Year 2 News
How the World Works – Forces change the way things move
Throughout the term, we have been exploring How the world works and have been thinking about the central idea – ‘Forces change the way things move’. We have loved exploring the exciting world of forces in our lessons. A force is a push or a pull that can make things start moving, stop, or change direction. Forces are everywhere and help us do so many things.
From riding a scooter to playing on the swings, we are constantly using and feeling forces. Even when we drop something and it falls to the floor – that’s gravity in action! Understanding how forces work helps us stay safe, solve problems, and even design cool inventions. Our students have demonstrated curiosity by learning about how things move in the real world and how science helps us make sense of it all. Whether it's kicking a ball, pedalling a bike, or opening a door, we use forces every single day.
Toys
Our young scientists have been experimenting with objects in the classroom to see how different forces make them move. We began by using our own toys to think about how forces make our world more exciting and fun! It’s been so much fun discovering how things work!
Push and Pull
The students had a lot of fun exploring the forces of push and pull by working together to create a long line of Unifix blocks. The blocks had to be put together in a particular colour order to ensure the children all had a go of ‘pulling’ the blocks apart so they could ‘push’ them back together in the correct order. It is always a lot of fun working together on a shared goal!
Exploring Friction
The Year 2 children had a lot of fun racing cars along various surfaces to experience the effects of friction. They discovered that the toy cars went faster and further along smooth surfaces like the table tops or the Year 2 deck, and they went slower and didn’t travel as far on rougher surfaces like the carpet, fake grass or the asphalt. Friction was at play here, and it is friction which stops the cars from sliding endlessly and forcing them to come to a stop.
Exploring Gravity and Electrostatic Force
Students have been learning about the various forces seen in everyday life including buoyancy, magnetic force, friction, gravity, air resistance and electrostatic force.
This unit has seen students participate in lots of experiments in the classroom. Students were able to learn about the effects of gravity and air resistance using paper helicopters and were able to see electrostatic forces in action using balloons in different activities.
Students made paper helicopters with different sized wings and enjoyed watching the effects of gravity in action. They dropped their helicopters from height and predicted how fast they would fall, learning that helicopters with longer wings took longer to reach the ground.
Students also explored electrostatic force by rubbing balloons on their heads to make their hair stand up, used balloons to make objects move without touching them and used balloons to pick confetti up off the ground without direct contact. Please enjoy photos of the children enjoying these activities!
Vortex
In preparation for our final product for the unit, a marble run, we considered how we could make a marble slow down. As part of this we made and experimented with making a vortex which the children all used in their final marble runs! It was a lot of fun!
Taking Action
We are always so impressed when students take action at home by making posters, books or models which are related to their Unit of Inquiry. Well done to all the students who have taken action this term. We are very proud of you!
Billy Cart Incursion!
On Friday, 20th June the Year 2 students were so lucky to participate in the Billy Cart incursion. The incursion tied in beautifully with our unit on forces.
The students rotated through 3 stations where they were required to:
Work collaboratively to create a vehicle out of various materials to gain an understanding of how simple machines contribute to an effective design
Strengthen teamwork and problem solving skills by following a set of instructions to replicate a set design
Explore the concepts of push and pull while taking turns racing around the Supreme track in Billy Carts and Ezy-Rollers.
Grammar Hunts and Literacy Games
The students have been thoroughly enjoying their revision and deepening their understanding of nouns, verbs, and adjectives. They've taken part in exciting scavenger hunts both in the classroom and around the school, and have worked collaboratively in small groups to play matching and sorting games.
To showcase their growing knowledge, the students have also described picture prompts, confidently identifying and using nouns, verbs, and adjectives in their writing.
Maths
The students have been learning a range of strategies to solve addition and subtraction problems. They've been introduced to solving equations vertically without regrouping and have explored how to use fact families to better understand the relationship between addition and subtraction. Each Friday, students consolidate their weekly learning by engaging with Mangahigh, while teachers work with small focus groups to support students at their individual point of need.
In addition, the students have enjoyed revisiting Australian notes and coins. They are developing their skills in adding money values and calculating change through a variety of hands-on activities and real-world scenarios.