Kia ora and welcome to the first week of the Summer Learning Journey! We are so glad you have joined us! This week we are going to be learning about people who changed the world through exploration and sport. The people included in this program are only a small number of the exceptional, influential and inspirational
explorers and sportspeople in the world. On Day 5 you will get the chance to choose someone you are
interested in and share what you learn about them on your blog.
Get ready to learn about some brave, strong people who have taken risks and pushed boundaries!
DAY 1: Explorers
DAY 2: Up in the Air
DAY 3: Team Players
DAY 4: Individual Pursuits
DAY 5: Against the Odds
DAY 1: Explorers
Activity 1: Setting Sail [4 points]
People from Pacific nations have always been expert explorers and navigators. In the
past, they used the stars, sun and ocean swells to find their way (navigate) around the
The Pacific Ocean. Master navigator, Nainoa Thompson, has used the ancient Polynesian
wayfinding skills to navigate around the world. In 2013, Nainoa led a crew across the
The Pacific Ocean on two large canoes (Hokule’a and Hikianalia). The crew stopped off in
Aotearoa, New Zealand in 2015 on their journey and visited the Manaiakalani Schools
in Auckland.
I think that it would be difficult to be ‘at sea’ for weeks at a time. I would miss my family
but I would also enjoy the adventure. Let’s imagine that you were invited to join Nainoa
for three weeks at sea. As part of the journey, you have to pack your own food.
For this activity, make a list of ten food items that you could take with you. Please think carefully about what you will take
as you won’t have access to a refrigerator or freezer while at sea. Please explain why you would select each item.
Post your work on your blog
My 10 food items will be...
- Canned food! Canned food would be great when you're traveling at sea because it's very easy to store and it has a very very long shelf life (meaning it doesn't expire that quick)
- Powdered milk! Powdered milk has a shelf life of 1 to 1.5 years so it would be great to bring along on your journey at sea. Powdered milk is also very convenient when making.
- Water! Obviously, I will have to bring water onboard because freshwater is critical when it comes to traveling at sea
- Frozen Grapes! Frozen Grapes are a perfect snack on a hot, sunny day. Even if the grapes defrost, it would still be delicious
- Raw Pasta! Raw Pasta is great when it comes to dinner! Just add hot boiling water and you'll have a great dinner
- Raw Noodles! Raw Noodles are both great raw and cooked. It stores very easily and it fits perfectly if anyone cupboards
- Muesli bars! Muesli bars are great when it comes to snacks! It fits easily in your pocket and you can eat it anytime your feeling peckish
- Tea Bags! I'm not sure if it counts as a food item but I'll count it anyway. Teabags are awesome when it comes to relaxing, just pour some hot water and you'll fall asleep in no time
- MRE packs! MRE packs are a great source of food used by the military. It has a shelf life of five years! which makes it perfect if you ever get stranded on an island.
- Sugar! No one likes having a cup of tea without sweating it. Sugar also has a shelf life of two years! that's why sugar is great to take onboard
Many people believe that Kupe was the first explorer to discover Aotearoa, New Zealand in
about 1300. He navigated his way by waka to Aotearoa from Hawaiki using traditional
Polynesian navigation techniques - just like Nainoa Thompson (from Activity 1) did much later
on. Legend says that he followed a great octopus all the way to Aotearoa/New Zealand and
finally destroyed it in Cook Strait (the water between the North and South Islands).
Many years later, a Dutch explorer from The Netherlands, Abel Tasman, was exploring the
The Pacific Ocean when he came across New Zealand. He thought that he was the first person to
‘discover’ the country (despite the fact that Māori already lived in New Zealand!) and made the
claim in 1642 that he had ‘discovered’ a new land. His exploration of New Zealand inspired
many other European explorers to follow his lead and travel to the Oceania.
Kupe and Abel Tasman were two different men from two very different backgrounds (cultures)
who shared a common interest - exploration.
For this activity, we would like you to think about your own experiences and your own
cultural background. Where does your family come from? Do they come from Europe like
Abel Tasman, Polynesia like Kupe, or somewhere else?
Post your work on your blog
My family background comes from the islands of Tonga! I don't know much about my ancestors but I know that my grandparents are Tongan from both my Mums and Dad's side. My grandpa's dad is Samoa so I do have a bit of Samoan blood in me!
Activity 3: Scaling New Heights [6 points]
Sir Edmund Hillary and his sherpa (guide), Tenzing Norgay, were the first people to
reach the summit of Mt Everest, the tallest mountain in the world in 1953. At the time,
Edmund Hillary was an apiarist (beekeeper) from Auckland, New Zealand. During the
summer he worked as a beekeeper, and during the winter, he climbed mountains.
Becoming the first person to summit Everest was not easy. In fact, Edmund Hillary
attempted (tried) to climb to the top of Mt Everest three times before he succeeded.
He was determined to reach the top!
While this famous explorer and climber is mostly remembered for being the first
person to reach the summit of Mt Everest, he has also made a huge impact on the
world through his charity work. In 1960, Sir Edmund Hillary set up the Himalayan Trust to bring education, healthcare and safe
drinking water to the people of Nepal - the country where Mt Everest is located.
For this activity, please read about two other charities - the SPCA and OXFAM. Choose one of the charities and write a short description of what they do. Who do they help?
Post your work on your blog.
The charity I decided to write about is the SPCA charity. The full acronym of "SPCA" is called "Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals". The purpose of the charity is to prevent cruelty towards animals and to protect and to provide shelter to stray dogs and other animals in danger. The SPCA deals with proper pet care and animal adoption
Malo e lelei Siosaia,
ReplyDeleteMy name is Mani and I am going to be joining you on the Summer Learning Journey as a blog commenter. I am so excited that you are joining us for the Summer Learning Journey 2019-2020.
This year I am so excited that I get to read over the Manaiakalani blogs, especially because I have visited a few of the schools in your cluster. I am really looking forward to summer, aren't you? In my spare time I like spending time with my family and hanging out with my friends. I also love to exercise and write songs in my spare time. What do you like to do in your spare time?
Congratulations on completing your first activity of the Summer Learning journey! I really like the way you have set out your writing and made a proper list for the “Setting Sail” activity. I am super impressed that you have included reasons why you would take the food and how thoughtful they are. I also thought it was very clever of you too add MRE packs to your list! By adding some bright colours or a few pictures of the food items to your blog post I think it would really catch people’s attention.
It is cool to know you are Tongan because I am Tongan too! It is always awesome to be apart of more than one culture. What is your favourite thing about your Tongan culture and Samoan culture? I also appreciate that you have chosen the SPCA as your charity. I think the SPCA is such an awesome charity, my family actually donates money to them. 12 years ago I adopted my first pet animal Elmo who was a cat from SPCA. Do you have a pet and if you don’t, what pet would you like to adopt from the SPCA?
I look forward to reading more of your blog posts Siosaia, Happy posting! :)
Malo,
Mani
Hi Siosaia, I think that you have done a great job completing your first Summer Learning activity. I like how you decided to pick powerderd milk as it lasts a lot longer than regular milk but is still good combined with other foods or drinks. It would definitely go well with your tea! Keep up the good work.
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