Classroom News

Reconcilliation Week

Class 4/5 with Kathryn

‘The Last Dance’ Posters 

As part of our activities for Nation Reconciliation Week, this week students in 4/5K discussed what reconciliation means and Australia’s history, read the mentor text ‘The Last Dance’ by Sally Morgan, and watched a BTN video about the Stolen Generation. 

Students then created their own posters in the style of the mentor text ‘The Last Dance’ and reflected on how it would feel to lose your family and home. 

‘Sally Morgan brings the Australian landscape alive in this evocative exploration of peril and hope…’ 

Check out our posters in the classroom window. We hope you like them. 

From 4/5K 

Yeast Experiment

In term 4 last year we took part in a Citizen Science’s Yeast Catchers Project.  Laura, a scientisit from this project contacted our school to see if would be interested in taking part. The Yeast Catchers Project was a fantastic introduction to beneficial microorganisms and fungi in general. 

Our students collected items from “nature” around the school. 

They were then left to “Grow” for a few weeks in sealed test tubes on a window sill, anything that actually grew was retuned to the laboratory and they assessed each sample and grew it in petri dishes of which scientists could then sit with a microscope and identify the yeasts being grown in each petri dish.

Fast forward to now..........We have the Yeast Growing results back in.  !!!!

Ultimately, we are on the hunt for NEW yeasts not yet discovered and then learn ways in with they could be used for our day to day world.  This was coordinated by the Australian Wine Research Institute in South Oz. 

For our students and families to look at:

Interesting bits Joy discovered in the results are the following

• the oldest discovered yeast 
• the youngest discovered yeast
• what the uses are in our world today. 
• Year it was first discovered ie 1891
• Where it’s usually found ie widespread on plant leaves
• It’s common use as a “yeast” in our day-to-day world ie Coffee and cocoa fermentation and also can destroy bakery fermentations and also beer fermentations (so bakers and brewers would not like this one to visit) 

Please click the like below to the full results.

Class 1/2

In their instructional writting unit this term students in 1/2 with Ellen have made Fairy bread and board games following their written instructions. They were joined by the 5/6 class to play their new game.