Year 1

English

Reading 

During Term 2, the Grade 1 students have learnt about asking questions before, during and after reading. They have learnt that the purpose of questioning when reading is to support their understanding of what they read. Students have had the opportunity to identify their prior knowledge about a text topic and share their wonderings about texts. Students have been supported to continue asking questions and sharing their wonderings about texts during and after reading as well. Throughout this unit students have also worked on answering their questions whilst reading. Students have learnt how to use questioning to improve their understanding of new and technical vocabulary that might appear within texts that they read. 

The Grade 1 students have furthered their learning of retelling from last term and have continued to develop strategies to retell fiction and nonfiction texts. Students have made meaningful connections to texts through connecting what they have read to their own experiences or other texts. Students have developed an understanding of text features of different text types and are beginning to identify and use these when reading. Throughout their reading lessons, students have continued to work on fluency, word solving and phonological awareness to improve their reading of just right texts. 

Writing 

Grade 1 students started the Term 2 looking at Information Reports. Students learnt that information reports contain facts about a specific topic. They were also introduced to the structure of an information report such as title, classification, facts and diagrams. Students were given multiple opportunities to learn new information about different topics and were supported through the writing process. They made a number of booklets where they recorded facts about different topics and added diagrams to match. Towards the end of Term 2, students spent a few weeks looking at Procedural Texts. Students participated in a range of procedures and then worked together to write them up. They learnt to understand that procedural texts include a title, goal, materials and steps. 

Mathematics

Grade 1 students began looking at Australian coins, where they learnt about the features and values of each coin. They practiced ordering money and understood that different items are worth different amounts of money. Our number unit for the term was Addition and Subtraction. Students explored and practised a range of strategies; count all, count on and the use of known facts of tens and doubles to solve simple addition and subtraction problems. The students also explored using informal units of measure to estimate, measure and compare the length of different objects, whilst following the golden rules of measurement e.g. no gaps while measuring. They explored different 2D shapes, where they identified shapes around the school, learned about their features and sorted them into groups by their features (sides, corners, edges).

Inquiry

During Term 2, students worked through the unit ‘Lean on Me’ in which the students explored and described their personal interests, skills and achievements and reflected on how these might contribute to their school or home life. Students focused on understanding how to develop and keep positive relationships, different types of relationships they can have and how they can  resolve conflict in a positive and respectful way.  They demonstrated ways to interact with and care for others in group tasks as well as practised solving simple problems and recognised there are many ways to resolve conflict. 

Science

Over the course of Term 2, Grade 1 students have focused on the Earth and Space Science strand where they learned about the features in our environment, both land and sky, and observed the constant changes that occur.

Students looked closely at our school and local surroundings and learned the difference between man-made features, managed features and natural features that occur in our environment. Students identified natural changes that take place in the sky, focusing on the sun's changing position and the phases of the moon. Students will finish the unit by exploring how animals are affected by changes in the weather and investigating why some animals hibernate.  

LOTE - Chinese

During Term 2 in Chinese, Grade1 students learnt basic colours in Chinese, such as 黑色hei se (black), 白色bai se（white), 红色hong se (red),绿色(green), 蓝色lan se (Blue) and 黄色 huang se (yellow).  They started using iPad game (Blooket) to review their learning. Also Grade1s continued to learn numbers 1-10 in Chinese characters and pronunciation , together with pinyin song and Gongxi Gongxi song.

Art

In Art, Grade 1’s learnt about the element of line and shape. Students explored how to form different types of lines (straight, wavy, curly, zigzag and spiral) to create shapes. Applying these lines provided opportunities for students to create illustrations and make connections, for example; drawing wavy lines can create waves in a sea landscape. Grade 1’s analysed artworks and identified the type of lines and shapes used to create specific drawings. They also explained the lines and shapes they used to create their own artworks.  Students used different mediums such as pencils, paint and clay to create their art pieces which demonstrated their expression and creativity. Well done on a great Term 2, Grade 1’s!

P.E

What a fantastic Term 2, Grade 1 have had in Physical Education. It has been wonderful to see the enthusiasm and the growth in the level of skill of the students. This term, our focus has been on basketball and athletics. During Term 1, the students were introduced to the correct form and technique for throwing and catching. During Term 2, the activities have involved passing, dribbling and shooting the ball, as well as running, leaping and dodging. The students have applied all of these skills to the game of basketball. Grade 1’s have also participated in various athletic events which showcased their running, throwing and catching skills. These events included short distance running, relay running, discus, shotput and hurdles.  We’ve done lots of learning and had lots of fun. Thank you for your impressive efforts this term, Grade 1!