Year Level & Specialist Curriculum

Term 4, 2022 Year Level Curriculum Newsletters

Foundation:

 

Year One:

 

Year Two:

 

Year Three:

 

Year Four:

 

Year Five:

 

Year Six:

 

Term 4 2022 Specialist Curriculum Overviews

Our Specialist programs will cover the following during Term Four:

Physical Education

Term 4, here we go!! After a jam packed term 3, I am looking forward to finishing off our year with some fun in the sun! Starting with our Twilight Sport evening on Monday 17th October.

Prep:  

This term we will begin preparing for the Twilight Sports on Monday 17th October. Our first two sessions will be preparing the students for the various events they will experience - jumps, throws, relays, sprints and a team event.  

Throughout the term we will focus on our two handed striking -  we will incorporate some fun games using some striking equipment like cricket and tee bats. Things may slightly change throughout the term due to weather and availability of programs but hopefully we can achieve all of this this term.

Year  1 & 2: 

This term we will begin preparing for the Twilight Sports on Monday 17th October. Our first two sessions will be preparing the students for the various events they will experience - jumps, throws, relays, sprints and a team event.  Throughout the term we will focus on our two handed striking -  we will incorporate some fun games using some striking equipment like cricket and tee bats and introduce tennis racquets. Things may slightly change throughout the term due to weather and availability of programs but hopefully we can achieve all of this this term.

Year  3 & 4:

The first part of our term, students will finish off presenting the games they have made in their groups and we will start preparing for the Twilight Sports on Monday 17th October.  

From week 2 until week 5, tennis coaches from HE Parker will be coming to school to work on the students tennis skills, particularly their forward, backhand and volleys, incorporating some fun games.  The students have been invited in week 5 to the HE Parker tennis courts for some games - look out for an operoo in the coming weeks. Week 6-10 will be filled with some other striking and net games - particularly rounders (year 3) and volleyball (year 4), to prepare our students for Gala Days next year.  We will conclude the year with some fun games.  Things may slightly change throughout the term due to weather and availability of programs but hopefully we can achieve all of this this term.

Year 5 & 6:  

The students will start the term with some boxing fitness and a new toy to play with.  From week 2 until week 5, tennis coaches from HE Parker will be coming to school to work on the students tennis skills, particularly their forward, backhand and volleys, incorporating some fun games.  The students have been invited in week 5 to the HE Parker tennis courts for some games - look out for an operoo in the coming weeks. From week 6 we will incorporate a little bit of cricket to prepare them for a Cricket Gala day potentially scheduled later that week (details TBC). For year 5, the final few weeks will be focusing on volleyball to prepare for our Gala Days in 2023.   For year 6, the final weeks will see us introduce some new sports, particularly nitro ball and spike ball.  We will finish off the term with some fun games. Things may slightly change throughout the term due to weather and availability of programs but hopefully we can achieve all of this this term.

 

Visual Arts

Welcome to Term 4! After a very successful Art Show in Term 3, I’m excited to get back into the classroom with some new and exciting visual art tasks for the students to complete. 

Prep:

This term students will be assessed on their interpretation of line and shape. They will be practising their cutting and pasting skills through a range of activities. Students will then complete a variety of Christmas art to finish the year.

Year 1: 

Students will be practising their use of pattern and shape whilst looking at a well known artist ‘Laurel Burch’. They will also be creating self portraits. Students will then complete a variety of Christmas art to finish the year.

Year 2:

Students will be exploring the use of background, middleground and foreground in pictures. They will then create their own picture that incorporates a background, middleground and foreground. Students will also explore the use of tints and shades in art and create an art piece that uses tints and shades. They will then complete a variety of Christmas art to finish the year.

Auslan

“Learning sign language isn’t just learning the various signs, but learning another approach to consider things.”

 

Welcome to Term 4 in Auslan! In all year levels across the school, we will continue to consolidate our existing sign bank and grow our signed vocabularies through demonstration, peer interaction, visual materials, games, repetition and formulaic phrasing. The final term of each year is a favourite, as students demonstrate their growth in a signed presentation to their classmates – and we have the opportunity to enjoy some Auslan Christmas activities as the school year draws to a close.

 

Preps will grow their signed vocabulary to include extended family signs and foundational questioning. They will continue to solidify the topics they have learned throughout the year, including fingerspelling, animals, colours, numbers and immediate family. These topics will be threaded together for their signed ‘self’ presentation and also feature in our signed children’s literature.

 

Year 1 & 2 will continue to consolidate their signed vocabulary, particularly in the area of extended families, people and school signs. They will expand their everyday sign bank, understanding of questioning and their conversational signing. Additionally, they will learn more about the role and use of facial expression and non-manual features – which they will demonstrate in their presentations.  

 

Year 3 - 6 will continue to explore calendar and time signs with a focus on travel, as well as sentence building and voiceless communication. Students will be analysing and categorising individual signs to determine their handshape, orientation, location and movement, this term (as timetable clashes prevented this in Term 3). Additionally, we will have the opportunity to create some bilingual versions of texts or specific signs.

 

I look forward to seeing all levels engaged in our Deaf-created and signed stories, and showcasing their signing skills in their individual presentations!

Performing Arts

Welcome to Term 4 in Performing Arts! This Semester students in years 3-6 will participate in Performing Arts sessions, with Tracey O’Connor taking the Years 3-5, and Molly Masters taking the Year 6s. 

Years 3-5 will focus on Music for term 4.

Year 3 will begin by revising reading and clapping rhythm patterns, and will then explore 3-beat and 4-beat music. Students will have the opportunity to play Boomwhackers and xylophones, which will develop their skills in reading notation and playing in time. Students will also listen to and reflect on different musical pieces over the term.

Year 4 will begin by revising reading and playing rhythm patterns in 3-beat and 4-beat time. They will then explore some of the elements of music, and use their understanding of these to create their own compositions. Students will learn the ‘Cup Song’, which will give them the opportunity to develop their skills in recording music, playing in time with others and creating their own rhythms. Students will also listen to and reflect on different musical pieces over the term.

Year 5 will begin with a focus on the elements of music, and they will use these understandings to compose their own pieces using Incredibox. Students will then try their hands at ‘bucket drumming’, and will work on developing their ability to read notation to play a short piece on the drums. Students will also listen to and reflect on different musical pieces over the term.

Year 6  - This term students will have a strong focus on how to communicate meaning by comparing drama from different social, cultural and historical contexts, including in the drama of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. They will end the term with practising improvisation as well as practising public speaking which will get them ready for secondary school.

 

STEMMS

 

It was great being back on deck teaching the children last term, even in a part time capacity. I am looking forward to being on deck as much as possible this term to consolidate our learnings and explore some exciting robots the students will use in all year levels.

Preps - We will continue our coding progress using the program Codespark/The Foos.  Here students will look at how computers see things using Binary Code 0’s & 1’s,  True or False.  The students will also look at patterns to loop programs.  To build on these coding skills the students will use Codeapillar, a coding caterpillar, where they will sequence the caterpillar to complete activities.  They will also be introduced to “cause and effect” whilst using the Codeapillar.  We will also look at some design and creativity using the app Puppet Pals.  Here students will design and create their own puppet show and then will share these with the class.

Year 1 - The students will build on their coding skills using a brand new robot-Botzees.  Students will program the robot using block code to enable it to perform certain actions and sequences.  They will also develop knowledge in conditional code - if and then, ie if my robot sees an obstacle then the robot will turn 180 degrees and move away.  Using Botzee the students will also explore AR-Augmented Reality and Botzee moves within AR.

Year 2 - The students will continue to design and construct using the Makedo Tools. Following this students will then use the Sphero Indi robots.  Here they will explore the colour coding cards, what they do and cause and effect they have on the Indi’s. They will use their coding skills to program the Indi’s to complete activities. 

Year 3 -  Students will be using the Lego WeDo 2.0 kits.  Here the students will build, modify and code their projects.  They will look at a variety of areas i.e. speed, pulling, sensors, lifting, tilting etc.  They will also create their own robots for certain tasks ie speed tests.  They will use the STEM process to imagine, design, test and modify their Lego robots.

Year 4 - Students will look at Push and Pull Machines, the science behind them, how they are used every day in our lives and will then build a variety of push/pull machines using Lego. Following this the students will continue their coding skills using Codebugs.  Here students will develop their knowledge of algorithms, precise instructions and debugging.  The students will use the Codebug to complete a variety of activities and then to develop their own program for the Codebug.

Year 5 - Students will be creating their own Podcast.  They will do research into what podcasts are used for, target audiences and what makes a successful podcast.  Students will then create their own podcast on a subject of their choice. They will use sound effects to add to their podcast and will create a podcast logo to help “sell” their podcast.  Students will also investigate electric circuits using the Littlebits kits.  Here they will look at components such as inputs, outputs, wires, switches and how they are to be used and in what order they need to be used for the circuits to be successful.

Year 6 - Students will continue their Game Design unit.  They will be looking at five different platforms to build their games.  Students will choose a platform most suitable for their game and will then modify their design so they can build a game for their target audience.  Following this, the students will be involved in using Drones.  Students will look at Federal Aviation requirements, safety, drone components and will then build their skills to code, race and manoeuvre their drones to complete tasks and courses.