New Zealand Education

Compulsory Education

Compulsory education starts at age 5 and ends at age 16.

Class Size

The number of students in a class is 30 students.

Classrooms

    Students from Years 5-8 stay in the same classroom for most subjects and move to other classrooms only for specific subjects. In Year 9, students take some courses With their homeroom class and some optional classes with students from different classes. Starting from Year 10, students no longer stay in the same classroom most of the time. They go to different classes according to their own choices and abilities.

Term Dates

    A school year starts in January and ends in December. There are four terms in a year. Each term is about 10 weeks.

Class Schedule

    School starts at around 8:30 and ends at 15:15. There are only five periods a day and a period is about an hour long. In the morning, around 10:30, there will be a 20-minute break when students usually have some snacks during this time. There is a lunch period at around 12:40 for about an hour.

Teachers

    Teachers have to teach students of different year level at the same time. Most teachers teach students from at least three to four different year levels. Besides, quite a number of teachers teach more than one subject. This is because the fact that many courses are optional.

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    Safety in the highway is not totally out of our hands. Here are four ways we can protect ourselves when we travel.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} people in small cars are injured more often and more severely than people traveling in large cars. Factories of small cars are strengthening their products' safety, which helps. But the mix of large cars and small cars on the road is the main reason of the problem.

    Being thrown into glass and mental cars parts, or being thrown from the car can really hurt or even kill you.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}The safety belt's main purpose is to pull you back if your car has a sudden crash with another vehicle or object, or if it rolls over. A belt can reduce the chance of deadly injury by 45% and the chance of serious injury by 50%.

    Air bags are important. More than half of all new cars sold have air bags. Air bags provide protection in frontal crashes—the type of crash that kills the most drivers—when they are also wearing safety belts. Most people are demanding air bags in the cars they buy.  {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Effective as they are, they can't take the place of safety belts.

    Drunk driving crashes are less likely to happen if you don't drink. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Many people have realised that drunk driving can lead to death and injury, prison time and other results. There are movements to strengthen penalties(处罚) for drinking and driving.

A. How to drive safely?

B. You are safer in a large car

C. How to protect ourselves in the highway?

D. Air bags are not installed in all cars.

E. That's why safety belts should be worn.

F. Drunk driving is the most serious problem.

G. But the protection provided by air bags is limited in side or rear crashes.

    Just an hour from Atlanta,CounterPoint is held at beautiful Kingston Downs.The grounds include 5,000 acres of rolling North Georgia Hills.They are surrounded by a river on 3 sides with beautiful views of the Appalachian Mountains in the distance.The site hosts plenty of stages,art festivals,camping and many other activities.The site is easy to reach from most of the biggest cities in the Southeast.For questions about the festival grounds,email us at info@counterpointfestival.com.

    Camping

    CounterPoint is a"Camping Optional" Festival.You can take a tent,bring an RV,or stay at a hotel.The campgrounds have featured comforts and amenities（便利设施）that will make you feel right at home.If you don't want to camp,there are buses and travel package options that offer a quick ride back to your hotel.For questions about camping,email us at info@countenointfestival.com.

    Art

    The visual experience at CounterPoint is one-of-a-kind.Take a walk through the Art Village to check out rare arts and various crafts.More details on the art,artists,and the 2016 Art Village will be shown soon.The application to be an art exhibitor at the 2016 CounterPoint Music And Arts Festival is now closed.Check next January for the 2017 application.Contact vendors@counterpointfestival.com with questions.

    Food & Drink

    We've got everything you need to fuel up your festival experience.Pack an appetite（食欲）—CounterPoint will have plenty of food and beverage options for you.The application to be a food court exhibitor at the 2016 CounterPoint Music And Arts Festival is now closed.Check back next January for the 2017 application.Contact vendors@counterpointfestival.com with questions.

    CounterPointer Cares

    CounterPoint wants to keep Kingston Downs looking beautiful.With your support,we can leave a lasting positive influence through recycling and waste reduction programs.If you represent a nonprofit organization interested in being featured at CounterPoint,Contact vendors@counterpointfestival.com to tell us more about it.

    Finding a mountain goat resting high on a cliff(悬崖) might thrill many of the millions of tourists who visit Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park every year, but park officials say it might be time for the bearded animals to go.

    The problem, according to the park, is that Grand Teton's 100 or so mountain goats threaten about 80 bighorn sheep. The bighorn sheep numbered as many as 125 just a few years ago. The strong goats spread disease and compete with bighorn sheep for food. Unlike small-sized bighorn sheep, Grand Teton's mountain goats aren't native to the park. They were introduced to the park in the 1960s.

    Grand Teton spokeswoman Denise Germann said, “We've got a management responsibility to protect the native species. After hearing from the public on the proposal (建议) in January, park officials expect to decide as soon as mid-February on what to do about the mountain goats.”

    The goats are reproducing rapidly. Now might be the best time to reduce the animals before they're too many to bring under control, according to the Park Service.

    One wildlife biologist who studies bighorn sheep praised the proposal. Mountain goats' original habitat is nowhere close to where they've been introduced in the U.S. to provide hunting opportunities, said Rob Roy Ramey II, with Nederland, Colorado-based Wildlife Science International, Inc.

    Wildlife managers should get rid of mountain goats not only in Grand Teton but elsewhere to help struggling bighorn sheep, Ramey said. “Unfortunately, state wildlife agencies sell nonnative wildlife viewing opportunities to the public,” Ramey said. “This is not a zoo in the wilderness. It should really be for native wildlife.”

    While famous foreign architects are invited to lead the designs of landmark buildings in China such as the new CCTV tower and the National Center for the Performing Arts, many excellent Chinese architects are making great efforts to take the center stage.

    Their efforts have been proven fruitful. Wang Shu, a 49-year-old Chinese architect, won the 2012 Pritzker Architecture Prize -which is often referred to as the Nobel Prize in architecture-on February 28. He is the first Chinese citizen to win this award.

    Wang serves as head of the Architecture Department at the China Department at the China Academy of Art (CAA). His office is located at the Xiangshan campus (校园) of the university in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. Many buildings on the campus are his original creations.

    The style of the campus is quite different from that of most Chinese universities. Many visitors were amazed by the complex architectural space and abundant building types. The curves (曲线) of the buildings perfectly match the rise and fall of hills, forming a unique view.

    Wang collected more than 7 million abandoned bricks of different ages. He asked the workers to use traditional techniques to make the bricks into walls, roofs and corridors. This creation attracted a lot of attention thanks to its mixture of modern and traditional Chinese elements.

    Wang's works show a deep understanding of modern architecture and a good knowledge of traditions. Through such a balance, he had created a new type of Chinese architecture, said Tadao Ando, the winner of the 1995 Pritzker Prize.

    Wang believes traditions should not be sealed in glass boxes at museums. "That is only evidence that traditions once existed," he said.

    "Many Chinese people have a misunderstanding of traditions. They think tradition means old things from the past. In fact, tradition also refers to the things that have been developing and that are still being created, "he said.

    "Today, many Chinese people are learning Western styles and theories rather than focusing on Chinese traditions. Many people tend to talk about traditions without knowing what they really are," said Wang.

    The study of traditions should be combined, with practice. Otherwise, the recreation of traditions would be artificial and empty, he said.

In the domain of gastronomy, one can effortlessly create a quartet of nourishing and palatable recipes, which are both healthful and delectable, within the sanctuary of one's domicile.

Lemon Pudding

Should you aspire to inaugurate your day with an incandescent grin, this opulent, saccharine, and pungent concoction will assuredly serve your purpose. It exquisitely amalgamates the piquant essence of the lemon with the nectar of the bee. Given the simplicity with which this culinary delight can be prepared, coupled with its delightful flavor and a plethora of healthful properties, this delicacy makes an exemplary dessert to be incorporated into your morning menu.

Curried Chicken Soup

In the alchemy of this particular recipe, the fowl is immersed in an olfactorily pleasing broth, enriched with dairy and the sweetness of the batata. To concoct this soup, one must gather a medley of ingredients including curry powder, the fruit of the love apple, succulent poultry, vintage grape nectar, dairy from a cow, and the lacteal fluid of a mammal. Permit yourself the indulgence of this gratifying repast as a token of appreciation for the protracted periods of onerous toil.

Orange Carrot Smoothie

Equip yourself with a salutary draught to commence your day. The Orange Carrot Smoothie, a recipe that demands minimal effort in its creation, yields a sumptuous and frosty elixir that imparts a delightful flavor, inciting a desire for more. The vivacious zest of the orange ensures a day brimming with cheer, while the flavor of the carrot seamlessly infuses a unique sweetness of the vegetable kingdom, crafting a distinctive and palatable morning beverage.

Boiled Egg Toast with Butter

For those who relish uncomplicated yet flavor-intense and wholesome repasts, this toast presents itself as the paragon of choice. Elevate the simplicity of your egg toast to new heights by the addition of butter. This recipe harmonizes a symphony of flavors that will undoubtedly satiate your cravings. Whether partaken at the dawn, midday, or dusk, this toast exemplifies the epitome of a satisfying meal, transforming the act of eating into an experience of unparalleled delight.