More Than A Mountaineer- By Bill O'Brien

KNOWLEDGE - What are the facts

1. At what time and on what date was Mount Everest climbed for the first time? May 29th 1953- 11.30am

2. Name the two other expeditions mentioned in this article that Sir Edmund Hillary led. Tractors over crevasse-covered glaciers and deep drifts of snow to the South Pole. He’s jet boated from the mouth of the mighty Ganges River, with it’s fearsome rapids, to it’s source in the Himalayas.

COMPREHENSION - Show that you understand the information

3. What did the Sherpa mean when he said “Our children have eyes but they cannot see”? The kids only know what’s going on in their community but what they don’t know is what’s going on in other places in the world, or out of their place. They don’t have that much of an education or someone to teach them about other things apart from their own little town.

4. Think of another title for the article that summarises what the author is writing about

and would be a good hook for the reader. Title- A Gift From A Mountaineer. Hook- Its great to know that Sherpa is now a much better place than it was before.

APPLICATION - Using what you read in the article 5. Design a poster for the Himalayan Trust to get donations and volunteers to help build a school for the Sherpas.

ANALYSIS - Organising information from the article

6. Draw a TIMELINE showing all the events in Sir Edmund Hillary’s life that are mentioned in this article. This will help you understand how the article has been organised by the author and is a good way to help you remember the information.

1953	Sir Edmund Hillary climbed Mt Everest along with his climbing companion Nepali Sherpa Tenzing Norgay
The next fifty-years	He had led expeditions on tractors over crevasse- covered glaciers and deep drifts of snow to the south pole. He’s jet boated from the mouth of the mighty ganges river.
1961	People began working together to build the first Sherpa school.
1975	While people were building the Paphlu Hospital, Sir Edmund Hillary was waiting for his wife, Lady Louise and his sixteen year old daughter, Belinda Hillary to arrive by plane. But they did not return. Unfortunately their plane had crashed and everyone in it died.
Within thirty years	The Himalayan Trust had built twenty-seven schools, two hospitals, twelve clinics, an airfield and several bridges over raging rivers.
1986	Tenzing Norgay died aged seventy-three

SYNTHESIS - Coming up with new ideas

7. Using modern technology, design a more efficient system for getting building equipment up the Himalayan mountains and clearing land for an airstrip. Label your drawings or write descriptions to explain your interesting ideas.

For my design there would be a whole lot of trees, bushes and other stuff in the way. So I would create a group and clear that whole part a turn it into an airstrip. There would be no tree’s, no bushes no nothing where the airstrip is going to be.

EVALUATION - Seeing both sides

“Being the first to climb Mt Everest is Sir Edmund Hillary’s most important achievement”

Make a chart and list your reasons for agreeing and disagreeing with this statement

I agree with this statement because Sir Edmund Hillary climbed the tallest mountain in the world and got instant fame. He is very brave because he climbed Mt Everest and that is a very, very, very big mountain. He’s very famous and an inspiration for other people.

I disagree with this statement because……….

EVALUATION - Making judgments about information

Do you think this article was well written? Yes, I think this is a great article but they could improve the hook and the conclusion.

♦ Was there a hook in the introduction? Not really Hook : Rate: 4/10

♦ Was the information well organised in clear sections? Yes Organisation : Rate: 8/10

♦ Was there an effective conclusion? Sort of Wrap-up : Rate: 7/10

Write a short review of this article based on the ratings you have given it.

Comment on extra information that you think could or should have been included.

On the 29th of May 1953 Sir Edmund Hillary reached the summit of Mt Everest along with his companion Nepali Sherpa Tenzing Norgay. For five hours straight they tackled rock and ice faces. At 11:30am they reached the top of Mt Everest. Over the next fifty-years, Sir Edmund Hillary had led expeditions on tractors over crevasse-covered glaciers and deep drifts of snow to the South Pole. He’s jet boated from the mouth of the mighty Ganges River. He has been New Zealand’s High Commissioner to India. But of all the adventures he has had, the one that dominated his life was working among the Sherpa’s. One day Sir Edmund Hillary asked one of the Sherpa’s “What will happen to you in the future”. The Sherpa answered, “Our children have eyes but cannot see”. What they wanted more than anything was a school in khumjung village. The Hillary got the idea of the Himalayan Trust. People began building the first sherpa school in 1961.There are no roads where the Sherpa’s live. At the schools opening 40 pupils were enrolled. An airstrip was badly needed for people to transport stuff back and forth. But with no roads it was hard. One hundred Sherpa’s cut down bushes and tree’s, dug out roots and levelled the land. The things they couldn’t move was the big boulders. So they dug big holes around it and used equipment to push the boulder over into the hole, then they covered it with earth. After two days of stamping the airstrip was finally ready. While building the Paphlu Hospital in 1975 Sir Edmund Hillary was waiting for his wife to arrive by plane. Unfortunately the plane crashed. Sir Edmund Hillary’s wife and daughter Belinda died. Within thirty-years, the Himalayan Trust had built twenty-seven schools, two hospitals, twelve clinics, an airfield, and several bridges over raging rivers. Tenzing Norgay sadly died in May 1986 aged seventy-three.