Classroom News
PREP
Welcome to our Week 4 Prep newsletter. It’s hard to believe we are already in Week 4, time is absolutely flying! We are so proud of the wonderful start our Prep students have made to school life. They are settling into routines beautifully, building friendships, and showing such enthusiasm for learning. Every day we see growing confidence, resilience and independence, and it has been a joy to watch their progress.
This week in Literacy, we have been learning about Peter Penguin (/Pp/) and Tim Turtle (/Tt/). These new sounds build on our previous learning of /m/, /a/, /f/ and /s/. With this growing sound knowledge, students are now beginning to read and write simple words such as map, pip, Pam, Sam, am and as, which is very exciting to see. When your child is reading their home reader, you can support them by encouraging them to look for these familiar sounds in the text, point to each letter, and slowly sound out words before blending them together. We are also continuing to practise writing our names correctly, starting with a capital letter followed by lowercase letters for the rest of their name. Thank you for reinforcing this at home too.
In Mathematics, we are continuing our work on 1-1 patterns and extending this learning to explore 2-2 and 1-2 patterns as well. Students are enjoying creating patterns using hands-on materials and spotting patterns in their environment. We are also practising number formation to 10, focusing on starting numbers in the correct place and forming them carefully. Developing these early foundations is so important, and the children are showing great effort.
We were absolutely thrilled to hear such positive feedback about our very first home readers. Thank you for your support. We know how busy family life can be, and we truly appreciate any time you can dedicate to reading together. Sending home two books for the week allows your child to spend the beginning of the week decoding or sounding out, and then work towards smoother, more fluent reading by the end of the week. If two books feels a little challenging, that’s perfectly okay. You might like to have your child read one book and you model reading the other, showing how to sound out tricky words. Most importantly, please keep reading sessions fun and relaxed. The same goes for the homework book. There is absolutely no pressure to complete every task. These activities simply help keep you connected to what we are learning at school.
In the last week of Term 1, we will be holding our fun whole school sports day. Your child will bring home a poster this week letting you know which house they belong to. On sports day, students are welcome to dress in their house colours, which gives you a little time to get organised if needed.
Thank you, as always, for your ongoing support and encouragement at home. We feel so lucky to be working alongside such wonderful families and are excited for all the learning still to come. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns.
Dates to Remember
*Important school dates can also be accessed on PAM on the whole school calendar)
School Nurse Visit: Monday 23rd February,
Beginning of Year Mass: 10:00am, 5th March
Beginning of Year BBQ: 6:00pm, 5th March
Pupil Free Day: Thursday, 19th March
School Photo Day (and first Prep Wednesday): Wednesday 11th March.
Elissa Rodger erodger@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Emma Roberts eroberts@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Liza Alexander lalexander@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 1
We have had a very fun and busy couple of weeks in Grade 1.
The students have been working hard to practise their classroom routines and responsibilities, and this is really starting to show each day. We are very proud of their efforts.
In Maths, we have been exploring place value. Students have been learning how to build numbers by bundling tens and ones to better understand how numbers are made.
In Literacy, we have introduced the digraphs ai (as in snail and trail) and ay (as in play and day). Students have been learning these new sounds through a variety of engaging activities.
In Inquiry, we have been learning about the past, present and future, as well as sequencing events in order.
Friday Favourites were a big success last week. All students did a wonderful job sharing their favourite person. This week, students will be sharing their favourite book. In the library, we will be reading Charlie Cook’s Favourite Book to help inspire their thinking.
Just a reminder that readers need to be at school on Fridays so that we can check diaries and change books. Please ensure your child’s homework book is at school this Friday so we can glue in their reading homework. The reading homework will provide an opportunity for students to practise the skills and sounds we have been learning this week.
The Year 1 Team Abbey and Leah
Leah Martin lmartin@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Abbey Hayes ahayes@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 2
We can’t believe that we are already in Week 4 — the term is flying by! Our Grade 2 students have made a fantastic start to the year, quickly adjusting to their new environment, routines, and expectations. It’s been wonderful to see their enthusiasm and confidence grow as they settle into life in Grade 2.
Over the past two weeks, we have transitioned from our ‘Learning to Learn’ program into more formal learning. Students are now diving into their core subjects with great energy and curiosity.
In Numeracy, we have been exploring Statistics and Data. Students have been learning how to:
Ask questions of interest
Collect data using tally marks
Present their findings using column graphs
A highlight has been our Smarties Data Investigation, which was a huge hit! Students sorted, tallied, and graphed their Smarties by colour — a fun and delicious way to practise their new skills! (Apologies to families for any chocolate-fuelled excitement that may have followed that evening!)
This week, we are beginning our unit on Place Value. Understanding how numbers work and relate to each other is a key foundation for future maths learning.
To support this at home, we will start sending home Numeracy Counting Goals this week. These goals will help students strengthen their counting skills and build fluency with numbers.
In Literacy, students have been busy exploring the different graphemes that make the /a/ and /i/ sounds. They have been identifying these sounds in words, reading them in context, and practising using them in their own writing.
We have also been learning about sentences and fragments. Students now understand that a fragment is an incomplete thought and that a complete sentence must have both a subject and a verb. It has been wonderful to see them applying this knowledge in their writing and checking their work to ensure their sentences make sense.
In Inquiry, we have been investigating artefacts and discussing how they help us learn about the past and how people lived many years ago. This has led to some very lively conversations! Looking at “ancient” artefacts has been a trip down memory lane for Matt, Deb and Tanya, and has certainly made us feel a little old — technology has definitely come a long way!
On Tuesday, students enjoyed pancakes to mark Shrove Tuesday, and we have also been learning about the significance of Ash Wednesday and how it marks the beginning of Lent.
In other news, please continue sending in photos for our class fridge display. We have loved sharing these with the class and learning more about students’ interests, hobbies and special celebrations outside of school.
A friendly reminder that Library and reader changeover take place on Wednesday afternoons. Please help your child remember to pack their blue reader folder and library bag on Tuesday evenings.
Thank you for your continued support.
Warm regards,
Matt and Deb
Matt O'Dowd modowd@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Deb Holland dholland@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 3
We have had a wonderful two weeks in Year 3.
We were incredibly proud to head to Beeac for a very special excursion where we presented our posters to the CFA to show our appreciation for their tireless efforts in fighting the recent local fires. We listened intently, shared our gratitude and represented our school beautifully. We were thrilled to be able to look through the fire trucks and see how everything works. We were also very lucky to be treated to some delicious ice creams from Bulla Dairy Foods.
We would like to thank everyone who wrote and presented a speech for SRC. It took great courage, and you should all be very proud of yourselves. Congratulations to Millie and Max on being selected as our Year 3 SRC representatives. We are so proud of the leadership, responsibility and kindness they show in our classroom.
In Literacy, we are excited to be starting our novel study on Matilda. We are looking forward to exploring the characters, themes and rich vocabulary in this wonderful story.
In Numeracy, we have begun our place value unit. We are exploring how to read, write and order 4 digit numbers, which will deepen our understanding of how numbers are constructed.
In Health, we have been completing our stress management plans and learning about the benefits of mindfulness.
We have also been focusing on learning Year 3 routines and working together to follow through with our group plan as a team. Building independence, responsibility and following instructions continues to be a big focus as we settle into the year.
Please make sure to check the important dates in the newsletter so you don’t miss any upcoming events, activities or student-free days.
Matt Absalom mabsalom@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 4
Year 4 has had a positive and settled start to the year. Students are focused in the classroom, routines are becoming well established and connections are continuing to grow between students and their teachers and peers.
In Maths, we have begun our Place Value unit and students are engaging well with the learning. In Literacy, we are enjoying reading and exploring our class novel Kensuke’s Kingdom. You might like to ask your child to retell what has happened in the story so far.
This week, students also participated reverently in our Ash Wednesday liturgy at the church, taking time to reflect on the beginning of Lent. Earlier in the week, classes enjoyed making pancakes to mark Shrove Tuesday. It was wonderful to see students working together and enjoying this special tradition.
Congratulations to our newly elected SRC representatives across the school. Nyandeng and Levi were successfully elected. We also acknowledge and thank all students who applied. We know Nyandeng and Levi will represent the Year 4 students with pride and share student voice positively.
Thank you to the families who were able to join us for the Meet and Greet sessions this week. It was a valuable opportunity to connect and hear your insights about your child as we begin the year together. We encourage ongoing communication and welcome you to make contact at any time through Dojo.
Paula Parish pparish@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Amanda Delorenzo mdelorenzo@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Rebecca Gallagher rgallagher@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 5
It’s crazy to think we are a month into school already - it feels like both yesterday and a long time ago that we started our year! The students continue to learn about what it means to be a Grade 5 student and each child has demonstrated growth in different areas in this regard, the most important thing being they are all doing their very best! Thank you to all the parents who came to Meet and Greets this week. The chats were very valuable and important for both teachers and parents and we’re looking forward to our continued partnership with you all over the course of the year.
In Literacy, we have been reading our class text, ‘War Horse’ and the children are enjoying this novel set in World War 1. We have begun planning and writing a narrative based on the stimulus ‘Journey into the unknown…’ which is based around an animal character of their choosing. We have also been practising the Writing Revolution strategy of Sentence Expansion, where students use a sentence kernel and add in who/what, when, where, how etc detail to expand the simple sentence. Our Spelling Mastery groups have also started and students have slipped back into the routines of this program, which targets their spelling needs really explicitly and methodically, really well so far.
In Numeracy, we are finishing up our Place Value unit of work this week. Place Value is an essential math’s skill, so students with gaps in this area following our post CFAT will continue to work on Place Value concepts throughout the year using both whole class and small boost group strategies.
We have started our R.E. unit on ‘Commitment’ where students have been introduced to the concept and used the idea of commitment working in small groups to come up with ideas for our Grade 5 Learning Statement. This week we also celebrated Shrove Tuesday with some pancake making and the Grade 5s attended a parish Ash Wednesday Mass with students from St. Brendan’s and Sacred Heart to begin the season of Lent. Following this Mass, students decided what they are going to ‘Fast from and Feast on’ during Lent e.g. fast on unkind words, feast on positive words. Students were encouraged to think of something that would be relevant to them personally to focus on during Lent. Project Compassion boxes also went home this week which are a good way to almsgive during Lent also.
Rachel Downard rdownard@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Rachael Cahill rcahill@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
GRADE 6
What a busy few weeks it’s been in Year 6! The students have continued to show fantastic leadership with their Prep buddies, helping them settle into the school year exceptionally well.
We have announced our remaining SRC leaders, with Will Robertson as our Arts & Culture Leader, Sophie Marriner as our Social Justice Leader, and Albert Hanlon as our Sports and Sustainability Leader. We know they will do a wonderful job supporting Anna and Jack, along with the rest of the SRC, throughout the year.
In Numeracy, students have been working through our Place Value unit, exploring integers, 7-digit numbers, and developing their understanding of number lines.
In Literacy, we have begun our novel study of Rivet Boy, which links closely with our Persuasive Writing unit on the topic “Children as slave labour is a violation of basic human rights.” Students have been engaging in thoughtful discussions, using ideas from Rivet Boy as a starting point to deepen their understanding of this important issue.
In Religion this week, students explored the four parts of a Mass by taking part in their own role-play. We also celebrated Shrove Tuesday and attended the parish Ash Wednesday Mass, where the students represented the school beautifully.
We’ve also begun our Health unit this week, with Senior Constable Steph Ward starting her Love Bites program with our Year 6 students. We’re looking forward to welcoming her on Thursday mornings over the next five weeks as she delivers this important program.
It’s also been a busy time in sport. All students took part in running trials at Lake Oval last week, and we are now gearing up for our field event trials next week. In addition, 10 students are representing our school in tennis today - best of luck to them!
A few reminders:
Students bringing mobile phones to school must hand them into the office. Please notify your child’s teacher if they are bringing a phone. Smart Watches need to be on ‘school mode’ during school hours.
Headphones are needed as soon as possible.
Sports uniform is worn on Thursday.
Jess Downard jdownard@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Jodie Hassett jhassett@smcolac.catholic.edu.au
Maegen Potter mpotter@smcolac.catholic.edu.au