What's Happening in the Middle School
Year 3
What’s Happening in Year 3 in July
Welcome back to Term 3! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday filled with rest, fun, and special time with family and friends. It has been lovely to welcome the students back to school and see their smiling faces, ready for another exciting term of learning. This term promises to be full of engaging learning experiences as we continue to build on the knowledge and skills developed during the first half of the year. Students will challenge themselves through new learning opportunities, collaborate with their classmates, and continue to grow in confidence across all learning areas. We are particularly looking forward to beginning our class novel, Storm Boy, and exploring the fascinating world of pelicans, wetlands, and wildlife conservation. Term 3 is a wonderful opportunity for students to set new goals, persevere through challenges, and celebrate their achievements. I look forward to seeing every student continue to develop their independence, curiosity, and love of learning. Here's to a fantastic Term 3 filled with growth, success, and many memorable learning experiences!
Wellbeing
This year, we will be using the Grow Your Mind podcast to learn about resilience, respect, responsibility, and relationships. It focuses on making the parts of your brain responsible for decision making and self-regulation relatable by connecting them to different animals. Over the next month, students will explore the role of the prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, reticular activating system, and amygdala and learn how to be of benefit to others.
Literacy
- We will read the novel Storm Boy and analyse the key themes, characters, and events. Students will develop their comprehension skills by making predictions, drawing inferences, analysing the author's language choices, and responding to the text through discussion and written tasks.
- Read knowledge building texts to support the ideas and themes of the text Storm Boy.
- We will delve into the features of an information report.
- We will be learning Anglo-Saxon and Latin root words and their affixes to build understanding of word meaning and etymology through the Word Origins Program.
Maths
Multiplication
- Bar models
- Thinkboards
- Two-digit multiplication with materials, no regrouping
- Two-digit multiplication with materials, with regrouping
Division
- Two-digit division with materials, no regrouping
- Two-digit division with materials, regrouping
- Worded Problems
Angles
- Angles as a Measurement of Turn
- Types of Angles
- Understanding Angles
Telling the Time
- Reading analogue times to the quarter hour
- Reading analogue times to five minutes
- Reading analogue time to the minute
- Writing digital times
- Matching analogue and digital times
- Converting analogue and digital times
- Solving problems involving analogue and digital time
Knowledge Unit
This term, students will investigate the relationship between weather, climate, and the environment. They will explore how weather is measured and interpreted, examine the difference between weather and climate, and investigate how climate influences habitats, ecosystems, and landscapes. Students will also learn about the unique environment of the Coorong, discovering why it is an important wetland for native wildlife and how it has changed over time. As part of their inquiry, they will explore the impact humans have on the environment and the importance of conservation, developing a greater understanding of how we can all help protect Australia's natural habitats for future generations.
Sport
- This year the cohort will participate in one hour of sport a week (in addition to PE sessions) and pending the weather throughout the term.
Reminders
Monday 27th July – Parent/Teacher Interviews
Tuesday 28th July – Parent/Teacher Interviews
Friday 31st July –Open Afternoon
Friday 28th August - Book Week Dress up Day
Year 4
What’s Happening in Year 4 in July
We hope you all enjoyed the break and managed to have some cosy days at home with your families. This term will include another science knowledge unit. There will also be a Years 4, 5 and 6 House Athletics Carnival happening in Term 3 to look forward to. The Year 4 teaching team are all looking forward to an exciting new term!
Wellbeing
Students will continue work through the Victorian Government mandated Resilience, Rights and Respectful Relationship guidelines. This program is designed to help assist students navigate social, emotional and positive relationship skills.
Literacy
Our new spelling program, Word Origins will continue to be implemented throughout the second semester. Our class novel this term is “The Wild Robot” by Peter Brown. Increasing vocabulary as well as improving sentence structure when writing, will continue to be learning goals during literacy sessions. Reading fluency will also be a priority throughout these lessons.
Maths
The Year 4 students will be focusing on the processes of addition and subtraction throughout Term 3. All areas of Maths that were studied throughout the first semester will also be frequently reviewed to facilitate deeper understanding of concepts. The Number Fluency Program will also be completed each day at school.
Knowledge Unit
Our knowledge unit in Term 3 will be another Science study. This term’s unit will have a focus on The Water Cycle. Students will be provided with an opportunity to explore the ways in which water moves by completing a variety of simple experiments.
Homework
The Year 4 students are expected to read every night and record their progress in their personal diaries. It is the responsibility of the student to bring their diary to school every day and take it home each night to log their reading. Classroom teachers will be checking and signing these diaries regularly to monitor student reading habits. The student diary will also be used to highlight important dates and reminders.
Important Year 4 Dates:
Monday 3rd August – House Athletics Carnival
Tuesday 4th August – Maths Competition
Monday 17th August – Scholastic Book Fair
Friday 4th September – Father’s Day / Special Friend Event
Friday 18th September – Footy Day & last Day of Term 3