirit, 

Then stood accused, the madman and his dream, 

He saw the train go roaring through the tunnel, 

He heard the voice travel on the magic wire, 

But he loved the silence of the river, 

He watched the dog piss on the cannon's wheel.

I know Te Whiti will never be defeated, 

And even at the darkest hour, 

His presence will remain. 

I'll sing to you the song of Parihaka.

One day you'll know the truth, 

They can't pull out the roots, 

Come and take me home, 

To weep for my lost brother. 

They gather still, the clouds of Taranaki, 

His children's children wearing the white plume, 

So take me for the sins of these sad islands, 

The wave still breaks on the rock of Rouhotu. 

And when you taste the salt that's on your pudding, 

And when you taste the sugar in your soup, 

Think of Te Whiti, he'll never be defeated, 

Even at the darkest hour, 

His presence will remain, 

I'll sing for you the song of Parihaka, 

Come to Parihaka, 

Weep for my lost brother, 

The spirit of nonviolence, 

Has come to fill the silence, Come to Parihaka.

Discussion; Questions 

The main message of this song was too inform and tell viewers what happened to Parihaka by using a song. They mentioned information about how Parihaka was impacted by the attack and how the natives lived through all the pain they had suffered. 

Lyric Observations: 

"The spirit of nonviolence, Has come to fill the silence, Come to Parihaka." The following line has been written for the purpose of mentioning how Parihaka used peaceful resistance as a strategy to resist soldiers who came to their village.

"They can't pull out the roots, " This is a saying that means the soldiers can't remove them and their culture. The soldiers cannot fully remove the Māori culture and their heritage which can be known as their roots. 

The line "Rise up, defend yourself, never give in," is a very good example of how determined they were to resist the soldiers. 

Significance

Today, Parihaka is still a very sensitive topic for many natives that are living in New Zealand. Parihaka was a brutal event in NZ history and an example of an important method to peacefully resist the government. This song has opened up more awareness about the event and shows justice to many people who have lost someone important to them.