Week 6

Māori Creation Myth

In the beginning of time there was nothing, no earth, sea or sky, just darkness. In this nothingness, Ranginui, the sky father, and Papaūānuku, the earth other, came to be. They lay together in a tight embrace. They had many children who lived between them in the darkness.

As the children grew up, they wondered what it would be like to live in the light. Tūmatauenga, the fiercest of all the sons, shouted to his brothers, “Let’s kill them!” The brothers disagreed. Tānemahuta, the god of the forest and birds, had a solution to the problem, “We will push them apart, Ranginui will be in the sky above us and Papatuanuku will stay below us so she remains close.”

Rongomātāne, the god of cultivated food, tried to push his parents apart. He pushed and pushed with no success. Then Tangaroa, the god of the sea, and Haumia-tiketike, the god of wild food, joined him. Together, they pushed and pushed but still their parents would not let go of each other.

Eventually, Tāne tried. He placed his shoulders on his mother and his feet on his father and pushed hard for a very long time. Rangi and Papa called out in distress.

“Why are you doing this?”

“Please don’t separate us.”

Tāne continued to push with his strong legs until finally Rangi and Papa were prised apart.

The children were excited to finally have light and space to move. Tāwhirimātea, the god of the wind, was angry about the separation. He could not stand to hear his parents in pain, or to see the tears coming from Ranginui. Tāwhirimātea shouted to his brothers, “You will forever have to deal with my anger!” as he flew up to the sky to join his father.

Tāwhirimātea fought his brothers with wind, storm, clouds, rain, mist and fog. The trees and plants of Tāne were smashed and crashed to the ground where they became food for the animals and rotted to nothing. The waters of the oceans of Tangaroa rose. Huge waves and whirlpools formed, scaring the fish under the seas and the reptiles into the forests.

Later, when the sea was calm, Tāne created forests and plants to keep Papa warm and clothed, and in the branches of the trees he made homes for the birds. Then he wove a cloak of stars and threw it up into the sky for his father. To this day, we can see the gods and their actions on Earth. Rangi and Papa still miss each other. The rain is Rangi crying for Papa. When there is mist rising from the land, it is the sigh of Papa as she longs for Rangi.

Answer the questions below in full sentences.

1. Who is Ranginui?

2. Why do you think the brothers wanted to be in the light?

3. Who wanted to kill their parents?

4. How did Tāne separate his parents?

5. ‘Tāne continued to push with his strong legs, until finally Rangi and Papa were prised apart.’ What does prised mean?

6. What word could you use instead of prised?

7. Tāwhirimātea shouted to his brothers, “You will forever have to deal with my anger!” How do we deal with Tāwhirimātea’s anger on Earth?

8. What do we (humans) see on Earth that tells us Rangi is missing Papa?

9. Draw a storyboard with one picture for each paragraph of the story.

Shark Fact File

Although a type of fish, a shark’s skeleton is made of cartilage. This is the same material that your ears and the tip of your nose are made from. There are more than 500 different species of shark, including the great white shark, grey reef shark, hammerhead shark, tiger shark, blue shark, bull shark and many others. Scientists believe that sharks have resided in our oceans for around 455 million years. Some species of sharks prefer to live alone while others live in groups called a school, shoal or shiver.

The smallest shark is the dwarf lantern shark which is usually around 17cm in length. In comparison, the largest fish in the world is the whale shark, which can measure up to a massive 14 metres long.

Where do they live?

Sharks can be spotted in all of the Earth’s five oceans: the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic and Southern. Some sharks can even be found in freshwater lakes and rivers and the bull and river sharks can actually live in both freshwater and seawater. Different species of shark live in different oceans depending on the temperature of the water. Most prefer warmer temperatures although polar sharks prefer colder water.

What do they eat?

A shark’s diet depends on its species and where it lives. Most sharks are carnivores because they like to eat fish and other sharks. Some larger sharks eat dolphins, sea lions and small whales. Smaller sharks eat smaller prey such as clams, molluscs, squid, lobster and crabs. Sharks have many replacement teeth, which grow on the inside of their jaws and move forward when needed – a bit like a conveyor belt.

Although some types of shark can be deadly, only about 12 species have ever attacked humans. In fact, shark attacks are actually very rare. More people die from bee stings and natural disasters such as earthquakes and volcanoes each year than shark attacks.

Did You Know…?

Pups (baby sharks) are born already able to take care of themselves. They have to be able to swim away fast as some mothers try to eat their own pups and their own siblings can even attack them.

Shark Senses

Sharks have all the senses that humans have; smell, sight, touch, taste and hearing. The strongest is their sense of smell which is 10 000 times better than a human’s. Sharks can smell a single drop of blood in the water from 400 metres away. They can also hear fish moving from around 500 metres away. Sharks have very good eyesight and they can even see in very dim light which allows them to still hunt in deeper waters. As well as having incredible senses, these skilful predators can swim at great speeds; great white sharks can swim as fast as 28kmph!

Amazing Fact!

Sharks have five to seven gill slits on the sides of their heads. As long as they keep swimming, water keeps moving over their gills, which keeps them alive. Most shark species would die if they stopped moving.

Answer the questions below in full sentences.

1. Describe one way in which sharks and humans are alike.

2. Name 4 species of sharks from the text.

3. What is a ‘shoal’?

4. How long is a dwarf lantern shark?

5. What is special about the bull shark and river shark? Explain your answer fully.

6. Fill in the missing words.

Smaller sharks eat smaller _________________ life like clams, _____________, squid, lobster and crabs.

7. Find and copy a word that means not very common.

8. Explain why sharks are such good predators. Use evidence from the text to support your answer.

9. Make a poster advertising all the great things sharks can do.

Firework Night

By Enid Blyton

BANG!

What’s that?

Bang-Bang! Oh, Hark,

The guns are shooting in the dark!

Little guns and big ones too,

Bang-bang-bang!

What shall I do?

Mistress, Master, hear me yelp,

I’m out-of-doors, I want your help.

Let me in- oh, LET ME IN

Before those fireworks begin

To shoot again- I can’t bear that;

My tail is down, my ears are flat,

I’m trembling here outside the door,

Oh, don’t you love me anymore?

BANG!

I think I’ll die with fright

Unless you let me in tonight.

(Shall we let him in, children?)

Ah, now the door is open wide,

I’m rushing through, I’m safe inside,

The lights are on, it’s wam and grand -

Mistress, let me light your hand

Before I slip behind the couch.

There I’ll hide myself and crouch

In safety till the BANGS are done -

Then to my kennel I will run

And guard you safely all the night

Because you understood my fright.

Answer the questions below in full sentences.

1. Who is the character within the poem? What evidence do you have to support your answer?

2. What are the fireworks compared to? Give evidence for your answer.

3. What does this line suggest about the way the animal is feeling?

“Let me in-oh, LET ME IN” Explain your reasoning.

4. What do we call words like ‘BANG’

5. Why do we use these types of words in poetry?

6. Think of two other words of this type that could be included in this poem.

7. Who do you think is saying this line?

‘(Shall we let him in, children)’

8. What does the animal say he will do to thank his owner?

9. Why do you think Enid Blyton might have written this poem?

Humpty Dumpty - The Truth

This poem describes the origin story of the real Humpty Dumpty - a cannon used by the military.

We all know how the story goes;

That funny old egg with the wiggly toes;

The way he sat on a very high wall

Then came right down with a very big fall.

You know he fell and smashed his shell;

They fixed him up with super-strength gel,

But did you know that's not where it ends?

That Humpty’s a cheat and betrayed his friends?

To understand the real egg story,

Get yourself ready cos it gets a bit gory.

For Humpty wasn’t an egg at all:

He was a big ol’ meaty cannonball!

It starts way back in history;

The exact date remains a mystery.

Let’s set the scene in the Civil War -

The Roundheads wanted a king no more!

They cornered a load of the enemy men,

Who scarpered and hid in a fortified den!

The Cavaliers wanted to keep their king

And were confident Humpty could do this thing.

The biggest cannon; the biggest ball.

Humpty sat on the castle wall.

“I will blast them to kingdom come!”

Humty cried as they beat their drum.

The Cavaliers shouter, the Cavaliers cheered,

Surely, they were the ones to be feared.

But Humpty wasn’t keen on the king -

He didn’t like his crown or bling.

Humpty was a Roundhead at heart -

He loved the way they dressed up smart.

Fighting them was a bad idea

So he waited till they crept up near.

“Shoot ‘em! Blast ‘em!” his comrades screamed;

“In a moment,” the cannonball beamed.

Humpty had no thought of fighting -

In fact, betraying them was quite exciting.

“Quick! Fire Now!” his friends were crying,

“Yes, in a moment,” he carried on lying.

But Humpty wasn’t a clever ball:

As he sat there smiling on the wall

For a simple Roundhead’s point of view,

Smashing him was quite the coup!

They shot their guns and bombs at Humpty

(it was around now he felt a numpty).

The wall around him began to crumble;

Humpty took a fatal tumble.

Down he fell and cracked his head;

All around him his friends were dead.

He lied, he had betrayed;

In lots of pieces now he laid.

All the king’s horses, all the king’s men

Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

That’s the truth! That selfish ball!

A rotten egg falling off the wall.

*a numpty: a silly or foolish person

Answer the questions below in full sentences.

1. According to the poem, what is Humpty?

2. Why do you think the poem starts with: ‘We all know how the story goes’?

3. According to the first verse, what did Humpty do to his friends?

4. What are the names of the two armies fighting each other?

5. ‘Fighting them was a bad idea’. What is the poem talking about, and why is fighting them a bad idea? Give two reasons for your answer.

6. Order the events below with numbers 1 -

The Cavaliers cheered

Humpty fell off the castle wall.

The Roundheads cornered the Cavaliers.

His friends were dead.

The king’s men and horses tried to fix Humpty.

Humpty felt a numpty.

7. What made Humpty feel excited? Why do you think it made him feel this way?

8. Why did Humpty fall off the castle wall?

9. Which words best describe Humpty in the poem? Choose three.

Self-centered

Funny

Uncaring

Brave

Disloyal

Mysterious

10. Predict what might have happened if Humpty hadn’t betrayed his friends.