Glen Waverley Primary School Level 2 Newsletter

Level 2 - Term Three

Dear Parents and Guardians,

 

Welcome to another exciting term of learning and celebration in Level Two.

During Term Three, the Level Two students will engage in explicit learning experiences improving on their knowledge and understanding in the areas of Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, Mathematics, You Can Do It, Inquiry and Personal and Social development and growth. The Level Two team have created learning experiences that support the students’ learning to extend and challenge their current abilities in all areas of the curriculum. This term the students will participate in an excursion to the MCG and Australian Sports Museum to strengthen their understanding of our Inquiry question, ‘How we are connected to places’.

 

The school foci ‘Flexible Thinking’, ‘Self-Care and Mindful Actions’ and ‘Respectful Relationships’ are integrated throughout the students’ learning journey.

 

Please take a moment to see what we have planned for this stimulating term of learning.

 

Term Three Key Dates:

 

July 19th                - Student Led Conferences

July 26th                - Student Led Conferences

August 16th          - Excursion to the MCG and the Australian Sports Museum

August 31st          - Father’s Day Stall

August 1st            - Father’s Day Stall

August 2nd           - Father’s Day Stall

 

 

 Kind regards,

The Level Two Team

 

Mathematics

In Mathematics, students will deepen their understanding of Number and Algebra through multiplication. They will consolidate their understandings of multiplication as ‘groups of’, repeated addition, and arrays. Students will also learn about division, exploring strategies such as short division, and exploring the connection between division and multiplication through the implementation of various strategies such as split, vertical, and using pictorial representations.

 

We will also focus on Measurement and Geometry, as students will use informal and formal units and measuring tools to calculate the length, perimeter and area of various shapes.

 

To support your child’s learning at home, you could: 

  • Encourage your child to explain his or her thinking and strategies when solving a math's problem. For example, you may ask “How did you know 3 x 9 = 27? What strategy did you use? How can you prove that it’s correct?”
  • Ask your children to explain their thinking through the use of concrete material or pictorial representation.
  • Encourage your child to estimate the length of an object at home, then after making the estimation ask them to measure it.

Reading

In Reading, the Level Two students will continue to utilise the CAFE approach to further their Comprehension, Accuracy, Fluency and Vocabulary in reading, in alignment with the Victorian curriculum. In order to connect to and build on their skills in Reading, reading and analysis of poetry and information reports will be a focus. Students will select personalised reading goals, regularly receiving feedback and feedforward on their progress from peers, teachers and themselves.

 

To support your child’s learning at home, you could:

  • Ensure your child reads aloud to you regularly throughout the school week. Encourage them to use expression and the punctuation to guide how fast they read. 
  • Ask your child what their reading goal is and provide them with support with regards to their pronunciation and reading fluency. 
  • After reading, ask your child to retell or summarise the story in order of how it took place and explain the main ideaas. 
  • Pose questions to your child as they read to support their comprehension of texts. Particularly focus on asking questions that encourage deeper thinking such as ‘Why do you think the author wrote this text?’ or ‘Why did the character act like that?’

Spelling

In Level Two we undertake spelling inquiries into our personal spelling words in order to understand the meanings and connections more deeply. Spelling foci for Term Three will include specific spelling conventions, such as double letter sounds, and grammatical fundamentals such as syllables and tenses. Students will continue to select personalised spelling words from their writing. These words will be practised during Home Learning and tested at school weekly. 

 

 

 

To support your child’s learning at home you could:

  • Build word families based around the weekly spelling focus at home with your child. For example, stir, sir, fir. 
  • Encourage your child to edit their spelling by reading their writing aloud and asking, ‘Do the words look and sound right?’

Writing

In Writing, students will continue to utilise the VOICES whole school approach. They will continue to build on their skills of integrating Voice, Organisation, Ideas, Conventions, Excellent Word Choice and Sentence Fluency throughout their writing pieces. 

Students will focus on the text types of Poetry and Information Reports. They will explore a range of different poetry styles such as Cinquain, Haiku and Limerick. Students will build upon their knowledge of the Information Report structure. This structure will support their writing piece by providing a framework for students to write to, creating clear and concise reports bursting with information.

 

Speaking and Listening

Speaking and Listening is a vital skill to develop, and it will continue to be integrated across areas of the curriculum. Through our Poetry unit students will develop their skills in manipulating sound combinations and creating rhythmic sound patterns. Students will build your vocal communication skills through the opportunity to share their thinking and learning with their peers. Through sharing their learning pieces, students are able to further develop their knowledge of tone and volume.

 

Inquiry

Throughout Inquiry in Term Three, learners will be exploring the question of ‘How are we connected to different places?’. Learners will unpack the meaning of keywords in our Inquiry topic and make links to the Global Goal ‘Partnership for the Goals’ (working together to achieve a common goal). The learners will delve into what a connection is and the current connections they have. They will explore and build connections within Victoria and the impact these connections have on them in order to create a sense of belonging between learners and their home state of Victoria. Learners will participate in an excursion to the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the city.  To support your child’s learning at home, you can engage in discussions about the connections your child has with local Victorian places, people, and landmarks and the impact these connections have.

 

YCDI

The Level Two team integrates the You Can Do It Program into weekly teaching and learning. YCDI is adapted to unique needs of each student and will work towards developing and strengthening their social and emotional thinking and self-regulation skills. YCDI is a comprehensive framework that incorporates the latest research into developing the social and emotional characteristics of children and explores how social skills can affect outcomes. We will connect elements of YCDI to our Whole School Values of Global Empathy, Integrity, Respect and Initiative and allow students to reflect on how actions affect the well-being of themselves and others. Specifically, we will be focusing on improving our organisation both at home and in the classroom as we strive to create an orderly and structured learning environment for ourselves.