Specialists 

Auslan 

Grade 1 and 2

This week, students will continue working with The Three Billy Goats Gruff, focusing on retelling and performing parts of the story in Auslan. They will practise using movement and facial expression to show characters’ emotions and actions. Students will work towards creating their own simple visual retell of the story, developing confidence in using Auslan to communicate ideas creatively and clearly.

Grade 3 and 4

In week 6, the Grade 3 and 4 students will continue working with the Auslan story Beware! as part of their term assessment. Students will practise retelling the story using Auslan signs, sequencing language, depicting signs and non-manual features such as facial expression and eye contact. They will then film themselves signing the main events from the story to demonstrate their understanding and communication skills in Auslan.

Grade 5 and 6

In week 6, students will begin planning their own visual texts in Auslan. They will explore different text types, including stories, interviews, procedures and performances, and discuss the features that make signed communication clear and engaging. They will then begin to plan and rehearse the visual text that they will create as their assessment task. Students will focus on using appropriate facial expressions, movement, signing space and non-manual features (NMFs) to communicate meaning effectively. 

Physical Education

District Cross Country

Congratulations to all the students who participated in the Ringwood North District Cross Country Carnival last Tuesday. Despite the wet conditions, all students showed great determination and resilience in completing their races.

A special congratulations to Victoria, Charli, and Isla from Grade 6, along with Theo from Grade 5, who will be representing WPPS at the upcoming Division Cross Country Carnival.

In the Classroom…

Over the coming week in PE, students across all year levels will have the opportunity to demonstrate the skills they have been developing throughout our ball control and dribbling unit. Students will take part in a variety of activities, challenges, and modified games designed to assess their ability to control a ball while moving, make decisions under pressure, and apply teamwork and communication skills in game situations.

Prep to Grade 2 students will focus on demonstrating control, coordination, and confidence while bouncing and dribbling in different directions and at varying speeds. Grades 3–6 students will apply their skills in more complex drills and small-sided games, showcasing their spatial awareness, decision-making, teamwork, and tactical play.

It has been fantastic to see the enthusiasm and improvement shown by all students throughout this unit, and we look forward to celebrating their progress during these upcoming assessment lessons.

Performing Arts

Prep

Students will continue exploring the difference between steady beat and no beat through songs, movement and percussion activities. They will continue learning First Nations songs that include Aboriginal languages and revise previously explored musical elements such as beat, rhythm, tempo and pitch.

Grade 1

Students will continue exploring pitch patterns and investigate how sounds can ascend and descend through stepping and sliding movements. They will apply their learning through a musical game of Snakes and Ladders, using the glockenspiel to demonstrate how pitch moves up and down.

Grade 2

Students will continue learning how to correctly use beaters when playing percussion instruments and create simple ostinatos using two to three notes on the glockenspiel. They will also begin learning to play a song on the instrument, applying their understanding of rhythm and pitch.

Grade 3/4

Students will begin moving from reading and performing pre-written music to creating their own musical compositions in small groups. They will experiment with combining different instruments and explore the range of sounds available on the keyboard to create and perform original pieces of music.

Grade 5/6

Students will extend their understanding of composition by working collaboratively to create their own music using a range of instruments and keyboard sounds. Building on their previous experience reading and performing written music, they will experiment with layering musical parts, combining rhythm and melody, and making creative decisions about structure and instrumentation in their compositions.

Visual Arts

Prep students will be creating a plate full of ‘food’ to celebrate their Teddy Bear’s Picnic this week. They will ice a cupcake, make sprinkle bread and complete their teddy bear painting.

Grade 1 and 2 students will be finishing their Bunjil the Eagle collage. They will add a beak and feathers to bring their eagle to life. Here is some students stamping their borders last week. 

Grade 3 and 4 students will be adding detail to their rain sticks. They will be inspired by indigenous artists when adding pattern and symbols, telling a story through their markings.

Grade 5 students will be continuing their x-ray animals, scratching their designs and creating their story and symbols.

Grade 6 students will be finishing their felted landscapes and then applying their skills to create a felted Bunjil eagle.