Prep,1 & 2 Classroom News 

Prep News 

Busy Breaks 

Busy Breaks have been so important to help children maintain focus in prep over the past two week. We love doing busy breaks throughout the day as we transition into new subjects. We count, sing, dance and exercise. We are so lucky to have Carol Mathias in our class from Wednesdays to Fridays who not only is a fantastic teacher, but also a very talented musician. This week Carol did a busy break in our classroom which involved singing, dancing and using Maracas! Check it out.

Inquiry 

This week we had a visit from a fireman who taught us all about fire safety. We also learned about the special gear firewomen/men wear.

Literacy

MSL  

The children are learning the correct way to say their sounds. Look at this cool trick that we use to make sure we are paying the ‘p’ sound correctly. We don’t use our throats to make this sound, only air in our mouths. We have learnt many sounds this year already and I am blown away at how well the boys and girls know their sounds and can recognise sounds in words. We have been blending the sounds we know to make CVC words e.g. mat, fat, cat, sat. 

Writing- children are using their knowledge of sounds to write letters and some words. Continue to encourage your child to use their knowledge of sounds and letters to write at home. 

Maths

Revision of counting, number recognition, subitising. This week we learned a new tool time game - snakes and ladders! The children have had so much fun playing this game with a partner. 

Chalk Fest

We enjoyed the Chalkfest to link in with the Sandringham Street art Chalk fest in Sandringham. We enjoyed the time with the 1/2's and had so much fun creating and drawing with chalk and we got covered in chalk! Sorry for the washing parents!

I will be away for the last week of term and the first week of next term going home to Ireland to see my family for the first time in 3 years. Mrs Lisa Biffin will be taking my class and I look forward to seeing the preps on my return. 

Bronagh Maloney 

bmaloney@shsandringham.catholic.edu.au

lbiffin@shsandringham.catholic.edu.au  (for next week and the first week of term 2)

1/2 NEWS

R.E.

The students have started looking at the Story of Easter through picture story books, discussion and prayer. We wrote Reconciliation cards to our buddies to congratulate them on this special sacrament. 

We participate in Daily prayer - reminder of the purpose of prayer, how prayer isn’t just for people but in need but can also be a way for us to give thanks.

Literacy

We are busy learning lots about MSL (Multi Sensory structured Language), with thanks to Kate Stroud. In addition to the sound pack which the children are well versed with now, we have added a new component this week - ‘Closed Syllable words’. Ask your child about this and how when a vowel is trapped by two consonants it makes a short sound. We are very impressed with how quickly the kids have adapted to our new routine with MSL being delivered first thing every morning.

We are using a range of MSL activities during our Daily 5 Rotations to consolidate the students understanding. Next week we are excited to introduce Open Syllables.

In Writing  we have done an introduction and exposed the students to information reports, the purpose of a report and intended audience. We have done an exploration of fact vs opinion and how information reports contain facts that can’t be questioned or debated. With support and appropriate scaffolds we are writing our own reports about a chosen member of our community.

Maths

Patterns

We have been exploring patterns in everyday life, different types of patterns.

shape patterns, number patterns and students have been creating their own patterns 

 by doing the Ten in the Bed and Three Little Pigs activity

We have been working on revising number strategies which has continued on, prior to the end of term assessment. This helps to inform future planning and to ensure we are designing learning experiences that are targeted and differentiated to suit individual students needs. 

Respectful Relationships

For Harmony Day we explored and celebrated the many different cultures in our community. We used stories and our own experiences to further understand this year’s Harmony Day theme ‘Everyone Belongs’ and to unpack what ‘multicultural’ means.

We continue to explore and unpack the character strengths, identifying them in ourselves and specific strengths we would like to work on strengthening. We enjoyed a Harmony Day Picnic lunch with the preps.

Chalk Fest

To complement community events and our study of community. The kids worked together, communicating, sharing, collaborating and enjoying the togetherness that comes with being a community.

We look forward to welcoming Miss Sarah Rafferty back to Sacred Heart and thank Mrs Lisa Biffin for being an amazing teacher in 1/2RF and for all the extra work she has done over the past few weeks, working in the 1/2 team. 

Reminders 

1. Please make sure your child brings their iPad fully charged each day and has a labelled pair of headphones.
2. Can all Year 1's bring a box of tissues and all Year 2's bring a pack of cleaning cloths. Thank you to those who have already done this. 
3. Take home books come back on a Monday to be changed for the week of reading.

Classroom Contacts

Should you wish to get in touch with your child’s teacher for any reason or you wish to make an appointment to speak with them, please contact them through Seesaw directly. If you prefer you can also use email. You can reach us on these addresses:

sprosser@shsandringham.catholic.edu.au

srafferty@shsandringham.catholic.edu.au

gfahey@shsandringham.catholic.edu.au

jbrown@shsandringham.catholic.edu.au 

kharper@shsandringham.catholic.edu.au

kstroud@shsandringham.catholic.edu

The 1/2 team.