Essay 1 An example of an Achieved (level 4) answer
In the novel OWL, by Joanna Orwin, the main character is Hamish, or Owl. He changes a lot over the course of the novel. Some of the main ways he changes are: More confident and matured. He is more confident because he knows that nothing is impossible and just believe in himself, like when he slaughters the mighty pouakai, his mate and his children, that took a lot of guts to do that! And he grew more mature but the events, he learnt that nothing was easy and you had to fight for what you wanted, with a bit of help from friends and family, it is possible. And that losing something or someone is not the end of the world, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.
At the beginning of the OWL, Hamish was a shyish sort of dude, but he would do anything in the name of science! He climbed up to a cave in the pinnacles to find rock drawings at the start of the novel; but when it came to meeting new people like Tama, he stood back for awhile until he could trust him.
It shows that he is not very social with other people; but what he is involved in what he is passionate about, science.
During the events that took place in OWL, Hamish changed a lot. One significant event that happens when he has to kill the mighty Pouakai. It made him work in a team; Tama, Kirsten,Tod; and he learns to put trust in people and he will get a result, in this case, killing the Pouakai. It causes Hamish to change because he learns that sometimes you need help, even if you don’t think you need it. Another significant event was when the farm/house was going to be sold, to foreign people. It made him realise that you shouldn't take anything for granted, because some things a not forever. It changes his outlook on life and to be grateful for what he has.
By the end of OWL Hamish is a new person, the events have matured him in a way that can’t be explained; if that happened to me, I would definitely have a different lookout on life.
Essay 2 An example of a high Merit essay
In the novel Owl by Joanna Orwin a main character is Hamish. He changes a lot over the course of the novel. Some of the main ways he changes are; personality, perseverance and perspectives.
At the beginning of the novel Hamish is just an ordinary and normal boy who does not expect much from his life in the future. He surely knows how to handle farm stock as it said in the book that Hamish helped a big deal when it was lambing season. However, this lifestyle is totally changed when Hamish experiences Pouakai, the great Haast Eagle which is thought to be extinct but is a real creature unleashed by Hamish through the kaitiaki stone which he had picked up when he discovered the ancient Maori drawings in the cave while he was rock climbing. His personality changed dramatically from casual to ‘looking to the future’. I think that without his personality changing, he would’ve given up right away. He needed to work out what the future holds to be able to accomplish. Also at the beginning of the novel, Hamish is envious and very resistant to making friends. An example of this is when Tama came to the farm, Hamish felt resistant and envious to become friends with him. Early in the novel, Tama was helping out by chopping down firewood and Hamish was also with him. Hamish was showing off but Tama was very good for a ‘town boy’. Tama didn’t really care how he was doing but Hamish had gotten very jealous and green envy filled up his mind and body. In the book, it did not say that Tama really cared but I think that he would’ve gotten some kind of feeling that Hamish had gotten jealous of him. But of course, Hamish has changed to adapt to having Tama with him nearly everywhere he is. One big impact to changing his personality was when he had experienced being attacked by Pouakai and this leads to my second point.
During the novel one significant thing that happens to Hamish is the experiencing of Pouakai. This causes Hamish to persevere and believe in himself because without these skills, Hamish wouldn’t have been able to defeat Pouakai in the end. This is very much like the first point that I gave out. In the beginning of Owl, Hamish was not thoughtful of many things and very slack on things that he needed to finish or do but from the middle of the novel- when Pouakai is discovered, he begins to show perseverance and strength in his mind that he does not give up. I think that Kirsten, Tod and Tama would’ve noticed a lot of difference in Hamish mentally and physically throughout time.
By the end of the novel Hamish changes his perspectives on his nickname Owl through how Taua Gray explained that it was a special symbol that he was the chosen one to destroy Pouakai. Of course, it was very obvious that Hamish hated being called Owl by the way that he said, “Shut it!” to Tod when he had called Hamish Owl but throughout the experience that he went through, he started to acknowledge that he was Owl, the chosen one to untwist the legend of Ruru and Pouakai. I think that he would’ve felt proud and gratified that he was named Owl for an important reason. Hamish is also glad that he has finished a task that he would’ve thought was impossible to do. It said in the novel that he felt good and glad that he had finished a considerable task that had been up on his sleeves for a long time. I think he has learned a lesson that everybody need to tackle the future with all your might and all your soul or else tasks will not be able to be completed. This moral is a very good lesson for us too which we need to take on board with our lives as well to succeed.
In conclusion the main ways that Hamish has changed are his personality, perseverance and perspectives during his time on the farm. These changes happen because without his personality changing Hamish wouldn’t have been able to have the strength to fight, he wouldn’t have been confident without perseverance and he wouldn’t have been proud that he completed a huge task if he did not change perspectives. The writer Joanna Orwin wants people to learn from Hamish that everybody needs to be able to tackle the future with all your strength and all your mind or else nothing will be completed.
Another example of a Merit essay
Throughout the novel Owl Hamish’s behaviour changes. At the start of the novel, Hamish didn’t seem to work very well with strangers. When he first met Tama, he described him as a townie, weak and not much use. But throughout the book Hamish starts to get used to Tama, and begins to work well with him. After his opinions about him, he thinks that Tama might actually be a nice guy.
Hamish thought Tama wouldn’t be much help at all on the farm. As I stated before he seemed to be very quick to judge people and their abilities. E.g. Hamish said “He had never seen anyone less ox-like. If it hadn’t been for the huge basketball boots with undone laces, it looked as though the slightest breeze would knock him over”. He wasn’t very good at working with Tama. He didn’t give him a chance to prove that he was capable of working on the farm, and that he is stronger and more intelligent than all of them had thought. Hamish also didn’t talk to Tama very often. This was beginning to become a problem, if he and Tama were going to be working together.
When Hamish saw what Tama’s abilities and what his strengths were, he started giving him second thoughts. E.g. Hamish stated “Despite being so skinny, he was strong. Uncomfortably strong.” He ended up being stronger than Hamish had thought, and Hamish realised that they actually had a few things in common. For instance, both of their fathers left them. All of these things began to change Hamish. The main event in the book was when he, Tama, Kirsten and Todd all had to kill poakai. This event in the book had the largest impact on Hamish’s actions and behaviour. At the start of the novel Hamish had to learn to work with Tama, and it all came down to this moment. All of them had to work together and follow the guides they were given, and kill poakai. During the fight with poakai Hamish realises how strong and fierce Tama could be.
All of these events changed Hamish. His thoughts and actions changed. He realised what amazing things he was capable of. Killing poakai had driven Hamish to a new level of confidence. He now realised that he was capable of achieving so much more than he imagined. I personally would think that this would help him with his rock climbing in the future e learned that he needed to think before he acted, make better choices, think of the consequences he would face if he made those actions. He wasn’t quick to judge anyone anymore. Getting to know someone first, before stating an opinion of them.
Killing poakai, and making friends with Tama, has changed the way he thinks of things. He is starting to look at everything much differently than he would have before. Hamish learns a lot throughout this journey.
Essay 3 An example of an Excellence essay
In the novel Owl by Joanna Orwin, a main character is Hamish. He changes over the course of the novel, prompted by the events that happen. Some of the main ways he changes are: his thinking, his feelings and his actions.
At the beginning of the novel, Hamish had innocent and simple thinking. For example, when he discovered the rock drawings, he did not think it would cause great damage and have big consequences. He was also unable to let go of or accept many things, such as, the fact that his father was dead. “The ache in his chest that came when he thought of Dad settled in his stomach, like a heavy stone” which he harboured throughout the novel. Another thing he couldn’t let go of was the farm, as they were not managing well without Alex, his father. He was very reluctant when his mother announced that the farm had a “prospective buyer”. Also at the beginning of the novel, Hamish was childish and uncooperative. When Tama, a family stray, came to their farm, Hamish was always trying to prove that he was superior. A good illustration of this was when he tried to chop logs faster than Tama. He was also not getting on well with his brother or sister and hesitated before asking them for help.
During the novel, one significant thing that happened was meeting Taua Gray, a maori women who helped them find out about the Poukai. Because of this, Hamish finally understood the consequences of his actions and that some things are not as one-sided as they seem. When the Maori people, the original owners of their land, bought the farm, Hamish finally let go of it and became submissive toward his mother’s decisions. Killing the Poukai was also a significant event. Running down the hill, Hamish felt the presence of his father encouraging him. This caused a change in Hamish because he realised that his father could still help him even if he was gone and that he could still live on in his memories. This event also sparked a sense of team work into Kirsten, Tod, Tama and Hamish as they tried to decode the cave drawings and build the trap together. Killing the Poukai’s mate also changed Hamish. He learnt to respect Tama in a new way; he realised that Tama had things through his ancestry that Hamish didn’t have and that he couldn’t have achieved all of this without Tama’s help. In my opinion, the most significant event was when the children took Taua Gray up to the place that they had killed the Poukai and were reminded again of this happening. It was at that time that Hamish understood the link between the past and the present and, more importantly, it was the time that the stone was washed away. “And as he cried, the tears dissolved the stone that had lodged in his stomach for so long and washed it away.”
By the end of the novel, Hamish was a different person. In the future, Hamish would be careful about the things he discovers because he now knows that they could have huge consequences. He knows that he should listen to other people’s warnings and take them to account before doing something new. When the children go to the cave to put the kiatiaki back, we see that they have moved on, let go of the farm and made new plans for their lives. Hamish also knows the value of team work and cooperation by the end of the book. He had realised that life was not about being better than others and that some things can only be achieved through team work. He also became close with his brother, sister and Tama because of their shared experiences. Lastly, he had finally accepted that his father was dead.
In conclusion, Hamish changed in his thinking, feelings and actions; he developed in all these aspects and grew up. These changes occurred because of the events that happened in the novel. The writer, Joanna Orwin, wants people to realise that the events in one’s life are the things that makes him/ her grow up and change.
An example of an Achieved with Difficulty essay (level 3)
Owl By Joanna Orwin. This book is about Hamish or Owl as some people in his family call him changes physically and mentally through out this book, And after facing the Pouakai he’s braver, stronger, and wiser There’s a bit of mystery, some archaeology and then there’s Maori legends mix in with a bit of fantasy.
Part 1
At the beginning of the novel Hamish loved to rock climb and to explore thing, for an example, Bum Over Feet Hamish muttered. ‘Lean out’ with one foot jammed in the crack and the other pressed against the small ledge. Hamish wasn’t the biggest kid nor the but he tried his best to help his family with the farm, It was only his mother left to look after because his father had died.
Then Hamish also found out that his cousin Tama was coming to stay with him for a while, through out the time spending with Tama was lazy with the work he was given but though time he got better at what he was asked to do, Hamish and tama helped the farm and they both became closer friends There was one thing that Tama wasn’t fascinated in was the cave that Hamish
Part 2
During the novel the farm was in trouble because the bank was planning to sell the farm to who ever had enough money. Hamish and Tama have nothing to do because they wouldn’t be able to make enough money to try and save the land.
Hamish and Tama didn’t know what to do, Hamish had to look at the Maori cave drawings. Once he did he had unleashed a disturbing malevolence from the past. Hamish didn’t know what was happening so he quickly run out to the fields to see if anything had changed, Then Tama saw big dark shadows in the sky, is was the Pouakai.
Conclusion
Through out this book Hamish has been to a variety of different places
These places have tort Hamish Knowledge skill, fighting skill and Team work skills
Hamish has gotten taller, stronger and wiser after fighting the Pouakai and around his family.
In the novel OWL, by Joanna Orwin, the main character is Hamish, or Owl. He changes a lot over the course of the novel. Some of the main ways he changes are: More confident and matured. He is more confident because he knows that nothing is impossible and just believe in himself, like when he slaughters the mighty pouakai, his mate and his children, that took a lot of guts to do that! And he grew more mature but the events, he learnt that nothing was easy and you had to fight for what you wanted, with a bit of help from friends and family, it is possible. And that losing something or someone is not the end of the world, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.
At the beginning of the OWL, Hamish was a shyish sort of dude, but he would do anything in the name of science! He climbed up to a cave in the pinnacles to find rock drawings at the start of the novel; but when it came to meeting new people like Tama, he stood back for awhile until he could trust him.
It shows that he is not very social with other people; but what he is involved in what he is passionate about, science.
During the events that took place in OWL, Hamish changed a lot. One significant event that happens when he has to kill the mighty Pouakai. It made him work in a team; Tama, Kirsten,Tod; and he learns to put trust in people and he will get a result, in this case, killing the Pouakai. It causes Hamish to change because he learns that sometimes you need help, even if you don’t think you need it. Another significant event was when the farm/house was going to be sold, to foreign people. It made him realise that you shouldn't take anything for granted, because some things a not forever. It changes his outlook on life and to be grateful for what he has.
By the end of OWL Hamish is a new person, the events have matured him in a way that can’t be explained; if that happened to me, I would definitely have a different lookout on life.
Essay 2 An example of a high Merit essay
In the novel Owl by Joanna Orwin a main character is Hamish. He changes a lot over the course of the novel. Some of the main ways he changes are; personality, perseverance and perspectives.
At the beginning of the novel Hamish is just an ordinary and normal boy who does not expect much from his life in the future. He surely knows how to handle farm stock as it said in the book that Hamish helped a big deal when it was lambing season. However, this lifestyle is totally changed when Hamish experiences Pouakai, the great Haast Eagle which is thought to be extinct but is a real creature unleashed by Hamish through the kaitiaki stone which he had picked up when he discovered the ancient Maori drawings in the cave while he was rock climbing. His personality changed dramatically from casual to ‘looking to the future’. I think that without his personality changing, he would’ve given up right away. He needed to work out what the future holds to be able to accomplish. Also at the beginning of the novel, Hamish is envious and very resistant to making friends. An example of this is when Tama came to the farm, Hamish felt resistant and envious to become friends with him. Early in the novel, Tama was helping out by chopping down firewood and Hamish was also with him. Hamish was showing off but Tama was very good for a ‘town boy’. Tama didn’t really care how he was doing but Hamish had gotten very jealous and green envy filled up his mind and body. In the book, it did not say that Tama really cared but I think that he would’ve gotten some kind of feeling that Hamish had gotten jealous of him. But of course, Hamish has changed to adapt to having Tama with him nearly everywhere he is. One big impact to changing his personality was when he had experienced being attacked by Pouakai and this leads to my second point.
During the novel one significant thing that happens to Hamish is the experiencing of Pouakai. This causes Hamish to persevere and believe in himself because without these skills, Hamish wouldn’t have been able to defeat Pouakai in the end. This is very much like the first point that I gave out. In the beginning of Owl, Hamish was not thoughtful of many things and very slack on things that he needed to finish or do but from the middle of the novel- when Pouakai is discovered, he begins to show perseverance and strength in his mind that he does not give up. I think that Kirsten, Tod and Tama would’ve noticed a lot of difference in Hamish mentally and physically throughout time.
By the end of the novel Hamish changes his perspectives on his nickname Owl through how Taua Gray explained that it was a special symbol that he was the chosen one to destroy Pouakai. Of course, it was very obvious that Hamish hated being called Owl by the way that he said, “Shut it!” to Tod when he had called Hamish Owl but throughout the experience that he went through, he started to acknowledge that he was Owl, the chosen one to untwist the legend of Ruru and Pouakai. I think that he would’ve felt proud and gratified that he was named Owl for an important reason. Hamish is also glad that he has finished a task that he would’ve thought was impossible to do. It said in the novel that he felt good and glad that he had finished a considerable task that had been up on his sleeves for a long time. I think he has learned a lesson that everybody need to tackle the future with all your might and all your soul or else tasks will not be able to be completed. This moral is a very good lesson for us too which we need to take on board with our lives as well to succeed.
In conclusion the main ways that Hamish has changed are his personality, perseverance and perspectives during his time on the farm. These changes happen because without his personality changing Hamish wouldn’t have been able to have the strength to fight, he wouldn’t have been confident without perseverance and he wouldn’t have been proud that he completed a huge task if he did not change perspectives. The writer Joanna Orwin wants people to learn from Hamish that everybody needs to be able to tackle the future with all your strength and all your mind or else nothing will be completed.
Another example of a Merit essay
Throughout the novel Owl Hamish’s behaviour changes. At the start of the novel, Hamish didn’t seem to work very well with strangers. When he first met Tama, he described him as a townie, weak and not much use. But throughout the book Hamish starts to get used to Tama, and begins to work well with him. After his opinions about him, he thinks that Tama might actually be a nice guy.
Hamish thought Tama wouldn’t be much help at all on the farm. As I stated before he seemed to be very quick to judge people and their abilities. E.g. Hamish said “He had never seen anyone less ox-like. If it hadn’t been for the huge basketball boots with undone laces, it looked as though the slightest breeze would knock him over”. He wasn’t very good at working with Tama. He didn’t give him a chance to prove that he was capable of working on the farm, and that he is stronger and more intelligent than all of them had thought. Hamish also didn’t talk to Tama very often. This was beginning to become a problem, if he and Tama were going to be working together.
When Hamish saw what Tama’s abilities and what his strengths were, he started giving him second thoughts. E.g. Hamish stated “Despite being so skinny, he was strong. Uncomfortably strong.” He ended up being stronger than Hamish had thought, and Hamish realised that they actually had a few things in common. For instance, both of their fathers left them. All of these things began to change Hamish. The main event in the book was when he, Tama, Kirsten and Todd all had to kill poakai. This event in the book had the largest impact on Hamish’s actions and behaviour. At the start of the novel Hamish had to learn to work with Tama, and it all came down to this moment. All of them had to work together and follow the guides they were given, and kill poakai. During the fight with poakai Hamish realises how strong and fierce Tama could be.
All of these events changed Hamish. His thoughts and actions changed. He realised what amazing things he was capable of. Killing poakai had driven Hamish to a new level of confidence. He now realised that he was capable of achieving so much more than he imagined. I personally would think that this would help him with his rock climbing in the future e learned that he needed to think before he acted, make better choices, think of the consequences he would face if he made those actions. He wasn’t quick to judge anyone anymore. Getting to know someone first, before stating an opinion of them.
Killing poakai, and making friends with Tama, has changed the way he thinks of things. He is starting to look at everything much differently than he would have before. Hamish learns a lot throughout this journey.
Essay 3 An example of an Excellence essay
In the novel Owl by Joanna Orwin, a main character is Hamish. He changes over the course of the novel, prompted by the events that happen. Some of the main ways he changes are: his thinking, his feelings and his actions.
At the beginning of the novel, Hamish had innocent and simple thinking. For example, when he discovered the rock drawings, he did not think it would cause great damage and have big consequences. He was also unable to let go of or accept many things, such as, the fact that his father was dead. “The ache in his chest that came when he thought of Dad settled in his stomach, like a heavy stone” which he harboured throughout the novel. Another thing he couldn’t let go of was the farm, as they were not managing well without Alex, his father. He was very reluctant when his mother announced that the farm had a “prospective buyer”. Also at the beginning of the novel, Hamish was childish and uncooperative. When Tama, a family stray, came to their farm, Hamish was always trying to prove that he was superior. A good illustration of this was when he tried to chop logs faster than Tama. He was also not getting on well with his brother or sister and hesitated before asking them for help.
During the novel, one significant thing that happened was meeting Taua Gray, a maori women who helped them find out about the Poukai. Because of this, Hamish finally understood the consequences of his actions and that some things are not as one-sided as they seem. When the Maori people, the original owners of their land, bought the farm, Hamish finally let go of it and became submissive toward his mother’s decisions. Killing the Poukai was also a significant event. Running down the hill, Hamish felt the presence of his father encouraging him. This caused a change in Hamish because he realised that his father could still help him even if he was gone and that he could still live on in his memories. This event also sparked a sense of team work into Kirsten, Tod, Tama and Hamish as they tried to decode the cave drawings and build the trap together. Killing the Poukai’s mate also changed Hamish. He learnt to respect Tama in a new way; he realised that Tama had things through his ancestry that Hamish didn’t have and that he couldn’t have achieved all of this without Tama’s help. In my opinion, the most significant event was when the children took Taua Gray up to the place that they had killed the Poukai and were reminded again of this happening. It was at that time that Hamish understood the link between the past and the present and, more importantly, it was the time that the stone was washed away. “And as he cried, the tears dissolved the stone that had lodged in his stomach for so long and washed it away.”
By the end of the novel, Hamish was a different person. In the future, Hamish would be careful about the things he discovers because he now knows that they could have huge consequences. He knows that he should listen to other people’s warnings and take them to account before doing something new. When the children go to the cave to put the kiatiaki back, we see that they have moved on, let go of the farm and made new plans for their lives. Hamish also knows the value of team work and cooperation by the end of the book. He had realised that life was not about being better than others and that some things can only be achieved through team work. He also became close with his brother, sister and Tama because of their shared experiences. Lastly, he had finally accepted that his father was dead.
In conclusion, Hamish changed in his thinking, feelings and actions; he developed in all these aspects and grew up. These changes occurred because of the events that happened in the novel. The writer, Joanna Orwin, wants people to realise that the events in one’s life are the things that makes him/ her grow up and change.
An example of an Achieved with Difficulty essay (level 3)
Owl By Joanna Orwin. This book is about Hamish or Owl as some people in his family call him changes physically and mentally through out this book, And after facing the Pouakai he’s braver, stronger, and wiser There’s a bit of mystery, some archaeology and then there’s Maori legends mix in with a bit of fantasy.
Part 1
At the beginning of the novel Hamish loved to rock climb and to explore thing, for an example, Bum Over Feet Hamish muttered. ‘Lean out’ with one foot jammed in the crack and the other pressed against the small ledge. Hamish wasn’t the biggest kid nor the but he tried his best to help his family with the farm, It was only his mother left to look after because his father had died.
Then Hamish also found out that his cousin Tama was coming to stay with him for a while, through out the time spending with Tama was lazy with the work he was given but though time he got better at what he was asked to do, Hamish and tama helped the farm and they both became closer friends There was one thing that Tama wasn’t fascinated in was the cave that Hamish
Part 2
During the novel the farm was in trouble because the bank was planning to sell the farm to who ever had enough money. Hamish and Tama have nothing to do because they wouldn’t be able to make enough money to try and save the land.
Hamish and Tama didn’t know what to do, Hamish had to look at the Maori cave drawings. Once he did he had unleashed a disturbing malevolence from the past. Hamish didn’t know what was happening so he quickly run out to the fields to see if anything had changed, Then Tama saw big dark shadows in the sky, is was the Pouakai.
Conclusion
Through out this book Hamish has been to a variety of different places
These places have tort Hamish Knowledge skill, fighting skill and Team work skills
Hamish has gotten taller, stronger and wiser after fighting the Pouakai and around his family.
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