News from our Specialists

Art

This term in Visual Arts, students will explore the imaginative world of illustration by drawing inspiration from celebrated illustrators, authors and storytellers. Through hands-on projects, they will experiment with various mediums and techniques to create their own artworks.

Students will delve into the vibrant collage techniques of Eric Carle, known for his painted tissue paper illustrations in books like The Very Hungry Caterpillar. We will also look at the rich traditions of Indigenous Australian art and use it as as a source of inspiration to create our own art pieces. Students will study symbols, patterns, and stories from Aboriginal cultures, understanding their significance and the ways they convey meaning. Through painting and drawing, they will create artworks that reflect these traditions, fostering respect and appreciation for Indigenous cultures.

Fairy tales offer another avenue for creative exploration. Students will design and construct paper sculptures of famous fairytale characters . This process will enhance their skills in three-dimensional design and narrative illustration.

Throughout the term, students will engage in activities that combine literature and visual art, encouraging them to see the connections between stories and images. We will continue to reflect and discuss our artwork, building on artistic vocab and presenting our work to an audience. 

Performing Arts

Due to our upcoming Production this term we will be exploring various aspects of drama. Students will learn how to project and alter their voices, improvise scenes and experiment with using their bodies to show different emotions.

Junior classes will continue to focus on tone colour and how to recognise our classroom instruments by sound. Year 1/2 classes will categorise instruments into groups: Idiophones, Membranophones, Chordophones and Aerophones.

Year 3/4 classes will build their notation reading skills as they learn how to play the recorder, earning coloured ribbons for each level they achieve. Understanding how to use the GarageBand app effectively will be part of their learning this term.

Year 5/6 students will develop their drama skills to a deeper level whilst demonstrating greater confidence, improvisation and cooperative group work. Their knowledge of GarageBand will be assessed by creating a sound track for a picture or simple story.

Busking for Change: raising funds for the Indigenous Literacy Foundation

This term the whole school will learn a song with some words in language entitled "Country Tells Us When".

We invite you to click on the link to find out more: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aa7ZnUx9g9E

Your family might like to make a donation to this worthy cause and learn the song together. It is hoped we can raise $250 by the end of term.  https://buskingforchange.ilf.org.au/o/donvale-primary-school 

At one of our assemblies later this term we will "busk" the song as a whole school!

Physical Education

Another jam packed term of PE at Donvale!

Our Grade 3-6's have begun by fine tuning their skills for the upcoming House Athletics Carnival, practicing their discus throwing, shot putting and high jumping. On the day, students will also participate in sprinting, hurdles, and long and triple jump. The rest of the term will see us developing our kicking skills, with soccer and footy our sports of focus. 

In the junior school the students will enjoy a variety of fun and healthy activities, including skipping, soccer, and athletics. These sessions are designed to continue building their coordination, teamwork, and overall fitness, all in a friendly and supportive environment.

On Monday of  Week  9, all junior students will participate in the brilliant KABOOM Carnival on the oval. This high‑energy celebration is packed with a range of colourful and exciting tabloid‑style sports activities, run by Kaboom Kid Sports. It's a great event to celebrate their growth in PE thus far.

To wrap up the term, across the whole school, we’re planning a final week of footy-themed drills and games, perfectly timed to celebrate and build excitement around the AFL Grand Final that takes place during the Term 3 holidays. It’s a spirited and fun way to bring the term to an energetic close.

Key PE Dates

Tuesday 5th August - House Athletics Carnival

Monday 8th September - District Athletics

Monday 15th September - Junior Athletics Day (KABOOM)

Wednesday 17th September - Grade 5/6 Hoop Time

Friday 19th September - Footy Colours Day

STEM

Our students across all year levels are embarking on a fascinating journey through the wonders of the human body this term in STEM. In the junior years we begin the journey with identifying and naming visible body parts, and learning how they help us move, eat, sleep, talk etc. Students are building on this, investigating how different external and some basic internal parts like the heart and stomach move and work together.

In the middle and senior years, students are diving into the amazing functions of major body systems, including the mighty skeletal system and the busy circulatory and digestive systems. Our middle and senior students are looking at the body as an incredible machine. Finding out how things work and trying to build some prototypes that replicate this. 

Across all grades, students are going to be actively participating in hands-on activities, building models, and conducting simple experiments to make exciting discoveries. They are developing essential science inquiry skills by asking insightful questions, making careful observations, and communicating their newfound knowledge. This term's STEM exploration is deeply helping our students understand themselves and how to stay healthy.

Mandarin

Foundation:

In Term 3, students will be introduced to the new topic of ‘Colours’ and will further develop their ability to understand classroom instructions in Chinese. They will learn 12 different colour names and be able to express their favourite colour, as well as describe the favourite colours of their family members by combining family-related vocabulary with colour words. As part of their learning, students will create a Chinese colour fish and paint their own house pictures using the Chinese colour words they have learned in class.

Grade 1/2:

In Term 3, students will be learning about ‘Classroom Objects’ in Chinese. Depending on their ability, they will learn between 10 to 17 commonly used classroom words through simple sentence structures and interactive activities such as word searches and memory games. Students will colour vocabulary pages, cut out their own vocabulary sets, and create a school-themed spin wheel to reinforce their learning. They will also learn to play Rock–Paper–Scissors in Chinese, adding a fun and cultural element to their lessons.

Grade 3/4:

In Term 3, students will explore the topic of ‘My Daily Routine and Activities’ in Chinese. Building on their previous knowledge of telling the time and using time-related words such as ‘morning’, ‘afternoon’, and ‘evening’, students will learn to describe a typical day in Chinese. They will practice using time expressions alongside common daily activities to discuss their own routines through speaking, listening, and writing tasks.

Grade 5/6:

In Term 3, students will explore traditional Chinese food through the five regional cuisines of China. They will learn about the unique flavours and features of each region's signature dishes, supported by authentic food-related videos. Students will also practise building sentences using food vocabulary, combining both Eastern and Western food names with different subjects and verbs. The unit will finish with a restaurant role-play where students practise ordering food in Chinese.