Round the classes 

Reception class: Jess

It’s been a busy start to Term 2 with lots of learning going on and plenty of fun has been had in the meantime. The classroom looks a little different with new learning areas and the students have enjoyed settling back in.

We have been working hard on learning the  phonemes ‘Ee’ and ‘Hh’ and students have been trying their very best in handwriting as it takes lots of patience and practice.

Students love our Monday morning walk and talks, where we can listen to one another and share our own stories. We are becoming wonderful listeners and important contributors in class discussions and group tasks. 

We are enjoying hands-on maths in class, where students are involved in plenty of sorting, subitising and adding groups of objects and numbers. It's wonderful watching these students explore and use maths strategies taught through play and other learning areas. Students are showing bravery and grit as they continue grow socially and work with others.

I’m super proud of this class in how far they have come in such a short time.

Reception class: Kelly

We have had a great start to term 2. For writing, we have been working on identifying our 5W's - When, Who, Where, What and Why for our recount about our school holidays. It was great to see all the children attempt to write sentences about their holidays. For phonics, we have looked at the Ee and Bb sounds and have been working on identifying these sounds in words as well as practising correct handwriting and sentence writing. 

For maths, we have started our new topic on Algebra. The children have been learning about patterns: What is a pattern? They have been identifying patterns both inside and outside the classroom and have been creating repeated patterns using materials. We have been also revising how to form and write our numbers correctly from zero to twenty.

Our focus this term at school is being brave. In health, we introduced the Kimochi character Bug. We explored Bug's characteristics of being brave, shy, feeling left out and kind. It was great to hear stories of when the children feel these emotions and we discussed strategies that can help us when we are feeling these emotions. I was particularly impressed with how the children could discuss Brave - the feeling of trying new things, not giving up and encouraging others if they feel scared. 

Brave and Grit was certainly shown for Wheels Day last Friday. There were a lot of people watching which was scary, but the children got on their bikes and had a go. There were some in the classroom who had only just started riding their bikes independently and showing bravery to get around the Town Oval was a great achievement. Well done Receptions!

Year 1 class: Jaya

The year 1 class have had a fabulous start to Term 2. We welcomed Alfie Freer who is a new member of our class. It has been lovely getting to know him and the class have enjoyed making a new friend. 

A highlight from week 1 was Wheels Day on Friday. We had some space heroes, Aliens and Astronauts in the class for the day! It was amazing to see all the costumes and decorated bikes in our whole school parade. I am proud of everyone’s efforts when riding laps around the town oval. It was busy navigating how to ride with lots of other wheels around but the determination and grit was amazing to see, even after a couple of collisions or tumbles! 

In Maths, we are exploring simple addition and subtraction. We have been learning new vocabulary and the symbols plus, minus and equals and how we use them to form a number sentence. It is a tricky concept to begin with but the class have been persisting and working hard to give different activities and games a go.

In Literacy, we are focusing on the sounds ‘ow’ in ‘blow’ and ‘cow’ (confusing right!) and ‘oa’ in soap. We have also looked at how we change words to plural by adding an ‘s’ or ‘es’ onto the end. This is not an easy concept but it's great to see the class embracing the challenge. In our Narrative writing, we have looked at adjectives and how we can use them to enhance an idea. They can help us describe our nouns. 

Have a great weekend everyone! 

Year 2 class: Samantha

In literacy, we have been learning how to use conjunctions, affectionately known as "Connie Connectives." 

We've been busy learning how to use "because" to join two simple sentences together. Understanding this skill is crucial as it helps us express reasons and relationships between ideas in our writing. By mastering this, we're strengthening our ability to communicate effectively and cohesively. We practised this skill with a partner, who drew a picture of an event and drew a reason for the event. We then used the connective 'because' to write our own sentences. See Margot and Tyler's example below:

Collaborating with Stephen's Year 3 class in Aboriginal Education has been a highlight of our term. Together, we've embarked on a fascinating exploration of the rich scientific knowledge of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People. Did you know that they were the first scientists? We've delved into the clever methods they used, such as creating glue from tree resin, charcoal, and yes, even kangaroo faeces. Through hands-on activities and group discussions, we've activated our prior knowledge and shared our reasoning, fostering a vibrant environment of learning and collaboration.

As we celebrate Mother's Day, we extend warm wishes to all the incredible mothers and caregivers who nurture and support us each day. Your love and dedication are cherished beyond measure, and we thank you for everything you do. We hope you get to have a sleep in and a cuppa in bed on Sunday! 

Year 3 class: Stephen and Troy

We have had a smooth start to the new term.  Our primary focus has been on functional grammar, the process of “bumping up” our sentences to improve the overall quality of our writing.

We have specifically focused on the three key parts of a sentence: the participant, the process and the circumstance.  We follow closely the colour code as depicted in the pictures below. 

In other areas, we have continued to explore the maths problem-solving process through a range of tasks.  The example below is one that we completed recently.  Can you figure out the solutions for this problem?

Frances and Rishi were given a bag of lollies.

They shared them out equally and had one left over.

Just as they had finished sharing them their friends Kishan, Hayley and Paul came along. They wanted some lollies too, so the children shared them out again between all of them. This time they had two lollies left over.

How many lollies could there have been in the bag?

Year 4/5 class: Alex

This fortnight students enjoyed their Wheels Day on Friday of Week 2. An impressive number of laps completed around the school oval and a lot of fun had. Congratulations Imogen and Maddi for winning the best-dressed bike and scooter! 

Students have just been introduced to their Kids in Space design and technology project mission. The design brief is to work as a group to design a space-proof way to enjoy an item from home which would provide comfort or wellbeing while working on the International Space Station. They will use the 3D design program Maker’s Empire to design and 3D print their prototype. 

Students have begun the project by learning about what daily life is like for astronauts in space and how household items are designed and adapted to suit the ‘zero-gravity’ environment. So far, they have been investigating how astronauts sleep differently, wash their hair and brush their teeth. They have begun thinking about constraints such as amount of room for storage on the ISS, the issue of crumbs and the effect of ‘weightlessness’ on the human body. 

In narrative writing students have been further developing the skill of descriptive writing. They have been zooming in on a moment in their holidays and describing the five senses to paint a picture in the reader's mind. The aim is to show rather than directly tell what the character or writer is experiencing so that the reader can imagine being there in the moment. Students have also been practising their editing and revision skills, typing up their favourite sizzling starts, dynamic dialogue and tightening tension scenes to be displayed on our class pinboard near the hall in the main building. 

In maths students have been working on getting into the habits of more consistently practising their times tables ahead of their weekly times tables tests. Thanks to those who have made time at home to do some practice where possible. Students continue their daily mental maths and are developing their ability to share strategies collaboratively in their marking groups to help each other with difficult questions when marking. The class is in their last couple of weeks of their unit on place value.

Year 5/6 class: Sallie

We have started with set spelling and spelling homework this term. There are different groups ( grouped according to strengths and weaknesses) and the aim is to become more familiar with different spelling strategies, understand word meanings and practise our writing skills.  It is also designed to get into a "homework" routine at home. We continued our journey with sentence structure and focused on our novel study ...soon to be finished.  Our Big Write will be on Monday (your child has the prompt) or see Seesaw.  We are continuing with our science and Makers Empire theme of "space". 

Makers Empire - Kids in Space ... we have been solving the problem of " If you were an astronaut what would you invent/create to help you relax and get into the "green zone". In their group they had to come up with 10 ideas and then think of problems and solutions for each of their creations.  They have now narrowed it down to one idea. It will be interesting to see these develop and transfer into a 3d figure. 

In Maths we are winding up our work on addition and subtraction. We have been looking at chunking, rounding, bridge through 10 and other ways to help us work out our maths equations. Fractions are next!!!

Wheels Day was a great day. The weather was perfect and the costumes and decorations were fun.  I was very proud of our class who organised and supported children, completed first aid, went around the oval with wobbly riders and cheered from the sidelines. The SRC executives (Ivy, Elodie and Sammy) did a great job designing certificates and then awarding them to every class (except our own). 

Welcome to Henry our pre-service teacher who is here for 6 weeks. It will be good getting to know you and watching you work with our class. 

Science: Philippa

R-3 classes will focus on Physical Sciences while Alex and Sallie's classes will do Earth and Space Sciences.

Jess and Kelly's classes will learn about how things, people and animals move.

Heat is the topic for Stephen's class and Jaya's class started their learning about push and pull by making catapults.

Alex and Sallie's classes are involved in a Maker's Empire project about Space. To connect with this in science lessons, we will learn about gravity, rockets, parachutes, the International Space Station and satellites. Alex's class had fun launching their vinegar and bi-carb soda plastic bottle rockets in Week 2. Unfortunately, due to my absence, Sallie's class will have to wait until Week 3 to construct and launch their rockets.

Philippa

Indonesian: Ibu Susan

In Indonesian we have started learning about Binatang di Indonesia (Animals in Indonesia). We will be learning how to describe these animals in Indonesian and also look at how these animals live in the wild. We have welcomed 2 new teddies this term, Kuat the Komodo dragon and Malu the pangolin. 

PE: Emma and Troy

During the first weeks of Term 2 we have focused on our engagement and persistence in using skipping ropes. Students recognised why skipping is an effective form of exercise, including the fact that it increases our heart rate, is a whole-body movement and works on our coordination. We practised our skipping skills through inclusive games and relay activities. - Emma

In PE students have been learning soccer. The focus has been on developing teamwork skills and applying different rules for modified games. Students have been learning how to kick, trap and move themselves into space to get the ball more easily. This week, students applied all their skills in two-ball soccer which showcased all their skills for the three-week unit.  Next week we move on to netball.  - Troy

State Swimming Carnival 

Ada Brodie-Tyrrell attended the state swimming carnival in the relay team earlier this year. What a great achievement!