ANZAC Day - By Anika and Jemma.

 

Children gave flowers from home tom make the wreaths. 

 

Today we were celebrating Anzac day together because it is the last day at school for the term 1. We won't be together on actual Anzac day. 

Trish, a teacher aide from school came in to talk to our class about Anzac Day. Her great grandfather and her grandfather both went into the war and she found all of these very old badges, buttons, certificates that were very old and shared them with us. 

"My great grandfather and my grandfather went to the war and my mother got a letter saying your son was on guard at night and got shot in the head by a machine gun and died instantly and the body was found and buried. They got heaps of letters and sent heaps. Everybody who went to war got a big bronze coin with their name on it.They got certificates for enrolling in the war." 

 

Trish showed us all these 100 year old coins,  letters, certificates, receipts, handkerchief, buttons, badges, Christmas cards from the war. The British army sent a letter saying 'We're out somewhere in the sea' so if it got caught in the wrong hands (meaning the enemies) they wouldn't  be able to say 'Okay this is where we are going...' and capture them. Discharge means you are no longer in the army.
 
 

Everything that Trish has shown us is more than 50 years old, some are over 100. Either her great grandfather or her grandfather came back from the army and was alive then drowned in the Otago Harbour.

This is what some of the people at our school think about what ANZAC day means to them... 

Ms Pelvin~ "My Grandad went to World War 2 and it's remembering what he did for the country."

Mrs Fyfe~ "Remembering all the soliders  that went to war."

Mrs Stevenson~ "Remembering all the New Zealand soldiers that went and sacrificed there self for their family and their country."

Ms Kerr~ "Remembering the many people that were affected by the war."

Rachel~ "Very proud of all the New Zealand soldiers that fought for their country."

Mrs French~ "To me it is about all my ancestors that fought in the war."

Mrs Marett~ "A holiday and thinking about all the New Zealand soldiers that went in the war."

Miss Buchanan~ "Remembering all New Zealand soldiers and the people fought and I am very close to military so Anzac Day means a lot to me and my family."

Anika~ "Remembering all the soldiers that sacrificed their self for their country and family to make some peace. And celebrating the life of the soldiers and world war 1 and 2. That is why I think we should celebrate the deaths and life's of the soldiers."

Jemma~ "Remembering the soldiers that protected our country and sacrificed their life's for us! I think it's good that they are being remembered for all the lives they saved. They helped us keep our country. R.I.P soldiers!"

Miss Mitchell~ "Remembering the brave people and celebrating their bravery."

Mrs Marshall~  "A chance for me to remember all the people who fought and to celebrate what they went through."

Ms Wood~ "Makes me very happy and great full of how lucky we are and very greatful to the ones before me."

We had a special assembly for Anzac Day

Mr Newton~ "It is a time where we remember and be greatful for what a beautiful country we live in."

By Anika & Jemma