STEM 

Prep

In Prep this Term for STEM the children have been learning all about animals and their features. We have looked at photos, videos, toy animals and real animals and discussed the features each has and the reasons why. The children have classified animals based on features such as ‘wings’, ‘shells’ and ‘fur’. We have sung some fun songs about animals and their body parts and taken turns pretending to be different animals by moving in various ways. The highlight of our learning so far has been meeting the baby chicks that have been growing for the last few weeks in an incubator. We discussed the features of the chicks and talked about how the incubator has done an important job keeping the eggs warm just like a mother hen would do. We have affectionately named two of the chicks so far as ‘Freckle’ and ‘Stripe’ based on the patterns we can see on their bodies. The other chick’s names are ‘Dorit’, ‘Banksy’, ‘Sprinkles’ and ‘Shadow’. Please see the attached photos of them! It’s been a fun time so far learning in STEM!

Grade 1/2

The Grade 1/2s have been working hard learning all about Habitats and Living Things. We have spent many weeks discussing the various needs of animals in their different habitats and have enjoyed making 2 habitats using a variety of materials. The first habitat we made was for a beach or underwater creature, where we used sand from the sandpit in containers to replicate the ocean environment. Students were encouraged to find natural items around the playground to add to their habitat including rocks, weeds (to be beach grass or seaweed), and bark. Each student was allowed to select one plastic sea creature to add to their environment and consider its needs within the habitat (food, shelter and water). Our second habitat we created as our Learning Task for the Term, students were to research and document their findings about an animal of their choice. The students had to document the habitat, diet and any facts about their chosen animal, as well as consider the threats to that animal in their environment. Once all of our information was collected, students used a variety of materials to create their habitat as a 3D triorama. Some of these triorama’s are on display in the main building. Well done for your hard work Grade 1 and 2’s! The students have also enjoyed meeting the baby chicks as a lovely way to finish our unit on animals and habitats.

Mrs Goodwin and Miss Ruby