Specialist Updates
Orchard Park Primary School
Performing Arts
Prep, Year 1 & Year 2 – Music & Movement Around the World
Our Prep, Year 1 and 2 students have been exploring the wonderful world of music and movement! We have been discovering music from different countries and cultures, discussing how music makes us feel, why people listen to music and how music inspires us to move and dance.
Students explored different instruments, dance styles and movements from around the world, identifying the ways they can be similar and different across cultures. We also investigated some of the instruments, movements and dance elements that can be used in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander music and dance.
A highlight of our learning was exploring the beautiful text Wilam by Aunty Joy Murphy, a respected Aboriginal Elder. Inspired by the different animals featured in the book, students worked collaboratively in small groups to imagine and create their own movements and dance sequences representing these animals. We then brought all of our ideas together to create and perform a whole-class dance!
It has been wonderful to see our youngest Performing Arts students using their imaginations, expressing themselves through movement and developing an appreciation for the diverse ways music and dance connect people, cultures and Country.
Years 3 & 4 – Ukulele
Our Year 3 and 4 students have been developing their musical skills through learning to play the ukulele! Students have been practising how to correctly hold their instruments, identifying the four open strings (G, C, E and A), playing fingered notes and exploring a range of common major and minor chords.
They have also been experimenting with different strumming techniques, rhythm patterns and musical accompaniments. Working collaboratively, students have been challenged to compose, notate and perform their own four-bar pieces of music, incorporating chord accompaniments and simple melodies using the notes and chords they have learnt. There has been some fantastic music-making happening!
Years 5 & 6 – Music Technology & Composition
Our Year 5 and 6 students have been building on similar musical concepts, exploring chords, melodies, rhythm and accompaniment through music technology. Using digital music software, students have been composing, recording and producing their own musical pieces.
They have been experimenting with musical loops, layering sounds, incorporating effects and exploring how different musical elements can be combined to create a finished piece of music. It has been wonderful to see students collaborating, getting creative and developing their confidence as young composers and music producers!
STEM
Term 4 has been full of exciting discoveries in STEM as students explore the fascinating world of Physical Science! Through hands-on investigations, creative challenges and plenty of experimentation, students have been developing their scientific understanding and putting their problem-solving skills to the test.
Prep – Year 2: Push, Pull and Sound
Our youngest scientists have been exploring push and pull forces by investigating how different objects move. They put their learning into action by designing and creating their very own marble mazes! Students are now discovering the science of sound, investigating how vibrations create sound and how sound can, in turn, cause objects to vibrate.
Year 3/4: Investigating Forces
Our Year 3/4 students have been busy investigating the fascinating world of contact and non-contact forces. Through a range of practical challenges, they have explored friction in our ramp challenge, designed parachutes to investigate air resistance, tested water resistance and experimented with electrostatic forces. They have also put their problem-solving skills to work by navigating magnetism mazes. These investigations have encouraged students to make predictions, test ideas and use their observations to explain how forces affect the world around us.
Year 5/6: Exploring Light and Electricity
Our Year 5/6 students kicked off the term by investigating light and how it interacts with different materials. They explored the differences between transparent, translucent and opaque objects before recreating a range of fascinating light refraction illusions. One of the highlights was creating their very own rainbows by refracting light and dispersing white light into all the colours of the rainbow! They are now moving on to explore electrical circuits using our Makey Makey resources to investigate how circuits work.
We are looking forward to a fun-filled end to the term in STEM, with more opportunities to investigate, create, experiment and discover the science all around us!
PE
Plenty happening in the gym this term! Our main learning focus in PE is all about striking sports. The Junior School has been exploring different striking equipment, while the middle school has been applying skills into various striking sports! The Senior School have been exploring some of the more obscure striking sports such as golf and scooter hockey, and will finish the term having a go at sports like badminton, cross-minton and pickleball.
It has been a great term so far, whacking things around the gym!
Super proud of the students who attended the Regional Athletics Finals this term. It is an amazing effort to progress that far to come up against some challenging competition. Our standout was Emma from Year 4, placing 3rd in the Triple Jump and Discus!
This term we also had our 5/6 Girls Cricket, Boys and Girls Volleyball, and Mixed Tennis teams attend the Division Summer Sport Finals, after progressing from the Lightning Premiership in Term 1. Again, super proud of the students who attended and represented our school proudly! Congratulations to the Boys Volleyball team finishing runners-up after making the grand final, and to our Girls Cricket team who are DIVISION CHAMPIONS after winning the grand final! The girls now progress to the Region Finals later this term!
Visual Art
A Hive of Activity in the Art Room!
The Art Room has been a hive of activity this term as our budding artists put the finishing touches on their creations in the lead-up to our much-anticipated Art Showcase!
Throughout the semester, students have explored a wonderful range of artistic ideas, materials and techniques, developing their skills and experimenting with the Art Elements of line, shape, colour, texture, pattern and tone. From drawing and painting to printmaking, collage, 3D and mixed-media creations, there has been plenty of creativity, curiosity and hands-on learning taking place.
As the Showcase approached, students had the exciting opportunity to revisit their artworks and reflect on their artistic journey. Our little artists enjoyed looking back at the work they had created, sharing their favourite pieces and recognising how their skills and ideas had developed. They also became part of the preparation process, helping to choose titles for their artworks, carefully mounting their pieces and seeing their creations transformed into a gallery-style display.
It has been wonderful to see the pride and excitement as students discovered their work on display, taking the time to appreciate not only their own achievements but also the creativity of their classmates. These opportunities encourage students to share their ideas, make artistic decisions and develop an appreciation for different approaches to creating and presenting art.
A big congratulations to all our young artists for their enthusiasm, imagination and hard work this semester. The Art Room has certainly been bursting with creativity, and we are so proud to share a little snapshot of their artistic journey with our school community!