From the Classroom
News from 5/6
In English, we are continuing to read The Last Bear. Students are learning about conservation, pollution and climate change. Our Literacy foci are independent and dependent clauses and subordinate conjunctions as well as looking at various root words and their etymology.
In Numeracy, students are investigating algebra, they will need to find unknown values in numerical equations involving the four processes. we encourage students to keep practicing their times tables as the progresses.
In Inquiry, students are researching the reasons people migrated to Australia and why we needed such a large migration to happen after WWII. As part of this research, students have been completing their 'My Background' project and have been looking at how and why their ancestors came to Australia. It has been a very rewarding experience and we are learning a lot about each other and our families histories.
Students are very excited to be going to Waratah Bay Beach Camp on Wednesday! The weather is looking great and the surf is pounding! Students need to bring their lunch and a water bottle, a pillow and bedding as well as only one large bag for clothing. We are looking forward to a fun time away with your children!
What's happening in 3/4
What an incredible start to Term 3 we have had! So many fun events and incredible learning in the 3/4 unit. We had a blast running through the school and being covered in colour on the Colour Run, it’s definitely the highlight of the MPS calendar each year. The 3/4 teachers were absolutely spoiled with kind words, cards and a special morning tea on World Teachers Day, how lucky are we to have the most thoughtful and sweetest students!
There is another buzz of excitement in our unit as we jump into yet another engaging Inquiry Project. Students have begun working with a small group to create their own parody of the well-known story ‘The Gingerbread Man’. Alongside their recreation of the story, students will be putting their developing knowledge of puppets to the test by creating their characters in puppet form. We can’t wait to see their creativity flow in this next project!
In English, we have continued to delve into morality and scripts, through the story The Gingerbread Man. We have explored ways to use character voice and expression to improve our reading fluency to make for entertaining plays. Alongside our script exploration, we have been building on our students prose in our poetry units. We have a bunch of 3/4 poets and we didn’t even know it! Have a look at some of our poems to date:
We have continued to build our students knowledge of the whole number in maths. We have investigated factors, multiples and place value. The students have also showed a great understanding of angles in our applied maths lessons. Next we move into addition and subtraction, as well as location and transformation in our applied lessons.
News in 1/2s
The students in 1/2 are working incredibly hard in all areas of their learning. We love seeing students learning new things and making connections to what they have learnt.
In English, students continued to learn about procedure texts. They annotated a text about making a plastic bag parachute and had the chance to follow the steps to make their own. Students wrote their own procedure text on a topic of their choice. It wa
s great to read these texts and see how well they explained each step.
Currently we are reviewing 3 different text types- narrative, persuasive and informative. We will be investigating how these text types can be connected with the same topic and how their ideas are communicated to audiences.
In Maths, we have started our unit on Division. We have begun sharing objects between groups by reading stories and matching the story with pictures or counters. Students really enjoyed making shapes out of playdough and matching the sharing problem. We had fish shared between ponds, eggs shared between nests, candles shared between cakes and many more!
1/2 students have continued their eSafety Inquiry unit. We looked at puzzle pictures and guessed what activity the people were doing. We discussed how to keep safe when playing online games and what to do if something unknown pops up on our screen.
**Exciting News**
The day Grade 1/2 students have been waiting for! It's our FUN DAY!! This special day will be jam packed with exciting activities and games. Miss Mason and Miss Fraser have been busy planning super fun activities for the day and we can't wait to share with you what will be happening! Lock it in your calendars- Friday 6th December. For the Grade 2 students only, the fun and games will continue after school for a special dinner and movie night.
Keep an eye out on Compass for further details coming so
Fantastic Foundations
Hello Foundation families;
Firstly I would like to say a big welcome to our new student Ellie. She fits perfectly into our foundation family and we have all loved getting to know her. :)
In term four, we will be running weekly Show and Tell, where each student will get the opportunity to bring in things from home to share with the class.
This week we are starting reading groups with parent helpers.
A big thank you! At this stage, this will be run on Wednesday and Thursday mornings.
Below is an outlook of our learning over the last two weeks.
Maths;
Prep A have had an exciting couple of weeks in maths; we have been exploring 2D shapes, which has lead us exploring the outdoors going on scavenger hunts. We have also learnt about Tangrams and worked with 'tap tap shapes' and an interactive app which allowed the students to explore using up to 7 shapes to create pictures. They were all so creative!
English;
We have been looking at different types of texts over the last week. We have had the focus on narratives/ imaginative texts which has lead us into exploring texts such as 'Possum Magic', and 'Rainbow Fish'.
Foundation have had opportunities to explore character traits, settings and apply these into sequencing and art activities.
The students enjoyed making their way around the states of Australia, in a sequencing activity creating links between the text and the county we live in.
We finished off possum magic with a cooking experience of making our own Anzac biscuits. The Anzac biscuit helped the character Hush's become visible so we thought this experience would be a great way to end the unit of work.
Inquiry;
What fun we have been having during our performing arts unit.
We have been exploring instruments and the sounds and beats they make. Foundation also had the opportunity to create a mini performance to the class, where they picked a song and their instruments and find the best beat, pitch and tempo to match the song of choice.
Mrs Mills.
Art Room News
We've all been going a bit dotty in the Art Room this term! We're celebrating Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama (aged 95 years old) and her love of polka dots, pumpkins and infinity rooms.
The National Gallery of Victoria is excited to share they have a world-premiere blockbuster exhibition of Kusama's work. The exhibition will run from 15 December 2024 - 21 April 2025. Their dedicated free children’s galleries will feature Kusama's work to create immersive experiences for kids. You can find more information about the exhibition HERE.
Indonesian news
This term in the Indonesian classroom, our students are learning about “makanan” (food).
The junior school students are focusing on labelling fruit and vegetables. Grade 3/4 students are learning to state preferences, such as “Saya suka makan..” (I like to eat), “Saya tidak suka makan..” (I do not like to eat) and “Saya belum makan..” (I have not yet tried).
Our senior students will demonstrate their knowledge of numbers and concept of bargaining by creating and performing in role plays set at a local market.
Victorian Education Excellence Awards
Last Friday night, I had the privilege to attend the Victorian Education Excellence Awards held at the Regent Plaza Ballroom, as part of a group of teachers led by Prema Devathas, Language Curriculum Area Leader from Heathmont College.
Heathmont College was a finalist of the Dr Lawrie Shears Outstanding Global Teaching and Learning Award. Congratulations to Prema and Heathmont College! We are very fortunate to have a great working relationship with Heathmont College and Prema often brings over past students to run different activities with our students.
Terima kasih,
(Bu) Mary-Ellen Dowling
