Round the classes 

Reception class: Jess

This term, our class has been having a fantastic time learning about 2D shapes! We've explored the school grounds, discovering various shapes and discussing their uses in our everyday lives. Recently, we visited the kindy to share a song together, fostering wonderful interactions between our students and the younger ones. It was heartwarming to see them play and connect in such a meaningful way.  We look forward to continuing these visits throughout the term, creating more opportunity for collaboration and fun.  

Reception class: Kelly

We are straight back into our learning. It has been great having two second year preservice teachers, Amy and Caitlin, in the classroom. 

The first week the students worked on a narrative story about a dragon. It has been wonderful seeing the children create their own stories.

In phonics we have been learning the sound digraphs wh (whale) and ai (rain). The children have been working hard of sounding out, identifying words and spelling words using these sounds.

In maths we have started addition and subtraction. The children have been playing some games to help with counting on from the largest number and taking away from the largest number. 

Year 1 class: Jaya

Cubby Building at Belair National Park

The year one class spend Monday of week 2 in Belair National Park, participating in a Cubby Building day run by Nature Play SA. We had such a wonderful day building, constructing, and engaging in lots of creative play. Using natural materials such as sticks and logs, groups were challenged to plan out, design and construct their own cubby structures. They used tarps, pieces of hessian and dowel and ropes to add weather proofing, verandas and even storage spaces! Each group showed fabulous communication and collaboration, overcoming challenges, and coming up with different ideas. We got to enjoy a picnic lunch in our cubbies once they were finished. 

A highlight of the day was learning about bandicoots; their habitats, and how we can help protect them in our local environment. We created small bandicoot homes using small sticks, bark and leaves. 

The sunny weather made it an ideal day to explore and create in the peaceful surroundings of the national park— a lovely way to kick off Term 4!  

Thank you to Sam Fatchen, Touraya Nicol and David Newman for helping us on our excursion.    

Year 2 class: Samantha

This fortnight, our learning journey has been focused on understanding the structure of information reports. We have likened the structure to a building, where each subheading represents a different level. This analogy has helped the students grasp how to organise information effectively!

In our HASS and Design and Technology lessons, we’ve been buzzing with excitement as we dive into the world of bees! We’ve explored what types of flowers attract bees and how important they are to our environment. Throughout the term, we will continue to learn about bees and their vital role in pollination.

As part of this project, we will be designing our own bee gardens, carefully selecting specific plants and flowers to create a sustainable habitat for these essential pollinators. We believe that by nurturing our understanding of bees, we can help support their survival and contribute positively to our planet.

Below are some photos of our class engaged in research on pollination and how it works. The students are eager to share their newfound knowledge!

Year 3 class: Stephen and Emma

We are currently spending lots of time revising our understanding of the different writing genres. We are making sure we meet success criteria including adding detail to texts, writing with paragraphs, and understanding the purpose behind each of the genres.  

In maths we have continued learning about money.  This has entailed being able to divide up given amounts equally for people and giving change.  

We have also spent some time this week preparing artwork for display at the Uraidla Show. 

 For HASS we have been learning about democracy as system of government and its importance in our current world.  

Year 4/5 class: Alex

This fortnight students have been looking at the artwork of Australian Artist Nike Savvas. As a class we have been exploring her geometic artwork made with string, which she painstakingly crafts using mathematical algorithms.                 

We have taken inspiration from her work to begin creating art pieces for the Uraidla show. Students have been using a circle template with 16 evenly- spaced points to create a design of straight colourful lines that follows a mathematical pattern of their choice. Students have then selected their favourite designs to bring to life using black card as a base to stitch their design onto using wool. 

Year 5/6 class: Sallie

Can you believe we are already 2 weeks into term 4?  Holidays are already a distant memory. 

In English we have been focusing on different ways to take notes and looking at the features of an information report. Our final assessment writing piece will be an information report on bower birds. 

In maths we have been doing some geometry with a strong emphasis on angles (more to come). We have started a new Makers Empires challenge  ( Making Money) which is helping us to become conscientious consumers. Students will plan and design something that will help them save money (previous examples include a timer for the shower to limit water usage). 

In HASS we have started looking at our government with the fist area being "The Constitution". We are planning to design a new cover for the Constitution since the original dates back to 1900. 

The photos attached are of the Year 6 excursion to Cleland National Park where students collected, pressed and classified a variety of native and non-native plants. Thanks to Peter Geer for organising, Jess from the Hills Environment Centre, Don and Katrina for volunteering to spend time with the students and share their knowledge of our local bushland. Thank you Vanessa, Corinne, Jo and Di Badenoch for driving and guiding students. 

Indonesian: Ibu Susan

In Indonesian we have started our focus on numbers. The year 5/6 students are busy writing role-plays all about shopping. The younger classes are using the word berapa? (how many?) to practise counting. Alex’s students have also started a Quiz Quest challenge to answer lots of interesting questions about Indonesia. We have also welcomed 2 new teddies - Pak Harimau and Kucing.

Science: Philippa 

Science Weeks 1 and 2

Sallie and Alex's Classes

Students did assessments about animal adaptations and lessons on stick insects and earthworms. The Biology topic for the rest of the term is about mould and fungi - the unit is called 'Mould Madness'.

Stephen and Emma's Class

Students wrote an information report about stick insects. The Earth and Space topic for this term will be day and night.

Sam's Class

We started with two biology lessons about stick insects and earthworms. For the rest of the term we will follow an Earth and Space unit called 'Our Place in Space' and students will learn about the Solar System.

Reception and Year 1 Classes

These students also did lessons on stick insects and earthworms to start the term. They will be learning about weather for the rest of the term.

I'm looking forward to teaching some fun and informative science activities to finish off the school year!

Philippa

PE: Emma

Lower Primary

Our focus this fortnight in upper and lower primary PE has revolved around the skills and practises of basketball. Lower primary has been learning the cues of dribbling a ball, including using finger pads, keeping the ball at waist level with their eyes up. Our inclusive games have incorporated these skills and students have demonstrated incredible teamwork and motivation during the lessons!

Upper Primary

Students in upper primary have been fine-tuning their skills in dribbling and shooting. Our focus during shooting activities has been to keep balanced, direct our eyes to the back of the basketball rim, make sure our elbows are below the ball and to follow-through with the ball, snapping the wrist on release. Students have enjoyed shooting from targets and reaching their personal best goals. Encouragement and positive communication have been the emphasis during this fortnights practices and students have applied this effortlessly!