Prep News

Learning Centre Three

It's been an exciting two weeks in Grade Prep! There have been plenty of big smiles in the learning spaces, but the biggest smiles were saved for the camera on School Photo Day!

Phonics

Students were thrilled to meet two more of Milo’s friends — Cooper caterpillar and Izzy insect! These cute and interesting characters introduced the sounds /k/ and /i/. As we complete our Stage 1 journey with Milo and his friends, students are becoming more confident using their phonics skills to decode words. Ask your child about Cooper and Izzy, and encourage them to practice their sounds at home. It’s amazing to see their phonics skills grow!

Literacy

Students have been diving into some wonderful books including The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle, I Went Walking by Sue Machin & Julie Vivas, and Blue Chameleon by Emily Gravett. They have been learning about different parts of a book and practicing sequencing events from the stories. Through fun activities like making puppets, ordering story events, and adding verbs to sentences, they are building important language skills. 

Maths

Students have been building number skills by ordering numbers from 0 to 10, counting forwards and backwards, and subitising (recognising small groups of objects without counting). They have been practicing these skills through hands-on activities, using concrete materials, and playing engaging games. These fun experiences help develop confidence with numbers. You can support their learning at home by counting objects together, playing simple number games, and encouraging quick recognition of small groups of items.

Religion

Students have been learning about what it means to be part of God’s family by first exploring how they know they are part of their own family. They have also been learning about Project Compassion and how it helps people in need. One inspiring story they heard was about Irene, a talented seamstress who uses her skills to support her family. To reflect on her story, students created a special craft by weaving wool around the edge of a plate and drawing a symbol in the center to represent Irene. It has been a wonderful way for them to connect faith with real-world examples of kindness and generosity.

Inquiry

Students have been learning to identify and understand different emotions. Through fun activities, they explored how we express feelings in different ways. They especially enjoyed playing an emotions bingo game and had a great time creating their own emojis to represent different feelings.

Developmental Play

Each fortnight, students alternate between buddy time and developmental play. Developmental play allows children to engage in activities that help them grow important skills, like problem-solving, creativity, and coordination, while having fun and exploring the world around them. This week, students had a fantastic time building creations using Lego. As they carefully snapped pieces together, they strengthened their fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination and attention to detail. There were some very proud builders at the end of the session!

Easter Hat Parade

A friendly reminder that our P-2 Easter Hat Parade is being held in the Sports Hall on Wednesday, April 2nd at 9am. Please help your child create a special Easter hat to wear for the parade. We can't wait to see all the creative designs and celebrate together!

Some friendly reminders:

• Monday 31st March - School Closure Day
• Tuesday 1st April - Casual Clothes Day (gold coin donation for Project Compassion)
• Wednesday 2nd April - 9am Prep-2 Easter Hat Parade
• Thursday 3rd April - 9am Stations of the Cross
• Friday 4th April - 12pm Whole School Mass - Sports Hall
• Friday 4th April - 1pm Finish - End of Term 1

Thank you for your continued support.

Prep Team: Dasanthi, Emma, Gillian, Jamie, Natasha, Rachael, Sarena, Teagan and Tina