Grade 4 Community News
This week, our students have been diving into an exciting series of swimming lessons, gaining valuable skills in and out of the water. From improving their strokes to building confidence, it's been a fantastic opportunity for all involved. We are so proud of their enthusiasm and dedication as they make a splash in their learning in and out of the pool!
Reading
In Reading, our students have been uncovering fascinating facts about the colonisation of Australia. We’ve deepened our understanding by exploring life in 18th-century England, with a particular focus on crime and punishment during that era. The students have had insightful discussions on whether the punishments were fair, encouraging critical thinking and thoughtful conversations. To further enhance their learning, we’ve introduced the "Control the Game" strategy in our Grade 4 classrooms. This strategy gives each student the chance to read the serial text Birrung the Secret Friend, while also listening to their peers and receiving immediate, constructive feedback from the teacher. This approach has not only improved their reading skills but has also helped them make stronger connections to the content in our literature unit, Colonising Australia. It’s been a great way for students to engage more deeply with both the history and the texts they’re studying!
Vocabulary
Week 3 new words, from “Birrung the Secret Friend”
Writing
In Writing, our students are making great strides in developing their ability to write biographies. In Week 2, they were introduced to the key elements of biographical writing, including structure and language features. By Week 3, they had the exciting opportunity to create their own biography of Captain James Cook. Throughout our R2L lessons, students collected a wealth of information about this historical figure, helping them produce detailed and informative biographies. To further enhance their writing, students were introduced to the Single Paragraph Outline (SPO) strategy, which supports them in organizing their thoughts and crafting clear, well-structured paragraphs. It’s been wonderful to see their progress in writing biographies!
example of student work
Maths
Our next Maths unit is Decimals. We have introduced decimal fraction notation for tenths and hundredths. This is connected to prior learning about fractions from Term 1. Throughout the unit, decimats, grids and number lines are utilised for representation. We also continue to develop students’ understanding of place value and the value represented by each digit in a number. Renaming hundredths as tenths and hundredths is an important aspect of developing that understanding and is included as soon as hundredths are introduced.
Example of students work
Reminders
- Swimming commences in:
Week 4 for 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, 4F, 4G, 4H and 4I
Week 5 for 4E, 4J and 4K
- Please remember to send students with charged iPads and headphones to school each day.
Thank you for your continuous support in your child's educational journey!
PLC4