Year 3/4
Welcome back to Term 3! We are looking forward to another exciting term of learning in the Middle School. Looking forward, students will continue to build their knowledge and skills through engaging reading, writing and mathematics lessons, while exploring new inquiry topics through hands-on activities and collaborative learning. We can't wait to see what this term has in store and look forward to sharing our learning journey with you.
Reading
This term, students will explore a range of narrative and informative texts, with a strong focus on understanding narratives. They will investigate how authors create engaging characters, settings and mood, and use language to express emotions and opinions. Students will also learn how texts are organised, explore paragraph structure, and identify different types of verbs and verb tenses. Throughout the term, they will continue to strengthen their comprehension skills by discussing, analysing and reflecting on the texts they read
Writing
This term, our writing learning will be connected to our Inquiry topic, Australia. Inspired by our mentor text An Amazing Australian Road Trip, students will set off on an imaginary journey around the country, writing postcards from each destination they "visit". Along the way, students will strengthen their writing by revising compound sentences, exploring consistent tense, learning to write complex sentences, punctuating dialogue correctly, avoiding run-on sentences, and creating cohesive paragraphs. Students will also expand their vocabulary, use a variety of verbs and conjunctions to improve their writing, and edit and publish polished pieces. Throughout the term, students will respond to texts through class discussions and short written responses, applying these skills to create engaging writing for different purposes and audiences.
Maths
This term we will finish our focus on addition and subtraction before beginning an exciting unit on multiplication and division. Students will first build a range of efficient mental strategies, such as doubling to multiply by 2, doubling twice to multiply by 4, doubling three times to multiply by 8, and using multiplication by 10 and halving to multiply by 5.
As the term progresses, we will develop a deeper understanding of multiplication by exploring the area model, helping students recognise how larger multiplication problems can be broken into smaller, more manageable parts. Some students will also begin applying these ideas using expanded form multiplication. Alongside our number work, students will investigate the concepts of mass, location, perimeter and chance through a variety of practical, hands on learning experiences that encourage mathematical reasoning and problem solving.
Inquiry
In Inquiry, students will begin their virtual travels around Australia using Google Earth. They will select a familiar Melbourne location as their first stop before gathering information about destinations in every Australian state using maps, photographs, and online sources. Students will develop their geographical research and communication skills by recording key features and using their knowledge and personal experiences to create descriptive postcards.
NAIDOC Week
As part of our NAIDOC Week learning, students explored the rich histories, cultures and achievements of Australia's First Nations peoples through a range of engaging literacy activities. We used For 60,000 Years as a mentor text to deepen our understanding of Indigenous perspectives, discussing the importance of storytelling, Country, culture and the enduring connection Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have with the land.
Students then investigated traditional cultural practices using Come Together Again: A Celebration of First Nations Music, Song and Dance as a mentor text. Drawing on what they learned, they created colourful "snapshot" infographics that highlighted aspects of First Nations culture, including music, dance, ceremony, art and community traditions. Throughout the week, students demonstrated curiosity, respect and thoughtful reflection as they developed a deeper appreciation of the world's oldest continuing culture and its ongoing significance in Australia today.
Important Dates
Friday 14th August - Year 3 Excursion Enchanted Adventure
Thursday 20th - Friday 21st August - Year 4 Overnight Camp
Wednesday 26th August - Year 3/4 Author Visit
Thursday 27th August - Poetry In Motion Incursion
Friday 28th August - Book Week Dress Up Day
Tuesday 1st September - Year 3-6 House Athletics Day
Kind regards,
Middle School Team