Mokoia Intermediate

Welcome to "Pass the Blog!" 2015, our local contribution to Connected Educator Month.

1. What school do you go to?

Mokoia Intermediate is a Year 7 and 8 school in the eastern suburbs of Rotorua.  It takes its name

Wikipaedia

from Mokoia Island, the island in the middle of Lake Rotorua, the home of Tutanekai from the legend about his love for Hinemoa.  Our marae is the one at Hinemoa Point.

I am the Deputy Principal, with responsibility for curriculum and assessment.  I have special interests in eLearning.

2. What is something special about your school?

Lake Rotoma

I love what intermediates are able to do for students from the ages of ten to thirteen. Students get to try a greater range of options such as tech subjects and languages, and their is a big emphasis on movement, fitness and sport.

We have a superb kapa haka group and rock band.

We have a camp every year in Term 1.  It lasts for a whole week.  One year each syndicate goes to the camp at Thornton Beach, near Whakatane.  The next year, they are under canvas on the edge of Lake Rotoma.  The camps are great for team building and leadership.

3. What is something you have enjoyed learning about this year?

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A big unit for us this year was our Term 3 study on World War One and New Zealand.  Students
didn't really realise how different things were in New Zealand in the early 1900s.

Every class got the opportunity to go to the museum.  We are really lucky in Rotorua because our museum is fabulous.  Education programmes are tailored to our area and free.  The teachers are amazing!  We also get a free bus trip to go.

4. What do you most like about living in Rotorua?

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wikipedia/commons/d/d9/MTB_
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I love that we have amazing scenery including the thermal activity and a huge number of lakes. The lakes and the Redwood forest mean that lots of outdoor activities are catered for.  A wide range of sport and cultural activities are available for children growing up in our town.

5. What do you most like doing on your computers/iPads/devices at school to help your learning?

I love blogging! It's a great way to share ideas and communicate with a real audience.  I have my own blog and so do lots of classes and students at Mokoia Intermediate.

6. Is there anything else you'd like to share about yourself, your learning, your class or your school?

I get excited when our students become the teachers.  It's great to see students who are experts at coding, speaking or their sport.  I love teaching because I love learning.

(All images are posted under a Creative Commons licence.)