Learning News

Learning News Week 3, Term 1

Literacy News

It has been a busy start to the school year and our classrooms are a buzzing hive of industry as students (and teachers) settle into the routines of learning for 2023 in their new class structures and groupings.  The teachers have taken the first week back to set expectations and unpack our school rules - We are Learners,  We Show Respect and We Are Safe.  

Many of our learning programs have commenced in Week 3, our first full week for students, and students are moving across the school for spelling, reading and Liturgical learning as well as covering a wide range of Key Learning Areas in their own classrooms.

Informational texts have kicked off our literacy focus this year, with students writing on a range of topics from Elephants to Introducing Me.  We hope you enjoy our first set of student work samples and photographs.

Obviously our students are all working hard on our school rules and living our school motto “Let your Light Shine” as our calm but busy classrooms show.  Well done everyone on a very settled start to 2023!

Yours in learning,

Mrs Shepherd

Kindergarten

Kindergarten have had a fantastic and fun start to their school year! We have been very busy getting used to our new routines through songs, games and play-based learning. We have been familiarising ourselves with the school and its many important places. For reading this week, we viewed the picture book, Possum Goes to School. Kindergarten went for a 'possum hunt' to find some very cheeky possums hidden around the school at the sports shed, playground and canteen. Kindergarten then wrote their own book with Miss Fraser's help about places the possum could visit in our school. We used photos from the school to help us think of some sentences for the book. We finished our learning by drawing a place the possum could visit in the school.

Amazing work Kindergarten! I am so excited to share an exciting year of learning with you all- Miss Fraser

Kahlia and Thomas Aurisch work samples

Year 1

This week in science, Year 1 have been learning to use their 5 senses to find out about the world around them. The focus for this week was to use their eyes to see different sources of light. They first had to sort light sources into ‘natural’ or ‘man-made’, then they conducted an experiment to see what materials block the light from a torch. They discovered books and foil block light and cellophane, cups of water and plastic bags don’t. Great investigating skills Year 1! Miss Myers  

Year 2/3

This week in Year 2/3 we have been building our knowledge and skills when using the school's Chromebooks. To achieve this we have practised logging on and accessing set tasks on the Google Classroom. Our first task was to create a small document that we could introduce ourselves on and use the internet to insert a picture of something that we were interested in. Enjoy some of our fantastic work!

Mr Beaumont

Year 4

This week in English, Year 4 we havewritten an information report about elephants. To begin with, the students had to research facts about an elephant's habitat, diet, appearance, behaviour and reproduction. From this, the students then wrote 3-5 lined paragraphs about each section. Students really enjoyed learning interesting facts about elephants and about the correct structure of an information report. Some of the interesting facts we learnt include: Elephants can swim but not jump, they can eat 100kg of food and drink 189 litres of water per day. 

Well Done, Miss McDonald and Miss Maunder. 

Jasper Lendon’s information report about elephants

Year 5/6

Stage 3 has begun the school year by writing an information report about themselves. The students thought about what they wanted their audience to know about them such as their family, their likes and interests, their dreams and aspirations, as well as adventures they’ve been on which then became their subheadings. The students were beginning to use interesting topic sentences to begin their paragraphs and had to write 4 to 5 sentences about the subheading. The students loved sharing fun facts about themselves with each other. 

Great work Stage 3 - Miss Summerell and Miss Rasche 

Numeracy News

This year, our school is implementing the Mathematics Improvement Project (MaST Project), a system approach to teaching Mathematics in the Armidale Diocese. The program is based on high-impact instruction and gradual release of responsibility to improve the learning experiences for our students in Mathematics. This project aligns with the implementation of the new K-2 Mathematics Syllabus and will be administered in our Kindergarten, Year 1 and Year 2/3 classes this year, with Year 4, 5 and 6 to follow in 2024. Our teachers have attended Professional Development to gain the knowledge and skills needed to apply this project to their classes and we are excited to see the amazing work they will be doing in this area! 

Leah Summerell

MaST Teacher

Kindergarten

This week, Kindergarten students have been learning about the topic of ‘Time’. We have been thinking about different words to describe time and how it's important to use accurate words. We have been learning about the words 'before' and 'after'. Together, we made a poster showing the types of activities we like to do before and after school. We have also been doing number warm-up and games. This week kindergarten rolled a dice and decorated some fun insects!

Year 1

Year 1 has been learning about the months of the year and the seasons in each month. Students have enjoyed exploring what each season is like; including the weather, appropriate clothing to wear and activities to do. 

Year 2/3

In Year 2/3, students have been learning how to read calendars and calculate the number of days until an upcoming event. Students used the information from the book ‘Diary of a Wombat’ by Jackie French to fill in the dates for the calendar month of October and answer questions about the events in the story. 

Year 4

In Mathematics, Year 4 have been learning about data, specifically creating a survey and accurately recording and graphing their collected data. Each student was asked to think of a question e.g Do you like chocolate ice cream? The students then had to anonymously answer using the survey scale of 1-5 (1 Don’t like - 5 Like a lot). From this, the students then placed their data into a table and graph both paper-based and digitally. 

Year 5/6

Last week in Stage 3, students were learning to read and convert 12 and 24 hour time. This week, students used this skill to read, interpret and develop timetables. Students were asked to choose a job that must follow a daily schedule and develop a timetable for them, starting at 09:00 and finishing at 17:00. 

Road Safety

This first week of school focuses on the Transport NSW - Centre For Road Safety Bus Flashing Lights Campaign which advises:

Motorists

Lights flash on buses to warn motorists that buses are picking up and dropping off children.

• You must slow down to 40km/h when overtaking or passing a bus displaying flashing lights,

unless a lower speed limit applies.

• You can help keep children safe by:

• Sticking to the speed limit and following the road rules in school zones

• Slowing down to 40km/h when bus lights are flashing, unless a lower speed limit applies

• Looking out for children crossing the road near bus stops, in school zones or along bus routes

• Giving way to buses when they merge back into traffic.

Families

Families have an important part to play in keeping children safe around roads.

• Never drop off or meet your child on the opposite side of the road to the bus stop or call them across the road. Always drop them off or meet them on the same side of the road as the bus stop.

• Remind your children to always wait until the bus has gone before choosing a safe place to cross the road

• Talk to your children about Stop! Look! Listen! Think! every time they cross the road:

• Stop one step back from the kerb

• Look continuously both ways

• Listen for the sounds of approaching traffic

• Think whether it is safe to cross and keep checking until safely across.

Please visit Bus Flashing Lights for further information

Safety Town has some useful resources to enhance understanding about many aspects of road safety including information about how to help keep your children safe when riding. We have a number of students who are currently riding bikes and scooters to school. As a family we encourage you to look at the students section of Safety Town as well as the families section to help child/ren understand the importance of a correctly fitted helmet and how to check it fits correctly and that their bike is safe and ready to ride.