School Journal
On this page: Part 1 Number 4, 2006 | Part 2 Number 3, 2006 | Part 3 Number 3, 2006 | Part 4 Number 3, 2006 | New online teachers’ notes | Teachers of year 7–8 students
School Journal, Part 1 Number 4, 2006
“What Do You Want for Dinner?” by Tadpole. Dad and the kids buy fish and chips as a treat for dinner, but a series of disasters leaves the family wet and hungry.
“Fifita’s New Broom” by Jill MacGregor. The teacher’s broom is too big and heavy for Fifita, so he makes his own from a coconut palm frond.
“Walking on the Grass” by Sun Lyoung Kim. A child and her mother who have just arrived in New Zealand from Korea are nearly run over because they don’t know that it’s OK to walk on the grass in New Zealand.
“Listen Up” by David Hill. Toni’s big sister keeps bumping into things while texting on her mobile phone. It turns out that her texting-addicted friends have the same problem!
“Flying Boats and Coral Islands” by Sandra Carrod. Max and his parents visit Kiribati with some scientists who study coral. They find the coral, which grows underwater, with the help of a flying boat.
“Sand Circle” by Briar McMahon is the poem in this Journal.
SJ1406, distributed July 2006.
School Journal, Part 2 Number 3, 2006
“Tears of the Albatross” by Tawai Te Rangi. Retold in English by Radha Sahar. This narrative, told in the style of a traditional tale, is about the triumph of good over evil. Young twins rescue two albatrosses from a cave where a selfish villain has trapped them. The tears of the albatrosses guide the children to the birds and, once rescued, the albatrosses give the children some of their feathers.
“Summing up Dad” by Desna Wallace. In this humorous fictional recount, Danielle and Adam describe their father’s eccentric behaviour as he teaches them metric measurement in a way they are unlikely to forget.
“Fish Drive” by Jo Phillips. This factual recount describes the procedure of a Fijian fish drive, told from the perspective of visitors who observe from the beach.
“Stepping Out” by David Hill. A series of email communications tells the story of an out-of-control invention and the havoc it causes.
“Sing Your Heart Out” by Robin Nathan. This spoof on TV talent shows and the people who watch them is sure to raise issues and generate lively discussion.
“There’s a Wonton on My Pompom” by Julie Hutton is the poem in this Journal.
SJ2306, distributed July 2006.
School Journal, Part 3 Number 3, 2006
“Saying Goodbye” by Philippa Werry. Carlos isn’t always patient when it comes to his poppa’s stories, but one day he learns that the past is worthy of respect.
“The Great Crayfish Escape” by Caroline Foote. A light-hearted story about the challenges of helping to liberate the much-anticipated evening meal.
“How to Be a Dog’s Best Friend” by Jan Farr. A poem that contains simple advice for winning over your canine companion.
“Tender Feet” by Feana Tu‘akoi. In this play, Medicine Maker must find a way of protecting Chief Tender Feet’s feet – or lose her job.
“Finding China” by Eva Wong Ng. When she was eleven, Yani Hung did an amazing thing: on her own, she travelled to Shanghai, where she attended boarding school for six weeks. Read about her daring adventure.
“Meet the Kākāpō” by Maggie Lilleby. Three lucky children have the opportunity to meet some kākāpō chicks, which are being raised in a secret location near Nelson. Why did they get the chance to go – and what did they think?
SJ3306, distributed October 2006.
School Journal, Part 4 Number 3, 2006
“Red Surfer Riding” by Sue Gibbison. It’s high tide at Shipwreck Bay in Northland, and day one of the National Surfing Championships. Will the current title holder, Jess Santorik, win two years in a row?
“Richard Henry: Protector of the Kākāpō” by Lindy Kelly. Richard Henry was so focused on saving the kākāpō that he moved to remote, inhospitable Dusky Sound, where he could better care for them. Read about this dedicated man, working at the end of the nineteenth century.
“Doctor in the House” by Anna Kenna. When your dad’s a doctor, death isn’t exactly an alien concept, but in this story, it’s brought even closer to home when the narrator’s father is accused of making a fatal mistake in the operating theatre.
“Gifts from the Moon” by Jacqui Brown. A family’s trip to the beach to dig for toheroa turns up an unexpected surprise when the children spot something unusual in the creek.
“A Great Day for a Ride” by Diana Noonan. The queen wants to go for a bicycle ride in the country – but it’s only 1800, so which royal adviser will get the unpleasant task of informing Her Majesty that the bicycle hasn’t yet been invented? A fun play about the pitfalls of dealing with royalty.
“In Other Words” by Glenn Colquhoun. A poem that celebrates life and the wonderful possibilities of literature.
SJ4306, distributed October 2006.
New online teachers’ notes for the School Journal, Parts 3 and 4
An initial set of teachers’ notes for ten texts selected from recent Parts 3 and 4 of the School Journal is now available online. Rather than notes being developed for every piece published in Parts 3 and 4, a variety of pieces will be selected and notes developed to support a range of teaching purposes. The first set of notes supports the comprehension strategy of inferring. The notes follow a similar format to those for Parts 1 and 2 of the School Journal.
The suggestions in the Parts 3 and 4 notes provide support for teachers as they use assessment data to plan “next steps” for their students. The notes show you how to help students develop and use strategies and processes to make meaning and think critically about texts.
Many of these notes include suggestions for exploring language, especially for building vocabulary, and make explicit links to writing. You can adapt these models of effective teacher practice to meet your students’ needs, using either the selected texts or other reading materials.
This first set of notes includes an online feedback form. Please complete and send it to help us better meet your needs in further sets of notes. These online-only notes will be made available on Te Kete Ipurangi at School Journal Teachers’ Notes
Attention, teachers of year 7 and 8 students
See the June 2006 issue of Resource Link for details about submitting your students’ work for the 2007 Journal of Young People’s Writing; or, to download a flyer with this information, go to the Learning Media website.