Prep 

Initial Lit

In Initial Lit, our Preps have continued exploring the foundational skills of reading. Last week, we focused on breaking words into syllables. This included students clapping out syllables, identifying them on caterpillars' bodies, jumping in hula hoops for each part and using fingers to count syllables. We also honed in on our skills in rhyme recognition and counting words in sentences.

This week marked a shift in our focus towards blending onset and rime, where we learned to combine the beginning and ending sounds of words to say them fluently. We also introduced the letter 'm' and its corresponding sound.

In our StoryBook sessions, we've explored the books, "The Very Hungry Bear" and "Grandpa and Thomas." Through these stories, we've discussed the beginnings, middles, and ends. We've made connections beyond the texts and explored the meaning of vocabulary like "grumpy," "yanked," "shrinking," "gasp," "wriggly," and "screech."

We're incredibly proud of the progress the Preps are making, and we're excited to continue building on their letter and sound knowledge in the coming weeks.  

Integrated: 

Last week, during our writing lesson, we focused on the importance of learning how to write our names. We are practising how to form the letters properly, and we are using capital letters only for the first letter. Additionally, we explored the letter 'Mm', and the students participated in various sensory activities that helped them learn how to form the letter correctly

In our recent Zones of Regulation lesson, students have been focusing on understanding the different zones and the emotions associated with each one. We went through each zone and discussed the corresponding emotions, and students participated in various activities where we asked them to consider how their body language reflects their emotions. We explored a range of emotions, including happiness, sadness, anger, frustration, and excitement. Students were able to describe how their body feels when experiencing different emotions.

In our Respectful Relationships class, we have been learning about emotions. We recently introduced the term 'body language' to describe how emotions are expressed through our bodies. To help us understand this concept better, we played a fun game called the Emotions Echo game. In this game, one student acted as the leader and the rest of the class had to copy the leader's body language as closely as possible. It was a great way to learn about how our bodies can express different emotions.

Maths: 

This fortnight, the Prep students have been engaging in their first ever Maths lessons! To begin the year, students have been enjoying learning all about numbers 1-10 and how these can be represented in different ways; numerals, collections of objects, tens frames and many more! We have loved seeing the students immerse themselves in lots of fun hands-on activities that promote their understanding of each number and its value. The Prep students have particularly enjoyed manipulating playdough to create different numbers and values.