Specialists Updates and Celebrations

Music (Prep)

In the prep music program, our “Elements of Music” topic is Timbre, meaning the unique sound quality of instruments and voices. Students have been learning to identify and sort instruments by sound using timbre descriptions such as rough, smooth, metallic, woody, bright, dull and harsh.

Students have some songs and rhymes while exploring different vocal timbres including wobbly, squeaky, gravelly, robotic and husky.

Most of our playing on instruments has included songs where students need to create different timbres from the same instrument to fit lyrics. Students have found ways to make multiple sounds from the djembe and other percussion instruments. 

Visual Art (Years 1 and 2)

Last week, the Year 1 and 2 students created clay pinch pots. Pinch pots are an important foundational skill when working with clay, and our students have been creating them since Prep!

This time, the students took their skills to the next level by making clay coil rings to transform their pinch pots into taller pots. A clay coil is a rolled-out piece of clay that looks like a long snake. Students carefully measured the length of their coil to make sure it would wrap around the circumference of their pot. They then cut and joined the ends of the coil, smoothing the clay together to create a complete ring.

Finally, students used the score, slip, smooth method to securely attach each clay ring to their pinch pots, gradually building up the height of their pots. This process involved lots of careful steps, patience and concentration, and the students worked incredibly hard to create beautiful, tall clay pots! Fantastic work, everyone!

Mandarin (Years 3 and 4)

In recent weeks, Year 3 and 4 students have been exploring Chinese Culture: Then and Now. They have learnt about ancient Chinese dynasties, important inventions such as paper and printing, Chinese characters and stroke-order rules, as well as traditional Chinese food and clothing. Next week, students will explore the Mid-Autumn Festival and learn how it is celebrated in different places around the world.

Physical Education (Years 5 and 6)

This week in PE, we started our soccer unit. Students started with a passing skill challenge - passing the ball with different parts of their foot with a partner. After, children played a fun dribbling and shooting game, dribbling past a defender and trying to score past the goalkeeper. Students were than split into four groups for a game of number soccer. Children had to score in one of their opponent's goals to win the point for their team. Finally, students played a two-team soccer match.

Library

During Book Week the library was transformed into a Book Fair! Over four days, students and families visited the Book Fair to view and purchase books.

In total, just over $7,000 was spent at the Book Fair. This raised over $2,000 worth of books for our school.

A huge thank you goes to all the staff and family volunteers who assisted in the running of the Book Fair.