The End-Gus M

Well, I'm sorry I haven't done many blog posts lately, but I've been rushing around doing my Independent Study. Speaking of which, I've got my booklet on the shelf! I am so happy and all that is left now is for me to get my Final word done, put in a few comments in my self assesment sheet, and the small matter of Tim Harris putting his booklet on the shelf. If he doesn't do that this week we can't see Mr Tait do the Moon Walk!

All in all, this hasn't been a bad year. I give an 87% for everything over all, and a 99.99998% for Mr Tait's Fabulous teaching. Thank you for a great year!

P.S: We can't wait for your moon walk shaky!

the home straight - Jim

I have finished everything so I will quietly occupy myself at my desk to stay on track. My highlights this year have been: 1st eleven hockey, independent study, writers notebook, reading and west coast. The most challenging part of this year was independent study because it took the whole year. My most gain has been in art because I practice it a lot. My tip would be START YOUR INDEPENDENT STUDY EARLY. I am most looking forward to my trip to America in the holidays. 2015 will be a big year because I will be a year eight and that holds a lot of responsibility. Mr Klox is the Illuminati! So for me both have been baffling. I have had an amazing year and look forward to 2015.

...thiarts emoH ehT- Max

I will sing 'This is the time, this is the place". My highlights for this year are

1. UNSW ICAS Computer Skills Medal Ceremony (SPOILER: It will be Digital Technologies next year SPOILER END)
   
2. Finishing my Independent Study Booklet
3. My Independent Study Presentation
4. Letter to the Editor being published twice.
5. Going to the Gold Coast.

I have made the most gains in Computing because I got the ICAS Medal and have learnt a lot this year.

My tips would be:

1. Don't Game!
2. Bow down to year 8s!
3. Beware the Illuminati

I am looking forward to GAMING.

I really liked the eagle book series (I haven't finished it yet)

10/10 (now please don't kill my family nicholas)

2015 holds a year of annoying year 7s (I'm starting to sound like Noah) a better Independent Study and Illuminati.

Definitely Mr Klox because I AM THE ILLUMANTI *Callum tackles me screaming*.

Home Straight - Toby C

In has a blast this years there has many ups and not so many downs which is great I am very happy that school is about to end.
S-Six
C-Crabby
H- Hours
O- of
O- Our
L- Lives

There have been many highlights this year like wharf jumping, French and English. Art, P.E and representing our school (Wellesley) in athletics. I also finished my I.S which I am very happy with.
In the end I have really enjoyed my first year in 7/8 T and I am looking forward to next year.

JUST KIDDING

I haven't signed out forever.

I will always be on this blog, forever...

The home straight... The O

We haven't done a blog in ages and I definitely think the blog took the back seat on a Malaysian Airlines flight.

Well, I'm not on a train track like these guys:

But I think I will manage myself well, if that's what ya mean. I think the time will be 11.57 and the place will be 7/8T.
I really enjoyed Independent Study, Writer's Notebook, Castlepoint Camp, Wharf Jumping Fuji Xerox...

...and of course when the Illuminati visited and watched us from the shadows, they're always watching.

The most challenging part was getting my independent study finished, the deadline comes round quick.

I think I had the most gain in mathematics as I didn't learn much last year... But I learnt heaps in Mr B's maths class, like algebra.

My advice to newbies:

DON'T GAME YOU YEAR 6 NERDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am most looking forward to doing a lot of work on my model railway and posting new videos on my YouTube channel.

My favourite read of '2015', not 2015, it's 2014 Mr Tait. Anyway, my favourite read was probably Animal Farm.

I rate this class..,

100 OUT OF 10!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This picture showed up when I searched 100 out of 10...

2015 holds for me... Wellington  College.

Well I can't really answer the last question as I created Mr Klox and I'm part of the Illuminati.

OK so I've finished writing this blog now...

Theo, signing out of the 7/8T blog, forever and ever and ever...

The Home Straight

I can't see that I have much at all t do, so to keep on track I'm relying on not having 24/7 free time, and I'm sure we won't. the most challenging part of the year was the independent study, I took lots of time. I'm mostly looking forward to having not much on my mind in the holdidays. my most favourite read in the year has been miss peregrines home for peculiar children because that is the exact type of genre I like.
I would rate 78t 9/10 in both the categories.

The Home Straight - Toby M

Dear Boys,
The year has flown by and I am sad that half of you will be leaving next year. I have spent four years at Wellesley and 7/8T has been my highlight. In particular, French and English and how relaxed Mr Tait is. We have come across a variety of characters on our great journey through 2014.
Despite all of the Year 8's warnings about Mr Hampton's math class I have enjoyed it quite alot. My highlights getting High Distinction in both ICAS and Australian Maths and my Prudence award in Australian maths.
Mr Tait has read us amazing novels and my favourite would be Miss Peregrine's home for Peculiar children. I have had so much fun doing my independent study this year and I am glad that I got it done when I did. I really enjoyed all of the other boy's presentations and I loved doing mine. This year I got the award for shortest presentation(50 minutes+questions) and the next was over an hour. I am really happy with my booklet and it looks awesome on the shelf.

I am  sad about the Year 8's leaving especially as I can only come up with one Year 6 who is worthy of 7/8T. Fortunately there will be others joining 7/8T next year and maybe it won't be so bad.
I gives me great honour to award 7/8T 98/100.

Thar home Strayt - George

Yee Har, the final line is in sight. The crawdads are cooking!

I think I will remain on track to the end of the line.
This is because i have completed all the work I need to do. I am now writing an book set in the crusades, which is really fun and I feel good because I aint gamin'. if I was on a train track I would be at full speed pulling a big freight load, like the trains down below.












The five highlights would be my independent study, Seconds football, Mr Klöx, The dances and the one and only Wharf-Jumping!

I have made the most gains in maths because of MR B's expert teaching.

My ekshpert advishe would be ta never get ya head down an' don't get distracted. And always gey ya ducks in a row.

When i finish the school year I hope ta watch some football, see the ravens qualify for the playoffs, get some more stuff for my hornby layout, get some of my warhamer guys painted, and play some Skyrim. Truly, my work is never done!

My favourite reads would be Children of the Mind by Orson Scott Card and Blood of Asahiem by Chris wright.

I would rate 7/8T a 10/10 for both of those categories.

2015 holds a book I reserved from the library. Oh, and Wellesley.

And none of them have been baffling. They have been perfectly understandable!

And Remember...

Home Straight

My time at Wellesley is coming to an end. Of all of the eight years I have been here, I have grown a connection with the school and it will be hard to leave. My advice for the year sixes is to not waste time, don't game (EVER) like many of the year sevens this year did. Last year when we were year sevens, we were far more on track than the year sevens this year. Most year sevens have gamed a lot EVEN IN TERM FOUR but last year, we learnt quickly enough that gaming will not help. Would you give up the opportunity to actually have a good Independent Study JUST so you MIGHT get a good player on FIFA15 or your new high score on whatever? To all of the newbies; I wish you luck, that you do not join the campaign of what happened to the year sevens this year. If you do, then that's your problem, your Independent Study will be short of the gallop.

This was a final blog post from William so goodbye 78Tait blogspot.

Finally it's over- Will Saunders

This past year in 7/8T has been an amazing experience that I will never forget and that is going to have a huge and awesome effect on me when I'm going through High School.
This year I have read some awesome books most of which I would recommend to any other boy my personal favourite of the year being Mrs Peregrines home for peculiar children because it was a awesome book the kept everyone engaged.
I think one thing that I would change for next year in the marking section would be to add inspiration as a new colum and take one of the less important ones out.
So overall I think I have had a really successful year in this class and am really looking forward to being apart of the 7/8Tait class of 2015. So remember my fellow classmates remember Mr Tait the fire fighter will not be with you for the next six weeks so try not to start any fires or stick your head in a gutter because there will be know one there to tel you to get it out, have a awesome Holiday guys and good luck to the year 8 boys going to College.

The Home Straight Hugh

This last week, I will remain on track by always remembering where I am and why I am there. My favourite things we did this year were Castle-point Camp, Independent Study, 1st 11 Cricket and Hockey, Triathlon and basically everything else! The most challenging part of the year for me was the time leading  up to my presentation (getting it perfect) and when I had my accident at the start of the year. I have probably learnt the most in maths, Mr. B has so much to teach! My biggest tips for next years year 7's would be to nail down a topic quick, don't waste time and start Independent study as soon as possible. The thing I am most looking forward to is going to Taupo and getting sleep ins! My favourite books to read have  been the Skulduggery Pleasant serious as they are a really good serious to get into, because all of the books are good, not just the first one.

Overall 2014 has been a very enjoyable school year for me, and I have absolutely loved Wellesley (I mean for all my 5 years)!

The Home Straight

Good morning boys - it has been a while...blogging has taken a backseat for some strange reason...wonder what it was?

It was the Illuminati.

So, you are in your final school week and I have some questions for you to chew over:

Fire away.

• How will you remain on track this week ('time and a place' etc)?

I just will.

• What are the top five highlights of your year in 7/8T (both inside the classroom and outside the classroom)?

Destacado numero uno (highlight number one): Discovering the Illuminati.

Resalte el numero dos (highligh number two): Winning WNB.

Resalte el numero tres (highlight number three): That awesomely proud feelig finishing my inceible estudio independiente (amazing independent study).

Resalte el numero cualtro (highlight number four): Castlepoint Camp.

Numero destacado de cinco (highlight number five): learning how to count in Spanish.

. 

• In which curriculum area have you made the most gains?

Probably maths as Mr. Blandford is a really good maths teacher!

• What would be three tips to give any 'newbie' coming into 7/8T in 2015?

Well I'd definitely (wink wink wink) recommend gaming ALL THE TIME, fill your book log with the ENTIRE damn 'Noddy' series, and show off how amazing you are at FACTS ABOUT THE NAZIS (because yooouuu studied the Naaaazis).

• What are you most looking forward to doing when you have finished your school year?

SLEEPING IIINNNNNN.

• If you could give your class a mark out of 10 in terms of preparing you for the next stage AND having a bit of fun along the way then how would you rate it?

10

• Which one out of The Illuminati or Mr Klox has been the most baffling for you?

Well the ILLUMINATI hasn't baffled me because I'M GODDAMN PART OF IT, but Mr. Klox is just plain STRAAAANGE.

It has been a wild ride this year - just think of everything that you have squeezed into 2014.  You made it.  It is a stagger to the finish line but the finish line is in sight...congratulations boys.

Thanks bro.





Over and out.

The Home Straight

Wow...it's the end of the year already. It seems like only yesterday when I was being welcomed by Mr. Tait into 7/8T. This has been a fantastic year, even though I did doubt I would ever get my Independent Study. I honestly can't imagine 7/8T without the year eights. And I do believe that all the year sevens this year will have to go crazy to make sure that the year sevens will have enough fun as I did. I do suppose it helps that the "class clowns" are cracking jokes every couple of seconds, and doing something ridiculous every minute. So, on the whole, this has been a great year, and I'm lokking foward to a better one next year. Of course, there are ups and downs with Independent Studies, as I'm sure everyone has found out. But the best thing about them is that they teach us to manage our time, and not to leave everything to the last minute, and also that we are all better than we think we are. It also teaches us many other things, but I think those ones I just mentioned are the most important for the future.
Now, I will put some advice in here, but the year sevens will just ignore it (like we did). Don't leave everything to the last minute with your booklet. I'm saying this because I did. I wrote my booklet in two weeks. I scrapped everything in Drive that I had because it wasn't very good, and I could do a lot more on Word.
So, to cap it off, after school is "out", I'll sleep in. A lot.

The Home and Garden Show straight - JOSH

1. I will stay on track by sleeping a lot at night!
2. Wharf Jumping
     Independent Study Presentations
     Science Fair regionals
     Production
     Hunger Games Mockingjay part 1
3. Most challenging was definitely choosing a topic and getting started with my Independent Study
4. I have improved a lot in art
5. Make sure you do not game during P-list time
     Worship the 2015 year 8's
     Choose an Independent Study topic that you feel passionate about and that you can sustain throughout the year
6. I'm looking forward to swimming in the Waikanae River
7. I would rate my classmates 7/10
8. 2015 holds a whole lot for me. I guess we'll just have to wait and see
9. LENOVO IS THE MOST BAFFLING

The Home Strait - Ben S

This week is going to be fun  because all I'm going to game all week. My top five highlights of the year are: Being introduced into the Illuminati, drawing Illuminati triangles on the whiteboard, Secret Santa for giving me lollies and P-list for gaming in. I think the hardest part of the year in upgrading my mortars to level 7 on Clash of Clans. I thing that I have gained the most in Clash of Clans because I have upgraded my town hall 3 times this year. My town hall is now level 10. I think the class has supported me though some tough times when I have been low on gold.

The Home Strait- Nicholas

I will stay on 'track' with the hornby oo scale track.
My top 5 highlights of the year would be: Wharfjumping, Independent study, presentations, castlepoint and the laughs.
My advice for a year 6 delinquent little tot would be to obey all orders from y8s offer to make tea for Andrew T and Mr T will need a punching bag for the angry y6s to punch.
I'm looking forward to sleep ins and going to Whitianga.
My favorite read would be Animal farm.
9/10
High School- Wellington College
The Illuminati shall die in a combine harvester
I had a good year.
Nicholas

The Home Straight

I can't believe this year has gone so fast, it seems unbelievable that I only have five more days left of Wellesley.

I don't know how I'm going to stay on track this week, everything feels so hectic, especially with my aunt coming to stay from Israel and everything else that's going on.

This year has had so many highlights, it would be hard to choose just five, but if I had to, I would choose:


1. French & English. My favourite outdoor activity of all time.
2. Independent Study. I'm going to miss the work ethic in 7/8T surrounding I.S. when I leave for college.
3. Literature Quiz. It's the only proper quiz-competition I've ever been in, complete with buzzers and the whole she-bang!
4. The Illuminati. This cult has dominated our class whiteboard for weeks and I love it.
5. Hunger Games- Mockingjay Part One. Peeta goes crazy and it's quite funny.

If I were to choose three tips for a new Year 7 coming into 7/8T they would be:

1. If you try and continue the Asparagus trend, the Illuminati will get you.
2. Don't get lampooned on your first day.
3. Treat the honourable Mr Klox with respect. He needs an offering every day.

I've read A LOT of good books this year, in and out of class, but the winner by a landslide would be Skulduggery Pleasant and the Dying of the Light. With a hilarious twist ending and a great summary of the previous eight books, with all the loose ends being tied up, it is an absolute masterpiece.

The Home Str8 - Noah

Its kind of sad thinking this is my last week at Wellesley. This year has been really great, with the Butterfly Creek walk, Castle point and of course French and English. I think this week I'll just play football or game. I think the most challenging part of this year is waking up in the morning and knowing that I have to have Mr Tait as a teacher. I think I've gotten really good at maths, like I've won Mathswell and got distinctions in all the tests. When school ends I'm really looking forward to Japan. 7/8T has been really great this year. Independent Study is really good for College. I think next year I will be well prepared for College.

The Final Straight... Henry C

This year has been my final year at Wellesley and I have really enjoyed it. From 7/8T and the Independent Study to sports trips up to Hawkes Bay and down to Nelsen I have loved every minute of it. When I leave Wellesley most of the things I will remember about Wellesley is the stuff you do outside the classroom not inside it. If you put Wellesley up against Scots with the education you receive it will probably be about equal but the things that Wellesley does so much better are the fun and the activities outside the classroom like wharf jumping and the constant games that are played around the school. For me 7/8T has been a great class because it doesn't waste time on stupid stuff such as reading, spelling and English. It covers the stuff that needs to be covered and then gets on to the next thing. My advice for the year sixes coming into this class next year would probably be to not waste any opportunity's to do stuff like missing out on a game of French and English because you want to do work. It really isn't worth it.

The Home Straight-Sam 😃😰😭😭

My top five highlights of the year have been West Coast Trip, Independent Sutdy, Mr. Klöx, Writers notebook and most importantly being recruited for the Illuminati it has been an amazing experience working with them planning for the big event next year I can't wait. Josh is wrong about the Illuminati base in New Zealand there is a place with even more triangles around it but nigahiga (youtuber) is correct about the international Illuminati base being somewhere in Israel. I can't believe next year I'll be a year eight and I can't wait to do my infiltrating mission on the Mr. Klöx's next year with my friends in the Illuminati. I cannot explain how much I can't believe i will be a year eight next year I don't even know how to start explaining it. I have such an important year next year with the Illuminati I will finally be able to go on all the missions with the Illuminati I can't wait to see my name on the wall of class of 2015 at the International Illuminati base I was one of the six New Zealanders kids selected for the Illuminati. The reason I get to school every day is that we use special jets that take an hour to travel between Israel and New Zealand that's how I will be able to make it to school so that's pretty cool. And if I'm away for a week or so next year you will know I'm doing things with the Illuminati. My favourite thing about the Illuminati is we get everything for free and it's not fake it's actually totes legit.

My biggest curriculum gain was definatly learning how to be a beast spy for the Illuminati. 

My top three tips for people joining 7/8T next year are: dont game, trial for the Illuminati and don't leave everything for term four.

I feel 7/8T has prepared me well for the next stage and the Illuminati will be happy with the class I'm in.

Remember that  next year I'm working for the Illuminati you may have forgotten so wish me luck.

The Home Straight - Callum H

As a class, I think that 7/8t deserves a 10/10 for fun, work and prep for college.

INMHO Mr Klöx and the Íłłûmïñātį are absolutely ridonculous.

I think in 2014, my public speaking has improved the most, I'm much more confident now than I was at the start of the year, and I enjoy it much more now.

I think one of the best things about 7/8t is, the P List time. I really like being able to head in and out of the class room, listen to music and choose what you want to do in an hour and a half.

The home straight...

Good morning boys - it has been a while...blogging has taken a backseat for some strange reason...wonder what it was?

So, you are in your final school week and I have some questions for you to chew over:

• How will you remain on track this week ('time and a place' etc)?
• What are the top five highlights of your year in 7/8T (both inside the classroom and outside the classroom)?
• What has been the most challenging part of your year?
• In which curriculum area have you made the most gains?
• What would be three tips to give any 'newbie' coming into 7/8T in 2015?
• What are you most looking forward to doing when you have finished your school year?
• What has been your favourite read of 2015 and why?
• If you could give your class a mark out of 10 in terms of preparing you for the next stage AND having a bit of fun along the way then how would you rate it?
• What does 2015 hold for you?
• Which one out of The Illuminati or Mr Klox has been the most baffling for you?

It has been a wild ride this year - just think of everything that you have squeezed into 2014.  You made it.  It is a stagger to the finish line but the finish line is in sight...congratulations boys.

Miss Peregrine-Harry W

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is a great novel and it is my favorite novel this year and probably of in my top ten of all time. I think that the class really enjoyed because of the quirky style of writing and how the book revolved around the peculiar children. If I had to label it under a genre it would probably be young-adult fantasy. It is really great that there is a sequel to this wunderbar book and I personally prefer the sequel as there is a lot more action and plot twists and it is just overall better. I think that the photographs add a lot of value to the book and the fact that there are also photos in the second book, is great. It is really clever how Ransom Riggs wrote his book around the pictures and the amount of time he must of spent searching for those old photos must have been immense.

Miss Peregrines Hugh

I think that Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children was a weak novel and I didn't really enjoy it. I definitely thought the author took the wrong perspective in the novel and I think maybe a full time duel perspective would of/be good. I also think that because I was away for a week it made me tune out of the book (I didn't like the book enough to catch-up). I think the book was little bit too off the radar for me. I would call it a comedy and an action because their were a few joke (some really bad which made them funny) in the book. The photographs are really important because they make the book sound more true. My favorite book this year was not this book, it was Genesis.

Miss Peregrine-Tim H

Miss Peregrines home for peculiar children is a fantasy/horror/comedy book about children with powers who are being hunted down by wights and hollows (monsters).
Its funny because of some of the weird powers, bees in his your stomach and the ability to revive things using the hearts of dead animals.

Miss Pedigree's home for Peculiar Kittens - Josh

Miss Peregrine's home for Peculiar Children was a great novel. My favourite part was probably when Miss Peregrine got stuck as a falcon because she got injured. I feel like it's karma to her and the children for killing innocent Malthus. I also thoroughly enjoyed it when grandpa Portman died. I think it is some more karma for Grandpa Portman because he killed all those innocent hollowgasts on his hunting trips.

I feel that this book fits into the comedy genre because it's really funny how the author thinks that the Peculiar's are the good guys when they're  really the bad guys. I really want to read the sequel and I really hope that Dr. Golen and the wights catch the Peculiar's. I feel that the story was great but I would have prefered it if the had it from the perspective of a wight or focused the book on Peculiar Kittens. Below is a Miss Pedigree's home for Peculiar Kittens title page and I think it would be a great third book in the Miss Peregrine series.

Wights Are People Too- Jesse

I think that Miss Peregrine's is a great book, but it has completely the wrong perspective. The poor wights and hollows have to go hungry every night because the evil peculiars won't  let themselves get eaten. It's really sad and I died a bit inside when Draco Malfus died. The author edited it out but his last words were "My father will hear about this!"

RIP Draco Malfus

I've already read the sequel and it was really good too, but again, the completely wrong perspective.

Hollow City is just a nice little retirement village for wights and hollows until it got ransacked by evil peculiars. I really hope they both get adapted into films and that the director gets the right perspective.

I hope it isn't Michael Bay though...

Miss Peregrine - Callum H

I have really enjoyed hearing Miss Peregrine's. I think it is a great book and in a few years (or one) I might read it again. I've just started the second one and have found out that you pick up so much more when you see it for yourself. I think it has been the best novel of my two years in 7/8T.

Miss Perry Green's Retirement Village For Normal Elderly - William

I was left wondering at the end of Miss Perry Green's Retirement Village For Normal Elderly, what if she ran a home for peculiar children rather than a retirement village? What if there was a child who could spray fire from her hands? What if someone had bees in their stomach in this book. It would be a great change and I would really enjoy it.

Miss Peregrine Toby C

I liked this book a lot even though I missed little parts of it. I like the way that they used the old pictures in the book and they were really interesting and in the end it was a great book.

Miss Peregrine-Max

It is A sort of Fantasy, Horror, Mystery, and a bunch of small ones. It's very unique. I think it's good we know that there is a sequel because otherwise we would have lost most of the value of the book with the dull ending. I think that the photographs are good but aren't completely necessary. I think this should be made into a film but it needs a special type of film like a sort of slideshow story. My top three would be: Genesis, Miss Peregrine's and Animal Farm.

Peregrine~Sam

Mrs. Peregrine is an exciting cliffhanger. If I could be one of the characters I would be Bromwyn because she is strong and I want to be able to carry anything easily. I am probably going to buy the second book in the holidays that is how good it is and I will recommend it to my family.

Miss Peregrine - The Wight Knight (Ben S)

"Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is a fantastic novel. I especially love the Wight part,"
-Wight Times

"I dislike the fact that the poor Hollowgast was destroyed by Jacob. Over all, I like the book. Especially the fact they tell the reader, who may or may not be a Wight, or Hollowgast, can find them and the loop. Mwhahahaha!! - Hollowgast Intelligence - Research division

"I really am a strong advocate of the Hollowgasts' plan to become immortal. A shame they can't be sane while being immortal. At the same time, I think that being immortal is against the laws of nature. I honestly doubt that humanity could cope with ANY immortal being. They would become jealous, and jealousy is what destroys everything." - The Great Alchemist

Miss Peregrine- Theo

I have really enjoyed Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children. I have found that it is quite an involving book and that we were always wanting to see what happened next. I think it is very obvious there is a sequel even if you didn't know that there actually was. I think the photographs make the book very unique and they shape the story. I think listening to books in the classroom opens us up to a world of literature that we wouldn't have of looking at before.

Miss Perigrene's Home for Peculiar Children- Noah

Miss Perigrene's was a great book to read. It didn't get boring, the plot was always there never fading and there was always something or someone new that would surprise you. Miss Perigrene's Homefor Peculiar Children was a great and interesting book that I want to read again and pick up all the things I missed. I'm looking forward to reading the second book and see what it has in store for me. The whole white thing with the bus driver and Jacob's psychiatrist was quite good I didn't expect it. I thought it was a great little book to read.

OH THE TRAGEDY - CALLUM B

Originally, I loved 'Ms Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children'. It was a really exciting book and had a little bit of everything for everyone.

HOWEVER....

When Malfus died, my bitter tears poured down my crumpled-in-sorrow face like a waterfall. Oh, and how I cried! My sorrow was great and plentiful, and I originally considered burning the evil book, but my tears kept putting out the DAMN MATCH.

RIP Malfus.

What an evil book.

Miss Peregrine- Nicholas

Yes Andrew T you have read to us some quality children's literature. I personally don't think there is a surge of good books, its just the rate you find classics, well known books or hidden treasures. We all like Miss Peregrines because it is quite different to other books we have read and I think it is so off the beaton track that our ears like to hear new sounds. I really like the plot. I'd say its probably a sci-fi fantasy adventure book. I like to know that there is a sequel as I will probably read it after I have finished the Tommorrow series by John Marsden. The photographs add a lot of value but also the power of imagination may be taken away slightly but overall the photographs are cleverly chosen and add a '6th Sense' to the book. I think it would be an amazing film but I'm not sure it would appeal to a wider audience. My favourite class novels are Private Peaceful, Animal Farm and Miss Peregrines. I think it is good Andrew T takes the time to read to us I think it is important to relax, imagine, draw and enjoy.

Nicholas

Miss Perigrene - Jim

I think one of the reasons the book is so popular is because it has a little bit of everything. It's adventure, mystery, action and drama. The photos are incredibly important to the story because that is what the story is based around and without them the story would be completely different. I think this story would be fantastic for a movie adaption, even though it has the visual aspect of the photos, with the visual effects of today it would be amazing. I think that reading a class novel adds a lot of value as it actually gets people into reading different types of books on different topics and in a way it connects the class rather than everyone doing their own thing.

Miss Peregrine - ANDREW

Miss Peregrines home for peculiar children is THE BEST BOOK I'VE EVER READ (even though it's Mr. Tait who's reading it. What i like in a book is lots of suspense and adventure, and miss peregrines home for peculiar children has lots of both. i think the book is all genres, adventure, romance (a bit!) action, comedy (not so much) and many other genres.
As ive said, the top book that we've read this year is... miss peregrines. The next would be genesis and lastly the curious incident of the dog in the nighttime .

MALTHUS IS DEAD :(= George

Miss Peregrines is a really good book. I personally think it is tied with animal farm as my favourite class novel of the year. It has great characters and a really good plot. I think it could be done without the photos but it wouldn't have been as powerful. I really liked Malthus and I was sad when he died but it was a hilarious part of the novel. my favourite character is Enoch as his ability is cool. R.I.P Malthus, You shall be missed

Peculiar children-Gus M

Man, we've finally finished MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN. Well I have.  But it's still a great story, even though it had lots of bad language. I think I shall read the whole series. I think it is clever that a lot of athours use real life events in their stories.

Miss Peregrines - Toby M

Why is Miss Peregrine Miss peregrine. She's about 150-something years old, and don't you think she should be married. Another issue is the fact that at the end of the book, everyone dies. I think it is really unfair on Yacob as everything is going wrong for him. Now that I've let out all of the negative thoughts out I'll be positive. The book has a really good plot, and the characters are described really well. The fact that the Hollowghast gets killed by Jacob is really sad as he was an awesome character and he never meant no harm. I really like everyone's abilities and if I could pick one I would choose Emma's, no towels ever needed. I think it's sad that in the end everyone dies(except the Wights and Hollowghasts).

Home for Pecular Children-Luke

I think we have been privileged to read 5-6 very very good novels and a couple of short stories. I think it is very good to have a book listened to once in a while. But you should always read the book after so you pick up all the little things. And if you read it afterwards you can put it on your booklog but if you haven't read it after or before you can't do that.

Miss Peregrine's- Will S

I feel that this class novel has been one of my favourite books I have ever read like a lot of the books we have read I wuld have never chosen it myself but now that it has been read to me I want to read the rest of the series.
One thing I have loved about this book is the fact that something is always happening and there is never a dull moment which I find can happen in some really good books and I know that that takes a lot of work so hats of Ransom Riggs, I also think that this book has made me want to read the other one and it has made my top two books of the year the other one is The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time.
Thanks Mr Tait

Miss Peregrine - Henry C

This is by far the best book that has been read in 7/8T this year. Last year Ender's Game was the best so there is still a bit of a struggle between them both. This has been a really good book because it's one of those books that we would like to read ourselves. I know that Mr Tait wants to read us books that are a bit "off the radar" but sometimes you sometimes it goes a bit far off the radar. So I think k in years to come you should cut out some of the other books we read and add a few more like Ender's Game and Miss Peregrine's House for Peculiar Children. Maybe even in 2016 or something you could read book number one and two in the series.

Miss Peregrine - Mr T

Good afternoon boys.  Last night I got to thinking about our class book list for this year.  I may be wrong but I think you have been privileged to share 5-6 very very good novels and a couple of short stories.   There seems to be an unstoppable surge in good children's literature at the moment. Our current novel (Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children) seems to be creating a bit of a storm in the classroom.  Why is that?  What sort of book is it?  What genre does it fit into (if any)?  What is the power of knowing their is a sequel?  How important are the photographs?  We have talked about transition from book to film.  Is this book begging for a film adaptation?  Why?  A big picture question:  What is your favourite class novel this year (or top three if that is too hard)?  And lastly, why do you think it is important just to be able to listen to a story in a classroom.  What value does it add?

Prødüçtïøñ - andrew

Our house just had its first full run through, and I thought that it went quite  well for a first run through.  I haven't got an acting role but Im in the dance and the marching. it is very exiting to be in the first production of the centennial hall and I cant wait to see the temporary stage. if I could change something  about the production it would be to have more time to prepare. I think we have prodution at wellesley because it is a chance for us boys to act on stage even if we don't want to.

Production - Henry C

It's this time of the year again... Production for me isn't the best thing in the world. I don't think there is any particular good thing about production. It doesn't really light the fire. For production our group is pretty good. Our skit is decent and we have included quite a lot of people. Wellingtons production will definitely be the best part of the production way better than everyone else's ;) The theme for this years production was quite hard to work with I think but we made it into something pretty good.

Production - Jim

I think that production is going well although we probably have to go faster if we want to get done in time. I am putting my acting on the table as a 1914 teacher with a cunning british accent (as cunning as a fox who has just been appointed proffesser of cunning at oxford university). I'm also helping out a little with the script. I think it will be different in centenial hall but sorting out the stage could be awkward. I think my house needs to concerntrate more and really nail it.

Production-Gus M

Yayyyy!! I have a role in the Production. Yes, that's right, i'm the radio anouncer. my last production was when I was in year five when we did the lemonade kid. It ate up a lot of time, but we did it. unfortunately after weeks of practicing the songs and marching round the stage, I ended being sick on the day of the production. But I've already got sick this year and I've got a role to play, and I'm doing it with a British accent. It's pretty good, right?

Production - Callum B

I think that Croydon's production is going really well, but it is a tiny wee bit stressful, as I would have liked more time for Independent Study or my own stuff and hobbies...

I think that I've been cast to play the main character's mum, and I can do an OK girl voice, but I think its going to be fun!

Production - Ben

I think that our prep is chugging along at a decent pace. Marlbrough (i'm not sure about the other houses) have their structure complete so we have two weeks to fill in the blanks. To be honest i'm not "excited" to be performing in the new hall, i would have the exact same enthusiasm if we were doing it in the old hall. If anything i feel anxious because we have never done a production with a hall as big as our new one.

Our house has been cursed with the difficult props curse. We have multiple very complicated props to build in a very short time, plus most of these props are still idea's and nothing more. To be honest I always prefered the "whole school" productions. Since my arrival at the school I have participated in four different school productions, three of them being "whole school" productions and I have enjoyed them more then the "seperate year group" productions.

Production-Harry W

I have been hearing a lot of talk going around the houses about how under the pump they are while I think Mr Parkes is under the pump deciding everybody's roles I do think we are not behind at all. It felt the like we were really behind at the start of the term but we have definitely made up time. I still have no idea what Selwyn or Wellington is doing for their show but I know our (Croydon's) production is quite a lot different from Malborough's. When I got one of the main roles in the year six production, two years ago, I was overjoyed but this year it is a lot different as I am now the one writing the script but I think it will be a great experience for everyone.

Productionne- Theo

Two weeks and we're performing! Time does fly. I think preparation for Marlborough house is going well and I'm excited to be performing in the new hall and hopefully I will be playing the role of Kim Dotcom. I think for Marlborough house there should be a few more speaking roles.

Either way I'm looking forward to it!

Semi-Pro Duction ~ William

In my belief, the production should be a whole school production as it was in 2010 and earlier rather than split into houses and only in the senior school. Weltasia (2010) was an amazing production and EVERYONE in the school did something, same with Heroes (2008). This year and 2012 I don't believe will have anywhere near as much "X Factor" as previous years. I also believe there shall not be as much sing and dance as I am not a huge fan of this. I love watching humorous plays and productions rather than dancing and singing to a song I don't even really like. This year I believe there are not enough roles and everyone should have at least one sentence! At least 80% of Marlborough have nothing to do and are just sitting down until the dance at the end. For us there is no point whatsoever to even come to the practices and really the time spent sitting on the floor watching people practice the script could be spent on the big bad dirty Independent Study

~ This was a Blog Post and I am William ~

Production-Toby C

I love doing production because it give some boys that like acting to perform infront of a crowd. For the senior production we have split up into houses and that's all I am going to say. I like performing infront of a crowd so I am looking ford to it.

Production- Nicholas

I think our production is going along okay but we need to push on. I bring creative ideas, laughter and pasta to the table. I am pretty exited about the production in the hall but the exitment has died down and now the great centennial hall becomes part of school routine. I think the main challenge our house faces is starting practise, it would be good if we could start early so we are well prepared.

If I could change three things about the production they would be:

1. Getting more speaking roles for the boys who want them.
2. The 'run throughs' as I think if we did less we could make the ones we do entertaining and better.
3. The pods for the 2114 boys I think it should be beanbags, sleeping bags and onesies.

Nicholas

The Horrors of the PRODUCTION - Ben S

I really don't like production. I don't mind bringing ideas to the table, but performing in front of other can be challenging. I think this year will be different, though. We have worked really hard on the script, and I think that we can easily tailor the script to suit the actors needs. We have started to audition for the roles and I'm sure the other houses will be doing the same. Production kind of reminds me of the formitable I.S, it starts off slow, then slowly picks up speed, and in the finally weeks its going three hundred miles and hour.

Production (sucks)-Max

Our script is coming together well, and so far is looking good. All I have brought to the table is the main idea of the Marlborough section (the three classrooms) but it has developed and changed. I'm not very excited as I have no "passion for the limelight" as my mum calls it, in fact the complete opposite. Some challenges my house are facing are: Restlessness, talking and procrastination. I think we have a production to give some boys an opportunity to express themselves artistically instead of academically.

PWODUKSHIN=JORGE

The preparation for the Croydon house production is going well and we have all got speaking roles! Personally I am bringing a packet of Doritos to the table. I am not there as i am on holiday so i am trying to help out quite a bit with everything else. I don't think we are really having that many problems but some may pop up later. I agree with Callum because this week it has just been Production production production and seeing as it was tryouts and I wasn't able to do anything i found it extremely boring. I think that we do a production at Wellesley because it is important to get that sort of experience for later in life.

Production- Jesse

I think Marlborough is doing OK at the moment, there are a couple of areas we could improve upon, maybe go a bit faster, but from what I've heard from other houses, we're doing pretty well on time. I like how, with my piano playing, I can bring something to the 'Marlborough Table' and I am really looking forward to the big nights.

I think we have a Production at Wellesley, for the same reason most schools have productions. It helps bring everyone together, everyone gets involved, even if only a few people have big parts. And I think its really good for people who might want to take subjects like Drama and Design for college, it's definitely a good starting point.

Production - Toby M

I'm really looking forward to production day. I haven't been in a production yet, even though I've been here since 2011. It would be good if each house had more time to perform but not drag, on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on, and so on. I think Wellington's production is progressing quite well and we only need to learn it off by heart. In conclusion I am looking forward to it and am enjoying it.

Production-Luke

I think that our production is going well. The only problem is none of the other boys are writing anything. It's good to think that I've written a fifth of the welling\ton production.My only concern is what were going to wear. We know what where going to wear but we don't know how to get hold of the costumes. Over all our house is zooming along and all we have to do now is practise.

Production-Will S

At the moment I am very happy with the way Selwyn is working at the moment and I feel that we are going to be one of the stand out houses. If I could I would love to change the fact that the teachers gave us the topic that we had to base our skit on.
I feel that at Wellesley we have a production for a few reasons but one of the ones that all us boys love is the fact that we get to show off some of our different strengths and it really is a great way for some of the boys at the school to be themselves without being awkward.

Production - Callum H

I find that production is sometimes fun but most of the time extremely annoying. It's not that I don't enjoy doing production but I find that all I want to do is indepent study, indpendant study and more independant study. I find that production is just a nothing thing to freak us boys out about getting our booklet on the shelf.

Production - Mr T

Good morning boys.  In week nine you will be performing in our new hall.  How do you think the preparation is going?  What are you 'bringing to the table'?  How excited are you about being part of the first ever major production in the new Centennial Hall?  What challenges is your house facing?  If you could change three things about our school production then what would they be?  Why do you think we have a production at Wellesley?

Debating-Will S

I feel the debating day was a awesome fun event that has inspired me to possibly take up en I am at college, it was also a very good way for me to practise for speech. The highlight of it was the fact that  my team won.

Debating - William

I was impressed by the standard of this year's 7/8T debating. I was not expecting as much preparation, however, some people (not to mention any names) were not as prepared. I think the ideas were great and also the rebuttal was great.

Debates-Sam

Debating day was really fun for me even though my group didn't win I liked seeing what the other groups had done. The best topic for a debate was euthanasia because it was controversial in real life, the teams for that topic were probably the best two groups because of the reason it was a real life topic. If I was given the opportunity to pick up debating at college I would take it.

Debating - Henry C

Debating for me was interisting. Doing my debate and winning against the other team was actually really fun. Listening to other teams was not as much. The topics that were chosen were really good becuase they were topics that suited year seven and eight debating. Since we learnt about the books and read the books in school everyone knew about the arguments that they were trying to get across and that helped. Sometime it actually didn't help such as the team tht was arguing about why napoleon was a good leader. They didn't have much suppourt becuase everyone knew napoleon wasn't a good leader

Debating debrief - JOSH

I really enjoyed the debating day. I thought it was a really cool way to teach the class about debating. I personally feel that I was clear loud and definitely got my point across. If I were to do this again I would probably slow it down a tiny bit. I felt that Hugh, Tim and Theo did fantastic in their debate and that they really got their points across to me. I feel that the euthanasia debate was the best to discuss about especially since it's such a relevant topic at the moment. I think that adjudicating is a hard job but I was a little disappointed that I got marked down on my preparation for being "too prepared" and I also felt that our adjudicator was focussing more on the actual presentation than the content of our debates. I am definitely going to do debating at Wellington College because debating is such an interesting thing to learn about.

Debating Brief- Harry W

Overall debating was a success (excluding my group) the debates I think were a great success. There was a great amount of talent and great arguments. I think that the standard of the arguments was truly great considering it was our first debate. The rebuttals were also exceptional considering they were made up on the day. I also really enjoyed watching the debates in action.

Debating - Hugh

I think the day went well, although I have say that lots of boys were not a good audience to the speakers. I think I would give my team a 8/10 as we worked well together, had lots of information and we spoke well - apart from a few stutters, hence the 8. If I had another bite of the cherry I would definitely practice my speech as I only had one go at going through my speech before our debate because we took a lot of time writing. I think Jessie's team did really well because they spoke really well and had good arguments. I think the euthanasia topic was the best (I'm not being cocky here) because it was a real life topic, not a 7/8T one. I think the adjudicators did really well under pressure (although I didn't agree with all their decisions). I think I will end up doing debating at college as I really enjoyed delivering the speech!

Debate Day-Ben S

It was rather scary this morning, but in midst of debating, the fear all went away. I had a "180" moment. If I were to do anything differently, I would get started earlier, because it slowed down all my other work, and I think if I started earlier I wouldn't be doing my blog at this time. I would rate my performance at eight out of ten, due to the fact that some of my summary was impromptu, and I stuttered and stumbled when it came to adding in what my team mates were saying.

Debates-Gus M

Man, I'm glad that's over. We finally had the debates and they were great! Everone had to add funny bits to make their message heard, and people went crazy for the 'arkward turtle.'
I was quite happy when my debating team one our debate. But I was also a teeny bit sad that History wouldn't be taught at primary school, but prehaps it's for the best. I don't think will actually have to do that again but I would if I had the chance.

Debating Day- Nicholas

I really enjoyed the debating today, it was really interesting. I think our team did quite well. My rebuttle wasn't that good but my other points were deliverd well and clearly. I enjoyed the eauthanasia debate I think Hugh, Tim and Theo clearly won their debate. It was good the old boys came in to visit us and talk about Coll. Overall I really enjoyed the debating and would like to do it again.

Nicholas

Debate Day - the debrief - Jim

I thought the day went really well as a whole and all the debates were of a high class. I would rate myself an eight or nine out of ten because my team won and I got best speaker. I also really enjoyed ajudicating. It was a close debate that I judged and there were speakers that stood out. I think I would do a bit more preperation if I did it again although you don't want to over prepare. I thought that the euthanasia topic was really good and I thought there were good points from both teams. I think a good reason to do debating is because it really helps with public speaking. A good skill to have for debating is thinking on the spot because that is how you make your rebuttal and also sometimes you need thinking on the spot for extra points in your debate.

Debates - Callum Benfell

I think that our debate went awesome and I'm really proud of myself. Originally I was really nervous as we hadn't really prepared as a team, and Henry had to do an impromptu sum - up. However, I think it really came together, and Henry did amazing.

Well done guys!

Debating Day-Luke

I think our debate didn't go so well. It would have gone better if Max would have come and least written his speech. it was nerve raking when I turned up to school and Max wasn't here and I had to write up his speech in two minutes.

Debate Day Debrief- Jesse

Debate Day was really fun, some of the debates were really interesting.
I felt I did OK, to be honest I was expecting my personal performance to be worse and my team's performance to be better. I would say that Hugh Tim and Theo absolutely nailed their argument for Euthanasia, I was agreeing with everything they were saying.

I thought the adjudicators did pretty well overall considering they had to remain completely unbiased, but I felt they judged it too much on the clearness of speech and the volume of people's voices instead of what they were actually saying.

I am definitely doing debating at Wellington College.

7/8T Debate day - Noah

This morning I woke up dreading today, but after my debate I wish I could've done it again. Although I was disappointed about my topic, its really hard debating for something that isn't. I really wanted to do the euthanasia, being the 'for' side. I think euthanasia should be legit. I mean the government has to much control over what happens. I think people should be able to make the decision if they want to die or not, and how. I know I'd like to die how I wanted, being able to die how you want we would be a nice ending to your life. Anyway back to the debates I think the judges were to concerned on how the speech was delivered and not what the actual points were.

Debate day - Toby M

The Debate is finally over. Sure it has been a lot of fun but it was quite hard. I think I'm not a very good first speaker and if we did it again I would be third speaker. If I had got to choose my moot point and side, then I would be the negative side of  Napoleon was a great leader. Most of my points weren't very good but the one in the summary was quite good. The negative team had some really good points and I think they had some really good rebuttal.

Debate Day - Callum H

I really was not looking forward to the debate day. When it was happening, it was aweseome! I really enjoyed the scribbling notes down furiously part of it. I also enjoyed making funny things up on the spot.

Debate day tobyc

I wasn't looking ford to debating but I really enjoyed it I was working with Noah and Andrew I was the first speaker. I had two parts the start and the end. I was really happy because I my team I was the best speaker according to our adjudicator. My team mate Noah deleted our debate not naming names it was just a accident.

78t debate day

I think the debate day was very fun even though I wasn't really looking forward to it. I was helping noah and toby to write their debates and I didn't judge the time properly and I didn't have any speech for myself although noah did delete the whole thing half way through (no blame on him because it was an accident of course.) Next time I would prepare more of a speech and not just rely on "freestyleling". I think that the history topic was the best for the bebates. the adjudicators did  a very very good job, even if they hadn't had practice and I would like to thank them all.

Debate Day - the debrief

Good afternoon boys - what a day!  We have just completed four very exciting debates and I have been very impressed with the attitude and skill level overall.  How did you think the day went?  Rate your performance.  What would you do differently if you had a second bite of the cherry?  Which team absolutely 'nailed it'?  Which topic was the best topic for a debate?  Who were the strongest three speakers?  How did our four adjudicators perform in their role?  Are you likely to pick up debating at college (if given the opportunity)?  Why do debating?  What skills are the most valuable?

The none of your bees wax end - JOSH

If I were to perform a stocktake I would say that I've made a good start to my Independent Study but that I need to make sure I don't step back and take a breath because time will fly by. I would probably give myself a pat on the back for getting stuck in to the beginning of my work and I would give myself a rocket for taking too much time for each page of work I do. I will need to change what application I use for my independent study because I need to use more than one application so that I don't lose my work. I don't really know what a independent study presentation looks like but I think I've got a rough idea of what my presentation will look like. If I were to swap topics with someone I would probably swap with Callum Benfell's topic which is biomimicry or Ben Ross's topic which is the 1972 Munich hostages. I have been reading last year's independent study quite often and I really enjoy them and I feel like I'm learning from them quite a lot. My ultimate goal this year for independent study is to teach my peers something new and to teach them more about my topic as it's not so well known.

The business end - Jim

I am really glad with my topic choice but now it's time to press down the accelerator and get the tasks done faster and starting/completing more tasks. I'm glad with my interviews I conducted and with the questions I asked. I would give myself a rocket for my presentation because I need to get started which is what everyone tells me to do so I will take their advice. My vision for my presentation is for it to be visual and include lots of pictures because my topic is quite visual and also I want to capture my audience.

Buisness end-Gus M

Well, I have know idea what to do. There is around nine weeks for me to raise $400 dollars and make a presentation for Independant study. I'm not even sure I can pull it off in time. But even if I don't have a great independant study I'll always give myself a pat on the back for myself for my Berlin Blockade and Cuban Missile Papers. I don't think my introduction deserves the same credit. Though I might make it their in the end, because I've got the program of doing on task on my SOLO a week, but this week I'm doing two, including The Cuban Missile Crisis. If I had to swap independant studys with someone else it would probably swap with Sam Paviour-smith and his Gallipoli project.

the business end - andrew ß

I think that I got started on my independent study reasonably quickly, so I would "pat myself on the back" for that. I haven't  started my presentation yet, I'll probably start I reasonably soon, but I don't  have as much pressure as the year eights do on getting it finished but I probably shouldn't think that way because I might start a bit late if I do! I don't really have a  vision for my presentation, but i'm hoping it will go smoothly. if I had to swap topics I would swap with ben stirlings because I dont know lots about nanotechnology.

The Business Interview

The following interview it strictly confidential...

Good afternoon boys.  
Good afternoon Mr. Tait. 

We are halfway through our 3rd term of 2014 and getting towards thebusiness end. 
I know.You did a typo there. There's supposed to be a space between 'the' and 'business'.

In just over eight weeks our Yr 8s will begin their I.S. presentations.  Every minute counts...If you had to perform a 'stocktake' on your own Independent Studies where would you see yourself? 
I think that I'm doing really well, and I've done quite a few activities. Google says that you spelt 'stocktake' wrong.

What is the one single thing you could give yourself a 'pat on the back' for?  
The quality of the writing, probably. I also am proud of how I have loads of rhetoric questions that provoke the readers imagination and act as good 'hooks'.

What is the one single thing you cpuld give 'yourself a rocket' for?  
You did another typo.

What is your 'vision' for your presentation? 
I want it to be really fun and hook the audience in from the start. I know that Biomimicry could be a boring topic, so I intend to spruce it up a bit, and make it really engaging.  

If you had to swap topics (had to...) with another boy in 7/8T which topic would you want to study?  
Probably George's - the Catholic Inquisition. 

What is your ultimatte goal with your I.S. this year?
Probably to win, I guess... but mostly, it would be to make a booklet that I'm really proud of, and 'perform' a presentation that is really fun and different.

So, overall, just to do my best.