Prep Community News
Dear Prep Families,
We have had another fantastic week of learning in Prep! Our students are continuing to settle into school routines and are showing increasing confidence and independence in the classroom. It has been wonderful to see their enthusiasm for learning as they participate in our lessons and activities. Below is a snapshot of what we have been learning this week.
Reading
In our reading lessons, we have been learning the /t/ sound and practising how to identify words that begin with this sound. We have also been practising oral blending, where students listen to individual sounds and blend them together to make a word (for example: /c/ /a/ /t/ → cat). These skills help to build your child’s ability to read and write.
You can support your child at home by practising the /t/ sound and thinking of words that begin with this sound such as tiger, turtle, or tap. You can also practise oral blending by slowly saying the sounds in a word and asking your child to blend them together.
Writing
In our writing lessons, we have continued learning about sentence structure. We have been practising identifying the ‘who’ (the subject), the ‘do’ (the action) and the ‘where’ in a sentence. We are building these skills orally to help students understand how sentences work before writing them independently.
You can practise this skill at home when reading together by asking:
- Who is in the story?
- What are they doing?
Where are they?
We have also continued to work on our Story Champs stories to support students’ understanding of the character, problem, character’s feeling, action and solution. It has been great to see the confidence the students are gaining in their storytelling and their ability to sequence the events from the story.
Maths
In Maths, we have been working on counting collections up to 9. Students have been practising counting different groups of objects carefully and keeping track of their counting.
We have also been learning how to write the numerals 4, 5 and 6. Students have been practising tracing and writing these numbers independently using our number formation strategies. You can support your child at home by practising counting small collections of objects and writing the numbers 4, 5 and 6.
Bravehearts Incursion
Last week, our prep students participated in the Bravehearts Incursion. The students had a wonderful time learning important personal safety messages in a fun and engaging way. They especially enjoyed meeting Ditto the Brave Lion Cub and taking part in the songs and actions throughout the session.
Take Home Reading
At Tarneit Rise, we encourage students to read every night to practise their reading skills and develop a lifelong love of books. Regular reading at home helps build confidence, fluency, and comprehension.
Each child has been allocated a specific reading satchel day, which is displayed on the door of your child’s classroom. On this day, please ensure your child brings their reading satchel or red bag so they can change their books and safely transport library books between home and school.
Harmony Day
Today, Tarneit Rise celebrated Harmony Day. This special day celebrates the diverse cultures, backgrounds and traditions that make our school community so rich and vibrant. Harmony Day reminds us that everyone belongs and should feel safe, respected and valued. 🌏🧡
General Reminders
• As part of our SunSmart policy, students must wear a hat when playing outside during recess and lunchtime during Terms 1 and 4. Hats can be purchased from the school office if needed.
• Please make sure that all items your child brings to school are clearly labelled with their name and class (e.g. PA). This includes hats, jumpers, drink bottles, lunch boxes and uniform items. Labelling helps us return lost items quickly.
• The first bell rings at 8:45am, which is when students begin entering the classroom to get ready for the day. Learning begins promptly at 8:55am, and the school day finishes at 3:10pm.
• Recently, students have been doing a wonderful job walking into the pod independently in the mornings and building their confidence and independence. We kindly ask families to continue supporting this by allowing students to walk into the pod and classroom on their own each morning.
• Students who attend Big Childcare after school will be collected from their classroom and taken to the gym by staff.
If you have any further questions, please contact your child’s class teacher for support. We look forward to continuing a wonderful year of learning with all our prep students.
Kind regards,
PLC Prep