School News 

Prep

Hello Prep families!

WOW, it has been a busy two weeks in prep! 

Over the past couple of weeks we have had some lovely parents volunteer to come in and share some information with the prep students about their jobs. A big thank you to the following people:

• Rachel - for sharing about her job as a Physiotherapist
• Melissa - for sharing about her job as a Chinese teacher
• Pat - for bringing in the fire truck and sharing all about his work with the CFA
• Shaun - for bringing in a bus and sharing about his job as a bus driver.

The students thoroughly enjoyed learning about how different people help us in our community. 

We also had House Athletics Day on Thursday! The students participated in hurdles, tunnel ball, long jump, vortex throwing, relay races, and the 60m sprint. We loved their enthusiasm over the day (even though we had some crazy weather)!

Reminders:

• This is just a friendly reminder to please practise the common words we send home each week with your child. This will help them with their reading and writing at school, allowing them to read (and eventually spell) these words.
• Please also remember to bring communication folders to school each day (especially Monday so we can glue in their new homework). Thank you!

Kindest regards,

The Prep Team

Laina Brebner, Kayla Hartrick and Emma Wright

Grade 1 

What a wonderful two weeks we’ve had in Grade 1!

In Reading, our focus has been on making connections to the texts we read. We have practised making text to self, text to text and text to world connections.

In Writing, we concluded our letter writing and loved posting our letters at the post box near the Milkbar. Keep an eye out in the mail – a letter may be coming your way! This week we started looking at adjectives and practised using adjectives to describe different animals.

In Maths, we continued to look at place value and playing games to do with tens and ones. This week we have started looking at length. We have had fun measuring items in our classrooms with counters, unifix and paddle pop sticks.

In Wellbeing, we started our Friendology sequence. We began by learning about our ‘Inner-Ninja’ and ways to treat ourselves like a best friend. The highlight was making our own Ninja headbands. Some students even had time to make one for their furry friend!

What an exciting day we had at our School House Athletics Carnival! Students loved running, jumping and throwing, and earning points for their House. Thanks to Miss Twentyman for organising such a great day!

The Grade 1 Team

Tim Huntington, Mel Layton, Sally Newton and Ashleigh Wilson

Grade 2

The Grade 2 students have had a wonderful fortnight filled with exciting learning adventures and activities. They have shown great enthusiasm and resilience towards their learning. We hope you enjoyed seeing some of their work through their Portfolios! Here are some of our highlights: 

In Reading, the Grade 2 students have explored the exciting world of making connections while reading! Students have focussed on identifying deeper text-to-self connections with a range of texts including ‘The Most Magnificent Thing’ by Ashley Spires and ‘Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day’ by Judith Viorst. It has been wonderful seeing how these connections helped students to relate to the characters and themes in the book and deepen their appreciation of stories. 

In Writing, students created diary entries from the perspective of an object. The Grade 2’s loved being able to select their own object and imagine what life could be like from a different perspective! Students have begun planning and drafting letters to a person in their life. Students are focusing on using informal language and including the appropriate features in their letters.

In Mathematics, students completed our Place Value unit by looking at 3-digit numbers. Using MAB blocks, students made their names and built towers to calculate the number of hundreds, tens and ones, as well as compared their total number of blocks with their partner. Students have begun estimating and measuring items in the classroom. The Grade 2’s have enjoyed using informal units such as counters and matchsticks to identify the length of various objects! They also practiced measuring their Long Jumps ready for House Athletics Day! 

In Wellbeing, students enjoyed learning about Sparks and Triggers that can impact how they may be feeling. The Grade 2’s also learnt how to be their own Best Friend by identifying their individual strengths.  It was wonderful to see the Grade 2’s identify how they can treat themselves with compassion and kindness by focusing on their positive qualities.

The Grade 2 Team

Allie Harrison, Sarah Jones and Brendan Van Haaster

Grade 3 & 4

We had a great day at the House Athletics Carnival on Thursday! It was wonderful to see everyone having a go and trying their best, but most importantly, having heaps of fun as well.

On Friday, we celebrated Harmony Day, which recognises the diversity and different backgrounds in Australia, whilst promoting inclusion and respect. The theme for this year was ‘Everyone Belongs’ and students enjoyed participating in activities and reflecting upon the importance of recognising the diversity in our own community. This event aligns with our Term 1 Inquiry unit, where we have been exploring cultures and customs from our own families and around the world.

Reading: We have been making predictions and connections whilst reading a picture book titled ‘Two Mates’ – this book explores themes of friendship and inclusion, linking perfectly to Harmony Day. It is a true story with a surprising twist at the end.

Writing: we have been developing characters and settings for our own narratives and are referring to the book ‘Two Mates’ as a mentor text – using the author’s craft to show us examples of good writing.

Maths: We have been learning about decimals as parts of a whole number, focusing on tenths and hundredths. Hands-on activities such as ‘deci-pipes’ saw us build models that show our understanding.

Wellbeing: We have been learning about cyber safety and appropriate online communication. We learnt the differences between messaging a friend, family member or someone we don’t know as well. We sent an email to Sam and Trent at the Cyber Safety Project with some questions and were delighted to receive a response from them. 

Here is an excerpt of their reply to 3/4C:

· What is your favourite thing about the Cyber Safety Project?

Seeing students and educators gain the knowledge and confidence to make safer choices online, it is incredibly rewarding, and it's what drives us to continue this important work.

· Do you enjoy showing kids how to be safe online?

That's a BIG yes! Through our work at Cyber Safety Project, we reach over 100,000 students, 8,000 teachers, and 15,000 parents every year. This means we are able to raise awareness about the importance of cyber safety by running workshops, creating educational resources, and providing support to schools like yours.

A gentle reminder to fill out the reading logs and log in to Squizya - please bring homework folders to school each Monday. Have a lovely weekend!

The 3/4 Team

Damien Smith, Daena Hailey, Brent Smith, Claire Cripps and Nick Pagliaro

Grade 5 & 6

Hello Grade 5/6 families

What an exciting and busy week it has been! On Tuesday, 5/6R and 5/6P went on their Quantum excursion, and 5/6B and 5/6P visited on Wednesday. The Grade 5's had a blast creating in Minecraft, building amazing worlds and learning new skills. Meanwhile, the Grade 6's worked on coding robots, diving into the fascinating world of programming and robotics.

Thursday was our House Athletics Day, and what a fantastic day it was! Students participated in a range of track and field events, showing great enthusiasm, teamwork, and sportsmanship. Well done to everyone for giving their best despite some crazy weather!

On Friday, we celebrated Harmony Day. It was a great opportunity for students to learn about diversity, inclusivity, and the importance of understanding and respecting each other's differences. Special thanks to Senior Constable Nick Tomazic who came in and presented to students on the day.

In English, we’ve been busy with analysing and interpreting the text Fire by Jackie French. Students delved into the themes, characters, and language used in the text. We also had some great discussions about the similarities and differences between Fire and another text we read earlier in the week, Flood.

This week in Maths, we had a big week of assessments. Students completed a Place Value Post Test and the PAT Maths Test. Well done to all the students for their hard work.

In Friendology, students worked on identifying their ‘Inner Ninja’ character strengths. It was great to see everyone reflecting on their unique qualities and learning how these strengths help them in friendships and everyday life.

We are excited about the activities and lessons planned for the final stretch. Let’s finish this term strong!

Best wishes,

The 5/6 Team

Llinos Poole, Rachel Boyle, Alarna Creed, Hayley Peirce and Erin Rennick