Year 4 News
Reading
In this fortnight, the Year 4 students have been learning to understand an author’s purpose and reading and analysing fiction texts. This means they think about why the author wrote the story - whether it is to entertain, to inform or to persuade the reader. When analysing fiction texts, students explored characters, settings, and events to support their thinking and discuss their ideas with others. This helps build their comprehension skills and encourages them to become thoughtful, engaged readers.
“The Pig the Pug books entertain kids because they are funny”- Shiloh 4A
“Persuasive texts have rhetorical questions.” - Nabil 4A
“The author’s purpose for the book called ‘Do not open this book’ is to persuade. ” - Georgeuo 4C
“P.I.E stands for persuade, inform and entertain.” - Storm 4C
Writing
This fortnight in Writing, Year 4 students have been exploring how different prefixes and suffixes change the meaning of words. Students have learnt about the prefix inter- and the suffixes -ate and -ant. They practised building new words, understanding their meanings and using them in sentences.
Year 4 students have also been working in their Writer’s Notebooks to create new seed pages and generate new ideas. One of the focuses has been helping students describe themselves using both inside and outside traits to build self-awareness and descriptive language.
Additionally, students have finished publishing their information reports. A main focus for students was on presenting their work neatly, whether handwritten or typed. Year 4 students have also begun exploring poetry, focusing on diamante poems. They learnt how to plan and structure these poems, which compare two opposite ideas using nouns, verbs and adjectives. Students also edited, revised and published their poems, following the writing process. Take a look at some of their creativity below!
“I have been creating my information report on my own device.” - Amelia 4A
“We wrote our favourite colour in the middle of the page. Then we drew the stuff that’s the same colour around it.” - Ansh 4C
“My favourite colour is purple and I drew flowers.” - Samrath 4C
Maths
This fortnight, Year 4 students have been exploring different interpretations of the early colonisation of Australia and identifying how First Nations histories and cultures are recognised today. Students were tasked with writing a letter from the perspective of a European settler. After drafting their letters, they used the “ARMS” and “CUPS” editing and revising strategies to refine and finalise their work. In the final week of the term, Year 4 students will have the opportunity to publish their completed pieces.
“Subtracting decimals is easy!” - Isaac 4A
“I can add decimals in my head.” - Tyler 4A
“I used an Area Model to subtract decimals.” - Isabelle 4A
“I think using a number line was easier because you could split the number and choose whether to add or subtract tenths or hundredths first.” - Hayley 4B
“I used an Area Model to add and subtract decimals because I find it easier.” - Deepti 4C
“Bridging to the nearest tenth is a little bit difficult for me.” - Sia 4C
Inquiry
In SEL, Year 4 students have been busy learning all about Harmony Day and why it is celebrated across Australia. Students discussed the meaning of the word ‘belonging’ and learnt that people wear orange on Harmony Day, as it symbolises respect, communication and belonging. Year 4 students worked in pairs to create an acrostic poem using the word HARMONY, using key words from our class discussions.
“We made a poster about Sorry Day.” - Saihaj 4C
“It was fun writing a letter home as a European settler. We had to brainstorm some ideas about what we wanted to write.” - Zoeya 4C
“It was exciting to write the letter because I could really imagine how much I would miss my parents on the trip.” - Holly 4B
Social and Emotional Learning
“I enjoyed seeing my friends walking around dressed in orange or traditional clothes”- Olivia 4A
“I enjoyed listening to different cultural music”- Isabelle 4A
“I liked other peoples cultural dress, it was nice to see.”- Isaac 4A
“I liked how Mr S and Mrs Ozen chose people to talk about their culture and what they were wearing from their country.”- Syona 4A
“I was inspired by the acrostic poem and put it onto a T-shirt for Harmony day!” - Elora 4B
AUSLAN
In this fortnight, the Year 4 students have focused on learning new hand signs and finger spelling for vegetables such as beetroot, cabbage, cauliflower, corn, celery, as well as handshapes such as Soon, Plane. Students practised the signs with a partner and as a class.
“This is how you sign tree.” - Nabil 4A
“The sign for onion is like you are wiping your eyes because onions can make you cry.” - Kayan 4A
“This is the sign for tree.” - Avtaj 4C
“This is the sign for gate.” - Chris 4C
Special Event
Harmony Day
During Week 8, Year 4 students took part in our CPS Harmony Day celebrations.
A highlight of the celebrations was the Harmony Day Parade. Students proudly dressed in orange or cultural attire, with orange representing communication, respect and inclusivity - key messages of Harmony Day. The parade was a wonderful opportunity for the whole school to come together and recognise the value of belonging and connection. It was a meaningful and memorable experience for all involved.
“I wore an orange top to celebrate Harmony Day.” - Tyler 4A
“The parade was so fun.” - Ekam 4A
“I loved Harmony Day because we got to show our country and culture.” - Pouniu 4B
“The thing I enjoyed most about Harmony Day was seeing all of the different cultural outfits.” - Deepti 4C
“On Harmony Day, we have to wear orange.” - Sadie 4C