Pale light shone through the clouds in a weak attempt to make this day better. However, nothing could and it seemed as though nobody would even try to lighten the mood. Today was the day I would leave home perhaps forever. Today was the day I would become a soldier. “You’re making us proud.” My mother whispered in my ear as I boarded the train that would lead me to my new life. My sister pressed a brown package in my hands crying bitterly. Then I was pulled inside and I was left, surrounded by unfamiliar faces. I stumbled back into a seat and pressed my hand against the window waving goodbye. “That might be the last time you ever see them.” A harsh voice in my head whispered. The train moved slowly through the countryside, giving me plenty of time to think. What lay ahead? Cold winters? The sound of guns firing? Screams of pain? The train screeched to a halt. We had arrived. I was ushered towards a room containing eight beds, this was a prison it occured to me. We were on deathrow, destined to suffer. I peeled the brown tape off of the small parcel revealing a memory. I clutched the frame to my chest and flopped back on the bed and thought of what was to come.

Reading Recorder

Over the last week you have been working hard consolidating your skills in reading. Some have jumped many levels on Readtheory - congratulations. Please write a few lines identifying a skill that you have developed or improved this week and explain, with evidence, how this skill improvement has helped you! Skills to think about: inferencing, re-organising, predicting, skimming and scanning, re-read/read-on, evaluating, clarifying, questioning etc

Vocabulary Wizard!!

You have had a list of words to read, learn and understand. Your challenge is to create a short paragraph for any purpose (entertain, persuade, explain etc). You must use these words carefully and skilfully!!! Good luck!

The media is an inconvenient part of the modern world!
Individuals or groups of people play a major role for their company; to ensure they get as much information as possible out of a famous or infamous person. Using this information they have extracted, the company then alter it all it sound very dramatic, adding in false references to try and back up their (now) false information. This style urgently needs to be evaluated and reconstructed as it is destroying peoples lives.

National Champion

Congratulations to Pascale and her achievement in being named the national junior dog handler of the year. It is so great to see her hard work paid off with this success...

Go to the link to find out more about her wonderful achievement.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/bay-of-plenty-times/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503343&objectid=11340396

Swatting

Just a reminder of the testing that is coming up. Remember to work on and consolidate the learning from earlier this year. I have attached the class brainstorm of what might be needed for the end of year testing...

Have your vote!!

#100 Days Of Learning Day One

#Day 1 I learnt  that their are security cameras almost everywhere. #Spooky        

                                                       

Room 19 - Reading Survey

Every time you finish a book, please take the time to fill this form in. It will give insight to the books that you read and your thoughts on the book and author. This will be ongoing for the rest of the year.

Surveillance Society

Surveillance is growing at an exponential rate across the globe. While there are many supporters of this advancement there are many who are critical of the use of this ever-growing technology. Please debate the impact of surveillance digitally through the comment windows below to contribute to your teams oral debate. points will be given for valid points based on evidence from your readings.

Let the debate begin!!

All year eights please fill out!!!

From the shadows...

Today Rm 19 had their first session in the Life Ed van. It was great to finally begin the lessons and as always, the learning was memorable. 

Please comment below with something you learnt or thought was important in our first lesson.

Year 8 Yearbook

Surveillance Power

So far this term we have been exploring the idea of a Surveillance Society. It seems that everywhere we turn there is some system or technology that is tracking, monitoring or watching us. With the claim that there is 6 000 000 CCTV cameras in action in the United Kingdom and that the average person is captured approximately 300 times per day by these same cameras, it is timely that we investigate what systems of surveillance are in use. 

Comment below by discussing a different surveillance method. You must include information about the positive uses of this surveillance, the negative uses and the possible challenges that may occur.

What will you do differently?

I found this video really inspiring. I hope you do too. Comment what you will do differently!

Totara Movie Clip

During Term 2 a group of Totara students planned and created an interactive movie clip to illustrate the diversity of Totara. We wanted to showcase what it means to be part of this historical house.

NZSO 'WOUNDED HEARTS'

Recently (Just before) I went to the Baycourt central Theater to a concert presented by the New zealand Symphony Orchestra called 'Wounded Hearts.' Apparently, a cellist from America came a long way to play a couple of concertanates with the NZSO.

Firstly, they started with Manfred Overture Op.115 composed by Robert Schumann, followed by Sinfonia Concertante in E minor, Op. 125 1,2,3 movements. Then for the second part, They played Symphony No.1 'Titan' Movements 1,2,3,4 composed by Custav Mahler, and Symphony No.6 'pathetique', Op.74.

I personally thought that the symphony No.1 the titan was pretty amazing as it was composed in late 19th century and early 20th century. Also at first how they set their groups were interesting. However, as I went through the concert, I realized that cello was the main instrument that night .

Just Watch It!

My dad showed me this after coming home from Wellington for a couple of weeks. Its crazy how you don't even realize what's going on when your focused on one specific thing!!!! Ella

Since we have The FIFA world cup going on, I thought that some soccer failure would be good. Enjoy! and Adu!

Some rugga

I just thought that with all the soccer it might be nice for some rugby

Here is a video me and my Dad's friend put together on my science fair project using a program called prezzie...
- Morgan

Winner stays on

This is related to soccer world cup should watch epic

Master Chef Duo '14

Congratulations to all teams that participated in Tauranga Intermediates Master Chef Duo™ competition!!! Here are the names and some placings of the teams that made it to Cook off 1 in Totara (following approximately 4 rounds before that). excuse my spelling!
★ Helena & Pascale ~ Purple Pineapples ~ 1st heat 3
★ Bryana & Cassie ~ Sweet and Sour ~ 5th heat 3
★ Robbie & Adam ~ Food ~ 3rd heat 2
★ Ashley & Ella ~ Boo ~ 8th heat 2
★ Bayley & Kirsten ~ Purple Chocolateers ~ 1st heat 1
★ Poppy & Aisha ~ Popaish ~ 6th heat 1

☺︎CONGRATS TO THE TEAMS MOVING ON TO THE 2ND CHALLENGE!!!☺︎
VIEW RESULTS AND DISHES ON.... http://tisfoodtech.blogspot.co.nz

2013 Super Bowl's Funniest Commercials Collection !

I was browsing YouTube and came along this one. enjoyyy!¡!

Funny Soccer Moments '13 and '14

I laughed way too hard at this... Seeing it's Fifa World Cup, I thought this soccer video would relate. Enjoy :)

This is a video with some facts about social media:)
- Morgan

Magnetic grip survey

OK Go - The Writing's On the Wall - Official Video (Writing is on the wall)

Here is another video from the 'OK GO'. Again they have up loaded a song called 'The Writing on the Wall' with video of writings on the wall. Enjoy and Adu!!
 

OK Go - End Love - Official Video (Time Lapse)

Yesterday I was surfing through internet and found a cool group of people writing a song and presenting it with a cool video. They are called 'OK GO'. Enjoy:-)

Funny cats

I thought that this was kind of related to the other cat video (dear Kitten)

10 Amazing Science Experiments you can do with Eggs

I thought that this related to science fair

Inspirational video of Derek Redmond who tore his hamstring and still completed the race with help from his Dad NEVER GIVE UP. Hope you enjoy.

Dear Kitten

I saw Charlie's video about how animals saw things and started thinking about how they think. So I found this video on Youtube and thought it really expressed what cats think.

Sam's Science Fair

If you know someone who is visually impaired, please ask them to participate in this survey.
From Sam (not Lily)

 

BOP/PB Mountain Biking Champs

On Friday the 13th of June, Tauranga Intermediate sent two teams to the Bay of Plenty/Poverty Bay Mountain Biking Champs in Taupo. These teams included Kai, Ollie, Campbell, James, Jack, Abbey. One team went down to Taupo the day before the race to ride the course which was approximately 6km long. On the day of the race, there were seven heats, five boys heats and two girls heats with about 20 riders each. To get into the boys final, riders had to place in the top 3 in their heat. Several riders from Tauranga Intermediate reached the final in both the boys and girls races. In the boys final, Kai placed 6th, Campbell placed 8th, Oliver who was two seconds behind came 9th and Jack finished in 10th. The event also included a team competition. Each team’s top 4 placings from the heat races were added up, the team with the lowest score winning. Tauranga’s first team placed 2nd with 8 points and the second team came 3rd with 11 points. Overall it was a great day of racing.

Leah's Technology Fair Survey!!!!!!

Slow motion awesomeness

This is a cool video that I searched up when I got home on friday I made a connection with this when we watched that vid at assembly.

The Craziest Things found by Airport Security

I was browsing Matthew Santoro's videos when I came across this one. You would not believe the kinds of things some people have tried to take on airplanes.

Hi if you have a garden then can you please fill out this survey. Oliver

Argos School Gymsport Festival!!!

Hi everyone, its Leah here and today when I was at the Argos gymnastics competition I took some photos and decided to share them as well as some results :)

Our school Hip Hop team placed first.
Our Aerobics team placed first.
Our cheerleading team, had a bad day and placed third.
Many of the individual gymnasts had placings and received medals, there were too many of us to mention us all but down below is a list of some of the Totara house competitors.

Meesha Richardson (Gymnastics) 17
Mizuki Mori (Gymnastics and Aerobics) 20
Kayla Howell (Hip Hop) 20
Chris Bae (Aerobics) 19
Calie Strange (Aerobics) 19
Emily Newbury (Aerobics) 19
Aisha Lowe (Aerobics) 20
Sophie Nicholson (Gymnastics) 17
Shyla Moorfield (Gymnastics) 17
Brooke Wilson (Gymnastics) 17
Pascale Sperling (Cheerleading) 19
Leah Howard (Gymnastics and Cheerleading) 19
James Robinson (Gymnastics) 19
Kirsten Tanner (Aerobics) 20
Jade Riddington (Gymnastics) 20

I hope to see you all at the 'Best Of The Best' gymsport competition on the 27th :)

This is why we fly

I saw this video a while back. I really enjoyed it and was fascinated by the views. From the air, there's no place with views like NZ.

Pacific Pearl Boat Cruise

I have recently been on a boat cruise for 9 days and would like to show you some of the amazing things that happen on board the Pacific Pearl. I would just like to say that this is not all it has to offer so if you want to see more, book a boat cruise now. Plus its better than school , a message to all students.

50 amazing facts that will blow your mind

This is a video that I found on youtube. I found it very interesting and I found out so much. It really deserves it's title.

Do try this at home!

This is an amazing science video I found while browsing the internet its really fascinating.

Fieldays - What an experience!!

Well we got there and we were lucky to escape the onslaught that was the weather last week. It was great from my perspective that trip went off without any hassles and that comes down to your awesome teachers and the fantastic support that we received from the parents.

The day was a busy one and there was so much to see. Please write a few sentences in the comments to talk about your highlights as well as some of the connections that you made between NZ Agriculture and our desertification topic.

Please elaborate and share your experience with everyone.

How animals see the world.

This is a quick video that I found when I was browsing the internet I made a connection with this because I recently did science for tech and it really fascinates me.

Football World Cup

The world's most celebrated sporting tournament has finally arrived - The Fifa Football World Cup in Brazil. The competition will be fierce and the only thing to be expected is the unexpected. This is were legends will be made and others will fade in the history with stories of would could have been. Keep an eye on your team and track the action of this fantastic event.





Please decide your FPS team and make a comment of which team (from your drawn pool) that your group is following with a quick run down on your country and the stars of your team...

new tech

This just shows some cool new technology that could one day be every day items. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPlZ_AqCvGw

Taupo Swim Meet

Taupo Swim Meet.

In the weekend I participated in the Taupo Winter Swim Meet and swam multiple races placing in four of them. This meet was a BOP/PB tournament in which there were age groups 10 and under, 11yr olds, 12yr olds, 13yr olds, 14yr olds, 15yr olds and 16yr olds and over.

The races I competed in were, 100m free, 100m fly, 100m breast, 50m free, 50m fly, 50m breast and 200 breast. I placed 2nd in 100m free and 100m breast and 3rd in 50m fly and 50m free. The competition was extremely hard and I was impressed with my results.

We woke up at 5:30 am so we could leave at 6:00 am. I slept the whole drive so I could catch up on sleep. When we arrived at the Taupo pool at around 9:30 am and rushed to the front entrance to escape the cold.

The warm up was at 10:00 am. The pool was packed and it was hard to swim without hitting someone else’s arm. I was even hit in the head once or twice.

Race’s were about 30 mins apart giving just enough time for a snack in between race’s. I had a talk to my mates in between race’s as well. I was very pleased with all the PB’s (Personal Best’s) I made with my swimming time’s.

Over all I did pretty well and was very happy with my results.

By Tom

Tai Mitchell Tauranga West

Tai Mitchell is a Rugby tournament that has been going on since 1936. The whole Bay of Plenty is divided into 10 teams Tauranga West, Tauranga East, Rotorua gold, Rotorua Maroon, Te Puke, Whakatane, Rangitaiki, Opotiki, Apanui and Galatea. Each year there is a tournament in one of the teams home ground, for example Tauranga hosted last years tournament, this tournament will happen in July and all the teams go to the tournament, to play for victory. This tournament is weight restricted and all players have to be under 53kgs at the start of the tournament and 55kgs in the middle of the tournament, if you are not under these weights you will not be able to play in the tournament. Before every game each team has a haka that they perform to intimidate the other team

Tauranga West Team is based at Tauranga Intermediate School, boys trial for selection from Aquinas College to Katikati College including rural schools -  Oropi School, Pyes Pa School, Kaimai School, Te Puna School,  Omokoroa No. 1 School and so forth. For this tournament you have to be year 6,7 or 8 but the team is mostly full of year eights and a couple year sevens. Tauranga West is one of the most successful teams in the tournament as they have one many years. We currently hold the shield and are hoping to maintain it for another year.

So far in Tai Mitchell we have played Te Puke who we bet 48-12, Rotorua gold who we lost against 17-5, Whakatane who we bet 24-10 and we are playing Tauranga East this afternoon (Friday 13th June)

Tom Scott and I, Ryan Bosselmann, are involved in Tai Mitchell. We will play 5 pre season games and the we will go to tournament. Tom and I will keep you updated through out the tournament.

Ultimate frisbee!!!

On Thursday 6th of may we left Tauranga Intermediate at 9am. We travelled for an hour then we stopped at the dairy for a toilet stop, We hit the road for an hour and a half then we stopped at a clearing to chuck the frisbee around.

We finally got to Gisbourne Int at 1 O’clock and threw the frisbees around for 60 mins or so while we were waiting for our billets to arrive. The Deputy principal of Gisbourne int noted that our team was looking sharp. When the billets arrived we moved to the hall and were called up one by one to shake our billets hands and be introduced to their parents. Our billets were extremely nice and thoughtful.

We arrived at 8am in the morning with our billets and strolled out onto the field. The first thing we saw were the massive tents awaiting us out on the field. We rushed over to our tent stripped off our trackies and started training. After an hour or so of training we gathered over near NO:1 field to watch the demo.

We played our first game vs Gisbourne int 1. We depressingly lost our first game 4-3 and carried on to our next game vs Ilminster 1. Again we lost 5-3 in a result of not working as a team. Our next game we went up against Gisbourne int 2 and drew. This brought our spirits up and we annihilated Ilminster 2 8-1 with a mean try at the end. Our final game was against Mount Int which was an exciting game for most of us as we knew most of our their players. We gave them a solid game and won 6-3.

At the end of the tournament  we had a quick prize giving in which Ryan Bosselman was elected as most valuable player, Overall we came 7th out of 10 teams. The drive home was also a long drive but at Whakatane we stopped for some kai at subway and a sushi store.

We all came home knowing we did quite well and left feeling proud. Mr Ensor was a fantastic coach and was greatly appreciated by everyone. We all had a lot of laughs along the way.

From Ryan, Tom and the team

The future is here...

As part of Future Problem Solving, you are asked to assess scenes of the future to identify major challenges that may be faced by people of that time and place. Furthermore, you are expected to think ahead of the time period that we live in to come up with solutions that are not currently available. Here is an example of the ingenuity that individuals have in their search to change the world as we know it.




As part of our current unit we have looked at several methods that can help us generate creative and innovative ways to over come global issues. Please use the S.C.A.M.P.E.R method to create a solution for desertification with the assistance of Solar Roadways. Comment below with your new innovative ideas!

Jialan needs YOUR help!

The Pumpkineater Survey

Hello everyone. Science fair this year for me is building a pumpkin cutting machine. So please show this post to all of your Mums, Dads, Grandmas, and Aunties and get them to fill out the form. Thank you.

AlexT Room 19

 

Hey guys its Calie and Emily here and instead of pe we made this video hope you enjoyyy :)

Change the world, beat desertification!!

Desertification is a global issue impacting on millions people. The news has recently shown that negative effects from desertification can even kill people in extreme cases. Please check out the new article links below:

Tehran engulfed by massive dust storm

Deadly dust storm engulfs Tehran

Please help us save lives and begin to reduce this phenomenon that causes so much damage. Comment below with a current strategy that is used to reduce desertification...

For my science fair I am constructing a real-time school bus alert system.
I am up to the survey part of the experiment and I need people to fill in this form.
If you catch the SCHOOL bus on a daily basis then please complete this form.

Thanks Morgan
 

Group 2's rockety launches 2014

http://youtu.be/dRm3hbSyM6w Here is the video on Youtube.

This is Group 2's Rocketry group launches. Our group consists of Charlie Lewer, Alex Kim,Rosemary Horsley,James Derek and Ben Robinson.

 So far we have had a great start to F.P.S this year ad for term 2 our topic is Desertification. In room 19 we have been focusing on Dessertification a lot and have decided to conduct our own experiment using radish and mustard seeds. this is what we have done.

Introduction

Today many countries are suffering from desertification and the food shortages caused by this. Desertification seems to have a far higher chance of effecting large numbers of people due to its location. Up to one third of the developing world is located in arid areas that is prone to the phenomenon of desertification. We would like to test the impact on plant growth that poor soils may have. At which point is the soil degraded so that plant growth is no longer a viable option?   

Aim:

Desertification is a major problem and affects many countries worldwide. Our aim is to find out what percentage of soil and sand grows Mustard seeds the most productively.

Hypothesis

We predict that the more soil in a tub, the more productive the mixture will be when growing mustard plants because soil has a higher nutritional value than sand and when replacing soil with sand it is lowering it’s nutritional value. Although sand gives the plants more aeration the soil will give the plant nutrients which plants need more when they are germinating. The mix of 100% soil and 0% sand would give the highest nutrition and that factor is key when growing plants.

Equipment:

- 6 Ice cream containers (2 Litres)

- 300 seeds of mustard

- 750 mL of sand (sieved)

- Sieve

- 750 mL of dirt

Method:

1. Poke 5 holes, one on each corner approximately 7cm from the centre diagonally and the centre.

2. Lay out the ice cream containers on a flat surface in a sunny spot with no shade.

3. Fill ice cream container No.1 with 500 ml of ‘Just’ polymix soil (100% soil).

Fill No.2 400 ml of soil and 100 ml of sand (80% soil 20% sand).

Fill No.3 300 ml of soil and 200 ml of sand (60% soil and 40% sand).

Fill No.4 200 ml of soil and 300 ml of sand (40% soil and 60% sand).

Fill No.5 100 ml of soil and 400 ml of sand (20% soil and 80% sand).

Fill No.6 500 ml of sand (100% sand).

4. Ensure the soil and the sand are not mixed just piled up in the order of sand and soil.

5. Make sure all the containers are labelled.

6. Poke 1 hole 1 cm deep in the exact centre of the ice cream box.

7. Place one seed in the hole then cover with soil.

8. Repeat process 6 except do it every 1 cm away from the other seeds from the centre.

9. Do the process 6 to 8 for the rest of the 5 containers.

10. Pour 150 ml of water into each container at noon(12:00pm) everyday for four weeks and measure the growth at the same time as well.

Rebecca 19

How to with Maxi-Moo!!!!!!!

How to with MAXI-MOO!!!

How to create a post and embed pictures.

So you want to create a post, but, you don't know how?
It's all goods. You've come to the right post.

1)To create a post, simply click on create post/new post in the top right corner of the Totara blog page.

2)Next, write the title of your post in the small, long box at the top of the page, next to the publish and post buttons.




3)Now write a title on your page, followed by a blurb.  -------------->
Remember to make it interesting.


4)Now you can get to the interesting part. Writing your post. It's not that interesting, but if you want to add a photo, then that's when it becomes fun!!!

5)One easy way to add a photo is to take a screen shot using command, shift, 4.

6)Next, press the little button of a picture in the middle of the top of the screen, next to the link button.

7)Once you have done that, press the tab that says upload (down the left hand side of the screen, and then press choose files.

8)Tabs in the dialogue box that say Applications, Desktop and Movies will come up. It looks a bit tricky, but don't sweat, it's easy bro. Just simply press the desktop button, and a whole lotta things will come up that are from the desktop.

9)Scroll through the screen shots, and every other thing on the desktop tab, until you find the right thing (your screenshot). Click on your screen shot and then press the highlighted blue button that says Open.

10)Once you have pressed open, your picture will start downloading on the select a file page:

11)Press your cursor on your photo, then press add selected.

12)Your photo will come up on your page. Place it where you want.

13)Once you have finished, press save, and then press publish.

You are now done and have created a good as post because of my instructions. If you are a fan of me, send an email to z_camem@tauranga-int.school.nz and write something nice. Thanks for viewing.

Desertification Testing RADISHES

This term Totara house are focusing on desertification for F.P.S (future problem solving). Room 19 have been doing a lot of work on desertification looking at arid lands around the world and seeing how we can help them, then Mr Cunliffe related F.P.S to Science Fair and asked the class if we wanted to test which out of soil or sand is better for growing plants. Room 19 agreed on this and Mr Cunliffe bought some Radishes and Mustard plants and together as a class we planted them.
Here below is the Introduction,Aim,Hypothesis, Method and some Images.
Enjoy :D

Radishes:

Introduction:
Desertification is a first world problem of which one third of the western world suffer from. Sand degrading the quality of soil to the point of disrepair, and prevents monoculture and polyculture from being produced. Furthermore this adds to the impending food crisis. Thus we are wanting to test the combinations of soil and sand to find when soil is no longer suitable to sustain plant life.

Aim:

Desertification affects many people world wide. Our aim is to find out which soil and sand mixture germinates and grows radishes most effectively.

Hypothesis:

Soil is made of minerals and clay. First layer is leaves, followed by decomposing matter called humus. Underneath is minerals and clay. At the bottom is bedrock. On the other hand sand is made of tiny smashed rock particles. We hunk that radish will grow best in sand because it is softer and has lots of nutrients, therefore the plant will be healthier.

Equipment:

400 Radish seeds

6, 2L ice-cream containers (with small drilled holes in the bottom)

Drill

3L top soil

3L Sand

Measuring jug

Stirring utensil

Tap water

Ruler

Method:

1. Drill 5 holes, 4 on the outer corners and 1 in the centre of the containers.

2. Measure out exact amounts of sand/soil into the 2L ice-cream containers. (The amounts are: 100% soil, 80% soil and 20% sand, 60% soil and 40% sand, 20% soil and 80% sand and 100% sand.)

3. Label the ice-cream containers with the soil/sand composition.

4. Sow 25 radish seeds 1cm deep and 3cm apart in each of the containers.

5. Place all containers an area with equally full sun, making sure to bring indoors overnight. and replacing them back.

Images:

How to create pie chart.

Here is the step guide to create a pie chart using Number application.

This is a method to make a line graph on google spread sheets which will help with your science fair if you will be using this graph.

By Luke

In I.C.T we were making instructions on digital subjects such as navigating a program, website or using a tool. I did my one on Khan Academy because it is my current favourite website.

By Callum Reilly

Khan Academy, Navigation

1. Click on this link Khanacademy.
2. Click on the Sign in with Google button.
3. Log into your google account. If you are already logged into your google account then clicking on this button will take you straight into the website.

4. You can check your notifications by clicking on this button.
5. You can accept people as your coaches by clicking on a button after clicking on this button.
6. You can do quizzes by clicking either the practice button or the start button.
7. Doing quizzes earns you energy points.
8. This number tells you how many points you have.

Waikato MTB champs

Kai,James,Cullen and I went to the Waikato/BOP MTB champs on wednesday 21st at TeMiro near Cambridge. The course was about 1.5km long per lap and our race was 6 laps long making it about 9km. After a steep climb we entered the slippery downhill section which consisted of mud,rocks and jumps. Kai and James both had a minor crash but continued to finish 7th and 9th. Cullen got 11th and I got 8th. The best boys for our age were also there so it was tough competition but also a fun day.
                                                   By Oliver Rm19

 James and I descending part of the downhill

The team, Cullen,Myself,James and Kai.

Moko the Dolphin - Report

Moko the Dolphin

Mokotahi the dolphin, Moko for short, was a significance to not only Tauranga, but also to Mahia Beach and Whakatane. At first, he lived at Mahia Beach for two years; from 2007 to 2009. While he lived at Mahia Beach, he became famous by rescuing two stranded pygmy sperm whales. He was in Time Magazine’s top ten list for the world’s most heroic animals. In 2009, he moved to Waikanae Beach in Gisborne. He resided there for half a year before moving to Whakatane for five months before following a fishing boat to Tauranga. He was found dead on the 7th of July on Matakana Island, besides Mount Maunganui.

Moko was without a doubt, a unique dolphin. He would play with humans rather than with dolphins. Amy Taylor, creator of the Soul in the Sea documentary says, “The first time I met him we were playing fetch with a dead baby hammerhead shark he brought me.” No one knows why he would rather be with human company, but he hasn’t been the only dolphin to do so. There has been around 100 solo cetaceans to be friendly with humans throughout recorded history.

Moko’s uniqueness has had an impact on many in Tauranga. People would enjoy playing with him and it wouldn’t be unusual to see him stealing a boogie board (as seen in figure 1 and 2) but after a certain period of time of living in Tauranga, some people would say that he needed company all the time, whereas others would say they should leave him alone. Overall though, it amazed many how one dolphin could have such an impact on a community.

Moko’s death affected many across New Zealand. “I was very shocked and sad when I found out he died. It was much like finding a friend who had passed away.” Says Amy Taylor. Even John Hedley, who named Moko after the Mokotahi Headland says, “It's as bad as a human life gone,” Some people have cried as they grieved for their lost friend. Since Moko’s body was found 2 weeks late, it had decomposed, making it hard to see if he had any wounds.The cause of his death will forever remain a mystery.

In conclusion, Moko was a beloved New Zealand icon who touched the hearts of many. He will always remain in memory to all, especially the ones lucky enough to experience seeing him. Even though he’s passed away, he will continue to live on forever in the hearts of kiwis.