Mitchell - Visual Mihi 2018 ( 400th Blog Post )

Hey Bloggers! Here is my visual mihi I created for this year! It includes the cross to represent Jesus and Christianity, two pacific island flags to represent my culture, items that represent that I love travel and to also show I love family.

Thanks For Reading!

By Mitchell.M

22/02/18

p.s - click on picture to see more, 400th blog post!

Summer Learning Journey - Day #3 : It's All In A Family

Hey bloggers! Today is Day #3 of the Summer Learning Journey. I was really busy today so I'm posting it now! Let's Begin.

Activity 1 : The More, The Merrier?

My Family!

In the 1800's most families were pretty big. In fact, many parents had an average of seven to nine children. I have been asked to imagine that I was a family member of nine and I have been asked if I would like it and how would I feel. Well first of all I have a really big family loving cousins, protective uncles, caring great - grandparents and heaps more family, So I wouldn't mind. So yes, I would enjoy it. I love FAMILY!

Activity 2 : Acknowledging Ancestry

A Traditional Dance performed
by Native Lauans from Lakeba, Fiji

Now all of us are family members! Members of a big family or even a small family. In Te Reo Maori sometimes people use a way of Acknowledging Ancestry. I have been asked to write my own pepeha. It's included with my special mountains and rivers and islands that are important in my ancestry. Here it is!

Kia Ora!
Ko Lakeba,Fiji te Maunga 
Ko Lau, Fiji - channel te River
Ko Sema Makawa te Waka
Ko Niumataiwalu toku Tipuna
Ko Vuanirewa toku Iwi
Ko iTaukei toku Hapu
Ko Levuka,Lakeba toku Marae
Ko Viti & Tonga Ahau
Ko Winifereti raua Ko Fisilau oku Matua
Ko Mitieli ( Mitchell ) toku ingoa.
No reira tena koutou, tena koutou, tena ra tatou katoa. 

That is my pepeha! It's really important once you realise you have a lot of ancestry like me! I hope you enjoyed reading it!

Bonus Activity : Fun Family Facts

Image Attribution

On my blog I have been asked to interview three family members from my family and ask them what are their 2 favourite things to do in summer!

My Mum :

1. She likes to go swim at the pools and the beach!
2. She likes to go camping at camp sites!

My Sister ( Levonah ) :

1. She likes to go out to places such as : arcade, theme parks, city ( etc.
2.She loves to eat! Her favourite foods are Pancakes!

My Sister ( Leonora ) :

1. She likes to go Ice Skating!
2. And she likes going to the pools!


Thank you for reading today's blog post!

Thanks for reading!
By Mitchell.M
20/12/17

P.S - 5 more day until Christmas!

Travel Blog Post - Day #5 (Hawaii) Volcano!

Hey bloggers! So yesterday me and some of my family went to go look at some volcanoes! It was really cool to look at and go sightseeing so let me tell you what we did!

The Hawaiian Sacred Lands!

So the night before we went to go look at the volcanoes we were staying at an hotel in Kona on the other side of the big island! We were in Kona because we were supposed to go fly to Seattle but the flight was full so we stayed at an hotel!

They day after we drove back to Hilo and on the way we saw some animals! They were goats who looked like they could potentially kill us! Anyways we took some photos with these statues shaped like owls and we knew it was scared land which had alot of history on it by looking at an map. So we jumped back into the car and drove to Hilo, Hawaii!

The Cave!

Sacred Lands!

When we got there we met up with my uncle and aunty and decided to all go sightseeing some volcanoes! When we arrived at the Hawaii National Volcano Park we got to go up this path which lead us to the volcano!

Inside the cave!

The volcano was named Mauna Kea and had a lot of history! They last time it erupted, I think it was in 2008 or 1980. I'm not pretty sure, but guess what we saw real lava! It was really exciting and it looked like a lake of fire!

It was pretty cool and inside a gift shop/history shop we read some stories on history about the volcano which was pretty cool! If you have watched the movie Moana you would've seen the volcano - Te Ka which was pretty evil!

Well she was based on a true woman named Pele! Native Hawaiians believe that Pele a woman who eventually turned into a volcano erupted and is now believed to this day that she still lives in the deep volcanos! It also told stories of how ancient polynesians discovered the Hawaiian Islands and found that volcanos had been erupting when they already go there, which was pretty cool!

Laavaa!!!!

Anyways we went to these blow holes and out came hot steam which made me sweat really fast! It was really awesome! Inside you could see people had thrown coins in the holes and made wishes to Hawaiian Volcano Gods according to a sign there. After that we went to a cave which was really dark and had lava that used to flow in the cave.

Well that's it for now!

Thanks for reading!
By Mitchell.M
06/09/17

Blow holes!

Sightseeing!

Mitchell's Speech - My culture is important

Good Morning! Here is my speech about why culture is important!

Reason 1: I think culture is important because it’s really important to remember your ancestry.

Culture! Have you ever wondered about your culture? I’m pretty sure you’ve been wondering about where you originate from right? Well you probably do know your Samoan,Tongan, Cook Island and Maori, but it’s time to think back. It’s pretty important to remember your heritage. Like what if you have royal blood, that’s something really important to cherish.

Did you ever wonder about where your great grandmother’s mother is from? They may be from Russia, Tahiti, or even Kenya! That’s meaning that you’re ancestors are from different places!

Reason 2: Another reason why culture is important is because your Family Tree and Ancestors may have different origins.

Did you know? - that your many of your ancestors have all came from different origins. For example let’s say your great,great,great,great,great grandmother from Tonga married your great, great, great, great, great grandfather from Germany! That may mean you have German traces in your DNA, if your grandparents have German DNA.

Reason 3: The last reason why you’re culture is important is because your language is important too.

If you’re fluent in your native language you have a very special talent! I think learning your native language is important because what if it dies out. Imagine one day the native language of your country has died out because people have forgotten or lost the traditional ways. It also represents your identity and culture and also your family!

Reason 4: My culture!

Finally let me tell you why my culture is important! My ethnicity conclude of Fijian and Tongan descent with some German. On my Fijian family I am a descendant of the Vuanirewa Dynasty that has ruled the Lauen Island since it first has been discovered so that is a big part of my culture! With my Tongan Family I am from the Islands of Ha’apai and from the Village of Pe’a on Tongatapu.

Thanks for reading!

By Mitchell.M

07/08/17

Making Slime!

Hey bloggers! Today me and my sisters were very bored. Watching TV, Playing games whatever. Well then we decided to make Slime! We asked our mum and dad and they said yes! So we left in the car to the $2 dollar shop to get some ingredients.

We got 3 bottles of glue from the $2 dollar shop in Glen Innes called "Super Saver". We got 3 bottles because my other sister was at a sleepover. Then we went to Pak'n'Save to buy some Shaving Cream and Food Colouring. Lastly we went to Martha's Backyard to get some Laundry Detergent for our Slime activator. Also Tide is a American Laundry detergent brand and also is the most popular laundry detergent in the USA.

Here is 1 slime recipe we made up: - I took this photo and also edited it. This is my sister's bubblegum slime.

You will need:

1 bottle of glue - ( 4 - 8 oz)

3 - 5 pumps of body lotion - optional

1/2 cup of Shaving cream - If you want fluffy slime

Food colouring - If you want colour

Scents - Bubble gum flavour

Laundry detergent - (Only Tide will work) - You can buy tide from Martha's Backyard.

Instructions: First add the glue into a bowl - the amount of glue you put in, will be the size of your slime

Then if you have food colouring add it now and mix.

Then mix in your lotion - optional and shaving cream - optional.

Then add any some bubble gum scent into your slime.

Then you will need to add the slime activator into your mixture.

Add bits of laundry detergent into your slime. As you can see it will start to thicken and that is when you will need to knead with your hands. There you go that's how you make bubble gum slime.

Now I will show you how to make blueberry fluffy slime!

1 bottle of glue - ( 4 - 8 oz)

3 - 5 pumps of body lotion - optional

1/2 cup of Shaving cream 

Food colouring - If you want colour - blue is the colour of the laundry detergent

Scents - Blueberry flavour

Laundry detergent - (Only Tide will work) - You can buy tide from Martha's Backyard.

First add the glue into a bowl - the amount of glue you put in, will be the size of your slime

Then if you have food colouring add it now and mix.

Then mix in your lotion - optional and shaving cream.

Then add any some blueberry scent into your slime.

Then you will need to add the slime activator into your mixture.

Here some pictures of our slime in the making!

Mixing glue

Shaving Cream

Glue and Shaving Cream

Tide - Laundry Detergent

Body lotion - Nivea

Glue - Glue bottle

Adding laundry detergent

Mixing

Stretching the slime

Stretching again

More stretching

Squishing the slime

Done!

We also made slime with my sister's friend and her sister too! Well that's it for today. I hope you like my slime tutorial!

Thanks for reading!

By Mitchell.M

4/06/17

Mitchell's Holidays!

Guess what? In the holidays I had an amazing time. My baby cousin was born, we went to go get Ice Cream from Pokeno, We went to the night markets, We saw the live television show Sidewalk Karaoke, We went to Hamilton with family, we made blanket forts, we watched the fate of the furious, ate easter eggs, went on a double decker bus for the first time, go to the city, we went to a wedding and so much more! Let me tell you.

Also if you would like to see more of my holiday check out my blog! On the first day of the holidays I think it was easter. We got to eat heaps of chocolate eggs and bunnies! I also blogged about that too.

On the first week as well I went to a huge wedding for my aunty and uncle. It was at a Tongan Church in Glen Innes. There was heaps of people watching and I saw heaps of my cousins too!

There is so much more to tell you! I went to Hamilton with other family so my nana’s hair could get done. While we were waiting we went to go look at some cool shops in the mall and also eat delicious things. I got to eat some Subway. Also after that we went to Hamilton night markets and also got to see the television show Sidewalk Karaoke.

Then a few weeks later me and my family went to Pokeno to get some Ice Cream. I got the 2 flavours Peaches and Cream and Mango Ripple. Mmmmmm…..delicious. It was really sweet so I enjoyed it heaps.

On that same week we went to go get Ice Cream me and my sisters were very lucky to go watch a movie at New Lynn movies. We watched separate movies. I watched Fate of the Furious and my sisters watched The Lego Batman movie. It was sooo cool!

The week before me and my sisters made Blanket Forts. We got some light blankets and spread them around some chairs and the couches. Then we got some comfortable pillows and blankets and put them under. Then we all watched a movie. Those are some good childhood memories.

Then on the last week of the holidays we got to catch a double decker bus to Auckland City! Me and my sisters were so excited. Thanks to my mum we had so much fun. When we arrived we looked in some shops and went to the port to view the World Masters Games for 2017! It was really fun, we ate pizza, we went on bouncy castles, went to different workshops, and we even got to meet Maria Tutaia.

Well anyways that’s what I did for my holidays. Ohh one more thing my new baby cousin was born her name is Lucia. She is so cute. Anyways comment down below what you did in the holidays.

Thanks for reading!

By Mitchell.M

09/05/17

Making Blanket Forts!

Hey blog viewers! Guess what? Today me and my sisters decided to make some blanket forts! It was really fun making the blanket fort. Here is some instructions on how we made our very own blanket fort!

Blanket fort

First we grabbed 4 chairs from our kitchen and placed them in the living room. Then we got a hold of some light blankets from our bedrooms and put them over and around the chairs. Also we had some hanging off some of our couches.

After we did that it wasn't finished yet. We added some light blankets to go on the floor and also got some cushions and stuffed animals. We also bought some snacks and were eating them if we were hungry. Then we added some books and some devices!

Me and my sisters each have a room in between the 4 chairs. Here are some pictures of our fort: 

I hope you like our blanket fort we made!

Thanks for reading
By Mitchell.M
24/04/17

We also will be watching a movie tonight at Hoyts Sylvia Park!

Some snacks and a drink

My room

Reading area

Centre of the blanket fort

My sister's room

Mitchell - Road trip to (Hamilton) - and Ice Cream

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Hey blog viewers! Guess what? Yesterday afternoon me and my family took a road trip down to Hamilton with some other family members so my grandmother could do her hair at her friends Hair Salon.

We also ate from some of the nearby fast food restaurants in Hamilton Mall called Centre Place! I had some subway and my sisters had McDonald's. After my grandmother did her hair we had the opportunity to go to the Hamilton night markets. It was so cool!

We bought some food and drinks and we even had the most amazing time there too, because we saw the live recording of the Maori television show : "Sidewalk Karaoke". 
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                                                                  Sunday
Guess what? Today we went to drive down to Pokeno to go get some Ice Cream! We first parked in a parking spot and walked in. Did you know that there are 2 ice cream shops right next to each other? That was pretty cool but we decided to go to the one on the left "Pokeno Ice cream and Coffee".  I think that was the name. Anyways I picked my two flavours with my sisters. 

I choose the flavour Peaches and Cream and Mango Ripple! Here is a picture of mine:
<------------------------------

Have you ever gone to get Ice Cream from Pokeno?



Thanks for reading
By Mitchell.M
23 and 24-/04/17

Sidewalk Karaoke picture ------------------------------------------->

Easter Sunday! - Holiday blogging #2

Good morning blog viewers! Today is Easter Sunday, the day Jesus rose from his tomb. Well today I am going to a wedding. It's my aunties wedding and we will be going to a Tongan church to celebrate. 

Anyways we got some more Easter eggs. Here are some pictures: 

Also we are getting some more from our family. We also had a big surprise yesterday night! We were going to our grandmothers house and my aunty and her newborn baby were there with my uncle. She is really cute. 

We will also see them tonight too. We might even go to the Royal Easter show that will be held at the ASB showgrounds!

Well that's it and I will catch you in my next blog post. 

Thanks for reading
By Mitchell.M
16/04/17

Happy Easter! - Holiday blogging #1

Hey bloggers wherever you are in the world. Happy Easter! That's right it's Easter Friday. Long ago Jesus died on the cross for everyone's sins. Yep on a Friday he died for our sins. A sin is a (bad thing) that you may have done. 

Did you know everyone in the world has sinned. Well today Christians celebrate Easter and thank him for dying on the cross and saving our lives. Right till today he is living in Heaven with God.

Well since people around the world have been celebrating Easter, over the years Easter eggs were invented. Did you know back when Easter eggs were invented people used chicken eggs and painted them with colourful colours just to celebrate Easter.

Now days it's made out of chocolate, some hollow, some filled with a surprise but every single one of them is wrapped with foil or in a box. Today we will go shop for some more and my mum will hide them. 

Do you have Easter eggs? Are you celebrating Easter with your family?
Leave a comment below if you are celebrating Easter!






Thanks for reading
By Mitchell.M
14/04/17

Happy Easter everyone!

The Big 2017 Polynesian Celebration!

Chehuuuuu! Guess what? Yesterday Team 5 got the opportunity to experience the 2nd day of Polyfest along with some other schools! The trip was for us to experience and learn more about our Polynesian culture. The stages that had cultural groups performing on were the Maori stage, Cook Island stage and the Diversity Stage! I really wanted to watch the Samoan and Tongan stages but they start on Friday and Saturday! We arrived on a bus and waited in line for about 5-10 minutes then we got to go inside well actually outside.

My 1st highlight happened when we arrived and got to attend some of the workshops. Some workshops were finding out about the ancient culture and traditions about our people.  Plus we saw a lot of stalls selling Island related stuff you could wear and eat. My group also got to go to a workshop called “Te Wananga o Aotearoa where they, had a 360 degree camera and record us with some cool moves!

ASB Polyfest 2017 Logo.

After participating in all of these fun workshops we had the opportunity to get into groups and spread wild! We got to go to different stages to watch people perform, do fun activities and heaps more! Even some of my family was there cheering on my cousin, as she was performing on Diversity Stage in the Fijian group. Also today, my aunty will be performing in a Tongan group for AGGS. After watching a few performances we were hot and dying to jump into a pool. We were so exhausted we went to buy some drinks to cool us down. Finally we got to watch some real action go on with the hard pukana’s and the hard poi movements, but I was really dying to go watch some Tongan and Samoan stages.

Us in the bus going back to school.

Lastly it is really important for students to participate in a polyfest group because it is priority to learn about your traditions in your culture and learn the dances of the ancestors that were there before you! Join a polyfest group even if you're Chinese or Indian, find out if there is a Diversity stage group in your school, but it is really important to join a polyfest group to follow the footsteps and the ways your ancestors shared.

It hit 2:00 and it was time to travel back to school! No… I didn’t want to leave, well at least I was coming back on Saturday where the Tongan and Samoan stages were on. Yay! Anyways we lined back up and hopped back into the bus and we went away! Also we got to take back some awesome gifts from the polyfest workshops such as: Mobile phone fans, Calendars, Posters, Temporary tattos and heaps more to explore and have fun with!

Thanks for reading and I hope this makes you want to go to Polyfest and learn about polynesian culture!

By Mitchell.M

|| Mitchell - Visual Mihi || - 2017

Hello! Here is my Visual Mihi I have created on Hyperstudio. We have been asked to draw down 4 things that is important/special to us. Let's begin! In the top left corner are some flags which represent my culture/nationalities. It is the Tongan and Fijian flag flying on a pole with a small icon - a coconut tree which represents the islands. In the top right corner is a Bible and a cross in the sky which represents the lord Jesus, my religion Christianity. In the bottom left corner is letters going across which spells Family. Underneath it is a big red heart with some diamonds on them which means I love my family/them. In the bottom right corner is some icons such as a plane,suitcase,coconut tree,camera,and the statue of librety which represents Travel. I love to travel. And the last one in the middle is a drawing of me. 

Thanks for stopping by.

By Mitchell M.

28/02/17

Mitchell - Summer learning journey Day 16 - National Celebrations

Hello bloggers. Today is Day 16 the first day of Week 4. It is also the last week and my journey will end in 4 days so let's make the most of it.

Activity 1 - National Day
I have been asked to imagine I am visiting the country I have chosen on the National day. Since I have chosen Japan I have been asked to tell you what I would eat see and do on that day. What I would eat on that day would be Ramen. Mmmmmm I have always wanted to taste Ramen. I'll bet you it tastes delicious! The place I would love to see/visit would be the Ghibili Museum. I have always wanted to go there since I watched several of "Hayao Miyazaki's films. My favourite one is Spirited away. I rated it a 10/10. Last of all I have been asked to tell you what I would do. I would visit the Universal Studios in Japan. I would ride every single ride I see. I'm sure it would be super fun.  



Activity 2 - Public day
I have been asked to create a brand new public holiday for the country I have chosen Japan! I have decided to name the Public holiday: Kindness day. People would celebrate by being kind. Such as : Giving out food,helping people and all kinds of stuff. Everyone would meet at the nearest city at night time to light fireworks. Then have a big feast with different kinds of Japanese foods. 

Bonus - Waitangi Day
In New Zealand our national holiday is on 6 February. It is called Waitangi Day. Me and my family sometimes travel up to Waitangi and celebrate with a big crowd. Or even we get together with some other family and just have lunch. It's a really special day to remember the Treaty of Waitingi when they signed the treaty for the english to reside in New Zealand. Now those english people are called Kiwi's just like everybody else who lives in New Zealand.

Thanks for reading
By Mitchell M.
18/01/17