Literacy and Numeracy

MATHEMATICS REPORTING
As Semester Reports are released this week, we encourage families to take some time to read through the Mathematics section carefully. Rather than focusing solely on the overall achievement level, we recommend paying close attention to the specific statements that describe your child's current understanding and skills. These statements provide valuable insight into what your child can confidently do and the areas they are continuing to develop.
Mathematics learning is a journey, and the report is designed to celebrate growth while highlighting future learning goals. If you have any questions about your child's Mathematics report or would like support in understanding the information provided, please don't hesitate to contact your child's classroom teacher or myself. We are always happy to assist and work together to support your child's learning.
LITERACY NEWS- Reading Assessments
Over the past two weeks, your child would have worked with their teacher to complete a DIBELS Reading assessment. DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) is a set of rapid, 1-minute fluency tests used by Australian schools to screen foundational reading and early literacy skills from Foundation to Year 8. It identifies early reading risks and measures progress in phonics, phonemic awareness, and comprehension. (taken from website speldsa.org.au)
Instead of evaluating long reading comprehension, DIBELS uses short tasks to target the exact building blocks of reading. Depending on the year level, your child may have completed one or more of the following tests.
- Letter Naming Fluency: Identifying random letters.
- Phoneme Segmentation Fluency: Breaking words down into individual sounds.
- Nonsense Word Fluency: Sounding out fake words to test basic phonics.
- Oral Reading Fluency: Reading a passage aloud to check speed and accuracy.
- MAZE: A fill-in-the-blank comprehension task
We complete these short tests three times a year to make sure all children are progressing as expected. As always, you will be notified if there are any concerns.
If you have any questions, please email me.
katie.schroder@sjvermont.catholic.edu.au
Thanks,
Katie Schroder
Literacy Leader
