Year 1/2 Term 1 Overview

Year 1/2 Curriculum Overview

Welcome to 2026!  We are so excited for the year to begin and cannot wait to get to know you all better. Our wonderful LSOs this year are Sarah Gole (Monday-Tuesday) and Prue Forer (Wednesday-Friday) in 1/2A and Amina Zaheer in 1/2B. Mrs Amanda Hill will also be teaching 1/2A fortnightly on a Monday. 

Important notes

• Arriving at school on time is crucial for developing the best learning habits. Please ensure students are at school prior to 8.50am.
• Please remember that hats and sunscreen are to be worn in Term 1 and there is a  ‘No Hat No Play’ policy for all students in the school. 
• Please bring a set of named over-ear headphones to school. These will be kept for exclusive use by your child only. 
• If you haven’t already, please ensure your child has some named spare shorts/underwear in their schoolbag in case of accidents. 

Homework

Reading Records will be used this year to track individual reading at home with an adult. In addition to focus groups and one on one activities, students will read an easy, independent text each day with a teacher or LSO and then bring this same book home to read aloud to an adult. Please sign/initial beside the name of the book when your child reads at home. We will start bringing home books shortly to read each night.

Homework will be sent home on a fortnightly basis starting shortly. Please encourage your child to complete it over multiple sittings, not all at once. Homework will complement what we are learning in the classroom and your child should be able to complete it mostly by themselves. Please just help them with reading the instructions if necessary. 

Health 

This term in Health, students will explore how growing and changing, both physically and emotionally, help us to shine in God’s light. They will investigate how their relationships with family, friends and the school community can change over time, as well as how their responsibilities grow as they get older. Students will also reflect on how and why friendships change and what healthy and respectful relationships look and feel like.

Religious Education

As part of Religious Education we will look at Bible stories about God’s family and how God wants us all to shine in our world today. Later in the term we will learn about the important events of Holy Week that lead to Easter. Prayer and morning meditation will be an important part of our daily routine also.

Mathematics

We have been individually testing the children on their mathematical skills in order to guide our teaching and monitor their progress throughout the year. Our specific areas of focus this term will include:

• counting
• place value
• patterns
• data 
• sequencing events (introduction to measurement of time). 

We will continue to focus on developing mathematical fluency, problem solving skills, reasoning and understanding. Each day we will engage in a daily review of what we have learnt in previous days and weeks, followed by explicit teaching and guided practice to support new learning. 

STEM

This Term in STEM students will focus on Biology, learning that plants and animals are constructed of different parts and features. They will discover that the external features of plants and animals have different and important coverings and functions, that allow them to survive. They will also learn about how animals and plants respond to the changes in their environments.

English - Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening 

Students will read, write and explore a range of text types throughout the term. We will begin by looking closely at the conventions and ‘non-negotiables’ of reading and writing and what every sentence needs to have to make sense. 

In Writing, students will explore the genres of recount and persuasive texts and spend time learning how to make their writing more engaging by using descriptive language. 

Each week students will participate in oral language activities, small reading focus groups, spelling activities and comprehension tasks to deepen their understanding of what they are reading. 

When readers are sent home please talk with your child about what happened in the text and ask them to retell the story for you. A great prompt is ‘what happened in the beginning/middle/end’. Please sign their Reading Record each day when you hear your child read aloud. 

Social & Emotional Learning

Students will begin the Term learning about our School Wide Positive Behaviour Matrix and how to be Safe, Respectful and Responsible.

As a whole school, we will engage in lessons from The Resilience Project and learn more about the ‘3 tricks to be truly happy’ - gratitude, empathy and mindfulness. Each student will receive their own journal/workbook to develop their emotional literacy and personal and social wellbeing strategies. 

Specialists

Please see the timetable below for specialist lessons. 

IMPORTANT DATES

• Meet and Greet Interviews - Tuesday 10th March 3.30 -7.30pm 
• 1/2A attending mass - Tuesday 17th March 10am
• Curriculum Information Evening - Thursday 19th March 6pm
• 1/2B attending mass - Tuesday 24th February 10am
• Twilight Sports - Monday 2nd March 4.45-7.30pm 
• Labour Day Public Holiday - Monday 9th March
• School Closure Day - Tuesday 10th March (Staff Professional Development day)
• Working Bee - Friday 13th March - 4.00pm
• Harmony Day - Tuesday 17th March (wear orange or cultural dress)
• School Photos - Thursday 19th March
• Last day of term 1 - Holy Thursday 2nd April 1pm early finish

Communication

We can be reached via email, or leave a message at the office, and we will endeavour to respond within two working days between 8am and 5pm. 

Kind regards, 

Clorinda and Tom

1/2A - Clorinda Maio cmaio@sjmitcham.catholic.edu.au

1/2B - Thomas (Tom) Preston tpreston@sjmitcham.catholic.edu.au